Deep dark secret time….I eat cupcakes for breakfast.
This week had its shares of highs and lows, which is to be expected pragmatically speaking. That’s life. Let’s not dwell. We all have our challenges. What’s important is to level up your game and focus on the positive. Those things that you enjoy doing that make you smile. My go to remedy would be to spend time with My Guy and the kids, and a close second form of therapy is to find my favorite kitchen corner to test out new recipe concepts.
My original vision was to come up with a breakfast recipe, but when this goodness came together the possibility for it becoming a dessert seemed more fitting. It is a taste of sunshine for your palate. Gluten free, grain free, and citrus forward. It’s exactly what is needed to brighten up those dark winter days. And I assure you that the ingredients list will pleasantly surprise you.
The consistency is on the lighter side and 100% satisfying to bite into; moist with just enough natural sweetness. The tangy citrus coconut frosting adds a hint of buttery creaminess that really makes this a dessert that you can enjoy for breakfast. While I am typically a chocolate zealot, this cupcake will leave its mark. One dozen may just not be enough if you plan on sharing these with a few friends. In fact- I’d double the batch and sign-up to bring dessert to your next party. This dessert checks all of the boxes and will leave guests longing for the recipe.
And if you find yourself home alone with a batch of Yellow Squash Citrus Cupcakes you may just eat a few and then greedily lick the crumbs off of the liner and suck the frosting off of your digits. How could you go wrong with a veggie, no refined sugar cupcake? Answer- you can’t. It is just a lovely fact of life. Dig in.
Yellow Squash Citrus Grain Free Cupcakes with Coconut Butter Frosting
Cupcake Ingredients
1 ½ cups almond meal
1 ½ cups oat flour
¾ tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 cups yellow squash, grated
3 eggs
¼ cup coconut oil, melted
½- ¾ cup honey
2 tsps vanilla
1 TBS white wine vinegar
2 tsps orange zest, freshly grated
2 tsps lemon zest, freshly grated
Frosting Ingredients
¼ cup coconut oil, at room temperature not melted
1 TBS honey
1 tsp orange zest, freshly grated plus more to decoration
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl combine dry ingredients and set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together all wet ingredients except the squash. When mixture is well incorporated, add in squash and mix to combine.
Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in three installments. Stir by hand to combine.
Place batter in cupcake liners and bake for 27-30 minutes. If fragrant, check with toothpick to ensure that cupcakes do not over bake.
To make frosting, in a small bowl combine coconut oil, honey and orange zest. Once well mixed, frost cupcakes and sprinkle additional orange zest. Note: Because this frosting can melt, it is not ideal to bring somewhere on a hot day.
Looks delish!