Chocolate Beet Cupcakes with Chocolate Avocado Frosting
Fudgy Chocolate Beet Cupcakes topped with rich Chocolate Avocado Frosting. You would never guess that they are vegan, gluten-free and made with healthy ingredients!
If I were to make a video for this recipe, it would have Marvin Gaye playing in the background. Specifically the song Let’s Get It On. Have you heard it before?
That’s exactly how these cupcakes make me feel.
I’m head over heels IN LOVE.
You know I had to make something chocolate in honor of Valentine’s Day, and to me nothing says love like a cupcake.
I tried so hard to make vegan cupcakes based on this Best-Ever Chocolate Quinoa Cake last year, but unfortunately I just couldn’t make it happen. So this year, rather than torture myself with mushy globs of chocolate grossness, I adapted a recipe that I knew I could trust from a friend’s blog, Coffee & Quinoa.
I’m sad to say that Erica decided to stop blogging over a year ago, but thankfully her site is still up and running so I was able to access this amazing recipe. She actually has a TON of great healthy plant-based recipes on there. If you dig through her archives, you’re bound to find something you like.
Anyways, thanks to her it didn’t take much work to make these cupcakes naturally vegan, gluten-free, and refined sugar-free. Plus I love that they’re packed full of healthy fruits and veggies like beets and avocado.
The beets give them a moist and fudgy texture but other than that, you can’t even tell they’re there. Then the avocado frosting is light and silky, with the perfect amount of chocolaty sweetness to finish them off. I’m telling you, there’s a good chance will hear Marvin Gaye in the background as you eat one! :)
Whether you’re looking for something sweet to make for Valentine’s Day or to have just because, these are sure to satisfy your chocolate craving. I hope you love them as much as we do!
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes
1 cup oat flour
1/4 cup almond meal
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup roasted beet*
1/2 cup coconut sugar
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
3/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup unrefined melted coconut oil
For the Frosting
2 very ripe avocados
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
pinch salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F then grease or line a muffin pan for 10 cupcakes. In a large bowl, sift together the dry ingredients (oat flour to baking soda), making sure to work out any large lumps, then set aside.
- Stir together the almond milk and the apple cider vinegar in a measuring cup and allow to sit for a few minutes to curdle. Add it to a blender or a food processor along with the 1/2 cup diced and roasted beet, coconut sugar, pure maple syrup and vanilla extract. Blend on high for about 20 seconds, or until a smooth liquid forms.
- Pour the liquid into the bowl with the dry ingredients then add the melted coconut oil last. Use a spatula to fold everything together until well combined, making sure there aren't any lumps. Using a scooper or a small dry measuring cup, fill each one about 1/2 full to make 10 cupcakes. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until you can stick a knife in the center and have it come out clean.
- Meanwhile, prepare the frosting by combining all of the ingredients in a blender or a food processor and blending until smooth. You will probably have to scrape down the sides a few times in between blending. Taste test to see if you prefer more maple syrup to make it sweeter.
- Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before frosting them. You can either use a knife to spread the frosting on top or transfer it to a bag for piping, like I did in the pictures above. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
Notes
*One medium-to-large size beet will yield roughly 1/2 cup. To roast, remove the stem, wash it thoroughly and lightly coat with high heat oil then wrap in tin foil. Place on a baking sheet and cook in the oven at 425°F for 45 minutes to an hour, or until soft. You can use an oven mitt to squeeze it and see if it’s pliable, which will indicate it’s done. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool for at least an hour. Once it’s completely cooled, put on gloves and use your hands to peel the skin off. It should slide off as you rub it. Cut off the hard spots on the top and bottom as well as any areas with skin that didn’t peel off. Dice the roasted beet and measure out 1/2 cup for the recipe. You can also use precooked or canned beets if you want to skip this step. Time does not include roasting beet.
If you want to make these ahead of time, I recommend making the cupcakes first and then refrigerating them. The frosting is best when it's made the day of.
Adapted from Coffee & Quinoa
I wouldn’t mind having one (or two) of these ♥
summerdaisy.net
Thank Summer! I had way more than two, hehe! We ate the whole batch in a few days. :)
These are mind blowing! I would never guess by looking at them that they have beets in them. Genius! P.S. Marvin Gay is perfect for these!
Please make these for me!! PLEASE!! :)
I will bring them to your boot camp, if you have one! Deal? ;)
Hi Sarah,
These looks so good. I’m going to give them a try. I do have a quick question about the coconut oil. For every good report I hear, I hear 2 bad ones. So, I’m really on the fence about it. In many recipes, I can substitute grape seed oil. Any thoughts for this recipe?
Blessings, Nancy
PS. I got the avocado savers – one for me and one for a friend and they are working great!
Hi Nancy! I know, there is a lot of confusing information out there. It’s hard to feel good about any decision these days! But yes, I think grape seed oil would work fine in this recipe. And I’m so happy to hear you are finding the avocado saver useful! It doesn’t do a perfect job but I think it’s great too. I hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend! :)
Thanks, Sarah this was helpful. Hope you enjoyed your Superbowl Party!
YUM! These look like the most perfect chocolate cupcakes! Love that you made a chocolate avocado frosting. It looks so smooth and creamy!
I would never guess that these were vegan and gluten-free — they look like the real deal and I’m sure they taste like it too! I can tell I would love these, and I already hear the music playing….:)
Yes to chocolate avocado frosting. One year, my mom made me a chocolate avocado cake with green (!) avocado frosting for my birthday. This reminded me of that special cake. Your cupcakes look perfect. Love the sneaky addition of veggies. I’m sure no one can tell ;)
These are my kinda cupcakes! Gosh, I do love me some beets and I adore beets with chocolate – pairing these cupcakes with that avocado frosting makes these BRILLIANT!
These are alllllll I want for Valentine’s Day!! They look amazing!
Now I’ve got that song running through my head.. for the rest of the day, I’m sure! Thank you for this breakfast or dessert recipe, Sarah! So delicious and packed with good for you stuff! I love what you did with the icing…. so silky smooth and delicious! And the beets…. love!!
Sorry for getting that song stuck in your head, Traci! But thank you for your kind words. We need to swap beet cupcakes! ;)
I love that you have a song for this recipe … and now it’s playing in my head! These cupcakes look amazing!! That last shot … I really want dessert now. And I love how you did the frosting! I’m always looking for ways not to have to use powdered sugar!
If someone had told me back in the day that I’d be drooling over cupcakes made with beets and avocado, I probably would have laughed myself sick. But these.look.AMAZING. I honestly never would have guessed they were vegan, gluten-free, and made with such awesome ingredients. I’m gonna have to look up this Marvin Gaye guy, because… FEELS!
Can you successfully freeze these?
I haven’t tried myself but I think the cake portion would hold up okay. The frosting is probably better fresh though.
Your cupcake frosting skills are on point! These are beautiful and I would never think to put beets in cupcakes. Nicely done!
Aw, thanks, Kelly! I had to practice frosting them several times before getting them to look like that! :)
All of this YES. I’ve got beet brownies on my blog and me and the hubs LOVE them. Also, I was actually just talking about chocolate avocado pudding to my coworkers the other day. They thought I was crazy, sadly enough. Oh well, long hurr don’t curr.
Oh, I need to check out your beet brownies! And I know, I think you have to sneak some of the healthier things by a lot of people. As long as they don’t know what it is, they will probably love it, hehe!
While reading this I was thinking of when our next birthday celebration is and how I’d make these for that occasion. But I don’t think I can wait that long :) These look AMAZING!
Thanks Gwen! They’re definitely worth making twice! ;)
Gahhhh these are BEYOND perfect!!! I love the simple ingredients and the hidden veggies. I will definitely be trying these!
Thanks Emilie! I love hiding veggies in my sweets. Beets and avocado go so well with chocolate! :)
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Look at you all sneaky putting avocado AND beets in chocolatey, luscious looking cupcakes! I would like one riiiiight now, pretty please :)
Sneaky, sneaky…hehe ;)
Sarah,
I just wanted to let you know that I made these cupcakes last night. I didn’t frost them because it was late and I didn’t want the frosting to go bad. I ate 4! Seriously, they were really delicious! Thanks for sharing this recipe. I will use it when my niece comes to dinner because she can’t eat gluten. I’ll try them with the frosting next.
This is definitely a keeper! I did use grape seed oil. I imagine the coconut oil would give it a slightly coconutty flavor which would be good. But I think I’ll stick to the grape seed oil for now.
Thanks again!
Yay! I’m so happy they turned out well for you! The coconut oil doesn’t alter the flavor that much, I think the results would be very similar with the grape seed oil. I hope you get a chance to try them with the frosting. It’s so good! Thank you again for the feedback, Nancy. I really appreciate it! :)
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These are so gorgeous!! They look so decadent and love that they have some sneaky nutrients in there!!
Thanks Leah! <3
Mmm I looooveee chocolate and beetroot together! I made a cake recently with this combo but with no flour and I devoured it! Definitely saving this for later!
Your flourless cake looks delicious!! :)
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These were amazing!!!! The cupcake (for me) turned out super dense and reminds me of brownies rather than a cupcake (noooo complaints here!).
The avocado frosting was mostly yummy, I think I’ll use smaller avocados next time. Or make the frosting recipe with one avocado, make coconut whipped cream, and then fold them together ;)
I’m so glad I found this recipe!
Xx
I’m so happy you liked them, Charlotte! I think coconut whipped cream sounds like a delicious addition. Thanks for the feedback!
I would like to know if you could replace the coconut oil with avacado oil or canola oil. Since beets are sweet I wonder how this would be without sugar. I am going to try it and see.
Hi Denise! I had someone comment and say that she had success with substituting the coconut oil with grape seed oil so I think canola would work the same. Not using the sugar might alter the flavor but it’s definitely worth a try. Let me know they turn out if you end up making them!
Love this and so excited to make for my daughter’s second birthday. I have a question, I’ve never used Oat Flour, where do I get this? Also for the icing, could I use honey instead of Maple Syrup?
Hi Telma! You can buy oat flour at most major grocery stores or health food stores. Alternatively, you can make your own by grinding rolled oats to a fine flour in a food processor. Yes, you can use honey in place of maple syrup. I might start with 1/3 cup honey instead of 1/2 cup for the frosting and then see how it tastes/if it needs more.
I hope your daughter loves them! :)
Can I freeze them?
Hi Arua! I haven’t tried freezing them so I’m not sure how that will work. If I did freeze them, I would wait to add the frosting until later. Let me know how it turns out if you give it a try!
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Hi there, could I swap anything for the sugar?
Thanks, these look amazing!
Hi Erin! You could try using pure maple syrup instead. If you do use a liquid sweetener, you might need to reduce the amount of almond milk slightly. Let me know if you end up giving it a try! :)
Hi there, i tried it with all honey but didn’t measure exact quantity, did also reduce almond milk by about 2TBS or so. Texture is almost glue like in your mouth, not too sure why though? Flavour is still nice though :) Hi there, i tried it with all honey but didn’t measure exact quantity, did also reduce almond milk by about 2TBS or so. Texture is almost glue like in your mouth, not too sure why though? Flavour is still nice though :)
Hi Erin! Sorry to hear they didn’t work out as planned. Honey is too thick which is why I recommended maple syrup. You would also need to measure it for best results. I’m glad they were still edible though! :)
What can I use instead of almond meal? My son is allergic to almonds.
Can’t wait to try these!
Hi Cathy! I’m not sure of what could be substituted for almond meal as it’s a necessity for this recipe. Almond meal is higher in fat than other flours and yields more moisture that helps with a softer texture.
You could always try search for a vegan beet cupcake recipe made with other flours and then use this frosting recipe for them? Sorry I couldn’t be of more help!
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These are amazing! So moist and fudgy/brownie-like. The texture of the icing is fabulous and so delicious — no one could believe it was mostly avocado! I love that they are not too sweet and are loaded with chocolate. Mmmm!! I’m not a desserty-person but I can’t stop eating these!
I’m so glad to hear they were a hit! Thank you for the kind review, Jane!
I made these cupcakes and they are amazing! Can I do this recipe for a cake? how should I change up the measurements and time baking?
Hi Dao! I actually adapted it from a cake recipe. You can find it here: https://www.coffeeandquinoa.com/2014/03/fudgy-chocolate-beet-cake-with-chocolate-avocado-frosting-vegan-and-gf/
I hope that helps! :)
Hi Sarah,
I made your cupcakes and they are amazing! Can I use this same recipe for a cake? How long in the oven?
Aloha Dao
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Do you think making donuts with the batter would work? any modifications for time and/or temp?
I think that would work! Cooking time should be similar, if anything a little bit less. But I’d test it out as written and pay attention to how they smell as they cook. You can usually smell when they are done if you pay attention close enough :)