Baking with Baby Food

I am not a fan of butter, oil, etc when baking.  More often than not, I substitute any butter or oil amounts with equal parts applesauce.  For example, a recipe calls for 1/2 cup oil, I use 1/2 cup applesauce.  I have yet to find unsweetened applesauce or even sweetened applesauce.  Prior to our move, I had anticipated I would make my own applesauce.  Scratch that idea, I use apple baby food.  All recipes have been successful and buying baby food is so much easier than making my own applesauce.

Last week, after the Brownie Blunder post, canned pumpkin was recommended.  I have yet to find canned pumpkin, but was advised to make my own.  I considered making my own pumpkin puree and am still considering the idea, but when I was in the baby food section, stocking up on apple baby food, I saw a large amount of PUMPKIN baby food.  I grabbed a few containers and returned home to try my luck with a recent recipe discovery, pumpkin cupcakes.  To my surprise and delight (and Ryan's approval) the pumpkin cupcakes were a huge success.  I was going to make a cream cheese frosting but I could not find a good cream cheese that day, so I reverted to a marscapone frosting.  Not only did Ryan approve, but our driver Vitaly commented that they were very delicious.  I have a tendency to give our drivers various baked goods.  I think Sergei is too shy to comment, or maybe he hates my baking.

Baking with baby food is a success!  I have found a few more pumpkin recipes that call for canned pumpkin and I plan on using pumpkin baby food.  I may try making my own pumpkin puree.  Ryan is scheduled to leave for another business trip, so I will have even more free time.  Now, I just need to find a pumpkin.  The "Russian" pumpkins have been a bit odd looking, I just want a beautiful, orange, round pumpkin.  

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Marscapone Frosting.  Delicious recipe (called for pineapple), very yummy!

I tried to get "fancy" with the frosting.  I put it in a ziploc bag and tried to do cute "designs".  Ryan's favorite turnout is on the left, mine is on the right.

Since I am on the topic of food.  I have been busy in the kitchen.  A few pictures of my other "creations."

Dinner the other night was Shrimp Jambalaya.  I found a Jambalaya package we brought with during the move, purchased at Harry and David's.  I added fresh onion, jalapeños (grown by me) and shrimp.  It was good but not my favorite.  I wish I would have added other/more spices.  Ryan thought it would have been great with some spicy sausage.

Honey-Jalapeno Chicken with Soba Noodles.  I had a lot of jalapeños ready on my plants, so I was using as many as possible.  Very fast, easy, delicious recipe.  Yum Yum!

The Honey-Jalapeno Chicken called for cilantro.  I had a ton of extra and I couldn't throw it away.  I have learned that our local grocery stores tend to carry then change their mind and not carry certain items.  I love, love, love cilantro so I decided to freeze and save it.  You never know.  

My research online said to puree with olive oil, freeze in ice cube trays.  I didn't know if the cilantro flavor would soak into the plastic ice cube tray so I took precautionary measures.  

Frozen cilantro cubes.  I was sure to label, I don't need Ryan biting into one, not knowing what it is.  :) haha  By the way, definitely no Ziploc bags in Russia, this bag (and many others) was brought in our sea shipment.