i'll be your guide in the morning, you cover up bullet holes

orange you glad there's cupcakes?
in light of our recent health news, today i made these gluten and dairy free 'orange, baby' cupcakes using bob's red mill vanilla cake mix. i like this particular gluten-free mix for two reasons - because it uses sorghum flour instead of rice flour (rice flour makes baked goods too grainy), and it has potato starch to keep them light. i modified the mix a bit because i was craving an orange-infused treat, and sharkey named them for me.
honestly? they are DELISH, baby!
'orange, baby' cupcakes
1 bag bob's red mill vanilla cake mix
3 eggs, room temperature (or use Ener-G egg replacer if you can't tolerate eggs)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup FRESH SQUEEZED orange juice (do NOT use orange juice from a carton! it won't taste the same)
a few tablespoons orange zest

follow the directions on the bag, but substitute the orange juice for the water and add the zest. bake at 350 degrees till tops are puffy and done. cool, then frost with orange buttercream frosting.
makes 12

orange buttercream frosting
2 sticks butter, softened
(you can use something like spectrum organic shortening for a true dairy-free alternative, but according to my mother, some dairy-allergic folks can tolerate a good quality butter. don't ask, her answer is too complicated. but we are letting sky still have butter for now, and i'm going to ask the doc about it.)
3-4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/4 cup FRESH SQUEEZED orange juice
a few tablespoons orange zest, for garnish

beat the butter for about 30 seconds, then add in 3-4 cups of the sugar. add the orange juice a little at a time. add more sugar if needed, or more juice. (it's frosting, you know what to do.)