Eggs? Who Needs 'Em? Best Chocolate Cupcake

When we found out my youngest son was allergic to eggs, I was scared, shocked and sad. It was scary to see him have a reaction, number one, and feel so helpless. Thankfully his body reacted properly and with Benedryl and a trip to the doctor he was fine. After testing we found he was severely allergic so it means absolutely nothing with egg.

Well, being the foodie and nurturing mom that I am, all I could think about was what I couldn't make for him. (We are praying that he will grow out of it, as egg allergy is the most common allergy to grow out of.) The first thought was baking. I mean how the heck do you bake without eggs? And what in the world was I going to do for his first birthday cake? And what about helping make cookies with me and his siblings as soon as he can stand on a stool?

I got on-line and to my surprise I found several egg-less cake recipes that got good ratings. I started seeing the hope shining through.

Then just the other day I got a newsletter from the Martha Stewart website and they happened to be featuring allergy free treats. You can check it out here. What I found was the most delicious chocolate cake recipe.

Normally I don't always test things out before I try them for the first time and much of the time it's when I'm having guests over. Maybe it's the thrill of it all...sorta like sky diving for foodies-major rush. But I didn't want to chance it for my son's first birthday. This weekend I tried this recipe out. WOW. It was so fantastic. I highly recommend it. These cupcakes were light and airy, chocolaty and moist.

I also used the recipe on her site for the icing that went with the cupcakes. It was okay. I had read the comments below the recipe and one lady said it was overly sweet. Initially I thought, "what a dumb statement," frosting is just that...extremely sweet, lady. But after I made it, I would have to agree that it was oddly, overwhelmingly sweet. I don't know if it was the ratio of butter to sugar, whatever it was, I just wasn't a big fan. So I've got a great cake, but I would love some ideas on egg-free frosting. If you have a good one, please share in the comment box below. I'm open to different flavors, types, just make sure it's egg-free. I know most are, but I just don't want any recipes for 7 minute frosting, ya know? (I have vivid memories of making that as a kid at my neighbors house. It was the best frosting I had ever had.)

Even if you don't have an egg allergy, you will adore this cake. And if you do, you will be super pleased to have this in your recipe box now. Delish!

Divvies Chocolate Cupcake

Oven: 350 degrees

Makes 1 dozen

1 1/2 cups cake flour (not self-rising)


3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

5 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners; set aside.


In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together oil, vinegar, vanilla, and water until well combined. Add flour mixture to the mixer and mix until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as necessary. Batter should look and feel more watery than normal cake batters.

Pour batter into prepared muffin tin, filling each cup 1/2 to 3/4 full. Transfer to oven and bake, rotating pan halfway through cooking, until a cake tester inserted into the center of one of the cupcakes comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.

Immediately remove cupcakes from muffin tin and transfer to a wire rack. Let cool completely before frosting