Heavenly Gluten Free Chocolate Cupcakes
Your search for the best gluten-free chocolate cupcake recipe is over! They’re easy, moist, and full of chocolate-goodness. It’s impossible to tell that these are gluten-free and dairy-free cupcakes.
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Gluten free & Dairy Free Chocolate Cupcakes
One of the best food compliments I’ve ever gotten is someone crying from joy after eating one of these cupcakes.
I brought them to a church event and one of the women there hadn’t eaten cake for a long time because of her gluten intolerance.
She was so happy and shocked when I told her she could eat one of these chocolate cupcakes. And then she started crying happy tears after trying one.
It was the best feeling in the world that she was so happy!
When you enter a gluten free lifestyle, it can be hard...especially going to parties where you know you can’t partake in dessert.
It’s hard that often times people do not understand what “gluten-free” even means, or that maybe you’re just being dramatic in your health choices.
Maybe you’ve even been told you could have a piece of regular cake if you wanted to–being gluten-free is your choice.
But…
- You didn’t choose an upset stomach, inflammation, or full-blown celiac disease symptoms.
- You didn’t choose to feel a million times better without eating gluten.
- Or you didn’t choose for your child to have these horrible symptoms.
So this gluten free chocolate cupcake recipe can bring a crazy sense of joy to your celebration. Because you (or your child) can have your cake and eat it too!
These gluten free chocolate cupcakes are practically perfect in every way. No one who has ever tried them could tell they were gluten free, whether they eat gluten or not.
They’re moist (sorry if you hate that word), soft, and light. No gross, dense, dry gluten-free cupcakes going on here (raise your hand if you’ve had a cupcake like that! (both of my hands are raised)).
It is my firm belief that every gluten-free individual needs this chocolate cupcake recipe. So, here you go.
Let’s get to it! It’s time to party.
About the ingredients for this gluten-free chocolate cupcakes recipe
Gluten-free flour
It’s important to use a quality gluten-free flour. My favorite is this DIY blend. It’s cheap and can be used cup-for-cup in most recipes!
To make your own gluten free blend, I recommend using Anthony’s Goods or Bob’s Red Mill. They have both been consistently good in my kitchen.
Click here to order Anthony’s Brown Rice Flour with free shipping
If you don’t want to make your own, look for a rice-based flour blend, like this one or this one. I’ve used both successfully with this cupcake recipe.
Avoid gluten-free flours that contain garbanzo bean flour. Garbanzo bean flour will make your chocolate cupcakes taste “off.”
Xanthan gum
If you’re using a gluten free flour that already contains xanthan gum, make sure to not add any more. Too much xanthan gum in this recipe will make the cupcake more dense and gummy (bleh).
If your flour does not contain xanthan gum, you’ll want to add 1/4 teaspoon of xanthan gum to the dry mix.
Cocoa powder
In this recipe we’re using unsweetened cocoa powder. The type is completely up to you!
I have been using a dutch-processed cocoa powder for years with great results.
You can also use a dark chocolate cocoa powder if you prefer a less sweet cupcake.
Coffee
Hot coffee is my favorite thing about this particular chocolate cupcake recipe (don’t worry, though, they won’t taste like coffee!).
Coffee brings out the beautiful chocolate notes, without being overly coffee.
You can use regular coffee, decaf coffee, or even instant coffee. If you have left over coffee from yesterday, just reheat it before using.
To omit the coffee, just use hot water instead. It’s that easy.
How to make gluten free chocolate cupcakes (naturally dairy free)
You can get the full recipe below, but here’s the gist:
- Make your coffee and have it ready to go, nice and hot!
- In a measuring glass, add 1 cup of milk and stir in 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar to make a buttermilk. Set aside for 2-5 minutes while you prep the rest.
- You can make this with a kitchen stand mixer, hand mixer, or your own elbow grease! In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.
- Add in the eggs, oil, and buttermilk, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Stop mixing as soon as everything is incorporated.
- With the mixer on low, slowly add in the hot coffee or water. You want a steady drizzle so that it doesn’t cook the eggs (scrambled egg chunks in cupcakes=just no).
- Pour your chocolate cupcake batter into the cupcake liners, filling them 2/3 of the way full. If making it into cakes, divide the batter evenly into two 8-inch cake pans.
- Bake for 20-26 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean, with a few crumbs, but no wet batter.
- Allow cupcakes or cakes to fully cool before frosting.
How to freeze gluten free chocolate cupcakes for later
These cupcakes freeze beautifully! Freezing them in advance makes party-ing that much easier.
It’s also a great idea to have some of these on hand to pull out if you or your child will be going to a party where there won’t be a gluten-free dessert option.
To freeze these cupcakes, wrap 6 cupcakes together in cling wrap, and cover with a layer of tin foil. Freeze for up to 2 months.
To use after freezing, allow the cupcakes to thaw in the fridge for 24-48 hours. Take them out of the wrapping and set them out on a tray at room temperature for 2 hours. Frost as desired.
How to make the BEST chocolate buttercream frosting
- Whip the butter or vegan butter on high until creamy (about 20 seconds)
- Add in 1 cup of powdered sugar, unsweetened cocoa powder, 2 tablespoons of the milk, and the vanilla. Turn the mixer on slowly to incorporate all the ingredients, scrape the bowl, and then turn mixer to medium to beat the frosting.
- Scrape the bowl, and add in the remaining cup of powdered sugar.
- Turn mixer on low, scrape the bowl, and then turn to medium-high for 30 seconds.
- If needed, add in the last tablespoon of milk, scrape the sides of the bowl, and beat for another 10-20 seconds.
- Frost cupcakes as desired. I love using this frosting tip.
Want more gluten free treats?
- Mocha chip lara bars
- Perfect vegan pumpkin scones
Yield: 24 cupcakes
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 22 minutes
Total Time: 27 minutes
Enjoy the best gluten-free chocolate cupcakes (that are also dairy-free). These gluten-free chocolate cupcakes are moist, fluffy, and full of flavor (no dense, carboard-texture cake here!). No one will know or care that they're gluten-free (and slightly healthy!).
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups gluten-free flour blend
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1 1/4 cups coconut sugar
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup milk of choice (I love cashew, but any milk will do)
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar (ACV)
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup oil (grapeseed or avocado are good, neutral-tasting options)
- 1 cup hot coffee or water
Ingredients for Chocolate Buttercream Frosting (dairy-free option)
- 2 sticks butter, softened *can use vegan butter or shortening
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons of milk of choice (cashew and oat are my favorite options)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and prepare your cupcake tin by lining it with cupcake liners (I love to use these silicone ones when convenient). You can also bake this batter into 2 8-inch cakes. Lightly grease and flour cake pans , if using.
- In a measuring glass, add 1 cup of milk and stir in 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar. Set aside for 2-5 minutes. This will create a buttermilk that brings out the best chocolate flavor!
- In the bowl of a mixer (or a large mixing bowl if using a hand-held mixer or making it by hand), combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.
*Note: if you prefer a sweeter cupcake, use 1 1/2 cups of sugar. As is, these taste more like a dark chocolate cupcake, but are still plenty sweet--especially if topped with frosting. - Add in the eggs, oil, and buttermilk, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Try not to over mix. Stop mixing as soon as everything is incorporated.
- With the mixer on low, slowly add in the hot coffee or water. You want a very slow and steady stream so that it doesn't cook the eggs. Scrape down the side of the bowl halfway through adding the coffee and then continue until it's all incorporated. Scrape down bowl one last time after adding all of the coffee and mix again. The batter will look fairly runny, but it should be smooth.
- Pour your chocolate cupcake batter into the cupcake liners, filling them 2/3 of the way full. If making cakes, divide the batter evenly into 2 cake pans.
- Bake for 20-26 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean or with a few crumbs, but no wet batter.
- Allow cupcakes or cakes to fully cool before frosting.
*These can be wrapped in a layer of cling wrap and then foil and frozen for up to 2 months at this point.
Chocolate buttercream frosting (dairy-free option)
- In the bowl of a mixer (or large mixing bowl if using a hand mixer), add softened butter and whip on high until creamy, about 20 seconds
- Add in 1 cup of powdered sugar and cocoa, 2 tablespoons of the milk, and the vanilla. Turn the mixer on slowly to incorporate all the ingredients, scrape the bowl, and then turn mixer to medium to beat the frosting.
- Scrape the bowl, and add in the remaining cup of powdered sugar.
- Turn mixer on low, scrape the bowl, and then turn to medium-high for 30 seconds.
- If needed, add in the last tablespoon of milk, scrape the sides of the bowl, and beat for another 10-20 seconds.
- Frost cupcakes as desired. I love using this frosting tip.
Notes
You can also make this into a 2-layer chocolate cake by dividing the batter evenly into two 8-inch cake pans. Increase the bake time to 24-26 minutes.
To freeze these cupcakes, wrap 6 cupcakes together in cling wrap, and cover with a layer of tin foil. They can be stored in the freezer for up to 2 months.
To use after freezing, allow the cupcakes to thaw in the fridge for 24-48 hours. Take them out of the wrapping and set them out on a tray at room temperature for 2 hours. Frost as desired.
This is my favorite frosting tip to decorate cupcakes
Did you make this recipe?
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