Vegan Whiskey Chocolate Cupcakes

For the cupcakes:
Preheat oven to 350ºF, and line a cupcake pan with liners.

Make your “buttermilk” by combining the oat milk and apple cider vinegar in a small bowl. Stir, set aside, and let sit for 5 minutes.

In a stand mixer, add sugar and oil. In another medium bowl, sift flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt together.

Once buttermilk has been left to sit for at least 5 minutes, in a small food processor or blender, add beets and half of the buttermilk mixture. Blend until well combined and smooth, about 10–20 seconds.

Add beet mixture and milk to the stand mixer that has the oil and sugar. Whisk to combine well.

Using the paddle attachment for your mixer, add half the flour. Mix until combined. Scrape the bowl down, add in the last half, and mix well again. Using a 1/3 cup scoop, fill the cupcake pan. Bake in the oven for 20–24 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Resist the urge to open the oven door, as this may cause them to sink.

When cupcakes are done, remove them from a pan, and set on a wire rack to cool.

For the chocolate ganache filling:
While cupcakes are baking, add coconut cream to a small pot on the stove over medium heat.

Add chocolate chips to a small bowl. Once cream is bubbling along the edges, this means that the cream is almost to a boil. Don’t let the cream boil—take it off heat and add to the chocolate chips.

Let sit for 2 minutes, then whisk until smooth. Once smooth, add whiskey and whisk well again. Cover and set aside, allowing it to come to room temperature.

For the whiskey buttercream:
Add softened vegan butter to your stand mixer. Mix butter until creamy, about 1 minute.

Add 1 cup of the powdered sugar to the butter. Mix until creamy, about 1 minute. Repeat this step two more times, adding 1 cup of powdered sugar at a time. This should render a fluffy buttercream, as you are continually beating more air into the mixture. Add whiskey, and blend well again.

Fit a piping bag with a tip you like, and fill the piping bag with the buttercream. Set aside.

When the cupcakes have cooled, take the paring knife, angle it from the outside towards the center, and gently saw in a circle until you have an upside-down cone in the top of the cupcake.

Fill the center of the cupcakes with the ganache. Pipe the buttercream on top of the filled cupcakes, and decorate however you like! I’ve used a sprinkling of gold sugar to resemble a leprechaun’s pot of gold. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!