Vegan Golden Vanilla Cupcakes

Happy 30th Anniversary, Jeff and Jackie. With Love from The Schindlers

ingredients

For Cupcakes:
1cup soy milk
1tsp. apple cider vinegar
1 1/4cups all-purpose flour
2Tbsp. cornstarch
3/4tsp. baking powder
1/2tsp. baking soda
1/4tsp. salt (increase salt to 1/2 teaspoon if you’re using oil instead of margarine)
1/2cup non-hydrogenated margarine, softened, or 1/3 cup canola oil
3/4cup sugar
2tsp. vanilla extract
1/4tsp. almond extract, caramel extract, or more vanilla extract
For Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting:
1/4 cup non-hydrogenated margarine (softened)
1/4 cup vegan cream cheese, softened (Tofutti)
2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1
For cupcakes:
2
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pan with cupcake liners.
3
Whisk the soy milk and vinegar in a measuring cup and set aside for a few minutes to get good and curdled.
4
If using margarine: Sift the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl and mix.
5
In a separate large bowl, use a handheld mixer at medium speed to cream the margarine and sugar for about 2 minutes until light and fluffy. (Don’t beat past 2 minutes.) Beat in the vanilla and other extract, if using, then alternate beating in the soy milk mixture and dry ingredients, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl a few times.
6
If using oil: Beat together the soy milk mixture, oil, sugar, vanilla, and other extracts, if using, in a large bowl. Sift in the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and mix until no large lumps remain.
7
Fill cupcake liners two-thirds of the way and bake for 20 to 22 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack, and let cool completely before frosting.
8
For frosting:
9
Cream together margarine and cream cheese until just combined. Use a handheld mixer to whip while adding the confectioners’ sugar in 1/2 cup batches. Mix until smooth and creamy, then mix in the vanilla. Keep tightly covered and refrigerated until ready to use.