Strawberry-Olive Oil Corn Cake (High-Protein, Lightened)

Why this version is better

Per serving: ~31 fewer calories, protein more than doubles from 4.5g to ~9.8g (moving toward the 20g+ goal across a 2-serving portion), fat drops by ~4.4g, and carbs drop by ~4.7g. This makes the cake meaningfully more protein-dense while remaining vegetarian. The recipe does not fully reach 20g protein per single slice given the cake's dessert format, but doubling up portions or pairing with Greek yogurt would meet the goal.

Cooking note: Replacing half the all-purpose flour with oat flour and adding vanilla protein powder increases protein significantly. Reducing butter from ½ cup to 3 tablespoons and replacing whole milk with unsweetened almond milk cuts fat meaningfully. The reduction in cane sugar from 1 cup to ¾ cup lowers carbs. Since we are reducing total liquid fat (butter), the batter hydration remains balanced because almond milk has a similar water content to whole milk. The protein powder adds some dry bulk, so we compensate by slightly increasing liquid. No wet-for-dry swaps occur that would destabilize the batter chemistry.