Passover may be finished for the year, but who isn’t looking for a grain-free, gluten-free, flourless dessert these days? This one isn’t just missing all those ingredients, it also comes together in a snap – perfect to satisfy that chocolate craving.
Most people will agree that baking is both an art and a science (just like my day job!). Maybe not equal parts, but you can’t get nearly as far without one or the other.
I may chalk this up to inexperience, but I’m definitely struggling with the science of this one. How do you end up with moist, chewy cupcakes with no flour, and no grains of any kind? I’m sure someone smart can (and maybe will) explain this, but until then I will continue marveling.
As an aside, I also tested these with walnuts and a maple buttercream frosting. De. Lish. The walnuts have a bit more oil in them, so the batter is much thinner — though otherwise, similar outcome! The maple makes them a little heavier, and more fall-y. Maybe we’ll bring that one back out in a few months…
Would love to hear your experiences with other kinds of nuts too! Hazelnut with nutella frosting maybe? Just a thought…
Chocolate Almond Coconut Cupcakes Cupcakes
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- 1 cup almonds
- 1 ½ cups chocolate chips
- 1 tbsp vanilla
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 3 eggs
- Pinch of sea salt
Coconut Whipped Cream
- 1 Can coconut cream*
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- Coconut flakes or sprinkles for the top, if desired
Instructions
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Preheat your oven to 350, and line muffin tin with 9 cupcake liners, spraying each liner quickly with non-stick cooking spray. Combine almonds and chocolate chips in the food processor. Process until the mixture is about the texture of coarse sand (when I used walnuts for this recipe, the mixture balled up and pretty much won’t get finer once the nuts are slightly larger than coarse sand).
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Add the eggs, maple syrup, and vanilla, and pulse 10-15 times until well mixed. (again, with the walnuts, the mixture was quite liquid-y, but turned out just as well in the end). Add sea salt and pulse a few more times.
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Separate the mixture evenly into the cupcake liners – I use an ice cream scoop, which is easier than pouring/spooning. I ended up filling these ½-3/4 full… if you want slightly larger cupcakes, feel free to fill fewer liners.
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Bake 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out mostly clean. I err on the side of slightly underdone with these, to encourage a bit more fudgeyness (but with my oven, that's still about 22 mins). Put muffin tin on wire cooling rack, and let cool fully.
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While cupcakes are cooling, mix up the coconut whipped cream: open the can, and spoon out the cream into your stand mixer (with whisk attachment), or bowl ready for hand mixer. Be careful just to include the cream part -- no liquid necessary (if you get some in there, just drain it off).
Start to whip the cream on high until a little fluffy (it won’t be super fluffy). Turn the mixer down to low, and add the powdered sugar. Mix again on high until combined, and fluffier, about 3 minutes but will depend on the temperature of the cream.
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Once cupcakes are cool, top each with a dollop of the whipped coconut cream. Sprinkle with coconut shavings or add sprinkles if desired. Store in the fridge to prevent the cream from melting if it's a warm day, or you're not going to be serving that day (you can pop in the microwave for 5-10 seconds to take the cool edge off, if desired).
Recipe Notes
* Note: I’ve found canned coconut cream at Trader Joes, but have heard it’s not always easy to find. I have seen recipes that make coconut whipped cream with full-fat coconut milk – just make sure to refrigerate your can overnight or for a day before opening, in order to create separation between the liquid and the cream. This is good practice even if you have the cream -- I opened a can on a warm day and it was all liquid!