Moist, dense chocolate cake that is topped with a rich, silky chocolate buttercream makes for the perfect birthday cake or cupcakes for any allergy kiddo. This is the one recipe every allergy mom needs up her sleeve. This recipe is free of: gluten, dairy, egg, peanut and tree nuts.
These are truly the best allergy-friendly chocolate birthday cupcakes you’ll ever have!
Most of the time I make things because they sound delicious! That, or my son wants it, and there are no safe alternatives.
And this time, I still made something because it sounded absolutely DIVINE…but also because it was a PREGNANCY craving!
If you haven’t been following my Instagram (Why not?? There’s so many fun behind-the-scenes Instagram stories!) Then you’re probably in the dark that I’m expecting. True story–I actually broke the news to my Instagram friends before some of my family. That’s benefits!
Last Tuesday we went in to find out the gender. Finding out the gender always makes the baby feel so much more REAL. Instead of this belly that looks like I ate too much, and feeling nauseous and exhausted all the time, you get to see that there is a REAL HUMAN BEING in there…causing all that raucous.
I decided since we’d be celebrating this baby’s birthday in a few months to finally share my favorite cake and frosting for all birthday celebrations. I know many allergy moms who don’t care to bake, but once a year you gotta pull out something. EVERY allergy mom needs a good birthday cake and frosting up her sleeve. I make this for all birthdays, and even friends and neighbors and family members without allergies like it. I don’t feel I have to say sorry, or an excuse. when I serve it to “regular” eaters.
The cake is moist and dense. The frosting is silky and rich. Chocolate on chocolate is my favorite combo. I know sprinkles look better on white frosting, but I NEED my chocolate frosting!
NOTE: Because this frosting has coconut oil in it, the frosting will harden if kept in colder temperatures, or melt in really high temperatures. I keep mine room temperature, covered, to keep it the best consistency so it doesn’t dry out. That is–if you don’t inhale it in the first sitting!
As you can see it pipes great over cupcakes (makes 12) or makes a 13×9–because let’s be honest, sometimes you just need to dump the whole thing in pan and just write “Happy Birthday” on it some years. Am I right??
I hope this recipe helps you celebrate many fun birthdays to come, special occasions, or “just because I need chocolate”.
And, if you missed the announcement, I showed two cupcakes: one with blue sprinkles and one with pink. Here is the one that won:
Bring on the pink! I have two boys, so this will be a switch, but it will be a fun switch up.
How do I make cupcakes allergy-friendly and free of the top-8-allergens?
- To ensure that these are gluten-free and wheat free cupcakes I used my favorite gluten-free baking blend. I prefer to make this, because it’s cheaper to buy the individual packets and blend them than buying a store-bought version. If you’re in a pinch, or don’t do that much baking, you can use a store bought 1:1 gluten-free baking mix.
- To make these birthday cupcakes egg-free I use flax eggs. These are a great egg substitution and you’ll see directions for it in the recipe!
- To make these allergy-friendly cupcakes nut free I make sure that I don’t use any peanut or nut butters and that my ingredients are not cross contaminated or have “may contain” warnings on them.
- To make these cupcakes for allergy kiddos dairy-free you’ll see that I suggest using vegan butter. There are lots of kinds of vegan butter and pick one that works for your allergies. For us, that’s Earth Balance buttery sticks.
- I’ve had people ask what to do to make these cupcakes soy free. I’ve had a reader comment that she used applesauce instead of the soy cream cheese and they worked out great. You could also try using a coconut based cream cheese.
- The best part about these allergy-friendly cupcakes is that they are also vegan cupcakes. That’s right–gluten free. dairy free and vegan cupcakes!
****Also, if you don’t care to have children (I was there for a LONG time), or you cannot have children–thank you for bearing with me while I am in this stage of life and for your grace in letting me share something personal with you, that you might not share in right now. I love all of you–despite your child situation.****
- 1 cup water
- 1 and ½ sticks vegan butter
- ⅓ cup cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups of my gluten-free flour
- 1 and ½ cups granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon xanthan
- 2 flax eggs (2 Tablespoons ground flax seeds mixed with 5 Tablespoons of warm water)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup dairy-free sour cream
- Vegan chocolate buttercream recipe
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Generously grease your pan with non-stick cooking spray, (if doing a 13x9). Or, line your cupcake tin with cupcake liners (makes 12).
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cake’s dry ingredients.
- In a saucepan over medium-low heat, melt your butter. Add your water, cocoa powder, and dairy-free sour cream and stir to incorporate. Take off the heat and add your flax eggs, vanilla, and then whisk in your dry ingredients. Stir until smooth.
- Pour the batter into your pan or cupcake tin.
- Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes for cupcakes, and 20-25 minutes for the cake. Or, until the middle of the cake springs back when you touch it, and it's slightly pulling away from the edges.
- Allow the cake to cool.
- While it's cooling, make the frosting.
- Spread or pipe the frosting onto the cooled cake.
- Keep covered at room temperature, to keep the frosting from drying out.
Don’t forget to pin it, so you don’t lose it. Also, be sure to check out my other allergy-friendly Pinterest boards.
Looking for more chocolate treats? See some of my other favorites below, or go to my index:
Allergy-friendly Tiger Birthday Cupcakes
Slow Cooker Chocolate Lava Cake (Gluten, dairy, egg, soy, peanut & tree nut free; top-8-free; vegan)
Allergy-friendly Homemade Oreos (Gluten, dairy, egg, soy, peanut & tree nut free; top-8-free; vegan)
O yay, well congrats and these look delicious!
Thanks Rebecca!
These cupcakes look amazing. And congrats! SO excited for you.
Thanks Chrystal! Hope to see you again at Everything Food Conference–I’ll be huge by then!
These are exciting times for you! Congratulations. Back when I was pregnant I would have definitely taken one (or two) of these … topped with sliced ham. That was my craving 🙂 Oh the joys of pregnancy! I always love seeing cakes that work with flax eggs. Good going lady!!
Yes, pregnancy cravings can be crazy! Can’t say I’ve tried a cupcake with ham though–although this pregnancy is only half way over, so we’ll see! 🙂
Now these are gorgeous! Kudos on nailing that icing, and all with dairy free products. Hooray!
Thanks so much Kelly! I always get nervous piping frosting on cupcakes (not my forte) so I appreciate it.
These are too, too perfect! I definitely don’t need to be pregnant to crave these 🙂
Thanks Alisa! Yes, I certainly crave them 365 days a year–despite being pregnant or not, they’re just too good not to 🙂
Wow, these are beautiful shots! This really is a recipe every allergen mom (or wife 😉 ) needs.
Thank you! I got a new tripod, which I hope will help my photography get better! I appreciate the comment a lot!