Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes

Photo: flickr user norwichnuts

Ingredients

1 cup soy milk

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons cornstarch

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup non-hydrogenated margarine (or ⅓ cup canola oil)

1/4 teaspoon salt (increase to ½ teaspoon if using oil)

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line muffin pan with cupcake liners.

Whisk the soy milk and vinegar in a measuring cup and set aside a few minutes to get good and curdled*

If using margarine, sift the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a large bowl and mix. In a separate large bowl, use a handheld mixer a medium speed to cream the margarine and sugar for about 2 minutes until light and fluffy, but don't beat past two minutes. Beat in the vanilla, then alternate beating in the soy milk mixture and the dry ingredients, stopping to scrape the side of the bowl a few times.

If using oil: beat together the soy milk mixture, oil, sugar, and vanilla in a large bowl. Sift in the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt and mix until no large lumps remain.

Fill cupcake liners two-thirds of the way full and bake for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely before frosting.