Bulletproof Cupcakes

Bulletproof Cupcakes {special thanks to my husband for being my hand model}

Believe it or not, these cupcakes including the frosting and filling are completely all natural, grain-free, gluten-free, sugar-free and basically flourless (there's 1 TBSP of sweet rice flour in the whole recipe for over a dozen cupcakes). And they taste amazing! So, regardless of whether you follow a Paleo, Ketogenic or the Standard American Diet, you can enjoy these delicious treats guilt-free.

The recipe for this cupcake, plus over 120 more dishes that are equally amazing, may be found in "Bulletproof: The Cookbook" which releases on December 1, 2015 but thanks to the kind folks over at Bulletproof, I get to share it with you now and also let you know how you can enter a GIVEAWAY to win a signed Cookbook and a Bulletproof Coffee Starter Kit. Scroll to the bottom to see how to enter (it's easy, just leave a comment). I was inspired to make the recipe into "Hostess Cupcake" lookalikes, complete with a vanilla creme filling but these fudge-y, dark chocolate cakes are equally delicious just plain, the way the recipe is written in the cookbook. If you'd like to make just the cakes without the creme filling or ganache topping, simply follow the recipe for just the cupcakes below.

Bulletproof ("Hostess"Inspired) Cupcakes
makes 14-15 cupcakes

Oven 350

Cupcake Ingredients:
6 Tablespoons non-GMO erythritol
6 Tablespoons 100% American hardwood xylitol
12 ounces of 85% or darker chocolate
6 Tablespoons grass-fed unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
Tiny pinch of fine sea salt
6 eggs at room temperature, yolks and whites separated
1 teaspoon ground vanilla powder (like BP VanillaMax) or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cocoa powder or raw cacao powder (like BP Chocolate Powder)
1 Tablespoon sweet rice flour (do not use normal rice flour, which is gritty)

Chocolate Ganache Ingredients:
4 ounces of 85% or darker chocolate
1 5.4 ounce can coconut cream
Pinch of instant coffee (do not use ground coffee beans since they will not dissolve)

Vanilla Creme Filling and Piping Ingredients:
1/3 cup grass-fed unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup erythritol or xylitol, finely powdered like confectioner's
Heavy pinch of ground vanilla powder or 1/3 teaspoon vanilla extract
Tiny pinch of fine sea salt


For the Cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Line a muffin tin with individual cupcake liners. You will have enough batter for a few more than a dozen so you may use a second tin or just wait and bake the additional ones in a second batch.

Gather your ingredients for the cupcake batter:

separate your yolks and whites

Place the erythritol and xylitol together in a blender or spice grinder and pulse until reasonably fine, being careful not to let it get too hot or it may melt. It does not have to be superfine like confectioner's for this batter, just powdered. Set aside.

pulse until powdered

Place the dark chocolate and butter in a medium saucepan over low heat and melt stirring constantly until smooth then remove from heat and set aside. Make sure to stir occasionally so it does not separate while you make the egg yolk batter.

heat and stir until smooth

Place 6 Tablespoons of the powdered erythritol/xylitol mixture into a large bowl along with the 6 egg yolks and beat using a stand or hand mixer on medium-high speed until thick and pale yellow, about 3 minutes.

beat yolks with powdered sweetener mixture until thick and pale yellow

Add the yolk and sweetener mixture to the melted chocolate mixture along with the vanilla powder, chocolate powder and sweet rice flour. Using a spatula mix until blended and set aside.

Place the 6 egg whites in a large bowl. Using a stand or hand mixer, beat on high speed until soft peaks form. Then slowly add the remaining 6 Tablespoons of the powdered sweetener mixture and beat on high speed until medium-firm peaks form.

Gently fold the egg white mixture into the chocolate mixture a little at a time until incorporated.

Fill the cupcake liners to the top. My batter was pretty airy and somewhat gooey so I lightly filled each liner completely full to the top but was careful not to press down on the batter.

Place in the oven and bake for 11 minutes. Rotate the pan and bake for 11 minutes more. Remove from the oven and place pan on a wire cooling rack. Cool completely. You can eat them as is now or proceed to the next steps for frosting and/or filling.

For the Chocolate Ganache:

Gather your ingredients for the chocolate ganache:

Add about 2 inches of water to the bottom of a small saucepan fitted with a heat-proof bowl or smaller saucepan (like a double boiler) over low heat. Add chocolate, coconut cream and instant coffee to the bowl or top pan.

Stir until melted and creamy.

The ganache should be loose like a thick sauce. Set aside (stirring occasionally to keep it well blended) while you prepare the cupcakes and creme filling.  Optional:  IF you would like to skip the creme filling part, you may dip the cupcakes upside down into the ganache now to coat or drizzle the ganache atop and allow to set for a few minutes before eating.

For the Vanilla Creme Filling and Piping:

Gather your ingredients for the vanilla creme filling:

If you cannot find or do not have confectioner's erythritol or xylitol, you will need to powder it yourself. A spice blender works well for the small amount you will need for this. Keep pulsing until you have a very fine powder being careful not to let it get hot so it doesn't melt. This may take several minutes but is critical to getting a smooth and creamy texture to your filling.

In a medium bowl, place the powdered sweetener, softened butter and vanilla powder. Using a hand mixer set to low, incorporate the ingredients then mix on high until creamy. Set aside.

Cut wells into your cupcakes. This nifty cupcake corer by Cuisipro works nicely:

Fill each well with some of the vanilla creme. You may do it by hand or use a piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Be sure to reserve a small amount of the creme filling for the top decoration.

Place these into the freezer for a few minutes to set up before dipping into the chocolate ganache. Then carefully dip and roll each cupcake into the chocolate ganache and let set up for another few minutes before piping on the top decoration.

Place the remaining vanilla creme into another piping bag fitted with a very small round tip.

Pipe the design onto the tops like you see on a Hostess Cupcake:

These are now ready to enjoy or you can store them briefly (1-2 days) in a plastic container with a lid. They do not need to be refrigerated but can be. After a day or two the ganache will start to break down so these are prettiest when eaten very soon.

*******GIVEAWAY Details!*********

****Dec 1, 2015: This giveaway has ended and the winner has been notified. Please stay tuned for more recipes and giveaways.*****

Leave a comment below letting me know your favorite dessert to be entered automatically! Be sure you are logged in (not posting as anonymous) so I can contact you if you win. You may also visit my Instagram and/or Facebook page for additional entries.

Winner will receive:

• Bulletproof: The Cookbook personally signed by Dave Asprey
• Bulletproof Coffee Starter Kit

Winner will be notified on December 1st.