Cupcakes and Croutons

My savory cupcakes started out with nothing more than my imagination--what taste combination sounded most appealing? Almost immediately, I thought of kalamata olives and sundried tomatoes. Explosions went off in my head--and thanks to Ratatouille, I'm hopeful that you'll think I'm completely normal, instead of officially obsessed, to experience mental explosions over beautiful food combinations.

But alas, mine is a cautionary tale. As in--don't make my cupcakes. As in--make Lauren's cupcakes. Make Sarah's cupcakes (coming next week). But don't make mine. I spent several hours putting them together, and was delighted to take them along for a portable lunch as Joel and I toured the Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C. But I found them to be dense, heavy, and with a flavor I didn't like (far from attributing this unpalatableness to the afore-mentioned brilliant pairing of olives and sundried tomatoes, I rest the blame squarely upon the shoulders of the gluten free flours I chose). Joel helpfully offered that the chunks of sundried tomatoes were perhaps too big, but that the cupcakes were really not all that bad. So here, I present to you the lessons learned from this experience:

1. I loosely based my recipe upon this recipe which did not call for eggs. I don't recommend egg-free gluten free baking if you can at all help it.
2. If you include olives and sundried tomatoes in your next savory cupcake venture, mince the sundried tomatoes (I slivered them, thinking that chunks would be pleasant to bite into, but I must agree with Joel that the chunks were not pleasant).
3. Include more starches and less flours in your gluten free combination (I did 1 cup sorghum flour, 1/2 cup cornmeal, and 1/2 cup gluten free flour mix).
4. Do try my savory cream cheese frosting on your next batch of savory cupcakes! It made them look good and taste somewhat better.

Savory Cream Cheese Frosting

4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature

4 TB butter, room temperature

Combine ingredients and whip for five minutes, or until smooth and fluffy. Add herbs if desired. Frosts 12 muffins.

Thankfully, my tale has a happy ending. Last night, I cut all the remaining cupcakes into chunks (because neither of us could bear to eat them), tossed them with melted butter, salt, and garlic powder, and baked them in the oven until they were crispy. The previously inedible cupcakes transformed into deliciously golden-brown croutons which married perfectly with a green salad. And they lived happily ever after.

The End.

Cupcake Party: Chocolate Edition

Double Peanut Butter Chocolate
Chocolate Chunk Lava Fudge
Hazelnut Mocha

Cupcake Party: Savory Edition

Spinach Feta