Substitutions

One of the recipes in my new cookbook was for a brownie cupcake made with a package of cake mix and a can of pumpkin - nothing else. Some of the peeps I work with were intrigued by this, so we tried it out at the office on Friday. Our conclusion? Not a winner. First off, there's no way the consistency could be mistaken for a brownie - it was this odd combination of fluffy and yet incredibly dense. On top of that, it tasted more like pumpkin than chocolate. Back to the drawing board...

I read once that you can substitute a can of pureed black beans plus a cup of water for the oil & eggs in a brownie mix. Honestly doesn't sound like a great combo with chocolate, but the nutrition value made me curious enough to try it. I will say that while it cooked, the house smelled of brownies, while I cut it, the texture appeared to be brownie-like, but when I tasted it...beans. Beans, beans, beans...it tasted like a chewy bar of beans. Ugh. Another item in the trash.

The next thing that I tried, which was successful, but still not the perfect alternative, was using applesauce and yogurt instead of the oil and eggs. The flavor was fantastic, they were even a bit chewy, but still a little too much on the cake-fluffy side. Still a winner in my book, but I think I can do even better than that. I'm going to try it using ONLY yogurt next time - no applesauce, and another I want to try is pureed prunes instead of the oil and eggs as well.

You may be wondering why I am obsessed with substituting the oil and eggs...and to be honest, I don't have a really good reason. I just like a challenge, and when the girls at work put me up to it - who was I to refuse?? Thank goodness boxed mixes are cheap. I'll keep you posted on more experiments as I try them. Until then, I thought I'd share my favorite, healthy fruit dip recipe. Enjoy!

Fruit Dip

2 (3 ounce) packages instant cheesecake pudding mix (or flavor of your choice*)
1 cup milk
1-2 t. almond extract (to taste)
1 (16 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed


In a medium bowl, mix together the pudding mix, milk and almond extract. Beat in the thawed frozen whipped topping. Chill 1 hour in the refrigerator before serving.

*You can try a variety of puddings and extracts with this. I've used lemon pudding without extract, white chocolate with ameretto...but the cheesecake and almond is my personal favorite. You could even make it with a chocolate pudding and almond extract and I'm sure it would be delish with some fresh strawberries!