SuperMoist Chocolate Cupcakes

*Adapted from Vegetarian Times

1½ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking powder
¾ tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. salt
1 avocado, pitted and peeled
1 cup pure maple syrup
¾ cup vanilla coconut milk
¹⁄3 cup safflower oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Glaze
¼ block soft silken tofu (from 14-oz. container), drained and patted dry
3 Tbs. pure maple syrup
½ tsp. vanilla extract
¹⁄8 tsp. salt
4 oz. semisweet chocolate, melted

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners. Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in bowl. Purée avocado in food processor until smooth. Add maple syrup, coconut milk, oil, and vanilla, and blend until creamy. Whisk avocado mixture into flour mixture.
2. Spoon batter into prepared cupcake cups. Bake 25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center comes out with some crumbs attached. Cool.
3. To make Glaze: Blend tofu, maple syrup, vanilla, and salt in food processor until smooth. Add chocolate to tofu mixture and blend until smooth. Transfer to bowl. Dip tops of Cupcakes into Glaze, pulling straight up from Glaze to form peaks.


I decided to change a few ingredients in the recipe. For example, I prefer to use vanilla coconut milk instead of soymilk because soymilk is highly processed and is not that great for you. I try to limit my soy intake to only tofu and tempeh every once and awhile. When I say coconut milk I don't mean the coconut milk you get in a can that you usually get to make currys, that has a lot of fat in it is not something you would probably enjoy drinking. I get my coconut milk in the refrigerated section, next to all the soymilks. Eric actually found it and it tastes really great and it is loaded with vitamins. I also changed the recipe to using safflower oil, which I use in most of my cooking. It is a flavorless and colorless nutritional oil.

I made these for the first time for my Dad's birthday. I was a little nervous about the avocado and whether you would be able to taste it, but if you mix it well, you can't even tell.The cool thing is that the avocado replaces the eggs and most of the oil in the recipe, so you can feel better about your dessert. I also used a larger muffin pan, so I ended up with only six cupcakes.

This recipe is now one of my favorites and I plan to make it for many more birthdays. Even my farmer Dad thought they were good! Of course, I didn't tell him what was in them until he was done eating them:) Another great thing about this recipe is that it makes lots of chocolate glaze and the leftover glaze can be used as a chocolate mousse for a second dessert. I added fresh fruit and put it in a pretty glass. It was so simple and very delicious!