A tasty fruity cupcake with a tart but creamy topping. The colour is quite striking and as the lemon blueberry cupcakes are sugar free, they’re relatively low in calories.
When I borrowed the Primrose Bakery Christmas book out of the library a few weeks ago, I bookmarked several of the recipes. The one for blueberry cupcakes caught my eye, mostly for the fabulously coloured icing. It’s a rare occasion for me to use food dyes, but I do like my food to be colourful. Icing made with natural fruit juice is a win win and even more so with this sugar free version.
Natvia
Natvia is a natural sugar free sweetener that has a similar look and feel to sugar. Even the cardboard packs look like the sort of thing bakers are used to using. It also has the same bulk, which makes it ideal for baking as you can swap the sugar in pretty much any recipe for Natvia.
It’s made in Australia from stevia and erythritol. Both of these come from natural sources and do not harm teeth or give insulin spikes, which makes them suitable for diabetics as well as everyone else. The stevia content is balanced so that its rather distinctive aftertaste is less pronounced than other stevia products I’ve tried. The really big plus of course is that it is calorie free.
Sugar Free Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes
These blueberry cupcakes are very different to my recipe for wild blueberry cupcakes. I made them with a wild blueberry powder rather than the fresh fruit. They also contain white chocolate.
I tinkered with the original recipe as I do and made the cakes more lemony as well as a little less sweet. They tasted good with a light moist sponge, but the icing was superb; it was both sweet and sour and very fruity. I veered off from the recipe and made a cream cheese version which I shall now be making again and again.
With these sugar-free lemon blueberry cupcakes you can have your cake and eat it, safe in the in the knowledge that your calorie count is low.
If, however, you’re happy to include sugar, then do a straight swap. Use golden caster sugar instead of the Natvia and icing sugar instead of the Natvia icing.
Other Refined Sugar-Free Cakes You Might Like
- Caramelised pear and honey carob cake (gluten-free)
- Cashew nut butter brownies
- Chocolate coconut cannelloni cake (vegan and gluten-free)
Keep in Touch
Thanks for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make these sugar free cupcakes with blueberries and lemon, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. Do share photos on social media too and use the hashtag #tinandthyme, so I can spot them.
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Blueberry Cupcakes. PIN IT.
Blueberry Cupcakes – The Recipe
Sugar Free Blueberry Lemon Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 200 g blueberries
- 250 g Natvia
- 1 lemon
- 170 g + 50g unsalted butter
- 2 large eggs (I used duck eggs)
- 250 g flour (half wholemeal, half plain)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 100 g full fat cream cheese
- 50 g Natvia icing
Instructions
- Grate the lemon zest into a large mixing bowl.
- Put all but 12 blueberries into a small pan, squeeze in the juice from the lemon and add 50g Natvia.
- Simmer over a low heat for a couple of minutes. Strain the juice and remove the blueberries. Return the juice to the pan and simmer for a few more minutes to make a thick syrup. Leave to cool.
- Cream the butter with the lemon zest and remaining Natvia until light and fluffy.
- Beat in the eggs, one at a time.
- Sieve in the flour and baking powder and stir in.
- Add the blueberries taken from the syrup and fold in.
- Divide the mixture between 12 cupcakes cases and bake at 180℃ (350℉, Gas 4) for about 20 minutes when the cakes should be well risen and golden brown.
- Cream the remaining butter with the Natvia icing until light and fluffy, then beat in the cream cheese and as much of the syrup as the mix will take without it becoming runny.
- Spread the icing on top of the cakes and decorate with the reserved blueberries.
Notes
Nutrition Estimate
I was commissioned to create a recipe using these Natvia products. I was not required to write a positive review and as always, all opinions are my own. Thank you for your support of the brands and organisations that help to keep Tin and Thyme blithe and blogging.
Janice says
These are so pretty and I’ll bet they taste great too.
Choclette says
Thanks Janice, the blueberry lemon cheese icing was the best bit – sweet, tart and creamy.
Heidi Roberts says
I think lemons and blueberries were made to be together! Love cupcakes with them.
Choclette says
I’m with you there Heidi, lemons give a certain needed sharpness to blueberries I feel.
Hannah says
Oh my wow. These look so so good. I am a huge pink lover so I think I’ll be having a go at that insane pink, it’s gorgeous!
Choclette says
It’s a wonderful colour isn’t it Hannah? Tastes good too 🙂
Angie@Angie's Recipes says
That pinky frosting looks really beautiful!
Choclette says
Thanks Angie – such are the power of blueberries 🙂
sarah says
these look so cute! i love the pink icing! pinned. 🙂
Choclette says
Thank you Sarah. The icing was my favourite part. I loved the colour and it tasted wonderfully fruity too.
Bintu @ Recipes From A Pantry says
I have yet to try Natvia in baking and must do so one of these days.
Choclette says
Well it’s jolly useful to be able to bake without using sugar from time to time Bintu.
Carolyn blogs says
I used to bake with Xylitol years ago when I was dieting. I kind of forgot about sugar alternatives since but I’d be curios to give this a go. I’ve just made a lime and ginger drizzle cake which is sat on the side cooling at the moment. I wonder how natvia would taste for the drizzle. This is my fave kind of cake but I always think that there’s too much sugar in it.
Choclette says
Ooh lime and ginger is a lovely combination. Luckily for you, you don’t live next door carolyn or I might be popping around for a slice. Xylitol has calories I believe, although a lot less then sugar. Natvia has none. It is more distinctive in taste though, so I think you’d have to try it and see what you thought.
ManjiriK says
Yummy colours and I love that these products are safe even for diabetics and do not give crazy sugar spikes! Makes me want to get back to baking!
Choclette says
Ah yes indeed Manjiri, don’t give up on the baking!
Laura@howtocookgoodfood says
That icing is such a glorious colour, I would choose this cake for that alone!
Choclette says
Me too Laura – as long as I knew the colour came from an integral ingredient – I am not a fan of food dyes.
Jen says
Love the colour of the icing. Have never attempted sugar free baking and didn’t even really know what Natvia was so thanks for enlightening me. I’ll have to do some experimenting with my baking.
Choclette says
Thanks Jen, the colour is wonderfully vibrant – it tastes rather good too. I’ve tried a few stevia based products and this is definitely the best of them.
Tracy says
The colour of the icing is gorgeous. I do love blueberries baked into cakes as they become so moist.
Choclette says
I’m with you on blueberries in cakes Tracy, well pretty much any fresh fruit really 🙂
Munchies and munchkins says
These look amazing. So colourful and they just beg to be bitten into. Yum.
Choclette says
I just loved the icing on these, it was so vibrant and ever so tasty too 😉
Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche says
I love the idea of using a natural sweetener instead of sugar! These look lovely 🙂
Choclette says
Thanks Becca, it’s jolly useful to have a calorie free sweetener up one’s sleeve that isn’t bad for you in some way.
Kath says
Gorgeous! I picked up a copy of the primrose bakery books from my local charity shop. These cupcakes look delicious.
Choclette says
Thank Kath. You’re always picking up good books in that charity shop of yours. I like the ideas the Primrose Bakery books have, although they tend to use more sugar than I would.
Kath says
I know, it’s blooming marvellous at that charity shop. I have been picking up a load of American cook books lately. I want to meet the person/people that drop them off in there. Then the Oxfam shop had a copy of Michael Pollan’s Cooked and Wille Harcourt Cooze’s book the other day. I very nearly kissed the lady at the till. But managed to refrain myself in time. Both have been brilliant reads.
Choclette says
Ooh wonderful. I have Willie’s book – recently picked up in a remainder shop, but not Michael Pollan’s, which I really ought to get hold of.
Dom says
look at that icing! Well HELLO! I’m never 100% sure about the sugar free natural sugars but always good to know they work well. it’s a texture thing for me.
Choclette says
Texture-wise, the Natvia worked much better than other sugar-free products I’ve used for baking Dom, but as you know, I am not averse to a little sugar 😉 The icing was fabuloso.
Terri says
They look and sound wonderful. I am useless in the kitchen when it comes to baking but I still enjoy having a go.
Choclette says
Enjoying it is the main thing Terri, I bet you’re not nearly as bad as you think you are.
Rebecca Smith says
These sound incredible, I will have to give them a go!
Choclette says
Thanks Rebecca, fresh fruit in cakes is pretty much always a winner with me.