Delicious Vegan Chocolate Cup Cakes For Veganuary (Or Anytime!)

Sometimes, after the wonderful food and over-indulgence at Christmas, it can feel like a relief to move to simpler food!

Veganuary, a 31 day challenge to eat a vegan diet, is a great opportunity to do just that. There are so many delicious recipes online which give vegan alternatives, including on the Veganuary website here.

I've been eating a lot of vegetable stews and soups with delicious sourdough to mop it up.  We've got some fabulous advice on making sourdough here from Elaine Boddy who is a real expert.

My daughter, who runs a food blog recently wrote an article about her favourite soupy/stew, referred to as a "Stoup" in our local restaurant The Canteen at Maker Heights.  If you're looking for a guide to making a soup with whatever you have left over, Phoebe calls it her "Anytime Soup" don't miss it here.

Many of us start January with good intentions for eating more healthily.  Sometimes these new year resolutions can fall by the wayside, particularly if you have a family birthday or celebration to attend!

So, if you have a sweet tooth and are missing the chocolate frenzy of Christmas, there is no better antidote that this delicious vegan cupcake recipe.

This is my "go to" vegan cupcake recipe and means that I can give friends and family a chocolate hit, while continuing to support Veganuary.

Thanks to @bakingmad for the tried and tested recipe 🙂 

The things you'll need are:

For the Cupcakes:

• 150ml dairy free milk (soya or nut)
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 75g dairy free butter (melted & cooled)
• 100g golden caster sugar
• 125g plain white flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 4 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

For the Frosting: 

• 75g dairy free butter
• 225g icing Sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp dairy free milk (soya or nut)
• 30g cocoa powder

1.  Preheat oven to 180ºC / 350ºF/Gas mark 4. Line a cupcake tray with paper liners.
2. Begin with your wet ingredients. Mix the lemon juice with your chosen milk and set it aside to sour.
3. In a large bowl, whisk the melted butter and caster sugar until well combined. Then stir in the milk mixture and the vanilla extract.
4. Sift in the flour, baking powder and cocoa. Stir well to combine.
5. Spoon the mixture into the cupcake cases in the cupcake tin. Bake for 15-20 minutes until risen. Use a cocktail stick to see if they're baked by inserting it into the middle and when it comes out clean, it's ready.
6. Allow to cool in the tray for 5 minutes, before transferring to a wire rack to cool.
7. While the cakes are cooling, begin making your frosting. Mix the vegan butter, icing sugar, vanilla, cocoa powder and and 1 tablespoon of vegan milk until thick and smooth.
8. Too thick or too thin? If the mixture is too thick, add another tablespoon of milk. If it’s too thin, add more icing sugar.
9. Spoon the icing into a piping bag and decorate the cupcakes before serving.

I am sure that you'll enjoy this recipe, please feel free to share it with friends and family! 

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