These cupcakes are special for three reasons:
1. They contain both fruit and vegetables.
2. They’re hot pink.
3. They require just 1 bowl to make!
Let’s do this!
These cupcakes – aren’t they just the prettiest?
They are super moist and include both beet purée and strawberries for a fresh, nutritious (and colorful) touch. Plus, they come together in less than 1 hour and only require 1 bowl (in true minimalist style)!
And that frosting gets it gorgeous hue thanks to a little beet purée infusion. Major swoon!
We hope you LOVE these cupcakes! They’re:
Light
Fruity
Perfectly sweet
Tender
Quick & easy
& Super delicious
These would make the perfect cupcakes to celebrate summer produce! Strawberries and beets are an odd match made in heaven, and help create a seriously fluffy, moist cupcake. Plus, that color!
Into cake? Be sure to check out our Vegan Gluten Free Vanilla Cake, Vegan GF Carrot Cake, Gluten Free Chocolate Birthday Cake, No Bake Vanilla Cake Bites, and Chocolate Hazelnut Layer Cake!
If you try this recipe let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo #minimalistbaker on Instagram. Happy baking, friends!
Vegan Beet Strawberry Cupcakes
Ingredients
Vegan Cupcakes
- 1 cup coconut milk beverage (or sub light canned coconut milk, almond milk, or other dairy-free milk)
- 1 tsp white vinegar
- 1/2 cup raw sugar (or granulated)
- 1/4 cup melted coconut or avocado oil
- 1/4 cup beet purée (roasting instructions here // add a little lemon or orange juice when puréeing to achieve a smoother consistency)
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose or whole-wheat pastry flour
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup chopped, fresh strawberries (or slightly thawed frozen berries)
Vegan “Buttercream” Frosting
- 1/2 cup non-dairy butter (such as Earth Balance // 1 stick equals 1/2 cup)
- 2 – 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 Tbsp beet purée (optional // mainly for color)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 splash coconut or almond milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (176 C) and line a muffin tin with paper or parchment liners.
- Whisk together the almond or coconut milk and vinegar in a large bowl, and set aside for a few minutes to curdle.
- Add the sugar, oil, and vanilla extract to the milk and beat until foamy. Add beet purée and beat again.
- Next, carefully add flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to a sifter and sift over wet ingredients. Beat until no large lumps remain. Then fold in strawberries.
- Carefully scoop batter into the cupcake holders, filling 3/4 way full. Bake for about 28-32 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Let rest in tin for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to let cool completely. (I chilled mine in the fridge).
- Rinse your mixing bowl out while the cupcakes are chilling and make the buttercream frosting.
- Beat butter until fluffy. Then add powdered sugar in 1/2 cup increments until desired thickness is achieved. Add in vanilla and beet purée until desired color is achieved, and a splash of almond or coconut milk. If it becomes too thick, compensate with milk or beet purée. If it becomes too thin, add more powdered sugar.
- Frost cupcakes as soon as they’re cooled. I had leftover frosting.
- Store in an airtight container to keep fresh for several days.
M. Romero says
This is our second time making this recipe & it keeps getting even better! I love how the beet taste is hidden in both the cupcake & frosting. If anyone is looking at this recipe & declining because of the beets which are so nutritious for you I promise you won’t even taste them! This will be a dessert we keep on repeat. Thank you Minimalist Baker ❤️
Whoop! We’re so glad you enjoy this recipe. Thank you for the lovely review! xo
Vicky says
Hi! Thinking on making these next week for my daughter’s birthday party. How long do I cook them for mini cupcakes? is the frosting kinda soft? I would love to use a piping bag and star tip to make the frosting taller. Would that be a good option with this recipe? if bit what other frosting could do this? my girl really wants pink cupcakes
Hi Vicky, We’re guessing mini cupcakes will take about 12-15 minutes to bake. Use a toothpick to check! That should work well with this frosting. You may want to use the full amount of powdered sugar so that it’s more firm. Hope that helps!
Vicky says
Thank you! Yes!
Do you think the frosting will hold up well for a couple of hours out of the fridge? The party room doesn’t have a fridge unfortunately.
Also can I make this into a cake as well?
Hi Vicky, a couple hours should be okay, especially if using Earth Balance vs. Miyoko’s (which melts more easily at room temperature because of the coconut oil). A cake should work as well – maybe give it an extra ~10-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Maria-Carmela says
We made this for my one year old’s birthday – both with and without sugar and they’re amazing! Unfortunately she’s sick and we have to post-pone the birthday party. I was wondering if they would be ok to freeze (we haven’t put icing on them yet). And if so- what’s the best way to serve. Just defrost or put back in the oven?
Hope she feels better soon! They will freeze for up to one month. To serve we suggest letting them thaw at room temperature and then frosting them!
Woan says
Hello. If I don’t have pastry flour, what can I use instead? Also can I make the cake in advance?
Hi Woan, it will keep up to 2-3 days. You can use all purpose flour instead. Hope that helps!
Woan says
It says 2 to 2.5 cups powdered sugar for the buttercream – is that right? That sounds like a lot of sugar for a 0.5 cup butter
Hi Woan, you can add a little at a time until you reach the desired consistency, but that’s how much we found it needed.
Ali says
Just made this recipe for my twin’ 4th birthday after they requested a pink strawberry cake. It was SO delicious!! Thank you so much 💗
Aw, yay! Happy birthday to them! Thanks so much for the lovely review!
Ashley Finney says
Hi! Happy belated to your littles! Curious did you do anything different from the recipe to make the cake vs cupcakes. Wanted to make this as a cake for our daughters 1st birthday 🙂
Ali says
Hi! Thank you and same to your kiddo!
I doubled the recipe and it made two 6 inch cakes and 6 cupcakes (silicone muffin pan). I cooked them all on a baking sheet at the same time and just took the muffins out and left the cakes in for another 10 minutes or so until a toothpick came out clean. They were perfect!
Leah says
Hi! I’m making these for my daughters first bday party this Sunday! Questions: if I were to make these GF, what flour combo would you suggest? And if I used coconut sugar in the cake part, what measurements would you suggest?
Lorena says
Hi! Can I use coconut butter instead of Earth Balance? thanks!
Lauren says
Can you make these cupcakes into a cake?
Yes! Bake the cupcakes at the same temperature called for, but reduce the baking time by 1/3 to 1/2 and bake for 15-20 minutes. Check doneness by inserting a wooden toothpick into the center of the cupcake. If the toothpick comes out clean, the cupcakes are done. Hope this helps!
Brielle says
Are you able to sub beet puree for beet powder?
Aja says
Greetings!
I’m very excited to try this as I’m looking for a vegan strawberry cupcake recipe. But I do have a few questions….
1. Since I’d like to omit the beets & just use strawberries in the batter, what other adjustments (if any) would need to be made?
2. My family LOVES everything about your vegan funfetti cupcake recipe- the light & moist texture, the perfectly sweet taste! We’re obsessed. Now, is there a way to make these cupcakes with the same texture Or adjust the funfetti recipe to accommodate strawberries?
Sorry for the hassle, just in search of the perfect vegan, strawberry cupcake for my little ones birthday.
Thanks in advance!
Sarah says
These look amazing! I wonder if it could work to sub gluten free baking powder?
Sarah says
Sorry, I meant flour :-)
plasterers bristol says
These sound so good, thanks for sharing this delicious looking recipe.
Simon
Emily says
Baking at high elevation, followed the recipe exactly. The cupcakes came out more like muffins – they were also over cooked and I cooked them on the lower end (28 mins). Super firm and dense. Wish I knew how to make these better! Going to try again with MUCH less time, and a little more sugar – they aren’t sweet and the tartness of the strawberries just isn’t nice. The buttercream frosting was super delicious but doesn’t stay as thick and fluffy as Crisco so I will remake the frosting with Crisco and sacrifice the buttery flavor :(.
I LOVE that the cupcakes did not turn out pink because you could see the strawberry and beet chunks and it looked really cool. This is a great idea so I hope I can make this work somehow and make some moist cupcakes.
tatin says
Oh wow, aren’t these the most vibrant and pink cupcakes i’ve ever seen or what! I was looking for something to bake this weekend and since spring’s starting next week nothing seems more appropriate!
Tana says
Can this be made into a cake?!
Yes, I’m sure! I’d do two round cake pans.
barbara says
My two grandson’s wanted to bake cupcakes (pupcakes is what they call them) So I found this recipe. Wow!! So easy and so delish. I am learning some different cooking recipes and this one is a keeper.
I am thinking of other veggie-fruit combo’s to try with them.
Thank you for the recipe.
Victoria says
I’ve made these 3 times now, and every time they’ve been amazing! Thank you so much for such fantastic recipes.
Angela says
Hi,
These look awesome! Is there a way to make these gluten free? What would the ratio of GF flour be to substitute instead of all purpose flour? Should I add a little xantham gum and maybe more baking powder if I substitute GF flour? Thank you!
Lesha says
I just made these and substituted all purpose gluten free flour for the pastry flour since I can’t eat wheat and I made a cream cheese frosting with the beet puree and they came out great! Thanks for the recipe, so pretty!
Celeste says
Obviously the cupcakes look delicious and I’m excited we can actually eat these since they’re soy-free and nut-free, but I’m even more excited about your photography course. I seriously browsed through your blog two days ago trying to look for a dessert to satisfy my sweet tooth. All I accomplished was a feeling of inadequacy and a general hatred for my blog and my photos. I SUCK! So even though we basically have no extra money right now I will do what I can to sign up for your course. I might as well learn from the ones that put me to shame.
Annonymous says
I’m confused by the pictures. The batter in the muffin tins looks so pink, but the cupcakes cooked look so yellow. Are these really the same ones? I was looking for a naturally pink to red muffin that used both beets and strawberries and don’t understand why yours would be yellow when other beet-based recipes do cook up pink.
Annonymous says
Also, is the coconut milk there for flavor or just to avoid dairy. I wondered if I could just use regular milk.
It’s so funny, it just bakes up that way! I was surprised, too.
Michele says
These look amazing! Have you tried making them without the sugar? Maybe they would be really healthy-tasting then? I’m just wondering if the beets and strawberries would be enough sweetness.
Without sugar they would be very bland, I’m afraid.
Lana says
O….M….G…..!
Lin says
Would it be possible to sub balsamic vinegar for white vinegar and add some balsamic vinegar to the frosting to get that nice combination of strawberry and balsamic vinegar?
Julia says
Hi,
I was wondering if this recipe can be adapted to cake-pans instead of cupcake-trays? Would love to try this recipe right now to calm a night-time craving for vegan baking, but I currently lack a cupcake tray (in the midst of moving!)
Thanks :)
Yes! I’d pour it into an 8×8. Cooking temp is the same, but cook time will be at least 1.5x more. Hope that helps!
seiko ものまね says
カシオ ペアウォッチ 2012
Freya says
I made these yesterday and while I wouldn’t say I was disappointed, necessarily, they are a lot more like muffins than cupcakes. This could maybe be fixed by the addition of more sugar to the batter? The icing was really tasty and did not taste like beet at all. The cake part did vaguely taste like beet, but that didn’t bother me so much. The texture was just a bit more muffin-like than cake-like and had more of a “healthy” taste to it.
Rania says
Great photos, They look amazing! Can’t wait to bake them!
Amelia says
I noticed the same thing as Anastasia. These cupcakes are delicious but the instructions for baking are lacking the strawberries! Where do they fit in?
Amelia, you’ll see in the recipe instructions that you fold the strawberries into the cupcake batter before baking. Hope that helps!
Anastasia says
I wonder where do you put the strawberries. In the frosting?
Anastasia, sorry for the delayed response! You’ll see in the recipe instructions that you fold the strawberries into the cupcake batter before baking. Hope that helps!
curso fondant says
I just have to say what your photos are unbelievable. I love them all. They seem really yummy!!!! Congratulations.
Tanya @ Playful and Hungry says
Loving this. Beet yields such a great color!
Sevimin Aşkanası says
I love a great cupcake looks so delicious thank you for sharing
a beautiful pink, also very elegant presentation
Heather || Heather's Dish says
WAY too pretty! I love the pink color and the contrast with the background. LOVELY :)
Kathryn says
Hot pink cupcakes are totally the way to my heart. And huge congrats on the launch of the course. Can’t wait to purchase a copy for myself!
Eli's Mom says
Beautiful photos of cupcakes. :) I wish I can afford your course. :D
Monique Volz says
Great job Dana and John! xo
Ashley says
In love with the hot pink frosting. So purdy! Congrats on the e-course!!
Abby @ The Frosted Vegan says
I love that these cupcakes have fruit and veggies! So excited for the e-course as well!
Caitlin says
these cupcakes are BEAUTIFUL! they remind me of spring and easter and sunshine and everything nice ;)