Avoid common almond flour baking issues with this easy and well-tested recipe! These almond flour cupcakes use a simple trick to achieve light, fluffy results with perfectly rich chocolate flavor. What’s the secret for achieving the best texture? Whipping the egg whites separately aerates the crumb to offset grain-free flour’s heavier consistency. Top this naturally gluten-free dessert with a mound of almond frosting and you’ll be in cupcake heaven!
Easy Almond Flour cupcakes
When I began the recipe testing process for gluten-free cupcakes made with almond flour, I turned to another community-favorite recipe, almond flour carrot cake. This recipe earns rave reviews due to a fluffy texture, which is usually not the norm with almond flour recipes.
When creating the almond flour cupcakes recipe, that was an easy place to start, scaling the ingredients to make 12 chocolate cupcakes. However, I found simply adjusting the ingredient amounts didn’t fully achieve the results I was looking for.
The cupcakes would bake tall, but slightly spill over the muffin tin edges. Then they would fall with cooling and were hard to remove. To fix this problem I experimented with varying baking temperatures, similar to how muffins are baked.
Starting off at a higher temperature assists with the rise and loft. The cupcakes remain in the oven, while the temperature is reduced. This slightly extends the baking time, giving more time for moisture to evaporate and stabilizes the structure so they don’t fall.
Another simple trick for making fluffy almond flour cupcakes involves beating the egg whites with sugar separately. If it works so well for this popular almond flour apple cake, I knew it would do the trick with cupcakes as well!
Almond flour contains a lot of natural moisture from the oils, which is why recipes may have dense, heavy results. When making chocolate almond flour cupcakes, the cocoa powder helps absorb some of the moisture, while the stiffly beaten egg whites helps aerates the crumb.
Read on to discover which almond flour should be used to make gluten-free desserts, ingredient modifications for dairy-free, gluten-free, and grain-free cupcakes, along with how to make best buttercream frosting flavored with a hint of almond extract!
Ingredient Notes
Making easy almond flour cupcakes requires 7 simple ingredients. The only speciality item needed is almond flour, which you can make at home, buy in bulk and freeze, or pick up a bag at your local supermarket in the health food section.
- Almond Flour – I recommend using blanched almond flour, not almond meal for light, fluffy results. When measuring almond flour, I use a similar technique as when baking with gluten-free flour, use a measuring cup to slightly fluff and mix the flour in the bag, scoop, and level. If you prefer to bake by weight, you will need 184 grams.
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder – Dutch processed cocoa powder won out over natural unsweetened cocoa powder because it had a darker, richer chocolate flavor. However, natural baking cocoa may be substituted.
- Sugar – I make almond flour cupcakes with sugar, which I typically bake with over sugar-free alternatives. I have not tried this recipe with a low carb sweetener to make keto cupcakes. However, I believe coconut sugar would also work.
- Large eggs – To make a fluffy cake, the whites and yolks are separated and beaten separately. I find eggs separate better when cold, then allow the whites and yolks to sit at room temp before using.
- Baking powder – The higher amount of baking powder helps mimic a traditional cupcake texture, rather than a flourless cake.
- Butter – I prefer the flavor of butter, but for a dairy-free cupcake substitute an equal amount of melted coconut oil.
how to make Almond Flour cupcakes
(Below shows step-by-step photos and modified instructions. For the complete recipe, along with ingredient amounts, scroll down to the recipe card.)
- Prepare a 12-cup muffin pan with paper cupcake liners and preheat the oven to 400°F. Note, you will not bake at 400°F for the entire time, so please note the baking directions.
- Beat the egg whites until foamy. Gradually add ½ cup sugar and continue beaten until stiff, glossy peaks form. Set aside.
- In a separate large mixing bowl beat the egg yolks with the remaining ½ cup sugar until thick, pale, and doubled in volume. Beat in the cooled butter, vanilla, and almond extract.
- Add the almond flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Beat until well mixed. The batter will be very thick, similar to cookie dough.
- Add the beaten egg whites to the almond flour mixture. Combine the two mixtures well with no streaks remaining. Be sure to scrape down the bowl at least once, especially all the way down to the bottom, to incorporate the thicker chocolate mixture.
- Divide evenly between the 12 cupcake tins. The batter will reach about 2/3 the way up tins. I used a large cookie scoop to do this quickly and evenly.
- Bake for 5 minutes at 400℉. Leave the cupcakes in the oven and turn down the temperature to 325℉. Bake for 15-17 minutes longer, or until a toothpick inserted in the comes out clean.TIP: I recommend leaving the cupcakes in the oven without opening the door to rotate or check for doneness as little as possible. They will fall. The cupcake tops will still look “wet” until they are done baking.
- Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring out to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
Almond Buttercream frosting
To make the frosting extremely light and fluffy, use a stand mixer with paddle attachment. Since this buttercream recipe uses heavy cream, the long mixing time whips the cream, making the fluffiest desired consistency.
If you would rather not buy another ingredient, milk, canned coconut milk or unsweetened almond milk may be substituted, but the frosting will have a more traditional buttercream texture.
Using almond extract, instead of vanilla extract, gives an amazing slightly nutty flavor. I highly recommend using it! You can also replace half vanilla extract with almond in the cupcake recipe as well.
If you prefer tall, mounded frosted cupcakes, as pictured, double the frosting recipe and use a large open pastry tip to pipe on. The cupcake frosting ingredient amounts below will be enough to spread on 12 cupcakes, but will need to be doubled if you plan piping on.
More frosting options
These gluten-free cupcakes are so good, a simple dusting of powdered sugar would also be fine. Alternatively serve with a dollop of whipped cream and fresh fruit, like blueberries, raspberries or strawberries.
Cream cheese frosting would also be a tasty option for chocolate cupcakes. If would like a double chocolate treat, use this fluffy chocolate buttercream recipe. The full recipe would be enough to pipe on 12 cupcakes, or halve the recipe to spread on.
Can I substitute another flour for almond flour?
When making almond flour recipes avoid substituting a different starch, such as wheat flour, gluten-free all purpose flour, or alternative flours. Likewise, you cannot take a traditional recipe and replace the flour with almond flour.
Almond flour is heavier and contains a lot more moisture. Good recipes accommodate for that by cutting back on the liquid, fat, and increasing the amount of dry ingredients. Recipes using almond flour also typically have a longer baking time, so it’s best to stick with well-tested almond flour recipes.
Storing, serving and freezing
For best results, store these almond flour chocolate cupcakes at room temperature in an airtight container up to 3 days. Although some frostings have to refrigerated, I highly recommend setting the cupcakes out several hours before serving to reach room temperature.
Freezing Unfrosted Cupcakes: Wrap each completely cooled cupcake securely in plastic wrap. Transfer wrapped cupcakes to a gallon freezer bag and freeze up to 3 months.
When ready to use, remove from freezer bag and thaw wrapped cupcake at room temperature for 1 hour before frosting and serving.
Freezing Frosted Cupcakes: Place frosted cupcakes on a baking sheet and freeze until the frosting solidifies. Wrap each cupcake securely with plastic wrap and transfer to a gallon freezer bag to freeze up to 3 months.
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Fluffy Chocolate Almond Flour Cupcakes (Gluten-Free)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 large eggs separated and room temperature (see recipe notes)
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar divided
- ¼ cup (57 g) melted and cooled unsalted butter or melted coconut oil
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ teaspoon almond extract or 1 ½ tsp total vanilla extract
- 2 cups (184 g) blanched almond flour
- ⅓ cup (34 g) dutch-processed (preferred) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Almond Buttercream Frosting
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 ½ cups (300 g) powdered sugar
- ¼ cup (60 g) heavy cream preferred, but may substitute milk or canned coconut milk
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. (NOTE: You will not bake at 400℉ the entire time, so be sure to note the baking directions.) Prepare a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners. Set aside.
- In a bowl use whisk attachment to beat the egg whites until foamy. Gradually add ½ cup sugar and continue beaten until stiff, glossy peaks form. Set aside.3 large eggs, 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- In a separate large mixing bowl beat the egg yolks with the remaining ½ cup sugar until thick, pale, and doubled in volume, about 2 minutes. Beat in the cooled butter, vanilla, and almond extract.¼ cup (57 g) melted and cooled unsalted butter, ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract, ¾ teaspoon almond extract
- Add the almond flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Beat until well mixed. The batter will be very thick, similar to cookie dough.2 cups (184 g) blanched almond flour, ⅓ cup (34 g) dutch-processed (preferred) unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon salt
- Add the beaten egg whites to the almond flour mixture. Use paddle attachment or handheld mixer to combine the two mixtures well with no streaks remaining. Be sure to scrape down the bowl at least once, especially all the way down to the bottom, to incorporate the thicker chocolate mixture.
- Divide evenly between the 12 cupcake tins. The batter will reach about 2/3 the way up tins. I used a large cookie scoop to do this quickly and evenly. Be sure to not overfill.
- Bake for 5 minutes at 400℉. Leave the cupcakes in the oven and turn down the temperature to 325℉. Bake for 15-17 minutes longer, or until a toothpick inserted in the comes out clean. TIP: I recommend leaving the cupcakes in the oven without opening the door to rotate or check for doneness as little as possible. They will fall. The cupcake tops will still look "wet" until they are done baking.
- Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring out to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
Almond Buttercream Frosting
- In a large bowl or stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, on low speed mix together the softened butter, powdered sugar, heavy cream, extract and salt until well combined.½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, 2 ½ cups (300 g) powdered sugar, ¼ cup (60 g) heavy cream, ½ teaspoon almond extract, ⅛ teaspoon salt
- Once it has been combined, increase the speed to medium-high and beat for 5 minutes, scraping down the bowl occasionally. If you prefer a slightly stiffer frosting, add up to ½ cup additional powdered sugar and beat again until combined. Spread on cooled cupcakes.
Notes
Separating eggs
Eggs separate easier when they are cold. Then all the yolks and whites to come to room temp.Storing and Freezing
For best results, store these almond flour chocolate cupcakes at room temperature in an airtight container up to 3 days. Although some frostings have to refrigerated, I highly recommend setting the cupcakes out several hours before serving to reach room temperature. Freezing Unfrosted Cupcakes: Wrap each completely cooled cupcake securely in plastic wrap. Transfer wrapped cupcakes to a gallon freezer bag and freeze up to 3 months. When ready to use, remove from freezer bag and thaw wrapped cupcake at room temperature for 1 hour before frosting and serving. Freezing Frosted Cupcakes: Place frosted cupcakes on a baking sheet and freeze until the frosting solidifies. Wrap each cupcake securely with plastic wrap and transfer to a gallon freezer bag to freeze up to 3 months.Nutrition
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