Cupcakes are vegetarian too!!!

Last night I was thinking, "Why don't I include some sweet recipes on the blog?? After all, baking IS one of my passions!"  Plus, unless you're baking meat pies, most desserts are vegetarian......SCORE!

I tend to be a baking snob. Most of the time, I'd rather bake it myself than go to another disappointing bakery.  Nothing gets under my skin like spending a good amount of $$ at a bakery only to find I could've made it better. (Yes, I know.....I'm tooting my own horn....)

A friend of mine messaged me asking for some recommendations for cupcake recipes for her daughters upcoming 2 year birthday.   Since I just made RED VELVET cupcakes yesterday, I thought I'd pass the yumminess along to you all!  Also, I've included a favorite recipe of Amanda's, Carrot Cupcakes with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting.  TO. DIE. FOR.

Enjoy!!!

RED VELVET CUPCAKES WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

 Ingredients

(Makes 24 servings)

• 2 1/2 cups cake flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 (1 ounce) bottle Red Food Color (like McCormick)
• 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
• Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting:
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 2 tablespoons sour cream
• 2 teaspoonsVanilla Extract
• 2 cups Confectioners Sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. Set aside.
2. Beat butter and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in sour cream, milk, food color and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until just blended. Do not overbeat. Spoon batter into 30 paper-lined muffin cups, filling each cup 2/3 full.
3. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted into cupcake comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire rack 5 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely. Frost with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting.

Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting

Beat cream cheese, softened, butter, sour cream and Vanilla Extract in large bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in confectioners' sugar until smooth.  Yummmm!!!

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CARROT CUPCAKES WITH WHITE 

CHOCOLATE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING 

Ingredients

Makes 12 servings

• 2 ounces white chocolate
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon orange extract
• 4 cups confectioners' sugar
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 1/8 cups white sugar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup crushed pineapple
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease 12 muffin cups.
2. In small saucepan, melt white chocolate over low heat. Stir until smooth, and allow to cool to room temperature.
3. In a bowl, beat together the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Mix in white chocolate, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and orange extract. Gradually beat in the confectioners' sugar until the mixture is fluffy. Mix in heavy cream.
4. Beat together the eggs, white sugar, and brown sugar in a bowl, and mix in the oil and vanilla. Fold in carrots and pineapple. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Mix flour mixture into the carrot mixture until evenly moist. Fold in 1/2 cup walnuts. Transfer to the prepared muffin cups.
5. Bake 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool completely on wire racks before topping with the icing and sprinkling with remaining walnuts.  
6. Eat.....Soooo amazing!!!

"What a Dal"

Since it's been so hot and sticky out, I wasn't in the mood for turning on the oven or cooking over a hot stove.  Come to think of it, it's surprising that the thought of eating a warm dal dish sounded like a good idea.  However, after coming across a "Slow Cooker" cookbook at the library, I was inspired to give this dal recipe a whirl! 

I never really appreciated a good dal until I started making them at home myself. If you've eaten dal at Indian restaurants, you know that they're usually served as a side dish, and can range from being very watery and soup-like to dry and dense, like mashed potatoes. They make excellent meatless main courses, delicious and nutrient rich. But perhaps the dal you've experienced has been too watery, too bland, or just too uninspired to drive you into the kitchen to create your own.  Or, maybe indian food isn't your thing.  At any rate,  I feel like there are 1000 different variations to try and what a great opportunity to explore!

So, what's a dal you ask?   They usually consist of dried legumes such as lentils, split peas, and some kind of bean.  They are typically served as side dishes because if As side dishes the meal is spicy hot, you may want a mildly seasoned, bland dal to offset the heat and balance the flavors. Or, if you're serving the dal as a main course, accompanied by rice and bread, you may prefer a robust dal, with lots of ginger, chiles, and roasted spices to highlight it as the center of the plate.

I've come to consider dal a comfort food. There is something immensely satisfying about grains and beans together. Whenever I eat a good vegetarian chili, or minestrone soup I feel good & toasty inside.  It's hearty (without making you feel too full), nutritious and super easy to make.  If you're in the mood for a quick, easy, yummy dal - this recipe has your name on it :_)

I serve it with brown basmati rice with a spritz of lemon and a dollop of yogurt at table add extra tang. As with other legume dishes, dal freezes beautifully, so reheating a batch requires almost no labor. It's a great idea to keep a quart or so frozen so it's readily available for easy dinners or to take lunch to work.


LENTIL DAL 

  Ingredients

• 2 cups Dried Red Lentils, rinsed & sorted
• 3-4 Garlic Cloves, minced
• 1-2 tablespoon Fresh Ginger, finely chopped
• 1 (10 ounce) package Frozen Spinach
• 1 tablespoon Curry Powder (to taste)
• 1 teaspoon Ground Cumin (to taste)
• 1 teaspoon Ground Corriander (to taste)
• 1 teaspoon Yellow Mustard Seeds (to taste)
•  Red Pepper Flakes(to taste)
•  Ground Cinnamon(to taste)
• 4 cups low sodium vegetable broth
• Water, as needed

Directions

1. Just toss it all in there and cook on low 6-8 hours. check water level a few times to make sure lentils don't burn, add water if needed.  Serve with warm naan if you'd like!