This recipe is far and away my favorite when it comes to a chocolate cupcake. They’re dangerously dark + chocolatey and super moist. I’ve brought them to many a get together where people asked me for the recipe. I love sharing it with them + seeing the disbelief when I tell them they’re gluten free…and vegan.

Many people follow a vegan or gluten free lifestyle – be it by choice or necessity and I applaud them. I had to follow a lifestyle like this for a while when my girls were born to try and ease their reflux + food sensitivities. It was really a challenge for me, but one I tried hard to embrace. In the end, both kids had intolerances to nuts as well and had to go on prescription formulas – but this was what led me to be much more active in the kitchen and in the grocery stores from an ingredients perspective.

I missed butter. And cheese. I can’t forget about cheese. I digress…

My mom suffers from a gluten sensitivity and I created this in the summer of 2014 when we were celebrating our birthdays. No one knew they lacked any gluten or animal bi-products, and neither will you!

Deep, dark, chocolate bundles of joy, these are. Once you make them, they may quickly become your favorite chocolate cupcake recipe as well!

Recipe yields 22 cupcakes.

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:

• 1.5 cups Almond flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill)
• 1.5 cups Brown Rice flour (also Bob’s Red Mill)
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate cocoa powder
• 1.75 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 2 cups dark chocolate almond milk (I used Silk)
• 1 tsp. coffee extract
• 1.5 tbsp. pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 bag dark chocolate chips (I used Enjoy Life Foods)

For the frosting:

• 2 cups vegetable shortening. (If you’re not sticking to the vegan theme here, sub room temp butter for shortening. I used organic unsalted.)
• 2 lb. bag powdered sugar
• 3/4 cup dark chocolate cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp. pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 – 1/3 cup almond milk (or whole milk)
• pinch cream of tartar (to stiffen the frosting)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line two muffin pans with cupcake liners + set aside.
2. In your Kitchen-Aid mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, blend canola oil + sugar for 2 minutes.
3. Add extracts + chocolate almond milk & mix until combined.
4. Add all dry ingredients and blend until incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips.
5. Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full + bake 22-25 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting.

To make the frosting:

1. Cream together the shortening + 1/3 bag of the powdered sugar & 1/4 cup milk for 5 minutes on medium speed.
2. Add in the vanilla extract, cocoa powder, cream of tartar + remainder of the powdered sugar + mix an additional 5 minutes on medium speed.
3. If the frosting is still too dry, add the additional milk 1 tbsp. at a time until desired consistency is reached. Pipe or spread atop each cupcake.