These soft & moist caramel cupcakes are stuffed with a gooey salted caramel sauce and topped with a silky dairy free cream cheese frosting- all made entirely without eggs and no dairy!

sliced open vegan salted caramel cupcakes

The most soft & MOIST salted caramel cupcakes- all vegan!

We’re currently celebrating all things caramel on Banana right now- salted caramel cake, salted caramel cheesecake, and now these deliciously fluffy and moist salted caramel cupcakes!

And oh, have I never met a cupcake I didn’t like, but these ones quite literally take the (cup)cake. These vegan caramel cupcakes are every bit as soft, moist, “buttery,” and deliciously tender as my vegan vanilla cake. Then stuffed with a gooey caramel center and topped with a salted caramel cream cheese frosting drizzled with more caramel.

salted caramel cupcakes on wooden board and marble table

I mean, how could you say no?

And in typical Banana Diaries fashion, the entire recipe is vegan- no eggs, no dairy, and you’d never know (truly).

How are these cupcakes vegan?

Well, you might be really shocked to know that you actually don’t need eggs in cupcakes to make them rise. In fact, I find the cupcakes are even better than I remember without eggs (trust me, this is coming from the girl who used to work at the original Georgetown Cupcake. I know a thing or two about a good tasting cupcake!).

The cupcakes are made vegan by using a neutral oil, dairy free milk (used for our homemade simple vegan buttermilk!), and leavening agents to get that beautiful fluffy rise. The combination of the leavening agents combined with the acidity of the “buttermilk” creates that reaction needed to fluff up a light and beautifully tender cupcake while keeping it nice and moist with the oil.

The caramel is my classic vegan caramel sauce that’s shockingly identical to classic caramel sauce. We’re using the no-fail wet caramel method that really makes sure that the caramel comes out smooth, glossy, and beautiful rich (and definitely not grainy!).

Then the cream cheese frosting uses just 3 ingredients- vegan cream cheese, powdered sugar, and a touch or cornstarch to help with piping!

bitten open vegan caramel cupcake

Overview: step by step how to make and stuff vegan caramel cupcakes:

For the full written instructions and ingredient measurements, see the bottom of this post in the recipe card. You can also hit the “jump to recipe” button at the top of this post! Here, we’ll go over a brief overview of the steps, along with providing visuals for a better understanding of the recipe.

vanilla cupcake batter
Our cupcake batter is simple- it’s my vegan vanilla cupcake batter! It’s made entirely in one bowl and so quick to whisk together with- you got it- just a whisk and a bowl!
baked caramel cupcakes
Once baked, we’ll let them cool before filling with our homemade salted caramel.
filled caramel cupcakes
Fill each cupcake with salted vegan caramel.
frosting for the caramel cupcakes
Then top with our homemade vegan caramel cream cheese frosting!

Optional frosting swirls:

You can, of course, keep it simple, like I did. Just adding the caramel to the frosting, mixing that together, then piping on top. Finish with more salted caramel, and call it a day!

Or you can drizzle caramel into your piping bag, and add the frosting in as well. Pipe the frosting on top of each cupcake for a caramel swirl!

frosted caramel cupcakes
frosted caramel cupcakes

My most important tip:

That actually has nothing to do with the caramel nor the frosting- it’s actually about measuring the leavening agents.

Please please use a measuring spoon to measure the leavening agents in the cupcake batter. Too much of either the baking powder or the baking soda, and the cupcakes will puff too much without baking (not to mention, a super baking soda flavor infused into the batter as well). Too little, and they won’t rise.

Use your measuring spoons here and make sure that you’re measuring the leavening agents properly!

bitten vegan caramel cupcake

Want to save this recipe for later? Add it to your favorite recipe board on Pinterest!

If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ below. This helps others to find the recipes! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there as well!

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sliced open vegan salted caramel cupcakes

One Bowl MOIST Vegan Caramel Cupcakes

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  • Author: Britt Berlin
  • Prep Time: 25
  • Cook Time: 20
  • Total Time: 45 minutes
  • Yield: 12 1x
  • Category: Cupcakes
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan
Print Recipe

Description

These soft & moist caramel cupcakes are stuffed with a gooey salted caramel sauce and topped with a silky dairy free cream cheese frosting- all made entirely without eggs and no dairy!

Ingredients

Scale

Cupcake batter:

  • 1 cup (240 mL) vegan buttermilk , room temperature
  • 1/2 cup (112 g) neutral cooking oil or vegan butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
  • 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract + 1/2 tsp vanilla powder  or vanilla bean paste
  • 1 3/4 cup (230 g) all purpose flour or gluten free 1:1 baking flour*
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt

Cream cheese frosting:

Instructions

  1. Read through the instructions before beginning, and make sure to measure out all ingredients.
  2. Prep: Preheat the oven to 350F and line a 12 cup-cupcake tin with cupcake liners. Prepare the vegan buttermilk by whisking together the dairy free milk and apple cider vinegar in a small bowl. Set aside for 5 minutes.
  3. Make the salted caramel: Follow the instructions to make the vegan salted caramel. Set aside to cool while you make the cupcakes.
  4. Make the cupcake batter: In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, sugar, and vanilla extract with the paste. Add in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and sea salt. Whisk until JUST combined as you pour in the vegan buttermilk. Be careful not to over mix the batter.
  5. Bake the cupcakes: Use a large cookie scoop or an ice cream scoop or a spoon to fill each cupcake liner about 3/4 of the way full. Place the cupcake tin into the oven and bake for 20-22 minutes, or until the toothpick comes out clean. Another way to test this is the tops of the cupcakes should be lightly golden and the cupcake should spring back at a light touch.
  6. Cool: Remove from the oven and allow the cupcakes to cool completely before filling the cupcakes and making the vegan frosting, about 20 minutes.
  7. Make the cream cheese frosting: Follow the instructions for making the cream cheese frosting, followed by adding 2-3 tbsp of cooled salted caramel to the frosting. Use the hand mixer to mix until the caramel is completely integrated. Place the frosting into the fridge to keep cool while you fill the cupcakes.
  8. Core and fill the cupcakes: Use a cupcake corer or a butter knife to cut a small hole into the top of each cupcake. Fill with 2 teaspoons of salted caramel each.
  9. Pipe the frosting: Fill a piping bag or spoon about 3-4 tbsp of frosting per cupcake onto each cupcake. Top with additional salted caramel and optional flaky sea salt.
  10. Serve and enjoy! Serve the cupcakes and enjoy! Store any leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

Notes

Gluten free: Use a gluten-free flour blend, such as King Arthur measure for measure gluten free flour.