Vegan Strawberry Cupcakes
These vegan strawberry cupcakes are light, fluffy and bursting with flavour! They’re super easy to make and can be paired with strawberry, chocolate or vanilla frosting for a delicious treat!
Flavouring the cupcakes
When I first tried to make these cupcakes, I had a bit of trouble getting a strong enough strawberry flavour. I used fresh strawberries but for some reason thought it was necessary to strain the pulp out of them first. Little did I know I was essentially just adding pink water to the cake mix!
On my next attempt, I used pureed strawberries but the flavour just wasn’t strong enough for my liking. To get a decent strawberry flavour coming through, I would’ve had to add so much that it would make my batter curdle. I also played around with strawberry extract which just tasted way too artificial, at least with the one I used.
Another attempt involved adding strawberry jam to the batter but again, it just wasn’t strong enough! It also curdled up into small pieces rather than flowing smoothly through the cake mix.
Because I’d had such great success using freeze-dried strawberry powder in my strawberry buttercream, I figured this would work well in the cupcake batter. And I’m glad to say, I was right! Without needing to add any artificial colours or flavours, the powder dyes the cupcakes a nice pink colour and gives a strong strawberry flavour.
Once I was happy with the cupcakes, I topped them with strawberry buttercream, strawberry jam and a piece of fresh strawberry. The flavour was spot on!
More vegan cupcake recipes:
How to make vegan strawberry cupcakes
Step 1:
Preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F. If you’re using a fan or convection oven, set it to 160°C/325°F instead. Line a cupcake tin with 12 paper liners.
Step 2:
In a large bowl, mix together 230g of self-raising flour (1+3/4 cups), 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder and 180g of caster sugar (3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons).
Caster sugar is also known as superfine sugar. Regular (granulated) sugar can be substituted but the cupcakes may taste slightly grainy or crunchy.
Step 3:
Add 280ml of unsweetened soy milk (or 1 cup + 2 tablespoons) to the bowl, along with 6 tablespoons of vegetable oil (can be subbed for melted vegan block butter), 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
If using oil, I personally recommend using a neutral tasting oil such as rapeseed or sunflower oil. Oils like coconut and olive have a stronger flavour that may overpower the strawberry flavour.
Step 4:
Mix everything together thoroughly until you have a nice smooth cake batter. Make sure you get any dry ingredients that may be stuck at the bottom or sides of the bowl.
Lastly, mix in 40g of freeze-dried strawberry powder.
Step 5:
Divide the mixture equally between your 12 cupcake cases and bake for 18-20 minutes. You can check if they’re ready by inserting a toothpick through the centre of one. If the toothpick comes out clean, without any cake mix stuck to it, that means they’re done.
Step 6:
Transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack and leave them there to cool completely.
For the frosting
I chose to pair the cupcakes with my strawberry buttercream for the purposes of this post but you can add whichever type of frosting you desire.
- Dark chocolate ganache
- Chocolate buttercream
- Vanilla buttercream
- White chocolate ganache
- Cream cheese frosting
Step 1:
Add 180g (3/4 cup) of vegan margarine into a large bowl.
Step 2:
Measure out 400g of icing sugar (3+1/4 cups). Mix it into the margarine a little bit at a time, along with 3 tablespoons of soy milk. Give it a quick mix with an electric whisk or stand mixer until it becomes soft and fluffy.
Step 3:
Stir in 45g of freeze-dried strawberry powder then give it another quick whisk.
Step 4:
Add the frosting to a piping bag with your favourite nozzle attachment and pipe a swirl onto each cupcake.
Decorate with half a small strawberry and some strawberry jam. I warmed the jam up slightly until it was runny enough to drizzle.
FAQ:
These are best stored in the fridge in an airtight container. If you’re using fresh strawberries to decorate the cupcakes, add them immediately before serving. The strawberries will spoil the frosting if left for too long.
Around 4 days if stored without fresh fruit or jam on top.
I got mine from HoneyBerry. It’s also available from many different brands on Amazon.
I don’t recommend it because you need a lot of it in order to get a strong flavour. The excess water will spoil the batter. If you can’t/don’t want to use freeze-dried strawberry powder, you can add 1 teaspoon (or more, to taste) of strawberry extract to the cake batter instead.
Anything your heart desires! I’ve linked to a few of my other frosting recipes above but some flavours I think would go great are chocolate, vanilla, cream cheese, raspberry, lemon and white chocolate.
That’s all for now. I really hope you love these cupcakes! Let me know if you try them at home and leave your thoughts in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
Happy baking! xo
Vegan Strawberry Cupcakes
Light and fluffy cupcakes made with freeze-dried strawberry powder.
Ingredients
- 230 g Self-raising flour (1+¾ cups)
- ½ Teaspoon Baking soda
- 180 g Caster sugar (¾ cup + 2 tablespoons)
- 280 ml Soy milk (1 cup + 2 tablespoons)
- 6 Tablespoons Oil (sub for melted vegan block butter)
- 1 Teaspoon Apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice)
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 40 g Freeze-dried strawberry powder
For the frosting:
To top (optional):
- 6 Small strawberries, cut in half
- 2-3 Tablespoons Strawberry jam
Instructions
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Preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C/325°F if you're using a fan or convection oven). Line a cupcake tin with 12 cupcake liners.
-
In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda and sugar.
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Add in the soy milk, melted margarine, apple cider vinegar and vanilla extract. Mix everything together thoroughly, making sure there is no dry mixture stuck to the sides or bottom of the bowl.
-
Add in the strawberry powder and mix well.
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Divide the cake batter between your cupcake cases and bake for 18-20 minutes. You can test if they're ready by inserting a toothpick through the centre of one. It will come out clean when they're done.
-
Transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack and let them cool completely.
-
Top with strawberry buttercream, half a fresh strawberry and some jam.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
- If using fresh strawberries on top for decoration, I recommend only adding them when you’re ready to serve the cupcakes. They won’t last as long otherwise.
