Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a standard muffin tin with cupcake papers.
In a large mixing bowl, stir together the arrowroot starch, coconut flour, salt and baking soda until blended. In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine eggs, maple syrup, lemon zest, and vanilla extract. Blend the wet ingredients with an electric mixer until frothy. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet and blend until smooth.
Melt the palm shortening over medium-low heat, then all it to cool slightly. Once the shortening has cooled, pour it into the batter blend the batter again with a mixer on medium high speed until smooth. The will allow air to be whipped into the batter slightly.
Fill each muffin cup 3/4 full with batter and bake on the middle rack of the oven until a toothpick inserted comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before filling & frosting, if desired.
Notes
Frost cupcakes with Dairy-Free Vanilla Frosting (recipe on page 394 of Make it Paleo II) or Vanilla Buttercream Frosting (recipe on page 394 or Make it Paleo II). Cupcakes can also be filled with Lemon Curd (recipe on page 376 of Make it Paleo II)