Dairy and Soy Free Chocolate Cupcakes!

These cupcakes are delicious.

As I covered in last week's post, I have cut out a myriad of foods while nursing, due to my daughter's intolerances. I am currently free of dairy, soy, and nuts. However, as you know, I have a passion for cupcakes. I also have had a rather rough stretch at work.  So, today I did what was only natural. I made a s**t ton of dairy, soy, and nut free chocolate cupcakes, complete with similarly allergen free chocolate chip cookie dough buttercream frosting.

I worked pretty hard perfecting this recipe, but it was oh so worth it.

As a base for the cupcakes, I used my favorite chocolate cake recipe. I have used this recipe countless times, and it's always perfect.  You can find the recipe on a blog called Tracey's Culinary Adventures. This is a fabulous blog, with many wonderful recipes, so check it out.

For my allergen free version of the recipe, see below, and happy baking (and eating)!

Chocolate Cupcakes

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup rice milk
3/4 tablespoon lemon juice
3 tablespoons canola oil (do not use vegetable oil, as it has soy)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup warm water

*Combine the 3/4 cup rice milk and 3/4 tablespoon lemon juice.  Let sit for 10 minutes before adding to the recipe as noted below.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line muffin pans with paper liners.

In a large bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt together. Add the eggs, rice milk/lemon juice mixture, oil, vanilla extract and water and blend until the mixture is smooth and all of the ingredients are evenly distributed.

Distribute the batter evenly among the cupcake liners, filling each about 2/3 full. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the cupcakes spring back when lightly touched and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the pans to wire racks and let the cupcakes cool for 5-10 minutes, then remove them from the pans and cool completely on the wire racks.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough/Buttercream Frosting

Adapted from http://21nogluten.wordpress.com/  and www.godairyfree.org

This frosting is made in two parts, and "swirled" together.

12 tablespoons Earth Balance dairy and soy free butter
1 ¾ cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 ½ tablespoons coconut or rice milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

With an electric mixer, beat the Earth Balance and sugars until creamy.  Add the rice milk and vanilla and beat until smooth.

Cut the end of a 12" pastry bag, and fill with the frosting.  Set aside.

½ cup Earth Balance dairy and soy free butter
¼ cup organic non-hydrogenated shortening
3 cups powdered sugar
2 to 3 tablespoons So Delicious Coconut Milk Coffee Creamer
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

With an electric mixer, beat together the margarine and shortening for one minute.  Add the powdered sugar and beat until creamy.  Add the two tablespoons coffee creamer and vanilla, and beat until smooth.  Add another tablespoon of coffee creamer if needed and beat the buttercream until light and fluffy.

Cut the end of another 12" pastry bag, and fill with this frosting.  Cut the end off a 16" bag and use a 1M star tip. Place both 12" bags in the 16" bag. When the cupcakes are completely cool, pipe the frosting on each cupcake starting on the outside edge and swirling up. Garnish with chocolate chips.

Yields 18 cupcakes

~Sugar Dish

Dairy, Soy, Wheat, Nut, and Egg Free Cupcakes

No, I'm not kidding.

Like many nursing moms, I cut out foods from my diet due to my babies' intolerances. With my son I went dairy and soy free, which I thought was difficult at the time...If only I knew what adventures were ahead of me with my daughter!  At the height of Lizzy's issues, I was dairy, soy, egg, nut, wheat, fish, and shellfish free.  Needless to say, it has been a difficult journey nursing her.

These types of intolerances are very common for babies, especially dairy and soy.  I have heard that 50% of babies are dairy intolerant.  Most babies grow out of this as their systems develop.  Lizzy was diagnosed only a few weeks after she was born.  Looking back, I'm not sure what I ate for the roughly five months she couldn't tolerate these foods.  I then was able to slowly work back in fish, shellfish, eggs, and wheat. Today I am only dairy, soy, and nut free.  Lizzy is almost one year old, and although I am sad to see my baby all grown up, I am SO looking forward to finally eating EVERYTHING.

  

I wanted to come up with a cupcake recipe free of all the allergens I cut out while nursing Lizzy. It was not simple, as I had to cut out almost everything tasty and delicious.  But I am glad to say that I have been successful!  These cupcakes prove that even allergen free desserts can be delicious!

I looked at a lot of different allergen free recipes, but most were just dairy, nut, and gluten free.  I found it particularly difficult to eliminate both dairy and soy from recipes, as most butter substitutes seem to have soy in them.  I had planned to use non-hydrogenated shortening instead of butter, but at Whole Foods I was pleased to discover Earth Balance now makes a soy free butter substitute!  Eggs were also difficult.  I chose to substitute eggs for half a mashed up banana.  I found this substitution list, which is very helpful!

In the end, I used this recipe for chocolate chip cookie dough cupcakes as my base.  This is a very clever recipe, but I made alterations to remove the soy and egg components of the original recipe, as well as a few alterations to suit my own preferences.  Here is my version of the recipe!

Dairy, Soy, Egg, Nut, and Wheat Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes

For the Cookie Dough Filling:

• 3/4 cup gluten free flour
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons unsalted vegan butter, melted (I used Earth Balance soy free version)
• 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons rice milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (I used Enjoy Life Foods brand which is allergen free)

For the Chocolate Cupcakes:

• 1 cup gluten free flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup hot water
• 1/2 cup canola oil (don't use vegetable oil, as it contains soy)
• 1/2 mashed banana (to replace 1 egg)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the Cookie Dough Frosting:

• 12 tablespoons unsalted vegan butter (I used Earth Balance soy free version)
• 1 3/4 cups powdered sugar
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons rice milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

For the Garnish 

• Mini chocolate chips
• Chocolate chip cookies (optional)

1. Start by making the cookie dough filling.  In a small bowl, sift together the gluten free flour, baking soda and salt.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the butter, sugars, milk and vanilla until smooth.
3. Whisk in the dry ingredients and the chocolate chips until smooth.
4. Refrigerate for 15 to 30 minutes or until firm.
5. Using a melon baller, scoop out dough into 12 balls.  Don't fill the melon baller completely.  If the balls are too big, it messes up the cupcakes. The balls should be no wider that 1/3 the width of your cupcakes.  Freeze for at least 30 minutes.
6. While your cookie dough balls are in the freezer, make your cupcakes.
7. Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Line a cupcake pan with 12-15 liners.
8. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, sugar, baking soda and salt.
9. Add the water, oil, banana and vanilla and whisk until smooth. Use a spatula to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure all ingredients are combined.
10. Fill each cupcake liner 1/2-2/3 full.
11. Take your cookie dough balls out of the freezer and gently press a one ball into the center of each cupcake, only submerging the ball 1/2 way.
12. Bake the cupcakes for 19-21 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cupcake portion of the cupcake (not tested through the center where the dough is), comes out fairly dry. Chunks/pieces of cake are okay, just not moist batter.
13. Cool the cupcakes completely before frosting.
14. To make your frosting, in the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugars until smooth and creamy.
15. Add the milk and vanilla and beat on high until well combined.
16. Use a 1M tip and a pastry bag to pipe the frosting on each cupcake.  Top with mini chocolate chips and the cookie et voila!

~Sugar Dish

Two Sweet Blessings

This weekend I had the honor of making not only mini cupcakes for a little guy's second birthday, but I also made his new baby sister a beautiful pink rosette cake.  Their parents apparently have super hero powers, and are throwing a joint birthday/welcome-to-the-world party for their children, only one week after baby girl was born!  Pretty impressive.

I was so pleased when this new mama asked me to make this cake for her baby girl -- what a great way to welcome a new baby into the world - with a beautiful cake!  I also got to sneak a peak of the baby when I delivered the cakes to them.  I think my creations will have a hard time standing out next to that little angel!  She's like a perfect snowflake.

While decorating these cakes, it was very important to me that the colors were perfect.  Once you learn how to make buttercream rosettes, they make for pretty quick work.  The most time consuming thing about this cake is tinting the frosting.  It is very important, because the ombre look of the cake adds sophistication, and is perfect for the birth of a sweet baby girl.  I have found that it takes a lot of thought and planning to make sure it is done correctly, especially if you're also going to be tinting frosting other colors for another project, like my blue cupcakes.

Whenever working with color, start with your lightest color and work towards the darkest.  For example, I first rolled out the white sugar paste and cut out the shape for the monogram.  If I had first tinted the dark pink or blue frosting, and then cut out the monogram shield, I may have gotten residual blue or pink on the white sugar paste.  After completing the monogram plate, I then made a large batch of buttercream, and split it into three equal portions.  I first tinted the lightest pink, using a very small amount of pink gel food coloring.  Once I was certain the color was right, I tinted the medium pink.  Once I mixed it up, I compared to the light pink to make sure it was what I wanted.  Keep in mind that tinted frostings deepen after sitting a few minutes.  If you go too crazy, all the sudden your colors may be too dark.  Repeat for the darkest pink, and then you're ready to go!

I started at the bottom of the cake and made the darkest layer of pink roses.  Then the middle, and then the top!  Then pipe on the monogram, top the cake with the monogram plate, and you're all done!

I then moved on to decorating the chocolate cupcakes.  I wanted these to be "sky inspired" cupcakes, so I split my buttercream in to two equal batches, and used the same strategy as above to tint a light blue and dark blue.  I then filled a 12" piping bag with the light blue, cutting the tip off the bag, and also filled and cut a second 12" bag with the dark blue.  Then, I put both of the bags in a 16" bag, after cutting the end off of that bag, and inserting my 1M frosting tip.  This gives you the swirl of the two colors.  I love the way it turned out!  Adding rainbow sprinkles completes the look for the birthday cupcakes!

I loved these projects because they brought together the elements I love most about cake making: a special celebration for special people, delicious flavors, artistic expression, and beauty.