Simple and sweetened only with honey, these Honey Orange Cupcakes are a light and delicious treat! They’re dairy-free and perfect for birthdays and dessert.
Birthday choice.
This month was my oldest son’s 4th birthday. Well, not really the whole month, but you know what I mean. This was the first year he really *got* birthdays (we don’t make a big deal out of them), so he was pretty excited.
When I asked him what he wanted for our family birthday celebration he said, “Orange cupcakes!!!!!” With exactly that many exclamation points, too. 😉 After some delineation we came to the understanding that by “orange” he didn’t mean the color, he meant the fruit. And they were to have chocolate frosting, too.
Honey Orange Cupcakes.
Well, as much as I love dessert, gluten-free cupcakes are not my specialty. I actually really don’t like them at all. Muffins, I love, cupcakes, I can do without. But for my stinky little superboy, I’ll suffer through them!
So off I went to figure out an orange cupcake recipe. I was pretty pleased with what I concocted came up with. Even the batter was delicious! And topped with my naturally dairy-free and delicious coconut whipped cream frosting, with a tablespoon or two of cocoa powder added in (I didn’t really measure, sorry).
They’re orange cupcakes, and they taste like oranges. Just what the birthday boy ordered!
Now if I could only get my daughter’s birthday requests right… Going on failure four years in a row now. I guess she’s keeping me humble!
More birthday deliciousness.
If you need more options for what you can make for a healthy, nourishing, gluten-free birthday treat, here are a few more options my family enjoys. Yes, these have actually all been made for someone’s birthday… even the apple pie.
- 3-Ingredient GAPS/keto Angel Food Cake
- Paleo No-Bake Chocolate Avocado Tart
- The Perfect Paleo Chocolate Cake
- Grain-Free New York Style Cheesecake
- Gluten-Free Honey Apple Pie
- Giant Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake with Whipped Cream Frosting
- GAPS Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Dark Chocolate Frosting
- Buttermilk Carob Zucchini Cake
- Gluten-Free Chocolate Cream-Filled Angel Food Cake
- Vegan Chocolate Applesauce Cake
In the recipe card I’ve linked to some of the products from my affiliate partners that I like to use. Purchasing through these links won’t cost you anything extra. Thanks!
Honey Orange Cupcakes
Free from gluten, dairy, and refined sugar.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups gluten-free flour (I used half brown rice flour and half oat flour)
- 1 cup tapioca starch
- 1 teaspoon baking powder (I use my homemade baking powder)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon Himalayan salt
- 1 cup orange juice (I just juiced a whole orange in my blender with a cup of water)
- 1/2 cup applesauce
- 1/2 cup honey
- 2 eggs
- 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (I used my homemade stuff)
- 2 teaspoons orange zest (from aforementioned orange)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 and grease a muffin tin or line it with paper liners.*
In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.
In a separate bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients.
Pour wet ingredients into dry ones and mix quickly until there are no dry streaks.
Scoop 1/3-1/2 cupfuls of batter into prepared muffin tins.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until they spring back when touched and are a golden color.
Cool before frosting.
Note
If using paper liners, make sure to remove the liners while the cupcakes are still warm, otherwise they might stick, since there’s no fat in the cupcakes.
I used my homemade coconut whipped cream for frosting. For a chocolate version, just add a tablespoon of cocoa powder to my recipe. Please note that the coconut whipped cream needs to be started the night before you want to use it as frosting!
these sounds amazing! and I love that they can be gluten free. pinning this on my desserts board!
Thanks so much, Natalie!
These looks so delicious and I love the combination of orange, honey and apple – fabulous! Thanks for a great recipe, Raia. Visiting from Natural Living Monday – such a pleasure to find your beautiful blog!
Glad you’re liking it, Robyn! Thank you so much for stopping by. 🙂
I would love to make these, even though cakes are not my specialty. I prefer muffins too. 🙂
🙂 I hope you do enjoy them if you get a chance to give them a try. Thanks for stopping by, Julia!
Yummy! Nothing like making exactly what the Birthday Boy ordered!! They sound delicious, especially the chocolate frosting. Thanks for sharing on the #SHINEbloghop this week!
Glad to share, Cheryl! And yes, the frosting is delicious. I was very glad there was a half-bowlful leftover. 😉
This sound absolutely delicious Raia. Thanks for sharing. Visiting from Home Acre Blog Hop!
Thanks for stopping by, Marla! They were pretty good, if I do say so myself. 😉
Thanks for linking up with Merry Mondays 🙂
xx
Mila
milaslittlethings.com
milawayable@gmail.com
Glad to share, Mila! Thanks for stopping by!
Your Honey Orange Cupcakes look wonderful. Thanks so much for sharing this awesome post with Full Plate Thursday and have a great day.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
Thanks, Helen!
I LOVE these cupcakes and wish I had some right now. It was one of those days, and a cupcake with a bunch of that beautiful frosting sounds perfect!!!
Aw, thanks. 😉 I hope tomorrow goes better for you!