Lavender Lemon Cupcakes

This is my first year to participate in the Virtual Vegan Potluck and oh boy and I excited! The featured ingredients this year were pretty much any citrusy so it gave me the opportunity to break out these awesome cupcakes!
Ok so I know what you all are thinking: who the heck puts flower flavor in a cupcake? Well I do, actually, and it's kinda a delicious purple bombshell. I promise the scent of these cupcakes will not send you back to the essential oil steamer in your hot yoga class. The lavender is subtle in the sweet buttercream and really serves to emphasize the lemon of the cupcake. So don't judge a cupcake by it's flower. A little floral never hurt no body/cupcake!

Cupcakes adapted from this recipe. Buttercream adapted from The Baking Fairy

Yields about 2 dozen cupcakes
Ingredients
Lemon Cupcakes
zest from 2 lemons
1 1/2 cups of sugar - be sure to use a variety that does not contain bone char like Imperial
juice of 1/4 a lemon
1/2 cup of Earth Balance
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup of water
6 tsp of Ener G egg replacer
1 1/4 cups almond milk
1 1/4 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour (unbleached)
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
Lavender Buttercream
1/2 cup of Earth Balance
1/4 cup butter-flavored Crisco
3 cups of powdered sugar -be sure to use a variety that does not contain bone char like Imperial
3-4 tbsp almond milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp lavender extract
2 drops of light purple food coloring (make sure it doesn't have that nasty red 40 in it!)


Instructions
Lemon Cupcakes
1. Preheat oven to 350 F and line cupcake pan with cupcake liners
2. In a small bowl, whisk together apple cider vinegar and almond milk, and allow it to rest for 5- 10 minutes (this creates a vegan buttermilk)
3. Whisk together Ener G egg replacer and water and allow it to rest for 5 minutes
4. Once both egg replacer and buttermilk have rested stir them together and set aside
5. In a different bowl mix flour, salt and baking powder until well combined and set aside
6. In a standing mixer whisk together sugar and lemon zest until fragrant
7. Add the Earth Balance to the sugar and beat on high for 3 minutes
8. Beat in the vanilla extract and lemon juice and then carefully pour in 1/3 of the flour mixture while continuing to beat on high
9. Beat in 1/2 of the egg replacer and buttermilk mixture until it is well mixed and then add in an additional 1/3 of the flour mix
10. Once that is well combined add in the remaining egg replacer and buttermilk mixture and then the remaining flour
11. Continue to beat the batter for an additional 2-3 minutes until it is well combined. Scrap the batter down the sides of the bowl as needed
12. Fill each cupcake liner about 2/3 of the way full
13. Bake cakes for 18-22 minutes or until a knife can come out cleanly from it
14. Allow cupcakes to cool on a rack. Do not apply buttercream to cupcakes until they have cooled completely
Lavender Buttercream
1. In a standing mixer whisk together Earth Balance and Crisco on high until fluffy
2. Reduce the speed of your mixer and then add in your powdered sugar, extracts, food coloring and almond milk
3. Continue to whisk the buttercream on high until it is light and fluffy
4.  Once your cupcakes are cooled you can go ahead and ice them with your buttercream. If your cupcakes are still warm place your buttercream in the fridge until they have cooled and then apply it

I hope you all enjoy this delicious treat!

  

Please continue on with your potluck journey :)