Moist and Fluffy Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes Recipe | low fat, dairy free (2024)

Jul 26, 2017

Dairy FreeGluten FreeLow FatSugar Free

These Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes will restore your faith in gluten free baked goods. They’re so, so soft and fluffy, they’re moist and won’t crumble between your fingers like sand, and they taste just like all cupcakes should — rich and sweet with comforting tones of vanilla bean in every bite.

These aren’t just ANY cupcakes… these are HEALTHY Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes!

I first posted a recipe for Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes back in 2013. While they were decent, I will admit, they were pretty delicate (I was a newbie to gluten free baking back then!), and the recipe required too many steps and ingredients. Over the years, I always felt like I should revamp the recipe, and finally got down to it last week.

Moist and Fluffy Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes Recipe | low fat, dairy free (1)

When I think of cupcakes, the first thing that pops into my head is a big tray full of the sweetest, cloud-like pillows of fluffy, cakey goodness topped with copious amounts of frosting.

Then I immediately flashback to my childhood where I’d pound back cupcake after cupcake, and then when I was in a food-/sugar-coma, ask myself why I felt so sick and uncomfortable. Well, DUH, old Jessica! It was all that white sugar, bleached flour, and artificial flavors!

Thankfully, we can say goodbye to all the typical nasty cupcake ingredients and say hello to the healthy ingredients used to make theseHealthy Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes!

Moist and Fluffy Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes Recipe | low fat, dairy free (2)

To make these cupcakes easier to make with a better texture, I made the following changes:

  • Increased Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk, 1 cupto1¼ cups
  • Increased Double Acting Baking Powder, 1 tsp to 2 tsp
  • Reduced Baking Soda, ½ tsp to ¼ tsp
  • Reduced Granulated Erythritol, ¾ cup to ½ cup
  • Replaced ½ cup Brown Rice Flour,½ cup Quinoa Flour + ⅓ cup Almond Flour +¼ cup Arrowroot Starch with 1 cup Sorghum Flour + 1 cup Oat Flour
  • Replaced 3 tbs Applesauce + 3 tbs Oil with 1 cup Applesauce
  • Omitted½ tsp Xanthan Gum
  • Omitted 2 tbs Ground Flaxseed
  • Added 2 Egg Whites
  • Added 1 tsp Stevia Extract

The result of these changes? DAMN DELICIOUS Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes! They’re sweet, buttery, moist, and fluffy, and packed with vanilla flavor. Best of all, you’d never know these are healthy and guilt-free with just 90 calories per cupcake!

Moist and Fluffy Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes Recipe | low fat, dairy free (3)

Moist and Fluffy Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes Recipe | low fat, dairy free (4)

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Healthy Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes

These gluten-free, sugar-free, and low-fat Vanilla Cupcakes will restore your faith in gluten free baked goods. They're so soft and fluffy and taste just like all cupcakes should -- rich and sweet with comforting tones of vanilla bean in every bite!

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line your cupcake pans with 14 parchment paper or silicone liners (or you can spray the tins with cooking spray, but I think these will stick to traditional paper liners).

  • In a small bowl, whisk together the sorghum flour, oat flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

  • In a stand mixer bowl with beater attachment, add the almond milk, applesauce, erythritol, egg whites, vanilla extract, butter flavor, stevia extract, and almond extract. Mix on low speed for about one minute.

  • Turn off the mixer, dump in the dry ingredients, and return to low speed. Increase speed to medium and mix until almost completely smooth. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix one last time.

  • Scoop batter into prepared cupcake pans and bake for ~25 minutes, or until the surface of the cupcakes spring back when tapped. Transfer cupcakes to a wire cooling rack and let cool completely. Frost and serve!

Recipe Notes

I frosted my cupcakes with the Chocolate Frosting recipe from my Naughty or Nice Cookbook and added ~1 cup or so of shredded coconut to it. I just eyeballed it. Another good frosting option would be Miss Jones Organic Chocolate orVanilla Frosting!

Nutrition Facts

Healthy Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes

Amount Per Serving (1 cupcake)

Calories 90Calories from Fat 9

% Daily Value*

Fat 1g2%

Sodium 150mg7%

Carbohydrates 17g6%

Fiber 2g8%

Sugar 2g2%

Protein 3g6%

Vitamin C 3.3mg4%

Calcium 100mg10%

Iron 0.7mg4%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Cake & Cupcakes

Can you believe it?? 90-CALORIE CUPCAKES THAT TASTE LIKE 900-CALORIE CUPCAKES!

It’s not always about the nutrition label, calorie content, or grams of fat, though… it’s about the quality and nutritional value of the ingredients in the recipe. We should always be able to enjoy dessert without feeling guilty orundergoing a sugar crash.

These Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes are made with top notch, nutritious ingredients. It’s just a bonus that they’re sugar free and low fat too. This truly is a dessert with benefits! 🙂

Moist and Fluffy Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes Recipe | low fat, dairy free (5)

Enjoy!

.

With love and good eats,

.

–Jess

.

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Moist and Fluffy Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes Recipe | low fat, dairy free (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to super moist cupcakes? ›

  1. Buttermilk will make a moister cupcake than milk, due to its acid content. ...
  2. Vegetable oil makes very moist cupcakes. ...
  3. Instant Clearjel or Instant Pudding mix contain a modified starch that let your cupcakes retain more moisture!

What are gluten free cupcakes made of? ›

Ingredients
  • 200g butter.
  • 200g caster sugar.
  • 3 large eggs.
  • 0.5 tsp vanilla essence.
  • 200g gluten free self-raising flour (I use FREEE, M&S or Lidl)
  • 1 tsp gluten free baking powder.
  • 0.25 tsp of xanthan gum.
Jan 4, 2024

Why are my cupcakes dense and not fluffy? ›

Why are my cupcakes dense? Dense cupcakes happen for almost the same reasons as the dry cupcakes. Adding too much flour and dry ingredients will absorb the moisture in the batter, resulting in a dry crumb. Not whipping the butter enough may cause your cupcakes to be dry and dense.

Do gluten free cupcakes taste different? ›

Answers. Our gluten free cupcakes dont taste much different to our other cakes, however they tend to have a more crumbly texture, due to the different flour.

How do I reduce the fat content of the cupcake? ›

Trade half the butter with pureed fruit such as mashed bananas, apple butter or prunes (prunes work best with chocolate recipes). Replace half the oil with applesauce. Replace each whole egg with two egg whites or 1/4 cup egg substitute. Replace cream with equal parts of evaporated skim milk.

What are the best ingredients for gluten free baking? ›

When all-purpose flour won't cut it, stock your pantry with additional gluten free flours, like oat flour, nut flours, bean flours, even powdered dry milk and others. You'll also need binders, like xanthan gum or psyllium husk, to adjust the structure in what you're baking.

Why do gluten free cupcakes not rise? ›

YOUR CAKE IS SINKING IN THE MIDDLE OR NOT RISING

You may not have used enough raising agents. I do recommend experimenting with double action baking powders. Otherwise try using 25 percent more chemical raising agents (baking soda or baking powder) if you're converting a recipe to gluten free.

Why are my gluten free cupcakes dense? ›

If gluten-free cakes aren't falling apart, they often turn out heavy and unpleasantly dense. That's because gluten creates little pockets of air, so baked goods turn out springy and fluffy; gluten-free flours and grains are lacking this crucial element.

How do you make a cake light and fluffy? ›

Room Temperature Butter / Don't Over-Cream

Most cakes begin with creaming butter and sugar together. Butter is capable of holding air and the creaming process is when butter traps that air. While baking, that trapped air expands and produces a fluffy cake. No properly creamed butter = no air = no fluffiness.

Can I use both butter and oil in cake? ›

Oh yes, you sure can. This recipe has a combination of butter and oil to give off that nice buttery taste while keeping it soft and moist at the same time. Cake using pure butter tends to be more dense and dry compared to adding oil into the batter.

What is the trend in gluten-free bakery? ›

The Global Gluten-Free Bakery market is anticipated to rise at a considerable rate during the forecast period, between 2023 and 2030. In 2022, the market is growing at a steady rate and with the rising adoption of strategies by key players, the market is expected to rise over the projected horizon.

Why do gluten-free cakes fall apart? ›

Xanthan gum (along with other thickeners like guar gum and arrowroot) acts like a binder in gluten-free baked goods to maintain their structure. Without it, there's a good chance that your brownies or muffin will crumble and fall apart.

Does gluten free flour change the flavor? ›

Baking with gluten-free flour will produce some slight differences in taste or texture. Millet flour tends to have a mild flavor while buckwheat flour lends itself to a more earthy taste. In addition, quinoa flour has a nutty flavor and bean flour can actually sometimes taste like beans.

How to make cupcakes taste like bakery? ›

Easy Ways to Make Your Boxed Cupcake Mix Taste Better
  1. Add an extra egg. ...
  2. Replace water with whole milk, coffee, or soda. ...
  3. Add sugar and flour to the dry mix. ...
  4. Use butter instead of oil. ...
  5. Grab a handful of mix-ins. ...
  6. Ditch canned icing.

How do you make old cupcakes moist? ›

Formulate a cake soak: You can make a cake soak using simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water), evaporated milk, buttermilk, or a liqueur. With a wooden skewer or toothpick, pole holes in the cake. Then use a pastry brush to blot the liquid over the surface of the cake layers to moisten the cake.

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