Honey Orange Cupcakes and a No Refined Sugar frosting!

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     You may have noticed that I have been on a honey kick lately.  I just posted about ​Honey Sweetened Oatmeal Raisin Cookies and Honey Sweetened Ice Cream.  All of this was spurred by a desire to create some treats that do not use refined sugar.  Well, I've done some research about why this might be beneficial to the human body and I've learned some interesting things.  
      Not only that, but I've discovered a great way to make cupcakes without refined sugar, including the frosting, which if you ask me, is quite the amazing feat!  So, read on! 

Honey vs White Sugar:

     I was under the impression that honey would beat out sugar in every department, but I've learned that isn't true.  But, honey does have some benefits that sugar doesn't.  I checked out a lot of sources online.  Here is a break down:

​Honey                                                                                                        Sugar

• 64 calories per Tablespoon
• Contains more fructose than glucose so it tastes sweeter, so most people use less of it that they would sugar.  Plus, honey is only 85% sugar, the rest is water, pollen and nutrients.
• Floral varieties of raw honey have a GI that ranges from 35 to 55. This means that raw honey will provide more levels of energy, over a longer period of time, as compared to white sugar. 
• It contains trace amounts of vitamins and minerals, though negligible when it comes to our DV intake.  
• Local pollen can help with allergies
• Studies are on-going into honey as a cough suppressant and a wound healer .
• Honey is not a good substitute for diabetics.  It contains slightly more carbs than sugar.
• Has the potential to give infants under 12 months of age botulism! Don't give honey to babies! 

• 45 Calories per Tablespoon
• 100 % sucrose, 50% fructose and 50% glucose.
• Lower cost than honey
• White sugar has a GI of 65. A higher glycemic index than honey

Image from Smiley Honey

     As you can see, honey does win out in some small ways, but it can still make you gain weight and hurt your blood sugar levels, so use it with moderation.  One comment I read made a good point, "most people who use honey as a sweetener in an attempt to avoid refined sugar will also avoid candy bars, sodas and other sweets, so ultimately using a little honey will be better for them as they avoid sugar." I think that makes a lot of sense. 
     Except now, I'm going to show you how to make a sweet dessert using honey! LOL 
     Although, there is about 1/2 as much honey in this cupcake recipe than I would have put in a recipe made with sugar and the miraculous frosting recipe has SO much less sweetener in is, you will be amazed! In this recipe, part of the sweetness comes from orange zest and juice.  I also used a healthier coconut oil instead of shortening. ​

I know that the sprinkles are sugar. But this is the only cupcake that had them. They were merely for photo purposes!

     Here is the crazy realization I had when I pulled these cupcakes out of the oven.  They came out beautifully and then I thought, "Now I need to frost these!"  Then I thought, "How am I going to do that?  Butter Cream is practically all refined sugar and so is every other recipe that I have for any type of frosting!   I looked in my fridge and saw that I had a package of cream cheese.  BINGO!  Cream Cheese frosting with Spun Honey!  
       It had to be Spun Honey because it is thicker and would hold its shape better as a frosting I reasoned.  Luckily, I had some beautiful spun honey from Wyoming that my friend Kathy had given me.  (Sorry, the kind she gave me doesn't seem to be on Amazon.)  But, this was all coming together! 

Out of the oven!

     This recipe makes one dozen cupcakes, and this frosting recipe is just enough for that many cupcakes.  So, if you need more for a larger batch of cupcakes, you need to double it.  
          I'm giving you two recipe cards today because then you can have the frosting on a separate card to use in other applications.  I've given you variations of flavors with it.  The great thing about these cupcakes and the frosting is that they aren't too sweet!  If you want the cupcakes to be a little sweeter, you can add a bit more honey, but be careful about adding too much honey to the frosting because it might make it too loose.  Just add a little bit at a time if you want it to be a bit sweeter, or sweeten it with fruit zest or powdered freeze-dried fruit.   
         As you mix the frosting, add the liquids a little at a time until you get the taste and consistency that you want. 

The frosting in the mixer. You can see the orange zest in it.

Nice crumb!

     Have you personally noticed any benefits from eating honey rather than refined sugars?  Sometimes personal research is telling! Please let me know.
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