Eggless White Vanilla Cupcake

Last weekend was my son's 2nd birthday. I have a 2 year old son!!! I'm unbelievably proud to be the mom of such a good and sweet boy. In honor of his birthday, considering his egg allergy, I had to come up with an egg free cake recipe. All of the ones I found on the internet weren't simple enough for me, so I decided to make my own. I have to say I am more than satisfied with my recipe; it's moist, fluffy, and delicious.

Why do we even use eggs in almost every baking recipe? I know the white acts as a leavening agent and the yellow helps everything stick together, but I always wondered if we could do without. I figured a bit more baking powder and a bit of fruit puree or yogurt would do the trick (minus the protein and nutrients found in the eggs). The good news... it does! This eggless vanilla cake recipe is super yummy.

If you know anyone with an egg allergy, or simply want to make a cake for a baby's first birthday, this recipe is perfect! You can vary the flavor by changing the type of extract you use.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup Butter (salted)
1 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Plain yogurt
1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup Flour
3 tsp Baking powder
3/4 cup Milk

Prep: 10 minutes
Bake: 30 minutes
Oven: 350F
Portions: 10

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven at 350F and prepare molds.
2. Cream butter, sugar and yogurt. Add vanilla extract.
3. In separate bowl, mix flour and baking powder.
4. Mix flour mixture and milk alternatively into butter mixture. Do not over mix.
5. Pour into molds (to about 3/4 of the cup) and bake for 30 minutes.

I have to be honest with you, these are simply amazing. Yes, I'm bragging, but when someone's first reaction is: "Wow, these are better than cupcakes with eggs." You can't help jump with joy. Yay! :)

Vanilla Bean Sugar Recipe

I've been working on an easy vanilla pudding mix recipe to go with my chocolate pudding mix recipe. I wanted to have to add as few things as possible other than milk, so I thought it would be a good idea to have some vanilla flavored sugar. Since I've been trying to do everything as much homemade as possible, I figured this would be a perfect addition. It would also make a deliciously quick and easy homemade gift idea.

Ingredients

1 cup of Sugar
1 Vanilla Bean

Steps

1. Cut along the vanilla bean and scrape the seeds out.

2. Mix the vanilla seeds with the sugar, then add the vanilla bean cut in pieces.

3. Put in an airtight container and let sit for 1 week.

You can use this sugar in anything you want: milk, coffee, tea, cakes, puddings, milkshakes... That way you don't need to add vanilla essence or syrup!

It came out tasting quite strong and gets stronger the longer you leave the beans in. If you're looking for something a little less strong, you can use 2 cups of sugar with 1 vanilla bean. I'd also suggest removing the beans (not the seeds - obviously, lol) after a couple of weeks, or when the taste is strong enough for you.

What to Do with Extra Easter Chocolate - 3 Ways

Happy Easter everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful Easter. We certainly did. I'm on a mega sugar high. Are you?

I don't know about you but for me, every year at Easter, I get way more chocolate than I can eat and I end up stuffing my face so that it doesn't go to waste. This year, I decided to find a way to store it for future use, and create simple creative ways to use it all up.

The first thing I did is smash all the chocolate into tiny pieces and put it in plastic Ziploc bags. That way I can freeze it and it doesn't take too much space. Whenever I need a bit of chocolate, I can simply take a few pieces out of the bag and put it back in the freezer. Simple no?

What do you do with all your Easter chocolate?

Chocolate dipped sugar cone

This is by far my favorite idea. All you have to do is melt a few pieces of chocolate in the microwave for about 30 seconds, stir it then dip your sugar cone in. You can either leave it like that or add candy, nuts or dried fruits. Leave it to dry for a few minutes, top with ice cream and enjoy

Chocolate fondue

Who doesn't like chocolate fondue? This is perfect for a quick dessert on one of those busy days. All you have to do is cut up some fruit, melt the chocolate and dip in. This would also be a wonderful idea for a romantic night snack with your better half. ;)

Hot chocolate

This hot chocolate turned out quite rich, which is awesome for a midnight rage. Put some chocolate pieces in a mug, add milk, microwave for about 2 minutes, stir, add marshmallows and enjoy! The marshmallows are really just for fun.