These classic vanilla cupcakes are deliciously moist and topped with creamy vegan buttercream.
Ingredients
The batter is made from:
- nondairy milk + apple cider vinegar (vegan buttermilk!) – soy milk works the best
- flour
- sugar (we prefer organic)
- baking soda, baking powder, and salt
- canola oil
- vanilla extract (this brand is a good deal!)
- and the buttercream is made out of:
- vegan buttery sticks (our go to brand!)
- powdered sugar (we use organic)
- nondairy milk
You can customize these any way you’d like – top with some melty chocolate, our no-bake cookie dough (our fav way to enjoy them), or anything else you can think of! Or just keep them plain and simple.

Full recipe below! Enjoy.
How to make Chocolate Cupcakes
For the cupcakes: Add 1/4 cup cocoa powder to the dry ingredients of the cupcake batter. Add an extra 2 tbsp warm water at the end.
For the buttercream: Add 2 tbsp cocoa powder to the buttercream to make it chocolate and add more milk, as necessary, for the proper consistency.

Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes
These classic vanilla cupcakes are deliciously moist and no one will believe they're made without any eggs or cow's milk!
Ingredients
For the cupcakes
- 1 cup (240 ml) nondairy milk we prefer soy
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) apple cider vinegar
- 1 1/2 cups (187 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/3 cup (80 ml) canola oil
- 1/2 tbsp (7 ml) pure vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) warm water
For the buttercream frosting
- 1/2 cup (113 g) vegan buttery sticks room temp
- 2 cups (250 g) powdered sugar
- 1+ tbsp (15+ ml) nondairy milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two cupcake pans with ~18 cupcake liners.
- Whisk the milk and vinegar together and let sit for about 10-15 minutes until the mixture curdles.
- In the meantime, in a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda & powder, and salt.
- Once the milk has curdled, add the milk mixture, oil, and vanilla to the dry mixture. Mix just until combined.
- Add in the warm water and mix until the batter is smooth and silky.
- Pour the batter into the cupcake liners, filling each up ~3/4 of the way.
- Bake for 16-20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean or with just crumbs on it (don’t overcook or they may be dry).
- For the buttercream, add the butter to a mixing bowl. Beat for a couple minutes, until fluffy.
- Add the powdered sugar and beat until combined.
- Begin to add milk and continue to beat. Add milk until you reach the desired consistency.
- Once the cupcakes are cooled, pipe the frosting (we prefer a Wilton 2D tip). Keep plain or add any toppings you’d like!
These look so yummy and seem easy to make! I’m excited to make these for an upcoming birthday celebration.
I find that when I add the warm water to the batter, it turns the batter into pretty much a liquid. The end cupcake result still turns out good though. Is this normal?
Yes, that’s normal! The water adds moisture and gives the batter a silky-smooth finish.
I use this recipe throughout the year for cupcakes and cakes–it’s great! I wanted to find a good replacement for oil in this recipe. Any tips?
Hi! For your vanilla/chocolate cupcake recipes, do the baking times stay the same if I were to make 24 mini cupcakes rather than the 12 regular sized ones?
can this be used for a cake instead of cupcakes? if so any adjustments needed? thank you:)