Copycat Hostess Cupcakes – Low Carb, Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free

Copycat Hostess cupcakes made low carb, gluten free, dairy free and grain free. A healthy indulgence!

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Copycat Hostess Cupcakes. The classic childhood treat made over to be low carb, dairy free and grain free. Healthy indulgences!

Today is my 41st birthday. And you might think I made these low carb dairy-free Hostess Cupcakes to celebrate but I did not. See, in order to bring you a recipe, I have to make it, photograph it and write about it several days or even weeks in advance. So these pretty little things were actually made several weeks ago, and they weren’t with my birthday in mind at all. I just wanted them. Waiting until my birthday to make them was just not good enough for me. And really, should we have to wait for birthdays or other special occasions to eat cake? I think not.

I made these dairy-free for no other reason than I wanted to. I don’t have any issues with dairy myself and copious amounts of butter, cream and cheese pass my lips on a daily basis. But I’ve had a can of coconut milk in the fridge for some time, for the express purpose of making low carb coconut whipped cream. I thought it would make a great filling for some copycat Hostess Cupcakes. And I figured since I was going that far, I might as well go whole hog and  make everything dairy-free. Food intolerances often got hand in hand, sadly, and many readers have expressed that they have a dairy intolerance along with a gluten or wheat intolerance. I am nothing if not accommodating to my readership!

It was good to challenge myself in this way. I figured it would be easy to adjust my standard recipes for dairy-free ingredients, and for the most part it was. But I learned a few little things in the process, useful tidbits for the dairy-free folks. I already knew that coconut oil makes things more tender than butter. Since these cupcakes needed to be sturdy enough to be filled, I used a little less coconut oil than I normally would butter. I also found that coconut whipped cream won’t stay as whipped at room temperature as traditional whipped cream, so I had to refrigerate the cupcakes to keep the filling from becoming too runny. And finally, coconut oil chocolate ganache…oh my. Very different than butter-based chocolate ganache. It was very runny when I first made it, so I couldn’t get it to stay on the tops of the cakes. I tried refrigerating it to thicken it up, but then it hardened up too quickly so I had to remelt it. Finally I whisked in some cocoa powder to firm it up and let it cool until it was just barely pourable. I spooned it over the tops of the cakes and spread it around.

The results of my dairy-free experiment were utterly delicious. And for those of you that aren’t coconut lovers, they didn’t taste like coconut at all. My kids, who can be a little funny when I use “different” ingredients, went absolutely gaga over these. They met all of my own expectations…chocolatey cupcakes with a creamy vanilla center and a chocolate glaze on top. Like the cupcakes of my youth without the guilt.

5 from 7 votes

Copycat Hostess Cupcakes – Low Carb, Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free

Prep Time 40 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 5 minutes mins

Copycat Hostess cupcakes made low carb, gluten free, dairy free and grain free. A healthy indulgence!

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Ingredients

 

Cupcakes

• 1 recipe keto chocolate cupcakes

Cream Filling

• 2 tbsp water
• 1 tsp grass-fed gelatin
• 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/4 cup powdered sweetener
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Chocolate Ganache

• 2 ¼ ounces sugar-free chocolate chips
• 2 tbsp allulose, (optional)
• 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream

Frosting for Swirls

• 1 ounce cream cheese, well softened
• 2 tbsp powdered sweetener
• 1 tbsp heavy whipping cream
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

Cake

• Prepare the cupcakes according to the recipe. Let cool completely.
• Once cool, use a small (1-inch) round cookie cutter to cut out the center of each cupcake. You can also use a sharp knife to cut a 1 inch round hole. Reserve the cores of the cupcakes

Cream Filling

• Place the water in a small bowl and sprinkle with the gelatin. Whisk to combine. Heat for about 30 seconds in the microwave and whisk until the gelatin is dissolved. Cool 10 minutes.
• In a large bowl, combine the cream, sweetener, and vanilla extract. Begin to beat at high speed and slowly pour in the water/gelatin mixture. Beat until the cream holds stiff peaks.
• Spoon or pipe the filling into the center of each cored cupcake, filling almost to the top. Cut the very top off of the cores and place overtop the filling.

Chocolate Ganache

• Place the chocolate chips and the allulose in a medium bowl. Heat the cream until simmering, then pour overtop the chocolate chips. Let sit a few minutes to melt, then whisk until smooth.
• Let cool a few minutes until thickened but still pourable. Spoon over the tops of the cupcakes and spread to the edges. Refrigerate 10 to 15 minutes to firm up.

Frosting for Swirls

• In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the powdered sweetener and the heavy cream.
• Snip off a small bit of the corner of a ziplock bag. Place the frosting inside and pipe little swirls across the top of each cupcake.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cupcake | Calories: 235kcal | Carbohydrates: 8.5g | Protein: 7.3g | Fat: 18.5g | Fiber: 4.5g

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