Light and fluffy vegan lemon cupcakes with a lemon buttercream frosting. Moist, packed with lemon flavor and super simple to make.
These vegan lemon cupcakes with lemon buttercream frosting 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. But there is really something special about the tangy, sunshine flavor of lemon.
These cupcakes were super good and I’m a huge fan. As is everyone else who ate them. And they’re super easy to make too.
The perfect lemon flavor
The perfect lemon flavor in these cupcakes comes from lemon zest and lemon extract. The vegan lemon buttercream frosting is made with lemon juice and lemon extract and the flavors REALLY pop.
I adapted this recipe from my vegan vanilla cupcakes which is just the best recipe! Perfectly moist with a light and fluffy texture.
And if you love lemon like I do then you’ll also love our vegan lemon cake, vegan lemon cookies, vegan lemon pound cake, vegan lemon pie and vegan lemon poppy seed cake.
Ingredients You’ll Need To Make These Cupcakes:
Ingredient Notes
- Soy milk – you can use soy milk or any other non-dairy milk that you have on hand.
- Lemon zest – we used 1 tablespoon of lemon zest in this recipe, which is usually what you’d get from 1 medium sized lemon.
- Lemon extract – this really pops the lemon flavor! If you can’t get hold of it, you could just use lemon juice but it won’t be nearly as flavorful.
- Canola oil – can be replaced with vegetable oil.
- White vinegar – distilled white vinegar reacts with the baking soda (called bicarbonate of soda in some countries) in this recipe and creates the beautiful rise. You could replace this with apple cider vinegar.
How To Make Vegan Lemon Cupcakes
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
- Sift all purpose flour into a mixing bowl and add white granulated sugar, baking soda and salt. Mix together.
- Add soy milk, canola oil, white vinegar, vanilla extract, lemon extract and lemon zest. Mix into a batter. Don’t overmix.
- Divide the batter evenly between 12 cupcake liners.
- Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the cupcakes comes out clean.
- Let the cupcakes cool for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- When they are completely cool, frost them with vegan lemon buttercream frosting.
Recipe Tips
Measure the flour correctly. For the perfect light and fluffy cupcakes it’s crucial that you don’t accidentally use too much flour. So it’s perfect if you weigh out your flour on a food scale. If you don’t have a food scale though then the next best thing is to use the ‘spoon and level’ method. Spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level off the top with a knife. Don’t scoop the flour and don’t pack it into the cup.
Don’t overmix the batter. Mix it until just mixed and then stop mixing. Over-mixing can affect the texture and rise of your cupcakes.
Bake right away. As soon as the batter has been divided between your cupcake liners, bake them right away. Letting the batter sit too long can also affect the texture and rise of your cupcakes.
Gluten-free. If you’d like to make these cupcakes gluten-free then the best thing would be to use a gluten-free all purpose baking blend to replace the regular flour.
Decorate. If you want to decorate these cupcakes then a sprinkle of lemon zest on top (as in our video) works great.
Storing and Freezing
Keep them covered at room temperature where they will stay fresh for 2-3 days, or keep them in the fridge (covered) where they will last up to a week.
They are also freezer friendly (frosted or unfrosted) for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and bring to room temperature before serving.
More Vegan Cupcakes
- Classic Vegan Chocolate Cupcakes
- Vegan Red Velvet Cupcakes
- Vegan Strawberry Cupcakes
- Vegan Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- Vegan Funfetti Cupcakes
- Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Vegan Lemon Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups All Purpose Flour (220g)
- 1 cup White Granulated Sugar (200g)
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 cup Soy Milk (240ml) or other non-dairy milk
- ⅓ cup Canola Oil (80ml) or Vegetable Oil
- 1 Tablespoon Distilled White Vinegar or Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 2 teaspoons Lemon Extract
- 1 Tablespoon Lemon Zest
Lemon Buttercream Frosting:
- 4 cups Powdered Sugar (480g)
- ½ cup Vegan Butter (112g)
- 2 teaspoons Lemon Extract
- 2-3 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and line a cupcake tray with cupcake liners.
- Sift all purpose flour into a mixing bowl and add white granulated sugar, baking soda and salt. Mix together.
- Add soy milk, canola oil, white vinegar, vanilla extract, lemon extract and lemon zest. Mix into a batter. Don't overmix.
- Divide the batter evenly between 12 cupcake liners.
- Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the cupcakes comes out clean.
- Let the cupcakes cool for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely before frosting.
- Prepare your frosting by adding the powdered sugar, vegan butter, lemon extract and 2 tablespoons lemon juice to the bowl of your stand mixer. Start at slow speed and gradually increase speed until smooth and thick. If it's too thick, add the remaining lemon juice a drop at a time until you reach the right consistency.
- When the cupcakes are completely cool, pipe on the frosting and serve.
Video
Notes
- Measure the flour correctly. For the perfect light and fluffy cupcakes it’s crucial that you don’t accidentally use too much flour. So it’s perfect if you weigh out your flour on a food scale. If you don’t have a food scale though then the next best thing is to use the ‘spoon and level’ method. Spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level off the top with a knife. Don’t scoop the flour and don’t pack it into the cup.
- Lemon extract – this really pops the lemon flavor! If you can’t get hold of it, you could just use lemon juice but it won’t be nearly as flavorful.
- Lemon zest – we used 1 tablespoon of lemon zest in this recipe, which is usually what you’d get from 1 medium sized lemon.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Mix it until just mixed and then stop mixing. Over-mixing can affect the texture and rise of your cupcakes.
- Bake right away. As soon as the batter has been divided between your cupcake liners, bake them right away. Letting the batter sit too long can also affect the texture and rise of your cupcakes.
- Gluten-free: To make these cupcakes gluten-free the best thing would be to use a gluten-free all purpose baking blend in place of the regular flour.
- Storing and freezing: Keep them covered at room temperature where they will stay fresh for 2-3 days, or keep them in the fridge (covered) where they will last up to a week. They are also freezer friendly (frosted or unfrosted) for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and bring to room temperature before serving.
- This recipe has been updated with new photos and extra tips but the recipe itself is the same.
Cynthia says
Yum! Made these for my hubby using Ripple Plant-Based “Milk” and they came out great! Thank you for the recipe!
Alison Andrews says
Wonderful! Thanks Cynthia!
Prita says
Hi Alison. Greetings from Indonesia. I’m a newbie vegan and love your simple vegan baking. Thank you so much for the recipe. I made this yesterday for my friend and she love it. It is just the perfect amount of sweet and sour from the lemon juice. Love it ????
Alison Andrews says
Thanks so much Prita!
Kristal says
These cupcakes were a hit with all my non-vegan family members! I’m glad I didn’t follow the advice of others and reduce the sugar. It was just the right amount of sweetness for me… and apparently everyone else who had one or two. Next time, I plan to add just a touch more of lemon extract to the muffin mix because I wanted a little more of it. Delicious though. Thanks for the recipe.
Alison Andrews says
So happy to hear that Kristal! And I agree – it’s not too sweet at all! 🙂 Thanks so much for the great review.
Sharon says
Everyone loved these and I like that the ingredients are easy to find in my rural grocery store. My frosting was a little runny, I used margarine. Just kept them in the fridge and they were fine.
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! Thanks for sharing Sharon!
Colin Hall says
I’ve lost count how many times I’ve made these cupcake for friends and family, they are that popular (and I’m not even vegan!). My go-to dessert for parties, thanks for sharing this straight-forward recipe with us 🙂
Alison Andrews says
Wonderful! Thanks so much Colin!
Lisa says
Just made these. Your site is my absolute favorite vegan recipe site! I cut the sugar for the cupcakes part in half and I made 2/3rds of what the frosting recipe called for. I also used two tbsp lemon juice for the cupcake and added a bit of extra lemon zest. It was all incredible. Thanks so much!
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! Thanks Lisa!
Melissa says
Thank you for this delicious recipe. First time making vegan cupcakes 🙂
Janice says
I absolutely love this recipe! The cupcakes are delicious and so easy to make. They rise beautifully everytime. Lemon is my new favourite cupcake flavour.
Alison Andrews says
Thanks Janice! So happy to hear that! 🙂
Susie says
These were delicious and didn’t last very long! As per usual with vegan recipes, I felt there was too much sugar so dropped the amount by 25% with no ill effects on taste or texture.
Kaala says
Absolutely delicious and so simple to make. I have made these time and time again and the recipe never fails. Beautiful with candied lemon peel on top if you want to make them look more fancy.
Alison Andrews says
Thanks Kaala!
Shani says
Can this recipe be made into a layer cake?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Shani, we have a layer cake lemon cake recipe. Alternatively this recipe would make a 2-layer 7-inch cake.
Marianne says
Thanks for the recipe, fluffy, light and yummy, I used I cup raspberries, and sub quarter cup coconut yoghurt and 3/4 soy milk, and 2 tsp of almond essence instead of lemon. Will definitely be my go too recipe. Thanks again.
Alison Andrews says
Awesome! Thanks for sharing Marianne!
Carmen L says
Hi !! Is it just as nice without the icings ? I m not a big fan of icing but like lemon cake.
Alison Andrews says
Yes it’s delicious without frosting too. 🙂
Ann says
Hi I was just wondering if I’d be able to use self rising flour since its all I have left and I can’t get flour in the shops at the moment!
Alison Andrews says
Hi Ann, yes I think you could. Since self raising flour contains baking powder and salt just omit the salt from the recipe and also reduce the baking soda by half. All the best!
Helen M Milchling says
My son is a lemon lover. I made these today to drop over his house for his birthday. We usually have a dinner at my house but we can not this year.???? We need to stay safe
. Really yummy!! I know he will love them.
Alison Andrews says
I hope he loves the cupcakes! Thanks so much for sharing Helen! xo