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My healthy cupcakes recipe makes the perfect moist, fluffy, chocolatey cupcakes. With a ridiculously creamy frosting, no one can resist them. Seriously.
Healthy cupcakes that taste indulgent.
If you need a healthy chocolate fix, try my easy and delicious healthy cupcakes. They’re made with wholesome, good-for-you ingredients, yet you’d never know how good they taste!
They use simple ingredients and are made in just one bowl. I regularly make them for my family and it satisfies their cupcake fix.
Looking for more healthy desserts? Try my healthy brownies, healthy Snickers, and healthy donuts next.
Key Ingredients
- Flour. I use white whole wheat flour, which is a healthier alternative to all-purpose flour. Wholewheat flour and white flour can also be used.
- Cocoa powder. Unsweetened and sugar-free cocoa powder. Use dark cocoa powder for an even richer chocolate flavor.
- Granulated sweetener of choice. Any zero-calorie baking sweetener can be used. Monk fruit sweetener, allulose, and baking stevia all work. If I’m not watching the sugar intake, I often use white or brown sugar.
- Baking soda. Gives some rise to the cake and works with the vinegar to replicate what eggs would traditionally do.
- Salt. Brings out the sweetness of the cupcakes.
- Vinegar. White vinegar or apple cider vinegar. Avoid using red wine vinegar as the flavor can be overpowering.
- Vanilla extract. A must for any good cupcake!
- Unsweetened applesauce. A fabulous replacement for butter and oil. It keeps the cupcakes moist in the middle while keeping the calories low.
- Water. To mix everything together and form a smooth batter.
- Frosting– What is a cupcake without frosting? I like to use a healthy frosting.
How to make healthy cupcakes
I’ve included step-by-step photos below to make this recipe easy to follow at home. For the full printable recipe instructions and ingredient quantities, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Make the batter. In a large mixing bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, combine the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients and mix until a thick batter forms.
Distribute. Pour the cupcake batter into the 12 muffin liners.
Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a skewer comes out mostly clean.
Cool and frost. Remove the cupcakes from the oven and let them cool in the tin for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack and piping the frosting on top.
Arman’s recipe tips
- Use room temperature ingredients. Not only will it make mixing the batter easier, but it’ll help guarantee soft, fluffy cupcakes.
- Make richer cupcakes. For extra moist, rich cupcakes, replace half the applesauce with vegetable oil. It will add some fat, but it’ll transform the texture.
- Enhance the chocolate flavor. Add a pinch of espresso powder, or swap the water with strongly brewed coffee. Trust me, you won’t be able to taste the coffee, but it’ll intensify the chocolate flavor.
- Don’t overbake. The cupcakes will keep cooking briefly as they cool down, so remove them from the oven as soon as a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
More healthy dessert recipes to try
- Low calorie banana bread
- Healthy chocolate cake
- Healthy lemon bars
- Healthy chocolate muffins
- Healthy carrot cake
Healthy Cupcakes
Video
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour can use all purpose or wholewheat flour
- 1 cup granulated sweetener I used allulose * See notes
- 3 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon vinegar
- 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce * See notes
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup healthy frosting
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Line a 12-count muffin tin with muffin liners and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sweetener, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the vanilla, vinegar, applesauce, and water, and mix until a thick batter remains.
- Distribute the cupcake batter amongst the 12 muffin liners and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a skewer comes out mostly clean.
- Remove the cupcakes from the oven and let them cool in the tin for 10 minutes, before carefully transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cooled, pipe the frosting on top of each one.
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published February 2021, updated and republished December 2024
Well these cupcakes. I cannot believe its so healthy ingredients!
Came to this recipe as I wanted low calorie sweets.
Didn’t have wholemeal flour, so used plain flour
Didn’t have applesauce so substituted with greek yoghurt (same quantity)
Halved the sugar content (used monk fruit)
Added a drizzle of oil
Added in choc chips
Did not need the icing
Tasting pretty good!
Sososo good! Used all purpose flour because that’s what I had, and paired with the icing, it’s going to be my go to now! My picky 5 year old loved them too (but not the icing lol)!
My daughter is on a minimal fat diet because she had chylothorax after heart surgery. These are delicious! Now she is asking if we can make vanilla cupcakes. Could I just omit the cocoa powder in these?
I try a lot of healthy dessert recipes with my 4 year old. A lot are not really appetizing to her as a sweet treat. She loves these! So do I. These are very delicious. This recipe is a keeper.
Thank you for sharing!
Just made these with my toddler.
So grateful to find a recipe where she can eat the batter as she goes and the cupcakes won’t send her on a crazy sugar high.
Great recipe, thank you!
Want to make this recipe as a mini muffin. ? Calorie count per cupcake woyld be? ? cooking time change?
Thanks
Anndrea
Not sure- You can use myfitnesspal to calculate and reduce the cooking time.
The cupcakes and cakes look yummy 🤤
Hi does the calorie count include the frosting as well? Thank you!
It sure does!
Can you substitute the whole wheat flour with almond flour? I would think that lowers the carb content but might not taste right.
I haven’t tried- I have almond flour cupcakes on my site you may like instead!
Will be making this soon for my birthday on 19 Septemeber will dm you if i make this and let you know how it goes Thanks Ramya