Chocolate Spider Cupcakes

Aren't these the cutest? Never thought I'd be saying that about spiders : ]

These cupcakes are so simple to make and taste so rich and moist. I assembled these with my boyfriend's nieces and they absolutely loved it. The hardest part was putting the licorice strings in. I suggest poking a hole first with a skewer and then placing the string in each hole.

This recipe is also very versatile. If you can't find vegan chocolate sprinkles, try using another color. I also substituted cherry Twizzlers for the legs on some of the cupcakes ( since most people think black licorice is yucky ). Play around with this recipe, they're so fun to assembly with family and even more to eat!

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Makes 8 - 12 spiders

Ingredients

For the cupcakes

* 1 cup soymilk

* 1 tsp apple cider vinegar

* 3/4 cup vegan sugar

* 1/3 cup canola oil

* 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

* 1 cup all purpose flour

* 1/3 cocoa powder

* 3/4 tsp baking soda

* 1/2 tsp baking powder

* 1/4 tsp salt

For the spiders

* Black shoe string licorice, for the legs

* Chocolate sprinkles ( check ingredients to make sure it is vegan )

* Any type of small red candy ( such as red hots, cherry heads, etc )

Frosting

* 1 ( 8 oz ) package of vegan cream cheese ( such as Tofutti )

* 1 1/2 cups of organic powdered sugar

* 1/2 cup vegan margarine ( such as Earth Balance )

* 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

* 12 paper or foil liners

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F and line a muffin pan with paper or foil wrappers.

2. Mix together the soy milk and vinegar in a small bowl or cup and set aside to curdle, about 10 minutes.

3. Add the sugar, oil, vanilla extract and soy milk/apple vinegar mixture to a large bowl. Stir well.

4. In a separate bowl, sift in the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

5. Add to wet ingredients and whisk until they are no lumps.

6. Pour into liners, filling 3/4 of the way. Bake 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely.

7. To make the frosting, add all the ingredients in a medium sized bowl and mix well until smooth, either by using an electric mixer or a fork.

To assemble the cupcakes

8. Once cupcakes have cooled, spread a thin layer of frosting over each cupcake. Place two cinnamon candies in place of the eyes. Sprinkle enough chocolate sprinkles to cover the frosting, making sure to go around the eyes. Press in 6 licorice strings, 3 on each side, for the legs.