Celebrating National Coffee Day with Single Serving Coffee Cake

Saturday was National Coffee Day.

Did anyone celebrate?

[Source]

Last year I wrote a whole post on coffee for National Coffee Day, but this year I decided I would try to do something even better to celebrate it.

I mean, don’t get me wrong.  I love regular coffee.  I have a cup almost every morning at work during the week.  Gets me through my morning.  Especially when it’s Pumpkin Spice, Blueberry, or French Vanilla flavored.  YUM.  Last week I discovered Green Mountain coffee on the cheap at Ohlin’s Bakery in Cushing Square and drinking it out of my mug with breakfast while working from home was so satisfying.

The cup I got (well, let’s be honest, the cup that Ashley spotted me $2 for) at Ohlin’s Bakery again on Saturday morning after we took the barre class at Boston Body Pilates was also so satisfying.  I mean, I had to go in.  It was National Coffee Day!

But this year… I decided to try to make coffee CAKE.  Individual coffee cakes I should say.

It’s the little things, people, little things.

Like coffee cake… supposedly.

Single Serving Coffee Cake

Recipe inspired by  Chocolate Covered Katie

Ingredients
Note the recipe below is for one serving, so I did this twice to make Tim one too.

For the batter:

• 2 tbsp almond flour
• 1 tbsp coconut flour
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tablespoon plus 2 tsp water
• 2 tsp applesauce
• 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract

For the streusel: 

• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 2.5 tsp brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp applesauce
• tiny pinch of salt
• Pecan halves

Directions

1. Combine batter dry ingredients and mix well.
2. Add wet and mix until just mixed.
3. In a tiny bowl, combine all streusel ingredients.
4. Fill a ramekin (or a coffee mug!) halfway with the batter.  Sprinkle on two-thirds of the streusel, then spoon the remaining batter on top.  Finally, sprinkle on the rest of the streusel and top with extra pecan halves.
5. Cook around 1-2 minutes in the microwave.

 

Results
Did you guys pick up on the “try to do something,” the “try to make,” and the “supposedly?”  I really wanted this to be SO delicious, and while it was good and hit the spot for my sweet craving that day, something about it was off.  I don’t know if it’s because I played with the flours instead of just using wheat flour like I normally would have?  Or maybe because I substituted applesauce in place of oil or butter to cut the fat content?  I think that was it, but the coffee cake was missing something… not enough to RUIN the dessert so I’m not saying DON’T make it, but something caused the ingredients to not “mesh” together like I would have envisioned.  Or maybe it’s because I didn’t cook these in the oven and opted for the easy microwave out?  Maybe next time I should go for the muffin tin at 350 for 12 minutes instead.

Meh.  I still enjoyed them, and Tim swore he liked them, but now I want to try again and make them better.  Thoughts?!

Did you celebrate National Coffee Day?  How? 

Now I’m off to Two A Day Tuesday.  Have a great night, all!

Reader Recipe! Erica’s Carrot Pulp Muffins

Hi everyone!  Can you believe yesterday started a new month already?  Today’s post is the second post in my latest series called “Reader Recipes.”  In Reader Recipes, I am highlighting one F&F reader a month so they can share their fave recipes with all of you.  This month’s recipe comes from Erica, a former class member of mine (we miss you at the Y, Erica!).  You can follow Erica through her tumblr account at erocksrunning.

Reader Recipe of the Month:  Erica’s Carrot Pulp Muffins

A few months ago, I juiced way more carrots than necessary and ended up with a bag of carrot pulp.  I didn’t want to just throw it away… so I asked for suggestions.  A friend sent a link my way for some awesome looking muffins.  It was also a grocery day, so I figured I’d pick up the random ingredients that I don’t stock normally (agave nectar? who has that on the regs??) and whip these bad boys up before my pulp wilted (??) or whatever it does.

After I picked Thing 1 up from school, we started.  The best part of letting kids help you cook, other than the not-big-at-all mess afterwards, is the optimism.  It looked like gross mush to me but she was all “Mom, these are going to be awesome!” and “Mom, these will be delish because we’re working so hard!”.  Thing 2 was just drinking the agave nectar right out of the bottle and licking whole wheat flour off the counter.  Super helpful.

Carrot Pulp Muffins

Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 3/4 cup sucanat or brown sugar
• 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 4 medium to large pastured eggs, beaten
• 2 cups carrot pulp
• 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease about 12 muffin tins thoroughly.  Mix dry ingredients first.  In separate bowl, mix sugar with olive oil, water and vanilla.  Add beaten eggs and blend thoroughly.  Lightly incorporate the carrot pulp and nuts.  Finally add dry ingredients.  Put into muffin pan and cook  for about 20 minutes.  Let cool for about 10 minutes and serve.

Anywho, we made half with walnuts and half with coconut.  The recipe called for applesauce which, I feel, always makes my baked goods feel like bouncy balls but whatevs.  Both varieties of the muffin were super healthy and pretty tasty at the same time.  If I had to vote for one, I’d say add coconut.

If you happen to have any extra carrot pulp lying around, USE THIS RECIPE!  Def worth making for a healthy snack or breakfast!

Thanks for the recipe, Erica!

If you are interested in being featured as part of Reader Recipes, please email me at akaralekas@gmail.com.  I’m open to any recipes (healthy or not!), you just need to be willing to write up a little post about it and photograph your food.  Would love to feature you, and you do not need to be a blogger to participate!