Seven years ago, I came up with the idea to cook my way through the alphabet. Each week, I planned to prepare a dish that started with the next letter, and it had to be something I had never before tried to make… Or if I had, then I needed to come up with my own recipe entirely from scratch.
When I shared my idea with a close friend, she suggested starting a blog to document my adventure. Although I initially balked at the idea, I eventually called my computer whiz brother, and he patiently walked me through the process.
Seven years ago today, I hit “Publish” on my very first blog post. Twenty-six weeks later, when I finished my Alphabet Adventure, I realized how much I loved spending time in my kitchen, trying new recipes and snapping pictures of the treats and sharing everything on my blog… So I decided to continue.
Because of that decision, I’ve attended numerous conferences and retreats and workshops, gone on live TV, written a cookbook, worked with amazing brands like Bob’s Red Mill and Red Star Yeast… And I even bought a house from the income I’ve earned with Amy’s Healthy Baking as my full-time job.
Crazy, isn’t it? How starting my blog on a whim lead to all of that?
So today is the 7th birthday of Amy’s Healthy Baking—and what better way to celebrate than with these Healthier Funfetti Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting?? They’re tender and sweet, topped with rich chocolaty swirls (I am a chocoholic, after all!), and taste better than anything from a bakery!
And since they’re just 132 calories, including the stunning frosting swirls… I think I just might celebrate with two! ✌?
To make these healthier birthday cupcakes, you’ll start with white whole wheat flour. Yes, white whole wheat flour actually exists—and it’s not a combination of all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour! 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 wheat has a lighter taste and texture, as well as the same exact health benefits of regular whole wheat flour. This makes it perfect for letting the tender texture of baked goods shine, like with these cupcakes!
With just ½ tablespoon of butter or coconut oil (but I truly prefer the flavor of butter!) and no egg yolks, the rest of their tender texture comes from… Greek yogurt! You knew I was going to say that, right?? I ♡ Greek yogurt! It adds the same moisture to your batter as extra butter or oil for a fraction of the calories, and it gives your cupcakes a protein boost too!
You’ll skip the granulated sugar of traditional recipes and sweeten your celebration cupcakes with vanilla stevia, another one of my favorite ingredients! Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that contains nothing refined or artificial (aka it’s clean eating friendly!). It’s very concentrated too—you just need 1 tablespoon for the entire dozen! This is the kind I use because I love its warm flavor and don’t notice any strange aftertastes like with some other stevia products. You can find it at many health-oriented grocery stores, but 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!)
Of course… You can’t make funfetti cupcakes without the sprinkles! To make these healthier, I used naturally dyed sprinkles (these ones!). No artificial colors whatsoever! Aren’t they pretty?? If you want to use sprinkles already in your cupboard, that’s totally fine! Just make sure they’re jimmies (aka the long, thin ones) and not nonpareils (aka this tiny spheres). The latter will bleed and dissolve and make your batter gray, but jimmies hold their shape and color!
One more important tip! You must coat your cupcakes liners with nonstick cooking spray before adding in the batter! This low-fat batter sticks to cupcake liners like superglue, so that nifty trick ensures your liners peel away from your cupcakes much more easily!
And now for the frosting! Just look at those gorgeous swirls… And they’re easier to create than you think!
The frosting consists of Greek yogurt, cocoa powder (like this!), more vanilla stevia (like this!), and chocolate instant pudding mix (like this!). Yes, instant pudding mix! That’s the secret ingredient that makes the frosting stiff enough to pipe. Without it, your frosting wouldn’t hold its shape, and you’d need to spread it on top of your cupcakes with a knife instead.
Hint: If you want a frosting recipe without instant pudding, try this one of mine! It’s supremely rich and fudgy!
How cute and festive do these cupcakes look?? Perfect for a birthday celebration of any kind! ??? 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!
| Healthier Funfetti Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting | | Print |
- for the cupcakes
- 2 ¼ cups (270g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tbsp (7g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted
- 2 large egg whites, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp (15mL) vanilla stevia
- ½ cup (120g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 1 cup (240mL) nonfat milk
- ¼ cup (48g) naturally dyed sprinkles (see Notes)
- for the frosting
- 2 cups (480g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- ¼ cup (20g) unsweetened cocoa powder (measured like this)
- 2 servings (16g) sugar-free, fat-free instant chocolate 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, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, egg whites, vanilla, and vanilla 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 sprinkles.
- Divide the batter between the prepared paper liners. Bake at 350°F for 20-22 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, cocoa powder, 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 chocolate 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 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. Reduce the milk to ¼ cup (60mL) if using any of those liquid sweeteners. (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.
For the naturally dyed sprinkles, I used these. (← I ordered them online there too!) You must use jimmies (the long, thin sprinkles) or confetti-style (large circles, stars, or other shapes). Do NOT use nonpareils (the tiny spheres). Nonpareils completely dissolve and turn your cupcake batter gray in color, while the jimmies and confetti-style sprinkles maintain their shape and color.
If you like more sprinkles in your funfetti cupcakes, increase the amount by an additional 1-2 tablespoons!
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) chocolate frosting that does NOT use instant pudding (and is clean-eating friendly), use this recipe of mine.
{gluten-free, low fat, lower sugar}
View Nutrition Information
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Healthy Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
♡ Healthy Lemon Cupcakes with Lemon Frosting
♡ The Ultimate Healthy Dark Chocolate Cupcakes
♡ Healthy Banana Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
♡ Healthy Blueberry Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
♡ Healthy Carrot Cake Cupcakes
♡ Healthier Double Chocolate Funfetti Cookies
♡ Healthier Funfetti Cake Batter Granola Bars
What can I substitute for Greek yogurt? Not a fan at all, I’ve tried it and it was awful. Lite Sour Cream?
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe! You actually can’t taste the Greek yogurt in the cupcake batter, so I don’t recommend substituting for it there. If you don’t want to use Greek yogurt in the frosting, then use the recipe I’ve linked to in the Notes section underneath the Instructions instead. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these cupcakes!
I made mine with sour cream – MUCH better than yogurt (I made both) – but do not use LITE…use regular fat; otherwise, it will be gross.
What do you mean by “gross” Monika? And what brand of Greek yogurt did you use?
Hi again Amy!
I am not a huge fan of the bitter aftertaste of the vanilla stevia. Would it be possible to substitute granular erythritol?
Vanessa
I’m sure you could Vanessa! You’ll probably need to reduce the amount of milk in the cupcake batter to compensate. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these cupcakes!
OMG, these looks incredible. Everybody loves funfetti, but these look way better than the box mix! Gotta try!
You’re so sweet — thanks Karly!! 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these cupcakes!
They look so delicious and pretty!
Thank you so much Bethany! 🙂
I said it already, but I’ll say it again- happy 7 YEAR BLOG ANNIVERSARY!! I still can’t believe it. I’ll never forget how we reconnected over our food blogs when yours was just a twinkle in your eye! 😉 I will be forever thankful for that because it re-kindled our friendship!! Love you friend!! <3 <3 <3 (apparently I'm feeling sappy this morning!)
Thank you so much Andrea!!! ? I’m SO thankful for the same thing! I still remember driving to your house and totally meaning (and forgetting) to make that gingerbread house and eating biscotti and candied orange peel. I wish we could have another one of those dates! Although… We’d probably have to come up with some crazy recipes that work for both of our diets! ? Love you to the moon and back — times a million!! ♡
Haha yes!! If we attempted a gingerbread house again, it would be verrrry interesting… maybe we make a house out of celery and carrot sticks? 😉 PS- don’t you worry- that gingerbread did not go to waste from that day! I found out that it lasted like 2 months and I kept nibbling on little pieces of it! Haha!
BAHAHAHA!!! I’m envisioning that vegetable house… Held together with hummus, mustard, and toothpicks?? 😉
I am making these cupcakes for my Grand daughters birthday. She is all about rainbows! I would like to add the rainbow decoration you have on top of the cupcake. What is it? Thanks G.Kirk
You’re so sweet to make these cupcakes for your granddaughter’s birthday! I’m truly honored that you’d consider my recipe for such a special occasion. 🙂 My brother loved rainbows when he was younger too! To make the decorations, I put these white melting wafers on a piece of parchment (or wax!) paper, then put that on a microwave-safe plate. I microwaved them for 20-30 seconds, or until they started to look glossy and just begin to melt. Then I showered them with these nonpareil sprinkles! (If you’re in the US, you should be able to find both at Walmart! The melting wafers were on my Walmart’s wedding aisle.) I can’t wait to hear what everyone thinks of the cupcakes!
so 32 grams in total or 16 grams in total for the dry pudding mix?
It’s 16g total. The parentheses are the same measurements as the empirical cups/tablespoons, just in grams instead. 🙂
Hi Amy! I’m interested in making these for my stepdaughters 15th Birthday party on the 13th. Is there a vanilla frosting recipe that you would recommend? She’s really wanting me to make 1/2 Vanilla & 1/2 Chocolate cupcakes in order to accommodate for those with allergies (I’m going to make your German chocolate cupcakes)
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Brooke! I’m so honored that you’d consider making these for your stepdaughter’s 15th birthday. What an honor! 🙂 You can find the rest of my cupcake recipes (and frosting recipes!) here. Since I don’t know your stepdaughter’s flavor preferences, it’s probably easier for the two of you to pick out a second frosting recipe! (And if you’re flexible about the chocolate cupcakes, I actually recommend my ultimate healthy chocolate cupcakes instead. I love those even more than the German chocolate ones!) I can’t wait to hear what everyone thinks of the treats!
Amy- I made these (with vanilla frosting from the orange creamsicle cupcake recipe) for her party along with the chocolate cupcakes with cookies and cream frosting… both were a huge hit! Also- I couldn’t believe how big these turned out! Sooooo Good! Thank you! I posted pictures to my Instagram account and tagged you.
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed the cupcakes Brooke! That means so much to me. I hope your daughter had a lovely birthday too! 🙂 I didn’t see your picture on Instagram come through… Is your profile set to private, by chance?
It was lol… I just changed the settings… hopefully you’ll be able to see the pictures now.
I saw them! SO fun and cute!! Glad everyone had a great time at the birthday celebrations! 🙂
Hi Amy,
Thanks for sharing; these look amazing! Do you happen to have a vanilla version of this icing recipe?
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Emily! The best way to find a specific recipe (including frosting recipes!) is to click on the “Recipes” tab at the top of my blog or use the Search Bar (located at the top of my blog, if you’re viewing on a computer, or the bottom of my blog, if you’re viewing on a mobile device). 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you try these cupcakes!
Congratulations on the 7 year blog anniversary!! I have used Amy’s Healthy Baking as a recipe resource for many years, so thank for inspiring healthier baking in my home!
A question about these cupcakes–do you think they would work as well in a cake form pan (i.e., a Lightning McQueen-shaped cake form pan 😉 )? If so, are there certain considerations for adapting a cupcake recipe for use in a cake form pan?
Thanks in advance and keep up the wonderful work!!
Thank you so much for your kind words! That means so much to me! 🙂 I think we can modify this recipe to make it work for a very cute Lightning McQueen-shaped pan! 😉 Can you do me a favor and figure out how much liquid your pan holds? The easiest way to do that is to measure out 1 cup of water, pour it into your cake pan, measure another 1 cup of water, pour it in, and continue until your pan is full of water. That will help us determine whether this is the right amount of batter for your pan!
Wonderful! I genuinely appreciate your kindness in lending your expertise to help me figure this out. 🙂 Per your helpful water measurement method, the cake pan holds about 7 cups of liquid.
Also, in the instructions that accompanied the cake pan, it suggests using “one 2-layer cake mix according to the package or recipe directions.” Obviously, we would never use a cake mix when we have the far superior Amy’s Healthy Baking recipes as a resource ;), but hopefully this detail from the instructions helps indicate the size of the cake pan. Thank you again for your help!!
It’s my pleasure! 🙂 Since most cake mixes yield 24 cupcakes and my recipe yields 12, my advice would be to double my recipe for your cake pan. If it seems like there’s extra batter, just make a couple cupcakes with that! 😉 Since I haven’t made this recipe in that format, I’m not sure what the baking time will be… But if you use the toothpick test, where it comes out clean or with a few crumbs, that should work just fine!
Fantastic!! Thank you so much, Amy!! I appreciate your advice and insights on this. You are a lifesaver!!!! 🙂
It’s my pleasure!! I can’t wait to hear how the cake and party turn out! 🙂