Orange Ginger Cupcakes with Spicy Ginger Frosting

Orange and ginger is such a classic combo, and it works beautifully in these vegan orange ginger cupcakes. I think the spicy ginger frosting is really the key.

I’m not sure what happened, but I’m on a serious cupcake kick these days! Maybe it all started with those Coconut Lime Cupcakes with Molasses Rum Buttercream Frosting? Or maybe my little sister’s sushi cupcakes were the culprit! Regardless, I keep ending up in the kitchen hoping that I’ve still got enough pan liners, powdered sugar, and flour!

These orange ginger cupcakes were inspired by the beautiful oranges that arrived in our Vegetable Husband baskets last week.

Orange Ginger Cupcakes with Spicy Ginger Frosting

Cupcake Ingredients

• 1 cup soy or almond milk
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 3/4 cups white flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 tablespoons corn starch
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup margarine
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon orange extract
• 2 teaspoons grated ginger
• 2t grated orange zest

Cupcake Method

1. Preheat oven to 350F and line muffin pan with paper liners.
2. Whisk the soy milk and the vinegar together and let sit a few minutes until curdled.
3. Dry Ingredients: Stir together the flours, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a large bowl and mix.
4. Wet Ingredients:  In a separate large bowl, cream the margarine and sugar together just until they’re combined. Beat in the soy milk mixture, orange extract, ginger, and orange zest.
5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and stir until well combined. Pour the mixture into your muffin pan, filling each cup 2/3 of the way.
6. Bake for 20-22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Set your cupcakes aside to cool while you make the frosting.
7. When your cupcakes are totally cooled, you can spread or pipe on the frosting.

Ginger Frosting Ingredients

• 1/4 cup non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger – A food processor works best. The finer the better!
• 1 3/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1-2 tablepoons almond milk, as needed

Ginger Frosting Method

1. Whip the ginger and shortening together until very well combined, then whip in the powdered sugar until the frosting is totally smooth. Add almond milk by the teaspoon, if it needs thinning out.
2. Frost the cupcakes just before serving. I used a spoon to just put a generous dollop on top of each one this time, since the recipe made so much frosting!