Vegan-friendly Baking: Cupcakes

I bake a lot (in case you hadn't noticed the title of this blog) and I end up taking a fair number of baked goods into work, since it's a really easy way to make sure that nothing gets wasted. There are several vegans at work who always look hopeful, until I have to disillusion them by informing them that there are eggs or milk in whatever it is they were hoping they could eat. So, this week I was taking cakes into work again, and I decided that it was about time that I attempted something vegan.

I have a cookbook called "Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World" by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. (In case you're wondering why I own such a book, I tried going dairy-free last year, but I couldn't quite hack it. I missed cheese too much.) I hadn't made any of the recipes yet, although I had drooled over several of the pictures, so I decided to start with the very first recipe, Golden Vanilla Cupcakes, for my first foray into the world of vegan baking. I went and bought soy milk and soy creamer and even organic raw sugar, since I vaguely remember someone saying something about processed sugar being non-vegan.

The cupcakes were really easy to make once I had the proper ingredients assembled. They came out a pretty pale yellow color, and once topped with a little powdered-sugar frosting, they were quite delicious looking. They had a nice sugary vanilla flavor, I didn't miss the eggs at all in terms of taste, but the cupcakes had a slightly odd texture. The crumb was very coarse, and they were almost spongey, which I wasn't quite sure about. But, since I'd never made anything vegan before, I figured I'd just take them to work and see how it went.

They got rave reviews, from vegans and non-vegans alike. One person actually told me that it was the best day of his life to be able to eat a cupcake again! So, if you're vegan they apparently might change your life. If you're not, you might find the texture a bit odd, but the end result is still quite tasty.

Vanilla Vegan Cupcakes

from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World

1 cup soy milk

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour

2 tbsp cornstarch

3/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup canola oil

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp orange extract (or almond or caramel)

1/4 cup soy creamer

1/2 tsp clear vanilla extract

1/4 tsp orange extract

2 - 3 cups powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Whisk the soy milk and vinegar together and set aside to curdle. Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners.

Beat together the curdled soy milk, oil, sugar, vanilla, and other extract. Sift in the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix until mostly smooth.

Using an ice cream scoop or large spoon fill each cupcake liner until about 2/3 full. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. They don't brown much, so stop baking when a toothpick comes out clean, don't wait for a color cue.

Remove from pan and cool on a wire rack before frosting. In a small saucepan warm the soy creamer over medium heat. Remove from heat, whisk in the extracts, and enough sugar to reach the consistency you want. I used just about 2 cups of sugar, which made for a thin glaze-like frosting. If you want a thicker frosting just keep whisking in the sugar. Once the cupcakes are fully cooled, spread with frosting, then refrigerate to set frosting. Makes 12 cupcakes.