Name: Candy Corn Cupcakes
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 18 min
Total time: 53 min
Ingredients: ¾ cup oat milk ((or any milk alternative)); 1 tbsp distilled vinegar; 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour; 1 tsp baking powder; ¼ tsp baking soda; ¼ tsp salt; ¾ cup granulated sugar; ½ cup vegetable oil; 1 large egg; 2 tsp vanilla extract; Yellow and orange food coloring; ½ cup dairy-free butter, softened ((i.e. 1 stick; recommend Country Crock plant butter sticks with avocado oil)); 2 ½ cups powdered sugar; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 1 to 3 tbsp oat milk ((or any milk alternative; enough to achieve preferred consistency)); White, orange, and yellow sprinkles; Candy corn

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Celebrate Halloween with these fun candy corn cupcakes! This dairy-free cupcake recipe has a layered yellow and orange cupcake base, topped with white frosting to complete the classic candy corn look. Even though they look fancy, they’re actually quite easy to make with a little time in the kitchen (and you can make them even faster if you use store-bought frosting instead of homemade – a great substitute if you’re short on time).

Also – no, they don’t taste like candy corn (aside from optionally topping with a few pieces). They just look like the fall treat!

Ingredient Notes

Here’s are the ingredients you’ll need for the cupcake base – plus food coloring to make orange and yellow, which didn’t make it into the photo for some reason (face palm, haha):

Flour, egg, vanilla, oil, baking powder, baking soda, salt, oat milk, vinegar, and sugar.

If you’re making your own dairy-free vanilla frosting, below is a photo of what you’ll need. The only “specialty” ingredient you will need is dairy-free butter, which is readily available at most stores these days.For this recipe, my go-to options are Country Crock Plant Butter Sticks with Avocado Oil, or Earth Balance Soy-Free Buttery Sticks.

A bowl of powdered sugar, a stick of dairy free butter, a small bowl with oat milk, and vanilla extract.

Alternatively, you can just use a vanilla or cream cheese dairy-free store-bought frosting. Many store-bought options are dairy-free, though not all are. You’ll want to double check the ingredients. At the time of publish, for example, Pillsbury Vanilla Creamy Supreme Frosting and Pillsbury Cream Cheese Frosting were both dairy-free.

If you’d like some extra pizzaz for topping, you’ll also want to grab some sprinkles in white, orange, and/or yellow, and a few pieces of candy corn to fully deck them out. These are optional, of course!

Instructions

You’ll find the full recipe amounts and instructions in the recipe card below, but here’s a helpful overview with photos and tips.

Start by combining the oat milk and vinegar in a measuring cup – this creates a faux buttermilk that’s helpful for flavor and rise in the cupcakes.

In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt mixed together in a bowl.

Add the sugar, oil, egg, vanilla, and the oat milk/vinegar mixture. Stir until well combined.

Divide that into two bowls, and color one with yellow food coloring and the other with orange food coloring.

Orange and yellow cupcake batter in two separate bowls.

Divide the yellow batter evenly into a cupcake pan with paper liners. The batter should fill up each one to about ⅓- to ½-way full.

Carefully and gently pour the orange batter on top. If you pour it too forcefully, it will mix together the two batters, so being gentle is key to keeping the layered look!

Bake those at 350 degrees F for about 15-19 minutes, or until a toothpick pulls out clean from the center. Let them cool in the pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.

Meanwhile, make the frosting if you’re making it homemade (or use store-bought). Combine the dairy-free butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and 1 tablespoon of the dairy-free milk in a bowl. I recommend using the bowl of a stand mixer, as that will help you get the right consistency quickly. However, you can also use a regular bowl and a hand mixer if you don’t have a stand mixer.

Use the whisk attachment of your mixer to beat the ingredients. Start on low to give them a chance to start to incorporate, then raise the speed to high. (If you start the mixer on high, you’ll likely splash some powdered sugar around the kitchen). When the frosting is light and fluffy, it’s all set!

Dairy free buttercream in a silver mixing bowl.

Pipe or spread the frosting on the cupcakes. Add the (optional) sprinkles and candy corn on top. Enjoy!

Store frosted cupcakes at room temperature for a day, or refrigerate up to 5 days.

Allergens in this Recipe

Disclaimer: Always double check ingredients and labels yourself prior to making a recipe. While I try to check all ingredients for allergens, there’s always the chance I may miss something, or manufacturer formulations can change.

As written, this recipe is dairy-free. As long as the dairy-free butter you use in the frosting is nut-free (or the store-bought frosting), this recipe is nut-free as well.

This recipe does contain wheat/gluten (in the flour), egg (in the egg), soy (in the dairy-free butter, vegetable oil, and possibly in the sprinkles), and sesame (in the candy corn used for topping). You can adjust for these allergens as follows:

To make wheat/gluten-free: Use a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend in place of the regular flour. Double check that your oat milk, dairy-free butter, and candy corn are gluten-free.

To make egg free: I have not tested an egg free version of this recipe, but you could try a quarter cup of carbonated water in place of the egg. Another option would be 2 tablespoons of water + 1 teaspoon oil + ¼ teaspoon extra baking powder.

To make soy-free: Use avocado oil instead of vegetable oil; choose a soy-free dairy-free butter (like Earth Balance soy-free sticks), and double check that your sprinkles and candy corn are soy-free.

To make sesame-free: Skip the candy corn topping and double check that all packaged ingredients are sesame-free.

More Fun Halloween Desserts

If you’re looking for more delicious treats for Halloween, be sure to give one of these a try:

I hope you enjoy this recipe! If you get a chance to try it, please leave a recipe rating or comment below.