Gluten-free products ain't what they used to be!  In the not so olden days, these items were fair-to-poor approximations of foods that those who can't eat gluten would endure simply to have some form of baked good.  But the situation has improved considerably, and there are lots of really great products that let you have your cake and eat it too!

Manischewitz has developed a number of new gluten-free products, including yellow and chocolate cake mixes; both include a foil baking dish and even a frosting packet for the sake of convenience.

I was very happy to receive an incredibly generous box of goodies to play with recently, a lovely marketing gift from the Bender Hammerling Group which handles public relations and marketing for several food producers.  This assortment also included several bags of Hawaiian Kettle Style Potato Chips, in addition to a sample of the above-mentioned chocolate cake mix.

Sweet and salty is a flavor combination which is always popular, so I wanted to somehow combine the cake mix and the potato chips ... not the Luau BBQ flavor, I admit!  But some combination was calling to me.

And so, I made mini chocolate cupcakes — entirely gluten-free — and topped them with a brown sugar and crushed potato chip streusel that offered flavor and texture contrasts.  Then, instead of just letting the frosting packet loiter on my pantry shelf, I thinned it with coffee to make a glaze.

Chocolate cake, but with a bit of flair!

Gluten-Free Sweet 'n' Salty Mini Chocolate Cupcakes

Cupcakes:
1 15-ounce package Manischewitz Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake Mix
3 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Streusel:
1 cup Hawaiian Kettle Style Original Flavor Potato Chips, crushed fine
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons butter, melted

Topping:
frosting packet included with cake mix
2 tablespoons freshly brewed coffee

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-cup mini cupcake tin with paper liners.

In a large bowl, stir together the cake mix, eggs and oil; beat until thoroughly mixed.  Fill each cupcake liner 2/3 full with the batter.

In a small bowl, combine the streusel ingredients. Place a heaping 1/4 teaspoon-ful into the center of each cupcake.

Bake cupcakes for 12 minutes until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean; let rest for 2 minutes, then remove from muffin tin and place on a rack.  Repeat with remaining batter and streusel.  Let cupcakes cool completely.

Combine frosting packet and coffee; mix thoroughly with a fork until smooth.  Drizzle over the cupcakes and let glaze set.

Makes 30 mini cupcakes.

Mary Bilyeu writes about her adventures in the kitchen - making dinner, celebrating holidays, entering cooking contests ... whatever strikes her fancy. She is also on a mission to find great deals for her Frugal Floozie Friday posts, seeking fabulous food at restaurants on the limited budget of only $5 per person. Feel free to email her with questions or comments or suggestions: yentamary@gmail.com.

You should also visit Mary's blog — Food Floozie — on which she enthuses and effuses over all things food-related.

The phrase "You Should Only Be Happy" (written in Hebrew on the stone pictured in this post) comes from Deuteronomy 16:15 and is a wish for all her readers - when you come to visit here, may you always be happy.