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Chocolate Coconut Rice Crispy Cupcakes with Nut Butter Frosting

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It’s a little early for a Christmas post…especially since Halloween just passed…but hey I LOVE Christmas, so I couldn’t resist. These would be perfect served at the holidays, don’t you think? They are my vegan chocolate coconut rice crispy cupcakes!

When I was a kid, I loved rice crispy treats! The sweet, sticky, gooey and crispy goodness totally satisfied.  To be honest, I bet I’d still think they are delicious. It has been a few years though since I’ve had one. Enter, a much healthier vegan rice crispy treat.

My creation is completely different and is marshmallow free, but still has that creaminess you get from a traditional rice crispy treat. There are vegan marshmallows out there, but I wanted to get creative in bringing about a different recipe. I made these last month, but decided to make them as cupcakes this time.

I used coconut cream and creamy nut butter (you can use raw almond butter, such as Dastony, or peanut butter for a non-raw version) to achieve the creamy part, and I added cocoa to make them chocolate crispy treats, instead of just vanilla, and added in some shredded coconut for added chewiness. Lastly, I made them cupcake style. Apparently, I’m not the first person to think of rice crispy cupcakes….darn….but I can assure you they are nothing like how mine taste or the same ingredients. 🙂

The frosting is to die for. It is a creamy nut butter coconut frosting that can be used on anything you wish!

Chocolate Coconut Rice Crispy Cupcakes (Marshmallow-Free)

Print Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes
Yields 7 cupcakes or bars if you put them in a loaf pan

Ingredients

  • 2 cups Nature's Path gluten free chocolate koala crisp cereal
  • 1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
  • 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/4 cup dairy-free mini chocolate chips
  • 1/4 cup full fat canned coconut milk scoop out a 1/4 cup of the cream only at the top of the can
  • 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter unsweetened with no additives
  • 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract optional

Optional Frosting: (This frosting will work on cake, cupcakes, cookies, etc.!)

  • 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter w/no added oils/sugars use raw almond butter for a raw version such as Dastony
  • 3-4 tablespoons full fat coconut milk depending on desired thickness (use only the cream from the top of the can, there should still be some left from making the cupcakes)
  • 1/4 cup raw agave nectar or syrup
  • 2 tablespoons coconut flour this is what makes the frosting thick, so no subs
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions
 

  • 1. Combine the cereal, shredded coconut, cocoa and chocolate chips in a large bowl and stir well.
  • 2. Next, scoop a 1/4 cup of cream from the top of the coconut can and add to a small pot, along with the peanut butter and syrup and whisk well. Turn to medium heat, and once boiling, whisk constantly for about a minute until you notice it thickening. Turn off the heat and stir in the vanilla.
  • 3. Pour the liquid over the dry ingredients and stir until well combined. Spoon the mixture into 7 paper liners in a muffin pan, shaping them as cupcakes with a dome top. Put in the fridge until firm and set. Alternatively, you could just press the mixture into a 9X5 loaf pan or even an 8X8 pan (depending on how thick you want them), lined with parchment paper, and I'm sure that would work too.
  • 4. Keep them stored in the fridge to retain their shape and remove a few minutes to soften some before serving. I actually like them straight out of the fridge though!

Optional Frosting Directions

  • Make sure to use only the cream from the coconut milk and not the water part, or the frosting will be runny. Start with 3 tablespoons and add more at the end, if you want it creamier. Combine all the ingredients into a bowl and beat with an electric mixer until creamy and fluffy, about a minute or two. Chill in the fridge to firm up, if desired. Either spread over cupcakes with a butter knife or decorate with a piping tip. Garnish with shredded coconut!

Notes

Gluten-free, oil-free
Tried this recipe?Tag @thevegan8brandi on Instagram and use tag #thevegan8!

 

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Comments

    • The Healthy Flavor

      Haha! I can’t stay away from baking for more than 2 days! Good thing though about this recipe is I use natural sweetners and not the highly processed dry sugars so I don’t feel bad eating them. Even the icing, I didn’t use traditional powdered sugar 🙂

      Reply

    • The Healthy Flavor

      Thank you so much Thom! They are pretty sweet…the agave definitely makes them sweet…I find one is plenty..which is a good thing. To dramatically cut down on the sweetness, you could sub the agave for brown rice syrup, it is much milder. However, I wouldn’t sub the maple syrup for brown rice syrup too, because then it might not be sweet enough. I’m probably going to sub brown rice syrup for agave next time, because they are sweet! Let me know if it works out for you 🙂

      Reply

      • Diane P

        Hi Brandi!

        So to build on your reply to Thom, can I substitute Maple Syrup for the Agave in the frosting recipe? The last time I used Agave as a sweetener it just didn’t agree with me.

        Thanks!

        Btw, YOU ROCK!!! =)

        Reply

        • brandi.doming@yahoo.com

          Hi Diane! Yes, absolutely! I actually hardly ever use agave anymore anyways and stick to maple syrup. I haven’t made these in a looooong time, but if you don’t want to do them as “cupcakes”, I would suggest trying them in a small loaf pan. I need to make these again and see for myself….I remember them being super yummy and sweet!

          Reply

  12. erika

    Wow, your recipes look so delicious and SO wholesome! I just spent the weekend in Austin and there was vegan food EVERYWHERE–I am so inspired to start baking more vegan things! We had this tofu peanut butter pudding + chocolate cake parfait type thing and it was so. amazingly. good.

    Reply

    • The Healthy Flavor

      Thank you so much Erika for the compliments! I love Austin! That’s where I want to live! Vegan really is just as delicious as “regular” food, 🙂 just takes a little creativity to get things right, which is a lot of fun in the kitchen! That chocolate cake parfait sounds awesome!

      Reply

    • The Healthy Flavor

      Thanks so much Somer! They’ve been a hit with friends! One friend ate 5 of them, lol! The coconut cream really makes them smooth and rich! I just checked hers out, that is too cute the chain of inspiration that led to hers. 🙂 They look really yummy and I like that she made them chocolate, just like I do…everything is better with chocolate I say 🙂

      Reply

  14. Barb Bamber

    Thanks so much for visiting my blog and now I get to visit yours!! You have really got so many beautiful vegan recipes here that are so pretty and healthy! I will have to tell my daughter to come here and take a look, she’s the one who’s asked me to make up a few vegan dishes for her and she’d love so many of these! I love how you’ve made your bars and what a pretty topping! They’re so adorable as “cupcake” bars:) xx

    Reply