Cupcakes & The Bean Cycle

This week was Zoe and Ashley's birthdays! They are now 4 and 6 years old! I really wish they would slow down a bit :-) For their birthdays I made them my chocolate raspberry cupcakes, as requested by Zoe. Friends of ours who ate them, couldn't tell that they were gluten-free, and all agreed that they were yummy and moist.

Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes:

Set oven to 325 degrees.

Add to bowl:

3/4 cup coconut oil, liquified

1/2 cup organic cocoa powder

Beat with electric mixer, then add:

3/4 cup honey or agave

6 room temperature eggs

1 tbs vanilla

1/2 tsp chocolate raspberry liquid stevia

1/4 tsp salt

Beat with electric mixer, then add:

1/4 brown rice flour

1/4 cup coconut flour, sifted

1/4 cup tapioca flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp xanthan gum

Beat again. Fill unbleached muffin cups 2/3 full.

Bake for about 15 minutes.

Top with raspberry jam.

Makes 18

Note: I love the If You Care brand of unbleached paper muffin cups. Nothing ever sticks, plus they're better for the environment, and for my family. Then, what I do is reuse them by keeping them in a bag in the freezer between use. Even better for the environment and my wallet!

Update: I added brown rice flour and xanthan gum when making a bundt cake with this recipe and it was even better, so I included them above. :-) It took about 34 minutes at 325, and I greased and floured the pan. It was so awesome!

We decided to take a short day trip to Fort Collins, about 45 minutes north of us. All I can say is I can't wait to visit there again! Granted, I've only been there for a day, but I really think it's a place where I could live. We loved it; very deserving of it's recent title as 2nd best town in America. The historic downtown was so charming. There was a water fountain with steps to sit on and soak your feet next to a live band, surrounded by outdoor cafes and shops. Across the tree lined street, loaded with flowers, was a water fountain park for children. We sat at a table with an umbrella and watched as Zoe and Ashley delighted in the spouting water.

When we finally tore ourselves away, children soaked, we walked back across the street to a place called The Bean Cycle. It is, like the town, loaded with character plus tons of fair-trade and organic coffees, much to my delight! The coffee was crazy good, and the girls had smoothies like the kind I make at home (meaning real frozen organic fruit and juice, nothing processed or artificial added).