Description
Delightfully spooky and delicious, these Vegan Halloween Cupcakes feature rich chocolatey bases filled with homemade blackberry coulis, topped with a swirl of blackberry and chocolate vegan Swiss meringue buttercream. Perfect for a festive Halloween treat that’s both dairy-free and packed with fruity flavor.
Ingredients
Scale
Cupcakes
- 1 cup soy milk
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon instant coffee granules (mixed with 2 tbsp boiling water)
- â…“ cup apple puree
- â…“ cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup plain flour
- ½ cup Dutch processed cocoa powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ¾ cup caster sugar (superfine)
- ¼ cup light muscovado sugar
Blackberry Coulis
- 12.3 oz blackberries
- ¼ cup caster sugar
- ¼ cup water
Frosting and Decoration
- 1 batch vegan Swiss meringue buttercream
- 4 tablespoons Dutch processed cocoa powder
- 10.6 oz dark chocolate (for chocolate skulls)
- ½ cup fresh blackberries
Instructions
- Prep Chocolate Skulls: Melt the dark chocolate over a double boiler (bain-marie). Pour the melted chocolate into skull molds and refrigerate until fully set. Repeat if necessary depending on the number of molds you have.
- Preheat Oven and Prepare Tin: Preheat your oven to 180°C (356°F). Line a 12-hole cupcake tin with cupcake liners.
- Make Vegan Buttermilk: Combine the soy milk and apple cider vinegar in a small bowl, stir, and let sit for 10 minutes to curdle.
- Mix Wet Ingredients: To the vegan buttermilk, add the prepared coffee, apple puree, olive oil, and vanilla extract. Stir and set aside.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the plain flour, Dutch processed cocoa powder, baking soda, sea salt, caster sugar, and muscovado sugar until evenly combined.
- Combine Wet and Dry: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk gently until just combined. Avoid over-mixing to ensure a tender crumb.
- Bake Cupcakes: Distribute the batter evenly among the cupcake liners. Bake for 22-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool Cupcakes: Let the cupcakes cool in the tin for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely (about 30-40 minutes).
- Make Blackberry Coulis: In a saucepan over medium heat, combine blackberries, caster sugar, and water. Simmer for 12 minutes while stirring until the mixture thickens. Let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate until ready to use. Reserve 2 tablespoons for the frosting.
- Core Cupcakes: Using a cupcake corer or apple corer, remove the centers of the cooled cupcakes. Set the removed pieces aside.
- Fill Cupcakes: Fill each cupcake cavity with blackberry coulis. Replace the removed cupcake centers on top to seal.
- Prepare Frosting: Make a batch of vegan Swiss meringue buttercream according to your preferred recipe.
- Color Buttercream: Divide the buttercream into two equal parts. Mix 2 tablespoons of the reserved blackberry coulis into one half for a fruity swirl. Mix 4 tablespoons Dutch processed cocoa powder into the other half for chocolate flavor.
- Pipe Frosting: Fill a piping bag fitted with an open star nozzle by alternating spoonfuls of blackberry and chocolate buttercream for a swirl effect. Pipe onto each cupcake evenly.
- Decorate: Top each cupcake with a chocolate skull and a fresh blackberry to complete the festive look.
- Storage: Store cupcakes at room temperature for best flavor. If storing longer than two days, refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Remove from fridge 2-3 hours before serving to soften the buttercream.
Notes
- To achieve the coffee flavor without overpowering the cupcake, dissolve instant coffee granules in boiling water before adding.
- Do not over-mix the cupcake batter to maintain a light and tender crumb.
- Bring refrigerated cupcakes to room temperature before serving to soften the buttercream.
- You can prepare chocolate skulls a day ahead and store them in the fridge until decorating.
- If unable to find vegan Swiss meringue buttercream, a vegan buttercream substitute may be used but texture and flavor will differ.
