Y’all, going to be honest here. The cooling temps are not welcome in my world.
I mean, it’s too sudden. We’re at 90 one day and then 60 the next. I cannot. Has Mother Nature ever heard of transitions? And by the way, could she just stop with the hurricanes already?
Since I don’t want to spend today talking about the weather, I’ll talk about something far more relevant instead. My blog’s been around for going on three years now, but I’ve never made black bottom cupcakes. Once this occurred to me (in the middle of the night, mind you, and it woke me up), I had to correct that immediately. I also had to make them gluten-free, just to make up for the oversight of never putting a chocolate cupcake stuffed with chocolate chip cheesecake filling onto this site.
A few weeks ago, you may remember that I fell over and injured my foot. Well, it’s all better now, but it’s been a pain-ridden time. Either I was walking funny or I hit something on the way down, because my back has been spasming nonstop. A few days ago, the relief began to seep in, but there’s still some pain.
The combination of all this plus the stress of the Jewish holiday season (it lasts a month) has made me very neglectful of anything but family or work. In other words, I’ve been ignoring the blog world and social media, and I’m sorry about that. But as my blog friends have taught me, there’s only so much anyone can handle before the nervous breakdown begins. Mine is scheduled for November, by the way. I have to hold it together until then. Winky face.
Seriously, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about the concept of “good enough.” That’s a really tough standard for me to find acceptable in myself. In other people, it’s usually fine. But for me, I want to be the best. I’m not sure where this overdeveloped sense of competition came in, but I’m pretty sure it was born out of insecurity earlier in life. As an adult, I’ve been set on standing out and setting a standard of excellence.
I’m still driven that way, but I’ve pulled back from that on JAB. I will never be the best baking blogger, or even in the top several hundred. That’s okay. This site began as both an experiment and a hobby, and I’m okay keeping it there.
While I might not be on the Internet much, my desserts are as lovely as ever, I assure you. You’ll never know that these cupcakes are GF, and they’re also not that much of a nutritional wasteland.
The cake base of these cupcakes is positively virtuous: a chocolate cake that is vegan with no butter or eggs. The cheesecake filling is made with lowfat cream cheese and only about 1/3 cup of sugar, which means it’s not too sweet. You can eat a couple of these and not feel bad about it at all!
I’ve been in a tough place for the past couple of months, but I have hope that things will slow down and that I’ll stop waking up in the middle of the night thinking about black bottom cupcakes. Until that happens, I’ll just have to keep baking. Enjoy the fruits of my sleepless labor, friends!
Black Bottom Cupcakes (GF)
Ingredients
8 oz. block cream cheese, softened (I used lowfat)
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup chocolate chips
1 and 1/2 cups oat flour (certified GF)
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup water
1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350. Line a muffin tip with cupcake liners and spray lightly. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar until creamy. Add the egg and stir again until smooth. Mix in the chocolate chips. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the oat flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Add the water, oil, vinegar and vanilla. Beat until well combined.
- Fill each cupcake liner halfway with the cake batter. Add a teaspoon of the cheesecake filling to the top of each cupcake. This recipe will yield 18 cupcakes, so you may have to bake in batches.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until the cheesecake begins to turn golden at the edges. Cool completely. Store chilled.
3.1
http://justaboutbaked.com/black-bottom-cupcakes-gf/
These look super awesome, and I agree with you that while fall is beautiful, at the same time, I am not looking forward to winter. It gets dreary real, real fast. But with cupcakes this awesome, it will get you through! best of luck!!
I’m ok with fall temps, but I’m not looking forward to winter temps!! When it does get too cold for comfort, I’ll snuggle up with lots of these awesome cupcakes 😉
& I agree – it’s hard to get everything we want done – sometimes we just need to relax and let a few things fall to the side (maybe I should take my own advice 😉 )
Megan – The Emotional Baker recently posted…Cranberry Baobab Oatmeal
The change is temp is a shock to me too! All of the sudden, it’s in the 40s at night and in the mornings…too cold too soon! But i’ll take one (or three) of these cupcakes to help me adjust. Looks delicious!
I’ve never heard of a black bottom cupcake, but I’m glad I have now! I love cheesecake but definitely don’t get to have it as much as I would like.
Also, I’m with you on the weather – when I was younger there was totally a transitional time between summer and winter where you could wear light jackets or sweatshirts…I feel like 3 weeks ago I was wearing shorts and today I wanted nothing more than my thick, chunky sweaters and my North Face for my ride to work.
Jessica @ Citrus Blossom Bliss recently posted…How to Make Your Own Fancy Latte Stencil at Home
Lol, well despite the pain I’m glad to see you still have your sense of humor!! And I’m glad you are starting to feel a little bit better!! These cupcakes look amazing, girlfriend! I’ve never had black bottom cupcakes before, but they sure are pretty!! I’m thinking you should just take a vacation with a few dozen of these and tell that scheduled nervous break down to kick it. 😉 Cheers, dear!
Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary recently posted…Butternut Squash Noodle Carbonara with Pancetta & Sage
Oh no, back spasms are the worst. Here’s to hoping you’re all the way better soon!
I’ve never made black bottom cupcakes before, but I could put a real dent in these right now. The chocolate cravings are setting in!
Amanda recently posted…Candied Pecans
Oh, being good enough. I totally get it. The holidays bring it out the worst in me!! Hang in there…
They sound lovely Mir, chocolate, cheesecake..you can’t go wrong 🙂 I hope you feel better soon! Take care 🙂
Manali@CookWithManali recently posted…Butternut Squash & Spinach Pasta
Oh Mir – I’m so sorry to hear about your back – but, you sure have a great attitude – I love your sense of humor even through this! I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you to postpone your breakdown till November! 🙂
By the way I’d never heard of black bottom cupcakes – so thank you for teaching me something new – and thank you for these decadent GF treats – you are right, I would never have suspected these were GF or Vegan!
By the way, the cooling temps are not welcome in my world either – after 4 days of morning temps in the 50s, am ready for summer again – if only I was your neighbor, I wouldn’t mind the cold temps cos your desserts would fill me with joy! Hoping you are feeling way, way better soon!
Shashi at RunninSrilankan recently posted…Salsa Hummus Dip & Picante Falafel Bites Snack Platter
My very first impression to your cupcakes is that it looks so cute and greasy. Thanks for sharing the recipe. I will definitely try making it at home this weekend.
Sabrina Zaragoza recently posted…Want to know the best salt and pepper mills? Read this!