Today, I’m about to share with you a delightful treat that’s not only scrumptious but also plant-based – Vegan Red Velvet Cupcakes with Vanilla Frosting. The best part is: this recipe can be made by taking a regular boxed cake mix and modifying it! It really is super easy!
I am not a fan of icing from a can; I really do believe desserts taste 10x better with homemade frosting. Thus, I used a homemade vegan vanilla buttercream for this recipe. Keep reading for my vegan baking tips and how I adapted this classic recipe to make it vegan!
Tips for Baking Vegan Cupcakes
Before we dive into the recipe, let’s go over some pro tips for baking perfect vegan cupcakes. Baking without traditional dairy and eggs may seem daunting, but if you follow these tips, you’ll be perfectly fine!
Choose the Right Dairy Alternatives: When it comes to replacing dairy milk, I like coconut milk from a can. Do make sure it’s the kind from a can and not the kind in a carton. The canned coconut milk is much creamier.
A Note About Frosting: Red velvet cupcakes typically feature cream cheese frosting. I attempted to make vegan cream cheese frosting for this recipe, using vegan cream cheese, and I personally did not like it. I thought the texture was too watery and the frosting didn’t hold its shape. I also did not like the taste. However, that was just my personal opinion! If you want to put vegan cream cheese frosting on your cupcakes, go for it!
Applesauce for Eggs: Instead of traditional eggs, substitute about ¼ cup of applesauce per egg. I say “about,” because I actually used a little less than that. The cake mix I used for this recipe called for 3 eggs, but I only used ½ cup of applesauce to replace those.
How can you tell how much to use?? Well, that’s a difficult question to answer. Ultimately, I thought that using less applesauce to replace my eggs was the right thing to do because I know what cupcake batter should look like after many years of baking.
Would that extra ¼ cup have made a world of difference?? Probably not. Maybe I would have had to bake them a little longer, but 1/4 cup of liquid over 16 cupcakes probably wouldn’t have killed the recipe.
A Note about Boxed Cakes: I used the Duncan Hines Red Velvet cake mix for this recipe. Technically, oh so technically, this cake mix is not certified vegan. However, I looked up all of the ingredients listed and checked whether they were vegan. Two ingredients listed in the “less than 2% of ingredients” section came up as potentially not vegan (depending on from where those ingredients were sourced). To me, as someone who is not vegan and who just wanted to try a vegan baking recipe, this was not a deal-breaker.
However, if you are a true, true vegan, I would recommend looking up a certified vegan red velvet cake mix. Or, adapting a homemade version using some of the other tips you find in this post!
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
-1 red velvet cake mix (I used Duncan Hines)
– 1 cup water
– ½ cup oil (I used vegetable, but I’m sure melted coconut oil would also be good)
– ½ cup apple sauce **See note above about using applesauce instead of eggs in vegan cakes
For the Vanilla Frosting:
– 1 cup vegetable shortening
– 4 cups powdered sugar
– 2 Tbsp coconut milk from a can
– 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions:
To Make Super Easy Vegan Red Velvet Cupcakes:
Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners. Or, if your cake mix suggests a different temperature, go with the instructions on your cake mix box.
Prepare your cake mix according to the instructions indicated, substituting any eggs for applesauce (about ¼ cup per egg) and any milk for coconut milk from a can (or almond or oat if you prefer).
I used the Duncan Hines Red Velvet cake mix, which called for 3 eggs, but I only used ½ cup of applesauce because I thought that was enough. It also only called for water and oil, so I didn’t have to worry about milk.
Pour your prepared batter into cupcake liners. I like to use a ¼ cup measuring cup to spoon out my batter so that I know each cupcake will be about the same size.
Bake your cupcakes according to the instructions on your cake mix box. Mine needed about 22 minutes to bake, but this will depend on your oven and the mix you use.
You may find that your bake time may be slightly off if your cake mix is supposed to use eggs. I just kept an eye on mine, and when a toothpick inserted into the middle of a cupcake came out clean, I knew they were done.
You also want to make sure that the center of your cupcake doesn’t droop when you poke it with a toothpick, If it kind of caves in on itself, or you see it deflating quickly when you take it out of the oven, stick those cupcakes back in for a few minutes!
Let your cupcakes cool completely before frosting.
To Make Vegan Vanilla Frosting
In a large mixing bowl, combine all of your frosting ingredients and mix with an electric or stand mixer until everything is smooth and there are no lumps of sugar or shortening.
Test the texture of your frosting. If it seems too thick, add more coconut milk, just a teaspoon at a time. If it seems too watery, add more powdered sugar a tablespoon at a time.
Put your vegan frosting in a piping bag with a tip. I like the Wilton 1M tip for frosting my cupcakes. All you need is to draw a little circle around your cupcake and it’s done! And it looks so pretty and professional with minimal effort.
So, there you have it! With these pro tips and a step-by-step guide, you’ll be well on your way to creating mouthwatering Vegan Red Velvet Cupcakes with Vanilla Frosting that will impress vegans and non-vegans alike. Happy baking!
Super Easy Vegan Red Velvet Cupcakes with Vanilla Frosting
Ingredients
Vegan Red Velvet Cupcakes
- 1 box red velvet cake mix I used Duncan Hines
- 1/2 cup applesauce You may need more or less, depending on the cake mix you use. This is to replace the eggs.
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
Vegan Vanilla Frosting
- 1 cup vegetable shortening Room temperature
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 2 Tbsp coconut milk from a can Or your preferred non-dairy milk
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
Instructions
For Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to the temperature specified in the instructions on your cake mix box. Mine was 350° F. Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.
- Prepare your red velvet cake mix according to the instructions. Swap out eggs for applesauce (About 1/4 cup per egg. Please see my notes above about this) and dairy milk for a vegan alternative (My cake mix didn't call for milk, but some might.)
- Pour your vegan red velvet cupcake batter in the prepared liners. I like to use a 1/4 cup measuring cup for my cupcake batter so they all end up being the same size.
- Bake your cupcakes according to the instructions on your box. **Note: You may need a couple minutes more due to the absence of eggs and depending on your oven. I usually start a couple minutes under the range given on the box, and then check every 2-3 minutes until I know they're done just to be sure.You know they are done when they hold their shape and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Let cupcakes cool completely before frosting.
For Vanilla Frosting
- In a large mixing bowl, with an electric mixer or a stand mixer, beat all of your ingredients together until they form a smooth mixture. There should not be any lumps of sugar or shortening.
- Put a piping tip in a piping bag (I like the 1M Wilton tip for cupcakes) and pipe frosting on to cooled cupcakes.
