These paleo vanilla cupcakes are so light, fluffy, moist, and sweet that you’d never guess they’re gluten free, dairy free and paleo! The “buttercream” frosting is easy to whip up, and tastes just like the original even though it contains no refined sugar or dairy. Kid approved and perfect for birthdays, special events, or “just because”!
I’ve been holding onto this cupcake recipe for way too long. I got completely distracted with all the Springtime goodies like lemon bars, lemon cake, carrot cake, those homemade creme eggs, and, well, that sort of thing.
It just didn’t seem like the right time to share a “classic” recipe like vanilla cupcakes with all the focus on the new season.
It’s funny – as a regular (sort of regular) person I LOVE welcoming a new season (especially shopping for a new season!) but, as a food blogger new seasons drive me a little batty. Or a lot batty, especially fall with all the intense pumpkin love that time of year.
A new season means the pressure is on! I have to start thinking about grilling in April and Thanksgiving in August. My kids KNOW to expect pumpkin bread, pumpkin pies, and cakes as soon as we come back from our beach vacation.
Yes, it sort of sucks all the fun out of the actual holidays because by the time they roll around, I’m way over the sentiment.
In fact, in some ways the sentiment is taken away, because now, cooking is actual work, which I have to remind myself, is actually really flipping awesome!
So, I would say that’s the one “down” side to food blogging as a full time job. The perks far outweigh the downside – creating delicious healthy recipes and sharing them with all of you is a legit dream come true!
But anyway, back to our current situation – these vanilla cupcakes. No matter what time of year it is, I think we can all agree a classic vanilla cupcake with vanilla buttercream is a mighty special thing.
I totally associate them with birthdays – both my own from childhood and my kids’ – and that special feeling you get when you bake something homemade to share for a birthday. My kids will ALWAYS choose vanilla/vanilla cakes over chocolate cakes, and to be honest, I do too!
The “buttercream” frosting here has no dairy in it whatsoever and also no refined sugar, however, my son (who hates everything) loved it and said it tastes just like birthday cake.
And, I’ll add that he goes to parties and eats actual non-paleo cupcakes, so his opinion is legit.
I used a combination of palm oil shortening and refined coconut oil to create the base for the frosting. You’ll need to make sure your shortening is room temp and the coconut oil is soft but not at all melted.
Depending on the time of year that might mean actually chilling the coconut oil a bit before using it, since it melts around 75 degrees F.
The frosting is sweetened with honey and thickened with tapioca flour, although you can also use arrowroot for the same result. By the way, I used refined coconut oil only to avoid coconut flavor, but for texture, virgin will work well too.
The frosting comes together really quickly and can even be made the day before – it will harden a lot in the fridge due to the coconut oil – but all you need to do is re-whip it with your hand mixer and it’ll be perfect!
Also due to the coconut oil, it has a tendency to soften/melt above normal room temperature, so you can store it in the fridge until ready to frost, and then just re-whip once you’re ready to frost the cupcakes. For this reason, it’s also best to keep the cupcakes cool after frosting them, especially if it’s warm around you.
The cupcakes themselves are very similar to my strawberry shortcake cupcakes and they’re as good as paleo cupcakes get. Moist without being soggy or greasy, light in texture and perfectly domed, and with just the right amount of sweetness.
I hope you’re ready for for cake and company – these vanilla cupcakes are sure to please a crowd – let’s get started!
Vanilla Cupcakes with “Buttercream” Frosting {Paleo}
Paleo Vanilla Cupcakes with "Buttercream" Frosting
These paleo vanilla cupcakes are so light, fluffy, moist, and sweet that you'd never guess they're gluten free, dairy free and paleo! The "buttercream" frosting is easy to whip up, and tastes just like the original even though it contains no refined sugar or dairy. Kid approved and perfect for birthdays, special events, or "just because"!
Ingredients
Buttercream Frosting:
- 1/2 cup palm oil shortening room temp, soft
- 1/2 cup coconut oil softened but solid
- 1/3 cup + 1 Tbsp tapioca flour
- 1/4 cup raw honey
- 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 tsp fine grain sea salt
Cupcakes:
- 4 eggs room temp
- 3 Tbsp coconut milk full fat, blended prior to adding
- 1/4 cup coconut oil melted and cooled to almost room temp
- 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice or apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/3 cup pure maple sugar or coconut sugar*
- 2 cups blanched almond flour
- 1/3 cup tapioca flour
- 3/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp fine grain sea salt
Instructions
For the Cupcakes:
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Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin/cupcake pan with parchment liners. In a mixing bowl, combine, the almond flour, tapioca, baking soda and salt, set aside.
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In a large bowl using an electric hand mixer, beat together the eggs, coconut milk, coconut oil, lemon juice, vanilla, maple syrup and maple sugar until very smooth
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Add the dry ingredients gradually to the wet and mix on low speed for about a minute, until well combined.
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Transfer batter using a ladle or spoon to the prepared cupcake pan, filling 3/4 of the way up to make about 12-14 cupcakes. You can bake in batches if you make more than 12.
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Bake 16-18 mins until tops are domed and toothpick inserted in the center of one comes out clean. Allow cupcakes to cool a few minutes in the pan before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
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Once cooled to room temp, frost as desired with buttercream and serve. Cupcakes should be stored covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
For the Frosting:
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Using an electric hand mixer, beat the shortening and coconut oil until smooth and fluffy. Add in the honey and beat on low until combined, then add tapioca, vanilla and sea salt and beat until creamy.
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Frost cupcakes immediately, OR store frosting in the refrigerator until ready to use. Frosting will harden in the fridge, but you can let it sit for 5 minutes at room temp, then re-beat before frosting the cupcakes. Frosting can also be made ahead of time following this method.
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Frost cupcakes using a piping bag or with an offset spatula. Store leftover cupcakes in the refrigerator after the first day for up to 4 days. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
*Coconut sugar will work for this recipe, but, the cupcakes will appear significantly darker due to the brown color of coconut sugar.
Nutrition
What I Used To Make My Vanilla Cupcakes:
Want More Paleo Cakes and Cupcake Recipes? Try One of These!
Chocolate Cupcakes with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting
Lemon Crumb Cake with Lemon Curd
Chocolate Chip Cookie Vanilla Cheesecake {Vegan}
Carrot Cake with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting
Chocolate Frosted Chocolate Donuts {Nut Free}
Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting {Nut Free}
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These didn’t work at all.. they never formed into cupcakes.. seems like not enough liquid or something?
These are by far one of the best paleo desserts I’ve made! They were DELICIOUS! I think better than “real” cupcakes ? Thank you so much.
Using the cupcake recipe and baking it in a 7×10 in cake pan, I made this as a cake for Easter and cut out a bunny design to decorate. (I did not use the frosting recipe but instead used a regular buttercream recipe) The cake was delicious! Even after 3 days in the fridge the little bunny ear that was left (lol!) still tasted moist and delicious! Thank you so much for the recipe and I’m looking forward to making the frosting next time!
Runny frosting and used a mixer to beat. Help!
I’m a huge fan of your website and have been really enjoying your recipes during quarantine! I was wondering if you have ever experimented with using coconut butter instead of shortening or grass fed butter in a frosting recipe like this? Thank you!
Tasted like paint thinner and batter looked like wet dog food when I tried to mix the dry with wet ingredients. I don’t recommend spending your money on this horrible recipe and they did not bake like the fake cupcakes in the images. The frosting just tastes like shortening and I had to add powdered sugar.
Michele, I can’t thank you enough for this recipe! You see, my family has a tradition that the bride always bakes her own wedding cake/cupcakes, a tradition from my great grandmother’s time. But most of my husband’s family was gluten intolerant, so I decided to make gluten free/paleo cupcakes. Most of the people at the wedding, including the kids, (and my picky nephews) didn’t even notice that they were not “normal” cupcakes! My husband’s family were really touched, and all my sisters in law begged me for the recipe. Thank you for this recipe! It helped make my day so special.
I can’t wait to make these! Will baking in a cake pan instead of making cupcakes work just as well?
Do you know if “flax eggs” could be substituted for these eggs? My daughter has to be egg free and it’s for her 8th birthday. Would love your help!
Instead of almond flour, could I use cassava flour?
If we wanted to make this truly AIP friendly, could we use beef gelatin instead of eggs?