This delicious, healthy Pineapple Zucchini Cupcake with Cream Cheese Frosting is absolutely incredible! Made with whole wheat flour, fruit, vegetables and dairy… what’s not to love?!
Pineapple Zucchini Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
Pineapple Zucchini Cupcakes with Cream Cheese FrostingMore of my favorite guiltless cake recipes are Super Moist Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting, Skinny Chocolate Cake, Cheesecake Brownies, and 5-ingredient Almond Cake with Fresh Berries.
I had a zucchini lying around with no real plans for it and I thought, why not make cupcakes! These cupcakes were a huge hit with my friends and neighbors, including my 20 month old. Cupcake is her new favorite word!
If you make them, it’s important to squeeze the excess liquid from the pineapple and zucchini so they cook properly in the middle. You can pipe the frosting with a pastry bag, or simply put it in a zip-lock bag and cut the corner to make your own disposable pastry bag. If you like a lot of frosting on top, you may want to make a little extra, however points will increase.
Pineapple Zucchini Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup flaked coconut
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg, optional
- 1 pinch ginger, optional
- 2 tbsp coconut oil, or vegetable oil
- 2 whole large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 cups grated zucchini, unpeeled, squeezed well of all moisture
- 20 oz. can crushed pineapple in juice, drained well
For the Frosting:
- 8 oz 1/3 fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°.
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, coconut, baking soda, salt, and spices; stir well with a whisk.
- In a medium bowl, combine oil, eggs, and vanilla; stir well.
- Add grated zucchini and pineapple; mix well.
- Fold wet ingredients with the dry ingredients, batter will be stiff and dry but keep folding it and it will all come together.
- Spoon batter into cupcake tin.
- Bake at 350° for about 23 minutes, or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool completely on a wire rack.
- To prepare frosting, beat together cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth.
- Spread or pipe frosting over the cupcakes once they are cooled.
- You can garnish with chopped pecans or walnuts, if desired (extra points).
I might do this as breakfast muffins, thank you Gina 🙂
Does anybody know what the points are if you do not frost them. Thank you
Really good! Everyone I’ve shared these with has loved them!
These are great! I made them for breakfast so I called them muffins. I didn’t have cream cheese so I made a Greek Yogurt “Frosting” instead.
Any chance you would consider doing this recipe for fall and switching out the pineapple for pumpkin?! This is one of my favorite recipes and everyone at work raves about them when I make them. I’d love another variety!
I am so glad you enjoy these! Have you tried these? https://www.skinnytaste.com/pumpkin-cream-cheese-muffins/ or https://www.skinnytaste.com/pumpkin-cupcakes-with-pumpkin-spiced/
I made these as “muffins” with a few adjustments. I did not add frosting, I added chopped walnuts to the batter, I cut back on the sugar by 1/4C, I underbaked them (20 minutes in the oven). Now I know it was a lot of changes, but they are absolutely delicious. I despise crispy or overcooked sweets so I was happy with the al dente midsection. Thanks again Gina!
how do i substitute for gf flour?
Without the frosting they are a muffin…and muffins are healthy. LOL
Yum !
I’m trying to sign up to be notified of new recipes but get a message saying my email address is invalid. This is the same one I’ve had for 25 years and yes it is valid. What can I do? I have no other email address. I love your recipes and want the notification. My Dr recommended this site to me?.
These were great! I wouldn’t change a thing. I didn’t use the frosting and ate them for breakfast muffins. Thank you always for the great recipes.
🙂
If not eating right away do I need to refrigerate or can I leave them out like cupcakes? Thanks
Can I substitute carrot for zuchinni?
Just made these and they were fantastic! Your website and pintrest has changed by cooking habits for the better!
Thank you for your site that I came across on Pinterest this past year! We have enjoyed all of your recipes! I made these muffins with my own GF AP flour, 1/2 cup of the sugar, and added 1 tsp of maple flavored extract in addition to the vanilla. Texture and taste was great! My family did not know it was GF!
After the first day, it was best to place in microwave at 80% power for 15 seconds. Thank you again for your site Gina!
Can these be stored in the fridge overnight?
I did not have enough pineapple so I added 1/2 c grated carrots. I'll let you know how they turn out.
Can I use gluten free flour and use sweve for the sugar? Also would that change the nutritional info?
Thanks! And yes spray the muffin liners!
I love this recipe! I made it several times last year when my zucchini is in abundance. My 5yr old is now gluten free so I used Pamela's mix for the flour and baking soda otherwise I followed this recipe and baked 30-35 min. It came out great!!
I've made several recipes from your site that I knew couldn't really be all that terrible even if I didn't like how they ended up. I do believe this takes the 'cake'!!! It is pure genius and I will be making these more often to satisfy my severe sweet tooth! I left out 1/2 cup powdered sugar in the icing to save some precious calories lol. These were delicious and even got the approval of my extremely picky, very skeptical boyfriend! Thank you for cooking healthy and sharing the recipes!
how much icing goes on each cupcake?
These are delicious! Love them…but I didn't spray the paper muffin cups before baking, and the cupcakes/muffins stuck to the paper. No big deal…but just thought I'd tell people they should spray them. Don't want to miss an ounce of these great cupcakes!
I only got 12 cupcakes out of my batter. I wonder if I squeezed my pineapple a little too much. I used a mesh strainer and really squeezed out the pineapple and the zucchini. I measured the zucchini before squeezing, not sure if that was correct. I'm sure they'll still be great!
Hi Gina,
I'd like to being these to the cottage but for ease if traveling, I thought I'd make it into a loaf… Think that would work? How long should I bake?
Thanks!
I made the cake the other week and was blown away. Just like an old family recipe for zucchini pineapple bread that's really unhealthy due to lots of oil. I wanted to make these for my son's first birthday minus the frosting (and call them muffins). Is there a reason you decreased the oil from the cake to the cupcake?
I'm excited to try these. I'm making them for my hubby for Father's Day. I just wanted to let you know that all of the ingredients don't show up in the printer friendly version- just the incredients for the frosting.
These are outstanding!! I made them just as muffins, without the frosting, and they are delicious!! Great recipe!!
I just made these tonight and they were delish!! Everyone loved them. Thank you so much Gina!! Your recipes are great.
Hi Gina love your recipes and could not survive WW without them. Could you please tell me if the measurements for the Zucchini and pineapple are for after draining/squeezing?
I just made these and is it just me or does the white whole wheat flour have a wang to it
GINA- holy moly these are insanely good! you're recipes make me feel like i have culinary skills. these cupcakes are crazy delicious. I cant wait to surprise my family on thanksgiving!
I made these the other night for dinner with friends. My dad (a skinny-minny) sneered at them and said he doubted he'd care for them, what with the pineapple and the "diet" angle. He ate one anyway and looked chagrined when he asked for another "pretty please."
Notes: I thought mine came out a little salty and will reduce it by 1/3 next time. I used only 2/3 c powdered sugar in the icing, and nobody minded at all. YUM.
Claudia, aww that is great : )
Gina, just thought you should know that this recipe has the thumbs up of kindergarteners. I've baked this recipe with small groups in the classroom for the past two days, minus the frosting and they have all loved it. They loved seeing all the different ingredients that were going into their cupcakes. Thanks so much for the great recipes! 🙂
This is the cupcake I would surely love to bake and give to my kids. Aside from its deliciousness, its very nutritious with all the fruits and veggies on it. Thanks a lot for the recipe.
I made this recipe and loved it! Brought it to work and people loved it, they were a little skeptical at first, but got a lot of good comments. !Love your recipes an web site, thank you
Another winner! These were really great. I was shooting for muffin rather than cupcake so only used 3/4c sugar, double vanilla, plus 1/2 cup walnuts in the batter. Could use more or less sugar depending on your sweetness desires. I also used less sugar (2/3c) in the frosting. Perfect use for a monster, mutant zucchini from the garden. I also used my vegan cream cheese in the frosting and it turned out yummy.
I made these today for my family and they LOVED them, as did I. YUMMY!!!
Here is the nutritional info without the frosting:
Old Points: 3 pts • Points+: 4 pts
Calories: 145.9 • Fat: 4.5 g • Protein: 2.1 g • Carb: 24.0 g • Fiber: 1.7 g • Sugar: 15.1 g • Sodium: 284.1 mg
Maybe canned pears instead? Crushed in a food processor.
Any suggestions for a substitution for the pineapple? I'm allergic!
Just a quick update for anyone wondering about substituting yellow squash: it worked great! The cupcakes were moist and tasted great. Thank you for a perfect summer recipe!
Just wondering what the points would be without the frosting? I am addicted to your site…thank you so much!! I am spreading the word, too, posting whatever I'm cooking on facebook. 🙂
I made these last night and tried 1 with frosting and 1 without and they both were delicious, of course a little sweeter with the frosting, I would give it 3 points without the frosting, delicious!!
Could the zucchini be replaced by summer yellow squash?
I can figure it myself, but any idea what the muffins are without the frosting? Not trying to cut the pts, but I'm not always a fan of cream cheese frosting… I know, I'm weird!
Wow!! Yummy! Thanks Gina for your blog! I am always coming here with the question "What's for dinner?" The answer is always here! These cupcakes were husband approved! He was even surprised after eating them I told him that they were healthy! thanks for helping me stay on plan and enjoy food at the same time!
I had zucchini bread on my to make list for today but I may just need to make cupcakes instead. Frosting makes everything better 🙂
I just made these and tried one…It was DELICIOUS!!!! My 21 month old daughter had one minus the icing and kept asking for more.Hahaha I have been trying to lose the baby weight from my 9 month old and I have been using a LOT of your recipes for the last couple of months and have loved them all. Thank you so much for tasty recipes that me and my husband can both enjoy.
These look so good!! anxious to try them.
Stuart
Gina….could I substitute Splenda for the sugar in this? Do you think it would affect it either taste wise or texture?
I have a 4 points plus recipe for Chocolate Banana Souffles.
The recipe uses sweetened coconut, but sure if you don't like coconut, leave it out.
These look wonderful. However, my family does not like coconut. Do I need to replace it with anything or can I just leave it out? Love your recipes!
I guess I'm not up to speed on 'short forms' – what is the WWP + chocolate souffle – and if it is a recipe, I would love to have it. Sorry for sounding so dumb!!! Thanks
Wonderful combination. I need to make some healthy treats for Mr. Sweet Butter and WizKid and cupcakes are great.
I'm a portion kinda gal so fab way to serve them. 🙂
Hi Gina,
These look great! I have a question, is the flaked coconut sweetened or unsweetened? Either way sounds like I shall be making this quite soon!
Thank you!
Gnam gnam!!Always cupcakes!!!
hugs
Stefy
Woah. People say this all the time, but I'm making this this week. Like, as soon as I get paid and my empty college pockets are filled. Pineapple and zucchini? I love them both- never thought to use them together! And low fat too!
Anonymous, I'm not sure how the changes would effect the recipe.
Claire, nice!
Becki, yes they actually are!
Not that I would ever pass up the cream cheese frosting, but the cupcakes by themselves even sound wonderful – especially for a breakfast treat. This one is a keeper!
I just bought a HUGE $1 zucchini at the farmers market that would be perfect for this. Thanks!
OMG those look heavenly!!!! will have to make these for my upcoming Scentsy party. My friends will be pleased to know they are healthful treats.
Hi Gina,
can i use applesauce instead of the coconut oil? and egg whites instead of eggs? do you happen to know the PP value if I do?
LOVE your recipes! I make them for co-workers bdays and they are always a hit! We are all on WW, so thank you, thank you, thank you! Keep up the great work! 🙂
These look absolutely delicious, I am going to have to try them. Plus, they are a great way to get my son to eat some veggies!
Yellow squash- I don't see why not
Those look amazing! Do you think the recipe would work with yellow squash instead? My plant is producing so many this year! Thanks!
These looks so yummy!!! I'm really glad that it's finally starting to cool off so I can make a LOT more. My mouth is watering as I look at this picture. I think I'll be making these Saturday….tomorrow I'm making WWP+ chocolate souffles for just 4 points!! I definitely don't feel deprived on this diet!
I love that you made a cupcake with zucchini!
i think i will try these subbing pumpkin for pineapple!
Yum, yum, yum! Love a tasty cupcake under 200 calories.
It's nice to be loved!! 🙂
Dana, thank you for asking! Luckily although I was in an evacuation zone, I had no damage or power loss, Thank God! Had some family staying with me who live closer to the ocean, we made the best of it!
YUMM!! I have made your pineapple zucchini cake in the past and it was amazing – so I will definitely have to make these cupcakes soon! I have been baking a lot with zucchini lately and I just love it! Yesterday I made the most amazing oatmeal zucchini chocolate chip cookies! And your zucchini bread also, delicious way to eat veggies and use up garden zucchini. Thanks for all the great recipes Gina, you're the best!Hope you and your family weren't affected too bad by the hurricane yesterday, I know you're in LI and they got hit pretty badly =/
HA!!!! I'm with ya Sarah! Only my whole family loves Gina! These look soooo freakin good!!!!!!
Not to be creepy, but I love you. Your recipes are so delicious and great for a calorie counter like me. 🙂
I'm dying to try these, thanks for posting!