Gluten Free Red Velvet Cupcakes

First off, Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Last week I traveled down to Florida for work. As I was there, I probably went to 3 or 4 restaurants that served Red Velvet Cake for dessert. For those who don't know, Red Velvet is a cocoa based cake that gets its color from food dye and the reaction of combining vinegar, buttemilk, and cocoa. I used this whipped cream cheese frosting recipe to frost my cupcakes. I prefer this frosting for red velvet because it has the tang of the cream cheese, but the light airy texture you get from whipping cream. I like to deviate from traditional red velvet cake recipes, and add some cinnamon for subtleness, and some fresh coffee to bring out the rich cocoa flavors. I hope you enjoy!

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Difficulty: Easy
Bake Time: 16 minutes per muffin tray
Yields: About 18 cupcakes

Dry Ingredients
3/4 cup white rice flour
1/2 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup tapioca flour
3/4 cup potato starch
1 tsp xantham gum
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cocoa powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Wet Ingredients
1 1/2 cup canola oil
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp fresh coffee, room temperature
1 1/2 tbsp red food coloring
1 tsp white vinegar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Steps
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line muffin trays with paper cupcake cups.
2. In a medium bowl, mix all the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together all the wet ingredients.
3. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet. This ensures a smooth, silky batter.

4. Spoon the batter into the cupcake tins, 2/3 full. Place into the oven and bake for 16 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool completely.

5. Make the whipped cream frosting (click here for the link to the recipe). Frost the cupcakes with the icing, and enjoy this quick and easy 5 step recipe.