Award-winning public speaker, New York Times bestselling author and world-renowned health expert, Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, PhD (aka The Paleo Mom) believes the key to reversing the current epidemics of chronic disease is scientific literacy. She creates educational resources to help people regain their health through diet and lifestyle choices informed by the most current evidenced-based scientific research.

Several years ago, I was at a birthday party and the cupcakes were frosted chocolate zucchini muffins. I remember being impressed that you couldn’t taste the zucchini, but that it was a healthier alternative than regular ol’ chocolate cake. Beyond adding some vitamin content, the addition of zucchini changes the texture to something moist and fudgy. With the right amount of chocolate, you end up with something that feels very decadent. Since the beginning of this blog, tackling a Paleofied version of those cupcakes has been a goal of mine.

I needed some kind of nut flour to hold these cupcakes together, and I decided that it would be nice to use something that could contribute flavor in addition to texture and bulk. Enter the hazelnut. It’s no secret that there was a time in my life where I would eat a jar of nutella in one sitting with a spoon. I remember being addicted to these amazing chocolates with a creamy hazelnut filling and buying them every time I went shopping. Yes, the chocolate hazelnut combination is a flavor I have always loved.

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These cupcakes are moist and fudgy, but still light. And, they aren’t overly sweet, which means that there’s plenty of ways you could take them to that next level of decadence and still not be going completely nuts on sugar. You could fold in some dark chocolate chips or chunks before baking. I topped them with my whipped dark chocolate frosting using bittersweet chocolate (see this recipe). You could use a pastry syringe and fill with my chocolate hazelnut “nutella” spread (see this recipe) and use this Paleo-friendly “nutella” as a frosting. You could drizzle with a chocolate drizzle like in this recipe. You could do all of the above for a special, special treat.

So, without further ado, I give you my Chocolate Hazelnut Zucchini Cupcakes. And you’re welcome.

Yield: 12 cupcakes

Ingredients: