These Almond Flour Chocolate Cupcakes are perfectly moist, rich and fluffy with a decadent homemade chocolate peanut butter frosting swirled on top! These gluten-free chocolate cupcakes are so soft and tender, you would never say they were made with almond flour. There’s no grainy texture here!
Since my vanilla almond flour cupcakes have become popular with readers, I thought I would finally test and share a chocolate version. These chocolate cupcakes are actually based on my almond flour chocolate cake recipe, with a few tweaks and additions to the recipe.
New to baking with almond flour? I have a entire collection of almond flour recipes you can check out!
Table of contents
- What makes these flourless chocolate cupcakes so good?
- Ingredients and substitutions
- How to make chocolate cupcakes with almond flour
- How to make chocolate peanut butter frosting
- Measuring ingredients
- Why did my cupcakes sink in the middle?
- Storage and freezing tips
- Key recipe tips
- Recipe FAQs
- More almond flour recipes
What makes these flourless chocolate cupcakes so good?
It can be really tricky to hit that perfect texture with almond flour. Cakes and cupcakes can sometimes turn out dense and even have a grainy texture. Don’t get me wrong. Sometimes I like a slightly dense texture in my cakes but cupcakes should always be light and fluffy (and never grainy)!
These chocolate cupcakes are super rich yet light, tender and soft. This is because we take a little time to beat together the sugar and eggs with a mixer to get them just a little foamy. This helps create a light and airy texture.
These cupcakes also have the perfect rise. Not too domed but not to flat either. They also stay moist for days (thanks to the almond flour), so they’re great for making ahead. You can also store them in the fridge or freezer to enjoy later.
Ingredients and substitutions
Below is a brief overview of the ingredients and recommended substitutions. The recipe card at the end of this post includes the exact quantities used.
Almond flour – This is the main ingredient and I recommend going with fine blanched almond flour for the best texture. If you use almond meal, the cupcakes will have a coarser texture.
Cocoa – Dutch-processed cocoa adds a rich, intense chocolate flavor to both the cupcakes and the frosting. While you can substitute with natural cocoa in the frosting, I don’t recommend substituting it in the cupcakes as it doesn’t result in the best flavor or texture.
Espresso powder – This is completely optional but I like to add 1 teaspoon of instant espresso powder to enhance the chocolate flavor. (I promise this does not make the cupcakes taste like coffee at all)!
Sugar – I used dark brown sugar but you can use light, or even swap in coconut sugar.
Maple syrup – For additional sweetness and moisture, you’ll also need a little maple syrup. (I haven’t tested this recipe with any other type of liquid sweetener).
Oil – While almond flour has a high fat content, sometimes I still like to add some oil to help create a moist crumb. I used olive oil, but you can also use extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil, canola oil or vegetable oil.
Eggs – You’ll need 4 large eggs, and it’s essential that you bring them to room temperature before beating them together with the sugar. Cold eggs won’t blend as smoothly with the other ingredients.
Baking soda – Helps with leavening.
Vanilla – Use real vanilla extract if you can. You’ll need it for the cupcake batter and frosting.
Salt – Just a little for added flavor. I used fine sea salt, but you can also use table salt or kosher salt.
Butter – There’s no butter in the cake, but you’ll need 2 sticks for the frosting. Make sure it’s unsalted and that you bring it to room temperature. You can also substitute with plant-based butter to make these cupcakes dairy-free.
Peanut butter – You’ll need smooth, shelf stable peanut butter for the chocolate peanut butter buttercream frosting. Avoid natural peanut butter as it will make the frosting runny and grainy.
Powdered sugar – Required to sweeten the buttercream frosting and help firm it up.
Milk – Just a little helps make the buttercream frosting smooth and creamy. Feel free to substitute with cream or plant-based milk (for dairy-free option).
How to make chocolate cupcakes with almond flour
Below is a brief overview of the steps to make this recipe along with photos. For further details, please see the recipe card at the end of this post.
How to make chocolate peanut butter frosting
Add the butter and peanut butter to a large mixing bowl. Using an electric mixer (hand beaters or the paddle on a stand mixer), beat together on medium-high speed until smooth.
Add the powdered sugar, cocoa, milk, vanilla and salt, and beat together on low until the sugar and cocoa are mixed in. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat together until the frosting is smooth and creamy.
Measuring ingredients
For convenience, US cup measurements are included in the recipe card for this recipe. To ensure greater accuracy, however, weight and volume measurements are also provided. So, if you see grams (g), you’ll want to use a kitchen scale to weigh your ingredients, and if you see milliliters (ml), you’ll want to use a liquid measuring cup. Smaller quantities of ingredients are provided in teaspoons and tablespoons.
Why did my cupcakes sink in the middle?
Sunken almond flour cupcakes can happen for a few different reasons:
- Batter was over mixed. This is usually the number one culprit. Over mixing the batter at any stage of the process may incorporate too much air into the batter and cause the cupcakes to sink once baked. It also creates a denser cupcake. (This happened to me during recipe testing).
- Oven was too hot. This may cause the cupcakes to rise too quickly and then deflate in the middle.
- Cupcake liners were overfilled. If the cupcakes don’t have room to rise as they bake, they may deflate when you take them out of the oven.
Storage and freezing tips
The unfrosted cupcakes can stay at room temperature for 5-7 days. The almond flour keeps them moist.
Since the frosting doesn’t have a high sugar content compared to the butter, I keep the frosted cupcakes stored in the fridge.
To freeze the cupcakes, I recommend leaving them unfrosted. Just place the cupcakes in a shallow, freezer safe container. I don’t recommend layering them as they may stick together. You can store them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Let them thaw at room temperature before frosting them.
Key recipe tips
- Measuring ingredients. If you have a kitchen scale, I recommend weighing your ingredients. If you’re using cup measurements, be sure to use the spoon and level method for the flour, cocoa and powdered sugar.
- Room temperature ingredients. As you’ll want the batter and frosting to mix together smoothly, be sure to bring your refrigerated ingredients to room temperature before you get started.
- Sift ingredients. If your powdered sugar and/or cocoa are lumpy, it’s best that you sift them before adding them to the other ingredients. This will help create a smooth batter and/or frosting.
- Don’t over mix. While beating the eggs and sugar until frothy helps to aerate the eggs and create fluffy cupcakes, over beating them will create too much aeration and air bubbles in the batter. Over mixing the batter can also result in dense and/or sunken cupcakes.
- Best cupcake liners. I always use parchment paper liners as they work best for releasing cupcakes. Other liners tend to stick to the bottom and sides of cupcakes.
- Use a different frosting. This chocolate avocado frosting or peanut butter cream cheese frosting would work well for this cupcake recipe.
Recipe FAQs
Almond flour is made with almonds that have had the skins removed (blanched almonds), so it has a finer texture. Almond meal is made with almonds that have the skins left on so it has a coarser texture. I don’t recommend using almond meal as it will affect the texture of the cupcakes.
As long as you are using blanched almonds and you can grind them into a fine texture, it should work fine.
To make these cupcakes vegan, you would need to replace the 4 eggs with an egg substitute, which I have not tested. If you give it a try, please let me know how it goes.
These cupcakes were only tested with almond flour. If you’re looking for a chocolate cupcake recipe made with wheat flour, these chocolate zucchini cupcakes are a great option!
Dutch-processed cocoa adds a rich and intense chocolate flavor to both the cupcakes and frosting. While you can substitute with natural cocoa in the frosting, I don’t recommend substituting it in the cake. Natural cocoa is naturally acidic, and while this usually works with baking soda to leaven baked goods, it didn’t work that well when I tested it in these cupcakes. For that reason, I would stick with Dutch-processed.
More almond flour recipes
- Almond Flour Banana Cake
- Almond Flour Zucchini Muffins
- Almond Flour Orange Cake
- Lemon Almond Flour Cake
If you make this recipe, I’d love to hear what you think in the comments below!
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Print
Almond Flour Chocolate Cupcakes
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 24 minutes
- Total Time: 44 minutes
- Yield: 12 cupcakes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American, Canadian
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
These Almond Flour Chocolate Cupcakes are perfectly moist, rich and fluffy with a decadent homemade chocolate peanut butter frosting swirled on top!
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
- 2 cups (208g) fine blanched almond flour
- 1/2 cup (50g) Dutch-processed cocoa, sifted if lumpy
- 1 teaspoon instant espresso powder (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt (or kosher or table salt)
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
- 1/2 cup (90g) brown sugar, loosely packed
- 1/4 cup (60ml) olive oil
- 1/4 cup (60ml) maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For the frosting:
- 1 cup (227g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 6 tablespoons shelf stable smooth peanut butter
- 1 cup (120g) powdered sugar, sifted if lumpy
- 1/2 cup (50g) Dutch-processed cocoa, sifted if lumpy
- 3–4 teaspoons milk (more if needed)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325F. Line a 12-cavity cupcake pan with parchment cupcake liners.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, cocoa, espresso powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- In a medium-sized bowl, use an electric mixer set to medium-high speed to beat together the eggs and brown sugar for 20-30 seconds until the mixture is frothy with bubbles on top.
- Add the oil, maple syrup and vanilla and beat for another 15 seconds until just combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, and mix on low speed until just combined. Don’t over mix.
- Use an ice cream scoop to portion the mixture out into the cupcake liners, filling each 3/4 full.
- Gently tap the bottom of the pan off a hard surface to help remove any air bubbles.
- Bake for 22-24 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of a cupcake comes out with just a few crumbs on it.
- Let cool for 10 minutes before transferring the cupcakes to a wire rack to cool completely.
- To make the frosting, place the butter and peanut butter in a large mixing bowl. Using an electric mixer (hand beaters or the paddle on a stand mixer), beat together on medium-high speed until smooth.
- Add the powdered sugar, cocoa, milk, vanilla and salt, and beat together on low until the sugar and cocoa are mixed in. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat together until the frosting is smooth and creamy.
- Top the cupcakes with frosting and enjoy!
Notes
- If you have a kitchen scale, I recommend weighing your ingredients. If you’re using cup measurements, be sure to use the spoon and level method for the flour, cocoa and powdered sugar.
- As you’ll want the batter and frosting to mix together smoothly, be sure to bring your refrigerated ingredients to room temperature before you get started.
- If your powdered sugar and/or cocoa are lumpy, it’s best that you sift them before adding them to the other ingredients. This will help create a smooth batter and frosting.
- While beating the eggs and sugar until frothy helps to aerate the eggs and create fluffy cupcakes, over beating them will create too much aeration and air bubbles in the batter. This will cause small air pockets or holes to form throughout the cupcakes. Over mixing the batter can also result in dense and/or sunken cupcakes.
- I always use parchment paper liners as they work best for releasing cupcakes. Other liners tend to stick to cupcakes.
- Be sure to check out the other sections above the recipe card for more detailed advice and suggestions for making this recipe.
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