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Close up of a dairy free vanilla cupcake topped with dairy free buttercream frosting and a few sprinkles.

Dairy Free Vanilla Cupcakes

Celebrate any special occasion with a batch of these delicious dairy free vanilla cupcakes! Perfectly fluffy and easy to make.

Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword dairy free vanilla cupcakes
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 17 minutes
Total Time 37 minutes
Servings 12 cupcakes
Calories 361 kcal
Author Dairy Free for Baby

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:

  • ¾ cup non-dairy milk (recommend oat milk or almond milk)
  • 1 tbsp distilled vinegar
  • ⅓ cup dairy-free butter, softened (recommend Country Crock plant butter sticks with avocado oil)
  • ¼ cup vegetable oil (or another neutral oil)
  • ⅔ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • ¼ tsp baking soda
  • ¼ tsp salt

For the frosting (optional, can use store-bought):

  • 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 non-dairy milk (enough to achieve preferred consistency)

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cupcake tin with cupcake liners (or grease the tin).
  2. In a liquid measuring cup, combine the oat milk and vinegar. Let sit for 5 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, cream together the butter, sugar, and oil, until light and fluffy (using a stand mixer or hand mixer is easiest).
  4. Add the egg and vanilla, and beat again until light and fluffy.
  5. In another bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
  6. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Pour in the non-dairy milk mixture and stir all ingredients until combined.
  7. Portion the batter into the cupcake tin. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 19 minutes, or until a toothpick pulls clean from the center. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove and allow to finish cooling on a cooling rack.

  8. While cupcakes are cooling, prepare the frosting (if making homemade). In a large bowl, combine the softened dairy-free butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and 1 tablespoon of non-dairy milk. Beat using the whisk attachment on a stand mixer or hand mixer until light and fluffy. Add additional non-dairy milk if needed to reach the preferred consistency.

  9. When cupcakes are completely cooled, frost the cupcakes and enjoy.

Recipe Notes

  • Butter must be softened – not melted, not straight from the fridge – for the frosting, otherwise you will not achieve the desired texture.
  • Let cupcakes cool completely before frosting, otherwise frosting will melt.

 

Nutrition analysis (per cupcake with vanilla frosting): 361 calories, 17.5 g fat, 6.5 g saturated fat, 255 mg sodium, 48.5 g carbohydrate, 0.5 g fiber, 36 g sugar, 2 g protein, Vitamin D: 1%, Calcium: 4%, Iron: 5%, Potassium: 1%