SkinnyTaste Light Coconut Cupcakes

I tried this recipe from Skinnytaste.com yesterday. Gina’s recipes have never failed me and this one is no exception. These were not overly sweet (except those Cadbury eggs!) and are delicious even without the candy on top. 

White cake mix is notoriously dry, so yellow would work nicely as a replacement, though these cupcakes weren’t dry, neither were they overly moist, probably my one very minor negative. Update: I froze half this batch to thaw right before serving at Easter dinner. They thawed inside a zip-loc gallon bag and were very moist, moister than those we ate as soon as they were cool enough to frost and eat Friday night.

2 egg whites

1 cup canned light coconut milk

1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce

2 tsp coconut extract

18.25 ou. White Duncan Hines Cake Mix

Extra ingredients for decoration:

1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes

Cadbury Mini Easter Eggs or Jellybeans

Combine first four ingredients and mix well. Mix in cake mix until smooth. Pour batter into prepared cupcake tins, filling about 1/2 way up. Bake at 350 for 22 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean or with a few crumbs attached. Don’t over bake! Yields 24 cupcakes.

For frosting:

8 ou. cream cheese

3/4 c. powdered sugar (10X)

2 tsp coconut extract

When cupcakes are cool, frost them. On a plate, spread out the coconut and dip/roll the frosted cupcake until it is covered. Decorate with the eggs or jellybeans and sprinkle a little more coconut on top for effect.

For original recipe: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/03/skinny-coconut-cupcakes.html