Orange Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Orange Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

I can’t believe it is already Friday again! We all know what that means….”Fiesta Friday!” Woohoo! Angie is so kind to host our party every week over at her blog, The Novice Gardener! I have already met so many sweet and talented people there…I love being inspired as I get to see what others are making! I am already very curious and excited about what people will be bringing! 🙂

For the second week in a row, I am bringing a cupcake. I love cupcakes so much! I am actually bringing these to a baby shower, or else I would be tempted to eat them all myself! 🙂 The ones this week are made with my most favorite flavors: orange, dark chocolate, buttercream! Yum, yum, yum!

I have to admit that creating a recipe for a low-glycemic buttercream frosting was not easy. Because I had to use honey instead of the powdered sugar, it came out thinner, but I think this could be helped by not using the squeezed orange juice and just using the pure orange extract instead. It tastes delicious though! I seriously have been going back for more bites! 🙂

ORANGE DARK CHOCOLATE CHIP CUPCAKES WITH ORANGE CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

• Servings: 16 Cupcakes
• Print

*Created by Lori at Creating Beauty in the Kitchen

For Cupcakes:

• 3 cups almond flour
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup honey
• 3/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (I used 2 large oranges for this)
• 1 tbsp orange zest
• 1 cup dark chocolate chips

For Frosting:

• 2 cups butter
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 2 1/2 cups honey
• 1 large orange for it’s juice
• 1 tsp pure orange extract ( I wanted to just use the juice from the orange, but it wasn’t quite enough…this was the finishing touch!)

For Cupcakes:

• Preheat the oven for 325 degrees.
• Cut oranges in half and squeeze out the juice into a measuring cup. Poor it into a mixing bowl. Add the honey and the eggs, mixing well.
• Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and orange zest in a large mixing bowl.
• Pour the wet ingredients into the large mixing bowl with the dry ones and mix.
• Put cupcake liners in a muffin pan and pour the batter into into each slot.
• Cook for 20-25 minutes. I originally set it for 20, but ended up cooking them for 23.
• Let them cool before frosting.

For Frosting:

• Make sure to set your butter out ahead of time so that it can soften.
• In a large mixing bowl, add all your ingredients and blend thoroughly.
• If you need the consistency a little harder, refrigerate for a little bit before frosting.