Vegan Salted Caramel Chocolate Muffins

I was strolling around Harvey Nics ( it's like a fancy department store ) and natural fun myself on the top floor where all the food was. And I naturally ended in front of the cupcake counter. If you've ever heard or tried any of Cucktoo's Cupcakes, you will know what I'm talking about when I say they are the best cupcakes.

I decided to go for a chocolate salted caramel and it was so delicious that I had to recreate it. This is how the idea for these muffins sparked...

Everything about these muffins is simply amazing.

They would be great for normal salted caramel chocolate muffins. But they're healthy...

They would be great for a healthy salted caramel chocolate muffin. But they're vegan...

They would be great fro a vegan healthy salted caramel chocolate muffin. But... yeh that's it but I mean come on.

I originally made these muffins with paleo coconut milk caramel ( as seen in the picture above ), instead of the date. Now I will be honest and say I did think that this was tastier and more like the real thing but I figured out if I were to use that caramel, each muffin would have about 40g added sugar in which was just too much for my liking so I changed it to naturally sweetened Date Caramel.

The Muffin is so tasty it is suitable for dessert. Moist, fluffy, light and rich. Then it's so healthy it's suitable for breakfast, thats if you leave out the caramel and frosting, because although they, too, are healthy, the sugar adds up. However if I were to do that, I would add in a few cheeky chunks of chocolate.

Healthy Chocolate Cupcakes

Serves: 6 small cupcakes or 4 large ( 235 calories each if making 6 )

Ingredients

• 1 large ripe banana

• 1tsp milled flaxseeds combined with 3tsp water

• 23ml coconut oil

• 50g soft brown sugar ( or coconut sugar )

• a few drops of vanilla essence, optional

• 42g spelt flour

• 1 heaped 1/4tsp baking soda ( so it's about 1/3 )

• 20g raw cacao powder

• salt, to sprinkle

• 40g chocolate, roughly chopped(optional)

For the Frosting

• 1 ripe avocado

• 40g honey

• 30g raw cacao powder

For the Caramel Filling

• 100g dates

• 1/8tsp salt flakes

• 20g maple syrup

• 20g coconut oil

• enough water to cover the dates

Method

- Start by preheating the oven ( as always ) to 180 degrees celsius, Fan oven. line a muffin tin or cupcake tray ( what are they called? ) with cupcake holders.

- Make your flax egg here by combining the seeds and water together in a small bowl or ramekin. Let it sit for at least 5 minutes.

- Sift the flour into a medium sized bowl, then mix in the remaining dry ( except sugar ). Set aside.

- Mash the banana as well as you can before beating in the remaining coconut oil.

- After fully incorporated, stir in the coconut sugar, flax egg and vanilla.

- Fold the dry mixture into the wet, make sure to leave a few streaks.

- Continue to fold carefully, adding the chocolate chips now, if you're using them.

- Pour the batter evenly between the cupcake holders and bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean with a few crumbs attached.

- Remove the muffins from the oven and let them cool for an hour.

- For the Frosting, simply add all the ingredients to a large bowl and mash everything , stirring in the coconut oil once it has become a smooth and fluffy texture.

- For the Filling, add the dates and water to a small sauce pan. You may need to less water if the dates are squishier ( such as medjool, however I had a different type which where a lot drier ).

- Heat over medium high. Boil the dates until soft and squishy then reduce the heat to medium and stir constantly while smashing ( is that a word? ) the dates to a smooth paste with a spatula.

- Once the dates have all mushed together to form a paste, stir in the coconut oil and maple syrup.

- Remove from the heat and let it cool slightly. Stir in the salt. Remove it to a bowl and let it cool.

- To finish the muffins, with a corer or a knife, cut out a deep whole through the muffin, but don't go all the way otherwise the caramel will just pour through the bottom.

- Place the muffins back into the baking tray. Add a spoonful of the caramel into each muffin. Flatten the top with a knife.

- Add the frosting to a piping bag and pipe it across the top of the muffins. Or just skip the hassle and spread it over the top. I pureed a bit of caramel sauce over the top but simply for photo purposes.

* Follow the recipe exactly for an indulgent treat or for an everyday snack you can remove the frosting and choc chips for a healthy chocolate caramel snack.

These muffins are also nice without the choice chips and caramel and just the frosting. Just experiment and see what you like best!