These Gluten-Free Dairy-Free “Crumbs” Cupcakes are fun for summer entertaining, and will satisfy everyone’s sweet tooth, whether they have food allergies or not.
Last weekend, we celebrated one of the twin’s graduation with his buddies and their families. I learned that one of the families had gluten and dairy allergies, so I decided to make a batch of Gluten-Free Dairy-Free “Crumbs” Cupcakes similar to the ones that a local bakery called “Crumbs” sells. Crumbs has all sorts of flavors and fun toppings, but they don’t offer any options for those with food allergies.
As a mom of a son who has food allergies and intolerances, I know what it’s like to go to a party where you can’t enjoy dessert like the rest of the guests. In addition to these cupcakes, I also made a double batch of Trader Joe’s Gluten-Free Brownies and baked them in a 9×9 square dish for extra thick fudgey brownies.
Although I’ve noticed some great gluten-free cupcakes recently at both our farmer’s market and our local health food stores, they would have cost me a pretty penny for a dozen. Specialty cupcake shops sell single cupcakes for $2.50-$4.00, and gluten-free ones cost at least that.
So, in a pinch, I used Bob’s Red Mill’s Gluten-Free Vanilla Cake Mix, using almond milk as the liquid. For the vanilla and chocolate buttercream frostings, I substituted Earth Balance Organic Buttery Spread for butter and almond milk for regular milk.
The toppings that Crumbs uses are the fun part, so I found some gluten-free chocolate sandwich cookies at Trader Joes as well as Schar Chocolate Chip Cookies to decorate the cupcakes with. The chocolate chips I used were Enjoy Life’s Mini Chocolate Chips which are dairy-free.
These cupcakes were a treat for the party and it put a smile on my face when one of the little boys who has food allergies picked one up from the plate :). That made my day.
Gluten-Free Dairy-Free “Crumbs” Cupcakes
Ingredients
Vanilla Cupcakes
- 1 pack Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Vanilla Cake Mix
- 3 large eggs
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/2 almond milk
Vanilla Frosting
- 3 cups organic powdered sugar
- 1/3 cup Earth Balance Organic Buttery Spread
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1-2 tablespoons almond milk
Chocolate Frosting
- 1/4 cup Earth Balance Organic Buttery Spread
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 cups organic powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- a few tablespoons of almond milk
Decorations
- Gluten-free chocolate sandwich cookies I used Trader Joe's
- Gluten-free chocolate chip cookies I used Schar's
- dairy-free mini chocolate chips I used Enjoy Life
Instructions
Vanilla Cupcakes
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Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line cupcake tin with paper liners and spray with cooking spray. In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs for 30 seconds on medium-low speed. Add mix, then oil and almond milk. Beat for 60 seconds on medium-low speed, scraping down sides of bowl with spatula. Use 1/4 cup measuring cup to divide into cupcake tin, scraping the contents into each cup.
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Bake 20-25 minutes until toothpick comes out clean. Cool on wire rack.
Vanilla Frosting
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Place sugar, Buttery Spread, vanilla extract and almond milk in medium bowl. Beat until smooth.
Chocolate Frosting
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Place Buttery Spread, cocoa powder, sugar, vanilla and almond milk in medium bowl. Beat until smooth.
Decorating Cupcakes
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Pipe vanilla frosting on half of the cupcakes. Decorate with mini chocolate chips and crushed chocolate chip cookies.
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Pipe chocolate frosting on remaining cupcakes. Decorate with half a chocolate sandwich cookie and sprinkle with crushed chocolate sandwich cookies.
Gluten Free Fruit and Nut Snack Bars {Nature Valley $500 Gift Card Sweepstakes}
18
YUM!!!! Jeanette – these look fantastic! And seeing they are homemade, I would definitely pick them over Crumbs originals! I haven’t tried Bob’s Red Mill Vanilla Cake mix yet – thanks for introducing me to it!
What an amazing recipe!
These look divine! I would definitely have to indulge… =)
What gorgeous little treats – they look fabulous
Mary
Jeanette, I LOVE this cupcakes. They are fantastic!! I always cook with Earth Balance spread and almond milk, because they are healthier substitutions for some of the traditional ingredients. Love it. Pinning it 😉
Thanks gals! These were fun to make and it made me so happy to serve one to one of the young boys at the party.
These look incredible Jeanette! I love how pretty you decorated them – the cookie garnish and crushed cookies are such a nice touch. Love that they are GF and DF too and so glad to hear the little boy with allergies at the party was able to enjoy these 🙂
These cupcakes look marvelous, Jeanette.
These look awesome! I think you’re an amazing mom that went the extra mile to include another student with food allergies. As a mother of 2 boys with multiple food allergies, I completely appreciate the kind gesture.
fantastic Jeanette! this sound delicious
What a special treat for not only your son but all those who are gluten free and dairy free! I’ve been waiting for you to share the recipe after I saw your photo on Facebook. Can’t wait to share these on All Gluten-Free Desserts, Jeanette! 🙂
xo,
Shirley
Thanks Kelly, Angie, Laura, Cheryl and Shirley – these were a real treat and fun to make!
What a fun thing to re-make gluten-free, Crumbs has some great flavors!
These cupcakes were great!!! I was unable to find Bob’s Mills Vanilla Gluten free cake mix, so I substituted it for Pamela’s Classic Vanilla cake mix(gluten free) and it came out great! For the Pamela mix I recommend changing the quantity of olive oil from 1/2 cup to 1/3 or 1/4. Thank you so much for sharing!
Cynthia, so glad you made these cupcakes and they turned out so well for you! I’ve never tried Pamela’s vanilla cake mix but their pancake mix is great. Thanks for leaving a comment so others who want to try this can have success making them.
The frosting looked awesome, but unfortunately, when I made it, it was too runny and not fluffy at all, like chocolate syrup. It was a bit better after sitting overnight in the fridge, but still got too runny after sitting on the counter. Maybe the butter shouldn’t be melted?
The frosting is made with a non-dairy “buttery spread” so it is not melted, which is probably what caused the frosting to be running. It is like butter.
Is the brm vanilla cake mix the 19oz package?
Yes – I used the 19 ounce pack
Was I not supposed to use EVOO with this? Haha. It tastes kind of strange with it..
It should be regular olive oil, not extra virgin (which has a stronger taste)