Gingerbread Cupcakes with Orange Cream Cheese Icing

Gingerbread Cupcakes: recipe is direct from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero

For the frosting:

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• 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon orange zest
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 pound confectioners' sugar, sieved (about 2 cups)

For the decoration:

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• 6 pieces dried crystallized ginger (not in syrup), sliced in half

For the frosting, mix the cream cheese, butter, orange zest and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until just combined. Add the sugar and mix until smooth.

When the cupcakes are cool, frost them generously and garnish with a slice of crystallized ginger.

White Chocolate Macademia Nut Cookies

 These were incredibly easy and fabulous for my first time making them.  A warning that they are not vegan, nor gluten free.  Here is the quick recipe:

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 8 ounces white chocolate, chopped (or half a bag of nestle's white chocolate chips)
• 1 (6.5 ounce) jar macadamia nuts, chopped

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Stir in the egg and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt, stir into the creamed mixture. Finally, stir in the white chocolate and nuts. Drop cookies by heaping teaspoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart.
3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly browned. Cool on wire racks. When cool, store in an airtight container.  Happy baking!

Key Lime Shortbread Cookies

What do you do with a bunch of left-over key limes from the cupcakes you just made?  Make these delicious cookies!  I am a huge shortbread fan, and making it homemade is just fabulous.  I used real key lime juice and zest, but you could use key lime juice from the bottle (easy to find) and regular lime zest.  Check out the vegan/gluten-free recipe below.

 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted

1/8 cup key lime juice
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon key lime zest
1 cup all purpose gluten free flour (I use Bob's Red Mill)
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/8 cup sugar coated in green food coloring

Directions:
Cream butter in mixer or by using a hand mixer. Beat in powdered sugar until mixture is smooth. Add key lime juice, vanilla, and key lime zest and mix until combined.
In separate bowl, sift together flour, baking soda and salt.  Add mixture to wet ingredients and beat until combined using paddle attachment.
Roll dough on wax paper and coat with green sugar. Flatten dough until about 1 inch thick.  Wrap in wax paper and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper and place refrigerated dough on top.  Cut dough into 1 inch squares, or whichever size/shape you want.  Bake in oven for approximately 10 minutes.  Wait at least 7 minutes to cool and transfer to wire rack.