Chocolate Sour Cream Frosting

Cupcakes With Chocolate Sour Cream Frosting

I usually only make two kinds of chocolate frosting/icing:
1. Butter Cream  with melted unsweetened chocolate added
2. Texas cake icing, made in a saucepan with cocoa for the chocolate flavor.

Perpetual efforts to avoid sugar/weight gain keep me from making cake very often, even to the point of usually buying birthday cakes from the store, but it was the evening before my husband's birthday and I had some complications to my day and didn't get out and shop, so I decided to make cupcakes with a french vanilla cake mix I had in the pantry. I didn't have a can of frosting because I don't like canned frosting, not even a little bit, and they don't put enough in the can to fully  frost a cake, and frosting is easy to make and so much tastier, I would rather do my own.

However, I was out of unsweetened chocolate, and I wanted a butter cream texture to pile on to the cupcakes, so I looked for something I could make with chocolate chips, which I make sure to never run out of. (Is there a Chocoholics anonymous?)  Even though I wasn't sure about a saucepan frosting being thick enough, I decided to take a chance on this recipe from the red and white 1981 Better Homes and Gardens cook book. It turned out fantastic!

When I make butter cream I often use yogurt in place of cream because I like the play of the sweetness and chocolate with the little bit of  sour cream type taste the yogurt adds. This frosting has the same delicious combination of flavors.

This recipe says it frosts two 8 or 9 inch layers. It was perfect for 24 cupcakes, but I might increase it by a third for a layer cake. I will provide those variations since I did make the batch larger just in case and ended up having some left over. It was after midnight when I made it and only the late hour and my dedication to my weight loss coaching group kept me from sitting down with a spoon and eating the leftovers.... Hubby had to have one immediately-after all it had officially been his birthday for 20 whole minutes, and he seemed to like it OK....

Chocolate Sour Cream Frosting-original recipe
Frosting becomes stiffer when refrigerated
 One 6 ounce package (1 cup) semisweet chocolate pieces.
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup dairy sour cream
1/4 tsp salt
1 teaspoon Vanilla
2 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar
In a sauce pan melt chocolate and butter over low heat, stirring frequently. Cool about 10 minutes. Stir in sour cream, vanilla, and salt. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating by hand till smooth and of spreading consistency. Store in refrigerator

Variations and Tips
To make a larger batch:
8 oz chocolate chips
6 tablespoons butter (I don't use margarine-butter tastes and keeps better)
3/4 cup sour cream (My favorite sour cream is Tllamook natural, which has less additives)
3-3 1/2 cups powdered sugar, adding the extra gradually to get the texture you want.

-I was a little short on the sour cream and filled in with Plain Greek Yogurt. Yogurt will lower the fat content and Greek yogurt has less water in it, so it is closer to the texture of sour cream. You might be able to experiment with using all Greek yogurt in this recipe. I don't like most Greek yogurt and am not sure how different brands would affect the taste, so I recommend Tillamook brand which is much milder and more pleasant tasting.

-If you are cutting fat you cold also try using lower fat sour cream

-I used a two quart saucepan and beat in the sugar with a good wire whisk. You could put it all in a mixer, but that would make more dishes to wash. Hand whisking was easy and the frosting turned out perfect! Just be sure to get around the edges of the bottom of the pan so it is all mixed evenly. I'm sure you cold mix with a spoon too, but I think the whisk gets out lumps better and also you then have the frosting covered wires that need licking...

-I didn't sift the sugar and the wire whisk created a smooth, lump free texture with very little extra effort.

-I like to take a bowl or pan that needs that kind of stirring to my kitchen table because the height is more comfortable and the beating is more effective and efficient when the mixture is lower to my body than counter height, so my elbows aren't very bent, so experiment to see what height works best for you!  I'd say the whole beating part took less than two minutes. I was able to make the frosting start to finish in about 15-20 minutes.

Master Smoothie Recipe

I've been making this smoothie most days for several weeks now and thought it would be worth sharing. The basic recipe comes from Reader's Digest 21 day Tummy book designed for people who have digestive problems as well as for weight loss. Since it is concerned with digestive issues, it uses Greek yogurt and no milk. I don't have a problem with dairy so I do vary it some by adding some milk sometimes. 

Not my own photo, but this is how my smoothie looks....

Smoothie Master Recipe
6 ounces nonfat plain Greek yogurt -I like Tillamook Greek yogurt the best. It is much more mild tasting than other Greek yogurts. For easy clean up measuring, put the blender on your kitchen scale and zero the display then spoon in the yogurt until it weighs 6 ounces.

2 Tablespoons light Coconut Milk- This really is optional, but it adds flavor and is good for keeping you satisfied longer, and is good for your gut bacteria, stabilizes blood sugar and is anti-immflamitory.  I get a small can and put the contents in a pint jar in the fridge.

1-2 tablespoons water- (frozen fruit requires more water than fresh)

1 teaspoon real maple syrup- Expensive, but I keep a bottle for only my use and a teaspoon at a time doesn't use it up too fast. Costco is a good source. If not, use honey or even sugar. 1 tsp is only 14 calories.

4-6 ice Cubes-

Add One each from the following categories:

Fruit: For  sweetness, flavor, fiber and nutrition
1 Banana            1 cup strawberries           1 orange, peeled, and removed from membranes
2 kiwis              3/4 cup blueberries         3/4 Cup raspberries          20 red grapes
1/2 cup cubed papaya                1/2 cup pineapple chunks

For fat loss boosting magnesium and fiber:
1 Tablespoon:
Chia seeds
Flax seeds or ground flax (If your blender is not too wonderful use the ground flax)
Pumpkin seeds

Belly fat loss boosting Monounsaturated fat source:
1 teaspoon peanut or almond butter

Flavoring: One or more to suit your taste-
1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon powdered ginger or 1 teaspoon fresh grated or minced.

Calories for the typical shake following this recipe: 281 with 20 grams protein, 8.5 grams fat, 9 grams fiber, 35 grams carbohydrates, 59 mg magnesium

Notes: 
I have a really good blender, a Blendtec. I use the pre-programed smoothie setting and it produces a perfectly blended smooth drink with the flax seeds in flecks I can hardly notice. If I were using a regular blender I would get ground flax seed. Keep it in a glass jar in the fridge or freezer since it goes rancid quickly. Chia seeds will probably add a little more body to the smoothie.

I usually make a banana smoothie because it is sweeter, and I like the flavor. I don't like the seeds you get if you use raspberries or blackberries, but the flavor with berries is really good. I do better with blueberries.  I want to try oranges, but the directions say to remove it from the membranes, and I'm not sure if that means each section needs to be taken apart. If so, that is too much work for me! I'll try it eventually and see how it turns out just dropping in the sections after peeling. I think the creamsicle flavor would be really good.

My Variations:
I have whey powder I bought from Costco. It is high in protein but very low in carbs, but even so it adds enough sweetness and flavor to make the difference for me between gag it down and slurp it up. It is expensive, but it's a big bag and lasts quite awhile, and stays good for a long time. I chose CytoSport 100% Whey Vanilla. You really have to read ingredients with whey powders so you don't get one with a lot of sugar in it. This one smells and tastes fantastic. A full serving has 140 calories. When I use it I cut the Greek yogurt in half (3 ounces) and use half a scoop of protein powder. That way I still get the probiortics in the yogurt and still get lots of protein and no extra sugars. A full scoop only has three grams Carbs, but it is amazing what a difference it makes in adding flavor and sweetness 

I also often start by adding 4 ounces of 1% milk, which adds 50 calories. Since the smoothie is my whole breakfast, I don't worry about that much extra calories. When I use milk I leave out the water.

The peanut butter flavor is good with banana, but 1 teaspoon is not very detectable. Still, it is very high calorie, so I watch how much I use.