The Best Ever Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes
I have to say I’m not the biggest fan of vanilla. Don’t get me wrong. Vanilla is great with its intoxicating scent and recognizable black specks. But despite vanilla’s best efforts, it has always been butchered throughout my life. It’s sad to say that fake vanilla is more commonplace than the real deal bean. I’ve even come across vanilla extract that smelled and tasted more like gulaman than anything else! (I like gulaman but not when I’m looking for vanilla). Honestly, I can count with my hands the local establishments that use pure vanilla.
Although, give me anything chocolate and I’ll happily devour it. Even if it isn’t a high grade variety. For some reason, chocolate in all its forms holds a unique charm. Think Flat Tops, Cloud 9 and the forever favorite: Chocnut. Who can say no to a good candy bar? Anyways, I’m going off topic. The truth is that real vanilla is where it’s at. I don’t care if you say it’s fancy schmancy. We are making the best ever vegan vanilla cupcakes so let’s live a little.
These cupcakes came around when my good friend asked me to make some special cupcakes for a bridal shower. The challenge? The cupcakes had to be vegan and gluten free. I admit I’m not a pro allergen-specific baker. Yet, the prospect of baking something enjoyable for someone who rarely has a chance to eat dessert was too good to pass up. In the end, they turned out to be the best vegan vanilla cupcakes I’ve made and the bride-to-be was ecstatic. Each cake was topped with mauve pink rosettes and finished with silver pearls. How did I do?
Today’s recipe is an iteration of what I did for the bridal shower but with a few tweaks to make it more accessible. Filled with vanilla and rich in buttery flavor, no one will guess that these are vegan! My family, who are strangely skeptical of anything plant based, were happy enough to devour these. They are best eaten immediately when the cakes are at their softest and fluffiest. However, if finishing a dozen seems too much in a day, you can opt to store them for longer with great results (see the Tips section of this post).
How to Make The Best Ever Vanilla Cupcakes
Step #1: Use good quality ingredients. There’s no hiding any off flavors with a cupcake as simple as this and you can bet that the vanilla you put will be clearly evident in the finished cupcake. I highly encourage you to splurge on real vanilla extract or at the least a good imitation one if you can’t find a pure extract. This rule applies to the olive oil and the butter you use as well. I use extra virgin olive oil which adds a buttery depth to these cupcakes.
Step #2: Use a measuring scale. I can’t stress this enough. If you like to bake often, owning a weighing scale will be life changing. If you often find yourself saying that this “recipe does not work”, then most likely the problem is with the measurements. For example, a properly weighed cup of flour will be 125g while flour measured using the cup-method can go up to150g or more. This is 20% more than what you need! I still keep my trusty measuring cups and spoons but it can’t beat the accuracy of a scale (not to mention less dishes to wash).Trust me. Make the switch and you won’t regret it.
Step #3: Don’t underfill or overfill your cupcakes. You’ll either end up with sunken domes or overflowing cupcake elephants. A good rule of thumb is to fill each liner up to 2/3 full. This recipe makes exactly 12 cupcakes so you don’t have to worry too much about over or under filling as long as you separate the batter evenly.
Step #4: Keep that oven temperature in check. Everybody’s oven is different so I recommend using a thermometer if you have one and setting your timer 5 minutes before you need to take the cupcakes out. For me, this is at the 15 minute mark. Insert a skewer at the center of one of the inner cupcakes (cupcakes in the middle of the pan) and see if it comes out clean. Another tip is to place the pan on the middle rack for more even heating. P.S. I often don’t bother with a thermometer but please do all the other stuff.
Step #5: Wait for your cupcakes to cool completely. I think everyone hates this step but it must be done. Frosting hot cupcakes well…is a hot mess. If you don’t want your buttercream to turn into goop, please make sure that your cupcakes have had time to settle down for about an hour and are cool to the touch. I also make sure to refrigerate my frosting before I use it because 1: I live in a hot country and 2: because buttercream has a tendency to melt due to the heat from your hands when you hold the piping bag.
Last extra step 🎉: Decorating! Just have fun here. You don’t need any extra equipment to decorate these best ever vegan vanilla cupcakes. Instead of buying piping bags, you can always snip off the end of a ziploc bag and use that to pipe. I also like using an ice cream scoop or making a swirl with a palette knife.
Just A Few Tips
- Use room temperature ingredients when making the cupcake batter. This ensures that everything mixes together well.
- I make my own vegan “buttermilk” for this recipe using apple cider vinegar and soy milk. Feel free to switch out the ACV for another neutral vinegar.
- Use a gluten free flour blend to make these gluten free. I used Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Baking Flour.
- Cupcakes are best stored in an airtight container away from direct sunlight on the counter for up to 2 days. If you plan to keep these for longer, keep them in the fridge or better yet freeze them. The reason I avoid keeping cupcakes in the fridge is because the temperature dries out the cake. Freezing on the other hand, keeps the cupcakes fresh. To freeze, remove the paper liner and freeze whole then store in a container. When ready to eat, plop them on the counter and leave to thaw. They should keep for up to 1 month.
Let me know if you enjoyed these Best Ever Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes by leaving a rating or comment down below. Happy baking, friends!
The Best Ever Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes
Ingredients
Vanilla Batter
- 360 mL (1½ cup) plant based milk ,room temp
- 110 mL (½ cup) olive oil
- 1½ tbsp apple cider vinegar*
- 250 g all purpose flour* ,sifted
- 205 g (1 cup) white sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Buttercream
- 112 g (½ cup) vegan butter ,softened
- 240 g (2 cups) powdered sugar ,sifted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C) and fill a cupcake tin with 12 paper liners. Set aside.
- In a medium sized bowl, combine the milk, apple cider vinegar and olive oil. Set aside to curdle for about 5 minutes. Some lumps may form which is normal.
- In another bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Pour in the milk mixture and add in the vanilla.
- When there are no more large clumps of flour and the batter is relatively smooth (a few small lumps are fine), spoon the batter into the prepared baking pan until each cup is ⅔ full. Slide into the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until a skewer inserted at the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Meanwhile, make the buttercream. In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy, around 3-5 minutes. Add in the vanilla and salt and beat until you arrive at a silky frosting.
- Place the frosting in a piping bag and decorate the cupcakes as you wish (see this blog post for more). Eat immediately or store at room temperature for up to 2 days*.
