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Easy & Healthy Chocolate Cupcakes – under 100 calories, including the chocolate frosting! (It’s made from yogurt. NO butter / powdered sugar!) Super moist & the BEST chocolate cupcakes I’ve ever had! SO simple too. Only 1 bowl & 30 min to get them in the oven! You’ll never use another recipe again! ♡ Best healthy chocolate cupcakes recipe with gluten free & whole wheat options. Easy clean eating greek yogurt chocolate cupcakes no sugar. Low calorie homemade chocolate cupcakes from scratch.

Healthy One-Bowl Dark Chocolate Cupcakes

© Amy's Healthy Baking
Yields: 12 cupcakes
These are some of the best chocolate cupcakes I’ve ever had! And since chocolate is my favorite cupcake flavor… That’s definitely saying something! They’re incredibly rich and decadent, with flavors similar to 72% dark chocolate, and they’re incredibly moist with a hint of brownie-like fudginess to their texture. The cupcakes are best if served the same day they’re frosted, but they’ll keep for at least three days (if not longer!) if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
5 from 5 votes
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Ingredients 

FOR THE CUPCAKES

FOR THE FROSTING

Instructions

  • 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 butter, egg whites, and salt. Whisk in the vanilla extract, liquid stevia, and erythritol. Stir in the Greek yogurt. Stir in the milk. Add the cocoa powder and flour, then evenly sprinkle the baking powder and baking soda across the top of the cocoa powder and flour (to prevent clumping). Gently stir until just incorporated.
  • Divide the batter between the prepared paper liners. Bake at 350°F for 22-25 minutes or until the centers feel firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few crumbs attached. 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 liquid 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.

Notes

IMPORTANT MEASURING NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: It's very important to measure the flour and cocoa powder correctly, using this method or a kitchen scale. (← That’s the one I own and love!) Do NOT scoop either directly from the container. Too much flour and cocoa powder in the batter will make your cupcakes dry and crumbly, instead of soft, moist, and fudgy. Too much cocoa powder will also make your cupcakes taste bitter, instead of rich and dark chocolaty.
 
IMPORTANT FLAVOR NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: These cupcakes are meant to taste similar to 72% dark chocolate. If you'd prefer sweeter cupcakes, add an additional 1-2 tablespoons of erythritol to the cupcake batter. (I cover why adding more stevia doesn't impact the cupcakes' sweetness level in the blog post above.) However, you can add additional stevia to make the frosting taste sweeter, so adjust the amount in the frosting to suit your tastes.
 
EGG WHITES NOTE: The cupcakes require 2 full egg whites. The whites contain the majority of the protein in eggs, and that protein is required to ensure the cupcakes maintain their shape and texture while cooling. Without both egg whites, the cupcakes will collapse while cooling and turn out denser.
 
If you prefer to use whole eggs, then use 2 large eggs AND reduce the milk by 1 tablespoon to compensate for the added volume from the yolks.
 
STEVIA NOTES + ALTERNATIVES: For the best results, I recommend using the same liquid stevia that I do. (Many stevia brands and products have different sweetness levels, so they're not necessarily 1-for-1 substitutes for one another!) I buy it online here because that’s the best price I’ve found, and you’ll use it all of these recipes of mine too.
 
If you prefer not to use stevia in the cupcakes, substitute ¾ cup (180mL) of agave, honey, or pure maple syrup for the liquid stevia. Reduce the milk to ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons (90mL) if using any of those liquid sweeteners. Alternatively, substitute ¾ cup (144g) of coconut sugar, brown sugar, or granulated sugar in place of the liquid stevia, and reduce the milk to ½ cup + 2 tablespoons (150mL). (The batter should be fairly thick, similar to muffin batter.)
 
If you prefer not to use the liquid stevia in the frosting, then substitute 1 ½ teaspoons of this powdered stevia –OR– ¼ cup of granulated sucralose, Truvia, or regular powdered sugar.
 
ERYTHRITOL NOTES + ALTERNATIVES: I buy my confectioners’ style erythritol online here. If you prefer not to use it, then substitute coconut sugar, brown sugar, or granulated sugar instead. (You can also substitute granulated sucralose for a different no-calorie sweetener.)
 
MILK ALTERNATIVES: Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.
 
COCOA POWDER NOTES: I do not recommend substituting Dutched or special dark cocoa powder. Both of these have a different acidity level, which will affect the taste and texture of your cupcakes. I've also found they have a blander and noticeably muted chocolate flavor when used to make these cupcakes. For the best flavor and texture results, use regular unsweetened cocoa powder for both the cupcakes and frosting. I like Hershey’s regular unsweetened cocoa powder because it’s affordable, easy to find, and has a good chocolate flavor.
 
If your cocoa powder is bumpy, clumpy, or lumpy, then sift it into the mixing bowl.
 
FLOUR ALTERNATIVES: Whole wheat pastry flour, regular whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour.
 
GREEK YOGURT NOTE: For the frosting, I’ve found that not all Greek yogurt brands are equally thick. FAGE plain nonfat Greek yogurt is my favorite for my Greek yogurt frosting recipes because it’s the thickest brand I’ve found, which means your frosting holds its shape much better when piping it on top of the cupcakes. (It also has less of a yogurt “tang” to its flavor!)
 
INSTANT PUDDING MIX NOTES + ALTERNATIVES: You just need the dry instant pudding mix (like this!) — do not prepare it according to the package directions!
 
Instant pudding mix is special because its thickening properties are activated when it’s cold or at room temperature — not when heated (like with cornstarch and regular “cook-and-serve” pudding mix).
 
If you can’t find sugar-free, fat-free chocolate instant pudding mix, then substitute sugar-free, fat-free vanilla instant pudding mix instead, and add an additional 2-3 teaspoons of unsweetened cocoa powder.
 
Unfortunately, there isn’t a great substitute for the instant pudding mix. I’ve tried using xanthan gum, and while it does thicken the frosting, it also adds a weird texture. Regular “cook-and-serve” pudding mix and cornstarch won’t work because those require heat to activate their thickening properties, and heating the Greek yogurt is not a good idea.
 
So if you can’t find or don’t want to use instant pudding mix, I recommend using one of my other chocolate frosting recipes (← see "Frosting #2 and #3") instead.
 
GLUTEN-FREE OPTION: For the gluten-free flour, use the following blend: ½ cup (60g) millet flour, ¼ cup (30g) tapioca flour, ¼ cup (30g) brown rice flour, and ¾ teaspoon xanthan gum. Many store-bought gluten-free flour blends (I like this one from Bob's Red Mill) should work as well, if measured like this.
 
HOW TO STORE: Leftover cupcakes should keep for at least three days if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
 
{gluten-free, clean eating option, low fat, sugar-free, higher protein}
DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?I'd love to hear what you think of it in a comment below! If you take a picture, tag @amys.healthy.baking on Instagram or use the hashtag #amyshealthybaking.