Here's our first try at Agave Cupcakes! They always say: The taste of a batter-whether it's cake or cookie-is a good indicator of the final taste of your finished baked good. Well maybe they don't say it like that. I put it that way for dramatic effect. But I'm actually a firm believer in this*(see footnote!). I always try my "famous cookies" before I bake them. It's how I can tell I made them right and a great way to fix mistakes before it's too late to fix them. I've even been known to just make and eat the cookie dough on days when I feel a little down.Well at least before I cracked down on my eating habits.
(BTW since said cookie recipe is absolutely in no way healthy for you in the least, and mostly because it is a coveted recipe that people have been after me for ages to get, It will not now or even perhaps ever make an appearance on this blog.)
They also say that if dieters allow themselves a little indulgence that they are more likely to stay on track because they are less likely to break down and binge on an entire tub of ice cream....not that I've ever done that........Anyways! Having tasted this particular batter I had high hopes! It was creamy and sweet and oh so yummy! How it turned out however was a complete surprise. Although now that I think about it, it really shouldn't have surprised me. The Agave didn't have as much of an impact on the taste as the type of flour I used! I should have known. I use agave here and there and I noticed it really doesn't differ, taste-wise from regular sugar. I really should have thought of that before. I don't know why I thought that baking it would change the flavor of the agave. The biggest noticeable taste difference came from the flour!
The ingredients I have available to me for healthy eating are limited to what is carried in local supermarkets. My local whole food store is all the way across town, and very expensive. Ordering 20 lbs of flour via internet is completely impractical when shipping charges are more than your entire order. Therefore I am resigned to simple whole wheat or whole grain flour for almost all of my baking. This affects the taste of every baked good I make. When I tasted these cupcakes for the first time, the texture was right, it was fluffy and soft and moist, but the taste was like my honey whole wheat muffins! I might as well have made them instead and saved myself all the fat that was used in the cake recipe! Perhaps I will use this recipe for the cupcakes and just replace the whole wheat with *shudder* white flour. After all it is a special occasion. My friends in the social networking world tell me that coconut flour is a good substitute but since I do not currently have access to it I cannot tell you how well it works or even how to substitute it. If you can get used to the taste of the whole wheat in this recipe it still is very good. Also since it is a special occasion, we will be using a lot more fats than i would normally use. You may omit as much fat as you want, but it will affect the texture greatly. So pick and choose your battles on this one. If it is of any relevance, Little Red ate one.....but has yet to ask for another.
Agave Cupcakes
1 1/2 cups sifted whole wheat flour
2/3 cup agave
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup shortening
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift flour into a bowl. (The brown specks left over are from the hull. You can choose to add them back to the flour or to throw them out. It won't affect anything but the color of your cake.) Add remainder of ingredients and blend for 30 seconds either by hand or on lowest speed on your mixer. (I miss my stand mixer.....) Once combined, beat batter on high for 3 full minutes (I had to do this by hand. I REALLY miss my stand mixer......). Spoon into cupcake cups already in the tin. To make a regular cake: pour into a greased and floured 8x8 cake pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes for cupcakes or 30-40 minutes for regular cake. Or if you're like me and tend to forget to set the timer, keep an eye on it and watch for lightly browned tops and stick a toothpick in the middle of one. If the toothpick comes out clean, they're done!
*Let me make a disclaimer from earlier!!! I am NOT telling you to eat raw eggs! I'm just saying I do when i try my un-cooked batter. If you choose to do so it will be at your own risk. I accept absolutely NO RESPONSIBILITY for your own actions!
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