I’m on the Stonyfield Farm mailing list (I LOVE YOU STONYFIELD!!) and at least once a month they email me with seasonal recipes. Today’s dish showed up in my inbox about a week ago, and although the granola cupcakes sounded yummy, it was the Yogurt Cheese frosting that really caught my eye. Here was my chance to break out the yogurt cheese maker Stonyfield had recently sent! I conveniently neglected to tell my daughters the frosting was really made of yogurt (HAH!) and they just couldn’t get enough.
Yields 18 cupcakes.
SODIUM CONTENT: 110 mg per serving
INGREDIENTS
BATTER:
1/2 c. butter
1 c. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 T. plus 1 t. pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 c. Stonyfield Farm fat free plain yogurt
2 c. unbleached all purpose flour
1 t. baking soda
1 t. baking powder
2 c. your favorite salt-free granola
FROSTING:
4 c. powdered sugar
6 c. Stonyfield Farm lowfat plain yogurt (to yield 2 cups of yogurt cheese*)
1 t. pure vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS
To make the frosting, place yogurt into a yogurt cheese maker or strainer/colander lined with cheese cloth. Place cheese maker or strainer/colander over a bowl to catch the liquid. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours. As an aside, yogurt cheese can be stored in the refrigerator for up to one week, so once it is ready, you can store it until you have time to make the cupcakes.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Fill a 12-muffin and a 6-muffin tin with paper liners or spray each tin with canola spray, and set aside.
To make the batter, cream butter and sugar in a large bowl. Add the eggs and beat until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and the yogurt. Beat on low speed until well creamed and smooth, stopping once to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
In a separate bowl combine flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Sift into another bowl, then add the granola. Add this dry mixture to the creamed mixture and mix on low speed for about 45 seconds, stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides of the bowl, until the mixture is well blended.
Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake tins, about a heaping 1/4 cup in each. Smooth the tops using a spatula. Bake 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let set for a few minutes, and then place on a cooling rack. Allow to cool completely before frosting.
Make the frosting while the cupcakes are baking. In a medium bowl gently mix yogurt cheese, sugar and vanilla. Refrigerate for 45 minutes before using. Once the cupcakes have cooled, spread generously with frosting and serve.
