Festive Spice Cupcakes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What do you do when it is the festive season and you choose not to indulge in the usual sweet baking at this time.or when there is a birthday celebration and you want to make something vegan and gluten-free that is healthy and delicious too. Then this recipe is for you. It feels beautifully luxurious and indulgent. And smells so good. The taste and texture of the icing and the cake blend very well together.

I took the Spice Cake recipe from Medical Medium and gave it a festive and celebratory touch as we were celebrating a birthday in the family.

Here are some small changes I made to the recipe:

I used 1/2 inch fresh ginger instead of  ginger powder and will use more next time. I used fresh apple instead of the applesauce and blended it with the fresh homemade almond milk before adding it to the dry ingredients. The recipe has a lot of ingredients but the end result is worth it. All the ingredients I used were organic.

I used Organic Suncore Beetpowder to add a bit of coloring and dazzle to some of the icing.

Below is the recipe as shared by Medical Medium. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
2 cups gluten-free oat flour
1 cup almond flour
1 cup coconut sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp vanilla powder or alcohol-free vanilla extract
1 1/3 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce

Cashew icing (optional):
1 cup raw cashews, soaked for at least 2 hours in water
1/4 cup maple syrup
3 tbsp freshly-squeezed orange juice or water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 9-inch brownie pan with non-stick parchment paper.

Add the oat flour, almond flour, coconut sugar, baking powder, baking soda and spices to a medium-sized bowl. Mix well and set aside.

In a jug or bowl, combine the almond milk and applesauce. Mix well, then add to the dry ingredients and stir until uniform.

Pour into the prepared pan and bake in the oven for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then remove and cool completely on a cooling rack.

To make the cashew icing, combine the soaked cashews, maple syrup and orange juice/water in a high-speed blender and blend until very smooth, scraping down the sides as needed.

Spread the icing evenly on the cake and top with pomegranate seeds. Cut into squares and serve immediately.

Serves 6-8