Chocolate Chip Cookies/Cookie Sandwiches done the Babycakes way!

I know I've been on kind of a Babycakes kick, but what can I say?  Her recipes are delicious!  I have never been to the actual bakery in NYC, but I plan on it the next time I'm in the city.  Now, I know I've done a recipe before on chocolate chip cookies from the same author, but this is a different recipe from that one.  This is from her first Babycakes book.  It makes a crispier, larger cookie, which you can use as a cookie sandwich with your leftover frosting, like I did.  They were incredible, and a hazard to have in my apartment.  That being said, I am now back on my strict diet.  I have been so bad this summer with my diet, but for me summer is the most difficult time to pass up desserts.  There's desserts at barbeques, there's ice cream everywhere, especially at the shore.  It's difficult to pass up ice cream.  Anyway back to the recipe.

Here's what you'll need:

• 1 cup coconut oil
• 6 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups evaporated cane juice a.k.a. vegan sugar
• 2 cups Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free All-Purpose Baking Flour
• 1/4 cup flax meal
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum
• 1 cup vegan chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, mix together the oil, applesauce, salt, vanilla, and evaporated cane juice.

In another medium bowl, whisk together the flour, flax meal, baking soda, and xanthan gum.  Using a rubber spatula, carefully add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and stir until a grainy dough is formed.

Gently fold in the chocolate chips just until they are evenly distributed throughout the dough.  Using a melon baller, scoop the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing the portions 1 inch apart.

Gently press each with the heel of your hand to help them spread.  Bake the cookies on the center rack for 15 minutes, rotating the sheets 180 degrees after 9 minutes.  The finished cookies will be crisp on the edges and soft in the center.

Let the cookies stand on the sheets for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack and cool completely before storing or frosting them.  Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Makes 36 cookies.  Enjoy! 

Red Velvet Cupcakes done the Babycakes way

Okay, now who doesn't love red velvet cupcakes?  Who can pass one up?  They are probably my favorite kind of cupcake vegan or not, gluten free or not, I cannot pass one up.  There's just something about the richness of how they taste.  The frosting always pops out more on red velvet cupcakes, in my opinion.  That being said, I used the Babycakes vanilla frosting recipe for these, and you can find that link here.

For these cupcakes you will need to use spelt flour, now spelt is wheat's cousin, so I don't think these are gluten free.  I have heard that people with Celiac's can digest spelt though, depending on how sensitive they are to gluten.  That being said, let's get to the recipe.

Here's what you'll need:

• 1/2 cup rice milk
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 3 1/4 cups whole spelt flour
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2/3 cup coconut oil
• 1 1/4 cups agave nectar
• 2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
• 5 tablespoons natural red food coloring, or as needed to achieve your preferred color
• vanilla frosting (see above link)

First, preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Line 2 standard 12-cup muffin tins with paper liners.  Pour the rice milk and apple cider into a small bowl, but do not stir, set aside to develop into "buttermilk."

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Add the oil, agave nectar, and vanilla to the dry ingredients and stir to combine.  The batter will be thick.  Using a plastic spatula, add the "buttermilk" and mix just until combined.

Slowly add red food coloring by the tablespoon until the batter is the desired color.  Do not exceed 6 tablespoons.

Pour the batter into the prepared tins.  Bake the cupcakes on the center rack for 24 minutes, rotating the tins 180 degrees after 14 minutes.  The finished cupcakes will bounce back slightly when pressed, and a toothpick inserted in the center will come out clean.

I frosted the cupcakes at my bff's home.

Let the cupcakes stand in the tins for 20 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack and cool completely.  Using a frosting knife, gently spread desired amount of frosting to each cupcake.

You can store these cupcakes in the fridge in an airtight  container for up to 3 days.

Enjoy! 

Oatmeal Cookies (done the Babycakes way)

I've been on kind of a baking kick lately, and one afternoon I was craving cookies, so I baked some oatmeal raisin cookies.  This recipe comes from Babycakes Covers the Classics, so since it's Babycakes, it's going to be gluten free and vegan.  I didn't have gluten free oats, so I just used regular oats.  They turned out great, but once I put them into the cookie jar, they fell apart, so they are a little cakey. 

I also found out some news, a lot of my family might have a gluten intolerance.  My cousin found out her son has Celiac's and my mom has Crohn's, which is a close relative to Celiac's.  A good portion of my mom's side of the family has had stomach problems, and just passing it off as, "well, it runs in the family..."  So now that I have found out this not-so-surprising news, I'm going to try and go gluten free for a month to see how I feel.  I usually thought it was the milk in the cheese from pasta, so I would always avoid anything with too much cheese in it at Italian restaurants or big gatherings.  We shall see the results of this experiment.  Sorry for rambling, now onto the recipe.

Here's what you'll need:

• 1 3/4 cups Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose Gluten-Free Baking Flour
• 1 cup vegan sugar
• 1/2 cup Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Oats
• 1/4 cup ground flax meal
• 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup melted refined coconut oil or canola oil
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup raisins

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, oats, flax meal, cinnamon, xanthan gum, baking soda, and salt.

Add the coconut (or canola) oil, applesauce, and vanilla and stir with a rubber spatula until a thick dough forms.

Add the raisins and stir until evenly distributed.  Drop the dough by the tablespoonful onto he prepared baking sheets, about 1 inch apart.

Bake for 8 minutes, rotate the baking sheets, and bake for 7 minutes more, or until golden brown.

Let stand on the baking sheets for 15 minutes before serving.  Enjoy! 

Thin Mints done the Babycakes way

I have always been a fan of all things mint, especially with chocolate, and the Girl Scouts' Thin Mint cookies fit that category.  This recipe was very easy to make, but I feel like the cookies turned out too minty.  I don't know if there was a typo in my Babycakes Covers the Classics cookbook or not, but there was too much mint extract added.  Other than that, the cookies turned out really well.  A lot of my husband's co-workers really enjoyed them. 

Here's what you'll need for the cookies and the topping:

• 1 1/2 cups Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose Gluten-Free Baking Flour
• 1 cup sugar (If you want to keep it vegan buy "evaporated cane juice")
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup arrowroot
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup melted coconut oil or canola oil
• 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup vegan gluten-free chocolate chips
• 3 tablespoons mint extract (I would use less, maybe 1 1/2 tablespoons)

First, preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.  Next, in a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, arrowroot, xanthan gum, baking soda, and salt.  Add the coconut oil, applesauce, and vanilla and mix with a rubber spatula until a thick dough forms.  Drop the dough by the teaspoonful onto the prepared baking sheets about 1 1/2 inches apart.  Gently flatten each mound of dough, smoothing the edges with your fingers.  

Bake for 7 minutes, rotate the baking sheets, and bake for 7 minutes more.  Let stand on the baking sheets for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine the chocolate chips and mint extract in a small saucepan and place over medium heat.  Stir until the chocolate chips are just melted.  Do not overcook.  Remove from heat.  Dunk the top of each cookie into the melted chocolate or spread it over them (I found the latter easier).  Refrigerate the cookies for 30 minutes on a platter, or until the chocolate sets.

Enjoy!

Chips Ahoy done the BabyCakes way

Last night I decided I wanted some chocolate chip cookies, instead of going out to the supermarket, I just made some.  This recipe is very easy and not very time consuming (just make sure you melt your coconut oil ahead of time).  This recipe came from my Babycakes Covers the Classics: Gluten Free Vegan Recipes from Donuts to Snickerdoodles.  There is a chocolate chip cookie recipe in Erin's first Babycakes cookbook but I think these are much tastier, and softer on the inside.  They came out delicious.

Don't forget to measure everything out in dry measuring cups!

Here's what you'll need:
1 1/2 cups oat flour
1 cup Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose Gluten-Free Baking Flour
1 cup vegan sugar
1/4 cup ground flax meal
1/4 cup arrowroot
1 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons melted refined coconut oil or canola oil (I used unrefined coconut oil.)
6 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1 cup vegan gluten-free chocolate chips (My husband picked up carob chips by mistake but they still worked really well.)

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, sugar, flax meal, arrowroot, xanthan gum, baking soda, and salt.

Add the coconut oil, applesauce, and vanilla and stir with a rubber spatula until a thick dough forms.  Stir in the chocolate chips until evenly distributed.

Drop the dough by the teaspoonful onto the prepared baking sheets, about 1 1/2 inches apart.  Bake for 7 minutes, rotate the baking sheets, and bake for 7minutes more, or until the cookies are golden brown and firm.  Let stand on the baking sheets for 15 minutes before eating.

The recipe says it makes 36 cookies, but I came out with 40something cookies.  Enjoy!

Agave-Sweetened Plain Donut with Agave-Sweetened Chocolate Glaze

On Sunday, I decided to finally use my donut pans that I bought a few weeks ago.  Since BabyCakes in NYC is also known for their gluten-free vegan donuts almost as well as their gluten-free vegan cupcakes, I decided to use one of their recipes.  This recipe comes from Erin McKenna's second cook book, BabyCakes Covers the Classics: Gluten-Free Vegan Recipes from Donuts to Snickerdoodles.  You will need a few unconventional flours, so go to your nearest health food store or places like Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, and Kings.  They carry these things, all by Bob's Red Mill.

The end result was heavy feeling, and tasted like cake, but was still delicious and much healthier than Dunkin' Donuts'.  If you want a more crunchy donut, Erin suggests making the donut recipes with the sugar in them instead of agave nectar (which I will get to another week).  I wanted to try the healthier option, so I did, and they turned out delicious, especially with the chocolate glaze!

Here's what you'll need for the donuts:
3/4 cup rice flour (I used brown rice flour)
1/3 cup sorghum flour
1/2 cup potato starch
1/4 cup arrowroot
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/3 cup melted refined (mine was unrefined, I don't think it makes that much of a difference) coconut oil or canola oil, plus more for brushing the trays
3/4 cup agave nectar (light colored)
6 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup vanilla extract
1/4 cup hot water

One important thing I forgot to type above, Erin suggests measuring out all the ingredients (even the liquid ones) in dry ingredient cups, it makes a little bit of a difference.

What you'll need for the chocolate glaze:
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/3 cup agave nectar
1/3 cup Better Than Milk Rice or Soy Powder (I used a different brand, and it was soy.)
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup melted refined coconut oil or canola oil (I used canola this time.)
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Brush 2 six-mold donut trays with coconut or canola oil and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, potato starch, arrowroot, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and xanthan gum.

Add the agave nectar, coconut oil, applesauce, vanilla, and hot water and mix with a rubber spatula just until the ingredients are incorporated.  Continue mixing until the batter is smooth.  Using a melon-baller or tablespoon, drop 2 1/2 tablespoons of batter into each donut mold.  Using a toothpick, spread the batter evenly around the mold.

Bake for 8 minutes, rotate, and continue baking until the donuts are golden brown, about 8 minutes more.  Let cool in the molds for 15 minutes.  Run a knife around the donuts in the molds, lift them out, and place them on a baking sheet.

While the donuts are baking, combine the coconut milk, agave nectar, rice or soy-milk powder, cocoa powder, and vanilla in the bowl of a food processor and blend on medium speed for 1 minute.  While the processor is running, gradually add 1/2 cup of the coconut oil and 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice and blend until thoroughly incorporated.  Add the remaining 1/4 cup coconut oil and 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice and process for 1 minute more.  The glaze can be stored, covered tightly at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Once the donuts are cool enough, dip into the glaze and enjoy!

Vanilla Cupcakes (the Babycakes way)

 Hey everybody!  So this past weekend was a friend's birthday and we all went to a local place in Nyack, NY called Casa Del Sol, it's a great restaurant.  It's becoming a favorite of mine, but I think my first favorite is Temptations Cafe in Nyack, NY.  Anyway, it was Michele's birthday and I was going to bake her an apple upside down cake, because I have all these apples, but I didn't give myself enough time to do all the prep work.  So I decided to make her cupcakes instead.  While I was on a gluten-free-vegan diet (it was extremely short lived...lol!) I bought this baking book called Babycakes: Vegan, (Mostly) Gluten-Free, and (Mostly) Sugar-Free Recipes from New York's Most Talked-About Bakery by Erin McKenna.  Babycakes is an actual bakery in NYC which first opened in 2005 in the Lower East Side.  The author is the chef and owner of the bakery and has received the Best Cupcake award in 2006 from New York magazine.  The cookbook is full of gluten-free vegan cookies, muffins, scones, cakes, and cupcakes.  I've only made cookies and cupcakes from the book so far.  I've made the double chocolate chip cookies, chocolate chip cookies, and the red velvet cupcakes with the vanilla frosting.

I've made the red velvet cupcakes this past winter for my friends, and Michele was  impressed (mostly because they didn't have any sugar and they were vegan while still having a good taste), and I think her boyfriend even more impressed (he being a vegetarian and all).  So I decided to make her cupcakes for her birthday, but decided to try out the vanilla ones instead.

One thing the author says in the recipe book is to measure EVERYTHING out in dry cups, no pyrex liquid ones, just dry cups.  You'll get a more accurate amount and better taste to your cupcakes.  

Here's what you'll need (you might have to go to a specialty health food store for a lot of the ingredients):

2 Cups Garbanzo-Fava Bean Flour
1 Cup Potato Starch
1/2 Cup Arrowroot*
1 Tbsp. plus 1 1/2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp. Baking Soda
1 Tsp. Xanthan Gum
2 Tsp. Salt
2/3 Cup Coconut Oil
1 1/3 Cups Agave Nectar (light, not dark)
3/4 Cup Unsweetened Homemade Apple Sauce or store bought
3 Tbsp. Pure Vanilla Extract
Grated Zest of 1 Lemon
1 Cup Hot Water

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Line two standard 12-cup muffin tins with paper liners.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, potato starch, arrowroot, baking powder, baking soda, xanthan gum, and salt.  Add the oil (make sure it's melted),  agave nectar, applesauce, vanilla, and lemon zest to the dry ingredients and combine.  Stir in the hot water and mix until the batter is smooth.

Pour 1/3 cup batter into each prepared cup, almost filling it.  Bake the cupcakes on the center rack for 22 minutes, rotating the tins 180 degrees after 15 minutes.

The finished cupcakes will be golden brown and will bounce bake when pressure is applied gently to the center.

Let the cupcakes stand in the tins for 20 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack and cool completely.  Using a frosting knife, gently spread 1 tablespoon vanilla frosting over each cupcake.  Store the cupcakes in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Now, what you'll need for the vanilla frosting (once again, measure in dry cups only):

1 1/2 Cups Unsweetened Soy or Rice Milk
3/4 Cup Dry Soy or Rice Milk Powder
1 Tbsp. Coconut Flour
1/4 Cup Agave Nectar (light, not dark)
1 Tbsp. Pure Vanilla Extract
1 1/2 Cups Coconut Oil (melted)
2 Tbsp. Fresh Lemon Juice

In a blender or a food processor, combine the soy milk, soy powder, coconut flour, agave nectar, and vanilla. Blend the ingredients for 2 minutes.  With the machine running, slowly add the oil and lemon juice, alternating between the two until both are fully incorporated.  Pour the mixture into an airtight container and refridgerate for 6 hours or for up to 1 month.

*I used Corn Starch instead because I didn't want to have to send out my husband to get one more item esp. after he had just come back from grocery shopping.  The cupcakes turned out fine with the Corn Starch.

Enjoy!