Vegan Chai Cupcakes
Perfectly sweet vegan chai cupcakes topped with a spiced buttercream. These cupcakes are soft and fluffy and infused with chai spices. Perfect for the holidays or any fall and winter occasion!
Servings 12
Ingredients
- 1 bag chai tea
- 1/2 cup oat milk, plain and unsweetened
- 3 tablespoons ground flax seeds
- 1 3/4 cup white cake flour, spoon and leveled
- 3 1/2 teaspoons chai spice mix
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup vegan butter, room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup plain vegan yogurt, room temperature (see notes)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Chai Spice Mix
- 2 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon allspice
Vegan Chai Buttercream
- 1 1/2 cup vegan butter, room temperature
- 5 cups confectioner's sugar, plus more as needed
- 2 teaspoons chai spice mix
- 1/4 cup oat milk, plain and unsweetened, plus more as needed
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Start by making your flax egg. In a small bowl, whisk together 3 tablespoons of ground flax seeds with 6 tablespoons of room temperature water. Set aside to let it thicken.
- Heat 1/2 cup of oat milk. I heat it in the microwave for 1 minute in a glass measuring cup. Add the chai tea bag to the warm milk and let it steep for 20 minutes or until it gets to room temperature.
- Meanwhile, in a small mixing bowl, mix all the chai spices together.
- Preheat the oven to 350℉. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with cupcake liners. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix your flour, 3 1/2 teaspoons of chai spice mix, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
- Using a stand mixer of hand mixer, beat the sugar and 1/2 cup of vegan butter together until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the flax egg, vegan yogurt, chai milk and vanilla extract. Whisk together until creamy, about 2 minutes. Scrape the sides as needed.
- With the mixer running on low speed, add the dry ingredients and whisk until just combined. Don't over or under mix.
- Scoop the batter into the prepared cupcake liners. It should make 12 cupcakes, filling each liner *almost* to the top (see photos).
- Bake for 22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let them cool completely before frosting.
Prepare the Vegan Chai Buttercream
- Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy. Add the icing sugar, chai spice mix, oat milk, vanilla and salt. Beat on high speed for about 2 minutes. Add more icing sugar if the frosting is too thin or more milk if too thick.
- Transfer the frosting to a piping bag. I used the Wilton 6B piping tip. Frost the cupcakes. Decorate with a cinnamon stick and a dusting of chai spice mix if desired.
Notes
This recipe is adapted from the Chai Latte Cupcakes from Sally's Baking Addiction. I adjusted the recipe to make them vegan, but the credit for the original recipe goes to Sally!
It's very important that your ingredients are all at room temperature before making the cupcakes or it will affect the final result. I recommend getting the vegan butter and yogurt out of the fridge approximately 1 hour before you start making the cupcakes. Don't leave the yogurt at room temperature much longer than that.
I made this recipe with both white cake flour and white all-purpose flour. Both resulted in soft and fluffy cupcakes. I don't have a gluten-free option at this time.
Use the spoon and level method to measure the flour. To do this, scoop the flour with a spoon and transfer it to the measuring cup. Level the flour at the top of the measuring cup using the back of a butter knife. Avoid scooping the flour directly with the measuring cup or you'll end up with too much flour. You'll also want to avoid shaking the measuring cup for the same reason.
I made this recipe with oat milk, but other plain and unsweetened plant-based milks should work.
I used Maison Riviera's Oat based plain yogurt. Other plain vegan yogurts should work.
I used Becel's vegan butter.