Chocolate PB Cinnamon Cupcakes w/ Chocolate PB Honey Cinnamon Frosting

When I was a little girl I used to lie awake at night at dream of food.

This is no joke...(I can hear my brothers laughing...)

In order for me to fall asleep, I would dream of a world, much like a Willy Wonka chocolate factory, where the clouds would be marshmallows, and it would rain M&M's onto the ground made out of frosting.

Thinking back, I was probably hallucinating in a sugar coma because I most likely ate exactly that before bed...(Ever seen the movie fat camp where they hide candy in odd places...Please don't let me explain.)

Obviously sweet over rules savory in my book, although since getting older I've learned to control my food choices, along with my dreams.

I now swim in pools of hummus with my mouth wide open shaped like a pita chip. Much better.

But if there is one thing that's my weakness, it's a nice big piece of chocolate cake.

Rich in flavor.

Sweet and velvety frosting.

And with every bite it requires a gulp of milk on the side.

So you can imagine my excitement when a good friend of mine asked if I could bake vegan cupcakes for her son's wedding rehearsal dinner. (Since I do cupcakes as a little side job, I rarely get asked to do Vegan. This was my first one and I was SuPeR excited!)

Let me say this: You probably should go grab a carton of non dairy milk :-). You most likely are going to need it!

Chocolate PB Cinnamon Cupcakes with Chocolate PB Honey Cinnamon Frosting

Ingredients:(for the cake)

Adapted from: Eat Drink & Be Vegan Cookbook

1 1/4 C. spelt flour

1 C. unbleached all purpose flour (or you can use 2 C. + 2 TB. all purpose flour instead of spelt)

1/2 C. cocoa powder

1 tsp. baking powder

1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 1/8 C. unrefined sugar (organic)

dash of salt

2 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1 3/4 C. water

1/8 C. balsamic vinegar

1 TB. vanilla

1/4 C. canola oil

1/4 C. peanut butter(slightly melted in microwave(10 sec.) and cooled)

Directions:

1. In a bowl sift flours, cocoa powder, baking soda and baking powder together. Stir in sugar and spices. In a separate bowl combine the rest of the ingredients and stir until combined. Add wet to dry and stir until combined, but don't over mix.

2. Pour batter into cupcake tins and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until center bounces back when pressed on.

Chocolate PB Honey Cinnamon Frosting

Ingredients: (for frosting)

32 ounces powdered sugar(more or less)

2 sticks vegan butter(earth balance)

2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 C. peanut butter

1/3 C honey/agave/maple syrup

1 TB vanilla

couple TB non dairy milk

1 bag non dairy chocolate chips (this is used for a drizzle over cupcakes-not to be added into frosting)

Directions:

In a standard mixer, beat butter until creamy. Add the rest of the ingredients in and beat until creamy. For a thicker frosting add more powdered sugar. For a more creamier frosting add more milk. In the beginning you will need to add a couple TB of milk to get it to blend. But remember a little goes a long way.

Most vegan cupcakes I have ever made usually lay flat, but these ones rose SOO perfectly! :-)

And with beautifully risen cupcakes, the frosting has to be perfect too!

What I did was melt a bag of non diary chocolate chips over a double broiler, which is a pot of water with a heat proof bowl over it. Turn on the stove to about medium heat, and the water will boil which in turn will melt the chocolate chips. You can also melt them in the microwave, but there is always a chance of overcooking them. Melting chips in a double broiler doesn't take very long either.