Gluten Free Orange Creamsicle Cupcakes

I don’t know why I never buy orange creamsicles – they’re FABULOUS. If you, too, have fond memories of these perfectly-orangey, perfectly vanilly popsicles, these are the cupcakes for you. For the life of me, I can’t remember the first time I had one of those beacons of cold creamy orange bars, but I do know that on every school field trip I’d hope that the treat at the end of the day wouldn’t be those twin cherry/strawberry/lime ice cream bars but a glorious orange creamsicle. There’s something about the smooth center and bright, peachy orange outside. So, here I am in my late 20s, continuing on the theme of “what childhood treats do I miss the most,” creating these perfectly-dual-toned cupcakes. If you’re new to Sisters Sans Gluten, you’ll quickly learn that we love cupcakes. Especially ones packed with flavor and topped with silky buttercream. Plus, they’re WAY easier than making a layer cake, which, as you’ll pick up, we also love.

So the question is, what comes next? We’ve now got these gluten free orange creamsicle cupcakes to take us back to summers in 2nd grade or grocery store freezer sections, and we have our Neapolitan cupcakes to do just the same, but what other flavor combos can we recreate in cupcake form? If you’ve got any ideas, add them in a comment below! Here are a few brainstorm-session notes: spumoni cupcakes! (first had spumoni ice cream at the tiny Italian restaurant in the tiny town we grew up in and have never forgotten that cherry/pistachio/chocolate combo); animal cracker cupcakes? seems a bit tricky but doable. Or may peanut butter and jelly cupcakes? Or fluffanutter cupcakes (if you know you know), or SunnyD cupcakes (drank that ALL the time in first grade), or strawberry crumble cupcakes (based on those strawberry crumble ice cream bars!).

There are tons of options, so don’t be surprised if you see a few of those pop up soon. In the meantime, check out our other nostalgia-inducing bakes like our nutter butter cookies, or these peanut butter and jelly bars, or these oatmeal cream sandwiches, or our classic gluten free angel food cake, or our southern banana cream pudding!

Print Recipe

5 from 4 votes

Gluten Free Orange Creamsicle Cupcakes

An ice cream classic in cupcake form! Complete with cream filling and orange buttercream!

Prep Time1 hour hr

Cook Time22 minutes mins

Cooling time30 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Diet: Gluten Free

Keyword: buttercream, cream, cupcakes, easy, filled cupcakes, orange, orange creamsicle

Servings: 24 cupcakes

Calories: 450kcal

Author: Amelia Farber

Equipment

• Cupcake pans
• Electric mixer
• Piping tips and bags

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:

• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 Cup canola oil
• 3/4 Cup sour cream
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 tsp orange extract
• 1 Tbsp orange zest
• 3/4 Cup fresh orange juice
• 1 Cup white sugar
• 1 Cup gluten free 1-1 flour mix with xanthan gum added (if it doesn't have xanthan gum, add 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum)
• 1/2 Cup sweet rice flour
• 1/2 Cup arrowroot starch
• 1/2 Cup packed blanched almond flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt

For the filling:

• 4 oz cream cheese
• 1/4 Cup powdered sugar
• 3 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 Cup heavy cream

For the vanilla buttercream:

• 1 1/2 Cups salted butter room temperature
• 2-3 Cups powdered sugar
• 3 tsp vanilla extract

For the orange buttercream:

• 1 1/2 Cups salted butter room temperature
• 3-4 Cups powdered sugar
• 1/4 Cup fresh orange juice
• 1 Tbsp orange extract
• 3 tsp orange zest
• orange food coloring optional

Instructions

• First, make the cupcakes! Preheat the oven to 350° Fahrenheit and line two 12-cup cupcake pans with paper liners, then set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, sour cream, orange juice, zest, and extract, vanilla, and sugar until smooth. Then add in the flours, almond flour, starches, baking soda and powder, and salt, and whisk until fully combined. Scoop batter into prepared cupcake pans (each should be about 3/4 full) and bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Let cupcakes cool completely before filling and frosting.
• While cupcakes are cooling, make the filling. In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth, then add the vanilla and powdered sugar and beat until combined. Finally, add in the cream and beat on low speed until thick and scoopable. Scoop into a piping bag fitted with a 1/2 inch round tip.
• Then make the two buttercreams. In a medium bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the room temp butter with one cup of sifted powdered sugar until smooth – about 3-4 minutes to lighten the color. Continue adding powdered sugar and continue to beat until smooth. Add in the vanilla and beat until smooth. Add a teaspoon of cream to thin the frosting if needed. Scoop some of the frosting into a tip-less piping bag and then cut off a 1/2 inch opening and place this bag in another piping bag fitted with your choice of piping tip (you'll be adding another bag filled with the orange buttercream so leave room.
• Make the orange buttercream. In another medium bowl, beat the butter with 1 cup of powdered sugar until smooth, then add the orange juice, zest, and extract, and continue adding powdered sugar until thick. Add orange food coloring (optional) then beat until smooth. Repeat step from above: scoop some buttercream into a new, tip-less piping bag, cut off a 1/2 inch opening, and place this bag alongside the vanilla buttercream in the one large piping bag. Practice piping this dual-colored buttercream on a paper towel to be sure it works.
• Finally, cut out a small hole on the top of each cupcake and pipe about 1 tsp of the filling into each one. Then pipe your dual-colored buttercream on top of each cupcake. Then serve!

Tag @sisterssansgluten on Instagram if you snap a photo of your cupcakes!

Food photography and styling by Amelia Farber