Copycat Keto Hostess Cupcakes elevate your favorite snack cake into something healthy and delicious. Tender keto chocolate cupcakes with a creamy vanilla center and a rich chocolate ganache. The sweet little swirl on the top makes you feel like a kid again!
Raise your hand if you loved Hostess snack cakes when you were a kid. For me, they were a special occasion treat. I didn’t eat them often, but if I had a little spare money from my allowance, I would buy a package at the school cafeteria. Oh boy, did they taste good! Then I grew up and realized that they were pretty darn junky and that homemade cake was so much better.
Chances are that you didn’t have a keto version on your bingo card when you went on a low carb diet. But it’s so fun to re-create junky old favorites into a healthy but decadent treat. And so I couldn’t resist creating my own low carb cream-filled cupcake recipe.
If you love luscious desserts like Keto Chocolate Cake or my fudgy Keto Brownies, this recipe has your name all over it!
Why we love this recipe
You really don’t need any special keto ingredients to re-create Hostess cupcakes in a healthier way. While this recipe has several components, it’s really not difficult to make. These keto cupcakes are:
- Tender and chocolatey, and completely nut-free.
- Filled with a fluffy vanilla cream filling, just like the real deal.
- Topped with a delectable sugar-free chocolate ganache.
- A healthier low carb option for birthdays and other special occasions.
- Have only 4g net carbs per serving!
Reader’s Thoughts
“I have a friend who loves junk food, and I told her I could make a healthy version of just about any ‘junk’. I brought these to her house, and she snarfed 2 of them immediately. Her daughter loved them as well…She invited me back, only if I bring another dozen of these! Thank you SO MUCH for the recipe!!!” — Leeann
Ingredient Notes
- Keto Cupcake Recipe: You will need to bake the cupcakes first and allow time for them to cool completely. I like to use my coconut flour cupcakes, but you can use almost any recipe or mix you like best. For an almond flour based recipe, use my Keto Devil’s Food Cake. You may find it makes more cupcakes!
- Grass-fed gelatin: This helps stabilize the whipped cream filling. It also gives if more of a marshmallow-like consistency.
- Heavy whipping cream: You need heavy cream for the filling and for the ganache.
- Sweetener: Use a powdered sweetener for the cream filling. I also use a little allulose in the ganache to keep it shiny.
- Sugar-free chocolate chips: You can use Lily’s or ChocZero. They both melt well for this recipe and will work well for the ganache.
- Cream cheese: This is used to make icing for the swirl.
- Vanilla Extract
Step by Step Directions
- Prepare the cupcakes: Bake the cupcakes according to the recipe and let cool completely. Once cool, use a small (1-inch) round cookie cutter to cut out the center of each cupcake. You can also use a sharp knife to cut a 1 inch round hole. Reserve the cores of the cupcakes.
- Bloom the gelatin: Place the water in a small bowl and sprinkle with the gelatin. Whisk to combine. Heat for about 30 seconds in the microwave and whisk until the gelatin is dissolved. Cool 10 minutes.
- Make the filling: Combine the cream, sweetener, and vanilla extract. Begin to beat at high speed and slowly pour in the water/gelatin mixture. Beat until the cream holds stiff peaks.
- Fill the cupcakes: Spoon or pipe the filling into the center of each cored cupcake, filling almost to the top. Cut the very top off of the cores and place overtop the filling.
- Prepare the ganache: Place the chocolate chips and the allulose in a medium bowl. Heat the cream until simmering, then pour overtop the chocolate chips. Let sit a few minutes to melt, then whisk until smooth. Let cool a few minutes until thickened but still pourable. Spoon over the tops of the cupcakes and spread to the edges. Refrigerate 10 to 15 minutes to firm up.
- Ice the cupcakes: Beat the cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the powdered sweetener and the heavy cream. Snip off a small bit of the corner of a ziplock bag. Place the frosting inside and pipe little swirls across the top of each cupcake
Tips for Success
Coring cupcakes so you can fill them is actually very easy. I like to use a 1-inch circular cookie cutter to make a perfect hole. Once I have it pressed down into the cupcake, I twist it a few times and pull it back out. Usually the whole core comes right out. You can also use a sharp knife.
Don’t discard the cores, as you will want to cut off the very top of each one to place back over the cream filling.
This cream filling is simply stabilized whipped cream. It’s easy to make by dissolving some gelatin in water, then slowly drizzling it into the cream as it’s being whipped. It holds its shape much better!
Sweetener Options
To sweeten these cupcakes, you have a number of options. You can use any erythritol or allulose granular sweetener for the cake portion. Do keep in mind that allulose may cause them to brown faster so keep your eye on them. While over-browning may not seem like a big deal with chocolate cupcakes, it could make them taste a little burnt.
For the filling and frosting, a good powdered sweetener is imperative to avoid grittiness. And the glaze is already made with sweetened sugar-free chocolate. I do like to add a little allulose (granular is fine) to keep it more glossy, but that’s an optional ingredient.
Frequently Asked Questions
This keto Hostess Cupcake recipe has 8.5g of carbs and 4.5g of fiber per serving. That comes to 4g net carbs per cupcake.
Whipped cream can be rather fragile and deflate easily, particularly in fillings and frostings. To give it greater stability, dissolve a little gelatin in water. Add the mixture slowly to the bowl as you whip the heavy cream. Don’t add too much gelatin, as it can become rubbery and more like Jello. There are other methods for stabilizing whipped cream but this method is the most low carb and keto friendly.
Store the cupcakes in a covered container in the fridge for up to 5 days. They can also be frozen for several months. I prefer them at room temperature so I like to let mine sit out for 20 to 30 minutes before eating.
More keto copycat recipes
Silicone Muffin Liners
Looking for really good silicone muffin liners for baking? These ones from Silicone Kitchen are my favorite!
Keto Hostess Cupcakes
Equipment
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- 1 recipe keto chocolate cupcakes
Cream Filling
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 tsp grass-fed gelatin
- 1/2 cup (118.29 ml) heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 cup (47.5 g) powdered sweetener
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Chocolate Ganache
- 2 ¼ ounces (63.79 g) sugar-free chocolate chips
- 2 tbsp (20.29 g) allulose, (optional)
- 1/3 cup (78.86 ml) heavy whipping cream
Frosting for Swirls
- 1 ounce (28.35 g) cream cheese, well softened
- 2 tbsp (20.29 g) powdered sweetener
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
Cake
- Prepare the cupcakes according to the recipe. Let cool completely.
- Once cool, use a small (1-inch) round cookie cutter to cut out the center of each cupcake. You can also use a sharp knife to cut a 1 inch round hole. Reserve the cores of the cupcakes
Cream Filling
- Place the water in a small bowl and sprinkle with the gelatin. Whisk to combine. Heat for about 30 seconds in the microwave and whisk until the gelatin is dissolved. Cool 10 minutes.
- In a large bowl, combine the cream, sweetener, and vanilla extract. Begin to beat at high speed and slowly pour in the water/gelatin mixture. Beat until the cream holds stiff peaks.
- Spoon or pipe the filling into the center of each cored cupcake, filling almost to the top. Cut the very top off of the cores and place overtop the filling.
Chocolate Ganache
- Place the chocolate chips and the allulose in a medium bowl. Heat the cream until simmering, then pour overtop the chocolate chips. Let sit a few minutes to melt, then whisk until smooth.
- Let cool a few minutes until thickened but still pourable. Spoon over the tops of the cupcakes and spread to the edges. Refrigerate 10 to 15 minutes to firm up.
Frosting for Swirls
- In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the powdered sweetener and the heavy cream.
- Snip off a small bit of the corner of a ziplock bag. Place the frosting inside and pipe little swirls across the top of each cupcake.
Notes
Nutrition
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Oh my! I haven’t had these in so long! Love this recipe; can’t wait to make these tomorrow!
I made these for a party a few weeks ago, and they were a hit! Today is my son’s 14th birthday, and he recently had to go dairy free…he requested these cupcakes for dessert 🙂 Do they need to stay refrigerated? Last time I made them we kept them in the fridge, but they get a bit hard. A friend tried to microwave it for a second to soften it, and the filling melted immediately. Would they be ok sitting out for a couple of hours?
That coconut whipped cream filling is tricky! I think your best bet is to keep them refrigerated and then let them sit out for an hour before eating.
I love that I have found this website, and the things I have made were amazing and I want to bake all the time. If non dairy isn’t an issue what could I use instead of the coconut milk? Heavy cream?
Yup, heavy cream would work just fine. You will need one cup of it.
Hello Carolyn, I am really looking forward to trying out your recipes. I’m making cupcakes as a fund raiser for my church, and I’ve had requests for sugar-free, Keto friendly cupcakes. Do you think it would be okay to sub vanilla flavored protein whey in place of the powdered egg whites? And in other recipes you have? I can’t find unflavored. Also, where do you find xanthan gum? Thank you!
yes, that’s fine, just leave out any additional vanilla. Xanthan gum is often found in the gluten-free aisle of many grocery stores.
These look seriously yummy. Wanting to make for the kiddos who are dairy/grain free. Having trouble finding meringue powder without added yuck ingredients. Are you saying that just unsweetened powdered egg whites works for this recipe? I did find something labeled that way on Amazon. Didn’t say it was meringue powder though.
Yes, what I had was pure powdered egg whites. But you can also use egg white protein powder like this. http://amzn.to/2haPMfR
These are DELICIOUS!!!! Seriously no one even knows they are healthy! Thank you!
Hello Carolyn, Have you thought of adapting this recipe into a copycat Saunders Bumpy cake? Oh how I miss those. That is what I had every birthday. Just a square single layer rich chocolate cake with large thick high rows of buttercream frosting and topped with a chocolate ganache. It looks like everything here would work except you may need to replace the “cream” with a thick buttercream frosting recipe. If you have a frosting recipe that you could point me in the direction of, I could probably try it myself, although I don’t know about the proper proportions to fill an 8″ x 8″ pan.
I have never heard of that at all!
I was so looking forward to trying this recipe but I have to laugh at your calling them dairy free. FYI: eggs are dairy. Guess I’ll have to look elsewhere.
Hi Kat. Let’s clarify what dairy is. Dairy comes from mammals, typically cows and other four-hooved animals, that have mammary glands and feed their young by nursing them. Eggs come from chickens, and chickens are birds. Chickens are not mammals. They do not have mammary glands and they feed their young by regurgitating food that they have swallowed. Eggs are most certainly NOT dairy products. If this recipe were meant to be egg-free, I would have specified egg-free.
For further clarification on this subject, I refer you to this article. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/14/eggs-not-dairy-are-they_n_5976814.html
Why do people think eggs are dairy? I can only assume it is because they are always near the milk in stores. Dairy has to come from milk and chickens do not make milk. This recipe is not vegan, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t dairy free.
I have a ragweed allergy and can’t use stevia. Should I just leave it out or add more swerve?
Add more Swerve. My stevia conversion is 1/4 tsp stevia = 1/4 cup Swerve
I just made these for a friend’s birthday and they are better than the original! Sooo yummy! I love that they are dairy free. The coconut whipped cream center is so good. Just wanted to say I could not find unsweetened egg white powder anywhere and I went to 3 different health food stores and a regular grocery store before I gave up. And so I left it out and the cupcakes turned out great. I filled my liners a little higher than you said and made 12 perfect cupcakes. Just in case someone else can’t find it I don’t see why its necessary. Thank you so much for the recipe. I am gonna make them again for my birthday in 2 weeks. 🙂
Glad they turned out. It’s not “necessary”, I suppose but a protein powder will help your cakes rise and hold their shape better. I did a little video about it on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/AllDayIDreamAboutFood/videos/1264344686926251/
Hi there,
I hope this email finds you well. I’m writing to you on behalf on Mashable, a leading source for news and information for the Connected Generation. We have over 40 million unique monthly visitors and 20 million social media followers.
I’m the lifestyle intern and I frequently cover and health wellness. I’m writing a story about surprising foods that someone can grill and I was wondering if I could use the information from this recipe and the images. I would attribute all proper credit to you guys, however you prefer.
I also sent you an email!
Thanks!
Kathleen Wong
Hi Kathleen, you certainly can and I’d love to be included but this isn’t a grilled recipe. Were you looking for my pound cake that was grilled?
I’m making these for a dairy-free friend (& myself!). I’m a little nervous about the “coring” of the cup cake. I use a knife to cut out a 1″ hole. I can envision the cutting around part, but how does it detach? Do I angle my knife so the core I remove is more cone shaped? Now that I write this, it sounds like a stupid question – but I’m submitting it, just to be sure!
Just press inwards lightly with the knife and jiggle it out. That should work. When I core mine with my round corer, sometimes a little stays in the cupcake and I just scoop it out with a spoon.
Hi Carolyn! I seriously live and die by your website (well, my keto does). I have yet to try a recipe that didn’t turn out flipping fantastic, so *thank you*!
I’m having friends over this weekend and I would love to make these babies, but I cannot find sugar-free meringue powder anywhere- unfortunately, the closest Whole Foods is over an hour away. Any idea of worthy substitution?
Thank you in advance!
Hmmmm…you could use hemp protein but it’s greenish – the cocoa powder might be dark enough to cover it up. Or if you don’t have any objection to dairy, then you can do whey protein.
Happy Birthday Carolyn. So glad I found your web sight. It has helped me out for many birthdays and holidays and just any days.
Thanks again
I have a friend who loves junk food, and I told her I could make a healthy version of just about any ‘junk’. I brought these to her house, and she snarfed 2 of them immediately. Her daughter loved them as well. I didn’t have meringue powder, but used egg white protein powder, and it seemed to work. She invited me back, only if I bring another dozen of these! Thank you SO MUCH for the recipe!!!
I love it when we win over a die-hard sugar consumer!
Hey there–I’m not a fan of sugar substitutes. Would coconut sugar work with this?
I am not sure. It would be fine in the cake itself but not for the frosting, I think.
Have you tried erythritol to sweeten such as Swerve or from NOW brands? It has no weird aftertaste and unlike other sugar alcohols doesn’t upset your GI tract. It doesn’t affect like blood sugar levels and it’s totally natural. It’s worth a try if you don’t like stevia or splenda or those others.
This looks amazing Carolyn!! Just a quick question – how does the meringue powder work in this recipe? Does it make it more compact? Thanks 🙂
They are a bit lumpier than things I make with dairy products but no, not more compact.
Hi thank you for posting this amazing recipe!
I followed the directions to a T and mine for some reason did not turn out..
It made more than what you said above and it also seemed very oily, It is also very crumbly and falls apart.. any suggestions…
No, there is no way for me to tell what went wrong. What brand of almond flour did you use? How about the sweetener?
I made these last night- just the cupcake… No filling or ganache. I used Honeyville flours and powdered xylitol instead of Swerve. I also went almost a whole cup of cocoa ( i was almost out anyway and I love chocolate!). These cupcakes are fantastic!!!!! Even my picky nieces loved them (age 4 & 5). And they’re so filling you CAN have just one and feel satisfied. Thank God for your website!!!!:)
Glad you liked them!
I want to try these, but I don’t understand the purpose of the meringue powder. At first I thought it might be a replacement for raw egg whites in the frosting or filling, but I see now that it’s part of the cupcake ingredients. So if it’s going to be baked, what is the benefit of using powder instead of plain egg whites?
In the absence of gluten, which is a protein, additional dry protein helps the cupcakes rise properly.
Hello, if I don’t have the meringue powder, can I use whey protein powder instead?
Yes, that would be fine.
OMG you’re killing me, girl. One of my real weaknesses, Hostess cupcakes.