Gluten Free Chocolate Cupcakes
Gluten Free Chocolate Cupcakes are moist and indulgent, made with gluten free flour and cocoa powder in one bowl and ready in under 45 minutes!
If you’re a chocolate lover looking for more great chocolate cake recipes, check out this Chocolate Coffee Cake and Gluten Free Double Chocolate Cake. For a quick and easy version, try this Gluten Free Chocolate Mug Cake!
This is one of my all-time favorite chocolate cupcake recipes. It’s soft and moist for the perfect texture, with really indulgent chocolate notes and just the right amount of sweetness. These cupcakes are also perfect for birthday parties, just add some decorative cupcake toppers!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Gluten Free All-Purpose Flour. Use your favorite gluten free flour blend here, but make sure it contains xanthan gum. This is what keeps your cupcake from crumbling and falling apart. I recommend using a 1:1 flour blend, like Bob’s Red Mill or King Arthur Flour.
If your blend doesn’t have xanthan gum, you can add it separately. The rule is usually 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum per 1 cup of flour used.
Cocoa Powder. Regular unsweetened cocoa powder works for this recipe. If you use a dark cocoa powder, it may turn out more bitter (but good if you like dark chocolate).
Leavening. We’re using a mix of baking soda and baking powder to get the perfect rise for these cupcakes. We don’t want too much rise, or it’ll be hard to frost them later. I find 1/2 teaspoon baking soda with 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder is the perfect combo.
White Sugar and Brown Sugar. White granulated sugar adds a nice amount of sweetness, while brown sugar adds a deeper flavor and also brings some moisture to the cupcakes.
Salt. Salt helps balance out the sweetness.
Oil. A small amount of vegetable oil adds fat to the cupcakes, which gives the cake a really soft and moist texture. We’re only using 1/4 cup vegetable oil in the whole recipe.
If you don’t have oil, you can substitute with the same amount of melted unsalted butter.
If you’re dairy free, use the same amount of unsweetened apple sauce.
Eggs. Eggs act as a binder that helps hold everything together. The yolks also add some fat.
If you need egg replacement ideas, you can use 1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce per egg.
Half and Half. Half and half adds some fat to the cake, which helps with texture. You can also use regular milk or heavy cream.
If you’re dairy free, use your favorite non-dairy milk (like almond milk or coconut milk). But the cupcakes may be slightly more dry, because dairy-free milk usually has less fat.
Vanilla. Vanilla adds some flavor. If you want some more variation, you can also add a teaspoon of almond extract.
Espresso Powder. Espresso powder has bitter notes that don’t taste bitter once they’re in the cake, but they will bring out some really nice chocolate notes.
Cinnamon. I love a light cinnamon flavor with chocolate. If you don’t have this you can leave it out.
How to Make Gluten Free Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a medium bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients until well combined.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients (eggs, half and half, oil, and vanilla). Mix everything together until well combined, making sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the mixing bowl until you have a smooth batter.
- Line a cupcake pan with paper liners. Using a spoon or an ice cream scoop, fill each liner about half way full. This helps to keep the cupcakes from rising too high, where it would be hard to keep the frosting on top.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before frosting (let them sit for 5-10 minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool faster).
How to Make Chocolate Frosting
This is my favorite frosting to make because it’s really quick and easy, and I usually have these ingredients in my pantry.
- 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- 8 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar (this is the same as icing sugar or confectioner’s sugar)
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- In a stand mixer using the whisk attachment (or with an electric hand mixer), cream together room-temperature unsalted butter and cream cheese until combined.
- Add all other ingredients and mix on medium-low until the sugar is incorporated. Then switch to high speed for about 30 seconds, or until everything is incorporated and fluffy.
- Add a piping tip to a piping bag (or a ziplock bag with the corner cut off). Fill with frosting and twist the open end closed.
- When cupcakes are completely cooled, add frosting to the top.
More Cake Recipes
- Easy Gluten Free Coffee Cake
- Flourless Chocolate Cake
- Gluten Free Carrot Cake
- Easy White Chocolate Strawberry Cheesecake
Storage
Gluten free chocolate cupcakes can be kept at room temperature in an airtight container for 2-3 days.
If you use a dairy-based frosting, like cream cheese or chocolate buttercream, I recommend refrigerating the cupcakes in an airtight container for 4-5 days.
Cupcakes can also be frozen for 3-4 months. Place the cupcakes in the cupcake tin and place in the freezer. Once frozen (about an hour), wrap in plastic wrap and transfer back to the freezer.
Frequently Asked Questions
The first thing to do is to make sure you’re using a flour blend that has the right ratio of starch to protein. This makes a big difference in gluten free baking. The best way to do this is to pick a popular gluten free flour. Personally, I like the cup-for-cup flour blends that have xanthan gum in them already.
Another thing is to make sure you use the right amount of leavening (baking soda and baking powder), which helps the cake rise and avoids dense pockets.
And lastly, make sure you add the right amount of liquid to your recipe. Gluten free flour typically uses more moisture. The 1:1 flour blends help with this somewhat when converting recipes.
Store bought icing may vary, so check on the specific brand you use.
If you make the frosting at home, you can be sure that it is gluten free! Check out the recipe above, or for a nice light frosting try this mascarpone frosting.
The key to keeping gluten free cake moist is to include some fat in the cake. We’re using vegetable oil and half and half, which adds the perfect amount.
I also like to add at least half of the amount of sugar as brown sugar, which adds a small amount of moisture to the cake.
Also, make sure you’re not over-baking the cake, which can dry it out. You need the right amount of time and the right oven temperature to get moist cupcakes.
Cooking Tips
- If you want to stay with unfrosted cupcakes, you can fill them all the way to the top of the cupcake tin to get a larger rise on the top. After they’ve completely cooled, dust the cupcakes with powdered sugar.
- If you don’t want to use cupcake liners, grease your muffin pan and lightly dust with gluten free flour before filling with cupcake batter.
- If you use a stand mixer, I like to use the paddle attachment that’s made for baking. It will scrape the sides of the bowl as it mixes.
- Add a little heat to this chocolate cupcake recipe with 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper.
If you loved this recipe, be sure to leave a 5 Star review below, and tag me with a photo of your finished recipe on Instagram @Jacqui_DishingDelish!
Gluten Free Chocolate Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups gluten free all-purpose flour , 1:1
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, double acting
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon espresso powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup half and half
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Equipment
- 1 cupcake tin
- 14 paper cupcake liners
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a medium bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients until well combined.
- Add the half and half, oil, eggs, and vanilla to the dry ingredients. Mix everything together until well combined, making sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the mixing bowl until you have a smooth batter.
- Line a cupcake pan with paper liners. Using a spoon or an ice cream scoop, fill each liner about half way full.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before frosting.
Notes
- We’re only filling the cupcake liners half way to avoid having a muffin top on the cupcakes. This helps give the frosting a flatter surface, so it doesn’t lean or fall off.
- If you want to stay with unfrosted cupcakes, you can fill them all the way to the top of the cupcake tin to get a larger rise on the top. After they’ve completely cooled, dust the cupcakes with powdered sugar.
- If you don’t want to use cupcake liners, grease your muffin pan and lightly dust with gluten free flour before filling with cupcake batter.
Nutrition
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