coffee + cupcakes

[photo by yours truly]

I've been craving coffee something fierce lately. I adore tea, yet even so, my heart's been yearning for French Roast. Coffee is technically on my yeast-free diet, but lately, it's too strong of a jolt for my weary body. I've been on good behavior coffee-wise - ask Johnny - but this morning I reached my good-girl limit. So, my personal, handsome barista prepared an aromatic espresso topped w/cinnamon. I thanked the good Lord aloud, "Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things: making thee young and lusty as an eagle." [Psalm 103:5] I inhaled the aroma (isn't coffee the best smell in the world?). I admired a recent mail delivery: a yogurt notebook. It surprises me how much I like the color white these days. The mini notebook's cover sports shades of white linen, a cup of plain yogurt, a cup of berries, and a wooden spoon. Very meditative. I miss yogurt a lot, but it is something to look forward to, and I do.

You would think a yeast-free diet is always difficult for me, but I'm rather accustomed most of the time. And there are foodstuffs I love such as refried black beans and cedar plank salmon (not served together). Yet every once in awhile, I'd give my favorite book to be able to walk into the kitchen and whip up cinnamon scones or blueberry muffins. Or cupcakes. Alright, I've also been craving cupcakes. Like right this minute.

[photo courtesy of In my tiny kitchen...]

A few weeks ago, I had several crazy dreams - some of epic proportions, it seemed. In between cinematic dreamscapes, my sleeping brain spun reels of myself eating no-no's. Here is one: I was eating a cupcake, and rationalizing. There were two cupcakes in front of me. I thought, "One little cupcake can't hurt. Come on, how much yeast can it really feed?" I picked up a cupcake and took a luxurious bite. I focused on the icing (my favorite part). It was good, but not as good as I remembered (this dream was rather realistic). Then I started to panic, and I woke up relieved. These dreams make me paranoid!

The truth is, as much I miss certain desserts or entrées, I'm not tempted to cheat on my diet during waking hours. When Johnny brings home Ben & Jerry's, sure, I could take a few bites, but such a dietary slip-up would feed unwelcome yeast in my body and make me feel even worse. Ice cream is just not worth it. However, I still want a cupcake! I read about them everywhere, see cute photos.... Thank God, I ran across Elana's recipe for vanilla cupcakes (using coconut flour) w/chocolate frosting.

That recipe is gluten-free. The irony of my diet is that in terms of strictness, yeast-free makes gluten-free look like a bountiful cornucopia. For example, no agave nectar for me. No honey or sugar of any kind. But in the next week or two, I'm gonna tap into my creative side and play with that cupcake recipe. As far as I know, grapeseed oil is OK, but I'm more familiar w/coconut oil. I'll use that and erythritol, and unsweetened baking chocolate or raw cacao powder. I think I'll try coconut cream, too ~ for both chocolate and vanilla frosting. When it's vanilla icing, I'll sprinkle coconut flakes on top. Mmm, this will be a fun project, don't you think?

My last thought has nothing to do with dining, but we're rather proud of our blooming lilies (since we normally have black thumbs). A few more popped up yesterday:

[photo by Johnny]