I’ve been on a quest this week for gluten-free, dairy-free healthy Twinkies and after several attempts (make that 7) I seem to have come up with a good approximation of this infamous Hostess treat.
Whenever the subject of Twinkies comes up in our house a certain Twinkie vandalism story is told (of which I was not a part!). My husband likes to talk about the time (in his college days) when he and a buddy were coming home from a night out. His friend had the munchies and procured a Twinkie. Apparently his friend was feeling artistic/vandalistic/Keith Harringesque, and using his Twinkie wrote the initials “JS + NA” inside a heart on the outside wall of a building on campus.
Fast forward a decade and a half to their 15th college reunion. The initials written in Twinkie were still there 15 years later.
Gluten-Free Twinkies
Ingredients
- 3 large eggs, separated
- ¼ cup grapeseed oil or palm shortening
- ¼ cup agave nectar or honey
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 6 tablespoons coconut flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whip egg whites to stiff peaks, then set aside
- In a medium bowl, whip egg yolks until pale yellow, then whip in grapeseed oil and agave
- Whip vanilla and lemon juice into egg yolk mixture
- In a medium bowl combine coconut flour, baking soda and salt
- Blend flour mixture into egg yolk mixture, then whip ingredients together until smooth
- Gently fold egg whites into yolk-flour mixture
- Spoon batter into Twinkie molds until they are half full (you will get 8 Twinkies)
- Bake at 350°F for 11-12 minutes
- Remove from oven and allow Twinkies to cool
Dairy-Free Twinkie Filling
Ingredients
- 2 egg whites
- ¼ cup agave nectar or honey
Instructions
- Whip egg whites to stiff peaks
- Blend in agave and re-whip until stiff peaks form again
- Place filling in Twinkie filling injector
- Place cooled Twinkie flat side up and inject filling into Twinkie in 3 spots on its flat (bottom) side
- Serve
Yes, this filling recipe includes raw egg whites and yes, my family and I eat raw egg on a fairly regular basis. If that’s not your thing, then you could fill the Twinkies with agave sweetened whip cream, which I think would taste delicious.
Be sure to fill your Twinkies just before eating. Why? The sponginess of the Twinkie cakes quickly absorbs the filling. When I left mine over night, all of the filling was absorbed into the cake.
Disclaimer: it is challenging to get a ton of filling into the Twinkie. If you are striving to obtain the amount of filling in the photo above, please don’t. That photo is food-styled (by me) with extra Twinkie cream. In any event, happy Twinkie time!
…And now for the winner of last weeks Friday Freebie (an Elana’s Pantry tote bag made of 100% recycled cotton)…merav! Congratulations!
Debbie says
If my kids see this post, I’m in trouble!
Kimberly says
OMG! Who would have EVER dreamed that you could make gluten free, grain free twinkies. You are amazing!:)
Rosy says
Mmmm coconut twinkies! I have a Sunday afternoon adventure for my kitchen! I might have to add some shredded coconut goodness to the filling!
Katie says
Elana, these look delicious!! How funny that I actually asked for and received a twinkie pan for my birthday a few weeks ago. You must have read my mind. :) I can’t wait to try these. I’m especially excited they are made with coconut flour, as I’m mildly allergic to almonds. Thank you for all of your hard work on these, and thank you for sharing all of your delicious looking recipes. :)
Jodie says
Thank you again for this great site. I discovered it about 2 weeks ago now and already have made your Pumkin muffins (fantastic, I added currents, goji berries and carrot to some and turned out great). I have also made the banana choc. cake, wow is all I can say. We put a little smear of strawberry preserves and whipped cream on top to go along with your banana split idea and it was amazing 2 people wrote down the recipe and asked for your site. Then we also made the orange cake (we have had lots of spring celebrations lately). The cake is great, I think I may have overbaked it a tiny bit but it is still lovely. We made a cream cheese frosting, but I think a little drizzle of lemon and sugar would have been better.
My next task is your bread 2.0. And I am trying to get my hands on the coconut flour too.
Thanks again.
Meghan (Making Love In The Kitchen says
Elana this is brilliant! You have such an amazing talent and devising these recipes. How you can top this creation I have no idea, but look forward to seeing what comes next!
Deb Schiff says
I wonder if those powdered egg whites (just whites, I think) would work instead of the raw egg for folks who are adverse to using it.
Shenan says
I think there is something Hostess in the stars this week. I’m in Denmark and just this Tuesday a classmate in my dance class told me that she loves the U.S. and has always had the simple wish of eating a Twinkie. I was a bit horrified at that representation of American cuisine, but I understood. So my sister-in-law is visiting next week and importing a package of the golden cakes for this 30-something Dane to finally experience. Thank you Elana for giving me this option if I want to take a trip down memory lane with my classmate. ;-)
Vickie says
I “just happened” to stumble across your website when I was looking for astraya stevia. Your recipes are perfect for my husband who has gluten, dairy, and sugar sensitivities, and for me with my hypoglycemia. Thank you SO much for sharing your recipes with us so that we can enjoy foods we’ve missed for a long time. You are a blessing!
merav says
ooh those look yummy! and oh gosh! i never win anything! thanks so much! what should i do now?