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Dairy- and egg-free vanilla cupcakes

Even if you can eat dairy products or eggs, you’ll love these simple vanilla cupcakes. The extra raising agents and vinegar really lift these, making them especially light and airy. The vanilla icing uses soya spread, which works just as butter does to form a rich sweet icing. If you don’t have a dairy intolerance, however, you could simply replace the soya spread with softened butter.

Prep time: 15 minutes

Baking time: 15–20 minutes

Ready in: 1 hour

Makes: 12 cupcakes

1 tbsp white wine vinegar or cider vinegar

275ml (9½fl oz) soya or rice milk

75ml (3fl oz) sunflower or vegetable oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

225g (8oz) self-raising flour

¾ tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

¼ tsp salt

200g (7oz) caster sugar

For the icing

125g (4½oz) soya spread

350g (12oz) icing sugar, sifted

Pinch of salt

2 tsp vanilla extract or seeds scraped from ½ vanilla pod

12-cup bun tray and 12 bun cases

Piping bag with a 4 or 5mm (¼in) star-shaped nozzle or a freezer bag with 4 or 5mm (¼in) cut from one corner (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F), Gas mark 4, and line the bun tray with the paper cases.

In a bowl, mix together the vinegar, soya or rice milk, sunflower or vegetable oil and vanilla extract. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt, then mix in the sugar. Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and whisk to combine completely – this may take a minute or so.

Divide the batter between the paper cases, filling each case three-quarters full. Bake in the oven for 15–20 minutes or until golden brown and springy to the touch. Allow to cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then remove from the tray and place on a wire rack to cool down completely.

As the cupcakes cool, make the icing. Whisk all the ingredients together (this is easiest using an electric food mixer or a hand-held electric beater) until soft and light.

Using a palette knife, the back of a spoon or a piping bag, spread the icing over the top of each cupcake before placing on a plate to serve.