Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Peanut Butter Frosting

Celebrations are one of the sources of joy in life.  Today I decided to make cupcakes to celebrate three coming birthdays, those of my two CCD students, Rylie and Mila and Jesus.  We have our last class before Christmas break and we will have a little bit of a review of the Jesse tree which they did two weeks worth of symbols last week.  We will then proceed to watch the First Grade Class do the Nativity.

I want to emphasize to Rylie and Mila, before we proceed to watch the Nativity play, the fact that we are celebrating God's love for us which he manifested by becoming like us.  I have a blog post that metaphorically illustrates the necessity of Jesus becoming man .  I am not sure how I am going to convey this idea to these two kindergartners today but I will try.

Rylie and Mila know how to celebrate.  Rylie's mom, Adrianne, sent me a video showing them dancing while they were playing the noisemakers they made in class that were actually oh so silent but how they danced to the cymbals loudly clanging in their hearts.  They show in their dance how to celebrate exuberantly and without inhibition and of course with lots of innocent joy.

Here is the recipe of the Chocolate Cupcakes I made today topped with Chocolate Peanut Butter Frosting. Both are plant based recipes.

Chocolate Cupcakes

(Adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie)

6 cupcakes

• 5 tbsp cocoa
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp sugar (Note 1)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 3 tbsp unsweetened applesauce
• 3/4 cup almond milk or any other non dairy milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix with a fork or whisk.  Make a well in the middle and add to this the liquid ingredients.  Stir with a whisk till thoroughly mixed.  

Transfer the batter into a paper lined muffin pan.  Bake for 14 minutes.  Cool thoroughly. The batter tends to stick to the paper when still hot.

Top the cooled cupcakes with the Chocolate Peanut Butter Frosting below.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Frosting

(inspired by a recipe from this blog)

• 1 ripe banana
• 2 tbsp peanut butter
• 2 tbsp powdered sugar
• 2 tbsp cocoa

Mix all the ingredients with whisk or in a mixer or blender.  

Notes:

1.  If you are not icing the cake, increase the amount of sugar (double the amount listed).  However, with the icing the cake does not need anymore sugar than listed.