Lemon Poppy Seed Cupcakes with Coconut Frosting

These melt-in-your-mouth little cakes are so delicious, moist and fluffy, with a hint of lemon, crunchy poppy seeds and a luscious coconut cream frosting on top.

Notes:
- I don’t often use vegan butter in my baking so this is not a traditional buttercream frosting. I'm using refrigerated coconut milk instead. The frosting might melt slightly at room temperature (especially if you make these in the summer), so I'd recommend keeping the prepared frosting in the fridge and decorating the cupcakes right before serving. If you prefer going the traditional buttercream route, feel free to do so.

- I prefer not to use store-bought powdered sugar and make my own instead. I simply blend organic cane sugar in a coffee grinder or blender to get a homemade powdered cane sugar.

- The frosting requires chilling a can of coconut milk in the fridge overnight to get separation of the water and cream (we’re only using the cream layer for this), so make sure to plan accordingly.

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Vegan Lemon Poppy Seed Cupcakes + Coconut Frosting

Makes 10-12 cupcakes

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:

• 1 1/2 cups light spelt flour (or your favourite all-purpose flour)

• 3/4 cup organic cane sugar

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 tsp sea salt

• 1/2 cup melted coconut oil

• 3/4 cup plant-based milk (oat, almond, cashew, coconut, etc.)

• 2 tbsp poppy seeds, plus more to garnish

• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

• 1 tbsp lemon zest (the zest of about 2 lemons)

For the coconut frosting:

• 1/4 cup organic cane sugar

• 1 14-oz can full-fat coconut milk, refrigerated overnight (Thai Kitchen works best for this)

• 2 tbsp melted coconut oil

• 1 tsp lemon juice

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Instructions

For the cupcakes:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 10-12 muffin tins with paper or silicon molds.

2. In a bowl, whisk together spelt flour, cane sugar, baking soda, and sea salt. Add coconut oil, milk and poppy seeds and whisk until combined. Add lemon juice and zest and stir a few times with a wooden spoon, just enough to combine. Quickly pour into the prepared muffin tins.

3. Bake for about 16-18 minutes, until the top of the cupcakes are slightly golden and/or a toothpick inserted in the center pulls out clean.

4. Remove from the oven and let sit for about 10 minutes. Remove the cupcakes from the pan and let cool completely on a cooling rack.

For the coconut frosting:

1. While the cupcakes are in the oven, prepare the coconut frosting. Place cane sugar in a coffee grinder or blender and blitz until it's reduced into a fine powder.

2. Make sure your can of coconut milk has been refrigerated overnight or at least 8 hours. Without shaking it, remove the can from the refrigerator. Open it, scrape the thick cream layer at the top and place it into a bowl. Reserve the coconut water for another use (I use it in smoothies).

3. Add powdered cane sugar, coconut oil and lemon juice to the hardened coconut cream and whip with a hand mixer until fluffy, about 2 minutes. (Results will vary depending on the brand of coconut milk you're using. I find that Kitchen Thai works best for this. If your frosting is too thin, add a couple teaspoons of arrowroot or cornstarch to thicken it). Refrigerate frosting until ready to serve.

4. Once cooled, frost cupcakes with the refrigerated coconut frosting. Sprinkle with poppy seeds and serve immediately. Store leftovers in a container at room temperature or in the refrigerator (the frosting might melt slightly at room temperature so I recommend decorating the cupcakes just before serving).