Vanilla Cupcakes with Cherry Frosting

Who loves cupcakes?? I sure do, and I'm a big fan of the cupcakes made by Sweets From The Earth. I've tried many times to amalgamate a recipe that tastes good, isn't too dry or crumbly, and doesn't have a lot of soy after taste. I think I've finally found a keeper. These are flavourful, have the right texture, no soy aftertaste and they're not as heavy as other vegan cupcakes. Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Cupcake Ingredients: 

1 1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 cup sugar
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/5/tsp salt
2 teaspoons egg replacer
7 tablespoons vegetable shortening (a bit under 1/2 cup approx.)
1/2 cup almond milk
1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Yield: approximately 45 mini cupcakes (maybe 12+ large cupcakes?)

Directions

1. In a small bowl, mix almond milk and apple cider vinegar and set aside for 5 minutes to curdle.

2. Cream the vegetable shortening using a stand up mixer, starting from low speed to high speed.  After it starts becoming fluffly, slowly incorporate sugar and add vanilla extract.

3. Prepare the egg replacer according to package: usually per 1 dry teaspoon of egg replacer, use 2 teaspoons of warm water to turn it into a paste.

4.. In a separate bowl, mix all dry ingredients. Add egg replacer to creamed shortening, then slowly alternate between adding dry mixture and wet mixture. Use mixer on low speed until everything is incorporated, then use high for a minute or 2 to mix up batter perfectly.

5. Line baking tray with muffin cups and use a brush to lightly oil the insider of the cups. Pour batter and bake at 350 Fahrenheit for approximately 20 minutes until golden brown.

Frosting Ingredients:

14 tablespoons of vegetable shortening (I used Earth Balance)
2-3 cups of icing sugar
1/2 cup fresh or frozen cherries

1. Whip shortening in a stand up mixer on high speed for a few minutes. Slowly add icing sugar, sifted with no clumps.

2. If using frozen cherries, let defrost in a bowl and pour the red juice in the bowl. If using fresh cherries, squeeze cherries into bowl until all juice comes out. This will colour the frosting naturally pink and give it a cherry aroma.

3. Decorate cupcakes after they completely cooled from the oven.