Keto cupcakes are a wonderful afternoon treat and perfect for any celebration! Expect a moist and fluffy vanilla flavoured crumb, topped by a lush cream cheese frosting. This easy sugar-free cupcakes recipe is absolutely fail-safe and suitable even for baking novices!
Everyone needs a really good cupcake recipe in their repertoire and this is mine!
I'll be honest with you. I never liked "real" cupcakes. I always found them too sweet, especially the frosting. At kiddie parties, I'd take a bite and then hide my plate behind a pot plant.
Everything has changed with these keto vanilla cupcakes! Not only are they low carb and gluten-free, they also ACTUALLY taste delicious.
The texture of the crumb is soft and moist yet fluffy. It tastes like a pound cake - none of that dry, brittle texture you get with shop-bought cupcakes.
The frosting is silky-creamy, but not overly sweet. I actually made two different frostings - one is a cream cheese frosting, the other one a strawberry buttercream frosting using real strawberry puree.
Jump to:
🌟 Why I Love This Recipe
- The PERFECT cupcake texture! The crumb is soft, moist and beautifully fluffy. It is complemented by a velvety, creamy frosting. The combination of the two is rather pleasurable.
- Tasty! Warm vanilla flavor in the cakes, topped with a buttery, sweet but not over-sweet frosting.
- Low in carbs: One sugar free cupcake contains only 3.5g net carbs, making it 100% suitable for anyone on keto.
- Easy. This is a recipe even baking beginners can master. It is only 10 minutes prep and if you don't have a piping bag, simply spoon the frosting over the cupcakes!
Ingredients
- Eggs - large and room temperature. Fridge cold eggs prevent cupcakes from rising.
- Butter
- Cream cheese - Use a full fat cream cheese (I like Philadelphia). In the cupcake, this can be replaced with Greek yoghurt or sour cream.
- Unsweetened almond milk
- Granulated sweetener - I used an erythritol monk fruit sweetener, which is a 1:1 sugar alternative. Allulose or Bocha Sweet also work. For the frosting, the sugar substitute MUST be powdered.
- Almond flour - I'm using ground almonds, which is equivalent to regular almond flour in the US. If you're using super-fine almond flour, reduce the amount by 2 tablespoons.
- Coconut flour - It complements almond flour and is also high in fibre. Read more about the benefits of coconut flour.
- Baking powder - Check that it is fresh (it should fizz when you put a little in cold water)
- Vanilla extract - For a luxury version of this recipe, use the seeds from 1 vanilla pod instead!
Instructions
This section contains step-by-step instructions and photos that show how to make this recipe. See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities
STEP 1
In a large mixing bowl using an electric mixer or in a food processor, beat the eggs until pale, thick and double in size.
STEP 2
Add the sweetener, butter, cream cheese, unsweetened almond milk and vanilla extract. Blend until smooth.
STEP 3
Stir together the dry ingredients in a separate bowl (option to add a pinch of salt). Then add them to the wet ingredients and blend until you have a smooth batter.
STEP 4
Fill the keto cupcake batter into a muffin tin lined with cupcake liners and bake in the oven until golden and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
STEP 5
Let the cupcakes cool completely.
STEP 6
For the vanilla frosting, mix together butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the vanilla extract and then slowly pour in the powdered sweetener. Fill the frosting into a piping bag and pipe over the cupcakes.
Katrin's Top Tips & Notes
#1 You can probably stretch the batter to 10 cups. Mine rose quite a bit, and since we're adding the frosting, there's no need for a large rounded dome top.
#2 The cupcake batter is only gently sweet, because we're adding the sweet frosting on top. For sweeter cupcakes add up to ⅔ cup (130g) of sweetener.
#3 It is ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL that you're using both room temperature butter and cream cheese for the frosting. I have tried to make it with cold ingredients, and this causes the frosting to curdle and split.
Recipe FAQs
Yes. Use 275 grams or 2 ¾ cup of almond flour.
Use a 50/50 blend of sunflower seed and sesame seed flour in place of the almond flour.
Replace the butter with coconut oil and the cream cheese with coconut cream. For the frosting, use vegan cream cheese and vegan butter.
I have not tested a vegan egg replacer such as flax eggs for this recipe.
Yes! A reader just told me that he used the batter to make a cake in a 8x8 inchcake pan with great results. He baked it at 180C / 350F. The oven time increased a little. I would test it for doneness at 25-30 minutes and also put aluminium foil over the top for the remainder of the baking duration to prevent overbrowning.
Variations
Try different flavors for this keto cupcake recipe:
- Lemon: Replace the almond milk with lemon juice and grate in fresh lemon zest.
- Peanut butter: Swap the cream cheese with soft peanut butter.
- Chocolate: Add 6 tablespoons cocoa powder and more milk as needed to loosen.
- Red Velvet: a few drops of red food colouring.
- Strawberry - Make my strawberry muffins and top them with the strawberry buttercream
- Chocolate chip - add sugar-free chocolate chips
Or, change the topping:
- Use my keto cheesecake fluff - it's a mixture of cream cheese and whipped cream (plus a couple of secret ingredients!)
- Chocolate frosting: Simply add 2 tablespoons cocoa powder to the vanilla frosting ingredients.
- Decorate with sugar free whipped cream and berries.
Storage
Refrigerator: The frosting stays firm at room temperature, but I do recommend to store keto cupcakes in the fridge if you don't eat them on the same day.
Freezer: You can freeze them for up to 3 months. If possible, freeze them plain and add the frosting before you serve. However, it's possible to freeze them with the frosting as well.
Related Recipes
Her are more sugar free cupcakes and other keto desserts to try:
- Keto Gingerbread Cupcakes30 Minutes
- Sugar Free Chocolate Birthday Cake1 Hours
- Sugar Free Carrot Cake1 Hours 5 Minutes
- Healthy Chocolate Orange Cake1 Hours
Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!
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Recipe
Keto Vanilla Cupcakes
from Sugar Free LondonerNote: The servings slider only changes the first amount in each line and not any subsequent amounts. Please make your own calculations where necessary.
Ingredients
Cupcake Batter
- 4 eggs large, room temperature
- ½ cup / 114g butter melted, then cooled
- ¼ cup / 60g cream cheese
- ¼ cup / 60ml almond milk
- ½ cup / 100g granulated sweetener use up to ⅔ cup if you like sweeter cupcakes
- 2 cup / 200g almond flour ***see notes
- ¼ cup / 30g coconut flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Frosting
- ¾ cup / 170g butter room temperature!!!
- 9.5 oz / 270g cream cheese room temperature!!! (1 cup plus 2 tbsp)
- ⅓ cup / 60g powdered sweetener or more to taste, up to ⅔ cup
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 C / 350 F and line a muffin / cupcake pan with paper cups.
- In a large bowl using an electric mixer or in a food processor, beat the room temperature eggs until pale, thick and double in size. This takes about 2 minutes.
- Now add the sweetener, melted and cooled butter, cream cheese, unsweetened almond milk and vanilla extract. Continue beating for a further minute.
- Stir together the almond flour, coconut flour and baking powder in a separate bowl. Then add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and blend until you have a smooth batter.
- Fill the cupcake batter into 9 paper cups and bake for 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
- Let the cupcakes cool completely before you make the sugar free vanilla frosting.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- It is absolutely essential the both the butter and the cream cheese are room temperature. Heat fridge-cold for 20-30 seconds in the microwave.
- First, mix the butter using an electric mixer. Then, add the cream cheese and beat until fully combined.
Tracie
Love these! Easy to make (I use silicone muffin cups). Light and fluffy with a creamy topping (vanilla).
Twila Quaid
Hello,
I made these ! The only thing I did different was I put them in mini muffin pans. I made the cream cheese frosting as you suggested but also made the topping I see posted a lot( sugar free cool whip mixed with package of sugar free vanilla pudding) . Loved, loved, loved these
Thanks for the recipe ,
Twila Qusid
george
How many carbs are these per bun?
Katrin Nürnberger
3.5g net carbs per cupcake with the vanilla cream cheese frosting.
3g net carbs per cupcake without keto frosting.
Mahry
Being on the keto diet, it's been a genuine struggle to find a dessert that actually tasted good, and behold, this recipe! Honestly, I absolutely loved it! I could not get enough of this recipe, that I actually get excited to have a cupcake after dinner each day. It's the type of cake I would have even if I wasn't on the keto diet.
The only issue I found was the icing, which was slightly bitter (I added more than the minimum) and I know it's because of the brand of sweetener I have. I'm still hunting down that perfect sweetener, but if you're in the same boat as me, perhaps don't add the extra amount of sugar as suggested if the bitterness bothers you too. I'm suspecting if you stick to the recipe, not adding any additional sugar, it'd be perfect. Definitely trying it for the next time.
Lucinda Bos
Hi Katrin.
I love your recipes.
I have a question on these.
I don't use almond milk, I would use half and half or heavy cream and water.
Would I use the same amount do you think?
Cindy
Katrin Nürnberger
Maybe using regular milk would be a better idea. If you're adding cream, you're adding more fat and the sponge will be heavier.
Esté
Love this recipe; the coconut flour give it such a pleasant texture and flavour. Definitely wont make regular cupcakes again. - not even as a treat!
Thank you for providing all these recipes; I slowly trying to reduce carbs wherever possible and was quite depressed about the things I would be out missing on…until a friend recommended your site!
Melanie
These cakes are delicious and very moist! They taste just like regular cakes. They rose really well, although I did add a quarter of a teaspoon of xanthan gum, as I find that helps with rising keto cakes. I thought maybe they would be too eggy with the number of eggs in the recipe, however they tasted just fine. I didn't have any cream cheese, so used natural low fat yoghurt instead and it worked really well.
Cal
Hi sugar free Londoner
I’m new to your site and living the recipes. Do you have a meal plan of a few days or weeks to get u started on low carb. Many thanks Cal
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi Cal, glad you are enjoying the website. I am planning to launch a meal plan in January.
Joanne Senn
I am so happy I tried this incredible recipe! It is definitely the best vanilla cupcake ever and the frosting is scrumptious. I would love to make this into a cake but don’t know how to convert the times. I am not the biggest chocolate fan, but vanilla wow, this is over the top!
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi Joanne, so glad you like the cupcakes! The baking time in a springform will depend on the size. The flatter and larger in diameter, the shorter it will take. Smaller springform pans will take longer. Depending on which size cake pan I use, it takes between 40 and 65 minutes. Just check with a skewer when it's done. And put aluminium foil over the top once the top is browned (after about 40 minutes).
Marie Harwood
Hi, just wondering, would it be best to bake these at 325 or 350*? Then in the frosting, can i just beat in the sweetener [to taste] and vanilla extract and it's ready? I want to make these for my 9 year old great-granddaughter who's coming to visit on Wednesday..
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi Marie, I baked mine at 180 C, which is 350 F. And yes, just beat in as much sweetener as you like into the frosting. I found the key here was to have the ingredients nice and soft. Enjoy the time with your great-granddaughter!
Carly Taylor
Hi I'm loving your recipes so much! Can you just confirm that this is 447 calories per cup cake? It just seems so much! They were delicious. So moist and went down extremely well with family members. Thanks so much for your amazing website and inspiring me to go keto and sugar free
Katrin Nürnberger
So happy you like the website! It's the frosting that cranks up the calories in the cupcakes - it's the butter. Imagine how much more it would be if you were using real sugar as well!