Healthy? Better than they could be.

So is any dessert really healthy? (That's rhetorical. There probably is one in some foreign country where they don't eat fat or sugar.) However, I wanted to share this CHOCOLATE CUPCAKE recipe with you because it cuts out the butter, are incredibly moist and tastes quite delicious - no frosting needed!

CHOCOLATE CRANBERRY CHEESECAKE CUPCAKES
from Chocolate Snowball, a Deer Valley bakery recipe

Filling:
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons sugar
1 egg
1 cup dried cranberries or cherries

Cupcakes:
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup coca powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup water
1/3 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

To make the filling:
In a small bowl or food processor, beat the cream cheese with the sugar until it is smooth. Mix in the egg completely, scraping the bowl as needed. If using a food processor, transfer the mixture to a bowl. By hand, stir in the cranberries and set aside.

To make the cupcakes:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line 12 muffin tins with paper cupcake liners or coat the tins with melted butter and dust with four or spray generously with cooking spray.

Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt into a medium bowl. In another bowl, mix the water, oil, vinegar and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients; mix until blended. Divide the batter evenly into the prepared tins. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the cream cheese filling into the center of each cupcake. The chocolate batter will rise around the filling as it bakes.

Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until the cake part of the cupcake springs back when touches with a finger. Cool. Remove from the pan and serve.

Makes 12 cupcakes.

High altitude: Reduce sugar in the cupcakes by 2 tablespoons. Reduce the baking soda to 3/4 tsp.


When I worked in events, Deer Valley gave me this wonderful cookbook, Chocolate Snowball. It features fantastic bakery recipes from their famous pastry chef, Letty Halloran Flatt. I would highly recommend it, even if all the recipes aren't quite so healthy.

Follow the link for more of Flatt's recipes - soups, pizza and more.