My friend Lisa Chell of Modern Vegan Family https://www.facebook.com/ModernVeganFamily first introduced me to these Zucchini Cupcakes at her Vitalwaves Retreat in Tofino http://www.vitalwaveretreats.com/….what an amazing time we had. Surfing, drumming, yoga and wonderful plant based food throughout!
The original recipe comes from the Minimalist Baker http://minimalistbaker.com/ I’ve made minimal changes as it’s that good!
When I made the recipe, I decided to make cupcakes instead of a cake. My husband said they were more like muffins….either way fun to make and easy to eat!
Join me for the recipe…..
As usual I doubled the original recipe, this made 3 dozen yummy Zucchini Cupcakes. I also substituted chia egg for the dairy eggs, added a bit more apple sauce and added a little lemon juice to the icing. I forgot to add in a pinch of salt to the cupcake recipe and I think I’ll keep it that way. Lots of flavour without it and low in sodium now too!
Zucchini Cupcakes
- 1 1/2 c grated zucchini (organic if possible)
- 1 t vanilla
- 1 c coconut sugar or other sugar of your choice
- 1 t baking powder
- 1 t baking soda
- 1/4 c melted coconut oil (you could use olive or canola oil)
- 1/3 c unsweetened apple sauce
- 2 Chia Eggs (2 T of ground chia seeds, soaked in 6 T of water (makes two Chia eggs)
- 1/2 t cinnamon
- 1 1/2 c gluten free flour
- 3/4 c almond meal (ground from raw almonds) You can use your food processor to grind
- 1/4 c gluten free oats
How to make the Zucchini Cupcakes:
- Preheat oven to 300º
- Fill cupcake trays with cupcake papers (18 Zucchini Cupcakes for a single recipe)
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Almonds ground in the food processor. Make your almond meal. Take raw almonds, skin on is fine and grind in food processor till small bits. Put in medium size bowl and set aside.
- Grind chia (in coffee grinder) and mix in cup with water. Let sit.
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Almond meal, gluten free flour and oats, combine and set aside. Add in gluten free flour and oats into the almond meal, mix up and set aside.
- Grate zucchini and place in large mixing bowl.
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Grated zucchini, chia egg, apple sauce, coconut sugar combined. Add in your sugar, coconut oil, apple sauce and chia eggs to the zucchini and mix up.
- Next add vanilla, baking soda, baking powder and cinnamon to the zucchini mixture. Mix some more.
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Spices, vanilla, baking soda and baking powder added to the zucchini mixture and the almond meal mixture. Stir well. Finally add almond meal, gluten free flour, and gluten free oats to the zucchini mixture and mix again. The batter will be fairly thick.
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Batter in the muffin tins, ready for the oven. Spoon your batter into your cupcake containers and bake for 45 minutes. If you insert a sharp knife or toothpick into the cupcakes it should come out clean.
- Once cooked, remove cupcakes from trays and cool before icing.
Cupcakes, cooked and ready to cool.
The yummy Vegan Cream Cheese – Dairy Free Icing
What you’ll need:
- 2 T non-dairy butter (such as Earth Balance or Becel Vegan), softened
- 1 1/2 – 2 c icing sugar (depends how thick you like your icing)
- 3 T “Tofutti” dairy-free cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 t vanilla extract
- 1- 2 T fresh lemon juice
How to make your icing:
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Vegan butter and vegan cream cheese. Both are also gluten free! Cream together your dairy-free butter and cream cheese.
- Add in vanilla and lemon juice, beat again.
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Getting just the right consistency for the icing sugar. Add a bit of icing sugar to the creamed mixture, 1/2 cup at a time. Add icing sugar 1/2 c at a time until you reach desired consistency and sweetness. Up to your personal preference how thick you make your icing.
- When your cupcakes are cool, ice your cupcakes and serve.
- The cupcakes should keep well in an airtight container in the fridge for several days, or in the freezer for several weeks.
- When you serve them be sure to let them warm up to room temperature as they will be a bit more tender.
The finished product. Ready for you and your guests to enjoy! - Enjoy!
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