Perfectly Moist Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes (one bowl)

Perfectly Moist Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes (one bowl)

These Homemade Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes are made in a classic buttery bakery style. They are fluffy, moist and rich with vanilla. No xanthan gum required.

Prep Time40

Cook Time25

Total Time1

Course: Cake

Cuisine: American

Servings: cupcakes

Calories: 503kcal

Author: Georgina Hartley

Ingredients

100 g unsalted butter
200 g caster sugar
120 g defatted almond flour
60 g oat flour
60 g tapioca flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
120 ml whole milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs medium

Vanilla Buttercream

250 g unsalted butter
350 g icing sugar
2 tablespoons whole milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon salt

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan assisted oven/gas mark 4/350°F and fill a 12 hole muffin tin with cupcake liners.
In a large mixing bowl, using an electric hand mixer (or stand mixer) beat together the sugar, butter, almond flour, oat flour, tapioca flour, baking powder and salt until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
Add the milk, eggs and vanilla extract, beating on a low speed until the mixture is smooth.
Divide the cake mixture between the 12 cupcake liners and bake for 25 minutes or until an inserted cocktail stick comes out clean.
Remove the cupcakes immediately from the muffin tin and cool on a wire cooling rack completely before frosting.

Vanilla Buttercream

In a mixing bowl beat together the butter and icing sugar (powdered sugar) with an electric mixer on low speed until well combined, light and pale in colour. It can take 3-4 minutes. You can also use a stand mixer.
Add the milk, vanilla extract and salt and mix again for a further minute just so the flavours are nicely incorporated.
Colour your buttercream using a high quality food colouring if you like and then frost your vanilla cupcakes using a palette knife or a piping bag fitted with a tip. Then decorate with berries or gluten-free sprinkles.

Notes

The eggs used in this recipe are medium size, 60g with shell and 50g without shell. If you can't get hold of medium eggs I suggest you weigh the amount.

Flour substitutions

Defatted Almond flour. This is different to regular almond flour and can be trickier to get hold of. If you can't find it or you are allergic to nuts then I suggest swapping the total amount of flour (almond flour, oat flour and tapioca flour) for my Homemade Gluten-Free Flour Blend which is nut free.
Oat flour. You can substitute for sorghum flour.
Tapioca starch. You can substitute for arrowroot flour.

Expert tips

This recipe uses cupcake liners which are H 1.5" (3.8cm) x W 2" (5.1cm) .
Don’t overfill your cupcake cases. It’s hard to do with this recipe as it produces exactly the right amount of cake mixture for 12 cupcakes. They need to be ⅔ full.
Use a cookie dough/ice cream trigger scoop to fill your cupcake liners.
As soon as you remove the cupcakes from the oven then take them out of the muffin tin and rest on a cooling rack.

How to store

These gluten-free vanilla cupcakes are best eaten within 48 hours of baking. They are very moist so store at a cool room temperature in an airtight container (preferably not plastic as the cakes might start to pull away from the cases).

How to freeze

You can freeze the cake frosted or unfrosted. They are easier to store without the buttercream though as they take up less space. Flash freeze the cupcakes in a single layer in the freezer on a baking tray for at least 8 hours then transfer to a ziplock bag or airtight container to freeze long term. They can be frozen for up to 3 months.

US customary measurements

These US measurements for the ingredients provided are based on a conversion calculator. This recipe was tested with metric measurements and I recommend using a digital scale to weigh ingredients for the most accurate results. READ MORE >>> Why you should always weigh vs measuring with cups

Nutrition information

Please note that the nutrition information provided below is an estimate based on an online nutrition calculator. It will vary based on the specific ingredients you use. Please seek a professional nutritionist’s advice for further clarification.

The nutrition serving is for 1 cupcake

Nutrition