Cupcakes have three main purposes in life: to be cute, to be tasty, and to be fun. All cupcakes may be cute and tasty, but only vegan cupcakes are truly fun. Here’s why:

• One of the best parts of making cupcakes HAS to be sampling the batter! Only with vegan cupcakes can you do so with no worries about raw eggs, salmonella, or other icky stuff!
• That same icky stuff (i.e. eggs and dairy) that can affect your gut can also affect your health in other ways. Studies show that the saturated fat found in meat, eggs, and dairy products may cause brain aging. Dairy consumption has also been linked to cancer, diabetes, autism and schizophrenia, and autoimmune disorders like Multiple Sclerosis.
• And in case you hadn’t heard, animal products aren’t doing the planet any favors, either! Animal products are some of the least sustainable food choices around. The World Wildlife Fund even issued a report recommending that industrialized nations reduce their meat and dairy consumption to “help everyone on the planet enjoy healthy levels of protein in their diets, create more space for nature, and expand bioenergy without creating food shortages.”

All is takes to avoid all that health and planetary drama is making vegan cupcakes!

Bonus: making vegan cupcakes is so easy even a 3 year-old can do it! Check out this video of an adorable little boy making Vegan Pumpkin Cupcakes! Then on to the recipes to make some of your own…

Mini Chocolate Cupcakes

Recipe by Julie Morris, Natural Food Chef
(makes 12 mini cupcakes)

Ingredients:

For the cupcake:

• 1 cup walnuts
• 1 cup + 2 tablespoon raisins
• 2 tablespoons agave nectar
• 1 tablespoon cacao butter, melted (or use coconut oil)
• 2½ tablespoon cacao powder
• 1 cup almond flour
• 1 cup coconut flour
• pinch sea salt

For the frosting:

• ½ cup mashed avocado
• 3 tablespoons Navitas Naturals Cacao Paste, melted (or use bakers chocolate)
• 2 tablespoons cacao powder
• ¼ cup agave nectar

For the sprinkles:

• ¼ cup cacao nibs

Preparation:

To make the cupcakes: Combine the walnuts, raisins, agave nectar and cacao butter (or coconut oil) in a food processor and puree. Transfer to a large bowl and add in the almond flour, coconut flour, cacao powder and sea salt, kneading together to combine thoroughly and forming a compact dough. (If dough is too dry, add a tablespoon or two of water. If it is too wet, adjust with extra almond flour.)

To make the frosting: Combine all frosting ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth.

To assemble: Use a mini muffin tin, and tuck a layer of saran wrap into a cup to use as a mold. Spoon in some of the cupcake dough and press firmly into the cup to form desired cupcake shape. Use the saran-wrap to remove the packed cake from the muffin tin, then peel away plastic. Frost the cupcake liberally with frosting and sprinkle with cacao nibs. Repeat for remaining cupcakes.

More Recipes!

1. Hazelnut Chocolate Cupcakes
2. Beet-root Chocolate Frosted Cupcakes
3. Raw Vegan Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
4. Vanilla-Agave Cupcakes with Chocolate Mesquite Frosting
5. Chocolate Cupcakes with Avocado-Mint Icing
6. Cupcake Cones
7. Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes