Easter Cupcakes - Dairy & Gluten Free

Well, Easter is almost upon us and a couple of days ago I discovered that my eldest daughter, Sofia may have a sensitivity to dairy. Already being on a gluten-free diet, this added another challenge to baking these babies, but as you can see, I did it!

And they taste so good... you would never guess there is no wheat or butter in this recipe. (The actual Easter eggs on top are dairy chocolate, so omit these if you need to - I added them for the photo only).



Ingredients:

Cupcakes:

1 and 1/4 cups coconut sugar (or castor sugar)
250g dairy-free margarine (I used soy butter that I got from the health food store)
2 and 1/4 GF self-raising flour
4 eggs
3 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tbsp vanilla extract

Icing:

150g dairy-free margarine or dairy-free cream cheese (Tofutti is a good brand if you can find it)
1tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp stevia (100g icing sugar)

Method:

Preheat your oven to 190C (170C approx if fan-forced).
Line a tray with a dozen cupcake cases.
Cream the sugar and margarine together till creamy and light.
Add eggs one at a time, beating well between each and adding a little flour as you go, until the mix is smooth and creamy.
Add the cocoa powder and vanilla extract and mix well.
Distribute the batter evenly between cupcake cases, making sure not to fill more than half-way as these will rise quite high.
Cook for 20-30 minutes till a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
Allow to cool before icing.

To make the icing, cream the margarine or cream cheese with your choice of sugar, till smooth. Decorate your cupcakes and enjoy! Happy Easter x

Pink Power Smoothie

I made this the other morning before teaching yoga class, and it was so good! Refreshing, light and tasty, but it still hit the spot enough to tide me over till lunch time - give it a try.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup chia seeds
1/2 cup goji berries
1 cup strawberries
1 cup organic apple juice
1 cup filtered water

Method:

Blend and enjoy!

Raw Cauliflower "Rice" Salad

This morning at the farmer's market I bought the most pristine, snowy white cauliflower I've seen in a long time, so I decided it was time to make one of my favourite salads with it.

This salad would stand proudly alongside the more traditional rice and pasta salads you would normally take to a BBQ, but this variation is far better for you and delicious to boot!

Ingredients:

1 head of cauliflower
1 small red capsicum, diced
1 small green capsicum, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 cup mung bean sprouts
1 cup sunflower sprouts
2 spring onions, chopped
1/2 cup sultanas
1 lemon, juiced (this will keep your cauliflower nice and white)
olive oil
splash of sesame oil (optional)
pinch of sea salt

Method:

Wash and cut the cauliflower into florets, and then process them till roughly the same consistency as rice. I use my food processor for this, but if you use a blender, make sure to do this in batches so that you don't pulverise the cauliflower and make it mushy.

Transfer the processed cauliflower to a bowl, then add the lemon juice, olive oil and salt.
Add the remaining ingredients and season to taste.