Moist Gluten-Free Cinnamon Swirl Cupcakes
yields: 13 cupcakes
These gluten-free cinnamon swirl cupcakes taste like a snickerdoodle and a cinnamon roll in one fluffy bite. With a coffee-cake-like swirl of cinnamon sugar inside and a topping of cinnamon cream cheese frosting, these cupcakes will make all your friends swoon.
Ingredients
Gluten-Free Cinnamon Swirl Cupcakes
- 72 g (½ cup + 1 tablespoon) Bob’s Red Mill sorghum flour
- 70 g (¼ cup + 3 tablespoons) sweet rice flour, also called mochiko; do not substitute white or brown rice flour
- 56 g (½ cup) Bob’s Red Mill tapioca flour
- 46 g (¼ cup + 1 tablespoon) millet flour
- ¾ teaspoon xanthan gum
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons (85 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 220 g (1 cup + 2 tablespoons) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup (80 g) sour cream, room temperature
- ½ cup + 2 tablespoons (150 g) whole milk, room temperature
Cinnamon Swirl
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1¾ cups (210 g) powdered sugar
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch kosher salt
- 8 oz full-fat cream cheese (blocked), cut into 1-ounce pieces, room temperature
- ¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
INSTRUCTIONS
Gluten-Free Cinnamon Swirl Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two muffin tins with 13 cupcake liners.
- In a medium bowl, sift together the sorghum flour, sweet rice flour, tapioca starch, millet flour, xanthan gum, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a medium bowl with an electric hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar over medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs one at a time, mixing and scraping down the sides after each one, followed by the vanilla extract.
- Add the sour cream, mixing until combined.
- Keeping the speed on low, slowly add the dry ingredients in two batches, adding the milk in between, mixing until just combined and scraping down the sides and bottom as needed.
- Whisk together the cinnamon swirl ingredients in a small bowl.
- Fill the cupcake liners to ⅓ full (35g of batter). I recommend using a trigger ice cream scoop and a measuring scale for even cupcakes. Sprinkle ¾ teaspoon of the cinnamon swirl over top and use a toothpick or chopstick to gently swirl the cinnamon into the batter. Top with 30g more batter, until the cupcake liner is ⅔ full.
- Bake for 24-26 minutes until the cupcakes spring back when gently pressed in the middle and a toothpick comes out dry or with a few moist crumbs. These cupcakes will seem light and airy in texture when gently pressed, so take care not to overbake them. Remove from oven. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
- Sift together the powdered sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter over medium speed. With the mixer on medium speed, add the cream cheese, one piece at a time, beating until completely smooth.
- Slowly add the powdered sugar, in thirds, mixing on low speed until just combined.
- Add the vanilla and beat on medium speed until smooth, taking care not to overmix. Pipe or spread onto cooled cupcakes. To get the bakery-style swirls shown here, use a ½-inch to ⅝-inch wide round frosting tip (Ateco 808 or Wilton 1A). Start in the center of the cupcake, swirl out, then back up to a point. Use a spoon to press the frosting down, swirling the spoon before you lift.
Video
Notes
Gluten-Free Flour Substitutions
- Sorghum Flour: Substitute by weight with gluten-free oat flour or Bob's Red Mill gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour.
- Sweet Rice Flour: I don't recommend substituting the sweet rice flour as I find it's essential to chewy cakes, but you may have success replacing it with Bob's Red Mill gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour.
- Tapioca Flour: Substitute by weight with arrowroot flour, potato starch, or Bob's Red Mill gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour blend.
- Millet Flour: Substitute by weight with teff flour (though your cake will be noticeably darker), light chestnut flour, brown or white rice flour, or Bob's Red Mill gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour.
