Gluten and Dairy Free Mint Chocolate Cupcakes Recipe

The weather has been cool here. There's some crispness in the air, and the temperature is in the 50s overnight. It's kind of nice. Less use of the air conditioner. More open door evenings while we eat dinner.

Last night during dinner time, there was one of those middle-aged men bands playing in the neighborhood. You know the ones I'm talking about - there are 4 or 5 guys, all wearing Hawaiian shirts and cargo shorts, (and possibly socks with sandals, right?). They play songs like Wild Cherry's 1976 hit Play That Funky Music White Boy, further confirming that yes, they have the same music taste as most other middle-aged men. [Yes, you do need to watch that video. Pure awesome.] Throw in a little Brown-Eyed Girl and some straw hats and you've got yourself a roaring party.

On the note of parties, you can feel autumn in the air. Back to school. There's something electric about it. More people start jogging. More people walking down the sidewalks to neighborhood barbecues, foil-wrapped potluck dishes in hand. More funky music for white boys.

In honor of something crisp and sweet, I decided some cupcakes are in order. Minty, chocolatey, and perfect for ushering in something new. A shout out to my buddy Caren, who moved in a few houses down, who started school this week. The boy started a new semester of college today. I think he was both nervous and excited. He was a little overwhelmed last night during my cupcake baking. We sat down and made a to-do list together. That calmed everyone's nerves. 

 

Then we ate cupcakes, which further chilled out the evening. Moist chocolate cupcakes with a delicate crumb. They weren't too dry, they stayed together well, but each bite was soft and a little minty. The frosting is dairy free, which is no small feat in the frosting world, and even though it's white, it's got a big blast of green just waiting to hit your tongue.


Mint Chocolate Cupcakes
adapted from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes
Makes 12-18 cupcakes

1/2 cup millet flour
1/2 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup tapioca starch
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup hemp milk
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon pure peppermint extract
3/4 cup water

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine the flours, cocoa, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum, and salt. Whisk them together until there are no lumps. Add in room temperature eggs, hemp milk (or other non-dairy alternative), oil, peppermint extract, and water, and stir together until the batter is completely combined. Do not overbeat, but there isn't as much worry with a gluten free batter of it becoming stiff and dry, because stirring won't develop gluten in this recipe as it does in a normal recipe.

Line a cupcake tin with papers, and fill each paper about 2/3 full with batter. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the tops are slightly domed, and the edges have a slight crispness to them. Remove from the oven and let rest for about 5 minutes. Then, remove each cupcake from the pan and let them cool completely on a wire rack. When the cupcakes are cool, frost with dairy free no-cook mint frosting.

Dairy Free No-Cook Mint Frosting

1/3 cup shortening
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 to 1/2 cup coconut milk, as needed
1/2 teaspoon pure peppermint extract
green food coloring (optional)

In a smaller bowl, combine shortening, 1 cup of powdered sugar, and peppermint extract. Whisk them together until the shorterning and powdered sugar are combining. When the powdered sugar has been absorbed into the recipe, add a dash of coconut milk and the remaining powdered sugar. Continue stirring until the consistency is right. Spread on cooled cupcakes.