These Low Carb Apple Cupcakes with Caramel Frosting are the perfect fall treat, combining the classic flavors of tart apples and sweet and salty caramel!
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Let’s face it, this time of year pumpkins get all the love, leaving the humble apple feeling like the red-headed stepchild of the fall season.
Well, guess what? I’m also a red-headed step child and I say enough is enough. It’s time to show apples the love they deserve and I have just the recipe to do it!
Don’t get me wrong, I too have avoided apples like the plague since switching to a keto diet. I mean one apple has like, a billion and a half carbs making it pretty hard to fit one into my daily macros.
For the record, that is a slight exaggeration. A granny smith apple comes in at about 17g of total carbs. So not a billion, but still not exactly keto friendly either.
When I was working on this recipe, I almost opted to leave out the real apple in place of apple extract. But then I realized that I was being ridiculous. I went with a happy medium and used half of an apple and a little extract.
Turns out that using half of an apple only adds about .5 of a carb to each cupcake – which is totally worth it in my book!
For the extract, I used OOOflavors (linked below), but you could also use Lorann Oils. These oils are super potent, so a little goes a very long way.
If you don’t have the extract, you can leave it out just be aware that these cupcakes won’t have a ton of apple flavor without it. And of course, if you really are opposed to using a real apple, you can add a few extra drops of extract and replace the apple with 1/2 cup of shredded zucchini.
For the sweetener in this recipe, I opted to use Lakanto Golden (linked below). It has the best flavor of any brown sugar substitute that I have tried yet and it works so well with the other flavors in these cupcakes.
If you don’t have Lakanto Golden, you can use any sugar substitute that you like, although I prefer to stick with an erythritol based sweetener. If you don’t use a brown sugar substitute for the frosting, then you may want to add a teaspoon or two of molasses to get that rich caramel flavor. Just be aware that molasses will obviously add some extra carbs.
Be sure to check out these other great recipes:
- Keto Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Lavender Cupcakes | Keto, Gluten Free
- Keto Pineapple Upside Down Cake
Did you make this recipe?
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Low Carb Apple Cupcakes with Caramel Frosting
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup Lakanto Golden (or other sugar substitute)
- 5 tbsp butter softened
- 4 large eggs
- 2 tbsp heavy whipping cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 10-15 drops apple flavoring oil
- 2 tbsp coconut flour
- 1 1/2 cups Almond Flour
- 2 tbsp Baking Powder
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup granny smith apple peeled and diced
For the Caramel Frosting
- 4 tbsp butter sotened
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1/3 cup Lakanto golden
- 2 tbsp heavy whipping cream
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line a 12 cavity muffin tin with cupcake liners.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and lakanto golden until light and fluffy. Beat the eggs in, then add the heavy cream, vanilla, and apple flavoring.
- Next add the coconut flour, almond flour, baking powder, and cinnamon. Mix well, then fold in the diced apple.
- Evenly distribute the batter between the prepared cupcake liners, about 1/4 of batter per cupcake.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool before frosting.
- To prepare the frosting, melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. As soon as the butter is melted, add the Lakanto golden and vanilla, and stir constantly until the lakanto is completely melted. Lower the heat to medium and continue to simmer for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Whisk in the heavy cream and remove from heat. Carefully transfer to a large heat-resistant bowl and allow to cool.
- Once cool, add the cream cheese and beat with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Refrigerate until the cupcakes are cool and ready to frost.
Notes
Perfect fall dessert!
What if I don’t have the apple oil drops?
Hi Patricia! You can just leave out the apple oil drops if you don’t have them. The apple flavor should still come through from the use of the granny smith apple. Hope that helps, and if you try it, let me know how it goes!
Can you go without the coconut flour?
Yes you can leave it out, but it does help give the cake a better texture.
Can I use a bit of apple sauce instead of apple flavor oil?