This recipe is not for your every week rotation, but when you're planning on a cupcake next time, go for the real deal and make it a peanut butter cream cheese coconut infused bundle of deliciousness.

I've been asked a few times, "so how do you make healthy treats?". My answer is, I don't. When I'm baking for an event, or my dad is in town and we're making a traditional UK dinner complete with Yorkshire pudding and the standard of covering everything on your plate in gravy, I'm not cutting corners. I believe in eating as nutritiously as I can most of the time, so that when it comes to special occasions I can actually enjoy myself, and not try to find a substitute "healthy" version of something, or skip it altogether. Let's be honest, "healthy" versions rarely resemble the real thing in taste, still leave you with a craving for the real thing, and usually aren't THAT much better for you nutritionally when you really break it down - sometimes worse. The key is obviously moderation - if you find you have 2-3 "special occasions" per week, you might need to pay attention a bit more so you aren't downing the equivalent of Christmas dinner 12 times a month.

Here's my latest baking experiment, adapted from two recipes here and here. I split the buttercream recipe in half, and only added peanut butter to one portion, so that I ended up with half the cupcakes as coconut, and the other half coconut peanut butter.

Coconut Peanut Butter Cupcakes

Coconut Cupcakes:
1 3/4 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/3 cup sugar
2 large eggs, plus 2 large egg whites
3/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk (full fat)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Buttercream:
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
4 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut (optional)

Topping:
1/3 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, toasted

For the cupcakes:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line muffin tins with paper liners.
2. Mix dry ingredients in a bowl, set aside.
3. Cream butter and sugar with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, blending after each addition.
4. Mix remaining wet ingredients in a separate bowl. On low speed, alternate adding wet and dry ingredients in three additions, starting with dry and ending with wet.
5. Fill muffin cups, and bake approximately 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely before icing.

For the buttercream & topping:

1. Beat butter on medium speed in mixer until creamy. Add cream cheese, peanut-butter, and vanilla until blended. Gradually increase speed to high and beat until light and fluffy.
2. Gradually add confectioners' sugar, beating on low speed until well blended. Add shredded coconut. Beat on high speed again, about 2 minutes.
3. For the topping, line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, and sprinkle on coconut. Place in preheated 350 oven, checking and stirring every 2-3 minutes to ensure it doesn't burn. Remove from oven once lightly browned, and sprinkle on top.