Last updated - ; Published - By Rhian Williams 38 Comments
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
TheseGluten-Free Vegan Lemon Cupcakes are the perfect simple yet elegant dessert: they're sweet and tangy, and smothered in a rich "cream cheese" frosting!
Why you'll love these Gluten-Free Vegan Lemon Cupcakes
Unlike most other gluten-free cupcakes you may have tried, the sponge is really the best part, as it's:
- undetectably vegan and gluten-free
- refined sugar free
- moist and fluffy
- bright and citrusy
- perfectly sweet!
And it's super easy to make because:
- it comes together in one bowl
- it requires just a handful of simple ingredients you probably already have on hand
- and it takes only 10 minutes of prep time before baking!
The sponge for these cupcakes is also very versatile and flexible, as you can adapt the recipe to suit your dietary needs, food shopping budget, and what you already have on hand:
- you can use any type of oil: coconut oil, olive oil or vegetable oil
- you can use any type of plant-based milk: almond milk, rice milk, soy milk, cashew milk, oat milk etc
- you can use any type of liquid sweetener: maple syrup, agave syrup, brown rice syrup etc
- you can substitute the ground almonds (almond meal/almond flour) with ground walnuts
- for a nut-free version: substitute the ground almonds (almond meal/almond flour) with ground sunflower seeds or use 30g (¼ cup) coconut flour instead of 150g (1 ¼ cup) ground almonds
- you can use plain flour,wholemeal (whole wheat) flouror spelt flourinstead of the gluten-free flour if you're not gluten-free.
Tips for making the sponge
To ensure you don't run into any problems making the sponge, make sure to follow the recipe exactly, and pay particular attention to these steps:
- make sure to use the right amount of baking powder - 2 heaped teaspoons! Use too little baking powder and your sponge won't be fluffy, too much and it'll have a bitter taste
- make sure to use lemon juice as well as lemon zest for the most well-rounded, slightly sharp, slightly tangy, aromatic lemon flavour. If you like a stronger lemon flavour, you may need to double the amount of lemon juice and lemon zest
- the lemon juice is also crucial as it's acidic, which means it reacts with the alkali bicarbonate of soda to create a bubbly batter, and fluffy sponge
- make sure to use an all-purpose shop-bought gluten-free flour blend (or a homemade gluten-free flour blend), as opposed to just using any type of gluten-free flour you can find (such as almond flour, coconut flour, buckwheat flour etc).
Once you've made the sponge, you can move onto the fun part: the "cream cheese" frosting!
How to make the vegan "cream cheese" frosting
I love this vegan "cream cheese" frosting recipe because:
- you don't need to use shop-bought vegan cream cheese
- it's healthy and refined sugar free
- you can use any type of sweetener: maple syrup, agave syrup, brown rice syrup etc
- it's perfectly tangy because of the lemon juice
- it's rich and creamy
- it's super easy to make
- if you can't get hold of coconut milk or are feeling lazy, you can use a thick coconut yogurt instead, which adds a lovely fermented flavour reminiscent of real cream cheese, as well as a ton of gut-friendly probiotics!
Top tips for making vegan "cream cheese" frosting
- Keep your tin of coconut milk in the fridge overnight(or for at least 12 hours) for the rich creamy bit to separate from the watery bit at the bottom
- Make sure you use full-fat coconut milk, otherwise this separation won’t happen and you won’t be able to whip it up
- Open the tin upside down – the coconut cream will be at the bottom and you can just pour off the watery liquid
- Save the watery liquid you pour off for adding to soups or smoothies
- Place the thick, creamy part into a bowl along with the other ingredients (maple syrup, lemon juice and vanilla extract)
- Use an electric whisk (or a manual one and a lot of elbow grease) to whip until light and fluffy
- Make sure not to over-whip as you don't want it to be curdly
- For super fluffy frosting, make the frosting fresh and top the cupcakes with it just before serving - the frosting does set well, however, and frosted cupcakes will keep their shape and texturefor up to a few days in the fridge
- Make sure the cupcakes have cooled completely before applying the frosting, otherwise it will melt!
- You can apply the frosting with a knife, a spatula, or a piping bag depending on how fancy you want to be
- The recipe below yields a medium-sized amount of frosting per cupcake. However, if you do want to apply a generous amount of frosting (like in my photos), I’d recommend doubling the amount of frosting.
Tips for baking with lemons
- For optimum lemon flavour, I would recommend using fresh lemons (not ones that you've had sitting in your fruit bowl for weeks!) and organic ones if possible.
- You have to be careful when baking with lemon juice as the acidity and lemon flavour can really vary depending on the lemons you use.
- I would recommend tasting the lemon juice you're using and adjusting the amount of lemon juice you use accordingly.
- For the lemon zest, make sure you use unwaxed lemons.
How long do these Gluten-Free Vegan Lemon Cupcakes keep for?
Although these cupcakes do taste best when fresh, they do keep well covered in the fridge for up to a few days. For super fluffy frosting, you should make it fresh just before serving, but frosted cupcakes will retain their shape and texture for a good few days.
Equipment you need to make these Gluten-Free Vegan Lemon Cupcakes:
- glass mixing bowl - for mixing the cupcake sponge batter
- measuring jug - formeasuring out the plant-based milk
- muffin/cupcake tin - for baking the cupcakes
- cooling rack- to leave the cupcakes to cool on before applying the frosting
- electric whisk - for whipping up thecoconut cream to make the vegan "cream cheese" frosting
More gluten-free vegan cupcake recipes:
- Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes
- Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- Chocolate Cupcakes
- Red Velvet Cupcakes
- Coconut Cupcakes
If you try out this recipe or anything else from my blog,I’d really love to hear anyfeedback! Please give it a rating, leave a comment, or tag a photo @rhiansrecipes #rhiansrecipes onInstagram! Thank you.
Gluten-Free Vegan Lemon Cupcakes
TheseGluten-Free Vegan Lemon Cupcakes are the perfect simple yet elegant dessert: they're sweet and tangy, and smothered in a rich "cream cheese" frosting!
4.36 from 34 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: gluten-free lemon cupcakes, vegan gluten-free cupcakes, vegan lemon cupcakes
Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes minutes
Servings: 12 cupcakes
Calories: 286kcal
Author: Rhian Williams
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
- 60 g (¼ cup) coconut oil (or sub olive or vegetable oil)
- 180 ml (¾ cup) unsweetened almond milk (or any other plant-based milk)
- 8 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest (use unwaxed lemons)
- 12 tablespoons maple syrup (or sub any other sweetener)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 150 g (1 ¼ cup) ground almonds (almond meal) *
- 150 g (1 ¼ cup) gluten-free flour blend (or sub plain flour if not gluten-free)
- 2 heaped teaspoons baking powder (ensure gluten-free if necessary)
- ¼ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
For the frosting**:
- 400 g (14 oz) tin of full-fat coconut milk ***
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup (or sub any other sweetener)
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
To decorate:
- Lemon slices
Instructions
For the cupcakes:
Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit)
Place the coconut oil in a large bowl and melt over a saucepan of boiling water or in the microwave (skip this step if using any other oil)
Once melted, add the milk to the same bowl along with the lemon juice, lemon zest, maple syrup, vanilla and ground almonds
Sift in the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda
Mix well, adding a tiny splash more milk if it’s looking too dry
Transfer mixture between 12 cupcake cases in a cupcake tin
Bake in oven for around 15 minutes until risen and an inserted skewer comes out clean
Once out the oven, transfer cupcakes onto a wire rack to cool completely before applying the frosting
For the frosting:
You’ll need to keep your tin of coconut milk in the fridge overnight for the rich creamy bit to separate from the watery bit at the bottom. Make sure it is full-fat coconut milk, otherwise this separation won’t happen and you won’t be able to make this cream!
Open the tin upside down – the coconut cream will be at the bottom and you can just pour off the watery liquid (save this for adding to soups or smoothies)
Place the thick, creamy part into a bowl
Add the maple syrup, lemon juice and vanilla extract
Use an electric whisk (or a manual one and a lot of elbow grease) to whip up the coconut cream until light and fluffy
To frost and decorate the cupcakes:
Once the cupcakes have cooled completely, use a knife, spatula or piping bag to apply an even amount of frosting to each of the cupcakes
Decorate with triangular lemon slices, if desired
Best when fresh, but keeps well covered in the fridge for up to a few days
Notes
*You can alternatively use almond flour
**This frosting recipe yields a medium-sized amount of frosting per cupcake. However, if you do want to apply a generous amount of frosting (like in my photos), I’d recommend doubling the amount of frosting.
***You can alternatively use 200g (7oz) thick coconut yogurt
Tips for baking with lemons
- For optimum lemon flavour, I would recommend using fresh lemons (not ones that you've had sitting in your fruit bowl for weeks!) and organic ones if possible.
- You have to be careful when baking with lemon juice as the acidity and lemon flavour can really vary depending on the lemons you use.
- I would recommend tasting the lemon juice you're using and adjusting the amount of lemon juice you use accordingly.
- For the lemon zest, make sure you use unwaxed lemons.
Nutrition Facts
Gluten-Free Vegan Lemon Cupcakes
Amount Per Serving
Calories 286Calories from Fat 171
% Daily Value*
Fat 19g29%
Saturated Fat 11g55%
Sodium 49mg2%
Potassium 153mg4%
Carbohydrates 29g10%
Fiber 3g12%
Sugar 15g17%
Protein 5g10%
Vitamin C 6mg7%
Calcium 92mg9%
Iron 2mg11%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Made the recipe?Tag @rhiansrecipes on instagram and use the hashtag #rhiansrecipes!
Disclosure: This posts contains affiliate links to Amazon. If you purchase any of these products, a small percentage will come to me with no extra cost to you! This income will go towards the running of this blog – thank you.
More Baking & Dessert Recipes
- Gluten-Free Vegan Raspberry Madeleines
- Gluten-Free Vegan Raspberry Muffins
- Gluten-Free Vegan Raspberry Cake
- Gluten-Free Vegan Orange Poppy Seed Muffins
Reader Interactions
Comments
Lynn
This recipe sounds amazing. I never seem to get unwaxed fruit.... even organic. Can I just leave out the zest?
Thanks,
LynnReply
Rhian Williams
Thank you! Yes you can leave it out, or add 1 teaspoon lemon extract instead!
Nika
These are great! I made mini cupcakes for a work celebration, and they were a hit. I'm vegan, 2 of my co-workers are lactose intolerant, and one is gluten free, so I was glad to find this recipe.These are super lemony, not too sweet, and have a great texture. I was worried that the maple syrup would impart too much flavour, so I used a mix of agave and powdered monkfruit instead. It worked great!
Reply
Rhian Williams
Thank you so much, so happy to hear that!
Maggie
I've made this recipe about 5 times now. the cupcakes come out delicious. Something interesting that happens is the lemon juice and baking soda react and create this extremely fluffy batter. Therefore it ends up making nearly 1.5 dozen cupcakes. Once they bake they're a little smaller than I'd like but super delicious. I noticed with the blueberry lemon cupcakes, which I've made several times as well, they don't call for as much lemon juice and I don't get that same reaction when I mix the batter.Reply
Rhian Williams
Thank you so much for sharing your feedback, so happy to hear that!
Beata
These were amazing. I tasted them before making the frosting and they were so good I didn’t bother with the frosting. They tasted so good they don’t need it. The flavor and texture were phenomenal. These are my favorite cupcakes I’ve made. Thank you for this recipe. 🙂Reply
Rhian Williams
Thank you so much for your kind words, so happy to hear that!!
Leave a Reply
« Older Comments
