Look, just when I thought I'd moved onto more sophisticated fare I found myself wanting to provide a dessert for a Frameline Board of Directors meeting to be held at our house. And really, when people are having a casual working dinner at your house, you don't want to burden them with fussy. A handheld dessert really fits the bill. So I delved again into Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Romero's little Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World cookbook and decided to make the S'mores cupcake. This is a really really rockin' recipe that makes impressive looking and tasting cakes. The cake actually contains finely ground graham cracker crumbs, the frosting is scattered with shaved chocolate and more cracker crumbs, then topped with a little graham cracker. But what got my attention more than anything was the most basic frosting recipe I'd bypassed for fancier recipes in that book again and again: Vegan Fluffy Buttercream Frosting! I don't care what you're wanting to frost, go with this one. You can make it any flavor, it has the body, it won't weep or get wimpy or melt. Not one of those graham crackers I stuck into the frosting fell over.
Here’s Isa and Terry’s Vegan Fluffy Buttercream Frosting. It makes about four cups worth and with a piping bag, you’ll use every bit.
½ cup nonhydrogenated shortening
½ cup Earth Balance
3 ½ cups sifted confectioners’ sugar plus more as necessary
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
¼ cup plain soy creamer
Beat the shortening and margarine together until well combined and fluffy. Add the sugar and beat for about three more minutes. Add the vanilla and creamer. Beat another five to seven minutes until fluffy, correcting the consistency to your liking. Think of the possibilities!
