Paleo Pumpkin Cupcakes
Ever since the autumnal crispness arrived in the air, I’ve been doing much more baking. For me, the ideal winter evening includes a cup of tea (or bone broth!), a book, a flickering candle (beeswax, of course) and something fragrant in the oven.
This simple paleo pumpkin cupcake recipe uses just a handful of ingredients that you combine in a blender or food processor. The quick prep means you can infuse your home with yummy smells in no time at all!
About the ingredients
Plantain – Have you baked with plantains before? Check out my Plantain board on Pinterest to explore the many grain free recipes made with plantains. You can use a green or yellow plantain for this recipe, avoid yellow-browned or brown plantains. The riper the plantain, the less starch and more sugar in it. The starch is important to provide structure for the cupcakes.
Eggs – Grain free baking without eggs presents a challenge. I haven’t made this recipe with an egg substitute. I have a hunch you could use two gelatin egg substitutes, but the result will be decidedly more dense.
Coconut flour – Coconut flour is my favorite grain free flour, because it lacks the anti-nutrients found in other nut/seed flours. A little goes a long way.
Palm shortening – Palm shortening, available here, is non-hydrogenated whipped palm oil. Like coconut oil, palm oil contains healthful short-chain saturated fatty acids. If you can do butter, I would suggest substituting butter for the shortening. The shortening makes a creamy frosting, but it doesn’t taste quite like butter.
- 1 medium yellow (but not browned) plantain, 4 oz after being peeled
- 2 eggs, at room temperature
- 3 Tbs. coconut oil, melted
- ¼ cup pumpkin puree
- 2 Tbs. coconut flour, recommended brand available here
- 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (substitute ¾ tsp. cinnamon, ¼ tsp. ground cloves and ⅛ tsp. ground nutmeg)
- 3 Tbs. maple syrup
- ½ tsp. vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp. baking soda
- ½ tsp. apple cider vinegar
- ½ cup non-hydrogenated palm shortening, available here
- ½ tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 Tbs. maple syrup
- 1 tsp. arrowroot flour
- 1 Tbs. coconut butter, available here, liquified (but not warm)
- For the cupcakes Have all ingredients at room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350 and line 6 muffin wells with paper liners. If you have some olive oil or coconut oil baking spray on hand, spray the liners.
- Put all the cupcake ingredients except the baking soda and vinegar in a food processor and blend until smooth. I used the food processor attachment for my Ninja blender, which is awesome.
- Add the baking soda and vinegar, which are the leavening agents. Blend briefly, then immediately pour the batter into the prepared muffin cups.
- Bake for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.
- To make the frosting, use a handheld blender to combine all ingredients. Frost the cupcakes and serve immediately.
- This frosting can melt in a very hot room, so if you serve the cupcakes later, I recommend keeping the frosted cupcakes in a sealed container in the fridge. Let sit for 15 minutes at room temperature before serving.
I didn’t have any coconut oil or coconut butter on hand, so I substituted butter for coconut oil and palm shortening and used a tablespoon of leaf lard instead of the coconut butter. Everything came out fine. Great recipe.
I hate to be that person but would this work as a cake? ???????? haha