Homemade "Nutella"

Okay, so I don't know about you guys, but I absolutely LOVE Nutella! When I was in Europe, all we ever ate for breakfast was basically Nutella with bread, or Nutella on a spoon, or on a banana, or....the list goes on and on.
For those of you not so crazy about it, or don't know what it is, it is a chocolate hazelnut butter, its more like a tasty, creamy, smooth chocolate hazelnut amazing-ness. It is made in Alba, Italy....I almost went to go visit that town, but unfortunately I wasn't able to make it. However, locals from a nearby city informed of the fact that as soon as you get off the train in Alba, the AIR smells like Nutella! Can you imagine!
Anyways, here's the recipe for the nutella...and did I mention it is vegan AND gluten-free?! Yep.

Ingredients:
2 cups roasted hazelnuts
1/2 cup (or more, depending on taste) dutch cocoa powder
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/8 cup almond milk, or person preference milk
2 TBS vanilla extract
1/2 cup fine sugar (not powdered)
1/2 cups chocolate shavings (or chips, but shavings are better)

Steps:

1. Take off as much of the brown "shell" off the hazelnuts as much as you can. I do this by rinsing them in a bowl for a few minutes, then rubbing a few hazelnuts at a time between two towels. This takes awhile, and it may not be perfect, but get as much as you can off.

2. Blend the hazelnuts with the coconut oil and vanilla extract very well. Think peanut butter consistency.
3. Add remaining ingredients and blend till smooth! I adjust the taste as I go, so you could add more sugar if desired, or more milk to make it smoother. The balls in your court!

4. Put on ANYTHING and enjoy. I love it on waffles, bananas, and on a spoon. :)


Did you try this recipe? Tell me what you think below!

GF Birthday Cake

This last year for my birthday, I decided to make myself a GF Birthday Cake....Some people found it weird that I would make my own birthday cake, but this I wanted to do it myself and experiment while I was at it.

I ended up making a black and white layered cake, with a reduced mixed berry filling, a ganache filling, and topped with fresh whipped cream, dark chocolate, and fresh blackberries. It was SO yummy, if I do say so myself! Almost everyone who tried it was absolutely in love with it, and it is something I must remake at some point. I only wish I took pictures during the process to share those. Anyways, here are the pictures below:

German Chocolate Cake and an Update

I know, I know....this post is long overdue!....The holidays and the new year and school just kept piling on (like it always does) that I had to take a blogging break. SO....

Now that that is over and this is the beginning of a new, I have decided to be a little bit more intentional and proactive about keeping up the blog and posting my latest creations. So, that said, I will be posting on every FRIDAY morning a new blog post to start off with, and see where that goes. As time progresses, I might add on an additional post on Mondays, so you will just have to come back and check. 

Anyways, lets get to the cake. I made this cake for a special Christmas party I attended which makes this cake extra special....because, well, I didn't make it GF or Vegan like I usually do. However, this cake can easily be made gluten-free by simply replacing the flour with a GF blend. 

So, here it is:  

I adapted the recipe from David Lebovitz who is amazing chef...Follow the link for the recipe! 

This cake turned out amazing, except I added cocoa powder to the flour mixture to make it more chcolately....there can never be enough chocolate in a chocolate cake! Also, if you're going to try it, do set aside about 2ish hours, it is a little time consuming...but totally worth it! Enjoy.

GF pumpkin maple walnut muffins

Hi everyone! Hope your thanksgiving was fantastic and absolutely tasty. I know mine was...from sauteed veggies to mashed potatoes to pineapple coconut cake....yum! Oh and turkey and pumpkin pie...I could go on forever.
Anyways, I feel like the holidays this year has crept up on us all very quickly. It's already December 6th and I haven't even got a Christmas tree up.
However I have managed to bake some delicious pumpkin maple walnut muffins.

These are a healthy alternative to your traditional extra sweet muffin. Don't worry, yes these do have sugar, but not as much, AND the maple syrup really adds a nice flavored sweetness to the cupcakes. 

Here are some pictures, and the recipe below. Enjoy! 

1/2 cup coconut oil, melted (or vegetable oil)

3 eggs

1 cup pumpkin

2 tbs vanilla  

1 cup teff flour- this is a hearty dark flour

1 cup brown rice flour 

1 cup almond flour 

1 tsp baking soda 

1 tsp salt 

1 heaping tsp xanthan gum 

1 1/2 cup brown sugar 

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp nutmeg 

1/2 cup maple syrup

1 cup walnuts chopped

I like to make recipe directions really easy for you guys, so here they are: 

1. mix all wet ingredients in a mixing bowl, beat for about a minute or two until well blended. mix all dry ingredients in a separate bowl, except for walnuts. 

2. Add dry ingredients to wet, mix well. Add in chopped walnuts, folding them into the dough. Do not overbeat. 

3. Place them in cupcake liners, I used fancy muffin liners that you can find online. Or you can also put these into a loaf pan (greased). 

4. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until you stick a toothpick in and it comes out clean. 350 degrees. 

5. As soon as these babies come out of oven and somewhat cool, remove from pan, and poke a few holes with the toothpick in each muffin. While still warm, drizzle maple syrup on the top of each muffin (put as much as you want). The more you put on, the more moist they are. Enjoy! 

GF and Vegan Chocolate Peppermint Cupcake

I can't believe it's November already! Gosh, time flies, Just yesterday I feel like I was baking lemon-strawberry scones and fresh blueberry pies....

And now its time for delicious pumpkin, spicy gingerbread, and fresh peppermint. I decided to start off the holiday baking season by experimenting with some gluten-free and vegan chocolate peppermint cupcakes. For those who love the season flavors, but can't digest them, this definitely works. These are light and fluffy, but full of flavor. And the icing has just enough peppermint to sooth your taste buds.

These were sort of conjured up on the spot- therefore missing some decorative elements, such as peppermint (duh!) but thought I would let you know about their awesomeness anyways!

These are available to order just in time for the holiday season, they are also available in a layered cake!
Email me at luizascupcakes@gmail{dot}com to order! Cheers!

Sweet Cornbread GF/VEG

I don't know about you, but I absolutely LOVE cornbread, especially if its gooey and especially if its sweet. Last week, I was actually trying to make cornbread cookies, but decided to make it into just plain old cornbread, sweetened with brown sugar. It turned out amazing. It's not overly sweet, but it makes for a nice snack for a Sunday afternooon picnic, or just whenever. It's even better warmed up with EarthBalance vegan butter. 

Here it is: 

Vegan Meets GF...Cookies, of course!

Gluten-freeers and vegans unite! 

During my summer break of posts, I have been in the laboratory, creating delicious Frankenstein GF and VEG blends of cookies, cupcakes, and tiramisu.

There are so many people out there who are both gluten-free and vegan. People who are allergic to soy, can't have dairy, can't have gluten...but love sweets, sweets they can't have. It's not just about being just vegan, or just gluten-free, and most of the time, its not by choice, but by chance, some of us just can't handle certain ingredients well. 

Today I will be introducing you to my latest healthy creation, the GF/VEG oats and dried cherry soft cookie, made with healthy coconut oil, that you can eat! 

These are available by the dozen and can be ordered by sending an email to luizascupcakes@gmail.com. 

Lemon Twist Cupcakes

These cupcakes were also some that I shared with Cheryl, the owner of a cafe in Torrence. She gave me some feedback, and said that they were very full of flavor! She had some very positive remarks about the cupcakes, and inspired me even more.
The cake and the frosting are both full of lemon flavor. The lemons themselves are flavorful Southern California lemons, so this makes for a very tasty cupcake.
Topped with a twist of lemon of course!

Gluten-free Pastries

Back in February, I baked a few different GF pastries such as scones and cookies for a cafe in Torrence, CA. The ones we both really enjoyed are featured below.
Introducing, the lavender scone, the lemon cranberry scone, and the walnut white chocolate chip cookie!

The Walnut White Chocolate (also available regular)

Above: The lavender scone topped with powdered sugar.

The lemon cranberry scone topped with powdered sugar.

Green Mint Love

I think mint is one of my favorite flavors. Especially if there is any sort of chocolate involved, it has to be perfect. These cupcakes are chocolate cake mint cupcakes with a green mint pudding filling and mint frosting on top.
Here are the pics for these babies:

Triple Chocolate Zebra Cupcakes!

....so I hope these triple chocolate zebra cupcakes can mend our time apart.
I made these for my friend's 30th Black and White themed birthday party! So, they are a rich chocolate cake, with white chocolate (melted on top) then chocolate frosting, then edible zebra sugar paper! Enjoy!

Valentine's Day Cupcakes

Happy Valentine's Day tomorrow! Or happy "flying babies with hearts and arrows" day! When pink, red, and white are abundant colors everywhere, when romantic comedies are the only movies on TV, and when festive cupcakes are in full bloom! 

First off, I think Valentine's Day should be everyday, but for the sake of a somewhat holiday, here are some amazingly cute cupcakes for Valentine's Day. 

These are both Chocolate and Vanilla cupcakes varied with chocolate or vanilla frosting, topped with a candy heart! 

Below is a Valentine's Day Cupcake in a Jar! Super cute for a special someone. Easy to make as well, just fill up 1/2 way with batter, top with frosting, then decorate as desired. :) 

Vegan Coconut Cake Balls

Cute, fluffy, and super tasty- these are perfect if you're bored with cake and want to try something new!
These have a dash of cinnamon and coconut shreds throughout and toasted coconut on top. The frosting is a coconut-based vegan frosting. Here are some pictures!

CCCC Cake VEGAN

The Cinnamon, Coffee, Cranberry, and Chocolate Cake. Wow, that sounds crazy. Am I sure about this?!
Yes. Yes I am. Trust me, you will be too. It's awesome, moist and VEGAN.
And if you really want it to, it can be Gluten-Free as well! Haha, enjoy :)
By the way, I'm going to stop being greedy and actually start sharing the recipe with you. Try it out and give me a holla back.

Vegan Coffee Cake 

Filling: 

1/2 c vegetable shortening or vegan butter unsalted 

1/2 c white sugar 

1/4 c brown sugar

1 c flour whole wheat

1/2 c instant oats 

1/4 c dried cranberries

1/3 c crushed walnuts 

1 TBS cinnamon 

1 tsp nutmeg 

1/2 cup strong ass coffee 

Cake: 

3 c whole wheat flour
1 c. granulated sugar
2 TBS baking powder 

1 TBS vinegar (for baking powder)
1 tsp. salt
2 TBS psyllium husks mixed with 1/4 cup water for egg replacement (let sit together for 2 min)
1/2 c strong coffee
1 c. vanilla soy/almond milk
1 1/2 TBS vanilla extract
1/4 c. grapeseed oil 

1 TBS Cinnamon 

Mix all filling ingredients together and set aside. 

Mix all cake ingredients, starting with wet ingredients first then adding dry. 

Butter up the bundt pan. Add a 1/4 of filling, then add 1/3 of cake mixture. Layer another 1/4 filling then add 1/3 cake mixture, and so on. Finishing with filling on top. 

Pop in the oven for about 40 to 50 min at 375 degrees. Check often. Stab toothpick in cake, if it comes out clean, you’re good to go. Let it cool 10 min before taking it out of bundt pan. Cut up and eat up. It’s good for you. 

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Peanut Butter and Jelly

I didn't grow up on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches like other kids. I grew up on jam and bread and roasted eggplant on bread. In my teenage years I discovered the amazing butter of peanuts. I fell in love. 

      You can eat it with almost anything, oh wait that's my whipped cream obsession- I just mean its tasty and goes well with chocolate, jelly, whipped cream, bread, celery, and cupcakes. 

These babies have peanut butter in the cake and in the icing! 

Aaaand they are filled with marionberry jelly. So extremely good. This was for an order placed and it was quite hard letting go these. 

So, here they are. I also topped them with a sprinkled sugar.  

Plantain Pine Nut

I've got to tell you the story behind these babies. 2 of my downtown Portland friends Nate and Nate give me odd suggestions to include in my baking of cupcakes....So this is what they gave me on their list:

Ox Tail 

Pine Nuts 

Plantains 

Quince 

Ox tail is a no-no, at least for now...and quince are not in season yet, so I put my brunette head together and came up with a plantain pine nut. Flavors are great. Plantains are a lot more starchy than bananas and provide a sensationally unique flavor, and the pine nuts pair it quite nicely. 

Plantain in the cake and icing, topped with pine nuts and that is a plantain chip on top :) Mmm. 

These were made as mini cupcakes. Best eaten in one big bite. 

Summer Flavors

These 2 cupcake flavors both have a hint of lime in common...

The first one is a blueberry vodka lime cupcake topped with a sugared blueberry on top. The cupcake itself has blueberries throughout and the frosting combines all 3 flavors together. Vodka can also be omitted if desired. 

This next cupcake is a banana coconut lime cupcake, topped with a maraschino cherry. Tons of coconut in the frosting make it full of flavor and texture!
I'm not a huge banana fan, but this combo seemed to work great with the coconut and fresh lime!