Cranberry & Maple Cashew Cream Vanilla Cupcakes

I was feeling pretty festive this weekend. Want to know why? Because this gal bought her first bag of cranberries. Everyone watch out! The holiday spirit is just breaking out of me.

I made a couple recipes, using that wonderful little bag of berries, but these have to be my favorite. Not only did the cupcakes turn out perfectly, dare I say, moist, but the cranberry filling was to die for and let us not forget about that maple cashew cream. The combination gave these the perfect ratio of tartness to sweetness.

Do not let the look of these fool you, they are incredibly easy and not too time consuming, once you have the cranberry sauce prepared. So, let’s get to it!

For the cranberry sauce:

1 cup cranberries, fresh

1/4 cup maple syrup

Juice of 1 orange

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 tbsp water

2 tbsp chia seeds

1. Place cranberries in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Heat, mashing with the back of a fork, until the cranberries are popped and jammy.

2. Add the remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Cashew Cream:

1 cup soaked cashews

2 tbsp lemon juice

Pinch of sea salt

1/4 cup maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Combine all ingredients in a food processor and process until completely smooth. Place in the fridge while making the cupcakes.

Cupcakes:

1 cup almond flour

1 cup oat flour

1/2 cup tapioca flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp each cinnamon

1 tbsp vanilla

1/2 tsp sea salt

2/3 cup maple syrup

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 cup cashew milk (or other nut milk)

1/3 cup cashew butter (or other nut butter)

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Combine all wet ingredients in a bowl and whisk until smooth.

2. Fold in the dry ingredients. Line a cupcake tray with liners. Add a little of the batter to the bottom of each cupcake liner. Then, add a tbsp or so of the cranberry jam on top. Divide the remaining batter amongst the cupcake liners, to cover the jam.

3. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until set. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

4. Once cooled, frost with cashew cream. I used a little extra cranberry jam to swirl into the cashew cream.

5. Enjoy!