More and more I’m trying to focus on seasonal eating, since it’s good for both our bodies and our planet. But you know what’s in season in January? Not much. But one of the things that I look forward to every winter is the arrival of the little wooden crates of clementines.
These adorable little easy-to-peel “cuties” are like perfect snack size mini oranges. I thought it would be fun to try to incorporate them into a recipe, and after seeing the Clementine Date Cake in the recent issue of Cooking Light, I was inspired.
But with just two of us in the house, I thought a full cake seemed a bit excessive. More and more I am hearing from readers who would like to see more gluten-free options here. It may have taken me a few tries, but you ask and I deliver…
Cutie Clementine Cupcakes (Gluten-Free)
Ingredients: (makes 12 cupcakes)
- 3 tbsp Earth Balance vegan butter
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 3/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp ground flax
- 5 clementines, peeled and segmented
- 1/2 cup walnuts
- 2/3 cup brown rice flour
- 2/3 cup coconut flour
- 2/3 cup garbanzo bean flour
- 3/4 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 3/4 cup orange (or tangerine) juice
- 1 cup powdered sugar
(Note: If you don’t want to make these gluten-free, you can simply sub in 2 cups AP-flour for the other flours, and remove the added xanthan gum.)
To Prepare: Start by preheating the oven to 325 degrees. Then add the Earth Balance, coconut oil, and brown sugar to a mixing bowl and cream on medium speed until light and fluffy.
Coconut oil gives these cupcakes a rich flavor and moist texture. If you don’t already have some in your pantry, I highly recommend you pick up a jar!
In a small bowl, mix the tablespoon of ground flax with 3 tbsp water, and set aside for a few minutes to thicken (this creates a “flax egg”). Once it’s ready, add the “egg” and the vanilla to the mixer and beat in slowly.
Next, in a food processor (I busted out the handy mini prep for this!), add three peeled and segmented clementines and pulse a few times.
Add 1/2 cup walnuts on top of the clementines, and then pulse until the mixture is pureed and liquidy (that’s a technical term). Set aside.
In a separate bowl, combine all dry ingredients – brown rice flour, coconut flour, garbanzo flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and xanthan gum. Once mixed, alternate adding the flour mixture and the orange juice to the creamed butter and sugar – beating on medium speed to combine.
Once the flour mixture and orange juice are added, add the clementine/walnut mixture and beat for at least one minute. Coat your muffin tin with non-stick spray and spoon the cupcake batter into the cups. They will be very full! Because this mixture is gluten free, it’s a bit stickier and fluffier than traditional cupcake batter, but trust me – the end result is delicious.
Bake for 22 minutes in a 325 degree oven.
While the cupcakes bake, prepare your powdered sugar glaze. I actually used this Trader Joe’s “Dynamo” juice in lieu of orange juice – it is a blend of orange, grape, and tangerine juices – yum!
Add 2 tbsp juice to 1 cup powdered sugar and whisk to combine.
Set aside and wait for the cupcakes to come out of the oven.
Set up a cooling rack over a cookie sheet or a piece of parchment paper – anything that can get messy underneath. When the cupcakes are out of the oven, carefully transfer them to the cooling rack.
Now comes the fun part. Peel and segment your two extra clementines, and grab some extra walnuts for garnish. Take a tiny bit of glaze and apply it to the top of your cupcake – just a dollop.
As soon as you add the drop of glaze, set a slice of clementine and a walnut on top so that they stick in the gooey glaze. Do this until all 12 cupcakes are garnished.
Then use the additional glaze to drizzle all over the top of the cupcakes! Yuuuuuuum.
The glaze will run off the edges and drip underneath onto the cookie sheet, so the bottoms won’t be messy or sticky. Allow the glaze to set for 10 minutes before eating.
Don’t let the muffin-like outer appearance fool you – these are a deliciously sweet treat! There is actually not much sugar in the cupcake itself, but the glaze more than makes up for it in sweetness.
Casey and I kept trying to figure out exactly what these taste like when it suddenly dawned on me. Glazed donuts! These are cupcake donuts. And I definitely consider that to be a good thing.
Gluten-free baking is definitely its own art form, and while these aren’t the fluffy birthday cupcakes you might be used to, they are dense and delicious and addicting.
So delicious, in fact, that while I was taking these photos – my dog at three of them! $%&#!
This recipe is tasty enough for everyone, with just a little something special for my gluten-free friends.
Enjoy!
106 Comments so far
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Wow I’ve never seen a cake recipe with clementines in it before! They look great! And you’re right, if they taste like glazed donuts, that’s a very good thing! :P
Haha love your dogs! :D
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Wow those look amazing! You’ve got some crazy things in your cupboard girl (garbanzo bean flour?!) but I like it :)
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 11th, 2011 at 5:38 pm
Haha I try to keep a few GF flours on hand for times like these. :)
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LOL – our dog used to sneak baked goods too. He once ate a muffin STRAIGHT OUT OF THE OVEN that fell on the floor. He squeaked the whole time b/c it was so hot, but he gulped it down nonetheless.
Can’t wait to try these – thank you!!!!!
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Photos look amazing!
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 11th, 2011 at 5:38 pm
Thank you!
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Wow all I can say is CUTE! Clemies + cupcakes = cuteness
I made some orangish blueberry cupcakes myself: http://sketch-freeveganeating.blogspot.com/2011/01/vegan-muffins-monthly-polkaroo-muffins.html
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They look absolutely wonderful. I wish you were my next door neighbor and I could hop on by for one!
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 11th, 2011 at 5:38 pm
Too bad we already at almost ALL of them! (I wish I was kidding) :)
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GAH I can’t handle it…so fantastic! In my house, two people go through one of those cutie crates in about 1.5 days, they’re so delicious and superior to any other clementine!
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I LOVE clementine season!! They are my absolute favorite.
I eat through them so quickly that I never think to save any to bake with…but now maybe I will!
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They look delicious Emily! Good for you going back for a second try. I have been doing a lot of experimenting lately and the hardest part is revisiting something that isn’t quite right.
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 11th, 2011 at 5:47 pm
totally agree. i hate making recipes several times in a row, but sometimes it has to happen.
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They sound awesome. I’m a sucker for glazed donuts too, so that makes them even more exciting.
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 11th, 2011 at 6:04 pm
Once I realized they tasted like donuts, I seriously could NOT stop eating them.
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These look out of this world! i love thepicture of the clemintes in the food processor! I’ve never seen something like that before. Yummy!!
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I have a terrible habit of reading TDG on my long bus ride home from work…and always get super famished because everything looks so freaking delicious! Luckily I happen to have everything on hand for these little gems, so as soon as I get home I intend to bake some! Who needs dinner when you can have gf cupcakes?! (don’t answer that.)
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 11th, 2011 at 6:03 pm
Well I CAN answer that, because I had three of them for lunch today. Gulp. :)
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wow, these look amazing! it’s crazy how beautiful putting clementine pieces and walnuts on a muffin can make it look so pretty.
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Bahahaha! I love that your dog ate them :)
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These look fabulously beautiful! I eat a lot of oranges, but I don’t think to incorporate them into my meals, smoothies and baking. You have inspired me :)
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Thanks for more GF recipes! I love clementines too.
I have a friend who has TONS of muffin recipes for dogs if you ever want to bake JUST for them. :-)
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 11th, 2011 at 6:03 pm
Ha – as if they don’t get enough when my back is turned! That’s a good idea though, maybe I should make homemade treats.
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These look delicious… can’t wait to try this recipe! I like to make vegan recipes but not tell my husband… he gets all judgemental before he tastes things!
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Seriously fabulous photos in this post!!! Love what the final product looks like. I’ll have to make these soon as they are pretty friendly to the detox I’m doing! The only things I don’t have are brown rice flour + xanthan gum.
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 11th, 2011 at 6:19 pm
Ahhh THANKS! Learned from the best. :) Loving your detox posts – can’t wait to see how you feel!
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These look awesome- ever since I saw Angela’s clementine creamsicle, I’ve wanted a clem dessert!
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Looks good! Be careful though, not all vanilla is gluten-free.
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These look divine! I eat at least 3 clementines a day! so addictive! I’m sure i’d love these gluten free cupcakes!!
xoXOxo
Jenn @ Peas & Crayons
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Soo excited to try these, and gluten-free = AMAZING!
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Those photographs are beautiful! I would never have thought to put clementines in a muffin, those look really good.
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I love that your dog ate the cupcakes. That had me cracking up! Those look so good – thank you for posting a GF recipe!!
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I cannot wait to try these! They look so yummy! And I am pretty sure that I have all of the ingredients on hand already. Woo to the hoo!
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they look SO good! Can’t wait to try them :)
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Your dogs are so well fed :)
Love clementines! Love how easy they are to peel…I eat two a day throughout winter it seems.
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YES!! I can’t wait to try this, my house is LOADED with clementines and I want muffins! Thank you for the recipe:)
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WOW! These look great! Enjoy them while watching the snow pile up!
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These look seriously amazing. I want to make these even though I dont have any of those flours on hand. Mouth is drooling. I don’t blame your dog for snatching three of these up.
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They look fantastic! Wow. I’m impressed. :)
I hate coconut with a passion, so I’ll be leaving that out (replace it with another oil maybe?), but I am so happy to see a yummy gluten-free recipe!
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 7:55 am
Another oil would work, although it really doesn’t taste like coconut. Glad you like them!
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Delicious!!! I personally go through a wooden crate of clementines a week. I absolutely *love* them! Yum!!
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Looks delicious!!!!! Where do you buy coconut oil? Do they sell it at Whole Foods by chance?
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 7:54 am
They sell it at Whole Foods! Make sure to look for the cold-pressed unrefined type!
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Oh! If you have any leftovers that need to be eaten in Old Town…
Also, Hubs and I have eaten a crate of clementines in about two days. So good but maybe a little moderation next time? Yum!
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beautiful pictures!
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Just when I’m craving sugar I come by your blog :)))) Gimme one…or eight!!
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Those look awesome! I actually prefer my cupcakes a little denser. I don’t have an allergy to gluten, but I love the recipes because the GF flours tend to be denser than regular flour. YUMmmmmmmy.
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These are like a work of art! NICE JOB!!!! I bet the flavor is off the hook..and they are vegan + GF. not easy to do..you make it look…perfect!
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Could you substitute something else for coconut oil? Can u taste the coconut? I am not a fan of coconut flavoring so I would hate to buy a bottle for baking and not use it!
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 7:54 am
You could use canola oil instead, but the coconut oil gives it really good moisture. There is definitely NO coconut flavor, but if you really hate it you might not want to buy a whole bottle.
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Yum! Those look great! What a fun dessert and I love how you garnished them.
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thank you so much!!! i have recently had to go gluten free and have been kind of lost, so this is a dream. The ingredients are on top of my grocery list, i cant hardly wait to make them!!
cheers
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So cute!
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I’m excited to try this!
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These sound awesome! Nom nom nom ;) And I’ve got to try that Trader Joes juice :) Didn’t even know they had that!
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these just look amazing. i wish i had all the ingredients to make them tomorrow!
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These look phenomenal! I don’t know if any of the stores around me will have the lengthy list of ingredients these need but I’m going to definitely try.
The photos in this post are fantastic btw. The cupcakes really pop!
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I lurve me some cuties and these look incredible. Donuts make me happy and a healthier version makes me even happier. Awesome foodgawker quality photos, nice job!
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Those look and sound amazing! Can’t wait to try them.
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Those look delicious! I’m sure your dog thoroughly enjoyed his share!
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These are adorable! Loving the photography! You go girl!
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Those are too cute! I love clementines. I got super excited when I saw how inexpensive they were at the store the other day! :)
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I have been eating clementines constantly over the last couple of weeks… I am drooling over these cupcakes, particularly the glaze… that juice sounds holy yum!
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“Cutie Clementine Cupcakes”, such a catchy name :)
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What a creative recipe, those look so cute and good! Your photos are beautiful too.
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Cupcake doughnuts? I could go for one of those about now. I imagine it is WAY better than hospital food. ;)
Thanks so much for the congrats on my site! :)
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I’d love to try gluten free baking but I’m not sure I want to invest in whole bags of exotic flours yet. Are these flours usually available in bulk bins?
It’s funny that I’m reading this about seasonal eating as I eat my breakfast laden with blueberries…what can I say they were on CRAZY sale at Safeway!
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 7:53 am
Hmmm I doubt they would be since they are gluten-free, and might risk cross contamination in the bulk bins? But Whole Foods carries them, and they aren’t very expensive.
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Cupcake donuts? And gluten-free? You had me at clementine, really. These look amazing!
xo
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Emily, I’m curious what do you do with all the things you cook? Do you two eat it all? Freeze it? Try to make smaller recipes?
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 9:01 am
Honestly? We eat it all! My husband has an amazing metabolism, and he usually eats about 60% of what I made, and I’ll eat the other 40%. Of course, that is assuming our dogs didn’t get it all. :) We work out a lot so that we can EAT a lot!
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I have gluten-free flours on hand as well, as I do a lot of baking/cooking with a friend who is GF. But I have never seen garbanzo bean flour & don’t have a whole foods nearby — do you think there would be another flour that one could swap for the garbanzo bean flour?
they look incredible, by the way! we actually just made vegan, GF cupcakes a few weeks ago with clementines in them, from glutenfreegoddess[blogspot.com]
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 9:12 am
I think another GF flour would work just fine – those just happened to be three of the options I had on hand. Maybe millet flour or sorghum flour? I’m sure whatever you have will still taste good. :)
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Totally random but…did you ever purchase a dehydrator? Do you have any recommendations? I really enjoy reading your blog…wonderful recipes and helpful hints sprinkled with tons of encouragement!!!! Thanks!
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 9:23 am
Nope – still don’t have one! My only hesitation is that they are so BIG, and I’m not sure where we would store one in our tiny kitchen. It’s definitely on my list though!
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So yum to the cupcakes!!!! And random double duty ingredient. A friend of mine puts a little coconut oil mixed with salt as an exfoiliant for hands and feet. Then you just wash your hand with some good smelling soap and follow with your favorite lotion. Leaves your hands super soft and moisturized. Got to love it when kitchen ingredients double for other uses!!!!
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 9:39 am
I have heard of people putting in on their faces as a moisturizer too! Very cool. I’m not brave enough. :)
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Adorable!!
I love the idea of adding clementines to cupcakes. What a genius idea. :D
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I’ve gotta say, those are like, the cutest baked good ever!
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Wow, Emily! These look fantastic! They’re so pretty:)
I love doughnuts, but I never eat them (for obvious reasons), and just the other day I was thinking that I really need to find a healthy treat that tastes like a doughnut…I kid you not. You are my hero!! I can’t wait to try these:)
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 11:21 am
Seriously, they taste exactly like donuts. Aaaaaand they are all gone. :)
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I love clementines and cupcakes so I can only imagine how amazing this must taste! It looks beautiful! I most definitely need to try making these.
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Those ARE really cute. I love clems and I bet those muffins are delicious!
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Yum! Those look so good. I adore clementines
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another form to feed on my latest addiction?! i love it. thanks, em!
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 11:20 am
It’s all about incorporating fruit servings into dessert, right? :)
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these look great!! have you seen the recipe from nigella lawson for clementine cake? she uses the entire fruit, including the skin!! and i think its also gluten free.
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 12th, 2011 at 11:20 am
I haven’t! I had only seen the Cooking Light recipe, and I think they used whole un-peeled clementines too! I wasn’t brave enough. :)
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these look so tasty! and i am loving the wood platter- i am obsessed with all wooden/olive wood kitchen things :)
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These sound a thousand times better than the Clementine muffins I made the other day! Blending the oranges in a food processor is a great idea. Next time I’ll try that!
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I am a huge fan of your blog and of you. My in-laws live in Alexandria so I am always thinking I might see you guys some day when we visit. Ever since reading Kingsolver’s Animal Vegetable Miracle I have been a seasonal eater and have bought most of our family’s food from farmers’ markets (easy to do when you live in the San Francisco bay area). We have stopped eating anything with preservatives and eat very few processed foods. So I ask this question out of innocent curiosity because I really do want to know. (Hope it is not offensive). For vegan eating, how do you reconcile that a lot of the animal food substitutes are so highly processed? Maybe I am wrong and they are not, it would be really fun to have a Mr. Rogers type trip to the earth balance factory and see how the vegan butter is made. Or coconut flour? Maybe you and Casey could be the vegan Alton Brown on the Food Network and show all of us how the vegan ingredients come to be and how to use them in recipes? I have been thinking about incorporating more vegan recipes in our diet but most of them call for fake meat or fake cheese (all made from a veggie base so not all bad, but still- a lot more processed than anything else I eat) and it seems like that involves a lot of chemicals and flavorings that I would never normally eat in our fresh seasonal farmer’s market diet. What is xantham gum? That seems like an ingredient I would see on a package and put back on the shelf. If I don’t know what it is and it sounds chemical-ish, I try not to feed it to my family. But I know you are a healthy informed eater and you use it a lot, so when you have time, I would love some insight.
Thanks!
Jessica
Mom to 3 kids just trying to make good food choices
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Thanks so much for doing a GF recipe. I have been gluten free for almost 3 years and it is always great to try a new recipe.
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These cupcakes are so cute! Excited that you get to have an awesome vegan vacation to NYC. It’s sad that I’m a Boston girl and have only been to the big apple twice. Hoping to explore it this summer :)
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Hi Emily! First, I’m a fairly new reader and love your website! I tend to eat vegan and gluten free and so the foods you feature such as millet, oats, green smoothies and nutritional yeast are my favorites. I cracked up reading about how you used to write about how you couldn’t cook. You’re recipes today are so amazing looking and I can attest that your black bean burgers are amazing! What a difference a few years can make eh?
Speaking of delicious food, these cupcakes look amazing! I have one question for you. I am also allergic to cane sugar. Do you think I could substitute the brown sugar with honey/stevia/molasses?
Thanks!
Rufus
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These look amazing and I am sure they are delicious!
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Thanks for sharing this recipe! I love clementines and have no choice but to be gluten free so it’s perfect! :)
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Thank you for the recipe. Looks so good.
We just got home from our 1st trip to a Trader Joe’s store. It was a drive for us 50″ one way plus turnpike tolls so it will have to be an occasional trip. I saw there is a whole foods in the same general area so we might have to try both next time. They have a lot of stuff and surprisingly inexpensive. The only problem was I was freezing. It was very cold outside and had just snowed outside but still it was cold. But I was thrilled with the choices.
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I can’t wait to try out this recipe! (LOVE that they taste like doughnuts!)
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“Gluten-free baking is definitely its own art form, and while these aren’t the fluffy birthday cupcakes you might be used to, they are dense and delicious and addicting” YOU are so right Emily!
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I just made these! They are tasty!
I also made your pomegranate upside down cake and took it to my family’s Christmas celebration. It was AMAZING. And, my life was changed with your tofu tutorial.
I am clealy loving all of your recipes.
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 13th, 2011 at 9:34 am
Thanks Cary! I am so glad you like the recipes! Always so nice to hear. :)
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I wish I had all those exotic flours– sadly, I do not :(
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Emily Malone Reply:
January 13th, 2011 at 9:27 am
If you don’t want to make it gluten-free, you an always just sub in all-purpose flour instead!
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I’m not joking……I’m going to make these today. They look amazing! And I’m also into seasonal eating and on a citrus kick!
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What are the nutritional benefits of coconut oil and butter? I’ve tried to research it, but most of what I’ve found has been that it is high in saturated fat. I don’t know how accurate that is, though I do know that I’ve read that a lot of tropical oils are high in saturated fat.
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Hi Emily,
Do you think I could make these with just rice flour? Or are the other flours necessary? Thanks!
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