Chocolate Toffee Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting

So, for the past year about, I have been taking Amitriptyline for my fibromyalgia (yay, comorbidities!) which doesn't do much for the fibro, but does work as an antihistamine, so I am no longer reactive to baking soda or baking powder (amongst other things, like corn), which means, OMG CUPCAKES!

I missed cupcakes so much. I mean, sponge cakes are fine and dandy, and pound cake is all right, but it isn't a soft delicious cupcake.

So I made some cupcakes today. It took me four days to build up the motivation to do it, but they are way delicious, and beautiful!

I used a regular boxed cake, but if you know that baking powder doesn't work for you, there are plenty of cake recipes out there (and in this blog), to choose from.

And I also totally didn't use measuring cups when I made this, so my measurements are approximate. You can do that with frosting. Not so much with cake recipes.

Ingredients:

-Cake-

Boxed chocolate cake mix (I used german chocolate) + the stuff it says you need to make it (likely oil, water, eggs)

1 cup chocolate toffee chips (you can find it on the baking aisle near the chocolate chips, or just break up toffee bars)

-Frosting-

8 oz. cream cheese

1 stick butter

1 12 oz. jar of caramel (I used Smucker's Hot Caramel sauce at room temperature- you can make your own but I have no energy to do that)

1/4 tsp kosher salt

2 cups or more of organic corn-free powdered sugar (to taste... I really didn't measure, so just keep tasting it and add slowly to get sweet but not too sweet) 

Directions:

Make the cake according to its instructions, mix in toffee chips at the very end and portion into lined cupcake tins (makes 24), about 3/4 full. Bake according to package instructions. Cool completely before frosting.

Cream together the cream cheese and butter. Whip in the caramel and salt. Add the powdered sugar to the frosting at low speed, taste and add more as needed. Scrape down the sides of your bowl and continue to whip until it is all incorporated and a pleasing consistency (you know, like frosting and neither like soup, nor like a lumpy mess of sadness). Place in a piping bag, or a ziplock if you are super fancy like me, and pipe frosting onto cupcakes.

Garnish with extra toffee chips, or perhaps some fancy salt.  

Chex Muddy Buddies

Muddy Buddies are a wonderful holiday treat, and making a few changes to the recipe Chex provides makes them yeast-free. If you have an aversion to peanut butter, any nut or soy butter will do!  I do recommend using the name brand cereal, as the generic is not as tasty.

I like to use my Muddy Buddies in holiday packages to make "Reindeer Chow" in which I mix the treats with M&M candies and yeast free pretzel pieces.

Peanut Butter Cream Pie - For Mikey

This morning, I read about "Peanut Butter Pie Friday" and it broke my heart.  After crying for a bit, I decided that I needed to participate.  Two years ago, my husband woke up unable to walk, having suffered a stroke during the night, and it was one of the most terrifying events in my life.  I was so scared I would lose him, and I still am, though he has healed completely, and is well medicated and closely watched now.  My heart goes out to Jennie of "In Jennie's Kitchen," and her family, and though I don't know her and had never visited her food blog before today, I wanted to add to Mikey's memory, for my Mike.  So here is my version of Mikey's favorite Creamy Peanut Butter Pie. The loss of a loved one is a great fear of so many, but we must also remember that we need to live, as fully as we can, every day.

Cream Cheese Cutout Cookies

This is a delicious slightly tangy cookie.  It is not too sweet and stands up to decorating well.  Make sure the dough is still chilled before you put them in the oven or they tend to spread and make you shapes look a little mutated. Great with Royal Icing!

Salted Hot Chocolate for One

If you wanted to make it for more than one,just multiply the recipe as needed.

You'll need:
Milk (and cream if you wish)
Chocolate Chips
Kosher or Sea Salt
Vanilla (optional)
Whipped cream (optional)
A whisk

Fill the mug you plan on using up, most of the way, with milk (or a mixture of 75% milk and 25% cream if you want it really rich).
Pour measured milk into a small sauce pan, over medium heat.
Measure out a handful of chocolate chips (about 1/4 cup).
Place chocolate chips into heating milk.
Add a large pinch of kosher salt and whisk.
If you have vanilla powder handy, add a pinch and continue to whisk until the milk just begins to boil, turn off the heat.
Pour into cup, garnish with whipped cream, and an additional sprinkle of salt.
Enjoy, but don't burn your mouth (Sorry, I always need this advice because I always do!).

Chocolate Covered Salted Toffee Almond Matzo

I was looking for matzo cookie recipes and came across this recipe from about.com and adapted it to create a super delicious treat.  I'm even posting it early to give you a chance to make it before Passover is over, because it is really amazing.  It tastes very much like a Skor bar, which is one of my favorite candies ever. It is relatively easy to make and I hope you will!

Matzo Brie

It's Passover and that means there is a bounty of yeast-free products to be bought.  Passover lasts for a week, so after it is over, you can buy discounted Matzo (a big cracker made of just flour and water) and use it throughout the rest of the year (as long as it lasts) to make all sorts of safe goodies including thin-crust pizzas, stuffing, and Matzo brie, which is the Passover equivalence of French toast, only it can be made sweet or savory, and it is one of my favorite applications for Matzo. 

Although the pancake shape of this is easier, as pictured, it can also be agitated like scrambled eggs for a loose brie (pronounced so it rhymes with try).

Cream Puffs

Pate a Choux (pronounced patty-shoo) is the French name for cream puff dough. Cream puffs are one of the quintessential French desserts.  Using this recipe you can make eclairs and cream puffs, as well as funnel cakes (by simply deep frying the piped batter in hot oil).  Fillings can vary from sweet, like the banana foster variation in the picture, made by mixing mashed banana and caramel syrup with whipped topping and freezing, and covering with a caramel sauce thickened with powdered sugar or a traditional ice cream and chocolate topping, to savory, by filling with cream cheese mixtures or even chicken or tuna salad.   Whatever, they are delicious and a great bread-like option.


Should your puffed shells have a habit of falling, poke the side of them with a tooth pick as they are removed from the oven to allow the air inside to cool more quickly.

Asian Plum Marinade

This is good for beef, pork, chicken, seafood, or tofu. Makes enough for 2 lbs of meat.  Here it is shown with  ribeye steak that was sliced after grilling.

Soy sauce can be a problem for some people.  Check the ingredients to make sure there is no miso or fermented ingredients listed. You can also substitute the soy sauce with 2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce and 1/2 tablespoon of water.