Coconut polar bear cupcakes recipe

Vegan, quick & easy

Are you ready for some cuteness? I hope so! 🐻

I’ve created the most adorable, festive cupcakes which look like polar bears!

These cakes are easy to make and are really effective. They’re 100% vegan.

The cupcakes are a vanilla cake, topped with a thick & creamy vanilla buttercream coated in coconut with royal icing details.

The cake is spongy and light along with the tasty buttercream….YUM!!

They are the perfect accompaniment to a toasty, warm Christmas meal, to serve at Christmas events/parties and even enjoy with the hot chocolate (dairy-free of course) for a cosy evening.

I love Polar bears and want to share the importance of being aware of climate change and the impact it’s having on the environment and to these stunning animals.

To read more, please check out this article from the National Geographic. 

Now for the cupcakes…

Preparation- 10 minutes

Baking time- 18-20 minutes

Makes- Around 8-10

Level- Easy

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Ingredients for the cakes

-240ml of almond milk

-1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar

-210g of self-raising flour (You can use gluten-free)

-100g of golden caster sugar

-1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

-1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda

-60g of coconut oil (Melted)

Ingredients for the buttercream

-130g of butter (I use Tomor)

-400g of icing sugar

-2 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste (You can use vanilla extract)

-2 teaspoon of almond milk (Optional)

+

-Desiccated coconut

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To make the cupcakes

Step 1- Preheat your oven to 180 degrees c and line a cupcake tin with cupcake cases.

Step 2- In a small bowl, combine the almond milk with the apple cider vinegar and whisk until fully combined.

Set aside for 10 minutes to curdle. This creates a vegan ‘buttermilk’.

Step 3- In a large mixing bowl, sift the flour, sugar, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda.

Mix well to combine.

Step 4- Add the melted coconut oil to the ‘buttermilk’ and whisk to combine.

Step 5- Add the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until a smooth batter.

Step 6- Fill the cases 3/4 full with the batter.

Make sure to tap the tins on the worktop to remove any air bubbles.

Step 7- Pop the cakes into the preheated oven and bake for 18-20 minutes.

You will know they are done when you put a knife or skewer in and it comes out clean and they are springy to the touch.

Step 8- Place the cupcakes on a cooling rack and allow to cool fully before frosting.

To make the frosting

Step 1- Cream the butter in a bowl, on a high speed until creamy. I use my stand mixer with the balloon whisk attachment.

Step 2- When your butter/margarine is creamy & light in colour, add in the icing sugar, vanilla bean paste.

Whizz together until fluffy & fully combined.

Add a splash of milk if the buttercream is too thick.

Step 3- Transfer the buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a large round nozzle.

Step 4- Pipe a low swirl of buttercream onto each cupcake and level with a of-set spatula or knife.

Step 5- Pipe 2 little bulbs of frosting for ears and 1 for the nose, as seen in the photo below.

Step 6- Carefully dip or sprinkle desiccated coconut all over the cupcake, including the ears.

Step 7- Add eyes and a nose using black royal icing. Get my recipe here.

You could always use chocolate, chocolate chips, sprinkles etc.

Serve these festive cupcakes fresh or store in a sealed container in or out of the fridge, the buttercream will firm up at room temperature. 

Best eaten within a few days.

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Holly Jade