Death By Cupcakes

beat it

2007-04-20T17:22:36Z

Hey cooks - right now Amazon's offering a KitchenAid immersion blender for just $29.98.

That's something like two-thirds off the retail price and almost half-off Amazon's usual price.

The only catch is you have to buy the black one which, of course, is really no catch at all unless you're freaky about all matching kitchen tools like that.

As soon as mine arrives, I'm going to whip up the easiest lentil soup ever (Mash up cooked lentils with some sauteed onion, carrot and garlic) and call it a day.

Tropical yum....

2006-08-12T23:51:06Z

I love pineapple upside down cake and these cupcake versions sound amazingly yummy. Via Coconut & Lime:

Topping:
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
20 oz canned pineapple rings in 100% pineapple juice, drain and reserve juice for batter

Cake Batter:
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, at room temperature
1 cup flour
1 egg, at room temperature
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Butter or spray (with cooking spray with flour) 10 wells in a cupcake pan. Cut a 1/2 inch chunk out of 10 pineapple slices and place the slices (not the little chunks) individually in 10 cupcake wells. They should lie flat in the pan and look like a "whole" ring again. In a small saucepan, melt and stir together butter, brown sugar and corn syrup. Cook over low heat about 5 minutes or until it thickens slightly. Stir thoroughly to combine. Pour about one teaspoon of this topping into the bottom of each pineapple ring covered cupcake well. In a medium sized mixing bowl, cream together the butter and the sugar until fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and mix thoroughly. Add the baking soda, mix briefly then add the flour alternately with the pineapple juice. Pour about 1/3 to 1/2 cup of batter over each pineapple slice and bake for 20 minutes. Cool 20 minutes in pan then invert over a baking rack. You may want to place parchment paper or a towel under the rack because they may drip. Serve on a plate, pineapple side up.

cuteness overload alert

2006-06-09T21:31:32Z

Don't I have a half-birthday coming up?

The ice cream-cone cupcake pan - from Williams-Sonoma (via Not Martha)

think pink

2006-06-07T17:46:36Z

This isn't a baking recipe but because it's, for all intents and purposes anyway, summer - I recommend you fix yourself up a nice Madras.

An insanely easy drink that you've probably had before but just didn't know about its cute, preppy name.

Madras
1 1/2 oz Vodka (get the good stuff)
3 ounces cranberry juice
1 oz orange juice
lots of ice

Pour the vodka over ice, add cranberry juice and stir. Top off with orange juice. If you like, you could also add a drizzle of Cuervo.

This recipe makes one super-sized drink. It's pretty and refreshing. Enjoy it on a nice summer evening as you sit out on the patio staring at your flip-flop-wearing, hot pink-painted toenails.

eggs-periment

2006-04-12T20:48:11Z

Baking a cake with Cadbury creme eggs instead of real ones? According to shmivejournal - not such a good idea. What it is, however, is pretty amusing...and now I want my annual Cadbury creme egg...

hop to it..

2006-04-05T23:12:57Z

If you're in a pinch for time, make these super-cute Betty Crocker bunny cupcakes. To make them more vegetarian-friendly, I'd substitute a thick, white frosting for the marshmallows. I think that would actually taste better too.

Death by Twinkies!

2006-04-01T19:33:50Z

valleyflats78 sent me a link to a recipe for Vegan Twinkies!!!
I think I may have to order the special homemade Twinkie kit and give it a whirl...Imagine the possibilities!

hot hot hot

2006-02-09T21:53:20Z

I'm hosting book group next week. On the menu: vegetarian chili, cornbread and mango salad. These brownies seem like a good and simple dessert. I found it via Texas Monthly magazine and I'm going to make them Sunday - I'll let you know how they turned out.

Chocolate Chile Mole Brownies
From Kris Rudolph and Lisa Gahafer
San Miguel de Allende, Mexico

Originally appeared in Meatless Mexican Home Cooking by Nancy Zaslavsky.

This recipe does not actually contain mole sauce but does have ingredients that are typical of mole, namely chocolate, chiles, sesame seeds, and nuts. Don’t worry: These chewy, almost caramel-like brownies are not hot, just cinnamony and interesting.

1/4 cup sesame seeds, toasted
4 ounces good quality unsweetened chocolate
4 ounces butter
2 large eggs
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons dried ground ancho chile (not chili powder)
1 cup flour
1 cup chopped walnuts

To toast sesame seeds, put on foil in toaster oven or broiler on high heat until golden brown, about 1 minute. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8- by 12-inch baking pan and set aside. Melt the chocolate and the butter together in the top of a double boiler. Remove from heat and set aside to let cool a bit.

With an electric mixer, beat together the eggs, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and ground chile. Stir the chocolate-butter mixture into the egg mixture; then stir in the flour, sesame seeds, and walnuts. The dough will be sticky and thick and seem dry.

Spoon the mixture into the buttered pan and spread evenly. Bake until the center is just set, about 25 minutes, checking to be sure edges are not turning brown. Do not bake too long or the brownies will lose their chewy texture and the edges will be overcooked. Let cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes before cutting into squares.

For variety, you may substitute chopped almonds or pecans for walnuts. Or you may add 1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips. Or instead of ancho chile, try dried ground pasilla or guajillo chile. Just remember to remove the seeds and veins if you are starting with a whole chile, and do not use it if the chile is very spicy. Makes twenty-four 2- by 2-inch brownies.

rated R ....

2005-12-13T07:19:55Z

Not to be one of those girls who just talks about her weight and feeling fat….but ov vey with the holiday treats and all. Chocolate, candy, cookies, cakes and booze – and it’s only Dec. 12!

Of course, part of the blame likes squarely with me. Yesterday I dug out the KitchenAid mixer and whipped up a batch of butter cookie dough and stuck it in the freezer (at some point I will attempt the cookie cutter cookies – mine always look sad, but one of these years I’ll get it right. If only for one little perfect cookie. Even if it’s a Christmas tree. How hard can that be?).

I also made up a test kitchen batch of Chocolate Swirl Gingerbread. I have a tradition of testing out recipes on Cory, Kepi & Roach. Usually I like to give them two things to taste at once – it gives them a better out. If someone really doesn’t like something they can just be polite and declare their eternal love for the other recipe. But as it was, I only had time to complete the gingerbread. Technically the recipe (from Martha Stewart) is a cake, but I wanted to try it out as little bread loaves. The result was a very rich, moist and dense bread – it made three small loaves (or one 8 inch cake)We taste-tested it while watching the Survivor finale (Steph – you lost me for awhile but in the end, I’d wished you’d won) and the assessment was thus: A yummy cake but with a very very strong taste that might be a bit much for kids. In fact, according to Roach, no self-respecting kid would probably touch it because it’s not sweet enough. With a heavy dose of molasses, this recipe is definitely rated R. Throw in some rum extract and it’s NC-17.If you want to try it yourself, here’s the recipe:
Chocolate Swirl Gingerbread

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for the pan(s)

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

½ cup packed light-brown sugar

1 ½ tsp ground ginger

1 tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

1/8 tsp ground cloves

1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper

½ cup water

½ cup unsulfured molasses

1 large egg, lightly beaten

2 oz bittersweet choclate

. Preheat the oven to 325°. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan. In a bowl, combine the flour, sugar, ginger, baking powder, salt, cloves, and pepper

. In a small saucepan, melt the butter in the water over medium heat. Stir the melted-butter mixture into the dry ingredients until smooth. Stir in the molasses and egg

Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan. With a spoon, drizzle half the chocolate over the batter. Pour remaining batter on top, and drizzle the remaining chocolate over the batter in a decorative pattern.

Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes

Note: Melt the chocolate in a bowl over simmering water or in a microwave. Using a squeeze bottle is an easy way to drizzle chocolate over the cake batter. Drizzle the chocolate in a zigzag pattern over the batter, then drag a knife through the lines of the chocolate, alternating the direction each time.

(This entry, cross-posted at Writegrrrl)

on sweets, candy-smashing and the spirit of the season

2005-12-04T23:52:26Z

Sorry for the lack of updates. I have been - in no particular order - sick, very busy, very lazy, very tired. But it's December which means its full-on baking season.

I'm in the middle of making a list of things to make / try-out and I'm looking for suggestions. Specifically, any great recipes you may have for interesting breads or candies. I'd love to do the peppermint bark again this year but I don't think I have it in me for the candy-smashing. I'll probably wait until next year to take that one on again.

So please, help me get into the spirit of the season with any ideas or recipes or tips and I promise to reciprocate with more posts. Deal?

tres wow

2005-10-26T03:16:59Z

I was searching for an image of a cupcake online and came across this image of the Paris Cupcake Tree:

It's from the Sweet Sensations bakery in Oklahoma.

Cupcakes and Paris....Merveilleux!

a friend in need ...

2005-10-12T18:09:48Z

I am searching for two recipes. The Sacramento Natural Foods Co-Op deli has two cookies that I love beyond belief. One is a millet-based cookie made with tahini - it's chewy and sweet and very filling. One of these giant cookies is a great breakfast.

The other cookie is the Apple Cobbler cookie - it's like an applesauce cookie but it does actually have that sort of crumb cake/cobbler texture. So yummy.

Any thoughts?

magical cupcake kingdom

2005-08-29T20:43:39Z

Disneyland's 50th anniversary cupcake - sadly mouse-ears free.

(Via Cupcakes Take the Cake).

Laura's cranberry bread

2005-08-26T05:53:43Z

My aunt Linda came in from Texas last Saturday and dropped by for a brief visit on her way to Santa Rosa. As part of our brunch, I made cranberry bread. I got the recipe from Laura years ago - I think it may be her mother's? - and I always make several loaves of it at Christmas because I think the orange juice and cranberries make for a very festive holiday taste. Everyone who's tried it seems to love it. It really is a good bread - sweet and tarty and a with perfect texture. All this and it is criminally easy to make. Cory has suggested that I, for kicks, try mixing things up sometime by substituting blueberries for the cranberries, but I think it's perfect the way it is.

Also, Laura? Writes out the most grammatically correct, perfectly proofed, neatly written recipe cards, ever.

Laura's Cranberry Bread

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tbsps margarine or butter, melted
3/4 cup orange juice
1 well-beaten egg
1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries (not dried)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

In a bowl, mix together (with a spoon) flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Stir in orange juice, margarine or butter and egg with dry ingredients and mix until well-blended. Stir in cranberries and nuts. Turn into well-greased 9x5 loaf pan. Bake 55-60 minutes, until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Cool thoroughly before serving.

Somehow, I never manage that "cool thoroughly before serving" bit. It's yummy warm.

history lesson

2005-08-25T22:30:02Z

Not Martha has a link to this article on the history of the cupcake.

In related news, I'm having cupcakes tonight! Which is why I'm avoiding the vending machine right now. No packaged oreos for me. At least not today.

Recipes to come, I promise ...sooner rather than later, I swear.

lemony goodness

2005-06-08T03:53:29Z

It's summer - kind of - and I wanted to make something that tasted like the season. But because it's summer - kind of - and this means less clothes to hide beneath, I also wanted something to help my girlish figure.

Thus: Cooking Light's Lemon-Cornmeal Icebox Cookies

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup yellow cornmeal
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons stick margarine, softened
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg white
Cooking spray

Combine the first 4 ingredients in a bowl, and set aside. Beat the margarine at medium speed of a mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually add the sugar, beating at medium speed of a mixer until well-blended. Add the lemon rind, vanilla extract, and egg white, and beat well. Add the flour mixture, and stir until well-blended. Turn the dough out onto wax paper, and shape into a 6-inch log. Wrap the log in wax paper, and freeze for 3 hours or until very firm.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Cut log into 24 (1/4-inch) slices, and place slices 1 inch apart on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from pan, and cool on wire racks.

Yield: 2 dozen (serving size: 1 cookie)

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 62(29% from fat); FAT 2g (sat 0.4g,mono 0.9g,poly 0.6g); PROTEIN 0.7g; CHOLESTEROL 0.0mg; CALCIUM 2mg; SODIUM 50mg; FIBER 0.2g; IRON 0.2mg; CARBOHYDRATE 10.4g

This recipe is from the magazine's November 1997 issue and they would be super low-fat and low-calorie if I hadn't doubled the size of each cookie to get a thickness/texture that I liked. The first batch I brought out of the oven seemed too thin for proper enjoyment. I do like some thin-styled cookies - but usually only if they're the kind you bake to a crisp. These are not baked to a crisp and thus just seem sort of crumbly and flimsy unless you slice them at least a half-inch wide. As a half-inch slice they come out chewy and tender. The lemon taste is wonderful and they taste really great on a warm summer night if you're sipping wine (red, white, whatever - honest) or iced tea. Double the calories is definitely worth it ... girlish figure be damned...

still alive and cupcaking

2005-05-22T16:58:17Z

Oh goodness..has it really been two months? Why, yes it has....We've been super-busy lately so I've only done a tiny bit of baking in the last few months - a banana oatmeal bread that was dense and not too sweet but very good.

I've started to peruse the Is My Blog Burning cupcake entries and this one, via Dispensing Happiness jumped right out at me:

Indeed, I've been craving anything Dulce de Leche lately - last night I dreamed of Dulce De Leche. You know those tiny cups of it you can buy at Mexican food markets? I dreamed of having an entire case of those tiny cups. All to myself.

I'm off to the farmer's market and then SF ... so I probably won't be making cupcakes today. But hopefully soon and in any case, here is the recipe:

Dark Chocolate Cake
(Keep in mind, the original use for this recipe results in a three-layer cake! Feel free to cut recipe in half, or you can do as I did, and make smaller cakes with the left-over batter.)
adapted from a recipe in The Complete Guide to Country Cooking

1 c. butter, softened
3 c. packed brown sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 2/3 c. all-purpose flour
3/4 c. baking cocoa
1 Tbl. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/3 c. buttermilk
1 1/3 c. boiling water
3 oz. dark chocolate, grated
(I used Chocolove 77% extra strong dark chocolate)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, cream butter and brown sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat on high speed until light and fluffy. Blend in vanilla. Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; add to the creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk. Bet on low until just combined. Add grated chocolate to boiling water and stir till smooth. Stir chocolate/water mix into batter until smooth. Pour into cupcake liners, and bake approximately 20 minutes (adjust to your own oven). Cool completely.

Dulce De Leche

Boil can of condensed milk (I used Magnolia, by Borden) in large pot of water for three hours. Be sure to keep can submerged, or you could end up with a caramel-coated kitchen!
Cool by placing can in a bowl and running cold water over it, until can is cool to touch.

Chocolate Ganache

Um...I don't actually have a recipe handy for this one; I had about 3/4 c. of ganache left-over in my fridge, and used that. So, employ ganache recipe of your choice.

When cupcakes are completely cooled: using a serrated knife, cut a quarter-sized circle into top of cupcake; remove. Trim excess cake from 'lid'; reserve. Remove some of the cake, creating a small crater (be careful not to cut through bottom of cupcake.)
Using spoons, fill cupcakes with dulce de leche to just under cupcake top. Replace 'lid'.

Spoon ganache over cupcake tops, just to edge. Allow to set. Pour yourself a big glass of milk, and dig in!

tarty

2005-03-22T17:53:37Z

I have ripe bananas and I have frozen cranberries and I have a need for a sweet, dense bread with a bit of zip. Something that would go well with coffee and tea and will, during this gray, rainy stretch of weather, make my house smell wonderful.

I need something to lift my mood - it's gone so low it's gathering dustballs on the floor. But the preparation must be quick because Gilmore Girls is on tonight and that usually gives me a happy boost as well...

Tonight I may try Chocolate & Zucchini's Cranberry Banana Bread:

1/4 C (55 g) butter, softened
- 1 C (200 g) sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 small bananas, sliced
- 1 C (110 g) cranberries
- 1/4 C water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 C (200 g) flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon

(Serves 6.)

Preheat the oven to 180°C (360°F). Grease a 9 by 5 inch (22 by 12 cm) loaf pan.

Cream the butter and sugar together in a food processor. Add in the eggs one by one, mixing well between each addition. Add in the banana slices, the cranberries, the water and the vanilla extract. Mix again until blended, but not too much : it's nice if the banana and cranberries are not completely mushed.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Add the dry ingredients into the batter, and mix until just combined -- do not overmix.

Pour the batter into the pan and bake for approximately 55 min or until the top of the cake is nicely brown and a cake tester comes out clean.

Let rest for ten minutes, then run a knife around to loosen the sides, and turn out on a rack to cool completely.

If anyone has any other good banana bread recipes - not just the standard bananas and walnuts jig - please do share ...

shake, sugaree

2005-03-18T20:22:17Z

because i have nothing productive to offer, something frivolous then.....

... off to Santa Cruz for the weekend where we will indulge in many Gayle's Bakery goodies...someday I will figure out her fabulous mocha cookies...they're crisp yet chewy and with just the right coffee-to-chocolate flavor....so good....

eggs-cellant

2005-03-07T02:30:40Z

Next week is book group and I'm looking for something sweet-tasting and sweet-looking to make. I also want to give a welcome-back shout-out to the original domestic diva Martha because she looks pretty amazing for a 63-year-old woman who just got out of the slammer.

This cookie recipe is from her site:

Bird's Nest Cookies

Makes 2 dozen
These thin chocolate cookies with ganache icing dipped into grated coconut make the perfect nests for two or three miniature chocolate eggs.

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling out dough
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder, sifted
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
Gel-paste food coloring (optional)
2 cups sweetened shredded coconut
6 dozen candy-coated chocolate eggs

1. Heat oven to 350°; line two baking sheets with parchment paper, and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine butter and sugar.

2. In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, and cocoa powder. Add flour mixture to butter mixture; mix on low speed just until a stiff dough forms, about 2 minutes. Transfer dough to a piece of plastic wrap, wrap tightly, and chill until firm, about 30 minutes.

3. Place chocolate, heavy cream, and espresso powder in a medium heat-proof bowl. Place the bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, stirring occasionally, until chocolate has melted. Remove bowl from heat, and set the chocolate ganache aside to cool, stirring occasionally.

4. On a lightly floured surface, roll out chilled dough to a 1/4-inch thickness. Using a 2 1/4-inch-round cookie cutter, cut out 24 cookies; place them on lined baking sheets. Chill cookies until firm, about 20 minutes.

5. Bake cookies until set, about 14 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

6. For colored coconut, combine a few drops of food coloring with 3 tablespoons water in a medium bowl. Stir in coconut; mix until evenly colored. Spread on an ungreased baking sheet; bake just until dry, about 12 minutes, being careful not to brown. Let coconut cool; transfer to a small bowl.

7. When the ganache has cooled to room temperature, whisk until it becomes stiff enough to pipe. Transfer ganache to a pastry bag fitted with a 3/8-inch-round tip, and pipe around perimeters of cookies. Dip each cookie, ganache-side down, into plain or colored coconut. Fill "nests" with candy-coated chocolate eggs, 2 or 3 eggs per nest. Store cookies in an airtight container, refrigerated, up to 3 days.

Also, although this recipe is a bit more time-intensive than ones I usually bust out for the book group, I just LOVE ganache and chocolate-covered eggs (I will probably use the ones they're selling for Easter right now, the ones that come in pastel shades). Plus they are just so spring-time pretty...I think it will be well-worth the effort.

all the pretty cupcakes

2005-02-09T19:24:22Z

Oh the love! There's an all-cupcakes, all-the-time blog: Cupcakes Take the Cake and it's just teeming with cupcake-y goodness.

Look at all the yummy cakes:

I want to know how she got the frosting to have that pretty metallic sheen.

I think I'm going to make cupcakes tonight. Maybe carrot cake cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. We're having a false spring here and carrot cake seems appropriately spring-like. I'll post the recipe later...

deathbycupcakes @ 2005-01-25T10:40:00

2005-01-25T18:47:41Z

Seriously craving chocolate and a turn in the kitchen to turn out something chocolate-y and fabulous. The lovely Chocolate & Zuchinni food blog has countless yummy gourmet chocolate recipes to choose from. I am thinking of making the chocolate-dipped apricots just because it would only take, like you know, two seconds and really there's no way that even a klutz such as me could screw it up -- at least not too much.

Abricots au Chocolat

- 20 dried apricots
- 100 g dark chocolate

Melt the chocolate in a double-boiler (or in a heat-resistant bowl set over a pan of simmering water). Remove from heat. Drop the apricots in the chocolate and stir until well coated. Use a fork to lift the apricots from the bowl, and deposit them carefully on a feuille guitare, a sheet of parchment paper or a silicon baking mat. Leave out to dry, preferably somewhere cool and safely hidden from children, chocoholics, or any combination of the two.

This is a good way to use up the melted chocolate leftover from other chocolate confections. You could also dip just one half of the apricots for a pretty semi-dipped effect.

(In such a simple recipe, the quality of your ingredients is key. Try to use the best apricots and the best chocolate you can reasonably afford.)

.
.
.
I'd also like to try her recipe for Florentins on a day when I can spare more of the necessary time and attention.

topping from below

2005-01-19T22:21:46Z

I was bummed (bumdt-ed?) to hear about the passing of the inventor of the Bundt pan so last night, in his honor, I made some very cute mini Bundt cake cream cheese brownies. Almost too cute to eat. Almost. I may post the recipe later, then again maybe not - it's basically just your favorite brownie recipe topped by a mix of cream cheese (8 oz), sugar (1/3 cup), vanilla (1/2 tsp) and egg (one whole, added after mixing the other ingredients). After cooking the brownies for 20 minutes you let them cool (on a wire rack) in your cute little mini Bundt pan (mine has spaces for a dozen mini Bundt cakes/muffins/brownies -- which required two trips to the oven) and then invert them so that the cream cheese top becomes the cream cheese bottom (oooh, that sounds kinda dirty)....very darling and very yummy. And so tiny, they're surely not carrying any unwanted calories...

rebirth by muffins

2005-01-06T22:51:18Z

OK it's January 5th and I'll admit that my sweet tooth has taken something of a beating lately and I'm at that point where I'm craving healthy foods that won't add further damage to my teeth or waistline. But of course I don't want stuff that tastes like cardboard.

I was a bit skeptical when I came across this Goodbaker recipe for healthy vegan muffins that are also low-carb and low-fat. Have to taste like ass, I thought. '

Nonetheless, I picked up the ingredients not already in my pantry and decided to whip up a batch last night.

As they cooked in the oven I apologized in advance to Cory for the possibility that they might "taste like ass."

He made a funny face at me and at this point I'm still surprised that I ever convinced him to even try them out.

But he did --after I did of course -- and we were both happily surprised at how damn good they were. Very light and moist and full of flavor.

This is a low-carb muffin recipe, that is also a healthy bran muffin recipe, that is also a cane sugar free muffin recipe, that is also a low fat muffin recipe, that is also a vegan muffin recipe! These muffins bake up surprisingly moist and fluffy — one might even say they have a delicate texure.

High Fiber, Lower Carb
Maple Morning Muffins

Dry Ingredients:
1/2 cup oat bran
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/3 cup whole soy flour
1/3 cup oatmeal (rolled oats)
1/3 cup wheat bran
1/3 cup ground flax seed
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vital wheat gluten OR 2 TB starch (cornstarch, tapioca starch, arrowroot)
1/2 cup raisins and/or walnuts and/or other dried fruit

Wet Ingredients:
1-1/4 cups applesauce
1/3 cup maple syrup
(or an equivalent amount of your preferred dry sweetener plus 1/4 cup water)
1 tsp vanilla (optional)
1 or 2 Tablespoons oil (optional)

Instructions
- Combine all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl, and stir with a whisk or spoon to combine thoroughly.
- Pour in the applesauce, maple syrup (or other sweetener and water), and optional oil.
- Mix gently, just enough to combine. Do not overmix. It’s OK to leave a few dry lumps.
- Spoon batter into a lined muffin tin, and bake at 350 degrees for about 18 minutes, or until the tops turn golden.

Hints:
We’ve tried to use ingredients that are readily available. But it’s also a very flexible recipe. So if you don’t have both the wheat bran and the oat bran, simply substitute with more of the one you do have. If you don’t have either, substitute with more oatmeal. Or if you are missing any of the first 5 ingredients, just substitute with more whole wheat pastry flour.

Be sure to buy your flax seed fresh, and in small quantities. It's best to grind it at home just before use. Or store it in the freezer, because the healthy flax oils start to oxidize and go bad the moment they are ground and exposed to air.

Be careful that any products you buy containing flax seed are strictly fresh.

A good rule of thumb to remember is: the healthier a seed or oil is, the faster it will go bad.

Also, they are oh-so-easy to make. Next time I make them I might use dried cranberries or dried cherries -- something more Valentine's Day-ish. Maybe even some nutmeg or vanilla paste instead of vanilla extract.

punk-ass cookies

2005-01-04T00:20:00Z

Well, it's too late for the 2004 holiday round of baking, but perhaps next year I will attempt these punk-ass gingerbread cookies. Not only do they seem to define my overall holiday spirit (at least for 2004), but they are also vegan.

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