Scratchin' it: Homemade chocolate cupcakes

#vegan #chocolate #cupcakes A great way to start any day! (Taken with instagram)

I made these a while back, but wanted to share this post on this new blog. I really like making cupcakes from scratch even though it takes extra work. Why? There are so many unknowns in many boxed cake mix (Fooducate, Organic Authority, and more) that I figure if you can make from scratch then great. Keep in mind some of the boxed mixes are vegan, so they can be used in a pinch.  

I used the recipe below. A couple of suggestions. The icing is really sweet and makes a ton. So I just made another batch of cupcakes. I think next time I will cut back on the sugar in the icing.

The cupcakes were not too sweet but I used unsweetened soy milk and coca, which cut down in the sugar. I also made two batches— 1 with oreo cookies mixed in and 1 with coffee mixed in (see comments in blog. I put in 1 tablespoon of hazelnut coffee). I prefer the coffee version but I may be biased. ;)

I also made mini cupcakes and I am glad I did since the icing is so sweet
I might even leave the icing off a few.

Vegan chocolate cupcake

I made these for Earth Day in 2012 and they were delicious!
Frosting:

1/2 cup nonhydrogenated shortening
1/2 cup nonhydrogenated margarine
3 1/2 cups Sifted powdered sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup soy milk

http://www.chow.com/recipes/10856-vegan-fluffy-buttercream-frosting

Cupcakes
1 cup soy milk
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup canola oil
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flower
1/3 cup coca powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
http://www.chow.com/recipes/10794-basic-vegan-chocolate-cupcake

If you try them, please leave a message and let me know how you liked them, especially comment if you used any substitutions and how it went. ~Alisha