Introduction: Gluten Free, Paleo Friendly, Delicious, Vanilla Cupcakes

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I love to eat.  I really, really love to eat.  But sometimes, stuffing my face 15 hours out of the day with foods I shouldn't be eating comes with a price.  And that price is measured in inches.  Inches around my waist.  And sometimes in chins.  So to remedy this, I "get right" and switch to a gluten free or paleo diet.  It goes great with my CrossFit routine, but I have to say, sometimes, homegirl just wants to eat 1, 2, 13 cupcakes. 

So I dug around and found a few great recipes on gluten free, paleo friendly vanilla cupcakes. This here is my ultimate favorite and can be made with one of two frostings; a fruit preserve or a decadent chocolate frosting!

Step 1: Ingredients

Cupcake:
1/2 cup sifted coconut flour
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
6 eggs
1/2 cup of grapeseed oil  (you can also use coconut oil if its virgin)
1/2 cup of agave nectar (you can also substitute with honey)
1tbs vanilla extract

Chocolate Frosting:
1 cup of dark chocolate.  I tried to use 75% cacao or higher, but only had this 60% one laying around, so I used that
1/2 cup grapeseed oil
2 tbs agave nectar
1 tbs vanilla extract
pinch sea salt

Step 2: Time to Make Cupcakes!

Preheat oven to 350F

In a medium bowl, combine coconut flour, salt and baking soda

In a small bowl, blend together eggs, grapeseed oil, agave and vanilla

Mix wet ingredients into dry and blend with a mixer or hand blender until smooth

*The cupcakes don't rise a whole bunch, so you wan to fill them a little more than 2/3 of the way when using muffin tins or liners.

Step 3: Bake 'em

Bake cupcakes for 20 min.

I used a mini muffin tin so I set the timer for 15 min and just kept a close eye on them.

Step 4: Frosting Time!

Chop dark chocolate up and place into a small saucepan

Pour out half cup of grapeseed oil and mix with chocolate in saucepan

Heat over low heat until melted and blended

Stir in agave, vanilla and salt

Step 5: Chill Out & Mix It UP!

Once the chocolate is melted, place in mixing bowl to cool.  I personally found that it was not cooling fast enough, and with the grapeseed oil, I was not really sure if the oil would separate.  So when it was warm to the touch, but not quite room temperature (about 10 min off the stove) I put it in the fridge to chill.  I figured it would help the mixing process. 

I have read other recipes where they mention to chill the chocolate in the freezer right off the stove.  That doesn't sound right to me. I was concerned that the shock would alter the chocolate negatively. 

If you have suggestions or explanations for which is best, please leave a comment!

Once chilled, place in mixer and mix on a high speed until its rich, fluffy, and creamy.  It will lighten up in color quite a bit and almost have a light buttercream consistency

Step 6: Spread the Love

Once cupcakes are cooled, spread on the frosting! 

For the chocolate cupcakes, I stored them in the fridge.  I made this batch on a particularly warm day so when I left the cupcakes out, the frosting started to melt a bit. 

Having these with a no sugar added preserve is delicious as well!  So get creative, be healthy, and enjoy!