Hummingbird Bakery-alike Cupcakes

There’s a Hummingbird Bakery near where I work, so I’ve been lucky enough to visit and admire… the cupcakes look so pretty and tempting, sitting in their neat rows in glass cases.

It was Big S’s Birthday this week and my inspiration for her school cupcakes was Hummingbird. I would have liked to attempt a ‘black bottom’ cupcake but was all out of dairy-free cream cheese. That one will have to wait until next time. I didn’t quite get the correct ‘icing swirl’ but the kids liked them, and Big S had a fabulous Birthday, even though it was a school day!

These cupcakes are a basic chocolate sponge, iced with velvety white buttercream and finally topped with a homemade Jazzie chocolate.

Chocolate Cupcakes (dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free, soya-free, sesame-free, vegetarian and vegan)

Makes 12

• 1 cup oat milk
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup dairy-free spread, melted
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup plain flour
• 1/2 cup drinking chocolate powder
• 3/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt

– Preheat the oven to 190 degrees Centigrade/Gas Mark 5
– Fill a cupcake tray with cupcake cases
– Mix together the oat milk, lemon, melted spread and vanilla.
– Stir in the sugar
– Sift in the flour, drinking chocolate, bicarbonate, baking powder and salt.
– Gently mix to form a smooth, very wet silky mix.
– 2/3rds fill the cupcake cases
– Bake for 18-20 minutes until a knife comes out clean
– Cool on a wire rack

Velvety White Buttercream (dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free, sesame-free, gluten-free, vegetarian and vegan)

enough to pipe onto 12-14 cupcakes

• 1/4 cup vegetable fat (such as Trex)
• 3/4 cup dairy-free spread (such as Pure)
• 3 cups icing sugar, sifted
• 1/4 cup oat milk

– Whisk together the spread and vegetable fat.

– Add the icing sugar, 1/2 cup at a time with a splash of the oat milk, until fully combined and nice and fluffy.

– Spread onto the cupcakes.

– Decorate with chocolate powder and/or a homemade jazzie