Vegan Apple Cider Pumpkin Cupcakes

Vegan Pumpkin Butter Spice Cupcakes.....What a mouth full...and a tasty one if i might add.  This recipe was inspired by the random pumpkin butter that Trader Joe's amazing marketing convinced me to buy. You all know the ones... the cute chalk boards with the perfectly printed and drawn advertisement. i always wondered who did the chalks boards and if that is a requirement when you apply to work at Trader Joe's. anyways, as usual, i found myself walking about of Trader Joe's excited about my new purchase but having absolutely no idea what to do with it.  Before letting buyers remorse kick in i decided cupcakes..... everyone loves cupcakes! And so the recipe began...

Vegan Apple Cider Pumpkin Cupcakes

Cake:

2 Cups Apple Cider (2 cups water, 1 packet of cider, 1 apple cinamon tea bag)

1 tsp corn starch

¼ tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp ground cloves

1 pinch nutmeg

1 pinch pumpkin spice

½ cup pumpkin butter

¼ cup Maple Syrup

¾ cups sugar

1/3 cup vegtable oil (and a little more)

2 tsp Apple cider vinegar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/3 cups flour

½ tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

Cinnamon, Maple Vegan Buttercream Frosting:

½ cup vegan butter (1 stick of earth balance)

2 ½ cups powdered sugar

1 tsp maple syrup

¼ tsp cinamon

¼ tsp nutmeg

2 tbsp  almond Milk

·         Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

·         Place the two cups of water, 1 packet of cider, apple tea bag, cinnamon, cloves, corn starch, and pumpkin spice in a small sauce pan.  Get the mixture up to a roaring boil then bring it down to a light boil and leave until it reduces to about 1 ¼ cup.  Once the mixture has reduced down, set aside and let it come to room temperature.

·         Mix together the four, bakign powder, bakign soda, and baking powder

·         In a Seperate bowl mix the pumpking butter, maple syrup, sugar, vegtable oil, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla.

·         Take the sugar mixture and mix the apple cider mixture in well

·         Then mix in the flour mixture

·         Lastly, fill each cupcake ¾ full  and bake for 20 minutes.