Easiest Cupcakes on the Planet

[prettyin_punk]

wow, this was so simple! i used about a cup of fresh pureed pumpkin, a bit of applesauce, and water to make it "soupy". i also added a bit of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves for a bit more flavor. i took some of the cakemix and added a dash of soymilk to make "frosting". the nutritional information on these cupcakes are amazing too! they come out to be at about less than 100 calories per cupcake.

thanks!

[veggiechick74]

This is a great alternative when you just don't have time to make a cake from scratch.

I've made cake/cupcakes with a 16 oz can of pureed pumpkin and about 1/2 cup water added to a box cake mix. I've always founf I needed the extra moisture, but it may depend on the brand of pumpkin you use.

Spice cake mix comes out a yummy pumpkin spice cake.
Chocolate cake mix is just plain yummy! The chocolate actually covers a lot of the pumpkin flavor and they're really moist. 

[phatpeechez]

REVIEW

It's been years since I've bought a cake mix, but I'm not too much of a snob to do so. Here's an overview of my experience making these.

At first, the batter seemed really dry. It still had portions of the mix that wouldn't blend, so I added 1/2 cup of water. I'm guessing this is due to the varying water content of different brands (I used Libby's canned pumpkin, 15 oz). After adding the water, all of the flour mixed in. The batter was much thicker than traditional (gourmet) batters.

The finished product was delicious! Fluffy and moist. I enjoy food that is tasty, but also vegan, and this fit the requirements. I can't even remember the last time I baked cupcakes using a mix, so I made the mistake of only making 12. They were HUGE! I'm not sure that they rose enough to make 24 (like the instructions on the box said) but I will definitely try to make at least 18 next time. I also suggest spraying your cupcake papers with non-stick cooking spray. I hope that others reading this can stoop below their typical 'from scratch only or DIE' standards and try these little yummies.

[lorlor80]

These were really great!  I added a little bit of water to thin out the batter some.  I saw this recipe somewhere else online and they used a spice cake mix.  I think that would be good too!  You can really add anything you like to this; nuts, coconut, chocolate chips, etc.  Thanks for a great base recipe!  I never would've thought such awesome cupcakes could be so easy!  

[jessesmum]

These cupcakes just got out of the oven. They turned out beautifully. OMG, you have to try them. I used a plain yellow cake mix & it didn't need any extra liquid. Next time I make these, I am going to use an organic cornmeal cake mix...that will be really good too.
You can't get any easier than this recipe & they are so moist. Thanx SarahBeth, we'll be making these often. 

I added a picture up there so you could see it's yumminess

[VeganChristine]

Thanks for the scrumptious picture, jessesmum!

Where is vegan cake mix found?  Do you need to get if from a health food store or are some of the standard grocery store mixes "accidentally vegan"?  Thanks!

[lorlor80]

Christine, I've seen Dr. Oetkers brand cake mix at my Target store.  It's vegan and organic.  If you can't find it, there's this awesome 100% vegan store I shop at all the time that has a website and they sell vegan cake mixes too.  http://www.ethicalplanet.com  and by the way, they also sell the best veggie burger mix in the world (in case you were wondering)  

[VeganChristine]

Thanks, lorlor!  I'll check out both!    

[Stretch]

I made this with spice cake mix and vanilla frosting-soo delicious! This is my new go-to cake recipe!

[nonna1028]

  This is absolutely fantastic...First I made muffins, then I baked a cake and took it to work...It did not last an hour...Thanx so much..I'm off to bake another..I like easy   

[kstyle281]

I've made this with devil's food cake mix and it is almost like a brownie.  No pumpkin taste at all.  My no-veggie family actually liked these!

[uhblondie]

I just made this with a spice cake mix, a 16-oz can of pumpkin, 1/2 cup of water, and about 1/4 cup applesauce (it was too dry with just the pumpkin). They took a long time to bake (almost double the time listed on the box), but they are SO GOOD! Next time I might add some pumpkin pie spice for extra flavor, but it isn't really necessary. I bet yellow cake would also be delicious. I didn't have the problem phatpeechez did, though - I made 16 muffins, and they were smaller than I would have liked, so next time I'll make 12. Anyway, thanks Sarah Beth! I'll totally use this recipe many times in the future. :-)

[Lauuren]

I've also made these chocolate.  I used to have a recipe for making the cake mix part out of various dry ingredients, which was even better than having to buy a mix, but I think I lost it in the move.  Anyway, try it with chocolate, it sounds weird, but they're great.

[uhblondie]

Ok, I just ate one topped with vegan cream cheese icing and OMG, soooo gooooood....