People love Red Velvet.
But why does it have to only be red velvet? What about green velvet, purple velvet, or—dare I say it—blue velvet? When I was asked to make cupcakes for a boy baby shower, I figured it was the perfect opportunity to try my hand at blue velvet cupcakes. However, two problems existed: One, I wanted the cupcakes to be natural (no blue food coloring). And two, I didn’t have a healthy chocolate cupcake recipe!
EDIT: There is finally now also a Healthy Red Velvet Cupcake Recipe.
Experiments are always fun when they include chocolate, because you get to eat the not-so-perfect trials. (Fortunately and unfortunately for me, I got this cupcake recipe right on the first try.) At first, I’d planned to use a recipe straight from the cookbook, VCTOTW. But as I worked, I changed it up completely!
Blue Velvet Cupcakes
(healthy and low-fat!)
- 1 cup spelt or white flour
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup sugar of choice
- 1 and 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup yogurt (I used SoDelicious plain coconut)
- 3 tablespoons canola oil or melted coconut oil
- 1/2 cup milk of choice
- 1/2 cup blueberries (60 grams)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mash or puree the blueberries (or just leave ’em whole). Mix dry ingredients, then add in wet. Don’t overmix. Pour into 12 cupcake liners, and bake 22-24 minutes. The blueberries didn’t exactly turn the cupcakes blue; but they are blue in spirit… and when you bite into one, you can see the blue from those lovely–and antioxidant-packed–berries.
Click for notes about a fat-free version.
Since I wasn’t really a guest at the shower, I didn’t eat one of the final-product cupcakes. However, I did eat an unfrosted one (straight out of the oven) that morning as part of my breakfast! Someone had to be a taste-tester, right?
The Icing on the Cake
2013 EDIT: I frosted the cupcakes with Pillsbury (surprisingly vegan), but if I were to make them again I would use my new favorite frosting of choice: Vegan Cool Whip. Just add a blueberry or two for a vibrant frosting.
I almost thought that the frosting on the cupcakes had been coloured blue by the pureed blueberries in the recipe, haha! I was thinking “Wow, those must’ve been some funky-coloured blueberries…” 😛
I’d definitely like children, but have never thought about baby names! I used to be horrified at the idea of having children, but I guess something changed along the way.
I love the little blue “pearls” you put on the cupcakes! Makes ’em look so professional. Very nice touch!
Cute! Your photos are gorgeous, and good idea using blueberries for a natural coloring! As for kids, not a fan. But I’m an only child, so I feel like I have to procreate at some point to carry on the family legacy or whatever. If I had a brother or sister to do that duty, I would totally never have one. But I guess I should someday. I’m putting that off until the last possible second though. At least if I do have a kid, it’ll be a vegan kid, and those are way cooler.
I’m in my earlier twenties and have been married a wee bit over 2.5 yeras, but I’m still very not ready for kids! One day, yes, but not today!
Hi Katie,
Sorry to hear of the passing of sweet Molly.
On a more sweet note… have you ever made a single serving brownie? Searched but didn’t see one on your blog. I just had a sweet baby girl, Evelyn Ruth, so my baking time is limited. I am loving the single serving recipes for a quick healthy treat with easy clean up.
I am going to use the cookie recipe (to create a brownie) and add some cocoa…wish me luck!
🙂 Tracey
I haven’t done brownies yet :(. I am a chocolate-covered disgrace; I don’t even have a NON-single brownie recipe posted here! Hard to believe, right?
Luckily, I am planning to at least post a blondie recipe later this week. Perhaps brownies need to follow soon after!
Oh, and good luck!
Yum! Blue velvet sounds awesome. Although I don’t remember ever having red velvet anything, haha. I already have kids. I never really wanted kids but now that I have them I would never ever even think about wanting to go back. It really is the greatest joy in my life 🙂
Lovely recipe! Well, I don´t think about having kids now or in any near future, but who knows what life brings…oh, I am speaking like my grandma:))
I don’t have kids but I do want at least 1 but hopefully 2. I used to want 5 or 6! Yikes. I have a few names that I do like — I like Molly or Marjory for a girl and Jack for a boy 🙂
Awww Molly! Yes, go with Molly!!! 🙂 🙂
Oh I didn’t even think about your Molly 🙂
It was my Grandma’s name and for some reason I’ve always wanted to have a child with a name that rhymed with mine! I have a friend who jokes that I’m going to have a bunch of kids with rhyming names: Polly, Molly, Wally and Dolly!
Don’t forget Lolly and Raleigh! 🙂
I realize the bottom of the cake doesn’t have the food coloring, but you used some on the top, right? Or did just the blueberries make that color? Blueberries always dye everything purple not blue unfortunately.
Vegan Cupcakes is a great book!
Oh lol yes, the frosting definitely has food coloring! 😉
One of the sweetest, nicest, most giving women and mothers I know is a lady named Gardenia. I think it’s a beautiful name!
I never wanted children. At all!!! Until I was about 27-28. Then my clock started ticking so loudly that it boomed. I told Scott i HAD to be pregnant. Like yesterday. And a month later, I was. And the rest is history 🙂
I love the name too! Who knows… I might rethink my choice to throw it off my list. Maybe I’ll someday have a kid named Gardenia after all. 🙂
Averie you sound like me. I want kids so bad right now that I cry over cute kids on commercials, my heart aches, I dream about it, I talk about it a lot, and then my husband goes to work and talks about it too. We’ve chosen Aurora for our first daughter, and Camden for our first son.
We knew we were getting closer to being ready for kids when the screaming kids in grocery stores no longer annoyed us 🙂
Katie, so funny that you chose blue velvet. I hate the color red, and always said that if I ever get around to making red velvet cake, I would make it blue.
BLUE velvet?! I love it you are a GENIUS!! These are PERFECT cos I am a huuuuge blueberry fan, and obviously I like chocolate a little bit too 😉
I want a whole LITTER of children hehe! I like names based from people I love! So the name Katie is a firm favourite 🙂
Wow, Emma, this comment actually made me cry! And in a good way, of course. I just can’t believe how sweet you are!
Also, I used to want to name my daughter Emma. No joke. But then Friends had to come along and make the name trendy… so now everyone is named Emma LOL! I guess everyone knows what a good name it is!
Oh my gosh, me too! I loved the name Emma and was so mad when Rachel named her baby that, because I knew there would be many to follow. But I still think it’s a beautiful name.