These homemade Twinkies are my take on the childhood favorite. Twinkies got a vegan makeover with a perfect coconut whipped cream filling!
Once upon a time I made mini loaves of bread in a pan meant for vegan Twinkies. I thought, ‘these look like a mini loaf pan, it will work out great!’. Not so much on the mini loaves, but as it turns out, the pan meant for homemade Twinkies is perfect for just that, making Twinkies!
My boyfriend gave me this pan and the decorating bottle for Christmas last year, and I am just now getting around to using it. He has a tendency to note what I do and don’t have in our packed kitchen cabinets, so lucky for me, I always get something new to play with. This time around, it just took me 6 months to get around to using the pan for what it was intended for, but it was worth the wait. Usually, Swiss Cake Rolls have always been my go-to Hostess snack, but the sweet cake and coconut whipped cream filling in these kind of make me want to change my mind! Don’t be intimidated by the length of the recipe, it’s pretty simple once all the components are ready.
I was envisioning that I would need to do at least a few trail runs to get the cake portion of these homemade Twinkies just right, but the first time was a home run! The cake part of these is outta this world good and has me re-thinking my plans for this bridal shower cake, so I will be testing cake recipes in the next week at least a few more times. Who wants to come over and help me eat lots of vegan twinkies and binge on frosting?
I happened to have this handy bottle for filling the homemade Twinkies, but if you don’t have a bottle like this one, I think a regular piping bag fitted with a metal tip would work just fine. I found that more than 3 holes were needed to get the cake filled all the way and to achieve the Twinkie filling effect. When in doubt, just keep on filling!
Also, if you don’t have a Twinkie cake pan, a mini loaf pan will do, but if you are interested in getting one, I have one similar to this one and it worked perfectly. I based my recipe off of Joy The Baker’s recipe and she also used a foil method to make makeshift Twinkie molds. I also imagine this can be made into one loaf and filled with the filling somehow, as well as baked in muffin tins and filled from the bottom. They wouldn’t be the same Twinkie shape, but would taste the same.
Tips for making homemade Twinkies
Would you believe that Twinkies are as easy as making a basic sponge cake, baking it in a special mold, and then filling it with whipped cream? Seriously, this homemade Twinkie recipe is that simple! However, there are a few things you should remember when whipping up a batch of these babies.
Use room temperature coconut oil—In this Twinkie recipe, the coconut oil is acting as the butter. You need the oil to be solid / room temperature so that it can be creamed together with the sugar. If your oil is liquid, your homemade Twinkies might not turn out right.
Use unsweetened almond milk—Most almond milks on the market are sweetened, even if they’re unflavored. Double check that your almond milk is unsweetened so that your Twinkies aren’t a total sugar bomb.
Don’t substitute another type of flour—Sorry, guys, but now’s now the time to make healthier whole wheat Twinkies. All-purpose flour is a must here, but if you use a flour alternative like oat flour and these Twinkies turn out for you, let me know!
Fill the Twinkies once completely cool—You need to wait to fill these homemade Twinkies until they’ve cooled completely on your countertop. If you fill them while they’re still warm, the coconut whipped cream is likely to run everywhere and you’ll have a huge mess on your hands!
More vegan desserts on Heart of a Baker:
- Vegan Mint Chocolate Cake
- Homemade Vegan Nutter Butters
- The Best Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies
- Vegan Whole Wheat Blondies
- Easy Vegan Chocolate Cream Pie
Homemade Twinkies with Coconut Whipped Cream Filling
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
- Category: Desserts
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
Description
These homemade Twinkies are my take on the childhood favorite. Twinkies got a vegan makeover with a perfect coconut whipped cream filling!
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons room temperature coconut oil (solid)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup almond milk
For the coconut whipped cream:
- 1 can coconut milk (make sure to skim the solid part off and drain off the liquid coconut milk, full fat, refrigerated for at least 8 hours)
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1–2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
To make the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease mini loaf pan or Twinkie pan and set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda, set aside. In a large bowl, beat together the coconut oil, vanilla extract and granulated sugar with a hand mixer or stand mixer. Once ingredients are creamy and beaten together, add in the flour mixture, as well as the apple cider vinegar and almond milk. Beat until ingredients are smooth and combined.
- Pour the batter into each well of the pan, distributing evenly.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until cake springs back when lightly touched or knife comes out clean when inserted into the middle of the cake. Set aside and allow to cool before filling.
For the coconut whipped cream filling:
- In a large bowl, place the solid coconut milk that has been chilled, Make sure you are using just the solid part after the milk has been chilled (refer to the link in the notes below for a step-by-step process).
- Whip the coconut milk solid with a hand mixer or stand mixer until it becomes fluffy and airy, then add in the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and continue whipping until combined throughout. Store in the refrigerator until cakes are ready to be filled.
To fill the Twinkie cakes:
- Once Twinkies are cooled, Place the coconut whipped cream in a squeeze bottle fitted with a tip or a pastry bag fitted with a metal tip. Fill the cakes from the bottom, making about 5 holes which go about 1/2 through the depth of each cake.
- Store in the refrigerator, yields 6 Twinkies.
Notes
Adapted from Joy The Baker. You can refer to my step-by-step coconut whipped cream recipe if you need help making the filling for these Twinkies.
Keywords: homemade Twinkies, vegan twinkies, twinkie recipe
Joan says
Oh, I like this recipe! Never, ever, thought about adding Coconut Whipped Cream Filling.
The Frosted Vegan says
Thank you! It just happened to occur to me to add it.. And I’m glad it did!
Saniel says
I would never try the original twinkies because I not into pastries with jams and creams on the inside. But thanks for giving me the option if I ever ( will not) wanted to try it vegan.
Karis says
What a fun Christmas gift! Chris claims I already have too many kitchen gadgets so I don’t anticipate a twinkie pan as a gift from him but it won’t stop me from asking 🙂
The Frosted Vegan says
I’m pretty lucky he feeds into my kitchen gadget obsession : )
Medha (Whisk & Shout) says
I love this! I never would’ve dreamed of a twinkie where I could actually pronounce all the ingredients, and you’ve done it 🙂 Coconut whipped cream is such a vegan staple!
The Frosted Vegan says
It’s so nice to be able to pronounce all the ingredients, right?!
Lisa @ Lisa Living Well says
I’ll have to try the coconut whipped cream–yum! Craig would never buy me any kitchen gadgets. He already thinks I don’t use most of them, but he’s wrong.
The Frosted Vegan says
Yes, try it! I was a little apprehensive at first, I thought it would be way too heavy, but I love it! I’m pretty lucky, I think AJ knows if he buys me kitchen things he will get baked goods out of the deal : )
sweetphi says
No! Get out! Homemade twinkies!!!! I need to try these! I’ve been semi stalking this on your different social media accounts and can’t wait to try them!! Also, totally cracked up about how your boyfriend comments on what you have in your cabinets, my hubby does the same thing…but I think when we moved in together and I had a cupcake pan from a bachelorette party in the shape of mini you know whats…he stopped asking questions LOL!
The Frosted Vegan says
Hahahaha, this is my favorite!! Thankfully I didn’t have anything like that, but you gotta do what you gotta do, right?!
terismyth says
Okay. I would be happy to sample one of these treats. Coconut is my favorite and it is good for you too!
I am also happy to see that your baking sheets look like mine. Not shiny and perfect, but gently used one hundred million times making delectable sweets and savories for our family and friends.
The Frosted Vegan says
I think they are better with a little wear and tear, well loved!
Ami@NaiveCookCooks says
My brother loves twinkies!! Guess I found perfect treat for him! Thanks!
The Frosted Vegan says
Hooray! Enjoy!
I Wilkerson says
These are amazing–even for a former Susie-Q person. I have actually wondered about coconut whipped cream too. I now buy my coconut milk in a 24 can case we love it so much
The Frosted Vegan says
I may need to start buying it in big cases like that now too that I know how delicious it is whipped!
Richa says
gosh, the Twinkies look perfect with that creamed whipped cream!
huntfortheverybest says
i was never a fan of twinkies, but this looks amazing!
Lauren says
These are awesome, they look just like the real thing!
The Frosted Vegan says
I know, right?! I was pretty happy with the way they turned out!
nico says
thank you so much! i am always looking for amazing vegan recipes without any earth balance (palm oil so terrible for our earthmates).
The Frosted Vegan says
I’m happy you found me! This recipe is definitely a favorite so far : )
Roxana Ontiveros says
Just found a twinkie bake pan at a thtift store for $3, making these for my winter party might add some powdered sugar at the top for decoration
Heart of a Baker says
That sounds wonderful, enjoy!
tor says
This was a flop!! The cream was not becoming cream after a half hour and the twinkie tasted gross.
Heart of a Baker says
Oh no, so sorry to hear that!
Camila Grace says
Dear, Abby, This recipe is really amazing girl. I would really love to try my hands on this recipe. Beautifully explained each and everything. Regards
★★★★★
budget bridges says
Using Gold As Collateral For Loans are used as jewelry to look good and are a popular way to invest money.