Lemon Love: Bright Vegan Lemon Cupcakes for Easter Dessert

Spring is a time for bright, fresh flavors. And with Easter just around the corner, you may be on the lookout for a simple yet eye-catching dessert to serve at your table.

Luckily for you, these bright Vegan Lemon Cupcakes happen to be a happy combination of both. They’re sweet yet tangy, simple yet classy enough to be the star of your dessert table.

I really wanted to make sure you got that boom-pow of lemon in these cupcakes. After all, what’s the sense of a lemon cupcake if you can’t taste the lemon?

I’ve had several tasters give me their thoughts on these cupcakes, and the consensus is that they are lemonlicious. The use of lemon as a simple and easy garnish also takes the visual appeal of these cupcakes up to another level.

These cupcakes are:

• bright and fresh with bursting lemon flavor
• moist and flavorful, thanks to lemon juice and zest in the batter
• sweet and tangy with a delicate lemon buttercream
• vegan, dairy-free and egg-free

If you’re a lemon fan, you’ve just found your new favorite cupcake recipe. Enjoy!

Vegan Lemon Cupcakes

These cupcakes are bright, fresh, and perfect to serve as your Easter dessert. If you're a lemon fan, this is bound to become your new favorite cupcake recipe!

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Icing Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Course Dessert, Snack

Cuisine American

Servings 12 servings

Ingredients

  

Buttermilk

• 1/2 cup soy milk (must be soy milk)
• 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar (lemon juice may also be used)

Cupcake Batter

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 cup unsalted vegan butter, softened
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup Just Egg
• 2 tsp vanilla (I used imitation)
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon zest

Lemon Buttercream Icing

• 1/2 cup unsalted vegan butter, softened
• 4 cups powdered sugar (3 1/2-4 cups, to desired consistency)
• 1 tsp vanilla (I used imitation)
• 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon zest
• additional lemon slices/zest, for garnish

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 12-cup cupcake pan with cupcake liners.
• First, prep the buttermilk. In a small bowl, stir together the soy milk and the apple cider vinegar. Set aside for now.
• In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and baking powder. Set aside for now.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the vegan butter and sugar for 1-2 minutes. Scrape down the sides. With mixer on low, add in the Just Egg, vanilla, lemon juice and zest. Mix again for 1-2 minutes, scraping sides again.
• Alternating with 3 small additions of each, add the flour mixture and buttermilk to the mixer, ending with an addition of buttermilk. Mix to combine well, scraping down the sides at least once. Batter won't be totally smooth, this is fine.
• Equally distribute the batter between the 12 cupcake liners, filling about 1/2 to 3/4 of the way up. Bake the cupcakes for 15-17 minutes, checking with a cake tester to ensure doneness. Cool for 5-10 minutes before transferring the cupcakes to a cooling rack.
• To prepare the icing: Add the vegan butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, juice and zest to the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix slowly to incorporate, then whip on medium-high speed for 2 minutes, scraping the sides down once.
• Ice the cupcakes with the buttercream, and garnish with additional lemon slices and/or zest if desired. Enjoy!

Keyword all-purpose flour, baking, cupcake, dairy-free, egg-free, just egg, lemon, vegan butter

To those who celebrate it, happy Easter! And to those who don’t, enjoy some delicious cupcakes with your family and friends 🙂

Until next time, peace!