Monkey Cupcakes

Tonight we were having a special snack in our children's class at church so I had to come up with an allergy-friendly version for my daughter. The theme was monkeys and the rest of the class was having cupcakes/cake, so naturally I chose to make my girl a monkey cupcake. It was actually fun and turned out pretty good, so I thought I'd share it with you. {Just don't pay too much attention to my lack of artistic ability in the cupcake decorating!}

Use your favorite cupcake recipe. I used a boxed yellow cake mix from Duncan Hines because it contains no milk or nuts and I substitute the 2 eggs with Ener-G Egg Replacer.

Buy or make your favorite chocolate frosting. I used Pillsbury Milk Chocolate which actually has no milk in it....go figure. Always check the label, don't take my word for it.

After you bake and frost your cupcakes, get out 3 solid color cookies that are allergy-friendly. I used graham crackers because that is all I had on hand. Round cookies are ready for use, but if you are using graham crackers, carve out two small half circles and one larger circle to use for ears and the nose/mouth area. See pic.

Next, use white frosting or mini marshmallows to make the whites of the eyes. Then, add a dark pupil on each side. {I used tiny hot chocolate style marshmallows because that's all I had on hand.} You can make the nose and mouth by piping chocolate frosting accordingly or by melting chocolate chips like I did and using a toothpick to draw it on. I didn't have much time, so I went the easy route.

I'm sure you could do a better job, so if you make these, post them on our facebook wall here. I'd love to see your version!

Stained Glass Marshmallow Roll {Dairy-free, Egg-free, Nut-free}

We've arrived at the time of year again where tasty, traditional food is a BIG deal! I'm excited about Thanksgiving dinner in a couple of days, how about you?? And with Thanksgiving and Christmas right around the corner, I've had to come up with some more fun desserts for my girl. I wanted to do something a little different for her this year in the sweets department and as I wandered through the baking aisle, I spotted the colored marshmallows. I was actually looking for marshmallows for something else I'll post about later, but when I saw the colored ones, my tastebuds were catapulted back to my younger years when my mamaw would make Stained Glass Marshmallow Rolls. {Now I'm drooling.} I called my sister to see if she had the recipe, but no luck. So, I googled it and found one that works for me - with minor adjustments, I've got myself a dairy-free, peanut-free treat that I am sure my girl will love! Hope you enjoy it!

Stained Glass Marshmallow Roll {dairy-free, peanut-free}

1 lg bag Vegan Chocolate Chips

1/2 cup Smart Balance Light Buttery Spread {dairy-free}

Pour both ingredients into large bowl and microwave for 2 minutes. Stir and let sit until cool.

1 10.5 oz bag colored mini-marshmallows

Once chocolate is cool, stir in marshmallows and pour mixture onto a sheet of waxed paper. Roll into a log shape.

Shredded Coconut

Spread coconut flakes onto waxed paper and roll the log in the coconut so that it is covered all around. Wrap the finished product in waxed paper and put in fridge to chill. When you are ready to eat it, slice it into 1/2 inch slices and serve! They look like stained glass windows!

Happy Thanksgiving from our allergy-free kitchen to yours!!