Valentine's Day!

Last year for Valentine's Day, I made delicious red velvet cupcakes filled with raspberry jam and topped off with traditional cream cheese frosting.  But this year, when I revisited the recipe I had forgotten about all the dairy and eggs.  The recipe I used to follow called for milk, eggs, butter, and sour cream.  This year I took a leap of faith and made vegan red velvet cupcakes and was SHOCKED at how good they were.  The vegan  'cream cheese' frosting could actually have fooled me had I not been the one who made it, and the cupcakes turned out tastier than the old ones.  Sometimes you just have to be brave and you can discover a (slightly) healthier, better for you and the world treat!

Red Velvet Cupcakes
Adapted from Vegan Crimson Velveteen Cupcakes

Makes 1 dozen.

Ingredients:
1 c (237 ml) almond milk
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 1/4 c (156 g) flour
1 c (198 g) sugar
2 Tbls cocoa
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 c (78 ml) canola oil
2 Tbls red food coloring (liquid)
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
1 tsp chocolate extract (I found this ingredient at the Willy St. Co-op)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line a cupcake pan with liners.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the almond milk and vinegar and set aside to curdle (this is to imitate buttermilk. It is an important step because the vinegar gives the baking soda something with which it can react!)
3. In another bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
4. Add the oil, food coloring and extracts to the curdled almond milk and whisk well to combine.
5. Sift the dry ingredients into the wet and fold to combine, mixing just until large lumps disappear.
6. Pour into liners and bake 18-20 minutes until edges are firm and an inserted toothpick comes out clean.


Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:
1/4 c (58 g) Earth Balance vegan spread, softened
1/4 c (58 g) vegan cream cheese, softened (I used Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese Non-Hydrogenated Spread)
2 c (312 g) powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/4-1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice to taste

Directions:
1. Cream together the margarine and cream cheese just until combined.
2. Sift in the powdered sugar in half-cup batches, whipping thoroughly combined after each addition.
3. Add the vanilla and lemon juice and whip until fluffy.

To fill cupcakes:
1. When cupcakes are completely cooled, spoon seedless jam (I use raspberry) into a piping bag, fitted with a long, narrow tip (see photo below).
2. Insert tip into cupcake, gently wiggling it around to make a hole to fill.  Fill hole with jam.  I make 3 holes in each cupcake.

Sorry for the blurry picture!  Here is the tip I use.

To frost:
1. Spoon frosting into a piping bag.  Twist open end shut and hold between fingers while bag rests in your palm.
2. Trim off the end of bag where bag is about 1/2 inch across.
3. Squeeze bag from the end resting in your palm, spiraling around in a circle starting from the outside working toward the center.

Notes:
- I use disposable piping bags from Michael's craft store.  Trust me- it is worth it.
- Please please try before you judge these- they are so moist and tender!  I really think the chocolate extract, which you may have to search for, adds a great depth to these.

The next two posts will also be recipes I made for Valentine's Day- including what I made for my sweetie :)