Gluten-free cupcakes: FINALLY! I've been wanting a recipe for gluten-free cupcakes for a while now, but by gluten-free I really mean flourless (or almond flour), since I don't care to learn the intricacies of gluten-free flour mixing. It seems, well, complicated. One of my favorite gluten-free desserts is this flourless chocolate torte, but I didn't think it would translate well to cupcakes.
After doing some hunting, I found a recipe from Kate From Scratch — it looked like a great place to start! A few tweaks, and here we are with my flourless chocolate cupcakes.
These are dense, chocolatey, and more cake-like than any flourless dessert I've ever made (as opposed to gooey/fudgelike). They were fabulous! Throw on some frosting, and you have a pretty darn delicious dessert. If you're dairy free too, just substitute your butter replacement (I like smart balance) and it should work just fine!
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Flourless Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 40 minutes
Ingredients
- 4 oz semi-sweet chocolate (½ cup chocolate chips)
- ½ cup unsalted butter, chopped into pieces
- ⅔ cup packed brown sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 3 eggs, beaten
- ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ tsp instant espresso powder
- cupcake liners
- 4 ounces regular cream cheese, room temperature
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 ¼ cup powdered sugar, sifted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375 F.
- In a microwave-safe bowl, combine the butter and chocolate and melt in 30 second increments until the butter is completely melted.
- Whisk until the chocolate is also melted, and mixture is smooth.
- Whisk in the brown sugar and salt, then eggs, until smooth.
- Sift the cocoa powder and espresso powder into the mixture, and mix until combined.
- Fill each cupcake liner ⅔ full.
- Bake until the tops are set, about 15 minutes.
- Let fully cool before frosting.
- For frosting, combine the cream cheese and butter together in a stand mixer. Mix until fully incorporated, light, and fluffy. Add the cocoa powder, then powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth, then divide evenly among cupcakes.
Loretta | A Finn In The Kitchen says
I'm so impressed! The ingredient list is nice and short. Plus delicious! Pinning...
Terra says
These look marvelous! Just wondering though- approximately how many cupcakes does this recipe make?
Mary says
Not very many - I think I got 8 out of one recipe... and mine weren't as big as they could have been. Luckily, it's easy to double!
Rachel says
I doubled this and got 24
Rosie @ Blueberry Kitchen says
Yum, your cupcakes look so good!
Rebecca says
These were fantastic! I highly recommend them. 😀
Val says
I made these for Valentine's day and they were amazing! I followed the directions exactly and they were rich and decadent. Not dry nor crumbly but very intense and rich which is exactly what I was going for.
For those that had trouble, check your egg sizes! Small eggs won't cut it. And I also made these with milk chocolate and they were really good. Follow directions and they work!
Kelly says
I made a double batch of these but they only made a small bakers dozen. I mixed by hand until smooth, but they still fell. Hopefully they taste good. The frosting is delicious at least.
Mary says
Oh no! Sorry to hear they fell! Were you using an odd sized pan, or change anything? I'm sure they'll still taste good, just not be quite as pretty!
Nessie says
I try to add a little bit baking soda (about 1/2 tbsp) to prevent them from falling and they turned out perfect. 🙂
Mary says
Great! Thanks for the tip, Nessie! xo
Stephanie says
Do you think the espresso powder is a must I don't have any on hand?
Mary says
Hi Stephanie — the espresso powder is not essential! It's really just to enhance the chocolate flavor, but the recipe will still be wonderful without it. Enjoy! xo
Ella says
Did you do a 1/2 tbsp or 1/2 tsp of baking soda?
momof2 says
I followed the directions, but these just didn't work out for me. They were very dry and the flavour was too strong.
Fiddle Fingers says
I ate one without the frosting, just because I can, I'm the cook. I think it would be better with the frosting as the cake is very very chocolatey. It needs the balance of the sweet of the frosting and the cake. Don't get me wrong, the cake was delicious and moist but it needed a balance of sweetness or less cocoa. YUM
Fiddle Fingers says
OK, that's what it needed...the frosting. I used Earth Balance LF margarine and Tofutti cream cream alternative. I am lactose and gluten intolerant. If the cake is dry, underbake the cupcakes a little or cook a a slightly lower temperature. I need this chocolate fix! Thanks for tweaking the recipe so I can enjoy chocolate again!
Mary says
I'm glad you liked it! I don't think I ever tried one without frosting (whoops!), so I'm glad to have that feedback! Thanks!
Samantha says
With the cream cheese frosting, do you keep the cupcakes refrigerated? Or are they ok sitting at room temperature? Thanks!
Mary says
Hmm I am terrible with this kind if thing, and would probably keep them at room temp, but suppose you SHOULD keep them in the fridge!
Samantha says
Ok.....thanks! 🙂
Samantha says
These are just INCREDIBLE tasting!!! Thank you so much!
Mary says
Thanks, Samantha! I'm glad you liked them!
Sandra says
Any idea what the calorie count is for the flourless chocolate cupcakes?
Mary says
Hi Sandra - I haven't calculated the nutrition for this recipe. I'm sure you can easily find a site to plug in the recipe and get the info!
Sarah says
Hi!
How important do you think the espresso powder is in this recipie-is it something I can forgo if I have everything else? Trying to avoid a trip to the store...Thanks!
Mary says
You can definitely skip it! It's really just for enhancing the chocolate flavor!
Tricia says
Hi Mary- these look great- just wondering, what kind of brown sugar did you use? sugar in the raw? light brown sugar? dark brown sugar?
thanks!
Tricia
Mary says
Hi Tricia! I used light brown sugar! Enjoy! Xo
Bonnie Baier says
THESE SOUND WONDERFUL AS I AM GLUTEN AND DAIRY INTOLERANT SO I AM EXCITED TO TRY. HOPE YOU HAVE MORE THINGS TO TRY. BONNIE
Mary says
Thanks, Bonnie! I hope you enjoy them! Check out my gluten free category... I have tons of recipe for you!
Niki says
I've made twice with a vanilla bean buttercream! So delicious, although they are very, very crumbly. I already use extra large eggs. Do you have any ideas for what I could do so they aren't falling apart? Maybe add an extra egg? Otherwise the taste is absolutely delicious.
Mary says
Mine are quite crumbly too, and I've never given much thought to the solution! Perhaps I should! An extra egg sounds like a great idea... Let me know if you try, and how it works out! Next time I have an oven I'll give it a go, too!
Hope says
Thank you for sharing this cupcake recipe! I tried it today and it was good. 😀 It was very rich and chocolatey--a lot more like a brownie than a cupcake, I think. 😀
Mary says
Thanks, Hope! I'm glad you liked it!
Tricia says
Hi Mary- these look great- just wondering, what kind of brown sugar did you use? sugar in the raw? light brown sugar? dark brown sugar?
thanks!
Tricia
Rosalyn says
This made 17 cupcakes, which was plenty for just me! I used dark chocolate and they tastes gorgeous, more like brownies than cupcakes but lovely non the less!
Mary says
Thanks for the info, Rosalyn! Enjoy! Xo
Sue says
These looked fantastic when I checked them at 15 min. Nice and high. I turned oven off and left them to cool for 10 min and when I opened oven they had sunk 🙁
As lovely as they tasted, brownie like which is to be expected, they were flat 🙁 any ideas what I could do? Add baking powder?? Thanks as making them for a friends birthday tomorrow.
Mary says
Sorry to hear they went flat on you, Sue! I follow the recipe to a T every time and never have an issue, so I'm not sure how to advise you! I don't keep them in the oven for 10 minutes after the first 15, but I don't think that would make them fall (if anything it'd make them dry). Sorry I don't have a solution for you! Good luck!
Elanor Rosen says
I made these cupcakes and they were delicious but the frosting was more like a glaze.
Charlotte Berman says
can you use only unsalted butter instead of normal butter and unsalted butter thanks:)
Mary says
Hi Charlotte,
Thanks for pointing that out — they should both be unsalted! I've changed the recipe to reflect that. Enjoy! xo
Mary
Charlotte Berman says
thanks so much there delicious
Chelsie Rose says
I used 1/4 of a cup of cocoa powder for the frosting and it turned out great
Mary says
Thanks for the tip, Chelsie!
Amy says
These were amazing!! I made them for my daughter's birthday, and I have been asked for the recipe by a few people as a result! I left out the espresso powder, and they were still very rich and tasty! Thanks for sharing!!
Mary says
Oh yay! I'm so glad these were a hit, Amy! Thanks for sharing! xoxo
Char F says
These were great! They had a bit of a cake texture. I maybe didn't bake mine long enough, as they were still gooey. But that's the way I like them. Definitely a keeper.
Mary says
Glad you liked them, Char! xo
Anat says
Thank you for this wonderful recipe. They came out delicious, but flat in shape. Any reason why?
★★★★★
Mary says
Hi Anat! They are quite dense — did you fill up the cupcake liners enough? Other than that, I'm not sure what could have gone wrong!
Yvonne says
I made these cupcakes last week and they have become one of my husband's favorite desserts. I made a second batch to bring to work and all of the cupcakes were gone in one day. I followed the recipe exactly and ended up with 12 smaller cupcakes. They have a deliciously dense and rich chocolate flavor and I try to watch them so that they don't bake too long and dry out
★★★★★
Mary says
Glad you enjoyed these, Yvonne! Thanks for sharing! xo
lori says
Hello. I'm about to make these...Do you use the mini cupcake tins or the regular size?
thanks
Lori
Mary says
I used regular, but you can use mini (just decrease baking time!).
Ezzie says
So, do I have to use unsalted butter orrrrrrrr? Like, I'm just trynna save a trip to the store, ya know?
Mary says
You don't *have* to ... but it's recommended. Unsalted butter is generally higher quality than salted, but it will work just fine. Just adjust the salt (decrease it) in the recipe!
Katie says
These were incredible! I made them for a friends birthday tonight and everyone went for seconds. Thank you for this delicious recipe.
★★★★★
Delco says
I get it that the frosting is for cupcakes but the amount is so small that ALL the ingredients wrapped around the beaters. Made a huge mess when adding powdered ingredients. Never had this issue when making frosting for a cake probably due to larger volume. However it tasted great.
Vineca Gray says
Superb with a few small tweeks - swapped in 'dark' for chocolate chips and Swerve sweetener (keto) for brown sugar. Added 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract to the batter, which is a bit bold, since it is already in the icing recipe, but I love vanilla.
Texture is excellent, baked but still delicate. !
★★★★