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Banana Cupcakes with Orange Cream-Cheese Glaze
I first tried this recipe out while snowed-in this past winter. This recipe originally comes from The Healthy Kitchen cookbook. I have added my own hints for lowering the fat content of the cupcakes.

That snowy day I spread the glaze on the muffins as soon as they came out of the oven. My boyfriend and I did not stop eating them until we were completely stuffed.

The glaze is fantastic but not necessary, especially if you are heading towards a competition. I would recommend freezing half or most of what you bake. That way you have healthy treats on hand that you can microwave and enjoy instantly. (I give most of them away, self control is not one of my virtues.)

Orange Cream-Cheese Glaze

  • 1 cup softened low-fat cream cheese


  • ¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice


  • ¼ cup honey (I have used molasses before)


  • ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract


  • ½ teaspoon orange zest



    • Garnish

  • Whole walnuts



    • Cupcake Batter

  • 2 cups whole wheat flour


  • ½ cup oat or wheat bran


  • 1 tablespoon baking soda


  • ¼ teaspoon salt


  • 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves or pumpkin spice


  • 1/8 teaspoon dried ground ginger


  • 4 ripe bananas, mashed


  • ½ large carrot or ½ a zucchini, grated


  • 6 tablespoons softened butter ( Sometimes, I substitute ground flaxseed for the butter - use ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon)


  • 1 cup of brown sugar (once I tried it without sugar, DON'T - it is really awful)


  • 2 eggs (I have substituted 4 whites - it works fine.)


  • ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract


  • ¼ cup chopped walnuts (optional)


    • 1. Let the cream cheese for the icing soften at room temperature while you prepare the cupcake batter.

    2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

    3. Make the batter: Mix the flour, bran, baking soda, salt and spices together in a bowl. Mash the bananas in a separate bowl with a fork until all fruit chunks are completely squashed. Drop in the grated carrots or zucchini, and stir thoroughly with a spoon until they are completely covered in bananas. In a medium bowl , cream together the softened butter, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla with an electric mixer or by hand with a whisk until smooth, with no signs of lumpy sugar granules. Add the walnuts and stir with a spoon until they are completely coated. Slowly mix in the dry ingredients for 1 minute until all ingredients are thoroughly blended. Pour in the mix of mashed banana and grated carrot or zucchini and stir everything with a big wooden spoon until the bananas are completely blended into the batter.

    4. Spray the baby bundt pans with nonstick cooking spray, making sure to coat all of the fluted sides, and pour in the batter, scraping the bowl with a spatula to get is all.

    5. Bake the cupcakes, baby bundt cakes, and the mini-loaves for 20 minutes; the large loaf will take 45 minutes. Remove from the pans and let cool before frosting.

    6. To make the glaze: Whisk together the softened cream cheese, orange juice, honey, vanilla, and orange zest in a bowl until the glaze becomes smooth and thick. For cupcakes, use 1 tablespoon of glaze per cake. For mini-loaves or baby bundt cakes, use ¼ cup for each loaf. For a standard loaf, use ½ cup. Garnish each cake or loaf with a walnut in the center.

    The recipe makes 12 cupcakes, 12 baby bundt cakes 4mini-loaves, or 1 standard loaf. It serves 12. Per serving, if you follow their directions with no substitutions: calories 354, Fat 14.6 g, saturated fat 6.3g (37.1% of calories from fat) Protein 7.9 g, Carbohydrates 53.4 g, Cholesterol 60.6mg, Fiber 4.4g.

    Substituting flaxseed for butter will lower the saturated fat content. Using egg whites instead of whole eggs will lower the cholesterol and up the protein. Your friends and family will also enjoy them less