Twinkies might seem like they were made in a lab (and in many ways, they kind of were), but don’t let the long shelf life and mysterious texture fool you: They are definitely not vegan. If you have been wondering whether that golden sponge cake hiding in the vending machine is secretly plant-based, it’s time for a reality check.
Twinkies are off-limits for vegans, and not just because of the filling. That creamy center? It’s made with dairy. The cake itself? Eggs, right there in the ingredients list. It’s a double whammy of animal products, and that’s before you even get into the “what is mono- and diglycerides?” territory.
Let’s break it down: Twinkies contain whey, which is a dairy byproduct, and eggs, which are pretty much the opposite of plant-based. Both are common no-gos for anyone following a vegan diet. Even if you skipped the filling (which, why would you?), the cake still doesn’t make the cut. There are also a few “gray area” ingredients in Twinkies, like mono- and diglycerides, which can be derived from either plant or animal sources. Hostess doesn’t exactly shout the origin of these from the rooftops, so unless they are explicitly labeled as plant-based, they are a gamble. And while Twinkies you may be cooking in your air fryer might be free of gelatin, that alone doesn’t earn them any vegan points. The combo of dairy and egg ingredients firmly kicks them off the vegan snack list.
So what are the alternatives?
The good news? You don’t have to say goodbye to cream-filled snack cakes forever. Vegan Twinkie dupes do exist, and some of them are surprisingly good. Keep an eye out at specialty or health food stores for brands that offer dairy- and egg-free sponge cakes with coconut cream or plant-based whipped fillings. Some bakeries even make handmade vegan Twinkies with ingredients like oat milk, aquafaba, and coconut oil.
You can also go the DIY route. There are plenty of recipes online for vegan Twinkie-style cakes that swap eggs for flaxseed or applesauce and use coconut cream or dairy-free frosting as a filling. Bonus: You get to customize the flavor (vanilla? peanut butter? chai spice?), and the result tastes way more real than anything that lasts 45 days in a wrapper.
Twinkies may be a nostalgic snack, but nostalgia doesn’t need to come with animal products. So, if you are vegan for health, ethics, or just because oat milk tastes better, there is a plant-based version of almost everything — even those fancy French cakes with suspiciously longer shelf lives. Bottom line? If you are vegan, steer clear of classic Twinkies. But don’t worry, there is a fluffy, creamy, cruelty-free alternative out there waiting for you. It just might come from your own kitchen.
