These grain-free Paleo Chocolate Cupcakes are absolutely perfect for birthday celebrations. Because so many of you have nut allergies, I decided this had to be a nut-free cupcake recipe! Be sure to check out my Nut-Free Recipes page if you are on a nut-free diet, or if your children go to a school with a nut-free food policy.
Made with coconut oil, these cupcakes are also a fabulous dairy-free dessert. While I’ve been on a strict grain-free diet since 2001, my recipes continue to evolve within the grain-free genre, as I learn more about various healthy foods. Coconut oil has been a favorite ingredient of mine for some time, but for the past year or so my focus has been on eating as much coconut oil as I can. Sometimes that means eating it straight out of the jar, other times I add it to everything I cook. Most days I do both.
A good deal of anecdotal evidence points to coconut oil as a fabulous brain food. Here’s a video that discusses the health benefits of coconut oil.
Did you ever notice that the rise of various brain disorders (ADD, Autism, Alzheimer’s, Parkinsons, etc.) happened to take place in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s when the fat-free diet was all the rage? I think many people’s brains may have been malnourished by the pervasive lack of fat in the Standard American Diet during this period.
My Paleo Chocolate Cupcake recipe is full of good fat! I hope your family enjoys these gluten-free, nut-free, dairy-free chocolate cupcakes as much as we do!
Paleo Chocolate Cupcakes
Ingredients
- ¼ cup coconut flour
- ¼ cup cacao powder
- ¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 4 large eggs
- ¼ cup coconut oil
- ⅓ cup honey
Instructions
- Pulse together dry ingredients in a food processor
- Pulse in wet ingredients
- Line a muffin pan with paper liners and scoop ¼ cup batter into each
- Bake at 350°F for 15-18 minutes
- Cool and serve
Frost these Paleo Chocolate Cupcakes with my amazing Paleo Chocolate Frosting. Here are some of my other easy paleo cupcake recipes!
Kristy of Kendallville says
Perfect timing for my husband’s birthday! Your recipes are a standard in our household, but I can’t wait to try this “almond-flour free” one out! I am eagerly awaiting your frosting recipe too!
Thanks Elana!!
Serene in Singapore says
Great timing! Dd was just commenting that she is craving something chocolately! Yums!
Monique C. M. says
I’ve been making a variation of these for a while now. :D
You might want to add an extra egg depending on the size of the eggs you have (pasture eggs from farmers aren’t always the same size as supermarket ones), and the brand of coconut flour (some are dryer than others).
I like mine less sweet so I swap quantities: 1/3 coconut oil, 1/4 maple syrup or honey. Also, melting unsweetened chocolate squares works too if you are out of cocoa powder, and i usually add a little more than 1/4 cup to make it more moist. Works for me. I hope this helps!
Thanks for all the recipes, Elana!
Maria says
I’m looking forward to trying these…. I’ve been looking for more ways to incorporate coconut oil into my kids’ diets. On another note, I just made the banana muffins from your first book (I know, I’m a little slow) and my whole family went nuts for them. I think it’s great that they’re made with no added sweeteners. I let my bananas get nice and brown so they were extra sweet and they turned out just perfect. My kids would’ve eaten the entire batch the first day if I had let them. Thank you for such great recipes!
Kowa Mattern says
yay for healthy fats! coconut oil is on my shopping list, as i keep hearing amazing things about it.
is it absolutely necessary to blend the ingredients in a processor? i don’t have one, unfortunately.
Tammy says
you are a goddess!!
Lynnette Foster-Horwith says
Elana,
Thank you thank you thank you for all you do! I can always trust that I’ll enjoy your recipes. You have been giving me the ability to feed myself now for 4 years. I honestly dont know what I would have done without you when I needed to change my diet those years ago. I’m so grateful to you for sharing your journey and recipes.
Lynnette
Kim says
Mine made 8. I measured it fairly accurately, but had a little trouble getting it in the paper cups. I just filled the rest of the empty places halfway with water to help the muffin pan heat evenly.
Christina says
You are so wonderful to keep sharing with us. God bless you in your efforts. We appreciate it. One question though: isn’t coconut a “nut” and therefore not nut free?
Maria says
I thought I read somewhere that it’s technically a seed, not a nut.
Kate@ eatrecyclerepeat says
Again, another beautiful, simple recipe. And a nut-free option too! Can’t wait for whatever your new cookbook holds. Love the photo too!