(Healthier!) Birthday Cupcake for One

It’s MY party…

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And I’ll eat a vegan cupcake if I want to! 

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Last weekend was my (gasp) 27th birthday.

And while the majority of the day was spent returning from a little vaca break in warm and sunny California all the way back home to cold and snowy Boston, that didn’t stop me from indulging in a tasty birthday treat (after all, scientists say dessert is perfectly acceptable on your birthday, right? ;) ). So, as soon as I got home– jet-lagged and all– I made my way to the kitchen and whipped up a sweet and fluffy frosted vanilla cupcake for one. Because, well, why not?!

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Now I’ll admit it– this little birthday splurge was quite a feat for me. I’d spent many birthdays and special occasions passing up cake and ice cream because it wasn’t considered “healthy.” And come to think of it…I couldn’t even remember the last time I’d even had a bite of birthday cake (or at least a bite that didn’t make me feel guilty afterwards). Whenever the occasion arose, I’d find every reason in the book NOT to have a slice of dessert– and then immediately I’d feel selfish, snobby, and rude for not accepting the offer. The celebration was for ME after all…

 

That all changed as soon as I became vegan.

 

Suddenly I am no longer faced with that dreaded “birthday cake pressure”–namely because most people don’t know where to buy vegan desserts, how to make vegan desserts, or they don’t realize tasty vegan desserts exist in the first place. Now, on a day-to-day basis I’m typically 100% fine with this, (I take pride in my health and in what I put in my body), and when I do want dessert, much of the time I’d prefer to make a “healthier” version on my own that keeps me light on my feet as opposed to weighing me down.

From a health and fitness perspective this all sounded pretty great, but this also meant no more birthday cake at all. Right then and there I knew something about this birthday was different.

Seemingly out of the blue, this simple thought made me feel pretty sad. And as much of a health fanatic as I am, I suddenly considered it a crime NOT to have a bite of dessert on my special day. Heck, who says it has to be your birthday to have a tasty treat?? Everything in moderation people! Besides. It’s a crime in itself that I don’t have a vegan vanilla cupcake recipe on this blog yet.

Enter the (Healthier!) Birthday Cupcake for One.

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With options for a fat-free, low-fat, or full-fat version, this quick and easy cupcake recipe (you only need 20 minutes!) is sure to please your sweet tooth and your conscience. No birthday necessary :) .

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(Healthier!) Birthday Cupcake for One:

 

Ingredients:

  • 3 tablespoons spelt flour (you can also use whole-wheat pastry flour or white flour if you’d like– however the whole-wheat option is preferred :) ).
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • slightly under 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon Earth Balance buttery spread (for a fat-free option, you can sub  applesauce or mashed banana for butter, but the cupcake will come out a bit chewier without the Earth Balance option and will have a slight banana flavor if you go that route. For a low-fat version you can do half buttery spread, half applesauce or banana).
  • 1/2 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon unsweetened almond milk
  • 2 packets of stevia (use sugar if you prefer– taste test until you are satisfied with the level of sweetness. If you use liquid sweetener, reduce the amount of milk by a teaspoon).
  • 1/2 tablespoon 100% maple syrup (optional but highly recommended)
  • Dash of almond extract (optional)


Directions:

  • Preheat the oven to 340 degrees.
  • Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl until no clumps remain.
  • Spoon batter into a muffin pan sprayed with all-natural non-stick spray (I like to use coconut oil spray).
  • Cook for 15 minutes (or until the edges begin to brown slightly).
  • Allow your cupcake to cool before you pop it out of the pan and begin frosting (I know, I know. Waiting is the hardest part! I tossed the cupcake in the freezer for a few minutes to speed up the process :) ).
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Frosting Ingredients:

(Please note: This recipe makes much more frosting than you probably need! But I won’t judge you if you use it all on one lonely little cupcake ;) . If you want fat-free frosting, omit the Earth Balance and reduce the milk to 2 teaspoons). 

  • 1/2 cup confectionary sugar
  • Slightly under 3 teaspoons almond milk
  • 1 and 1/2 teaspoon of Earth Balance buttery spread (room temperature– NOT melted)
  • Dash of almond extract (or vanilla if you don’t have almond)
Directions:
  • Mix all the frosting together in a small bowl until smooth and creamy (add more confectionary sugar as needed if you need to thicken it up).
  • Frost and enjoy!
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See? Now you can have your cupcake and eat it too :) .

 

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Healthfully Yours,

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Ashley Michelle

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Disaronno-Spiked Love Potion Cookies

 

 

Love.

 

At.

 

First.

 

Bite.

 

Ahem. I mean…SIGHT.

 

WARNING: Just one little bite of these cookies may cause feelings of love, lust, and adoration and can bring on an insatiable appetite for heart-shaped food items. Ingesting these cookies may result in revelations of true love, the desire for long walks on the beach, make-out sessions on a bearskin rug, and candlelit dinners for two. Please seek medical attention if you do not enjoy these valentine treats, as this could be the result of a serious health problem.  

 

Valentine’s Day is tricky– you either have a significant other and you love it, or you’re single and you hate it. I find the same things goes for snow in New England– you absolutely adore it, or you absolutely, positively, 110% DESPISE it.

 

Now, I’m one of those New Englanders who absolutely, positively 110% loves the snow, so you can imagine my delight when I heard about the crazy blizzard named “Nemo” that was headed for Boston last weekend.

 

The forecast?

TWO FEET OF SNOW!

 

The severe weather risk was bad enough that my office let us out of work at 2:30 on Friday and the entire state of Massachusetts was under order by the Governor to be off the roads by 4:00 pm or risk facing a $500 fine and jail time! That meant the boyfriend and I (and pretty much the rest of the state) were confined to our homes for a couple of days. While some people might have gone stir crazy being stuck inside with nothing to do (I mean, how many reruns of PLL, The Biggest Loser, Grey’s Anatomy and Boy Meets World can you watch without dying of total boredom? Okay never mind. Bad example. You can’t), I found plenty of ways to keep myself occupied– namely because I confined myself to the kitchen for oh… around 48 hours straight. My latest revelation? Natural disasters are a blogger’s dream come true.

 

All the time in the world to test recipes and blog? YES PLEASE!

I was happier than a kid on a snow day.

 

Sorry. I just couldn't resist!

 

Stick me in a kitchen when I have wayyy too much time on my hands and you’re just asking..no…begging for trouble– especially after one (okay,  two or three…) glasses of wine ;) .

 

Let’s just say I got a littttttle crazy with ingredients…

 

After all, when you don’t see the light of day for over 24 hours…alcohol consumption is inevitable. In fact, you may even find yourself beginning to think that everything could actually be 100x better with a little bit of booze…

Red wine frosting? Sure why not! A Guinness milkshake? Sign me up! Blue Moon and bran flakes? Lemme at em’!

Yep. Things were on the verge of getting OUT OF CONTROL until I remembered a dear old friend of mine…and with that, I struck gold.

 

Heart-shaped, frosted, cookie GOLD.

 

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The dear old friend?

Disaronno.

The experiment of choice?

Valentine’s Day cookies.


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Love Potion Cookies to be exact ;) .

 

So while you might be one of those people who hates Valentine’s Day and despises the snow…you had better be thanking your lucky stars my dears. If it wasn’t for my weekend of cocktail-induced kitchen craziness (thank you Nemo), these little love magnets may never have had the chance to spice things up just in time for Valentine’s Day.

 

 

Disaronno-Spiked Love Potion Cookies

 

 

Ingredients:

  • 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or spelt flour)
  • 1/4 teaspoon of salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 tablespoons 100% pure maple syrup
  • 4 teaspoons Disaronno (or another amaretto liquor)
  • 1 tablespoon unsweetened almond milk
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
  • Stevia (to taste– I used liquid stevia, but if you use powder stevia you should increase the milk by 1-2 teaspoons)
  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil (NOTE: you can increase this by a teaspoon or two if you want a more decadent, melt-in-your-mouth cookie. For a fat -free cookies, you can omit the coconut oil and sub applesauce, but be warned–without a healthy fat, the cookies will come out a bit dry compared to a regular cookie)
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Directions: 

  • Mix the first five ingredients in one bowl and mix the remaining ingredients (minus the coconut oil) in another bowl.
  • Combine the contents of both bowls together, and fold in the coconut oil.
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  • Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes (I rolled the dough into a “Toll House cookie dough log” shape using wax paper)
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  • Once firm, you can slice and bake the dough just like the store-bought cookie dough, or roll out the dough and use cookie cutters to make fun and festive shapes–like these Valentine’s Day shapes :)
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  • Pre-heat the oven to 340º and cook for 13-14 minutes (or until the tops start to turn golden brown).
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  • Let the cookies cool and decorate with my berry-infused icing and sugar sparkles (This icing is all-natural and doesn’t use any food coloring! See recipe below).
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All-Natural Berry-Infused Icing

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Ingredients:

  • 3/4 cup of organic powdered sugar
  • A couple spoonfuls of frozen berries (I used a mix of blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries from Trader Joe’s).
  • 3 teaspoons of ice-cold water

 

Directions:

  • Put powdered sugar in a bowl. Set aside.
  • Microwave frozen berries for 45 seconds. DO NOT STIR OR SMUSH BERRIES!
  • Pour a teaspoon of juice and 3 teaspoons of water into the powder sugar. Mix well
  • NOTE: Add more berry juice for a darker icing, more powder sugar for  thicker icing, and add more water for  thinner icing.
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And there you have it! Trust me. You will absolutely, positively  fall in LOVE with these cookies. And no. I’m not being dramatic. It’s just the truth!

 

So make them for your hunni. Make them for your BFF. Make them for your secret crush. Heck, make a batch all for yourself (my valentine gobbled up the whole tray in one sitting!). After all, Valentine’s Day is all about spreading the love and eating it up too ;) .

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Cupid who? 

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Healthfully Yours,

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Ashley Michelle