Mounds of Vegan Joy

On my way out to Denver I decided I wanted to make an Almond Joy inspired cupcake. The first attempt was such an awful fail that I stepped away from baking for a few days. It was awful. So once I got the confidence to try again, I decided to do a vegan twist. I disliked the heaviness of the first vegan cake I made so I searched out a fluffy vegan recipe for coconut cake. I tried a cake from Chloe Coscarelli  and was not disappointed. Her original recipe can be found by following the link, below is what I used. The changes are noted by an asterisk.

Coconut Cake:

1 3/4 C all-purpose flour

1 C sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 C coconut almond milk*

1/2 C canola oil

1 Tbls vanilla extract*

1 Tbls coconut extract*

1 Tbls white or apple cider vinegar 

1 C shredded coconut*

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line out the cupcake pan. 

In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In another bowl, whisk the coconut milk, oil, extracts, and vinegar. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and whisk until combine. Don't over mix, it will lead to flat lifeless cakes. 

Fill the cupcake liners two-thirds fill and bake for about 15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the cakes cool and start to work on the frosting. 

Chocolate Almond Frosting:

6 Tbsp soy margarine

3/4 C cocoa powder

2 2/3 C organic powdered sugar

1/3 C chocolate almond milk

1 tsp almond extract

Combine cocoa powder and powdered sugar in a bowl. In a separate bowl cream the margarine. Add the dry ingredients and almond milk, alternating between the two. If you want a fudgier consistency, add more milk. Beat in the almond extract. 

Now, get to frosting.