Recipe, adapted from Hungry Sofia’s recipe for Estrellitas (thanks!)
makes about 18 cupcakes

Ingredients, for the Cupcake

2 cups cake flour
1 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 c unsweetened applesauce
1 cup + 4 T of sugar
4 large eggs
4 T skim milk
1 t vanilla extract

Ingredients, for the filling

14 oz guava paste
splash of rum
1T orange juice

Ingredients, for the frosting

16 oz cream cheese
1c confectioner’s sugar
2 t lemon juice (which I totally forgot to add, but probably would have been a good addition)

Method 

for the cupcakes,

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line muffin cups with liners.  Set aside.

2. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix.

3. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and applesauce on medium speed for one minute.

4. Gradually add the sugar and continue to beat on medium-high speed till light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

5. Add eggs one at a time and continue to beat about 1-2 more minutes.

6. Beat in milk and vanilla.  Batter may separate, but that’s ok.

7. On low speed, add flour in two batches and beat until just combined.

8. Divide batter into muffin cups and bake in middle of oven until a tester comes out clean, about 20 minutes.  Remove from oven and cool on a rack.

for the filling,

1. Combine all filling ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth.  Fill a pastry bag with a small star tip, and pipe a small amount of filling into the center of each cupcake. It’s ok if some filling comes over the top. It will be covered by the frosting.

Note: To make the holes for the filling, I just poked a hole in the center with my finger. I suppose there could be a better method, but that seemed to work just fine.

for the frosting,

1. Beat the cream cheese until smooth.

2. Add the confectioner’s sugar and beat on low speed until incorporated.

3. Add the lemon juice and beat until smooth.

4. Spread on cupcakes or top using a pastry bag fitted with a star tip.

Note: Since this frosting is cream cheese dense, I didn’t swirl the frosting all the way around the cupcake. Instead, hold the pastry bag steady over the hole for the filling, and pipe it directly on top.

optional topping,

Cut up guava paste and garnish the cupcakes.

Bitchin’Camero had me with her “from Miami with love” tagline, Miami-inspired foods, and beautiful photos.

A few weeks ago I was watching the Today show while getting ready for the day. Giada de Laurentiis was on the show along with her mother, and they were demonstrating a recipe for Eggplant Rollups (or something like that). While I don’t remember the name, I did remember the basic idea behind the recipe that included eggplant, mushrooms, garlic, and tomato sauce. I made a few adjustments of my own, and this recipe is easily adaptable to whatever filling you want to put inside the eggplant.

Stuffed Eggplant with Yellow Squash and Mushrooms

Ingredients

2 eggplants, sliced lengthwise
3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 yellow squash, chopped
rosemary
salt
pepper
6 oz. mushrooms, any kind you like, chopped
beans, any kind you like
2 c. tomato sauce
parmeasan cheese, to taste

Process

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2. Slice eggplant length wise and place on baking sheet. Brush with olive oil. Bake 20 minutes on each side or until soft and slightly browned.

3. While the eggplant is baking, heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add garlic and saute. Then add squash, mushrooms, beans, and rosemary. Cook until the moisture is released. Finish with salt and pepper. Set aside.

4. Let the eggplant cool until you are able to handle it without burning yourself. Then, one slice at a time add the squash mixture to the end of the slice and roll it up. Place in a casserole dish. Repeat with all slices.

5. Top the eggplant with tomato sauce and bake approximately 35 minutes, or until bubbly.

6. Serve topped with grated parmesan cheese.

Green pizza, or pizza topped with leeks and collard greens is packed with veggies and topped with just a bit of good quality cheese. It appeals to people who believe they don’t like vegetables. I adapted the recipe from In Praise of Leftovers and I usually change it up depending on what I have in the house.

Ingredients, for the topping

4 medium leeks, white and light green parts sliced into rings and washed very well
1 bunch of collard greens, de-ribbed, washed, and finely shredded (could sub any other leafy green like kale or swiss chard)
1 large garlic clove, minced
salt
pepper
olive oil
1 roasted poblano pepper, peeled and coarsely chopped (to roast – wash and dry, then coat with olive oil, put on a parchment covered baking sheet at 425 and roast until slightly charred, turning for even results)
squeeze of lemon juice
1/4 – 1/2 c. Gruyere cheese, shredded (I have also used Pecorino cheese.) Use the amount that suits you. Want a cheesier pizza, use more cheese. Just looking for the flavor, use less.
1 large ball fresh mozarella, thinly sliced

Preparation for the topping:

Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add leeks, collard greens, garlic, salt, and pepper and saute for  about 20 minutes until soft. Add poblano pepper, then lemon juice, and let cool for about 10 minutes.

Two options for the dough:

First option – this flatbread dough recipe from The Jewels of New York. I’ve made their Tomato Fennel Flatbread a few times and I really like this dough.

1/4 ounce package active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus 1/4 cup for kneading dough
1 large egg
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

In a small bowl stir together yeast and warm water, let stand for about 5 minutes.

Beat together egg, 1 tablespoon of oil and salt, set aside. In a medium bowl, add in 1 1/2 cups of flour and create a well in the center of the flour. Add yeast mixture into the well then add the egg mixture. Using a fork or your hands combine mixture until dough forms. Transfer dough to a floured surface and knead until stickiness is gone and feels smooth and elastic, adding flour as necessary. Add 1 tablespoon of oil into a bowl, place dough in oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature for 1 hour.

Second option, is the dough recipe posted on In Praise of Leftovers, originally from The Gourmet Cookbook.

1 (1/4 oz.) package (2 1/4 ts.) active dry yeast
About 1 3/4 c. unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading and dredging (I used 1c all purpose and 3/4c whole wheat.)
3/4 c. warm water
1 1/2 ts. salt
1 1/2 ts. olive oil

Stir together yeast, 1 Tb. flour, and 1/4 c. warm water in a measuring cup and let stand until surface appears creamy, about 5 minutes.

Stir together 1 1/4 c. flour and salt in a large bowl.  Add yeast mixture, oil, and remaining 1/2 cup warm water and stir until smooth.  Stir in enough remaining flour (about 1/2 cup) so dough comes away from sides of bowl.  (The dough will be wetter than other pizza doughs you may have made.)

Knead dough on a dry suface with lightly floured hands until smooth soft, and elastic.  Put into a bowl, dust with flour, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and let it rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about an hour and 15 minutes.

TO SHAPE THE DOUGH FOR BAKING:  Do not punch down dough.  Carefully dredge dough in a bowl of flour to coat and transfer to dry work surface.

Putting it all together:

Holding one edge of dough in the air with both hands and letting bottom touch work surface, carefully move hands around edge of dough (like turning a steering wheel), allowing weight of dough to stretch round to roughly 10 inches. Lay dough flat on a lightly floured pizza peel and continue to work edges with fingers, stretching it into a 14-inch round. Place dough on pan, carefully. If you have a pizza stone, use that. If not, whatever pan you have would work just fine. I use a thin round metal pizza pan.

Brush the dough with olive oil. Sprinkle the first layer of cheese (gruyere or other cheese). Add the leek mixture, and top with slices of mozzarella. Bake at 500 F for about 10 minutes, or until bubbling and slightly browned.

Quinoa with Roasted Red Peppers, Chickpeas, and Feta

1 T olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 clove garlic, chopped
2 roasted red peppers, chopped (Coat 2 red peppers in olive oil. Put them in a preheated oven at 425 and roast while turning to make sure it’s even. Then put them in a plastic bag for a few minutes and the skin will easily peel off. Seed and chop.)
1 cup red quinoa, rinsed
2 cup vegetable broth (or water)
1 Teaspoon oregano, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup chickpeas
1/4 cup feta, crumbled
1/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette (mix of balsamic vinegar and olive oil with salt and pepper)

To prepare:
1.Heat the oil in a pan. Add the onion and sauté until tender, about 5-7 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about a minute.

2.Add the roasted red peppers, quinoa, vegetable broth and oregano, season with salt and pepper and bring to a boil.

3.Reduce the heat, cover and simmer until the quinoa is tender and the liquid has been absorbed, about 20 minutes.

4.Remove from heat and mix in the chickpeas, feta, and balsamic vinaigrette. If you won’t be serving it right away, add the feta once it’s cooled so it doesn’t just melt away.

Morning Coffee + Protein Smoothie

1 c coconut milk
2 scoops (probably 2T total) protein powder (i use a plain one)
Via or another type of instant coffee
5 pitted dates
handful of ice

Blend coconut milk, protein powder, coffee, and dates until smooth. Add ice. Blend again. I have just a regular blender and it still worked pretty well mashing up the dates. There were bits at the bottom of the blender that I scooped out and added to the smoothie.

• FAQs about eating vegan - http://www.oprah.com/health/Frequently-Asked-Questions-About-Going-Vegan
• Three weeks of meal ideas - http://www.oprah.com/food/Three-Week-Vegan-Menu-Plan
• and more in the webpage they are calling the “Vegan Starter Kit” - http://www.oprah.com/packages/vegan-starter-kit.html

It’s simple and straightforward, and of course addresses the myths of eating vegan. Plus, I always love getting new meal ideas, which is why I was checking out Get Natured in the first place. Can’t wait to try her recipe for Breakfast Cookies!