GF Peanut Butter Cupcakes ~ From a Mix!!!!
Gluten free baking can be a serious challenge to meld everything into the delicious flavor and texture you crave. When a friend of mine announced her upcoming wedding, to man who cannot handle gluten, I told her we would make the cake, or rather the CUPCAKES, for her wedding! So the challenge was on, how to create gluten free cupcakes, preferably from a GF mix, that everyone would want to eat.
The next day, I was blessed to find 8 gluten free cake mixes at 75% off, so the adventure begins. So when a craving for peanut butter cupcakes struck, we headed to the kitchen to see what we could create! Our first attempt, this Gluten Free Peanut Butter Cupcake was moist, flavorful and definitely a hit!
- 1 Namaste Foods Gluten Free Vanilla Cake Mix
- 4 eggs (free range, Omega 3)
- 1/2 cup oil
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
- a few DROPS of maple extract - use extreme caution - maple is VERY flavorful and can quickly overtake it!
- 1 1/2 cups peanuts
Heat oven to 350. Put cupcake liners in cupcake pan, spray lightly with non-stick spray.
In food processor, fitted with the metal chopping blade, dump the GF vanilla cake mix, eggs, oil, milk, sour cream, vanilla and the teeny, itty, bitty bit of maple! Blend well. Taste, adjust vanilla and maple extracts if you need them - don’t be afraid to taste it and tweak it!
Since I had very little of my favorite Trader Joe’s Peanut Butter left, but had a ton of regular peanuts, we experimented with the peanuts in this version. Add the 1 to 1 1/2 cups peanuts, and blend quickly. The metal blade will make peanut butter out of it! Taste - does it have the flavor you are looking for? I added a few dashes of salt, since it seemed a bit sweet for my preference. This made a tremendous difference, toning down the sugar flavor.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, and check to see if those little gluten free peanut butter cupcakes are done! Frost with your choice of frosting, or just pig out on them plain!
Simple Peanut Butter Frosting
- 1 cup peanuts
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/2 cup cream cheese
- 1/4 - 1/2 cup confectioners sugar (depending on how sweet you want it)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- dash salt
- 1/2 cup whipping cream
In food processor with steel blade, grind up peanuts until you make peanut butter. Add butter and cream cheese, mixing until a creamy consistency. Add sugar, vanilla and dash of salt and blend well. Add 1/2 cup whipping cream and beat until fluffy. Frost cupcakes, top with more peanuts or shaved chocolate and serve.
Finally, a recipe for Gluten Free Peanut Butter Cupcakes, from a mix, like the Cake Mix Doctor! Enjoy celiacs and gluten intolerant friends!
