Skinny Red Velvet Cupcakes

Red Velvet Cake is my weakness and I can't think of a better cake to eat on Valentine's Day. My 16 year old daughter started a baking blog called Pastries of a Chocoholic a few weeks ago (she's the baker in my house) and her red velvet cupcakes are amazing! I made it my mission this week to make a skinnier version of them for this week's post. It's always a challenge to lower the fat in baking so when these came out of the oven (fingers were crossed the whole time) I was so happy to see perfectly baked cupcakes. Topped with low fat cream cheese frosting you wouldn't even know these are light.

Skinny Red Velvet Cupcakes
Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes
Servings: 26 • Serving Size: 1 cupcake • Calories: 141 • Points: 3 pts • Points+: 4 pts

• 1 1/2 cups cake flour
• 1 cup white whole wheat flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tbsp unsweetened dutch-process cocoa
• 1 tsp salt
  
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp white vinegar
• 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 egg
• 2 egg whites
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/3 cup light buttermilk
• 1 tbsp red food coloring

Preheat oven to 350. Line cupcake tins with liners. In a large mixing bowl, stir together flours, salt, cocoa, and baking powder. In another large bowl beat sugar, applesauce and butter. Beat in eggs and vanilla. In a separate bowl mix baking soda and vinegar. Add half of the dry ingredients into the egg mixture, mix well. Add buttermilk, red food coloring and mix well. Add the remaining dry ingredients and fold in vinegar and baking soda. Pour in prepared cupcake liners 3/4 of the way. Bake 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool, then frost with low fat cream cheese frosting. Makes 26 cupcakes.

Low Fat Cream Cheese Frosting

• 8 oz 1/3 fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Beat together cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth.