Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes ~ Grain-free, vegan, oil-free.

Okay, lovlies. Here is the cupcake recipe I promised you… chocolate… with peppermint… and chocolate frosting. Chocolate and peppermint are just a downright heavenly combination for me. But what’s really cool about these cupcakes is that they can be a plain chocolate cupcake, too! Just omit the peppermint extract and voilà! A chocolate cupcake for any occasion. And not only are they gluten-free, they’re grain-free! And oil-free, of course. I’m stoked.

The inspiration for these cupcakes was, believe it or not, a pancake recipe! I recently shared a pumpkin pancake recipe with you and the texture of it was so fine, it reminded me of actual cake, so with a few tweaks here and there, we now have a winner of a whole food cupcake. They’re moist with a deep chocolate flavor and have a beautiful crumb!

DISCLAIMER: Keep in mind, without the use of white flour, white sugar, eggs and butter/oil, these cakies are not as light and fluffy as a Standard American Diet cupcake! But they sure are yummy and you can enjoy them even more, knowing they’re made of whole food goodness instead of all those SAD ingredients. I hope you’ll try these and enjoy them as much as we have in our house!

Ingredients:

~ dry

• 1½ cups buckwheat flour (sorry, no substitutions for this recipe!)
• ½ cup non-alkalized cocoa powder
• 1 cup coconut sugar or other minimally processed granulated sweetener*
• 1 tsp baking soda
• pinch sea salt

~ wet

• 1 cup applesauce
• 1½ cups unsweetened plant-based milk of your choice
• ¼ cup pure maple syrup
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp peppermint extract

~ topping

• double my Ultimate Vegan Chocolate Frosting to frost these bad boys, or use whatever frosting rings your jingle bells!
• crushed candy canes (optional of course—not whole food)

*NOTE: You could also use 1 heaping cup of dates to replace the coconut sugar but the consistency will be a little less fluffy, and more moist. I’ve made them that way and they were very good, just more dense.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Lightly oil-spray your muffin tins or use cupcake papers.
3. Whisk all dry ingredients together.
4. Whisk all wet ingredients together.
5. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk well to combine, making sure there are no lumps.
6. Portion the batter into the cupcake liners, using ¼ cup for each. The cups should be about 2/3 full.
7. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
8. Let the cupcakes cool completely before frosting. 
9. If desired, add some crushed peppermint candies to the tops for a festive garnish.
10. Store in the fridge. The frosting will darken in color when exposed to the air.

Makes 18 (sorry, I haven’t yet whittled down the recipe to get an even dozen). Enjoy!

Healthy trails,