Non-traditional Cupcakes

(I was never a traditionalist! ;) )

Cupcakes. Cupcakes. Cupcakes. Who doesn't love cupcakes!?!

The problem with cupcakes today is that most people buy them on-the-go. I don't think I need to go into a detailed explanation about the perils of fast food and prepackaged, ready-made food. What I don't like is the ginormous size, extravagant caloric content and heart attack promoting fat content!

For example...

1 Starbucks' Triple Chocolate Cupcake is 360 calories and 20 grams of total fat (7 of that comes from saturated fat!)

1 Hostess Chocolate Cupcake is 170 calories and 6 grams of total of fat (3 of that comes from saturated fat!) And who eats just ONE of those?! I don't know of anybody.

1 Cold Stone Creamery's Sweet Cream Cupcake is 390 calories and 21 grams of total fat (15!! of that comes from saturated fat!)

(Thank you Calorie King for your assistance in providing the nutritional information!)

SO I decided to (bake and) taste test a non-buckle snapping, non-button popping, non-artery clogging cupcake!

Glazed Chocolate-Avocado Cupcakes (courtesy of Vegetarian Times)
Makes 12 Cupcakes

Cupcakes
1.5 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 avocado
1 cup pure maple syrup
3/4 cup plain soy milk
1/3 cup canola oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Glaze
1/4 block soft silken tofu (from 14 oz container), drained and patted dry
3 tbsp. pure maple syrup
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. salt
4 oz. semisweet vegan chocolate, melted

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pan with paper liners. Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in bowl. Add maple syrup, soy milk, oil, and vanilla. Blend until creamy. Puree avocado in a food processor until smooth. Whisk avocado mixture into flour mixture. Spoon batter into cupcake cups. Bake 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out with crumbs attached. Cool.

To make the glaze, blend tofu, maple syrup, vanilla, and salt in a food processor until smooth. Add chocolate to tofu mixture and blend until smooth. Transfer to bowl. Dip tops of cupcakes into glaze.

Nutritional Information
287 calories, 12.5 grams of total fat (3 of that comes from saturated fat!)

Comments
I think this is a very tasty vegan cupcake. The cupcake itself is very airy, light, and fluffy. It has the texture and mouth feel of a non-vegan, traditional cake (which can often times be hard to accomplish without eggs!) With following this recipe, the cupcake was not very sweet, which actually has its pros as well as its cons. I don't like super sweet desserts, so I liked that aspect; however, I think the cupcake could benefit from a little additional sweetness. (Of note, however, I used unsweetened plain soy milk instead of sweetened plain soy milk. That very well could have been the issue.) Either way, I figure a main reason for the glaze is to add additional flavor- and in this case that would be the addition of sweetness. With that said, when eating the glazed cupcake there is no issue of too sweet versus not sweet enough. But, being the critic that I am, that doesn't suffice. I think next time I will try one of two options. I will use sweetened plain soy milk or perhaps try chocolate soy milk. I could also maybe increase the amount of maple syrup. (I used Log Cabin lite, by the way. I couldn't convince myself to buy a $7 or more bottle of pure maple syrup (despite knowing it is 1000 times better tasting than Log Cabin lite) since I already had a generic version in my cupboard.)

Also, to aid in the ease of spreading of the glaze, refrigerate it and let it harden. (I thought it was too soupy immediately after making it.) Mix and use the back-end of a spoon to spread on a cooled cupcake. It works much butter! The one caveat- the glaze has a finished look if you don't let it harden before spreading. It's very edgy looking after it hardens.

Also, I was all excited to try these cupcakes and settled for using a non-completely ripe avocado. I don't think it mattered except for maybe the ability to blend smoothly; that didn't happen. I think it made the cupcake more textured, which I personally prefer.

I also used firm tofu, not soft, and I used vegetable oil, not canola oil. The differences result in a less smooth, more textured glaze and a slight taste difference from the use of vegetable oil. As always, I used less salt than what the recipe called for.

A hindsight note- don't stir melting chocolate with a plastic scraper. It melts! (Duh! I know....) I hate to think what kind of chemicals are now floating around inside my cupcakes. Ah well. Next time I'll do better!

Lastly, with my slight variations I can also say that the caloric content per cupcake is lower than what the Vegetarian Times estimated for their cupcakes. Log Cabin Lite is lower in calorie per serving than regular maple syrup. (The caloric and total fat content for canola oil versus vegetable oil is minimal and non-significant!) Also I made 18 cupcakes, not 12 as the recipe stated. If I followed the instructions as is, each one of my cupcakes (18 of them) would have been 215 calories. Since I used lower calorie syrup, my cupcakes are less than 200 calories each. Also, each one is just over 9 grams of total fat (and just over 2 of that comes from saturated fat!) I love the use of the avocado to increase my healthy fat intake and divert away from traditional use of saturated fat (although this is common with vegan substitutions!) One last bonus point- you can eat all of the batter you desire without worrying about if you'll get sick as this is an egg-less recipe! (So, this is a great recipe to make with kids as well!!)

All-in-all, I would consider this a success! It is a tasty vegan dessert! Enjoy!