Since we are getting good at confessions, I have another one for you. I really get a kick out of having an excuse to get in the kitchen every Friday and not only make the tastiest food—but something that looks great in photographs too. I do love a good red velvet cupcake. And I will admit some of the craving is for that cream cheese frosting. Lately, I’ve found it tricky to find a good gluten-free version that doesn’t use red food coloring. However, I finally found a solution to both of these issues with this recipe for gluten-free red velvet cupcakes.

First of all, I have found the mother lode of gluten-free cookbooks. As I raved about it in my Best Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookie post, I will rave again today. America’s Test Kitchen has done all of the hard work for us who need to sidestep gluten but still want a tasty baked goody. In their The How Can It Be Gluten Free Cookbook, they have sorted the science of gluten-free to create recipes that are dead ringers for their gluten-filled counterparts. And these gluten-free red velvet cupcakes are no exception!

Gluten Free Red Velvet Cupcakes

UnBEETable Cupcakes

These gluten-free red velvet cupcakes are light, fluffy and moist, just like a gourmet cupcake should be. One of the secrets of America’s Test Kitchen recipe brilliance is the gluten-free flour mix they developed. It beats any of the other gluten-free flour mixes out there in taste, performance, and in price.

The second issue I wanted to solve was finding a great replacement for the red food coloring. Easy answer! India Tree makes vegetable-based food colorings and the red is made from beets! I love beets, but there is no beet flavor at all in these cupcakes. It just gives it a great deep red color and that’s it!

These red velvet cupcakes are so yummy that I’m definitely in cupcake heaven today. This is my test batch for my birthday cupcakes I will be making this next week. And I had better give them away fast before I eat them all!

Below you will find my version of America’s Test Kitchen recipe. I only made two changes for these gluten-free red velvet cupcakes—the red food coloring replacement and using coconut oil in place of vegetable oil. They are so sweet in giving me the green light on sharing the whole recipe with you here today. That being said. . . if you are a gluten-free cook or even want to trim a little gluten out of your diet, this book is a must. Enjoy! ~ Lia

Ingredients for Gluten Free Red Velvet Cupcakes

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