Wednesday, June 10, 2015

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Red Velvet Cupcakes


Onward we go! Bravely dipping our pinkie toe back into the mysterious jungle that is gluten-free baking! I've had very limited experience in this arena, with a roaring eight recipes under my belt! On this episode of Squirrels and Sweets, we take on Gluten-Free AND Dairy-Free Red Velvet Cupcakes!

Clearly... these parameters were not my devising. One of our friends recently has taken on a strict dietary plan in response to recent rosacea break outs. The power of diet will never cease to amaze me! By changing what we eat, we have a direct influence over our body. It sounds simple in theory but is difficult in practice.  


For her birthday, her boyfriend sent me the list foods that she "can" and "cannot's." How to apply this conundrum to her favorite cupcake, the majestic red velvet?

Ladies and gentlemen of the gluten-free community - you are some crafty bastards! I was amazed by the number of options that came up on the search for gluten-free and dairy-free red velvet cupcakes. The recipe of choice for the cake is from The Dusty Baker, a gluten-free guru, because it sounded very similar to previous batches that I have baked. Check on the cocoa, baking soda, and vinegar! Could this really work? I had to find out!

These cupcakes turned out fabulous. I cringed on the first bite expecting a grainy after-taste. The difference between a regular, fully-evil cupcake and this one is barely noticeable. These came out soft with perfect texture and no crumble.


The Dusty Baker provides a break down on how to make your own gluten-free cake flour. I went the lazy route and used Bob's Red Mill gluten free baking flour. Plus, for someone who doesn't bake gluten-free on the regular, it saved a few bucks from mixing an assortment of flours.

If I was going to be a true stickler to my friend's diet, I could have substituted the eggs for chia seed or flaxseed eggs.

The other area that I skimped on was using Tofutti sour cream only because it was not at the local grocery store. Looks like this is one of those "Whole Foods" ingredients. It's only tablespoon so if you find your back to the wall.... go ahead and cheat.  It's a trace amount.


As for the frosting, there are several options out there! I used the vanilla, gluten-free frosting from the Science Themed cupcakes. It's tasty, especially when served slightly chilled. Dusty Baker has her own plain frosting, Fluffy Vegan Frosting, that has smooth finish.  A common frosting for Red Velvet is cream cheese which you could try with Mama Sophia’s, "Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe" (Dairy Free). You could also try one of my all-time FAVORITE toppings, the Fluffy Seven Minute Frosting (Dairy Free), which tastes like marshmallow fluff without the stickiness!

The other bonus of making cupcakes was that I finally got to use this super cute ferris wheel that I bought on sale about two years ago. That last time that I made a batch of cupcakes was April 2014 for my friend's daughter's Princess birthday party! It's a little over the top but the darn thing was too fun to ignore.


The recipe for these awesome Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Red Velvet Cupcakes can be found on The Dusty Baker's site