It's almost Easter, so let's celebrate with some yummy treats!
Spring has finally arrived, and I'm in the mood for some zingy citrus baking. When I came across a vegan lemon curd recipe by It doesn't taste like chicken, and a zesty vegan lemon cupcake recipe by Loving it Vegan, I knew I wanted to tweak and combine them into the ultimate lemony treat!
These are not your ordinary frosted cupcakes, they have a secret lemon curd filling, delicious! Plus, they are dairy free making them perfect for food intolerance sufferers, and vegans alike.
Ingredients
Lemon Curd
- 100g Caster sugar
- 15g Corn flour
- 118ml Soy milk
- 61ml Fresh lemon juice
- Zest of 1 lemon
- Pinch of turmeric
Cupcakes
- 1 tablespoon Apple cider vinegar
- 240ml Soy milk
- 220g Plain flour
- 200g Caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon Baking soda
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 80ml Vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons Lemon extract
- Zest of 1 lemon
Lemon Icing
- 480g Icing sugar
- 112g Vegan baking block (Flora or Trex are good)
- 2 teaspoons Lemon extract
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Pinch of turmeric
Making the curd
- In a saucepan, stir together the caster sugar and corn flour.
- Add in all the other ingredients and stir over a medium heat. The turmeric is optional, and gives the curd a traditional yellow colour.
- Keep stirring until the curd thickens, mine took around 12 minutes. You want it to not be too runny, nor too thick. It will thicken up more when it cools.
- Allow to cool slightly, and then pour into a lidded jar and set aside.
The curd can be kept in the fridge for up to 1 week, and is yummy in the cupcakes, or even on toast.
Making the cupcakes
- Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius / 160 degrees Fan and line a muffin tin with 12 muffin or large cupcake liners.
- Add the apple cider vinegar to the soy milk, whisk and set aside. It may look a bit lumpy, as the vinegar will curdle the milk.
- Sift the flour and baking soda into a bowl, then add the salt and sugar. Stir to combine.
- To the milk mixture, add the vegetable oil, lemon zest, vanilla and lemon extract and stir.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and gently fold in. Keep folding until just combined, do not over-mix.
- Portion out the batter into the cupcake liners and bake for 18 to 20 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean.
- Gently pop the cupcakes out of the tray and place on a wire rack to cool completely.
Making the icing
- Using a stand mixer, put the icing sugar, cubed vegan block, lemon extract, and two tablespoons of fresh lemon juice into the bowl.
- If you'd like a subtle yellow colour to your icing, add a pinch of turmeric. It will colour the icing, but you won't be able to taste it.
- Starting at a slow speed and with a paddle attachment, beat the ingredients until just combined.
- Increase the speed until the vegan block has softened.
- Switch to a whisk attachment and beat at a high speed until light and fluffy. If your icing is too thick, you can add more fresh lemon juice, 1 tablespoon at a time.
Assembling your cupcakes
- Using a cake corer, or an apple corer, remove a scoop out of the middle of each cupcake. You can use a teaspoon, it will just be a bit messier.
- Fill up each hole with the cooled lemon curd.
- Fill up a piping bag with your icing, and ice each cupcake. I used a Wilton 1M tip and created roses.
Place in a covered tin and eat within 3 days. These can be frozen, iced or plain for 3 months. Just leave in the fridge for at least 12 hours to defrost, and then serve at room temperature.
As it's Easter, it would have been a shame to have not shown these off with some pretty bunny rabbit pom pom cake toppers. You can buy your very own set here.