Do you have cravings for cinnamon and spice at this time of year? I do! And when I walk around the Christmas market next month I will inhale deeply and tuck into some warm roasted almonds, some spicy mulled wine and maybe a cinnamon crepe pancake too! This cupcake/muffin embodies those fine aromas: vanilla, cinnamon, cardamom and allspice are in here – enough to pack a real punch of flavour as well as making the kitchen smell delicious.
And guess what – they are vegan too!
The basic recipe for the golden vanilla cupcake comes from “Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World” by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. But the filling/topping is my own “invention”.
Golden Vanilla Cupcakes with Cinnamon Crunch
For 9 muffins or 12 cupcakes
Prepare your muffin tins and cases, preheat oven to 180°C
First make the cinnamon crunch:
Mix together 50g (1/4 cup) brown sugar and 35g (1/3 cup) chopped walnuts with 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp allspice and 1/2 tsp cardamom.
Cupcakes
In a large bowl mix together and set aside
- 250 ml (1 cup) soya milk
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
Into a small bowl sift together:
- 150 g (1 1/4 cups) plain flour
- 2 tbsps cornflour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
Now add to your milk/vinegar:
- 75 ml (1/3 cup) vegetable oil – I used neutral tasting rapeseed oil (canola in the US)
- 2 1/2 tsps vanilla extract
- 150 g (3/4 cup) sugar
Mix well with a fork and then add the dry ingredients, whisking to remove any lumps. (No mixer required! 🙂 )
Spoon half the mixture into cupcake/muffin liners. Spoon half the cinnamon crunch on top, then pour the rest of the mixture over the tops of the cupcakes. Sprinkle tops with remaining crunch.
Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown and firm to the touch. Leave to cool on a rack, or even better – eat them warm out the oven! 🙂
Look at that gooey centre and crunchy topping! Yum!
My oldest is trying Vegan, and she is struggling a bit with finding a variety she likes, on a college student budget. I forwarded her your blog 🙂
I wish her good luck. I haven’t taken the full step to veganism (yet?) but know it’s hard, especially if like me you’ve relied on cheese and butter for flavour before!
She is doing it for a college class so I am unsure of the duration, but she ate strictly vegetarian for several years!
What a fantastic vegan recipe that everyone can enjoy. The warming spices of autumn are just magic this time of year!
I will be making these again for advent guests! 🙂
Wow they look so good!
Thanks Arielle. 🙂
Oh Cathy, They sound so good! I crave cinnamon and spice this time of year. It is always such a cozy feeling to have something yummy in the oven. It warms the kitchen and fills it with that delicious aroma.
Comfort food! 🙂 It’ll soon be time for baking Christmas cookies too!
Save some for me! 😉
Of course! 🙂
This sounds great. May be my entry to vegan/vegetarian food.I´ll try it!
You’ll love that crunch on top, I’m sure! 🙂
They look gorgeous Cathy! Where do you get those pretty bun cases?
Thanks Lindsay! I think the cases were a present from my niece last year! 🙂
These would be perfect with a mug of hot cocoa!
Or tea, or coffee, or mulled wine! 😉
These sound delicious but tell me, in your photograph you look very slim, how do you stay slim when you make so many cakes?
😉 I am certainly not slim – perhaps curvy would be the right word! But the secret is to share some of my cakes and put some in the freezer for another day! 🙂
Sharing is always good!
They look wonderful Cathy and so gooey in the centre. What a temptation.
The soft centre was a lovely surprise, and the crunchy top too! 🙂
Cinnamon Crunch – Yum.
They are on my baking list for advent goodies! 🙂
These look lovely Cathy, what does the apple cider vinegar do, is that just for taste? How does it react with the Soya milk? We are experimenting here and cutting out wheat and a lot of dairy, I’ve tried Soya in coffee and its quite distinctive, do you have it in tea?
Hi Julie. The vinegar helps the cakes rise, as there’s no egg in there to help. And mixing it with soya milk makes a kind of curdled buttermilk consistency so the cake tastes lighter. We have used soya milk in both tea and coffee (even latte) for years. It takes a while to find a brand you like, as they do differ – some are too sweet, some have an aftertaste, and some are completely sugar- free. I am so used to it now and prefer it to real milk. We use the organic Provamel with calcium. 🙂
I love cinnamon all year round actually and your cupcakes look very inviting. Just read that too much cinnamon is poisonous so I better make sure I’m not too greedy. Happy weekend, Cathy!
Ooh, didn’t know that either! That will stop me being greedy too! 😉
Oh, I can smell those spices from here! Tempting. Very tempting.
I find the smell of cinnamon is always a temptation! 😉
Oh yummy, Cathy! This is wonderfully warm and comforting and perfect for this season–and perfect with a cup of coffee! 🙂
Hi Debra! Yes, good for cold November days, and maybe at Christmas too! 🙂
Oh, this looks so good that I can almost smell th cinnamon and spice! Thanks for sharing.
The smell is delicious Dor! I can’t wait till the Christmas markets open as they smell of cinnamon and spice too!
Great idea and tasty!!!!
Nice and seasonal! 🙂
So incredible and a gooey center too!!
The centre is a nice surprise! 😉
Pingback: World Vegan Month Recipe 4: Savoury Crispy Pasta Topping | Words and Herbs