Oatmeal + Blueberry Muffins

SO these aren't vegan. Yea yea I know, I'm a terrible human bean, but my Lenten vows ended with Easter. While I still eat ~mostly vegan, I have been eating dairy in moderation. The # 1 perpetrator has been yogurt--Fage is whats up.

Anyways, these little muffs could be easily veganized used 1 egg replacer or even 1/2 a mashed up banana may work. Oatmeal is my favorite grain, I love everything about it. From the Quaker Oats Quaker to the lovely texture it provides, ahh splendid. Plus, the addition of ze oats makes these energy packed bundles of breakfast joy. This recipe is slightly modified, but 100% based off of: http://familyfriendsandfood.blogspot.com/2009/03/oatmeal-blueberry-muffins.html, a cute blog I found via Tastespotting. The only changes that I made were to use rice milk + 2 t of apple cider vinegar instead of buttermilk, 1/4 t cloves, and I added about 1 t of vanilla. If you like your muffins to be sweet, you should up the sugar, but I think they are perfect just the way they are :P

I will leave you with Donatello...the muffin that closely resembles a Ninja Turtle...

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Lemony-Bloob Cuppycakes

"Give me natural flavorings or give me death"

Blueberries are whats up. When raw, they are a fancy snack, but the minute you heat them up.. MAGIC! They turn into a deliciously tart and fantastically dark purpley magenta-y sauce that is awesome for adding an edgy punch to many desserts. I'm not a huge fan of food coloring because of its occasionally carcinogenic properties, so blueberry sauce is a great sub for pink.

To make these lovlies, i started with the basic lemon cupcake recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Takeover the World and altered the vegan fluffy buttercream from the same book. The only change that I made to the cupcakes was using the juice of half a lemon rather than the lemon exracts because that shtuff is way $$$.

Pseudo-Jam:

scant 1/2 c fresh blueberries
1/4 c natural sugar
1 t lemon juice
1 T cornstarch

Heat the first 3 ingredients up in a small saucepan over medium high heat until they begin to boil while smooshing the berries the the side of a spoon against the side of the pan. Lower the heat and stir for a few minutes while added the cornstarch. This addition might violate some sauce rules, but whatevs. If it is super runny, just add a little more starch--it should be comparable to a homemade jelly.

Once this has cooled down completely, you can add it to your buttercream! It's best to do after everything else has been mixed otherwise it will probably get all curdly and separated and NOT pretty. Pipe on as you please and enjoy the perfect combo of lemon and blueberry in heavenly cupcake form.