Today my day began with a Green Monster.
1/2 banana, handful of fresh spinach leaves, 1 scoop organic wheat grass powder and some almond milk.
This smoothie always gives me a boost of energy in the morning and it’s a great way to start the day. I’ve been incorporating wheat grass into my diet due to the some of the following positive benefits:
- Increases and sustains energy naturally
- Detoxifies and cleanses the body
- Strengthens immune system
- Complete food with enzymes and all essential amino acids
- Natural source of antioxidants to help repair damaged cells
Last night I met up with two friends and it was really great to see them. I left with a smile on my face as I adore the comfort of good ol’ friends. One of them I hadn’t seen in quite some time and when we called him he came out within seconds to see us. We were sitting outside at a place down the street from his apartment. It was a must that we saw him. The room is full of laughs when he is around. The other has some huge life changes ahead of her. She is moving to Switzerland with her boyfriend in October. She has been a dear friend for ten years now. I don’t think it has hit me yet that she is leaving town.
So when I arrived home I felt the need for a celebration and what better way to celebrate then to make cupcakes. I have had my eye on a vegan cupcake recipe from The Kind Diet, Alicia Silverstone’s favorite cupcake recipe. When I checked my cupboards I found I had most of the ingredients. I have been down the vegan cupcake route before testing out recipes from the Babycakes cookbook. So I stepped out to the market to pick up the remaining ingredients and was soon back in the kitchen, my very tiny city kitchen.
By the way, the frosting was a hit in my book. Adding the soy milk powder gave it a malt consistency. It brought me back to the days of summer when I was little and my parents, grandparents and I would head over to a old-fashioned ice cream parlor in town called Richmond’s. It was the town icon from the 1960′s through the 1980′s. My Mom and I would always order the “Malty Ball Sundae.” Ahhh….dreamy.
Recipe, Makes 12
Cupcakes
- 2/3 cup hemp or soy milk
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 2/3 cup agave nectar
- 1/3 cup safflower oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- Pinch of fine sea salt
Fudge Frosting
- 1/2 cup Earth Balance butter
- 1/2 cup agave nectar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup soy milk powder
Preheat over to 325. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. (Alicia suggests unbleached, recycled cupcake liners by a company called If You Care, available at Whole Foods.)
Combine the milk and vinegar in a medium bowl, and set aside for at least 5 minutes or until it bubbles a little. If it doesn’t bubble, keep stirring the mixture until it does. Add the agave nectar, oil, and vanilla and stir.
In a separate bowl, combine the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, mixing until no lumps remain.
Pour the batter into the prepared muffin tin, and bake for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one cupcake comes out clean and the tops are slightly springy when pressed. Cool the cupcakes in the pan for 10 to 15 minutes, then cool completely on a baking rack before frosting.
To make the Fudge Frosting, use a mixer to cream the butter together with the agave nectar in a mixing bowl until very smooth. Add the vanilla extract and about half the cocoa powder, mix on low speed to combine, then add the remaining cocoa powder. Add in the soy milk powder, and beat at medium-high speed until fluffy. If it is runny, refrigerate the frosting until it sets up a little.
To note, I didn’t have a mixer so I mixed by hand and I did put the frosting in the refrigerator to keep it from being a runny consistency.
