Vegan.Happy New Years Eve!To celebrate I bring to you, party bears! These cupcakes are a delicious and cute way to bring in a new year, plus they’re easy to make!Chocolate cupcakes with a custard filling, topped with whipped vanilla buttercream and edible details- yum!This recipe is a paid collaboration with Natures Charm.Natures Charm have created some of the best dessert toppings and coconut-based products. They have just launched this brand new ‘Coconut Custard’.It’s perfectly sweet, creamy and silky, perfect for adding into bakes, topping off desserts etc.I filled these cupcakes with the custard and they went down a treat. The custard along a rich chocolate cupcake reminds me of a Boston cream!They are sure to impress anyone you make them for.Natures Charm products are vegan, soy-free, dairy-free and gluten-free. Their products range from sauces, condensed coconut milk, coconut whipped cream, evaporated coconut milk etc…Their dessert sauce range includes:-Coconut caramel sauce-Salted caramel sauce -Chocolate fudge sauce-Butterscotch sauce-Matcha saucePreparation- 40 minutesBaking time- 18-20 minutesMakes- Around 10Level- Easy…Ingredients for the cake-240ml of dairy-free milk-1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar-210g of self-raising flour-2 tablespoons of cocoa powder-100g of golden caster sugar-1/2 teaspoon of baking powder-1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda-60g of coconut oil (melted)Ingredients for the filling-Natures charm custardIngredients for the buttercream-120g of dairy-free butter -250g of icing sugar-1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste (you can use extract)-1 teaspoon of dairy-free milk (if needed)Extras-Ice-cream cones-Sprinkles-Edible glitter…To make the cupcakesStep 1- Preheat your oven to 180 degrees c.Step 2- In a small bowl, combine the dairy-free milk with the apple cider vinegar and whisk until fully combined.Set aside for 10 minutes to curdle. This creates a vegan ‘buttermilk’.Step 3- In a large mixing bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda.Mix well to combine.Step 4- Add the melted coconut oil to the ‘buttermilk’ and whisk to combine.Step 5- Add the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until a smooth batter.Step 6- Add a millionaires square into each cupcake case (optional).Step 7- Fill the cupcake cases 3/4 full with the batter.Make sure to tap the tins on the worktop to remove any air bubbles.Step 8- Pop the cakes into the preheated oven and bake for 18-20 minutes.You will know they are done when you put a knife or skewer in and it comes out clean and they are springy to the touch.Step 9- Place the cupcakes on a cooling rack and allow to cool fully. Once cool, pop them into a sealed container to keep them fresh before frosting/decorating.Fill the core (optional)Step 1- Using an apple corer, core the middle of the cupcakes.Step 2- Add the custard into a piping bag and pipe some into each cupcake.To make the frostingStep 1- Cream the butter in a bowl, on high speed until creamy. I use my stand mixer with the balloon whisk attachment.Step 2- When your butter/margarine is creamy & light in colour, add in the icing sugar and vanilla bean paste/extract.Whizz together until fluffy & fully combined.Add a splash of dairy-free milk if the buttercream is too thick.Step 3- Take a small amount of buttercream from the bowl and place into a separate bowl along with black food gel.You only need a little bit of black buttercream for the nose and eyes.Step 4- Transfer the white buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a round nozzle and the black buttercream to a piping bag with a small round tip nozzle.Step 5- Pipe a swirl of vanilla buttercream onto each cupcake.Pipe two bulbs of frosting on the top of the cupcake for the ears and one towards the front of the cupcake for the nose.Step 6- Using the black buttercream, add on two eyes and a nose (as seen in the photos).To make the hats I broke the tip off an ice cream cone, covered it in a light layer of buttercream and added on some sprinkles and edible glitter.Serve these cupcakes fresh or store in a sealed container in or out of the fridge, the buttercream will firm up at room temperature. Best eaten within a few days.PIN MEShop the whole ‘Natures Charm’ range here. A huge thank you to Natures Charm for collabing on this recipe with me!Discover Natures Charm on social mediaInstagram- https://www.instagram.com/naturescharm/Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/naturescharmvegan/Make sure you follow me on my social mediaInstagram- https://www.instagram.com/thelittleblogofvegan/Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/littleblogofvegan/Twitter- https://twitter.com/BlogofVeganI would love to see your take on my recipes. Tag me on social media using the hashtag #Blogofvegan #thelittleblogofvegan All of my social media links are in the side bar…come and say Hi Share and follow me for more yummy posts to come!
