If you love king cake but you’re also keeping an eye on nutrition, we’ve got the best and worst king cake finds. Molly’s “Love it” top picks have little or no added sugar, naturally gluten-free — and they’re tasty, too!
LOVE IT!
Eat Fit King Cake | $12.99 bundt-style king cake
- Low carb, keto friendly, no sugar added, only 2 grams net carbs per serving
- Gluten free, grain free, dairy free
- Ingredients include cage free eggs, non-GMO almond flour, coconut flour, coconut milk, coconut oil, Swerve, vegetable-based food coloring.
- Nutrition Facts per serving (8 servings per cake): 160 calories, 5 grams plant-based saturated fat, 2 grams net carbs, 1 gram fiber, 0 sugar, 5 grams protein.
- Where to buy: Robert Fresh Market, Langenstein’s, Whole Foods Market, Home Malone, select PJ’s Coffee, FUEL Cafe + Market at Ochsner Fitness Center, Ochsner Pharmacy & Wellness, Earthsavers, Alexander’s Market in Baton Rouge. Full list of retailers here.
Green Fork King Cake | $40 full-size king cake
- Gluten free, grain free, dairy free, low sugar, Eat Fit approved
- Nutrition Facts per serving (12 servings per cake): 165 calories, 10 grams fat, 7.5 grams saturated fat, 14 grams carbohydrate, 3 grams fiber, 7.3 grams sugar (3 grams added sugar), 4.5 grams protein.
- Ingredients include bananas, eggs, coconut milk, coconut oil, coconut flour, stevia a small amount of maple syrup, vegetable-based food coloring. Varieties include Cinnamon, Blueberry Lemon, Dark Chocolate Banana.
- Where to buy: Available at Green Fork locations; two-day notice required for orders.
PJ’s Eat Fit Skinny King Cake Protein Velvet Ice
- High-protein frozen blended coffee drink with less than a teaspoon of added sugar
- Per 16-oz: 230 calories, 22 grams carb, 8 grams sugar (3 grams added sugar), 21 grams protein.
Girls Gone Vegan | $40 full-size king cake
- Gluten free, dairy free, vegan, low sugar, Eat Fit approved
- Ingredients include brown rice flour, oat flour, tapioca flour, cashews, coconut oil, stevia, vegetable-based food coloring.
- Nutrition Facts per serving (12 servings per king cake): 230 calories, 11 grams fat, 5 grams plant-based saturated fat, 31 grams carbohydrate, 3 grams fiber, 1 gram sugar (0 added sugar), 4 grams protein
- Where to buy: Online at GirlsGoneVeganNola.com; available only on Saturdays.
DIY King Cake MONKEY BREAD by Ben of Swerve
LIKE IT!
Breads on Oak Organic Traditional Cinnamon King Cake | $22 full-size king cake
- Vegan and organic, made with organic flour and sugar
- It’s not gluten free nor low in sugar, but also that it has the look, flavor and texture most like that of a regular, traditional king cake.
- Ingredients include: Organic white flour, organic raw sugar, plant-based milk, sea salt and vegetable-based food coloring.
- Nutrition Facts per serving: Unavailable
- Where to buy: Breads on Oak king cakes are available at their café seven days a week
HATE IT!
Regular King Cake | nearly all are made with primarily white flour + sugar, plus artificial food dyes (e.g. red 40, yellow 5 & 6, blue 1)
KING CAKE SIZE REMINDER: you won’t always find a nutrition facts label on a king cake box, so here’s our annual king cake calorie cheat sheet to figure out how many calories are really in that slice! Note: Nutrition stats based on lightly glazed king cake. Heavier frosting will mean more sugary calories.
1” slice (diameter of quarter): 100 calories, 3 grams fat, 5 grams carbs, 8-10 grams sugar
3” slice (width of iPhone): 300 calories, 9 grams fat, 45 grams carbs, 34-30 grams sugar
6” slice (length of dollar bill): 600 calories, 18 grams fat, 90 grams carbs, 48-60 grams sugar
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Want more from Molly? Click here to sign up for Nutrition Bites, the Eat Fit weekly e-newsletter with links to her Get the Skinny TV segments here on WGNO, and her articles in Thrive Global! Follow Molly on Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram: @MollyKimballRD – and check out her weekly podcast, FUELED Wellness + Nutrition with Molly; just search ‘Molly Kimball’ on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app.