Two Birthdays – Belated Post

Two Birthdays Two Recipes

 

Kathy’s birthday was April 30 and mine was May 9. I made Kathy Lowfat Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting. On the Monday of my birthday week, I made Oatmeal Cupcakes with Banana Coconut Frosting.

 

Here are the recipes:

Both are modified versions from Crazy About Cupcakes by Krystina Castella

 

Lowfat Carrot Cupcakes

 

These are a favorite of all my friends.

 

1.5 cups flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tbl. baking powder

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

¼ tsp. ground nutmeg

¼ tsp. ground ginger

1 egg

2 tbls. vegetable oil

¼ cup chopped walnuts (plus, extra to sprinkle on top)

½ cup fat-free milk (recipe calls for low-fat but the fat-free works)

8oz. crushed pineapple

1.5 cup grated carrots (I buy a bag of shredded carrots in the produce section to save time)

¼ cup brown sugar

 

1. preheat oven 350
2. In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.
3. In a medium bowl mix the egg, vegetable oil, walnuts, milk, pineapple, carrots and brown sugar.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Stir.
5. Fill cupcake tins. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

 

Cream Cheese Frosting with Chopped Walnuts (I modified it to make it “low” fat)

 

8oz. fat free cream cheese, at room temperature

6 tbls. unsalted butter, at room temperature

3 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup chopped walnuts

 

1. Cream together cream cheese and butter until smooth.
2. Sift powdered sugar into the butter mixture and beat until lumps are gone.
3. Add the vanilla and mix until integrated.
4. Add chopped walnuts and mix until integrated.
5. Frost cupcakes and then sprinkle walnuts on top.

 

 

 

Oatmeal Cupcakes

The brown sugar added on top prior to baking adds an extra surprise in each bite. The more the better. Then the frosting. Yummy. These cupcakes are amazing. Many layers of flavor.

 

1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature

½ cup sugar

1 ½  cups firmly packed dark brown sugar ( ¾ cup for recipe and ¾ cup for sprinkling on top)

1 cup fat free milk

1 ½ cup sifted flour

1 cup quick-cooking oatmeal

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

½ tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp ground allspice

2 large eggs at room temperature

 

1)      preheat oven to 350.

2)      In a large bowl cream together butter, sugar, ¾ cup dark brown sugar, and ¾ cup milk.

3)      In another bowl mix flour, oatmeal, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice.

4)      Add dry to wet ingredients. Beat and add remaining milk ( ¼ cup) and the eggs. Beat.

5)      Fill cupcake liners and then top each with brown sugar. The more the better.

6)      Bake for 20-25 minutes.

 

 

 

 

Banana Coconut Frosting

 

5 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter

1 cup coconut

½ cup mashed bananas (usually 1 banana)

1 tsp lemon juice

8 cups powdered sugar

 

1)      Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a pan. Stir in coconut and continue stirring until the coconut is brown. Set aside.

2)      Combine mashed bananas and lemon juice.

3)      In a separate bowl cream together the 3 ½ tablespoons butter and powdered sugar. Then add the banana mixture. Mix.

4)      Mix in the cooked coconut.

 

 

 

Topping:

2 cups granola

Banana chips

 

 

Frost each cupcake and then roll the cupcake top in the granola. Top with a banana chip. Enjoy immediately. Happy Birthday to me.

 

 

 

Appendix A

I woke up this morning and figured out what to make with my remaining brown banana.

Banana Buckwheat Pancakes.

All I did was mash a banana a bowl and then added the Buckwheat Pancakes mix (and all other wet ingredients) into the bowl. Cooked and then ate. Yummy.

Healthy too, because: 1) buckwheat (hello, fiber!), 2) banana (duh!), 3) fat free milk instead of regular milk, 4) sugar free maple syrup, and 5) smart balance buttery spread.

I made a whole batch and only ate two. I usually freeze the leftovers and then pop them in the microwave in the morning. Yummy breakfast all week long.

I will have to make these with my Passover Pancake mix and Passover Syrup. 

Baked Bananas

I have some bananas that are beginning to brown so I thought I should make good use of them. I made a baked banana from my Student’s Vegetarian Cookbook.

Baked Bananas:

(the finished product with steam coming from it, yummy!)

Here is the recipe:

Oven 400 degrees F

1 banana

2 tablespoons yogurt (be generous!) (I used Weight Watchers Vanilla yogurt)

ground cinnamon

1) Put the banana on a baking sheet and make a slit along the length of the banana.

2) Bake the banana for 10-15 minutes. (The skin will turn black and the banana will ooze)

3) Remove the banana from the peel, spoon yogurt on top and sprinkle with cinnamon.

 

(steamy goodness in every bite)

I think my dad will love this recipe. They smell better than baked apples and are defintely better. 

Now I have to figure out what to do to with the rest of the bananas.

Mashed Bananas and Baked History

Sunday night was a great night for me.

After spending the early afternoon in Mount Pleasant, I spent the rest of the day reading. I finally finished What Hath God Wrought. That night I was able to participate in my favorite things.

I baked some banana cupcakes with banana coconut frosting (a favorite of Valerie and me).  For my mommy’s Birthday (March 24).

 

(Doesn’t she look yummy?)

While baking and frosting, I watched “John Adams.” The HBO special. I am loving it thoroughly, especially the treatment of Abigail Adams.

So my Sunday evening was excitingly spent making cupcakes and watching history.

 

(before the final coating of coconut) 

I returned to work on Monday with cupcakes in tow. Everyone in the office loved them. Luckily, the chair of the department was around and so he received one. Hopefully, he will remember my weekly cupcakes whenever there are funding decisions.

 

(Getting buckled up in their cupcake carrier).

 Luckily, no classes. But I met with my advisor who put me back on the straight and narrow after a detour from a certain faculty member. Then I feverishly conducted more research. She, of course, received a cupcake for her good work.

(My handy individual cupcake holder, I then pack it into my cupcake lunchbag).

Tuesday it was back to class and learning about history (with a cupcake in my lunchbag, of course). My presentation of the abovementioned book went fabulous, probably because it is my area of specialization. During the presentation I felt like a little historian spewing out all my knowledge.

Now I am off to my Thursday night date with Kristi. JavaHouse and Princess Bride.

 

 

(message me if you want the recipe).

 

hi Mom and Dad, if you are reading this. I make you proud, right?

 

(bonus: my desk on Tuesday night, trying to prepare my presentation for the monster book)