My kids and their friends love these! Plus they are so pretty. I based the frosting on a recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, by Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero.

1 1/2 c. unbleached, organic all-purpose flour

3/4 c. organic granulated sugar

1/2 t. fine sea salt

1 t. baking soda

1/2 t. baking powder

1/3 c. unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 t. vanilla extract

1/2 t. peppermint extract

1/3 c. canola oil

1 t. apple cider vinegar(or white distilled is ok too!)

1 c. unsweetened, organic, non-dairy milk

1/2 c. non-dairy, mini chocolate chips

1 recipe Mint Frosting(recipe to follow)

1 recipe Chocolate Ganache(recipe to follow)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare muffin tin with liners.

2. Combine the flour, sugar, sea salt, baking powder, baking soda & cocoa in a large bowl. Stir with whisk until thoroughly combined and there are no lumps. Make a well in center of flour, so it looks like a volcano.

3. In a separate bowl, combine the non-dairy milk and vinegar. Let stand for 5 minutes. It will get lumpy, like buttermilk. Add in the oil and extracts. Pour the liquid mixture into the middle of the dry ingredients. Stir gently until just combined. Do not overmix. Fold in the chocolate chips.

4. Use an ice cream scooper with the release handle on the side to portion out even scoops of the batter into the muffin liners. Bake in preheated oven. Check for doneness after 15 minutes by inserting a toothpick into the center. If it comes out clean, it is done.

5. Place on cooling rack. Cool completely before frosting.

For the Mint Icing:

1/4 c. non-hydrogenated shortening, such as Earth Balance

1 c. organic confectioner's sugar

1/4 c. plus 1 T. unsweetened, organic soymilk

1/2 t. peppermint extract

1 t. vanilla extract

drop or two of green food coloring

1. Using an electric hand mixer, cream the shortening until softened. Beat in 1 c. of the confectioner's sugar. Add in 1 T. of the soymilk. Continue adding 1 c. of the sugar, and 1 T. of soymilk, blending after each addition, until all the sugar and soymilk has been added and the frosting is creamy. Add in the extracts and food coloring until thoroughly combined.

2. Next to pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes you can use a pastry bag, or if you don't have one of those, a heavy duty quart ziploc bag with the corner cut off to fit a pastry tip, star shape preferably. Carefully place the icing into the bag, and swirl the icing onto the tops of the cool cupcakes, leaving the edges of the cupcake showing beneath.

For the Chocolate Ganache:

4 T. soymilk

1/2 c. vegan semi-sweet chocolate chips

In a small saucepan, heat the soymilk until just about to boil. Remove any scum that forms on top of the soymilk with a spoon. Remove from the heat. Stir in the chocolate chips with a wire whisk, until smooth. Continue to swirl the whisk around once in a while until the chocolate cools completely. Then you may add a dollop onto the top of the mint icing in the center of each cupcake. This is when you may add any additional decorations, such as: a sprig of fresh mint, a mint gumdrop, or a mint sandwich cookie.