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Grain-free and gluten free, these gorgeous cupcakes are absolutely delicious. They bake up moist and tender, then are topped with a high piping of whipped cream. And dipped in chocolate for a truly divine treat. You'll want to eat these little cuppies with a fork. But will absolutely love them. One of my favorite grain-free baking recipes of all time.

Let's pretend for a moment you're kinda paleo. (Oh, hai. That's me.)

Try as I might to be pure cavekid, baked goods always have me like whoa. I love them. I crave them. Entirely, completely and pastrilily.

That's weird.

That's not a thing.

But let's pretend it is.

So anyway, here we are. Kinda paleo.

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You try to be a good cavegirl. Eat veggies, and steer clear of toast. Say no to legumes and run into the next room if anyone even mentions the word "wheat".

But oh, do you need a cupcake from time to time. And not just a cupcake. But one topped with whipped topping and eight stages of love.

That's not a thing.

But you knew that already.

So in this world, when you want to still eat paleo (because going grain-free has made you feel soo good), but you really want a damn cupcake: these gorgeous chocolate Hi Hat Cupcakes are the answer to such cravings.

Almond flour cupcakes so good, no one will believe they're grain free. Chocolatey and soft and moist. Even thought "moist" is wurst.word.ever.

And then whipped cream up top (with a leetle bit of powdered sugar, because paleoISH means we can sneak a cheat in there).

And then chocolate.

And then eight kinds of love.

You know the drill. Make, bake, dance, repeat.

For all you paleoish cohorts, this one is for us.

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Grain-Free Hi Hat Cupcakes

by December-9-2017

Chocolate cupcakes topped with whipped cream and dipped in chocolate. All made with grain-free flour and minimal added sugar. A perfect paleoish treat for the holidays!

Ingredients

3/4 cup cocoa powder
2/3 cup almond flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup butter, melted
2/3 cup raw honey
1/2 cup applesauce
4 large eggs
1/4 tsp almond extract
1 Tbsp vanilla
2 pints whipping cream
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups Enjoy Life! chocolate chips
4 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
sprinkles

Instructions

Heat oven to 350°F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine cocoa powder, almond flour, baking powder, butter, honey, applesauce, eggs, almond extract and vanilla. Mix just until smooth. Spoon into lined muffin tin. Bake for 17-20 minutes, just until set. Cool completely.While cupcakes are cooling, whip cream in stand mixer until stiff peaks form. Add powdered sugar, mix until combined. Then slowly beat in 2 Tbsp melted coconut oil. Immediately transfer to several large icing bags and refrigerate until chilled.Pipe whipped cream mixture atop cupcakes. Refrigerate for 30-60 minutes. In a microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate chips and 2 Tbsp coconut together, in 20 second bursts, stirring between, until smooth. Mixture should be barely warm to the touch.Dip cupcakes in chocolate (or drizzle chocolate over cream). Immediately place on a baking sheet and put in freezer to expedite the hardening of the chocolate. Once chocolate is firm, transfer to fridge and store there until ready to enjoy.For best results, remove finished cupcakes from fridge 15-20 minutes before enjoying, to give the cake time to soften up a bit.

Details

Prep time: 1 hour Cook time: 20 mins Total time: 1 hour 20 mins Yield: 12 cupcakes

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FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY GEEK-OUT MOMENT

These images were shot with a Canon 5D Mk III paired with a Canon 24-70 f/2.8 . Shutterspeed was set to 125 so I could hand hold my camera, and still end up with a crisp-sharp shot. F/3.5-5.0 allowed most of the photo to be evenly clear. If the light is good, I'll always shoot f/5.0 on my overhead shots.

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The backdrop was created using the Bea Lubas technique, which you can learn over at TwoLovesStudio. Once I tried this technique, I painted over 5 of my old backdrops, because I loved it so much.

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