Vegan Lemon Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream Frosting

These vegan lemon cupcakes with lemon buttercream frosting and lemon zest are so divine, they are my latest favorite cupcake in the whole entire world.

Well, of course that is until I bake one of my other absolute favorites in the entire world – such as – any of the other cupcakes on this site! Love them all I must admit!

These were super good and I’m a big fan. As is everyone else who ate them!

That being said I didn’t have the easiest time in making these. I had the idea of using lemon juice (in quite a large quantity) to make these, but hey, it just didn’t work out. I couldn’t even tell you why.

But the moment I added that lemon juice to the batter it fluffed up in a way that just didn’t look right, so I was highly sceptical even before they went into the oven, and I wasn’t wrong! They came out just as ‘not quite right’ as they went in.

So I had to ditch the lemon juice idea (maybe my lemons just weren’t great?) and instead went for lemon zest and lemon essence to create the deliciously lemon flavor. The lemon buttercream ended up being where the lemon juice got a chance to shine!

The lemon buttercream has lemon juice and lemon essence and has a fabulously lemony taste, and topped with lemon zest there is no doubt that these are lemon cupcakes!

I adapted the recipe from my vegan vanilla cupcakes which is just the best recipe! Perfectly moist with a light and spongey texture.

Just as a side note if you like lemon then you will also love my vegan lemon pie! And my key lime cake is a winner too – okay it’s not lemon but pretty close!

I think you are going to love these vegan lemon cupcakes! They are:

• Deliciously lemony
• Light and spongey
• Topped with lemon buttercream
• Super easy

Keep them covered at room temperature where they will stay fresh for a couple of days, or keep them in the fridge (covered) where they will last up to a week.

So let us know what you think of these lemon cupcakes! Leave a comment and rate the recipe if you’ve made it!

If you take any pics tag us #lovingitvegan on instagram so we get to see it! We simply love to see what you’re baking out there!

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Lemon Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream Frosting

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★★★★★

5 from 9 reviews

• Author: Loving It Vegan
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 25 mins
• Total Time: 45 mins
• Yield: 12
• Category: Cupcakes, Dessert
• Cuisine: Vegan

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Description

Light and spongey vegan lemon cupcakes with lemon buttercream frosting. Deliciously lemony, moist and simple cupcakes with a velvety frosting.

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Ingredients

For the Cupcakes:

• 1 and 3/4 cups (220g) All Purpose Flour
• 1 cup (200g) Sugar
• 1 tsp Baking Soda
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1 cup (240ml) Soy Milk (or other non-dairy milk)
• 1/3 cup (80ml) Vegetable Oil (I used extra virgin olive oil)
• 1 Tbsp White Vinegar (or Apple Cider Vinegar)
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 2 tsp Lemon Extract
• 1 Tbsp Lemon Zest

For the Lemon Buttercream Frosting:

• 3 cups (360g) Powdered (Confectioners) Sugar
• 1/3 cup (75g) Vegan Butter or Margarine
• 2 Tbsp Lemon Juice (freshly squeezed)
• 1 tsp Lemon Extract

For Decoration:

• Lemon Zest

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
2. Sift the flour into a mixing bowl and add the sugar, baking soda and salt. Then add the soy milk, vegetable oil, vinegar, vanilla, lemon extract and lemon zest. Whisk briefly with a hand whisk to combine properly and remove any lumps.
3. Line a cupcake tray with cupcake liners and divide the batter between them.
4. Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
5. When baked transfer to a wire cooling rack and allow to cool completely before frosting.
6. Prepare your frosting by adding the powdered sugar, vegan butter, lemon juice and lemon essence to an electric mixing bowl. Start at slow speed and gradually increase speed until smooth and thick. If it’s too thick, add a little more lemon juice (a couple of drops at a time) until you reach the right consistency.
7. Pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes and then decorate with some lemon zest.

Notes

Adapted from our Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 Cupcake (of 12)
• Calories: 345
• Sugar: 48g
• Sodium: 254mg
• Fat: 9.4g
• Saturated Fat: 1.4g
• Carbohydrates: 63g
• Fiber: 0.6g
• Protein: 2.5g

Keywords: vegan lemon cupcakes