Vanilla Chai Cupcakes

I've been on a baking frenzy lately...I don't know why, but I seem to be obsessed with cupcakes. I never even liked cupcakes! I think it was the frosting ~ Why do people like frosting? Thick, sugary goo that impairs the lusciousness of the cake? Well, I guess not all frostings are like that.....but I digress.

So, today I was going through a box of food items that some friends left for us when they moved to Australia. Imagine my delight when I saw a container of Chai Spiced Tea. Instantly my creative juices started flowing. Chai Cupcakes! Here, I thought, is an original idea! I doubt anyone has thought of it...Ugh! Martha Stewart and a host of others beat me to it.

So, thanks to Darla of Bakingdom.com, I found my perfect Chai Cupcake recipe. If you love a warm Chai tea on a cool autumn day, this is the recipe for you. Sorry it's not an original, but I did make a slight adjustment. I discovered a perfect substitution for cake flour! I'll share the joy in the ingredient list. I'm so excited about this recipe because you can substitute applesauce for eggs. Not only is it low fat, it's full of awesome fiber, too!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups cake flour (If you don't have it, mix 1 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour with 1/4 cup of cornstarch to equal 2 cups. Then portion out your 1 1/2 cups. Cool, huh?)

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

3/4 tsp. ground cardamom

1/2 tsp. ginger

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. cloves

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup margarine

3/4 cup applesauce

1 cup soy milk

4 chai tea bags (I used Stash brand)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin tin with cupcake papers. This recipe will make about 18 regular size and 24 mini size.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices; set aside.

In a small saucepan, warm milk until it just simmers. Remove from heat and add the tea bags. Steep for 10 minutes. Remove tea bags and allow the milk to cool to room temperature.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add applesauce, just until combined.

Sprinkle 1/3 of the flour mixture over the butter/sugar/applesauce batter and mix with a hand mixer on low speed until just combined. Add 1/2 of chai milk mix and beat on low until combined. Add another 1/3 of the flour mix and beat. Scrape the bowl, then add remaining milk. Mix until incorporated, then add the last of the flour. Be careful not to over mix.

Fill each cupcake liner 2/3 of the way full and bake for approximately 18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out with a few crumbs clinging to it. I always like to test the tops of the cupcakes, too. If they spring back when lightly touched, they are most likely done.

Allow to cool completely before frosting. Darla suggested using a cinnamon scented buttercream frosting. My husband would like a cream cheese style frosting...You choose what you'd like to accent them with.

Enjoy! I certainly will...as my exercise regimen increases.

Healthy Carrot Cake Cupcakes

I love carrot cake, but my family is not fond of the idea of vegetables in dessert. My husband remarked that these were the best carrot cake cupcakes he'd ever had. They are moist and tender and don't fall apart like other recipes that I've tried. Plus, this can be a sneaky way to get your children (or husband) to eat their vegetables! ((wink, wink)) This recipe was originally created by Ellie Krieger of the Food Network, but I tweaked it a little. The original recipe called for nutmeg and eggs.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 cup oil

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup silken tofu, blended until smooth with a little water

1/2 cup natural applesauce

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 cups grated carrot

1/4 cup, plus 2 Tbsp. walnuts or pecans, chopped fine

Frosting:

4 oz. low fat cream cheese, such as Neufchatel (I tried Tofutti Cream Cheese and the frosting consistency was too runny. You'll have to find a great alternative...I'm still experimenting!)

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1/2 tsp. lemon zest

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin tin with cupcake papers.

Whisk together first six ingredients in a small bowl. In a medium bowl, whisk together oil, brown sugar, and tofu until well combined. Add the applesauce, vanilla, and carrots. Combine the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients in the medium bowl and mix. Add 1/4 cup of chopped nuts.

Divide the batter evenly between the muffin cups. I've found that a 1/4 measuring cup works excellently. Bake about 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

While the cupcakes are cooling, prepare your frosting. With an electric hand mixer, beat the cream cheese, powdered sugar and lemon zest until smooth. Frost the cooled cupcakes and sprinkle some of the reserved chopped nuts on top.

You will want to store the cupcakes in the fridge. Yield: 12 cupcakes

Bobby Flay's Gingerbread Cupcakes ~ With a twist!

As soon as I realized that you could substitute silken tofu for eggs in cake type recipes, I started compiling recipes that I wanted to experiment with. This recipe from the Food Network by one of my favorite chefs, Bobby Flay, was one that I thought looked and sounded pretty amazing. The full title of the recipe is..."Gingerbread Cupcakes with Caramelized Mango Buttercream"! I didn't do the mango buttercream, unfortunately. I didn't have any mango and I'm still trying to come up with good substitutions for things like egg whites, etc. So, to make the cupcakes look beautiful, I just used some store bought icing and sprinkled a few pieces of candied ginger on top.

Even without the mango buttercream, this is still a delicious recipe for a holiday party or luncheon.

Ingredients ~ Cupcakes:

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1 Tb. ground ginger

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground cloves (*I didn't use)

1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted (I used 1/4 cup Earth Balance margarine)

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup silken Tofu, blended with a little water until very smooth

6 Tb. black strap molasses

3/4 cup water

Ingredients ~ Ginger Syrup:

1 cup water

1 cup sugar

1 (2-inch) piece ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped (I used a longish piece of candied ginger, then used the infused pieces to decorate the top of the cupcakes).

Instructions:

Start the ginger syrup first. Mix water, sugar, and ginger pieces in a small pan and bring to boil. Turn off and allow the syrup to rest for about 30 minutes, to infuse the ginger flavor. Remove the ginger pieces and set aside for decoration if you are using candied ginger. If not, discard raw ginger.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place cupcake papers in muffin tin and liberally spray the cups and top of the pan with Pam.

Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon and cloves into a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together melted margarine, brown sugar, tofu, and molasses. Add some of the water to the mixture and stir, then some of the flour and stir. Continue alternating with the water and flour until everything is added and smooth.

Fill each paper liner with 1/3 cup batter or until it comes about 1/4 inch below the top of the liner. Place into preheated oven and bake just until the tops feel firm and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 15-18 minutes. Remove from the oven and brush the tops liberally with the ginger syrup.

Allow to cool, then frost with your favorite icing or don't frost them at all! If you enjoy ginger, then you'll love these cupcakes. They'd go well with a cup of hot apple cider. :)