Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Fudgy Chocolate Cupcakes

I don't know that this recipe needs a lot of explanation.

I mean...peanut butter, cookie dough, and chocolate cupcakes. All rolled into one.

Basically this is a combination of a few of my favorite things. Like I just sort of took the cookie dough dip and ran with it. The result?

Heaven in cupcake form.  These little devils are low in sugar, have a little bit of protein, and a couple of extra ingredients for some antioxidant action - one of which is beets. Yep, beets.



Start with the recipe for chocolate chip cookie dough dip. Instead of almond butter, sub peanut butter. Unless you (unlike me) are not obsessed with peanut butter and prefer plain ol' cookie dough taste...which is also not a bad thing. Now set that aside for a while and try not to eat it all.

The Fudgy Beet Cupcake recipe is courtesy of the Minimalist Baker, a perfectly fabulous blog if you're looking for something to impress your friends with. When I first came across this particular recipe, I wasn't so sure about the beets. I mean, I love beets, but not necessarily with chocolate, ya know? But I got beets with my Farm Fresh delivery and am always looking for healthier cupcake recipes so I figured I'd give it a whirl. And oh, am I glad I did cause these are the bomb.com.

Ingredients

• 2 medium beets


• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk


• 1 tsp white or apple cider vinegar


• 
3/4 cup raw turbinado OR granulated sugar


• 1/4 cup canola or melted coconut oil


• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract


• 1 cup + 1 heaping Tbsp whole wheat pastry flour or unbleached all-purpose flour


• scant 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
 + more for topping


• 1 tsp baking soda


• 1/2 tsp baking powder


• pinch salt

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375°F, remove the stem and most of the root from your beets, and scrub and wash them underwater until clean.


2. Wrap beets in foil, drizzle on a bit of canola oil, wrap tightly, and roast for one hour or until a knife inserted falls out without resistance. They should be tender. Set in the fridge (in a bowl to catch juice) to cool to room temperature.


3. Once cooled, either finely grate or puree beets in a blender (adding orange juice or water to encourage mixing). Measure out 1/2 cup and set aside.


4. Line a muffin pan with paper liners.


5. Whisk together the almond milk and vinegar in a large bowl, and set aside for a few minutes to curdle. Add the sugar, oil, vanilla extract, and 1/2 cup beets and beat until foamy.


6. Add the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to a sifter and slowly sift it into the wet ingredients while mixing with a hand-held or standing mixer. Beat until no large lumps remain.


7. Pour batter into liners, filling 3/4 of the way full.


8. Take your cookie dough and drop about a tablespoon or a little less into each cupcake.


9. Bake 22 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely. Do not try and unwrap them or they’ll stick to the wrapper.


10. Eat up, my friends. And at less than 200 calories a pop, don't even worry about running that extra mile on the treadmill.

Note: I have subbed the brown sugar for Sucanat. I like Sucanat because it's unrefined and not stripped of it's natural molasses, unlike brown sugar. I personally like it although it does change the taste slightly, so sub at your own risk.

 Also, these are awesome without frosting, but if you're looking to frost your cupcakes, my favorite no-sugar option is  Healthy Chocolate Frosting, from Chocolate Covered Katie.

Yields about 10 cupcakes.