Tuesday, March 5, 2013

52 Weeks of Baking: Week 6 - Cherry Almond Donuts

Saw a recipe for cherry almond cake on pinterest. I won't link it because it was a modification on a box cake mix, and I have strong anti box cake mix feelings. That didn't stop me from wanting the cake, of course. But I don't like making whole cakes because they're harder to share unless you're having a party. I wasn't having a party.

Donuts! The perfect answer to everything.



















Let's dispense with the crip crap.

Cherry Almond Donuts

2 tbsp maraschino cherry juice
1/2 c minus 2 tbsp 'milk' (roughly 100ml if you've got a measuring cup with imperial measurement)
1 flax egg
1/4 tsp apple cider vinegar
4 tbsp Earth Balance Coconut Spread
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 c flour
1/3 c sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
scant 1/2 c maraschino cherries, chopped

Preheat to 350; I made 24 mini donuts and 3 large ones, so spray the appropriate number of pans.

Melt all the wet ingredients together in a small pot over low heat.

Mix together all the dry ingredients; add the wet and stir together, then fold in the cherries. Pipe the batter into the pan and bake for 10 minutes for minis and 13 minutes for full size donuts. Let cool a few minutes in the pans and then remove to racks.



















Icing

1/2 c icing sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp almond extract
1 tbsp 'milk'
sprinkles if you feel like it

Mix together all the ingredients in a bowl with a fork; if you need to add more liquid or more sugar to make it a good 'dipping' consistency, use your discretion. Put parchment under your racks so that you can dip and then let them rest without fear of big mess making.


Saturday, March 2, 2013

52 Weeks of Baking: Week 5 - Sticky Toffee Pudding Cupcakes

One of my lovely friends who donated to my National Cupcake Day campaign is British and said he would like British cupcakes. After turning down my offer to do mushy pea cupcakes (I mean, really, what the heck is wrong with him?!), he suggested sticky toffee pudding and I happily agreed. Sticky toffee pudding is in my top 5 all time favourite desserts. I've never had or made a vegan version before, though.

After one mishap (no one likes burnt cupcakes) I managed to make, what I hope is, a very passable if not altogether authentic sticky toffee pudding cupcake.

The damn things are SUPER messy, by the way. Like, toffee sauce every. where. Not that that's a big problem, obviously; this is just the kind of problem fingers were created to solve.

Sticky Toffee Pudding Cupcakes (adapted from Cinnamon Spice and Everything Nice)

2 c chopped dates
2 c boiling water
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 c Earth Balance, softened
2 c sugar
1/4 c almond milk
1/4 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 flax egg
3 1/4 c flour
1 tsp baking powder

Toffee Sauce

2 3/4 c brown sugar
2 c soy creamer
1/2 c Earth Balance

Put the dates and baking soda in a bowl; pour the boiling water in. Let sit for 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350. Line 2 cupcake pans (yes this makes 24 cupcakes) or halve the recipe. Your call.

Mix the milk and vinegar; set aside. Beat the earth balance and sugar until fluffy; add the milk mixture and flax egg and beat them in; stir in the flour and powder, then fold in the dates & their liquid. Use an ice cream scoop to put batter in the cups; bake for 21 minutes.

While the 'cakes are baking, put all the ingredients for the toffee sauce in a pan on medium heat. Let it come up to a boil, the turn it down to a simmer and let it thicken for 10ish minutes.

When the 'cakes are done, pull them out and let them cool in the pan on a rack for a few minutes. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and put the sheet on a rack. Put the cupcakes on the sheet and using a fork, pierce them 6  or 8 times. Pour hot toffee sauce over the cakes, doing it 3 or 4 times to make sure it's really getting into them. You'll have lots of leftover sauce.

Frosting

1/3 c cooled toffee sauce
1/2 c room temp EB
3 c icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Beat the EB and toffee sauce together; yes it will look curdled, but that's okay. Add half the sugar and beat well; add the vanilla and rest of the sugar and beat until smooth and beautiful. Frost fully cooled cupcakes.