When Kim and Ricki announced June’s feature ingredient as one of my favourite superfoods, blueberries, I got super excited to incorporate it into a healthy yet decadent treat. Although I’d like to think every brightly coloured fruit and vegetable fits the category of a superfood—as do nuts, beans, seeds and aromatic herbs and spices—there are some that contain proven beneficial properties and are just fun to eat.

Enter my raw mulberry-coconut cupcakes with blueberry frosting. Yes, that’s right: blueberries and mulberries.

I recently experienced my first bite of a sun-dried mulberry when creating cake pops with Lisa back in April, and I haven’t stopped thinking about it since. Chewy and soft with a fig-like crunch, sun-dried mulberries are nature’s version of candy. A delightful alternative to raisins, it’s difficult to not eat them straight from the bag.

Better still, mulberries are also considered a superfood. They’re one of the few fruits to be considered a protein source; they’re an excellent source of iron, calcium, vitamin C and fibre; and they also contain a high concentration of Resveratrol, an antioxidant compound that combats free radical damage.

So why not combine these two superfruits into one sweet, super-power cupcake? Coconut is the dominant flavour in these tiny treats but the mulberries provide a fruity sweetness like no other. The quick and easy blueberry frosting rivals any sugar-loaded frosting I’ve made before. Enjoy!

Raw mulberry-coconut cupcakes

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:

• 1 cup coconut flour (grind coconut flakes to a fine powder)
• 1 cup almond flour (grind raw almonds to a fine powder)
• 1/2 cup ground, dried mulberries (grind dried mulberries)
• 1/3 cup date paste (blend 1 cup soaked dates with 1/4 cup water)
• 2 tbsp almond milk
• pinch of salt
• 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 1 tbsp flax meal

For the frosting:

• 3/4 cup frozen blueberries
• 1/2 cup raw cashew butter
• 1/4 cup raw agave nectar
• 6 tbsp coconut oil, melted

Directions:

For the cupcakes:

1. Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, combine the coconut flour, almond flour and ground mulberries.
2. Add the date paste, almond milk and salt and mix until combined.
3. Finally, add the coconut oil and flax meal and mix until just combined. Be careful not to overmix. It should look like thick cake batter.
4. Line a mini muffin tray with mini muffin or candy cups. Scoop a 1/2 tablespoon of the cupcake mixture and mold it into a ball or cupcake shape and gently press it into the muffin cup. Repeat with remaining mixture. Place the tray in the fridge or freezer while you make the frosting (recipe below).

For the frosting:

1. Using a high-speed blender, blend the blueberries, cashew butter and agave nectar until well combined and smooth. Add the coconut oil and blend just to combine.
2. Scoop the mixture into a piping bag and attach a small tip. Decorate each cupcake and return the cupcakes to the fridge until ready to serve.

Since one can only make so many zucchini lasagnas and baked zucchini side dishes, many people turn to making baked goods out of the ubiquitous squash. There are plenty of recipes out there for delicious zucchini breads and muffins, but this recipe adds a little sweetness and glamour to the mix.

This sweet zucchini cupcake recipe isn’t just ideal for those experiencing a surplus of zucchini, it’s also a great way to add an extra serving of veggies to your diet. The full cup of zucchini in this treat adds the perfect amount of moisture, as well as a good dose of folate, manganese and vitamin A. I love integrating nutritious vegetables into dessert-making, so I may just have to come up with new uses for carrots and sweet potatoes (and even beets!) to expand on this theme for future posts. Let me know if you have any suggestions!

For those who are new to vegan baking, the nondairy milk and apple cider vinegar are used as a buttermilk substitute here, which helps provide leavening properties and a tender crumb. Just whisk the vinegar in the nondairy milk and let it sit for about 5 minutes to allow it to curdle before adding it to the liquid ingredients.

For the cupcake icing, I wanted to come up with an alternative to traditional sugar-loaded buttercream, and this cashew cinnamon icing certainly hits the mark! Although it’s much thinner than buttercream, it’s creamy and nutty and is a perfect complement to these charming little cupcakes. Enjoy!

Sweet zucchini cupcakes

Yield: one dozen

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:

• 1 cup light spelt flour
• 3/4 unbleached flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 cup nondairy milk
• 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup agave nectar
• 1/4 cup sunflower or canola oil
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup finely grated zucchini, packed (about 1 medium zucchini)

Cashew cinnamon icing:

• 12 oz firm silken tofu (I use Mori-Nu)
• 3/4 cup cashew butter
• 1/4 cup agave nectar
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

Directions:

Cupcakes:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the nondairy milk and vinegar. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, sift together the spelt flour, unbleached flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt.
3. Add the agave nectar, oil and vanilla extract to the buttermilk mixture and whisk until combined.
4. Add the liquid mixture to the dry mixture and mix until just combined, and then gently mix in the zucchini.
5. Spoon cupcake batter into a cupcake pan lined with paper holders, filling each about 3/4 full.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow cupcakes to cool before decorating with cashew cinnamon frosting (recipe below) and a sprinkle of ground cinnamon.

Cashew cinnamon icing:

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth.
2. Spoon mixture into a container and refrigerate for at least an hour to firm up.
3. Spread icing onto cupcakes as desired and store them in the fridge until ready to serve.