It's Snowing Again + Chocolate Cream Cheese Cupcakes

I passed my Wintermester class with a B!

 I decided to work most of the days this week before my Spring classes start next Tuesday. I got a message from my mom saying that if I decided to bake something and bring it to work that her coworkers would happily dispose of them. 

hint taken.

 The only rule was whatever I made could not contain nuts of any kind since a few people were allergic. Plus the dessert had to travel well and didn't need refrigeration since the fridge at work is always packed full.

  I never realized how many dessert recipes that I've bookmarked to try that also contain nuts {about 80%}so I  had to do a little searching. I decided that I would make a regular dessert meaning it would most likely contain grains, white sugar, dairy; basically the desserts I generally try to stay away from. 

It seems that everyone at work knows about my love for baking and willingness to provide desserts...

Jon {the boss} loved my GF dark chocolate brownies that I made with coconut oil.

I made these Cadbury Egg Blondies at least 4 or 5 times for everyone since I posted the recipe. 

A classic like these puffy chocolate chip cookies are always a hit. 

The Toffee Chocolate Chip Blondies were also happily eaten when I made an extra pan . 

   After work Monday night, my mom and I made a quick trip to Whole Food's where we picked up a carton of milk for my dad, some vegan cake slices for me and a big container of their Mexican chicken soup which I love. This morning we woke up to discover that it was snowing once again in our part of Texas which no one expected. My mom and I stayed home from work because like on Christmas, we got the worst of it compared to the other towns so today was a lazy day.

 I had to make the cupcakes in batches since I only had 1 cupcake pan. You will want to distribute the cream cheese a little better than I did since I added a little too much to the first batch and ran out for the second, but they all tasted good. Next time I might try using *tofutti's better than cream cheese {it's dairy free} so I can eat more than one cupcake and not having to worry about it upsetting my stomach.

Chocolate Cream Cheese Cupcakes

Adapted: Table for Two

yields: 2 dozen cupcakes

Notes:
-I cut the sugar down to 1 1/2 cups, the salt content to 1/2 tsp, and used unsweetened applesauce instead of the oil.
-I baked the cupcakes for only 20 minutes.

Cream Cheese Filling:
8 oz cream cheese, softened*
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 egg, room temperature
pinch of salt
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup mini or regular chocolate chips

Cupcakes: dairy & egg free
3 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar {I used 1 1/2 cup}
2/3 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups water
2/3 cup oil or unsweetened applesauce
2 Tbsp white vinegar
2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line 2 muffin/cupcake pans with liners or spray with non-stick spray.
2. In a bowl, mix everything for the filling except the chocolate chips until smooth and fluffy. Fold in the chocolate chips. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt until blended.
4. Using a wooden spoon, stir in the water, oil/applesauce, vinegar, and vanilla into the dry mixture until no streaks of flour are visible.
5. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full of batter then add 1 tablespoon of the filling in the center. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick that's inserted comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

You can either store the cupcakes in an air-tight container at room temperature or in the fridge.