Vegan Lavender Cupcakes
Vanilla vegan cupcakes topped with a lavender-hued buttercream icing naturally coloured with fresh blackberries, and topped with dried culinary lavender.
Equipment
- mixer optional
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup almond milk or plant milk of choice
- 1/3 cup canola oil
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 Tbsp white vinegar
Lavender Buttercream Icing
- 3 3/4 cups vegan icing sugar
- 3 Tbsp vegan butter room temperature
- 4 Tbsp blackberry juice
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond milk only if required to thin icing
Garnish
- sprinkle dried culinary lavender
- 12 whole blackberries
Instructions
Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C) and line a cupcake tray with 12 cupcake liners.
- Sift the all purpose flour into a large bowl and add the sugar, baking soda and salt.
- Then add the almond milk, vanilla extract, oil and white vinegar. Mix with a whisk until just mixed. You want to get rid of any big lumps, but keep the tiny lumps. Do not over-mix the batter.
- Pour cupcake batter evenly into the 12 cupcake liners, making sure that all the batter is used up. (You can use a jug with a spout for easing pouring, or a ladle with a spout).
- Place in the oven and bake for 25 minutes. Check the cupcakes at 25 minutes. If a toothpick inserted into the centre does not come out clean, place back in oven for a further 5 minutes.
- Allow to cool thoroughly (approximately 50 minutes or more) before frosting.
Lavender Buttercream Icing
- Squeeze some blackberries over a bowl with a sieve on top to catch the fruit pieces, while leaving only the juice of the berries in your bowl.
- Add the powdered sugar, vegan butter, vanilla and 2 Tablespoons of the fresh blackberry juice.
- Beginning on low speed, mix with an electric mixer, slowly increasing speed.
- Add more blackberry juice to get the desired colour. Do not add too much juice, as this will water down your icing. If your icing is too thick you can add a Tbsp or so of almond milk. If your frosting is too thin, add more powdered sugar. The consistency must be thick enough that it doesn’t slide off the cupcakes, but thin enough to be spreadable.
- When your cupcakes are completely cool, add frosting to the top of the cupcakes.
- Sprinkle dried culinary lavender on top of your cupcakes. Top each cupcake with one fresh blackberry (optional).
Notes
These cupcakes keep very well in an air tight container at room temperature for 2-3 days or in the fridge for up to a week.
They can also be frozen (frosted or unfrosted, but don’t add any fresh blackberries if you’re freezing them) for up to 3 months.