Cupcake recipe slightly modified from: Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World: 75 Dairy-Free Recipes for Cupcakes that Rule (Isa Chandra Moskowitz), I found the recipe online but would definitely consider buying the book.

Frosting recipe adapted from: http://cookpad.com

OH MY GOD, I’M SO STRESSED OUT. I NEED TO EAT A CAKE, LIKE, RIGHT NOW.

It was 11PM and I was at home hunching over my laptop, stumbling through never-ending to-do list for the projects that had to be wrapped up before holidays, which at this point was very quickly becoming to look less and less likely.

Everybody knows a cake is a perfectly logical solution to mitigate the possibility of nervous breakdown under such crisis, and clearly it would be even more effective with chocolate.  So, naturally, I decided to bake chocolate cupcake, although it did pose some logistical issues in this particular situation including the fact that I’m not a very good baker nor have I ever even tried to become one, as well as that I was all out of eggs.

However, neither of these was going to stop me – 2 hours later, I was in the kitchen inhaling the most moist, fluffiest and richest cupcakes I ever baked. Once again I proved to myself it is when I do something I’m totally NOT supposed to be doing that I demonstrate remarkable concentration and skills.

Or possibly, this recipe is just really, really amazing.

I added minimal modification to ingredients, mainly due to what I had at hand. I have been (very loosely) gluten-free recently so I happened to have gluten-free baking flour, but the original recipe uses regular all-purpose flour, which I’m sure would provide equally fabulous results.

Frosting did take some tinkering in the meantime. I have been always rather scared of amount of sugar and fat that go into any frosting recipe I have seen, and wanted to come up with an alternative that could be a bit lighter but still creamy with firm enough texture so it holds shape for decoration. Processing medium-firm tofu with a few handfuls of Rice Krispies achieved this (another completely genius idea I found on cookpad.com!).  Addition of matcha (green tea) not only makes them look appropriately seasonal, but also gives that delicate yet distinct flavor everybody loves, which goes surprising well with the rich chocolate base.

Thoroughly satisfied and empowered by this success, I managed to meet all the deadlines, which was great. But even after I’m out of the dire crisis, I cannot stop making these cakes.  I have already baked them 3 times since last week – I think I’m screwed on a whole new level now.

RECIPE (12 cupcakes)

Ingredients:

Vegan Chocolate Cupcake

• 1 cup soy milk
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup grape seed oil
• 11/2teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup gluten-free baking flour such as Bob’s Red Mill’s 1-to-1 baking flour (you can substitute with regular all-purpose flour if you are not gluten-free)
• 1/3 cup cocoa powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Sprinkles of your choice, for decoration

Tofu Green Tea Frosting

• 1 package medium firm tofu such as House Foods Organic Tofu Medium Firm (about 400g) – I had the best results with medium firm kind for both texture and taste. Soft or silken will result in texture that is too soft, and I found the flavor of firm or extra firm tofu too strong.
• 11/3 cup Rice Krispies (or any other toasted rice cereal)
• 4 tablespoons agave syrup
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 4~5 teaspoons green tea powder (matcha – I used this but various different kinds are available on amazon) – I usually go with 5 tsp as I like strong green tea flavor, but you might want to adjust it if you want it milder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 350F and line a muffin pan with paper or foil liners
2. Whisk together the soy milk and vinegar in a large bowl, and set aside for a few minutes to curdle.  While waiting, place a sifter on a shallow bowl and add the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking power and salt inside the sifter.
3. Add the sugar, oil and vanilla extract to the soy milk mixture, and beat until foamy. Directly sift dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in 2 batches. Add any that that has been sifted through onto the bowl as well (Of course you can sift them in advance in a separate bowl. I’m just being lazy here). Quickly beat to mix until no large lumps remain.
4. Pour into liners, filling 3/4 of the way. Bake 18 to 20 minutes. Test by inserting a toothpick into the center, it should come out clean. Transfer to cooling rack and let cool completely.
5. To make frost: Mix all the ingredients in food processor and process well, while scraping sides occasionally to make sure all the rice cereals are incorporated, until it becomes a smooth paste. Frost and decorate the cupcakes as you like once they are cooled down.  I’m also pretty bad at decorating cakes, but this frost is very easy to pipe if you are in a mood for fancier presentation.