No Bake Vegan Birthday Cake Funfetti Cups

No Bake Vegan Birthday Cake Funfetti Cups

Today we are making No Bake Vegan Birthday Cake Funfetti Cups! CAKE CAKE CAKE CAKE CAKE. Birthday cake in a mug, birthday cake ice cream, birthday cake cookies. We really can’t get away from cake. As a society, cakes are used in every culture to represent celebration: from graduations and weddings, to baby showers and birthdays. No matter the celebration or special occasions, no matter where you live – everyone knows what cake means.

So … does that mean today’s recipe is going to be a no bake cake? Somewhat. It’s close to a mini cake – funfetti-flavor – without any animal products, and is going to be on your list of no bake recipes to try this season! Also, let’s clear something up: there’s no right amount of sprinkles – double, triple, quadruple what this recipe calls for? Absolutely. (Okay, not really – stick with the amount in the recipe card, then use the rest in your own ways, like sprinkling some on top of the cake cups).

This vegan treat features double layer cake batter cups! They are dense and chewy, eaten straight out of the freezer like a tiny, single serving, delicious cake cup. Wholesome ingredients like cashew butter, almond flour, powdered sugar, pure maple syrup and coconut flour are the key ingredients, with a hint of vanilla and lots of sprinkles in this delicious dessert!

What does each ingredient do here? There is natural sweetness from the maple syrup and xylitol, as they aren’t considered refined sugars. The main ingredient providing the healthy fats to keep this recipe creamy is the cashew butter. The dry nut flours like coconut flour and almond flour help to bind the ingredients while providing fat to keep the recipe tasting rich.

Why You’ll Love These No Bake Vegan Birthday Cake Funfetti Cups

No-Bake Bliss: Leave your oven idle for this one! These raw vegan cups require no baking whatsoever. This is a great recipe, especially appealing during scorching summer months when the last thing you want is a hot kitchen. They’re made of mostly nutritious ingredients, and are something unique to add to your snack recipe list!

Kid-Friendly Delight: This healthier dessert is like a dream come true for kids (and adults)! The vibrant colors and sweet flavors for the taste buds make them an instant hit with the little ones. It’s a way to ensure they relish something nutritious with unprocessed ingredients, without any fuss.

Instagram-Worthy: Let’s not underestimate the visual charm of these Funfetti Cups. Although they use simple ingredients, they’re cute and colorful for sharing on your Instagram feed!

Substitutions: Base

Maple Syrup: Substitute with other liquid, natural sweeteners, like agave syrup (agave nectar).

Almond Flour: Substitute with almond meal, which will cause the cups to have little brown specks in them and taste a little nuttier. You can also use blanched almonds (or raw almonds, unblanched) to make your own almond flour or almond meal in the spice grinder until a powder forms. For best results, use blanched ones if making your own flour.

Substitutions: Filling

Cashew Butter: This is similar to peanut butter, where roasted cashews are blended until the natural oils come out and it turns into a spreadable butter. Make sure the ingredient label contains just cashews, no other added sugars or oils! Do not substitute with coconut milk, coconut oil or another high-fat substitute.

Vanilla Extract: For best results, use pure vanilla extract, without added artificial colors and dyes (like caramel color). You can use artificial vanilla flavor as well. However, it may come off as more bitter and not as smooth or sweet as the pure version.

Powdered Sugar: Try using powdered xylitol instead, for a refined sugar-free version.

Coconut Flour: Find this online, at a health food store or in the natural aisle of the grocery store. Do not substitute! Since coconut flour comes from dehydrated coconut, this dries out a recipe a lot more than other flours do, like almond flour. This is a great flour to use in raw food recipes!

The dry texture is also the reason why recipes that require cooking or baking with coconut flour tend to use many eggs to hold the recipe together. I’ve tried one too many times to use egg substitutes in coconut flour recipes, only to have the entire baked good falling apart. In this case, we don’t need to worry about that, since these cups is not going in the oven. However, the texture of coconut flour in no-bake and no-cook recipes is still not interchangeable with other flours.

Sprinkles: Not all sprinkles will work for vegan recipes. Some brands use coatings that contain insect-derived shellac, which is not vegan. It’s important to check the ingredients list before buying. PETA has a handy guide on vegan sprinkles, which you can find here.

Funfetti Cups Recipe Notes

• Gay Lea brand makes delicious coconut cream based whip. This is usually next to the regular aerosol cans of whipped cream in the grocery store. For a non-coconut-base, ReddiWhip makes an almond based whip instead. There may be other brands providing soy-based whip instead of a nut-based one as well, depending on where you live.

More No Bake Desserts You’ll Love

Banana Cookie Cashew Bites

Raw Coconut Samoas Cookies

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Energy Bites

If you make these No Bake Vegan Birthday Cake Funfetti Cups, then leave a comment and star rating! Don’t forget to tag your photos @peanut_palate on Instagram. Enjoy!