If you love or once loved cupcakes and you follow a gluten-free, grain-free, trans-fat free, paleo, primal, or natural foods diet, I’ve (literally) got a cookbook for you.
Almond flour
Those of you who follow my blog may remember by review of Elana Amsterdam’s Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook in January of 2010. I’ve made at least six of the recipes from her book, a couple from her blog, and some of them, like her Olive-Rosemary Bread and Rosemary-Hazelnut Shortbread, I’ve made multiple times. I’ve also tinkered with other people’s recipes to turn out some amazing almond flour recipes myself.
The scoop on gluten-free cupcakes
Elana has a new book, Gluten-Free Cupcakes: 50 Irresistible Recipes Made with Almond and Coconut Flour, official released TODAY (March 26, 2011)! As you know, both cupcakes and gluten-free foods have been gaining popularity and getting a lot of press. Cupcakes have become prime players on the food scene, stealing some of the stage light from desserts like ice cream, cakes, and bars. I haven’t heard of ice cream or brownie wars or cake wars although I have heard secondhand reports about cupcake wars (I’ve just never seen the shows about them).
Photo credit: Rachel Albert © copyright 2011
Gluten-Free Cupcakes gives natural foods enthusiasts, grain-free and dairy-free bakers, and gluten-free cupcake lovers recipes for 50 different cupcakes and 12 frostings that can be mixed and matched to make cupcakes for any occasion. Even people who don’t have food allergies or intolerances will probably start salivating just looking at the pictures. Whether you’re cupcake obsessed or just curious about how to make dazzling and delicious grain-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, naturally sweetened cupcakes, Elana’s book contains what you need to know to get started and keep baking.
Kitchen magician
If you’ve been following Elana’s popular blog (elanaspantry.com) you know she’s a adept at creating delicious recipes that rely on a small number of ingredients. Unlike most recipes for gluten-free baked goods that rely on a mix of three, four, or five different flours plus guar gum or xanthan gum, Elana’s recipes reoly on coconut flour or a mix of coconut and almond flours. Although most of the cupcake recipes require eggs, very few require dairy products. Some of her recipes are both vegan and dairy-free.
Photo credit: Rachel Albert © copyright 2011
Perfect portions
Besides the taste, these cupcakes have other things going for them. First, they’re made in single serving portions, so you can indulge without the guilt. (If you want to sample more than one flavor at a time and eat lightly, you can do what I did, make some of them in mini muffin tins.) Another feature is that the recipes are made from healthy ingredients! For example, coconut, coconut oil, coconut flour, and coconut milk contain short and medium chain fatty acids that have proven health benefits. Coconut products contain one of the same fatty acids found in human mothers’ milk, lauric acid (aka monolaurin), which has antiviral, antifungal, and antimicrobial properties. Almond flour is a great source of monounsaturated fats. Both flours are rich in protein and fiber and lower in carbohydrates than flours made from grains. Some of her recipes also contain unsweetened cocoa powder, dark chocolate, dried fruits, citrus zest, herbs, and spices, foods that contain antioxidants and other health protective compounds. So with her recipes, you really can have your cake and eat it too… without sacrificing your health!
Cupcake
Elana's new book includes seven recipe categories: Classic Cupcakes, Fruity Cupcakes, Warm and Spiced Cupcakes, Chocolate Cupcakes, Special Occasion Cupcakes, Savory Cupcakes (aka Muffins!), as well as Frostings, Fillings, and Toppings. It also includes a section on ingredients, recommended equipment and kitchen tools, plus tips, tricks, and techniques to improve your results with the recipes.
Just some of the offerings include Red Velvet Cupcakes, chocolate Marble Cupcakes, Cranberry Apricot and Orange Rosemary Cupcakes, Pecan Pie, Ginger “Molasses,” and Almond Poppy Seed Cupcakes, Fallen Chocolate Soufflé, White Chocolate Cherry, and Flourless Chocolate Hazelnut Cupcakes, Ice Cream Cone and Black Forest Cupcakes, as well as savory teats, such as Scallion Goat Cheese and Chive Pepper Cupcakes. And yes, they’re all nutrient-dense, high in protein and will satisfy kids and adults.
Sweet deal
Get your cupcake cookbook at a special introductory offer while you can. Right now you can buy Gluten-Free Cupcakes: 50 Irresistible Recipes Made with Almond and Coconut Flour on Amazon.com for $9.23 (46% off the cover price). You’ll see the link for that below. If you buy it from my Amazon store you’ll not only get a great deal on the book, you’ll also help support me and all the time and energy I put into maintaining this blog: testing recipes, studying and reviewing books, products, and restaurants, and sharing my finds with you.
Stay tuned
I made four of Elana’s cupcake recipes and two of her frosting recipes yesterday and I’ve been sharing samples with friends ever since. I plan to make a few more recipes next week for a gluten-free, grain-free, paleo and primal diet wedding reception I’m attending the first weekend in May. I’ll tell you more about the recipes I made, what I and my taste testers liked best, I’ll share some of the actual recipes, and I’ll tel you about the wedding reception over the next few weeks along with a special giveaway promotion.
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