So it was a rather eventful weekend at our house. I tried my hand at baking again after a couple of successful attempts at making cookies, seen here and here. This time I would try something a little out of my comfort zone...a cake. Well, actually I decided to make cupcakes because I had cupcake molds.
I was inspired by an article in the May issue of Real Simple. Though the spread was inspiring, I was amazed at the amount of butter used in the recipes (four sticks of butter to make frosting???). Perhaps I was naive to think that I could make cupcakes and frosting and not use so much butter, but when I read the nutritional information for a serving of yellow cake with vanilla frosting (785 calories, 49g fat) I knew I had to rethink my strategy. Not only was I going to bake, which was a challenge in and of itself, but I was going to bake healthy desserts.
So here's the thing. I am not a big fan of chocolate desserts. Don't get me wrong, I will eat ANY dessert you put in front of me, and I mean ANY dessert. But do I order chocolate cake at a restaurant or choose something chocolaty at a bake shop? Never. It's kinda strange since I can eat toast and Nutella for breakfast EVERY morning and never get sick of the stuff. When it comes time to choose dessert, I usually go with something that includes banana, lemon or caramel. Since not too many people like lemon-flavored desserts (like my husband) and I was not about to make caramel from scratch (another challenge, another day) I decided to go with a banana cupcake with a simple vanilla frosting.
Most recipe sites don't include nutritional information, but I came across myrecipes.com which listed fat and caloric info and had an easy to follow cupcake and frosting recipe. Score! I chose this recipe for the cake and this recipe for the frosting. I followed the recipes in their entirety except for one substitution. I used low-fat sour cream instead of yogurt in the cupcake recipe. It's what I had in my fridge, it's what I used.
The result? They were great cupcakes for my first try. The frosting was delicious. I think I will be using the same recipe again and again, adding different flavors to it like lemon or chocolate for variation. I made too much frosting for the amount of cupcakes I had. Next time I will make half the recipe. The cupcake itself was kind of dense, reminding me more of a muffin than a cupcake. I need to find a recipe for a fluffier, lighter cake. Any suggestions? Feel free to leave links to your favorite cupcake recipe (light and fluffy please).
Happy baking!
