niner bakes
Healthier Dessert?
Hmmm…honestly I do not know what to think about it a lot of times. To me, dessert is usually not healthy. Most of the time!
That is why we call it “Sometimes Food”, right? It is food we shall eat sometimes, not each and every day (which is hard, I know guys!).
My “overseas mom” in Canada is a Registered Nutritional Consulting Practitioner and taught me so so much. When it comes to healthy living choices, she is the woman to talk to!
The term “Sometimes Food” is quite common over there.
No matter how “sweet” my blog might be; I do not eat sweet treats every day. And if I do, not so much of it. Just a little treat!
Of course there are days (such as birthdays etc.) where I do not think about a sugar limit at all but usually we all should take care of our body and limit the amount of 12 Cupcakes to 1 Cupcake a day :)
The more I bake for my blog or for clients etc., the less I eat dessert.
I “see” it all the time, makes you want less sugar – how do you feel about that, have you experienced similar situations?
Nevertheless: Sweets make us all happy, sure thing. I do not want to preach at all, so let’s head over to a great, yummy and even healthy cupcake recipe!
The story behind it:
A friend of mine from the States who makes the best hiphop music (he is a legend btw!) requested healthy cupcakes!
Especially during a long European tour it is not very easy for him to live as healthy as he might like to.
Before he got on stage in Hannover (Germany) I got to say hello and chat it up and catch up a little, and handed him his healthy cupcakes.
I was curious whether he liked them because they were one of my first healthy cupcakes ever.
I must say: The frosting was not necessary at all (even though it looks so much cuter).
The taste was so so good, still sweet from the raw cane sugar and rich as well. I fell in love. Will bake them again, and again!
A day later he responded to one of my instagram posts saying:
Yes! No frosting needed! Niner bakes for REAL!
So there you have it, approved! :)
This is the thing that makes me happy the most about baking and blogging:
To make my friends, family, clients and most importantly, my blog readers happy with my treats. *sigh*
I ask you to try these cupcakes, they’re worth it.
In case you are interested in vegan cupcakes, please check out my recipe.
- Prep Time 10 minutes
- Baking Time 14-18 minutes
- Difficulty Easy
For the Vanilla Cupcakes try to use organic (and fair trade) ingredients if possible:
- 1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
- 1 1/4 teaspoons of baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 cup raw cane sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil (I usually use a little less so it is not that greasy)
- 1/2 cup milk + 1/2 teaspoon vinegar
- Frosting of your choice or click here for recipes
- For Decorating: desired sprinkles
- Large round decorating tip or Large Open Star Tip to frost the cupcakes
Note:
For more cupcake decorating tips and techniques, please click here.
Additional Items you may want to get, makes a nice gift:
- extra cupcake liners
- 1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees / 180 G Celsius and prepare your cupcake pan with cupcake liners of your choice.
- 2. Pour together the whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt, set aside.
- 3. Add 1/2 teaspoon vinegar to the milk, mix with a fork or spoon and set aside for about 3-5 minutes.
- 4. In another bowl, add the 2 eggs and mix with handmixer or stand mixer. Now pour in the sugar and continue to mix for a minute.
- 5. Now add vanilla extract and vegetable oil and mix.
- 6. On low speed, add half of the flour mixture, beat, then add half of milk mixture. Repeat until everything is combined and well mixed. Scrape down sides of the bowl too so you don’t miss anything of this yummy cupcake batter.
- 7. Now pour the rather thin batter into your cupcake pan (use a pitcher, it is very helpful) and fill up the cupcake liners 2/3 full.
- 8. Bake in your preheated oven for about 14-18 minutes, I usually reduce the heat after 10 minutes, because my oven tends to get very hot!
And the cupcakes get a nice domed top! If you are not sure whether the cupcakes are ready to take out the oven, use a toothpick, stick in the center of the cupcake, if it comes out clean, the cupcakes are done – nicely domed. Please watch your cupcakes, 18 minutes might be too long if your oven tends to get very hot as well. - 9. Let cupcakes cool for a couple of minutes before you remove them from the pan. Let cool completely on a plate or wire rack.
- 10. When completely cooled, you can start frosting them. Check out my marshmallow frosting recipe here.
Mhmmm..absolutely yumyumyum!
In case you’d rather like vanilla cupcakes without animal products, please visit my Vegan Vanilla Cupcake recipe.
Enjoy your weekend guys!
Love, niner
oh my! can these look any more perfect? i think not!
Thanks Lisa!!
You are so kind :)
Thanks for stopping by!
Love,
niner
OMG!!!! AMAZING so fluffy and airy and soft just amazing, thankyou for this delicous recipe!!!!
Hi Niner,
Yes, I hear you on the “sometimes food”. I completely agree!
The only thing I wish is that I didn’t want sweets… I bake lots but still want to eat them. ;-) Chocolate chip cookies are a major weakness though, so at least my blog isn’t about that. lol.
Your cupcakes look adorable (looks like we have the same taste – thumbs up!), and I love the photos btw. Great background shots. Glad your friend loved the cupcakes – will have to try them too!
Simply lovely!
I was just at the store Sat and those sprinkles were waving me.
Now I think I should get them…
Hi Colette, thank you!
I honestly think you should get them as well :)
Many blessings,
niner
Hallo Niner :) bin grade dabei die Cupcakes zu backen und im Grunde bin ich total zufrieden. Nur backen die bei mir nicht so gleichmäßig hoch wie bei Dir… Hast Du da einen Tipp? Wie stellst Du den Ofen ein? Umluft oder Ober-/Unterhitze?
Liebe Grüße!!
Hi Niner! The cupcakes look awesome, and I’m glad they’re a healthier version! Can I substitute the milk for almond milk?
Hi Tiffany, I think it is worth a try, I have never tried it but I am sure it will work out just fine. Let me know how it turned out :)
Enjoy your Sunday,
niner
Did that work for you? I’m thinking about making these today and I prefer almond milk over regular.
Hi Rachel,
I have never tried out almond milk with the recipe but it is worth a try and I hope you will the outcome :)
Blessings,
niner
Hi,
should i use the full cream milk or the low fat milk? and what if i change the raw cane sugar to normal sugar? will that be ok?
thank you so much!
Hi there,
you can definitely use normal sugar, thats nor a problem at all. I usually use no low fat milk because I like a richer taste, if you have no problem with that, you can use low fat milk of course, thats totally up to you =)
Many blessings,
niner
Ive just made my 3rd batch of these and think they are delicious! I love that they are lower in fats/sugars (I use 1/2 cup of sugar and cant tell the difference). Just wondering what the vinegar does?? I didn’t have vinegar for my first two batches as I didn’t have any, however, Ive used vinegar for my 3rd batch, but they’re still in the oven so haven’t tasted the difference yet.
Hi Tash,
the vinegar+milk act just like buttermilk. I find it easier to always have vinegar and milk in my kitchen than buttermilk.
I am glad you love the recipe, whether it is with vinegar or without :) You can definitely leave it out :)
Blessings,
niner
HI! I am going to try out this recipe for my 6 year olds birthday and I was wondering how you think it would turn out as a cake with carmel filling and vanilla frosting? Thanks for the input! Julie
HELLOOOOO =D
by cane sugar u mean icing sugar?
actually, its written CANE SUGAR on the icing sugar i use, and it is powdered not granulated.
and if i use regular sugar then i will be using it in granulated form right?
thanx :)
Hi- Should the whole wheat flour be ‘pastry’ flour? Or is standard whole wheat flour okay?
Hi Lauren, whole wheat flour is totally fine, I did not use pastry flour.
Have fun baking :)
Blessings, niner
Great recipe!!! I was wondering can I substitute the vegetable oil for applesauce?
Hi Renate,
thank you so much.
I have never tried to substitute the oil with a sauce (which obviously does not contain much oil/fat).
You can try it out and let me know how it went.
Blessings,
niner
I would love to make his recipe with the hidden Oreo and marshmallow frosting for my sons birthday. Do you think it’ll work?
Hi Kathy, I am pretty sure it will all work out fine :)
Happy baking ?
Hi Niner! I love all of your recipes, they look so Delicious. I’m thinking of making these for the superbowl but I have a question. If I make these in mini cupcake liners then how many cupcakes would that make.
P.S. I love your pictures. You make everything look so amazing.
Also one more thing. Can I leave vinegar out of this recipe and just use whole milk and if I do that will it still be lowfat?
Hi Rachel,
thanks for commenting and for enjoying my blog :)
I am so sorry for my late response. Did you end up baking them?
Whole milk is not low-fat unfortunately. You can leave out the vinegar but I would recommend using it.
Many blessings,
niner
Can I use whole wheat pastry flour?
Hi Susanne,
I think you can, yes. Never tried it with that flour but I am sure it’ll work out just fine.
Happy baking to you and a lovely Valentines Day :)
These look fabulous! Can you tell me anything about the texture? And do you think this recipe would work for a small cake instead of cupcakes? I’m thinking of using your recipe to make a smash cake for my daughter’s first birthday, and I just want to make sure that the cake is soft enough to smash easily. Thank you!
Hi Julie,
you can definitely use it as a cake too – feel free to use the recipe for a smash cake (how fun!!) – Happy baking and lots of fun!
Blessings,
niner
Could I substitute butter for oil?
Hi Jessica,
yes you totally can :)
Happy baking
Just made these they are yum, the only thing I did different is that I substituted the vanilla extract for strawberry flavour
Thank you for sharing the recipe x
Hey, these really look amazing! I was wondering if it is posible to replace the sugar with a liquid sweetener, such as maple syrop? Thank you so much!! :)
Hi Kate,
I have never tried those yet with liquid sweetener, although that method would be much healthier than regular sugar (maple syrup or agave would be perfect) – I will try it soon, let me know how they turn out?
Happy baking :)
niner
Hi ,
I am so happy to have found your page, Ive seen amazing recipes ! I was wondering if this recipe could be made into a cake?
Thank You !
Yanira, so nice to see you here!
Yes I think you can definitely make a cake from the recipe. I do that with all my cupcake recipes :)
Happy baking to you!
niner
hi niner.. it’s my first time to visit your blog and i loved it.. btw, can i use all purpose flour instead of whole wheat flour? thanks.. :-)
Hi Kat,
yes you can definitely use it. Have fun baking :-)
Thanks for your visit :)
Wish I had known I could use buttermilk. I happened to have had it in the fridge from some skinless fried chicken I made. I think that would have been great. I also agree with one of the posters above about the sugar. 1/2 cup is fine especially if you are frosting. All in all nice recipe and my daughter had a great time making them with me! Thanks for posting. I cook often but I am not much of a baker – never was and never will be.
Fantastic recipe, the best of all whole wheat cake recipes I have tried so far. Perfect and moist!
Hi niner,
my batter was really watery and it took 1 hour to bake in the oven i had trouble making these cupcakes I will like to have some of your suggestions
Hi Adelle,
wow this is weird. So sorry this happened!
My suggestion is: You must have used too much liquids, too much milk or oil – this is the only thing I can think of right now. I have no idea how it would take 1 hour, this is really long.
Hope you have a much better luck next time.
Btw i bookmarked your blog it is amaze!!!
Hi Niner
I tried it again and it was a great success you are a genius your suggestions really helped a lot
Adelle
Hey Niner! Quick Question Curious how you would suggest making these sugar free? I’m sure you wouldn’t lol but my child has a grain + sugar intolerance and I’m looking for a whole wheat cupcake recipe that is sugar free…maybe use granular stevia or maybe stevia drops instead (5 drops = 1t sugar)? I’d love to use honey…Thanks!
Hi there Jen,
thanks for commenting =)
You could use honey, agave nectar or maybe eben coconut sugar? That should work for allergies, dont you think?
Stevia I never tried out but that would work fine too!
Many blessings!
Truly delicious, but they don’t taste healthy, but greasy due to the oil…
Hi Otje,
I honestly agree now but I did not see it earlier when I made the recipe. I liked it that way. I might comment on it and tell people to use a little less oil.
Thanks for your comment and I wish you a merry Christmas next week :)
Hi Niner! I have just made this cupcakes. My home now smells heavenly! Just one thing, my tops wasn’t flat and puffed so high! Haha! Oh wells. Still edible and delicious! Thanks for the recipe :)
Hi, this is great recipe, I mill my own grain so I used soft white wheat and sifted out the fiber, and I don’t use vegtable oil so I used coconut oil. They were not greasy at all. They were perfect. My son wanted a strawberry cake I used this recipe but added strawberry jello powder to it after I mix all ingredients. Delicious!!! Thank you
Hi Kristi,
that is so good to hear! I will use coconut oil as well next time, sounds awesome! Thanks so much for your comment and have a blessed day :-)
Niner
The milk sort off broke down on adding vinegar…. Is that fine?
I made these for my daughter’s bday with strawberry frosting and they are very good! I used whole wheat pastry flour which is great for baking, turns out lighter. And subbed coconut oil and coconut milk. My only complaint was this recipe only made 12 VERY small cupcakes that didn’t even reach the top of my liners, you may want to consider doubling the recipe if you want full cupcakes, or any more than 12.
My 12 year old daughter made these for her Grandmother’s birthday over the weekend. They were delicious! Thanks for sharing!
These are amazing and just FYI for everyone if you want to add two bananas and cook them for 20 minutes they come out very lovely too. I tried a cup of fresh strawberries drained off the extra liquid they produce from dicing them up and bake for 20 minutes and they were yummy too.
Chanced upon your recipe and am excited to try it over the weekend, I always like recipes like yours which are easy to follow (for a newbie like me)!
Out of curiosity – why is this a cupcake and not a muffin? The recipe feels like a muffin recipe I just made last week. I was under the impression that cupcakes always have butter as one of the ingredients.
I made these vanilla cup cakes…. Used butter instead
Of oil and a little strawberry jelly powder ….. And they turned out super …. Felt great to eat these healthy cup cakes… I also topped with a light cheese cream frosting … Yummy
I made this into a small cake this evening, and was very happy with the flavor and texture of recipe. Very satisfying with tea, or a nice glass of milk. Will most definitely be making again. Thank you!
Hi Sandria,
that sounds wonderful! Thanks so much for your lovely feedback! =)
Thanks for this recipe!
They turned out well for me; my friend thought the cake part wasn’t sweet enough, but I thought it was just right. I added jimmie sprinkles to make them confetti/funfetti cupcakes!
Mine also needed to bake a few minutes over 18, but that may have been due to my filling the cups too full.(?)
Thanks again!!
Just made a batch of these and we loved it !! Will be making these more often now ! With a lot of digestion issues with my 2 girls I try to use whole wheat flour and these weremails perfect ! Thanks for sharing this recipe
I.have been making these repeatedly over the past few days.Amazing share.thank you so much. A whole wheat bake yet so soft and tasty.today I had a craving once again. But I was out of vanilla essence and baking powder. So I used cinnamon nutmeg powders and almond essence. Also in place of baking powder I increased the amount of baking soda by 1/2 tsp and vinegar by 1/2 tsp .I also halved the amount of sugar and added a shredded banana and still the final product was as amazing . this recipe is a keeper .thank you ever so much
I made these and i made sure ther no air bubbles and i put all ingrediants in correctly. when i got then out nothing was in the middle of them and it just went every where on the pan. Do u know what happened anyone???? If so please tell me.
Do we have to use a mixer? Would a spatula work for mixing? What if we omit the vinegar?
Love it! Is it okay if I omit the vinegar?
Thanks! These look amazing! I tried them and now they are in the oven baking. I usually fail at baking, but it seems these are a no fail type. I can’t wait! Hopefully, they are good!
Hai Ninte,
I used the method mentioned in your blog. This is for the first time I am reading your blog and I must say cupcake was awesom!! A big thank you to you!!!
The taste reminds me one of the sweet from my native place called unniyappam ????
Hai Niner,
I used the method mentioned in your blog. This is for the first time I am reading your blog and I must say cupcake was awesom!! A big thank you to you!!!
The taste reminds me one of the sweet from my native place called unniyappam ????
I am doing a school project and was wondering if you could use gluten free rice flour instead of wheat flour to make these cupcakes.
in the recipe you mention vinegar, what vinegar do you use?
Hi Umi,
I am using the regular kind you use for salads etc.