My son got a birthday cupcake complete with dairy-free frosting and, of course, the largest Thomas the Train candle I could fine.
One of the reasons I hate buying grocery store cakes is the frosting. It's typically shortening-based and not nearly as good as homemade. Like, not even close. And I know one reason is that this type of frosting is more conducive to decorating. But I'd rather have good-tasting than good-looking frosting.
For son's first birthday, it was all I could do to find an adequate cake recipe. We went without frosting. But for his second birthday, I wanted frosting, darn it. We still couldn't have dairy — so no butter and no milk, both of which I'd normally put in my frosting. But we could have nuts now, so I had some options.
Here's what I did, with delicious results.
Ingredients:
1 lb. bag of powdered sugar
1 soy-free vegan buttery stick, softened/room temperature
¼ cup cocoa powder
¼ cup almond milk
1 tsp. vanilla
What to do:
1. Use a mixer (unless you really want to get an arm workout, I guess) to blend the butter and add powdered sugar a little at a time until smooth.
2. Add cocoa, almond milk and vanilla, and mix.
3. If it feels stiff, add a drop more almond milk. If runny, add more sugar.
4. Frost your cake/cupcakes and enjoy!