In mid-June, I dropped my mom off at the airport one Monday for her evening flight back home. After our jam-packed weekend, I completely lacked the energy to cook, so I stopped by Panera on my way back to grab a healthy salad.
Upon ordering, I sat down on a cushioned bench in their lobby to wait for my takeout meal. While the restaurant staff tossed together my fresh vegetables and lettuce, I scribbled down a quick shopping list, planning to stop by the grocery store across the street before driving home.
With just a few minutes before my stomach started growling as loudly as an airplane engine during takeoff, I quickly strode into the store, intending to power walk to the baking aisle and leave less than 5 minutes later, but…
The fresh produce display caught my eye as soon as I entered the store. “$0.99 per pint of blueberries!” shouted the bright yellow sale sign. With their plump and juicy appearance, it seemed a shame to pass them by… So I grabbed three packages and brainstormed what to make as I finished my grocery shopping.
After how deliciously these cupcakes turned out last week, I immediately decided to bake another flavor—and these Healthy Blueberry Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting were the result! The incredibly sweet and juicy berries pair perfectly with the ever-so-slightly tangy frosting… And with no butter, refined flour or sugar and only 130 calories, they truly taste like a dream come true!
Even better? They’re supremely easy to make! You can see how in my video below!
And before you get started, let’s go over a few key ingredients… Starting with the white whole wheat flour (like this!). Yes, such a thing actually exists! It’s made by finely grinding a special type of soft white wheat (hence the name!), whereas regular whole wheat flour comes from a heartier variety of red wheat. White whole wheat flour has a lighter taste and texture, similar to all purpose flour’s, but it still has the same health benefits (like extra fiber and nutrients!) as regular whole wheat flour.
Note: I included my favorite gluten-free substitute in the Notes section of the recipe, if you prefer!
With only 1 tablespoon of coconut oil, the rest of these cupcakes’ tender texture comes from Greek yogurt. It’s a true magician in baking recipes! Greek yogurt provides the same moisture as extra butter or oil for a fraction of the calories, and it gives your cupcakes a protein boost, too!
Then you’ll use one of my favorite ingredients to sweeten them: vanilla crème stevia. Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener, and it contains nothing refined or artificial (which makes it clean-eating friendly!). This is the kind I use because I love its warm vanilla flavor and don’t detect any strange aftertaste. Although many health-oriented grocery stores stock it, I buy mine online here because that’s the cheapest price I’ve found. (And you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!)
Before dolloping your batter into the pan, remember to coat your cupcake liners with cooking spray! Low-fat batter sticks to liners like superglue, so this nifty trick ensures the liners peel away from your cupcakes just like normal—without half of your cupcake stuck to it!
And now for the frosting… It’s a mix of more Greek yogurt, light cream cheese, a little more vanilla crème stevia, and instant pudding mix. I know it sounds strange, but this instant pudding mix is a key ingredient! It makes the frosting stiff enough to pipe on top of your cupcakes in beautiful chic swirls.
Hint: If you can’t find this instant pudding mix, then use this cream cheese frosting recipe of mine instead!
Excited to make your own dreamy cupcakes? And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! ?) I’d love to see your cupcakes and feature them in my Sunday Spotlight series!
| Healthy Blueberry Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting {Recipe Video!} | | Print |
- for the cupcakes
- 2 cups (240g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp (14g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted
- 2 large egg whites, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 ¾ tsp vanilla crème stevia
- ½ cup (120g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- ¾ cup (180mL) nonfat milk
- 1 cup (140g) fresh blueberries
- for the frosting
- 1 cup (240g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 8 oz (1 block) light or fat-free cream cheese, well softened
- 2 servings (16g) sugar-free, fat-free instant vanilla pudding mix (see Notes)
- ⅝ tsp vanilla crème stevia, or adjusted to taste
- To prepare the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners, and coat the liners with cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, egg whites, vanilla, and vanilla crème stevia. Stir in the Greek yogurt. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and the milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour mixture in 4 equal parts.) Gently fold in the blueberries.
- Divide the batter between the prepared paper liners. Bake at 350°F for 18-21 minutes or until the centers feel firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- While the cupcakes bake, prepare the frosting. Add the Greek yogurt, cream cheese, instant pudding, and vanilla crème stevia to a large bowl. Beat with an electric mixer for 2 minutes. Cover the top of the bowl with foil, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Once the cupcakes have completely cooled, pipe the cream cheese frosting on top just before serving.
Whole wheat pastry flour, regular whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour.
I highly recommend using the vanilla crème stevia! It’s one of my favorite ingredients (you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine!), and I buy it online here because that’s the cheapest price I’ve found. If you prefer not to use stevia in the cupcakes, substitute ¾ cup (180mL) of agave, honey, or pure maple syrup for the vanilla crème stevia. Omit the milk. (The batter should be fairly thick, similar to muffin batter.) If you prefer not to use the vanilla crème stevia in the frosting, then substitute 1 ½ teaspoons of this powdered stevia OR ¼ cup of Truvia or granulated sugar.
Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.
Frozen blueberries may be substituted for the fresh, although they will stain the batter a light gray color, and the baking time will increase slightly.
You just need the dry instant pudding mix—don’t prepare it according to the package directions! For a more classic spreadable (not pipe-able) cream cheese frosting that does NOT use instant pudding (and is clean-eating friendly), use this recipe of mine.
{gluten-free, clean eating option, low fat, low sugar}
View Nutrition Information
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Healthy Banana Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
♡ The Ultimate Healthy Dark Chocolate Cupcakes
♡ Healthy Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
♡ Healthy Mini Dark Chocolate Banana Cupcakes
♡ Healthy Gingerbread Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
♡ Healthy Lemon Cupcakes with Raspberry Vanilla Frosting
♡ Greek Yogurt Blueberry Lemon Pound Cake
hello…I want to be able to bake without using sugar, can I replace the sugar by honey and could I replace the stevia by honey….thank you…
I’ve answered that question already in the Notes section, underneath the Instructions! It can be easy to miss. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these cupcakes Antoinette!
Hi Amy! I love your recipes! This looks like another winner! I would like to be able to boost up the protein in my treats by using protein powder. Can I sub whey or casein for some of the flour?
thank you
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Angela! Protein powder won’t work in these cupcakes, but they already have nearly 10g of protein! 🙂 If you’d prefer to use whey protein powder in treats, then I recommend my protein muffin recipes instead. I’d love to hear what you think if you try these cupcakes or the muffins!
Can I use this recipe to make a cake using an 11×17 pan without changing anything?
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Jennifer! There isn’t quite enough batter in this recipe to fill an 11×17″ baking pan, unless you want to make a really thin cake (I’m guessing it would be about ½” tall). Since I haven’t tried doubling or tripling the recipe to bake in a larger cake pan, I’m not entirely sure how that would turn out, but that’d probably be a good place to start if you’d like to try! 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you try this recipe!
How many calories will you say is in one cupcake?
I’ve actually included the full nutrition information (including the calorie count!) directly underneath the recipe. I know it can be easy to miss! 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you try these cupcakes Sonia!
Can you replace the blueberries with strawberries?
Yes, that should work! I recommend cutting the strawberries to be no larger than the size of blueberries to make sure these cupcakes bake evenly. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of them Cathy!
What do you mean by 2 servings of the instant pudding? Is that one 96g packet?
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Audrey! You just need the dry instant pudding mix. Don’t prepare it according to the box’s instructions or use the snack cups of already prepared pudding! If you click on the link to the instant pudding mix in the Instructions list (my links are the pink colored font!), then you can see the exact instant pudding mix that I used. Two servings of that is 16g, or half of one box. 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you try making these cupcakes!
Can I replace the flour with Coconut flour?
I’m honored that you’d like to try this recipe, Mel! Unfortunately, coconut flour won’t work. It makes the batter too dry and crumbly to hold together. However, if your main goal is to make these gluten-free, then I know the alternative that I’ve provided in the Notes section of the recipe will work! Otherwise, you can find all of my recipes that use coconut flour here, if that’s the only flour you have on hand right now. (I know how hard it is to find certain ingredients at grocery stores these days!) 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think of these cupcakes if you decide to try making them!