Stephanie's Test Kitchen

 

When I decided to finally start up a blog of my food creations and photography it was coming up to Valentines Day and this post was supposed to be my very first published blog post but I never got round to finishing it, until now. I had decided to re-visit a recipe I tested out for Valentines Day 2014 and had written some tweaks to test out. I finally got round to trying these tweaks for Gluten Free Red Velvet Cupcakes. I also decided to try out a simple recipe for healthy Choc-Coated Popcorn, because who doesn’t love some popcorn to snack on at their V-day movie date.

I have to admit that I had a happy accident with the popcorn, it was supposed to be chocolate but it ended up tasting like choc-salted-caramel. Of course no complaints here. It tasted so good that I ended up eating half the batch while I was photographing the cupcakes and popcorn. So I now officially change the popcorn to choc-salted caramel popcorn. I used pre-popped organic popcorn that was lightly salted so if you want to make your own fresh popcorn you’ll need to add a pinch of sea salt to the recipe to get that salted caramel taste. It’s such quick and simple recipe to make which is always perfect for last minute movie night plans.

Whe I first made the red velvet cupcakes, for some strange reason I just felt they needed sultanas in them so I added them in the second time round and it just added this little something extra when you bite into the cupcake. Due to being dairy free I subbed the Greek yoghurt in the frosting for coconut yoghurt but if you are fine with dairy I would recommend sticking with Greek yoghurt because I think the tartness balances the sweetness of the cupcakes just nicely.

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting 

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:

• 2 small raw beetroots, grated or pulped in the blender (I recommend this technique as it’s less messy)
• 3 tbsp raw cacao powder
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup almond meal
• 2 1/2 tbsp coconut butter
• 1/4 cup rice malt syrup or honey
• Sultanas (optional)

For the frosting:

• 3 tbsp plain Greek yoghurt or plain coconut yoghurt
• 3 tsp raw cacao powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp pure maple syrup, to taste

Recipe:

1. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
2. Combine dry cupcake mixture in a large bowl, then add wet ingredients and stir well.
3. Add in sultanas if using.
4. Pour batter into 12 cupcake cases and bake for 35-40 minutes.
5. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
6. While the cupcakes are cooling mix the frosting ingredients together until smooth and adjust sweetness for desired levels.
7. Frost the cooled cupcakes using the back of a teaspoon, garnish as desired and serve.

*Recipe Tested from Nourish Magazine Jan-Feb 2014*

Chocolate Salted Caramel Popcorn

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp maca powder
• 1.5 tbsp organic coconut oil. Melted
• 1.5 tbsp pure maple syrup or coconut nectar
• 1/2 tbsp raw cacao powder
• 2 cups organic popcorn

Recipe:

1. In a large bowl, mix maca powder, coconut oil, sweetner and cacao powder until smooth.
2. Add the popcorn and stir until well coated.
3. Place on a lined tray and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
4. Best shared in front of your Favourite movie.

*Recipe Tested from Nourish Magazine Jan-Feb 2014*