Vegan Coconut Cupcakes

For a family get together, I was asked to make dessert. I decided on these coconut cupcakes from Chef Chloe because I had all the ingredients in the apartment. They turned out to be a big hit! They were gone in about an hour into lunch. My cousins, Sara and Tony crushed about 5 of them between themselves. It was pretty impressive!

Cocunut Cupcakes

• 1 ¾ cups white whole wheat flour
• 1 cup raw cane sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup coconut milk (from a can)
• ½ cup canola oil
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Coconut Frosting

• 3 tablespoons unrefined coconut oil 
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 to 3 tablespoons coconut milk 

Garnish

• shredded coconut
• coarse sugar

To make the Coconut Cupcakes:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 cupcake pans with 15 cupcake liners.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Make sure to shake the coconut milk in its can before pouring out into the measuring cup to make sure the milk is uniform and creamy. It tends to separate in the can especially if it is cold outside. In a separate bowl, whisk together coconut milk, oil, vanilla, and vinegar.
Add the dry mixture into the wet mixture and mix until just combined.
Fill the cupcake liners about two-thirds full with batter.

Bake for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcake comes out clean . The cupcakes that I made ended up sinking in a little bit in the middle--nothing a little frosting couldn't cover!Also, make sure to cool the cupcakes completely before frosting.

To make the Coconut Frosting: Using a handheld or stand mixer, beat the coconut oil until smooth. With the mixer running on low, add powdered sugar, vanilla, and 1 tablespoon coconut milk at a time, as needed, until frosting reaches a spreadable consistency. You may not need to use all of the coconut milk. Beat on high for 2 more minutes until light and fluffy. After frosting the cupcakes, sprinkle the shredded coconut and coarse sugar on top of the frosting.