All you coffee lovers, you are going to adore these fluffy gluten free vegan vanilla latte cupcakes. Espresso and vanilla together is always a good thing!
What is your go-to coffee drink? Mine is almost always a vanilla latte with almond milk. Whether it’s hot or iced, it’s just so good every single time. Sometimes I will get a chai latte, especially if it’s a house-made chai and is extra spicy. More often than not, I always go back to my beloved vanilla latte.
When thinking of flavor combinations for new recipes, I tend to go to ones that I find hard to resist. I’ve done coffee and chocolate together {one of my faves} multiple times. Mocha chip cupcakes, mocha cream pie and these decadent dark chocolate mocha mini cakes. Nothing wrong with coffee and chocolate, but I was thinking I need to do a coffee recipe, but without the chocolate.
That’s when I came up with these gluten free vegan vanilla latte cupcakes. I added freshly brewed coffee, as well as espresso powder, to the cupcake batter. The pure vanilla extract just enhances the deliciousness of the coffee in the cupcakes. See that swirl of fluffy buttercream on top? It also has a balance of both vanilla and coffee, making the vanilla latte flavor just right.
Whenever I can take something I love, like my go-to coffee drink, and make it into a fun dessert, it just makes me happy. I’m certain you will also get a smile on your face when you take a bite of one of these gluten free vegan vanilla latte cupcakes!
- 1 3/4 cups Sarah’s gluten free flour blend
- 1 cup cane sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk or other non-dairy milk
- 1/2 cup brewed coffee, cooled to room temperature
- 1/3 cup avocado oil or grape seed oil
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 2 teaspoons espresso powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon espresso powder
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened almond milk or other non-dairy milk
- 1/2 cup non-hydrogenated shorting {such as Spectrum}
- 1/4 cup dairy free butter
- 2 1/2 cups powdered cane sugar, sifted
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- pinch sea salt
- coffee beans for garnish {optional}
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pan with paper liners. Set aside.
- In large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Stir together almond milk, coffee, oil, vinegar, espresso powder and vanilla in separate mixing bowl. Pour over flour mixture and mix until batter is combined.
- Divide batter evenly into prepared cupcake pan. Bake cupcakes 20-22 minutes, until golden brown. Place on cooling rack to cool completely.
- To make buttercream frosting, start by mixing together espresso powder with almond milk. Set aside.
- Place shortening and dairy free butter in bowl of stand mixer, beat 1-2 minutes. Add powdered sugar and 2-3 tablespoons of espresso mixture. Beat until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
- Place buttercream in pastry bag with large round tip. Pipe onto cupcakes. Decorate with coffee beans {optional}.
Yuuum, this recipe looks so good and i can’t wait to try it!