Skinnified Peppermint Mocha Cupcakes

Hi friends, remember those delicious Peppermint White Mocha Cupcakes? You should, they were posted yesterday! 😉 Well of course I couldn’t choose between regular mocha and white mocha, so what’s a girl to do, but make both!

Mocha Cupcakes from Gimme Some Oven

My Swaps:

• Whole wheat pastry flour for all purpose (+fiber, +protein)
• Red fat buttermilk for whole milk (-fat, -calories)
• Unsweetened applesauce for butter (-fat, -calories)
• Sugar/Splenda blend for sugar (-sugar, -calories)
• 2 egg whites for 1 egg  (-fat, -calories, -cholesterol)
• + Starbucks via, vanilla and peppermint extract (+yum)

Skinnified Peppermint Mocha Cupcakes

yield 32 mini cupcakes

• 1 1/3 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 packets Starbucks via
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup red fat buttermilk
• 1/2 cup strong brewed coffee, at room temperature + more for brushing
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 cup organic cane sugar
• 2 tbs Splenda
• 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 2 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp peppermint extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line 32 mini muffin tins and spray liners.
2. Combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
3. In an electric mixer, combine applesauce, sugars, and extracts. Add egg whites one at a time.
4. In a separate bowl, combine coffee and buttermilk.
5. Alternate adding flour mixture and milk mixture to sugar and applesauce, starting and ending with flour mixture (1/3ish of dry, 1/2 of wet, 1/3ish of dry, 1/2 of wet, rest of dry). Mix until combined, scraping down sides of bowl when necessary.
6. Fill muffin tins 3/4 to top and bake for 18-22 minutes until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
7. Using a toothpick, poke several holes in each cupcake and brush with coffee.
8. Cool completely, frost with peppermint cream cheese frosting!

Enjoy, friends! PS: Check out my new up to date Who’s Who and Recipe tabs!