chocolate banana cupcakes with peanut butter frosting ~vegan~

Happy Valentine’s Day!!!

I’m not going to pretend that these are healthy just because they are vegan.  Sometimes, just because a food is labeled vegan, all-natural or gluten-free doesn’t mean it is healthy!

Yes, these cupcakes are made without eggs, butter or cream, but they contain WAY more sugar then I like to bake with.  But, they are birthday cupcakes and in my book, all bets are off on birthdays!

This past week my baby turned 2!!!  Noah has blessed our lives in more ways than we can count.  It’s been two years of love, light and laughter!

Not only did we celebrate our little man’s big day, we celebrated successfully surviving being first time parents!  (Well, we’d like to think we are successful!)  We went out for a Birthday Eve dinner (yes, we celebrate Birthday Eve!) and indulged in chocolate banana cupcakes with peanut butter frosting

On a healthy note, these cupcakes are made with whole wheat flour instead of white flour, and banana in place of added fat such as butter.  Plus,  they are void of chemicals and preservatives found in most store-bought cupcakes.

Bake these for birthdays or today for Valentine’s Day!!!

Vegan Chocolate Banana Cupcakes 

1 ripe banana

1 1/4 whole wheat pastry flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil

2/3 cup soy milk or almond milk

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1/4 cup mini chocolate chips (vegan if desired)

~Preheat oven to 350 degrees, spray a mini-cupcake tin with cooking spray or line with liners and set aside.

~Combine banana and soy milk together using a blender or food processor.  (I used my vitamix)

~Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar into a large bowl.

~In a different bowl, mix together oil, soy milk/banana mixture, vanilla extract and almond extract.

~Combine wet and dry ingredients and stir in mini chocolate chips.  Don’t over mix!

~Pour batter 2/3 full into cupcake tin.

~Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

~Cool on wire racks and top with peanut butter frosting.

Vegan Peanut Butter Frosting

2/3 cup all-natural creamy peanut butter

6 tablespoons powdered sugar

8 tablespoons soy or almond milk (more if needed)

~Using a hand-held mixer, combine all ingredients until fluffy, adding soy milk slowly until desired consistency.  (I started with 4 tablespoons and added extra as needed)

~Taste and add extra powdered sugar if needed.

I frosted the cupcakes by using a plastic sandwich bag.  Just fill, seal, cut the corner off one of the ends and frost away!

Remember to store in an air-tight container to maintain freshness!

Top with a few mini-chips for fun!

For those of you counting; each cupcake is around 120 calories and 5 grams of fat. (depending on how much frosting is on top!)

Wishing everyone a Happy Valentine’s Day xoxo