Grain-Free Chocolatey Chocolate Cupcakes
Wacky cakes are wacky because when you compare the list of ingredients to a normal cake, it doesn’t seem like the recipe is going to work. A wacky cake has flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, oil, vinegar and water and doesn’t have the eggs, butter or milk you expect to see in a buttery, yummy cake recipe. It’s commonly believed that wacky cakes had their origin in World War II times when butter, eggs and milk were being rationed.
The reason wacky cakes are still so popular is their unexpected moist, spongy texture and rich chocolate taste. After trying a lot of recipes for gluten-free chocolate cupcakes using coconut milk and having them all come out dry and tasteless, I had even more of a bug in my bonnet to figure out how to get them right. Finally I ran across a recipe that called for water and found the secret to making chocolatey gluten-free cupcakes. As I looked at the recipe, I was instantly reminded of a wacky cake. I made some changes to the recipe to make them more healthy and then baked the first batch. They were just what I was looking for. They were mini wacky cakes. The first ones were flat. So for the next batch I beat the eggs and then they rose in the middle and looked much more normal.
Like brownies, you have to get them out of the oven exactly when they are done. With each minute cooking overtime they will be losing their rich flavor and sponginess.
Grain-Free Chocolatey Chocolate Cupcakes
Have all ingredients at room temperature.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons almond flour
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup honey, warmed
- 1/4 cup avocado or light olive oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 jumbo or 4 large eggs
- 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon hot water
Instructions
Grease a muffin pan and set aside. Mix almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Heat honey and oil in a small pan. Heat water in another small pan. Beat eggs in a mixer until very light and foamy.* Add the flour mixture and mix. Add the egg mixture, vanilla and water and mix. Fill muffin tins. Bake in a 350 oven for 18 minutes.
*The cupcakes will come out flat rather than having a dome shaped if the eggs are not beaten. When you add the warm liquids it will seem like the eggs have lost their volume but they are fine.
Double the recipe for a 2 layer or 9 by 13 inch cake.
If you don’t want to use a powdered sugar frosting, this is a simple recipe using honey. You will only put about a tablespoon on each cupcake so they aren’t too sugary.
Chocolate Almond Honey Frosting
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon almond flavoring (opt)
Instructions
Mix all ingredients in a small bowl using a spoon and spread on cooled cupcakes.
