St. Petersburg Garden

St. Petersburg Garden

Friday, November 12, 2010

Better than Cake


People love dessert. Those who say they don't are liars. I am not a liar. Dessert is amazing. Dessert is fabulous. It is why we eat dinner. We know what comes next. That's right. Dessert. One of the few perks of being an adult is that I can skip to dessert if I want. Sure, Mike sometimes frowns upon this but even he can be swayed. One look at the chocolaty goodness that lays ahead and who can resist? Here's where it gets tricky.

Don't get me wrong. I love a good brownie or a piece of chocolate cake just as much as the next person. Chocolate and I are friends. We always have been. But while others look forward to the moment when the bell rings signalling a fresh-out-of-the-oven confection, I've already had my moment. It was finished when the batter went into the stove, letting me know that there would be no more fingers to dip in the heavenly brown lake. Yes, I'm a batter lover. Nothing is more delicious than chocolate batter. Not even the cake, fresh from the oven, can compare.

As a child, my brother and I would fight over who got to lick the bowl and the spoon and the mixers. We wanted it all. My mother told us we would get sick. We never did. I grew up baking. Did I love baking or did I secretly love cleaning up my work? Hhmm. Now that is a good question. Even now, Mike can't stand when I eat the batter. He tells me every time that I'm going to get sick. It's the eggs, he insists. Salmonella. It makes me laugh. I'm not concerned. I lick away.

*Raw photos only.
I decided to try some vegan recipes. Something new, something different. Wait, what's this? Oh my God, it's brilliant is what it is! Thank you Chef Chloe. Vegan Cupcakes. And they're chocolate too! Which means....you guessed it. No eggs. No eggs means no worries of salmonella. Oh sweet batter here I come.


*The batter is AMAZINGLY DELICIOUS and that's the most important thing. However, the cupcakes just came out of the oven and even though I'm partial to the batter I will say these are the most delicious cupcakes I've ever eaten in my life.

For recipes, go to http://www.chefchloe.com/.

*To make it easier, here is the recipe:
Chocolate Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes (I took out the strawberry part)
Makes 12 Cupcakes
Ingredients:
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup coconut milk (I used almond milk)
½ cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1 ½ cups hulled and sliced fresh strawberries
Confectioners’ sugar, for garnish
Procedure:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a 12-cup cupcake pan with paper liners.
2. Sift or whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt into a bowl. In a separate bowl, mix the coconut milk, oil, vinegar, vanilla, and espresso powder until smooth.
3. Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and mix with a fork or small whisk.
4. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared cupcake liners until each cup is 2/3 full. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
5. Once the cupcakes are completely cooled, slice off the top 1/3 of each cupcake and slather with frosting and sliced strawberries. Place the top of the cupcake back on top and add an additional bit of frosting and sliced strawberries. Dust with confectioners’ sugar.F
FrostingIngredients:
4 cups confectioners' sugar, preferably organic
1/2 cup non-hydrogenated shortening (refined coconut oil at room temperature OR vegan margarine will also work) - I used the vegan margarine.
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
¼ cup water
Procedure:
1. Combine the confectioners' sugar, coconut oil, and vanilla extract in the bowl of a stand mixer.
2. Beat on medium-high speed until combined. With the mixer running, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time, until the desired buttercream consistency. NOTE: You probably will not use all the water. Simply add as needed while beating.

1 comment:

  1. Ooh, I'm definitely going to try these! Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete