The Incredible, Edible, Vegan Cupcake

So the other day, also our first really hot day of the year, I really wanted to make cupcakes, but had no milk or eggs. These are the only days when I want to bake. So I went Googling for vegan recipes, which sounds like much less of a workout than it was. Amazing how many recipes included butter. I had butter in the fridge, but if you're going to do something, you might as well do it with an undeserved sense of self-righteousness.

I finally found a base recipe that could actually be considered vegan, and didn't include any soy-based products or juice, which I didn't have, at Instructables.com, compared it to a similar cupcake recipe, and voile I could make cheap, yummy, fairly-guilt-free treats. Did I mention my husband was busy working 30 hours straight at the time? I was really betting on some awesome cupcakes.

This isn't the end of my tale of cupcakeness, but I'll pause to share the recipe I used for my first batch. Please note that this is just my version of tried-and-true recipes created by very talented chefs whom you should look up and support by buying their cookbooks. Anyhoo:

Chocolate Cupcakes Ingredients:
dry: 1/2 cup + 1 TB white flour | 1/2 cup + 1 TB whole wheat flour | 1 cup sugar | 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder | 1 tsp baking soda | 1/2 tsp salt
wet: 1 cup warm water | 1 tsp vanilla extract | 1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp distilled white vinegar
Mix dry ingredients with a fork. Add wet ingredients, except vinegar, and blend completely.
Add vinegar and immediately spoon batter into an ungreased cupcake pan, filling each section about halfway.
Bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Cool completely, and use a knife to loosen the sides. They should fall right out. Silicon pans make this even easier!

The first batch of cupcakes was a huge hit. They were incredibly moist, light, and not nearly as oily as my previous egg-free baking attempts. Note that in the recipe above it says not to grease the pan: I found that there's enough oil in the recipe that you don't need any more.

Enjoy your cupcakes and I'll be back soon with more cupcake tales...of...interest...!