Patriotic Cupcakes
Enjoy these festive Patriotic Cupcakes for your summertime gatherings! You’ll love the surprise inside, a dollop of jam, to add flavor and color to these red white and blue cupcakes!
Fourth of July is a time near and dear to the heart of my childhood. It was the one time of year where I was permitted to play with fire. Our family didn’t have the money for return trips to the fireworks stands and I was the youngest of four which meant only a few firecrackers for me.
So sometimes after our fireworks were spent, I was content just to walk around with the punk, the soft sticks they give out for free at firework stands. “Punk” was also a term of endearment bestowed upon me by my older siblings. Me and my punk — two of a kind, bringing a slow-burning light to the world.
That’s how we celebrated Fourth of July in a small town of less than a thousand people in a somewhat rural area of Missouri. I don’t live in that same small town and I no longer hang around with punks.
Now, I find new ways to celebrate the origins of our country and it doesn’t usually begin with a trip to a firework tent. Instead I head up to the grocery store; followed by a few repeat trips when I realize more ingredients are needed.
The thrill I seek today is a burst of flavor; delighting the senses in a more savory (or sweet) manner.
We continue to gather with family each year to celebrate this time-honored tradition but my goal for the day is usually to fix the best bowl of vegan potato salad that I can or to create some new, spectacular dessert to dazzle my little vegan family – my hubby and my daughter.
This year I decided to make Fourth of July Cupcakes. What could be better than 4th of July cupcakes!
Of course, you don’t have to wait until 4th of July, these would also be great Memorial Day Cupcakes too!
Key Ingredients for Vegan Cupcakes
You can find the full printable recipe, including ingredient quantities, below. But first, here are some explanations of ingredients and steps to help you make this recipe perfect every time.
- All-purpose flour + Cornstarch — I find that combining all-purpose flour with cornstarch creates a more delicate crumb for vegan cupcakes.
- Almond flour — I’ve added just a bit of almond flour to make these cupcakes extra moist and delicious!
- Baking soda + baking powder — Combining both baking soda and baking powder gives this recipe lift, which makes nice, tall cupcakes.
- Vegan butter — For the vegan butter, I used Earth Balance.
- Raspberry jam — You’ll add the dollop of raspberry jam over the cupcakes before baking and like magic, they’ll sink to the bottom while baking. That way, every cupcake will have a fun surprise in the middle!
How to Make Patriotic Cupcakes
I’ve found this process to work best for making these American cupcakes. The full steps are below, but here are some of tips to remember:
Tip #1: Combine the dry ingredients and whisk them together. This helps distribute things like baking soda, salt, etc, around.
Tip #2: Cream together the fat and sugar. This helps aerate the butter and creates a creamy base for the cupcake batter.
I used a stand mixer, but a hand-held mixer will work too. Just beat it until it’s light and fluffy.
Tip #3: Be sure to alternate flour and the plant-based milk mixture. This helps to not overmix the flour, helping to create those light and fluffy cupcakes we’re after!
Recipe Notes
Here are some recipe notes to help make it perfect every time:
- Be sure to use a timer to get the cupcakes cooked through. If you pull them out before they’re done, the tops may deflate and look a little flat. I set the timer for 20 minutes, but usually don’t pull them out until around 24 minutes. Every oven is different so I do recommend using a tester.
- If the tops of your cupcakes look flat, you can just add more frosting. (Small-town girl tip).
- If you don’t like raspberry jam, choose one of your favorites. I think this berry chia seed jam would be amazing!
- I love the vanilla frosting, but you could also do a vegan cream cheese frosting or even a vegan chocolate frosting for a change of pace.
- Looking for some fun 4th of July cupcake ideas for your toppings? You’ll see that I used raspberries and blueberries, but you could also do red white and blue sprinkles!
I found the explosion of flavor I was looking for by adding a spoonful of raspberry jam to the cupcakes before baking adding a nice, colorful touch to the cupcakes. The frosting is also flavored with a dairy- free hazelnut creamer, which is a nice touch.
What To Serve with this Recipe
These patriotic cupcakes are definitely geared up for all those Independence Day weekend parties. That means you’ll want to serve it with even more amazing vegan 4th of July recipes!
I hope you’ll agree when you try these patriotic cupcakes with just the right balance of crispiness on the outside, tender cake in the middle and raspberry goodness throughout.
You May Also Like…
- Vegan Texas Sheet Cake is always a summertime favorite
- This Vegan Key Lime Pie is a winner
- Vegan Lemon Bars.
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Patriotic Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup almond flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup vegan butter softened to room temp
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 cups cold water
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- ½ cup raspberry jam
Hazelnut Cream Frosting
- ½ cup vegan butter softened
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 to 2 tablespoons hazelnut flavored non-dairy creamer
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F and place cupcake liners in muffin pans. For this recipe I made 18 regular cupcakes.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, almond flour, baking soda, baking powder, cornstarch and salt.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the vegan butter, oil and sugar and mix on medium speed until smooth and creamy, up to 2 minutes.
- Combine water, vinegar, and vanilla in a bowl.
- Beginning with flour mixture, alternate between that and the water mixture while continuing to mix on low speed. Turn the mixer off and use a spatula to push down any ingredients from the side of the dish. Mix again until combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cupcake liners. Drop a dollop of jam onto the top of each cupcake before baking.
- Bake for 20 – 25 minutes until a tester inserted into the middle of a cupcake comes out clean (no batter on it). When they’re done, remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
For the Frosting
- To make the frosting, beat butter at medium speed until smooth. Add the powdered sugar and salt and beat on low until well combined. Scrape anything from the side of the bowl and then beat on medium speed. Add the hazelnut vegan creamer and continue mixing until the frosting is light and fluffy. This might take several minutes.
- Once cupcakes are cooled, top each with frosting. Transfer frosting to a pastry bag with a Wilton 1M frosting tip to add a decorative flute to the top of each cupcake. Optional: Top with fresh fruit, like raspberries and/or blueberries.
Recommended Equipment
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The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Enjoy!
These look great. I’ve featured this recipe on my blog, hoping that you don’t mind, but if you do, please contact me and I’ll remove it. All the best.
Hmmm this recipe looks so delicious and nice and i think that fits perfect with my taste and in my opinion is a very easy recipe, so i think i will try it. Thanks for sharing.
The cupcakes look absolutely amazing, I love the way you present them. The berries on top really do look great. Fantastic recipe!!
This is by far the best vegan vanilla cake we’ve tried. It’s got the perfect density to moisture level which is not always easy to do with vegan cakes. Hope you give it a try!
Wish I was enjoying 4th of July at your place Marly – these look absolutely amazing!!!! Isn’t it a wonderful feeling when you’ve been working on something and then it all comes together and tastes out of this world.
WOW! Your cupcakes look spectacular, Marly! I love the idea of using So Delicious Hazelnut Coconut Milk Creamer for the frosting, and I can’t wait to make these! Thanks so much for sharing the recipe!
perfect Marly – love the color on this, the addition of the raspberry jam and using the coconut milk – yum!!
Yum, yum and yummy! Plan on doing a lot of cooking when you get here! (as if you already don’t:-)) LOL Funny story!