Bulletproof Cupcakes

Bulletproof Cupcakes {special thanks to my husband for being my hand model}

Believe it or not, these cupcakes including the frosting and filling are completely all natural, grain-free, gluten-free, sugar-free and basically flourless (there's 1 TBSP of sweet rice flour in the whole recipe for over a dozen cupcakes). And they taste amazing! So, regardless of whether you follow a Paleo, Ketogenic or the Standard American Diet, you can enjoy these delicious treats guilt-free.

The recipe for this cupcake, plus over 120 more dishes that are equally amazing, may be found in "Bulletproof: The Cookbook" which releases on December 1, 2015 but thanks to the kind folks over at Bulletproof, I get to share it with you now and also let you know how you can enter a GIVEAWAY to win a signed Cookbook and a Bulletproof Coffee Starter Kit. Scroll to the bottom to see how to enter (it's easy, just leave a comment). I was inspired to make the recipe into "Hostess Cupcake" lookalikes, complete with a vanilla creme filling but these fudge-y, dark chocolate cakes are equally delicious just plain, the way the recipe is written in the cookbook. If you'd like to make just the cakes without the creme filling or ganache topping, simply follow the recipe for just the cupcakes below.

Bulletproof ("Hostess"Inspired) Cupcakes
makes 14-15 cupcakes

Oven 350

Cupcake Ingredients:
6 Tablespoons non-GMO erythritol
6 Tablespoons 100% American hardwood xylitol
12 ounces of 85% or darker chocolate
6 Tablespoons grass-fed unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
Tiny pinch of fine sea salt
6 eggs at room temperature, yolks and whites separated
1 teaspoon ground vanilla powder (like BP VanillaMax) or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cocoa powder or raw cacao powder (like BP Chocolate Powder)
1 Tablespoon sweet rice flour (do not use normal rice flour, which is gritty)

Chocolate Ganache Ingredients:
4 ounces of 85% or darker chocolate
1 5.4 ounce can coconut cream
Pinch of instant coffee (do not use ground coffee beans since they will not dissolve)

Vanilla Creme Filling and Piping Ingredients:
1/3 cup grass-fed unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup erythritol or xylitol, finely powdered like confectioner's
Heavy pinch of ground vanilla powder or 1/3 teaspoon vanilla extract
Tiny pinch of fine sea salt


For the Cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Line a muffin tin with individual cupcake liners. You will have enough batter for a few more than a dozen so you may use a second tin or just wait and bake the additional ones in a second batch.

Gather your ingredients for the cupcake batter:

separate your yolks and whites

Place the erythritol and xylitol together in a blender or spice grinder and pulse until reasonably fine, being careful not to let it get too hot or it may melt. It does not have to be superfine like confectioner's for this batter, just powdered. Set aside.

pulse until powdered

Place the dark chocolate and butter in a medium saucepan over low heat and melt stirring constantly until smooth then remove from heat and set aside. Make sure to stir occasionally so it does not separate while you make the egg yolk batter.

heat and stir until smooth

Place 6 Tablespoons of the powdered erythritol/xylitol mixture into a large bowl along with the 6 egg yolks and beat using a stand or hand mixer on medium-high speed until thick and pale yellow, about 3 minutes.

beat yolks with powdered sweetener mixture until thick and pale yellow

Add the yolk and sweetener mixture to the melted chocolate mixture along with the vanilla powder, chocolate powder and sweet rice flour. Using a spatula mix until blended and set aside.

Place the 6 egg whites in a large bowl. Using a stand or hand mixer, beat on high speed until soft peaks form. Then slowly add the remaining 6 Tablespoons of the powdered sweetener mixture and beat on high speed until medium-firm peaks form.

Gently fold the egg white mixture into the chocolate mixture a little at a time until incorporated.

Fill the cupcake liners to the top. My batter was pretty airy and somewhat gooey so I lightly filled each liner completely full to the top but was careful not to press down on the batter.

Place in the oven and bake for 11 minutes. Rotate the pan and bake for 11 minutes more. Remove from the oven and place pan on a wire cooling rack. Cool completely. You can eat them as is now or proceed to the next steps for frosting and/or filling.

For the Chocolate Ganache:

Gather your ingredients for the chocolate ganache:

Add about 2 inches of water to the bottom of a small saucepan fitted with a heat-proof bowl or smaller saucepan (like a double boiler) over low heat. Add chocolate, coconut cream and instant coffee to the bowl or top pan.

Stir until melted and creamy.

The ganache should be loose like a thick sauce. Set aside (stirring occasionally to keep it well blended) while you prepare the cupcakes and creme filling.  Optional:  IF you would like to skip the creme filling part, you may dip the cupcakes upside down into the ganache now to coat or drizzle the ganache atop and allow to set for a few minutes before eating.

For the Vanilla Creme Filling and Piping:

Gather your ingredients for the vanilla creme filling:

If you cannot find or do not have confectioner's erythritol or xylitol, you will need to powder it yourself. A spice blender works well for the small amount you will need for this. Keep pulsing until you have a very fine powder being careful not to let it get hot so it doesn't melt. This may take several minutes but is critical to getting a smooth and creamy texture to your filling.

In a medium bowl, place the powdered sweetener, softened butter and vanilla powder. Using a hand mixer set to low, incorporate the ingredients then mix on high until creamy. Set aside.

Cut wells into your cupcakes. This nifty cupcake corer by Cuisipro works nicely:

Fill each well with some of the vanilla creme. You may do it by hand or use a piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Be sure to reserve a small amount of the creme filling for the top decoration.

Place these into the freezer for a few minutes to set up before dipping into the chocolate ganache. Then carefully dip and roll each cupcake into the chocolate ganache and let set up for another few minutes before piping on the top decoration.

Place the remaining vanilla creme into another piping bag fitted with a very small round tip.

Pipe the design onto the tops like you see on a Hostess Cupcake:

These are now ready to enjoy or you can store them briefly (1-2 days) in a plastic container with a lid. They do not need to be refrigerated but can be. After a day or two the ganache will start to break down so these are prettiest when eaten very soon.

*******GIVEAWAY Details!*********

****Dec 1, 2015: This giveaway has ended and the winner has been notified. Please stay tuned for more recipes and giveaways.*****

Leave a comment below letting me know your favorite dessert to be entered automatically! Be sure you are logged in (not posting as anonymous) so I can contact you if you win. You may also visit my Instagram and/or Facebook page for additional entries.

Winner will receive:

• Bulletproof: The Cookbook personally signed by Dave Asprey
• Bulletproof Coffee Starter Kit

Winner will be notified on December 1st.

Golden Curried Cauli

Golden Curried Cauli

"Mumbai is Cauli-ing"

"Cauli-fornia Meets India"

"Just Cauli Me Something"

These were all working titles for this recipe. Good thing I went with the suggestions from Instagram friends @_myoldgreenhouse_ @simplenutritioussolutions and @ryancarter1986 instead. "Golden Curried Cauli" sounds way more respectable, don't you think?

This dish, not unlike many of my favorite dishes, is incredibly versatile and very easy to make. I used a nut and spice blend from Glory Kitchen which I highly recommend. I think I've purchased every single one of her small batch artisan blends and I love them all, but this one is called "Mumbai" and it's inspired by the flavors of India. It tastes amazing, uniquely complex and let's face it, it makes life easy because you don't need a bunch of different spices, seeds and nuts to create an amazing meal.

Golden Curried Cauli
Serves 4 as a side dish

Ingredients:
1 1/2 Tablespoons coconut oil
1 Tablespoon Glory Kitchen Mumbai Nut and Spice Mix
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 small head of organic cauliflower, stem removed, rough chopped into small pieces (about 1 1/2 to 2 cups)
1/2 of a pint of organic cherry tomatoes, halved (about 10 to 12 cherry tomatoes)
1 serrano pepper, thinly sliced
sea salt
organic cilantro for garnish (optional)

Heat a large skillet to medium to medium-high. Add coconut oil and let it melt. Next, add the Mumbai Nut and Spice Mix and turmeric. Stir the spices around in the oil and let them lightly sizzle and toast for about 2 minutes being careful not to burn.

Add the cauliflower, a sprinkle of sea salt and stir to coat. Cook uncovered for about 5-6 minutes stirring occasionally.

Add cherry tomatoes and serrano, stir to combine then cover and cook for about 4-5 more minutes until cauliflower is crisp tender.

Sprinkle with more sea salt to taste, garnish with cilantro and serve.

Golden Curried Cauli

This dish is incredibly versatile - it's vegan as posted and perfect as a side dish, however you could easily add a protein like prawns, chicken or tofu and serve as a main dish. You can amp up the flavor by adding more of the Mumbai blend and you may also adjust the heat up or down with more or less of the Serrano pepper.

Please enjoy!

The Best Cauliflower Crust Pizza

Want to know how to make the best cauliflower crust pizza - a crust that holds together, has great texture and tastes amazing despite being completely flourless (grain-free, gluten-free, nut-free)?  So did I. That's why I tried it 20 times before being able to perfect it (and shhhh, don't tell anyone, but it's actually pretty easy to make). My recipe was originally based on this one from Food Network, however I had some issues with the outcome. Over time, and with much trial and error, I've made several edits and adapted it to work pretty flawlessly.

Special Equipment:

You'll need a pizza stone and a pizza peel. If you don't already have them you can get them on Amazon for right around $30 total for both items. The shape of the stone doesn't really matter. I have a rectangular one and it works fine, whether I'm making round pizzas or not.

You'll also want to have on hand some parchment paper, a food processor fitted with the cutting blade and a clean, dry kitchen towel that you will use for removing the moisture from the cauliflower.

The Best Cauliflower Crust Pizza with Pepperoni and Jalapeno
adapted from Food Network

makes one 13-inch round pizza

Oven 425 degrees, place pizza stone in oven while preheating

Ingredients for Crust:
1 small to medium size head of cauliflower, cut into small pieces with leaves and stem removed
1 1/2 cups shredded Asiago cheese
1 egg, beaten
1/2 tsp dried Italian seasoning
1 clove fresh garlic, minced
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper

Ingredients for Toppings:
1 cup shredded Asiago or Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1/4 cup marinara sauce (I use Rao's Marinara)
Anything You Like (avoid too many/too heavy ingredients, I used Uncured Pepperoni, Fresh Jalapeno)

Garnish (Optional):
crushed red pepper
fresh basil

Step One
Make sure your oven is preheating to 425 degrees with your pizza stone inside of it.

Step Two
Gather up your special equipment and ingredients to make your crust.

Special Equipment: Food Processor fitted with Cutting Blade, Parchment Paper, Pizza Peel, Clean Kitchen Towel for Removing the Moisture from the Cauliflower and place your Pizza Stone in the oven at 425 degrees to preheat.

Ingredients for Your Cauliflower Crust

Step Three
Place the cauliflower in your food processor fitted with the cutting blade and pulse until you achieve a grain-like texture, the finer the better.

Step Four
Place the cauliflower in a clean, dry kitchen towel, wrap tightly and wring out the moisture.

Keep wringing it out until no more moisture comes out. This is a very important step which will help keep the crust together.

This is what your cauliflower will look like once the moisture is removed:

Step Five
In a large bowl, place the cauliflower and add the other crust ingredients (cheese, egg, Italian seasoning, garlic, salt, pepper) then mix with a large spoon or your hands.

Mix Crust Ingredients Together (The egg is from a local farm - look how amazingly dark yellow/orange the yolk is!)

Step Six
Line your pizza peel with a sheet of parchment paper. Place your crust mixture in the middle and form a large circle by pressing and patting with your hands. Make sure it's an even thickness (about 1/4 to 1/2" thick).

Press, Pat and Hand-Shape into a Large Circle

Thin (about 1/4 to 1/2" thick) and Even

Step Seven
Now it's time to bake your crust. Carefully slide the parchment paper and crust off of your peel and onto your hot pizza stone in the oven. Bake for 15 minutes until lightly browned.

Using your peel, carefully slide the parchment paper and crust off of the hot stone and onto the peel. Leave the oven on and the stone in as you will be baking for a few more minutes after you top your crust.

Step Eight
Immediately top the crust with your shredded Asiago (or Parmigiano Reggiano) and mozzarella cheeses. Do this FIRST so that it will help hold the crust together.

Next, spoon the marinara sauce onto the cheese-covered crust and spread evenly. This will be a very light coating. Too much and it will make your crust soggy.

Lastly, top with pepperoni and fresh jalapeno or whatever topping you like. The fewer and lighter the toppings the better your final pizza will come out.

Step Nine
Slide your parchment paper and pizza from the peel back onto the stone and bake for about 4 minutes or until hot, browned and bubbly.

Remove from oven, garnish with fresh basil and crushed red pepper if desired, slice and serve!

The perfect cauliflower crust pizza!

It's even great left over!! Eat it cold, heat it up in a skillet or microwave, top it with bacon(!!!) - any way you slice it, it's SO GOOD!!!!!

NOM NOM NOM