A couple of years ago, one of my best friends came over for an afternoon of cake decorating. I had bought Amanda’s online class (she’s the talented blogger behind I Am Baker!), and we planned to go through each of the tutorials to learn as many techniques as we could.
Since my friend previously worked in a bakery, she already owned most of the necessary equipment (aka many tips and piping bags!), and she whipped up a big batch of buttercream ahead of time. I baked lots of cake layers and cupcakes, so when that afternoon arrived, we were totally prepared.
We watched Amanda’s videos on how to pipe with round tips, star tips, petal tips, and more. She demonstrated rosettes, ruffles, seashells, pushed petals, Chantilly lace designs… All while making everything look so easy!
With her prior bakery experience, my friend picked up many of the piping techniques right away, but me… As an overachieving perfectionist, it took me five times as long to finally make my rosettes and pushed petals look presentable. And I ran out of time to even attempt the others!
Learning more (and getting better!) at cake decorating is still on my baking bucket list… But for now, I’m sticking with easier endeavors, like these Healthy Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting! They’re full of warm and fuzzy fall flavors, like sweet pumpkin and cozy spices, and those stunning swirls of delicious cream cheese frosting are much easier to achieve than you’d think!
Hint: If I can do it… I know you can too! ?
But before I get too far ahead of myself… Let’s start with the guilt-free pumpkin cupcakes! You just need two bowls and a fork—no mixer required! Bonus points if your mixing bowls are dishwasher safe. I’m a super happy girl when there are fewer dishes to wash!
You’ll begin with white whole wheat flour (like this!), which has the exact same health benefits as regular whole wheat flour but a lighter taste and texture. That difference really helps the tender texture and sweet pumpkin flavors shine! You’ll also whisk in plenty of spices: cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves.
Why is it that that those spices always smell so irresistible?? Do you know? I just purchased two pumpkin spice scented candles last week… And I’m already planning on buying more. I love how their cozy smell wafts throughout my entire house!
Anyway… Moving on…
You’ll only use a minuscule ½ tablespoon of butter or coconut oil in the entire dozen cupcakes… Because the rest of their tender texture comes from a combination of pumpkin purée (like this… not pumpkin pie mix!) and Greek yogurt. You know how much I ♡ both ingredients! Greek yogurt adds the same moisture to the batter as extra butter or oil for a fraction of the calories, and it gives your baked treats a protein boost, too!
As for the pumpkin… My blog should be renamed to “Amy’s Healthy Pumpkin Baking” every fall. It’s my favorite flavor—and I’m totally Team Pumpkin all year round! ??
To sweeten your cupcakes, you’ll skip the refined sugar and use vanilla stevia instead, another one of my favorite ingredients. Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that contains nothing overly refined or artificial (aka it’s clean-eating friendly!). This is the kind I use because I love its warm flavor and don’t notice any strange aftertaste like with some other stevia products. Although many health-oriented grocery stores stock it, I buy mine online here because that’s the best price I’ve found. (And you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!)
One last thing before we move on to the frosting! You must coat your cupcake liners with cooking spray before adding in the batter. Low-fat batters stick to cupcake liners like superglue, so this nifty little trick ensures that the cupcake liners peel away just like with normal, full-fat recipes!
Now for those gorgeous frosting swirls… ? This frosting is super simple to make! You just beat Greek yogurt, light cream cheese, more vanilla stevia, and a little instant pudding mix together in a bowl until it turns really thick and creamy. Then pop it in the fridge to chill for a few hours.
Yes, that’s it!
The instant pudding mix is what thickens the frosting to a pipe-able consistency. You can omit it… But then you’ll have to spread your frosting on top of your cupcakes instead. Just as yummy, I promise! Just not quite as stunning as those swirls!
I’m a little embarrassed at how many of these I’ve already eaten… They’re just that good! ? 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 Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting | | Print |
- for the cupcakes
- 2 ¼ cups (270g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 2 ¾ tsp homemade pumpkin spice (see Notes)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tbsp (7g) coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted
- 2 large egg whites, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp (15mL) vanilla stevia
- ¾ cup (183g) pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie mix!)
- ¼ cup (60g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 10 tbsp (150mL) nonfat milk
- 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 cheesecake pudding mix (see Notes)
- ⅝ tsp vanilla 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, pumpkin spice, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, egg whites, vanilla, and vanilla stevia. Stir in the pumpkin purée and 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 3 equal parts.)
- Divide the batter between the prepared paper liners. Bake at 350°F for 19-21 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 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.
For the homemade pumpkin spice, use as follows: 1 ¾ teaspoons ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, and ¼ teaspoon ground cloves. Store-bought pumpkin spice will also work, if you prefer.
I highly recommend using the vanilla 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 stevia. Omit the milk. (The batter should be fairly thick, similar to muffin batter.) If you prefer not to use the vanilla 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.
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, lower sugar, higher protein}
View Nutrition Information
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Healthy Pumpkin Cake + Cream Cheese Frosting
♡ Healthy Gingerbread Cupcakes + Cream Cheese Frosting
♡ Greek Yogurt Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Pound Cake
♡ Healthy Banana Cupcakes + Cream Cheese Frosting
♡ Healthy Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
♡ Healthier Carrot Cake Cupcakes + Cream Cheese Frosting
♡ …and the rest of Amy’s healthy pumpkin recipes!
Hi Amy. This sounds amazing, I want a healthy recipe to make for my 1 year old’s birthday party. I also do not want to use the pudding mix in the frosting. Do you think adding some cornstarch to the frosting would thicken it enough? I’m so happy to have found your blog, I need to get on the healthy track and I just love baking so much.
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Cindy! I’m so honored that you’d like to make these cupcakes to celebrate such a special occasion. That means the world to me! 🙂 Unfortunately, regular cornstarch won’t work. This is because regular cornstarch needs to be heated in order to activate its thickening properties. If you’d rather not use instant pudding mix, then use the frosting recipe that I’ve linked to at the bottom of the Notes section of the recipe (located directly underneath the Instructions — I know it can be easy to miss!). 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think of these cupcakes, and happy first birthday to your little one!!
Can you make an eggless version? These sound awesome!!! I’m so excited to try them! I love the idea of liquid stevia!
I’m honored by your interest in my recipe, Pam! My brother is actually allergic to eggs, and Ener-G is my favorite substitute. Ener-G is a shelf-stable powder that keeps for ages. It works perfectly as an egg replacer in nearly all of my recipes, including this one! For my recipes, use 1 ½ teaspoons Ener-G + 2 tablespoons warm water for each egg white (and you’ll need an additional ½ tablespoon of butter or coconut oil {or Earth Balance, if you’re vegan!} for each egg yolk, although that doesn’t apply to this particular recipe!). I’d love to hear what you think of these cupcakes if you try making them!
I’m excited to try this, but confused with instructions of pudding mix…Am I supposed to make the pudding or just use the powder? One box is 1oz/28g powder, and 4 servings – 1/2 cup each.
I’m honored that you’d like to try my recipe, Ash! I’ve actually answered this exact question in the Notes section of the recipe (located directly underneath the Instructions!). I know it can be easy to miss! 😉
As I mentioned in the Notes section, you just need the dry instant pudding mix powder — don’t prepare it according to the package directions! As I included in the Ingredients list, you need 2 servings (16g) of the dry mix, which would be half of your box (28g for 4 servings, or 14g for 2 servings). Different brands of instant pudding mix can have different gram amounts per serving, so for my frosting recipes, use the gram equivalent of however many servings I provide in the Ingredients list (mine was 16g for 2 servings, yours would be 14g for 2 servings). Does that make sense? 🙂
I can’t wait to hear what you think of these cupcakes if you try making them!
Hello! I tried this recipe out but my cupcakes got completely stuck to the paper even though I used spray and they were very chewy like 🙁 they didn’t turn out the absolute worst but they didn’t come out the way I thought. The frosting was very delicious though! Any tips for next time?
I’m honored that you tried my recipe, and I’m glad you at least enjoyed the frosting! That doesn’t sound like how these cupcakes are supposed to turn out at all (they should be slightly dense but incredibly moist — not chewy or gummy!), so I’m happy to help solve those issues, Frida. 🙂 To do so, I have some questions for you!
Were you generous with the cooking spray when coating the liners? (So they were fairly damp, rather than just barely misted!)
How was the flavor of your cupcakes? Were they sweet enough, and could you taste the spices?
Did you make any modifications to the recipe, including those listed in the Notes section?
Did you use a kitchen scale or measuring cups/spoons to measure all of the ingredients, especially the flour, pumpkin, yogurt, and milk?
Did you use a hand-held mixer or a stand mixer to make the batter, by any chance?
I know I just asked a LOT of questions, but I’ll have a much better idea of the potential culprit once I know your answers to all of them!
Also, if you seal your cupcakes inside of an airtight container and refrigerate them for 24-48 hours, that will help loosen the liners a bit! They might not peel away perfectly, but they should peel away better than before. (I use this trick all the time! 😉 )
Hi Amy, for the frosting, can I use Knox Unflavored Gelatine instead of the pudding mix.?
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe, Shinta! Unfortunately, Knox Unflavored Gelatine won’t work. The instant pudding mix is different than gelatin because it thickens the Greek yogurt to a pipe-able consistency when mixed at room temperature and then chilled, whereas gelatin must be heated or mixed with hot/boiling ingredients in order to active its thickening properties. (I definitely do NOT recommend heating these frosting ingredients!)
However, I’ve included a frosting alternative that doesn’t use instant pudding mix in the Notes section of the recipe, located directly underneath the Instructions. (I know it can be easy to miss! 😉 ) Perhaps that would be a better option for you!
I’d love to hear what you think of these cupcakes if you try making them!