These easy vegan pumpkin cupcakes are great for pumpkin season. They are quick, delicious, and make a perfect Fall treat. These cupcakes are light and fluffy with a delicious silky cream cheese frosting.
I love it when it's pumpkin season; I'm always trying to come up with new ways to add some pumpkin to our diet. It all happens to be sweet and not savory, but YOLO, all in moderation, right? If you want to check out some other delicious sweet pumpkin recipes, check out these Vegan Pumpkin Cookies, Classic Vegan Pumpkin Pie, or Easy Vegan Pumpkin Bread.
I'm curious whether you have any savory pumpkin recipes you love. I've never used pumpkin in a savory way. I've heard of people using it for breads and soups but have yet to try it.
In all fairness, I was freaked out about butternut squash until I had the best butternut squash soup and saw how ridiculous I was. I am sure Pumpkin would be the same deal.
Jump to:
Why this recipe works...
- These pumpkin cupcakes are super moist (thank you, pumpkin) and have a really great fluffy texture.
- This recipe uses simple ingredients.
- It's an easy recipe.
- They're melt-in-your-mouth delicious.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- All purpose flour- I haven't tried it, but I think you could sub out the regular flour with a gluten-free all purpose flour. Otherwise, stick to an all purpose flour.
- Ground cinnamon- the cinnamon helps the flavor combined with the pumpkin spice.
- Pumpkin pie spice- you can use a homemade version or storebought.
- Oil- I like to use mild oil like vegetable or canola; you could also use melted but cooled coconut oil. I wouldn't use something like olive oil. Olive oil typically has just too much of a flavor to use in a baked good the majority of the time.
- Apple sauce- this helps cut down the oil and keep the cupcake really moist.
- Brown sugar and White sugar- this combination is best I wouldn't use just one unless you have to.
- Canned Pumpkin Puree * (pure pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling)- I prefer using Libby's canned pumpkin for this specific recipe. I used an organic, more watery pumpkin, and I didn't enjoy the flavor as much.
- Vanilla Extract- Don't leave this out, it helps round out the flavors.
Vegan cream cheese frosting
- Vegan Cream Cheese- Use whatever brand is your favorite. My favorite happens to be Trader Joe's brand.
- Vegan Butter Softened- again, choose your favorite brand. We like Country Crock.
- Powdered Sugar- There is no substitute for this.
- Cinnamon- You can either make this a plain vegan cream cheese frosting, a cinnamon cream cheese frosting, or pumpkin spice frosting.
Check out the recipe card at the bottom of the post for the full instructions.
How to make these moist vegan pumpkin cupcakes
Step 1- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Take a muffin tin and line it with cupcake liners (muffin cups) or grease well.
Step 2- Take your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a large bowl and an electric hand mixer. Add your wet ingredients to that bowl: apple sauce, brown sugar, sugar, vanilla extract, and oil. Mix on medium for a few minutes.
Step 3- In a medium bowl, combine your dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. Mix until combined, but don't over-mix.
Step 4- Take a large cookie scoop or an ice cream scoop and scoop even amounts of cupcake batter into the prepared muffin tin.
Step 5- Bake in the preheated oven for 16-20 minutes, checking at the 16-minute mark for a toothpick to come out clean.
Step 6- Let sit in the tin for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack (cooling rack). Let cool completely before frosting.
Step 7- Clean out your mixing bowl and add your frosting ingredients; mix slowly, then to medium speed for about 5 minutes until fluffy—Frost the cooled cupcakes as desired.
Expert Tips and Tricks
- I made the vegan cream cheese frosting with a hint of cinnamon. You could use pumpkin pie spice if you'd rather it had a hint of pumpkin flavor instead of cinnamon, or you could make it a vanilla cream cheese without any spices.
- Make sure the cupcake is totally cooled before putting the frosting on.
- If you don't use cupcake liners, be sure to grease your cupcake tin very well and let it cool a little longer before popping them out of the tin.
Recipe FAQS
Due to the vegan cream cheese frosting, these cupcakes need to be stored in the fridge. It's best to place them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. I don't recommend eating them straight from the fridge. Let them sit on the counter for about 30 minutes for better flavor.
These pumpkin cupcakes are best served the day they are made but can be eaten within three days. I find that for longer than three days, they tend to lose some good flavor.
Yes, they taste best the day they are made, but they can be frozen. It is always best to freeze cupcakes without the frosting, but you likely already will have the frosting on the cupcakes, and that's okay. Place the cupcakes in a freezer-safe container or freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months. To eat after being frozen, place the cupcakes on the counter to defrost.
Here are some more vegan cupcake recipes...
If you loved this recipe, then give it a 5-star rating and leave a comment! I love to chat with you all. Please feel free to share on social media and tag #courtneyshomestead. I would love to see you over on Instagram or Facebook.
Vegan Pumpkin Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon bakings soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- ½ cup oil
- ¼ cup apple sauce
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup white sugar
- 1 cup pumpkin
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Frosting
- 4 oz vegan cream cheese
- ½ cup vegan butter softened
- 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Take a muffin tin and line it with cupcake liners or grease well.
- Take your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or a large bowl and an electric mixer. Mix your wet ingredients; apple sauce, brown sugar, sugar, vanilla extract, and oil. Mix on medium for a few minutes.
- Get a medium bowl and combine your dry ingredients; flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. Mix until combined but don't over-mix.
- Take a large cookie scoop or an ice cream scoop and scoop even amounts of cupcake batter into the prepared muffin tin. Bake in the preheated oven for 16-20 minutes, checking at the 16-minute mark for a toothpick to come out clean.
- Let sit in the tin for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Let cool completely before frosting.
- Clean out your mixing bowl and add your frosting ingredients; mix slowly then to medium speed for about 5 minutes until fluffy. Frost the cooled cupcakes as desired.
Notes
- I made the vegan cream cheese frosting with a hint of cinnamon. You could use pumpkin pie spice if you'd rather it had a hint of pumpkin flavor instead of cinnamon, or you could make it a vanilla cream cheese without any spices.
- Make sure the cupcake is totally cooled before putting the frosting on.
- If you don't use cupcake liners be sure to grease your cup cake tin very well and let cool a little longer before popping them out of the tin.
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