Moving Spells Death For Food and Food Photos

If anyone of you wondered where I ran off to recently, I was in the midst of moving! I recently was lucky enough to move from my god forsaken crap-hole of a rental house to a much nicer area of Denver. I am happy to announce that I can actually go a day without hearing wall-shaking music blasted from all my neighbors! (And when I say ALL, I mean that literally, on all sides neighbors would play music like they wished to share their terrible taste in music with the world, regardless of time of day.) So, since moving is absolute hell in and of itself, I did not take any food photos….either from lack of energy or lack of memory. Also, needless to say, moving does not always produce the best meals the days surrounding the actual move.

But I am happy to say I now I have some food to share with everyone. No new recipes from me personally but NEW for you to try if you haven’t already! I would like to thank my good friend Sara from The Innocent Primate for letting me use her own blog photos, since I didn’t have a chance to take photos of my own creations using her recipes! Thanks Sara!

Red Beans and Rice

*Side Note: My plate arrangement is never this nice lol.* A quick and filling meal from The Innocent Primate! I love this meal, and I especially love the leftovers for breakfast!!! It gives me more energy till lunch than cereal or oatmeal does. I think beans should be welcomed into the breakfast menu more often! Yes, the most exciting part of this meal for me is the leftovers for breakfast, but don’t let that fool you. The dinner meal is excellent as well! I love how you can choose to make burritos with this, or just make your own “mini” burritos with pieces of a tortilla….however you do it, it spells a filled belly and good good good!

Changes I made: no hot sauce (but Sara didn’t use it either actually), doubled or so the garlic (I always do that, I LOVE garlic), and doubled all the spices….apparently this meal brings out the spicy side of me since I usually am a self-proclaimed spice wimp (as others will support). So good, so easy, so making myself hungry for it again. Dammit! I wish I had some for breakfast!

Butternut Squash and Potato Soup

Yet another recipe from Sara at The Innocent Primate! So simple…so delicious…so making it again! Until making this soup I had never eaten butternut squash (at least not to my recollection). Surprisingly it tastes quite a bit like sweet potatoes, at least to Matt and I. I was a little concerned with the whole “squash” aspect since Matt has a huge aversion to anything involving squash! But happy to report that this soup even won Matt over. Needless to say this soup WILL be made time and time again…I’m in love with how easy it is…and for it be equally delicious is just down right dinner heaven!

The only changes I made were: I did not roast the garlic in the oven since I didn’t have actual cloves, only pre-minced on hand. I actually only used salt, pepper and garlic in the soup since I was doing it by memory and it did not miss a beat! I did leave about a 1/5 of the potatoes as they were as to give the soup some extra chunkiness. It was absolutely delicious, like I already said a thousand times….seriously, make this soup. You will NOT be sorry. The only thing I was sorry about was that it didn’t make enough! But that is only because we are big eaters ;) .

Veggie Fried Rice

There is a trend….I get most of my new recipes from Sara and Jo these days, but I can’t help it…we have similar tastes in food! I have in fact tried other new recipes, but I will get to them eventually! This recipe is actually Jo’s recipe, not Sara’s. I usually throw together my own variation of fried rice but I wanted to try an actual recipe for once. This did not disappoint. I pretty much followed it to a T, except I omitted the hot pepper because I did not have one…and well, I’m a spice wimp as previously mentioned. I also used olive oil instead of canola and used brown sugar instead of agave (I also added more but I don’t know how much more, only because I am not as big on soy sauce taste as others). If you are looking for a fried rice recipe, give this a try!

Spinach Frittata

Okay, enough Sara and Jo already! They don’t need any more free press! ;) Just kidding, no doubt there will be another recipe of theirs to come in the near future. But this recipe is from the author of My Sweet Vegan (which is an excellent dessert book), Hannah at the Bittersweet blog. I believe this recipe is from before she published her book (but don’t quote me as I don’t know the exact publishing date of My Sweet Vegan!). Judging by the few comments, I gather this is in the beginning of her blogging days since now she gets dozens daily! If you are looking for a new was to prepare a tofu breakfast dish, this is worthy of a try. I haven’t tried a tofu omelet or anything of that nature before (I’ve stuck to scrambles), so I don’t know how it compares to others.

I made numerous changes, but all of them relate to the amount of spices. I at least doubled each spice, and I tripled the nutritional yeast (I did this because based on scramble recipes I use way more N. yeast than most people do to make my scrambles). Some of you may be shocked to hear this, but I think this needed more of an edge, like the addition of red chili flakes or something spicy. I think it would be awesome with pieces of vegan sausage too! But it really is a good dish!

Well eventually I will have photos actually taken by me to share with everyone, until then I will be relying on other blogs’ charity! Anyone reading this really should give any one of these recipes a try, they are all very good!

Trying New Things

Well I’ve decided that I am going to try at least one (preferably two) new recipes per week. I have become rather bored with our usual meals (even though we do vary greatly week to week, I just want to throw more things into the mix). So I’ve begun compiling lists of main meals, sides, drinks and desserts that I want to try at one point or another. I began this about two weeks ago so I have some things to share! Unfortunately, not all the recipes I tried were a success. Maybe I should clarify. The recipes were all a success in that they came out as they should, but not a success in flavors. But I do want to point out that I am a picky eater, so if something that I said did not taste all that great, don’t just take my word for it! Everything I am about to share is EDIBLE, my taste buds just prefer some over others ;)  . Are there desserts? Well of course! How could I not make a dessert? Jeez!

Black Bean Burgers

I begin the food tour with black bean burgers. But not just any ol’ black bean burgers, these are my pal Sara’s, over at Innocent Primate, black bean burgers. I followed the recipe for the most part, but I did add garlic to the mix. I LOVE garlic and think it adds to most dishes. I did use about 3 cups beans, half the bread crumbs and of course, for my spice intolerance–only about 1/2 a jalapeño pepper. Unfortunately, I only have a photo of the burgers BEFORE they were grilled. I was extremely hungry so I just began eating once everything was done. So just picture my previous burger dinner with the black bean burger instead :) . These were sooo good and I recommend them to everyone!

Sara's Black Bean Burgers

Sara's Black Bean Burgers

 
This recipe was from VeganDad. Matt wanted to try this (and he actually made it!) because he and I really like peaches, tempeh (Matt more so) and chickpeas. We don’t particularly care for ginger, at least not in larger quantities, so we left that out of the recipe. We did not particularly enjoy this meal, it was not bad but Matt wasn’t so pleased. I would have it again, but I honestly think I’d prefer to just eat the peaches as is than to include it in this meal. Matt and I felt it should be sweeter and just have some greater flavor to it overall. I think leaving the ginger out was a good call, because I probably would not have liked it as much with the ginger. We served ours over rice. I’d say with some tweaking, Matt might actually like this one more. Give it a try, you might actually enjoy it.
VeganDad's Peaches, Ginger, Tempeh & Chickpeas

VeganDad's Peaches, Ginger, Tempeh & Chickpeas

Zucchini Sticks

Matt hates zucchini. I decided I would try to convince him that the vegetable wasn’t all that bad. Well, turns out this recipe did nothing more than think he was right all along. Unfortunately, the recipe produced bland zucchini sticks. I recommend adding much more salt to the recipe, and/or figuring out a way to put salt directly on the zucchini. That sounds simpler than it is, since you dip the zucchini into vegan milk before breading. I would say if you are going to try this: increase the nutritional yeast, AT LEAST triple the salt, and add other spices you like into the breading. Some additions could be: more garlic than suggested, basil, oregano, onion powder etc.. I’m still trying to find a recipe that will convince Matt to want to eat his zucchini, any suggestions?

Zucchini Sticks

Zucchini Sticks

 
 
I love bagels. Maybe it is an East coast addiction, but I love the little guys. My favorite has always been cinnamon-raisin bagels. Well, I recently came across Happy Herbivore’s whole wheat bagel recipe and decided to try it. BTW, Happy Herbivore is also where I got the zucchini stick recipe from. Since I am essentially at the point where if something isn’t organic I won’t eat it, making my own bagels seemed like the logical solution to getting organic vegan bagels. I’m sure there are some out there somewhere, if I cared to look, but this way is cheaper and I can add whatever I want! I must note that the recipe states 1 1/2 tsp yeast, when a red star packet actually includes 2 1/4 tsp yeast. I used about 1/4 cup less flour due to my addition of 1/2 cup raisins and 1 tsp cinnamon. I would definitely recommend upping the cinnamon to at least 2 tsp if anyone decides to make these bagels in cinnamon-raisin as I did. They were very good and I plan on making them again and trying different toppings! My favorite way to eat a bagel is with strawberry jam. I hate cream cheese, and always have (vegan or not) and I keep it far away from my bagels! I know, it’s definitely not what you would expect from someone from Philadelphia!
Cinnamon Raisin Bagels

Cinnamon Raisin Bagels

Isa & Chandra’s Graham Crackers

Yes, this graham cracker recipe comes from the same individuals behind Vegan with a Vengeance and Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World. Unfortunately, I don’t feel like these graham crackers are going to take over the world any time soon! It might just be the fact that I am not a huge fan of molasses. However, I do feel as though these graham crackers need a serious sugar boost and molasses balance. I am going to try to recreate these crackers with agave nectar and perhaps additional sugar (or agave just being the main sugar). They weren’t bad, and my dogs certainly liked them (even though I didn’t let them have much because of the sugar), but my sweet tooth just was not satisfied! I know you are supposed to use them for smores, thus making them sweeter, but I prefer eating them alone since I don’t make smores all that often! You know how graham crackers usually have that immediate sweet flavor develop into a deeper flavor consisting of molasses? Well, this just consisted of molasses.  

Graham Crackers

Graham Crackers

I’ll be sure to have more about my escapades involving trying a couple new recipes per week! Lets hope they all turn out great or else I may lose my excitement for the task!

Cast Your Ballots!

Nope, it isn’t November yet but it is August 31st and guess what that means? Cupcake voting time! Yippee!! Time to help me beat out the competition (that includes YOU Innocent Primate! ;) )! As you may be aware from my previous post, my cupcake of choice was the Chocolate Strawberry Surprise. The surprise being a chocolate pudding with spice (chili pepper spice to be more specific) as the center filling of the cupcakes. Since the Iron Cupcake Earth Challenge for this month entailed adding chili spice, I could think of nothing better than chocolate and chili together. If you think you might just want to vote for me….please visit No One Puts Cupcake In The Corner, or select the Iron Cupcake logo on the side of the blog! Voting has already started (before it was supposed to!) and ends on September 4th at noon central time. Please vote for your favorites!!

Chocolate Strawberry Surprise Cupcake

Chocolate Strawberry Surprise Cupcake

What are you waiting for? You’re still reading this? You should be voting! ;)  So go ahead, click on the logo or click here and give me some much needed support (have you seen the other entries? sheesh! I need all the help I can get!). You can see the photos and view the recipes/information via links on the voting website. Vote….for your cupcake, just as you would your president. It is your civic duty! :)

Thank you!

Iron Cupcake Challenge: Chocolate Strawberry Surprise

Chocolate Strawberry Surprise Cupcakes

Chocolate Strawberry Surprise Cupcake

 This month’s Iron Cupcake Challenge featured chili pepper! The only rules were that 1) it has to be a cupcake (duh) and 2) the cupcake MUST include the featured ingredient of the month! Well, I must say this was a mighty challenge for me since I do not tend to seek spicy foods, especially not in my desserts. But I appreciated the challenge and I think I accomplished a damn good cupcake! I decided to name my cupcake Chocolate Strawberry Surprise because it is a chocolate cupcake with a hint of cinnamon with a center filling of chili spiced pudding, topped with REAL (no fake extracts for me!) strawberry icing topped with melted chocolate! I then topped it with some chocolate hearts and a chocolate pepper. I love how the shadows of the chocolate figures dance in the background of the photo!

All the flavors work amazingly well together and send your mouth into an explosion of tastebud delight! You will first notice the creamy strawberry icing with a hint of melted chocolate, then the cinnamon will hit you from the cake. On your second bite (depending on your mouth size I guess ;) ), you will feel a wave of cool chocolate pudding that slowly develops into a spice feast for your mouth! (Have no fear, I used chili powder that was not HOT, but medium in spice level.) I thought what is more perfect that chocolate and chili? Chocolate, chili and STRAWBERRIES!!! Yummy! That is why I decided to not only include strawberries as a puree in the cupcake batter, but also make it the featured icing!

To vote for my cupcake, you will have to go to NO ONE PUTS CUPCAKE IN A CORNER between August 31st at noon and September 4th at noon. Please be sure to vote for me! There are so many good entries, and I would have to be VERY lucky to win! At least I am happy with my cupcake right? Plus, I can eat them to comfort myself if I lose…. ;) . All of us who are participating are competing for the following prizes: artwork from Cakespy creator Jessie Oleson, an apron from Jessie Steele (which I totally want! Aren’t they adorable?), a Cupcake Courier, a Taste of Home magazine, a set of silicone Head Chefs from Fiesta Products, and finally a Hello Cupcake book! Whew! I think it took me as long to list all the prizes as it did for me to make the cupcakes! That is a LOT of prizes! Sure they are not all vegan minded, but it is the thrill of competition, not the materialistic items I entered for! It was extremely generous of all those involved to offer their items for prizes! Please remember to vote between August 31st at noon and Sept. 4th at noon for VeganVerve!! Thank you!

How did I make these cupcakes you ask? Well, let me show you! There are a lot of steps, but they can easily be done over a few days if you prefer (like I ended up doing) or prep everything while the cupcakes are cooling after baking….or while they are cooling in the fridge (you will see what I mean when you read further!). I only did it over a few days because I quite frankly hadn’t made up my mind what I was going to do yet!!

Chocolate Strawberry Surprise Cupcakes

Cupcake Batter:

2/3 cup coconut milk

1/3 cup pureed strawberries (or use blender to puree during step 2)

1 Tbsp flax meal

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup canola

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp almond extract

1/2 cup plus 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour

1/2 cup plus 1 Tbsp oat flour (or 100% of either flour)

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1 tsp baking powder

3/8 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 heaping tsp cinnamon

 

1. Pre-heat oven to 350

2. With blender, mix together coconut milk, strawberries and flax meal. Let sit for about 5 minutes.

3. While waiting for the mixture in #2, mix together the flours, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
Blended Mixture & Dry Ingredients

Blended Mixture & Dry Ingredients

 
4. After about 5 minutes, put the following ingredients directly into blender mixture (I just kept it in the blender the whole time!): sugar, canola oil, and the vanilla & almond extracts. Mix thoroughly with spoon.
 
5. Slowly incorporate the wet into the dry until a smooth batter is formed. Fill each cupcake liner about 2/3rds full. Bake for approximately 20-22 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool on a cooling rack.
Yummy Batter

Yummy Batter

All Ready to go in the oven!

All Ready to go in the oven!

 
Chili Pudding:
 
1 box Organic Chocolate Pudding by Dr. Oetker
 
1 Tbsp medium chili powder (or less depending on spicy level you desire)
My Method of Attack!

My Method of Attack!

 
 
1. Prepare pudding as directed. Mix in chili powder.
 
2. Once cupcakes are cool, pipe in (or use whatever method you prefer) pudding into center of cupcakes. I find it extremely easy to poke the cupcake with my CLEAN finger ;) to create a hole for the filling.
 
3. Place in refrigerator for about an hour to let pudding firm up in the cupcake.
 
Strawberry Icing:
 
1/4 cup of strawberry puree (I find that 1 cup frozen usually makes only about 1/4 cup puree)
 
1/4 cup vegan margarine
 
3 Tbsp vegan shortening
 
2 cups confectioner’s sugar
 
 
1. Thaw about 1 cup strawberries (if using frozen) then puree in blender.
 
2. Using a mixer, cream together margarine and shortening until fluffy.
 
3. Mix strawberry puree and 1 cup confectioner’s sugar into the margarine/shortening mixture. Combine thoroughly with mixer.
 
4. Slowly continue to add rest of confectioner’s sugar until thoroughly combined.
Strawberry Icing

Strawberry Icing

 
5. Put icing on cupcakes and let cool in refrigerator.
 
Chocolate Topping:
 
1/3 cup chocolate chips
 
 
1. Melt chocolate, place in piping instrument of your choosing (or just use a knife for all steps in #2 like I did, but it is a tad more tempermental!)
 
2. Make 3 rows of chocolate on each cupcake, then run your knife the opposite direction to make decorative design.
 
3. Cool in refigerator until chocolate firms.
Before Chocolate firmed & Before Toppers were added!

Before Chocolate firmed & Before Toppers were added!

 
4. Option: create your own decorative toppers and place them on cupcakes!

On A Lighter Note….Spicy Peanut Marinade & Sauce

I love peanut butter, organic of course. Non-organic peanut butter is ridden with pesticides and nasty chemicals that you do not want to consume! So what would be better than a peanut butter marinade for tofu or a peanut butter sauce for over veggies and rice?! So awhile ago, I decided to concoct my very own peanut sauce since none I ever try seem to fit my picky standards ;) . Well, I must say the recipe I came up with is a sure fire winner. Bonus: the very same recipe transitions from marinade to sauce with no additional ingredients (too often I find the marinade is not the same as a sauce, especially when you wish the sauce to be thick). So use this as a marinade for tofu or tempeh or whatever you wish, and then slather your rice and veggies with the thickened sauce! Yummy!

 

Spicy Peanut Sauce over marinated tofu, steamed veggies and rice!

Spicy Peanut Sauce over marinated tofu, steamed veggies and rice!

 

Spicy Peanut Marinade & Sauce

3/4 cup water

1/4 cup peanut butter (I prefer crunchy for the extra peanut chunks

1 1/2 T soy sauce (I use low-sodium Tamari)

1 T apple cider vinegar

1 T agave nectar

1 1/2 tsp minced garlic

3/4 tsp red pepper flakes (reduce to about 1/3-1/2 tsp for sauce if you are not big on spice–keep the same for marinade as the effect is not as strong in marinating)

1 pound Tofu (post-frozen is best) or 1–8oz package Tempeh if marinating

 

1. Whisk together all ingredients until peanut butter is consistent throughout. Place in either a pot for a sauce or a container suitable for your marinating needs.

Prepared marinade

Prepared marinade

2. For marinade, place tofu or tempeh in marinade and marinate for at least 3 hours to get the best flavor. Be sure to flip the tofu/tempeh a few times during the time frame you choose. I have used this marinade for only about an hour, and it tastes quite good then as well. You can pretty much go anywhere between 1 hour to 2 days. **If you find when you are using 1 pound of tofu that there appears to not be enough marinade due to the size container you are using, just add extra water and increase marinating time.

Tofu marinating

Tofu marinating

3. Once the tofu/tempeh is done marinating, bake it at about 350F for 25 minutes, flipping once. Or you can cook it in a skillet on the stove top until browned. **If you only marinate for an hour or so, there may be extra marinade available. You can just use it to turn into a sauce and add more if necessary.

Baked tofu

Baked tofu

4. For sauce, heat on medium/medium-low until it thickens. Spread over veggies, rice and tofu/tempeh.

Voila!

Voila!

This sauce recipe serves 2. If you are serving more, just adjust as necessary. This marinade serves as many as 1 pound of tofu or 1 package of tempeh will serve (it varies for us between 2 people to 4 people ;) ).

Enjoy!

Dinner:Impossible

Anyone who watches a bit of Food Network knows what I’m referring to: a popular show on FN that challenges a chef to make some huge and lavish meal in 8 hours or less. Of course, I’m not I’m not a big fan of Food Network simply because it is so meat-oriented, but sometimes you get a vegetarian gem here and there. I think vegetarian is the best you get though….everything just has to have cheese, it seems to be a rule. Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a vegan show on there? Don’t think it will happen eh? Yeah, me either!

My very own Dinner:Impossible was not mine at all actually, it was Matt’s. You see, he isn’t the most agile when it comes to navigating the kitchen terrain. I try my best to help him out, but sometimes he just manages to do the unimaginable to even the simplest dish. But what can you expect from someone who didn’t grow up cooking? Well, that is what I tell myself anyway ;)

Matt’s Dinner:Impossible was to create the recipe on VeganDad for Rotini With Creamy Basil Tomato Sauce. We both love pasta and are always trying to find new sauces etc. to use with it. Since this meal seemed rather simple and delicious, I suggested that Matt try to make it. After much refusal, he eventually gave in and made it. What were the results you ask? Excellent!! Not only did he not mess it up, it was really good! As I wandered into the kitchen due to the nice aroma filling the house, he uttered: “I think I actually may not have screwed this one up.” I dare say he was right! ;) Did the planets align? Was someone not manning the voodoo doll like they usually are? Did his hands become magical awesome vegan dinner making hands for but a few minutes? I do not know….but I do know that if you are looking for a new way to have pasta, you should give this a try!

We only made a few changes to the original recipe. One thing we did change was that we kept the amount of tofu called for the same, but halved everything else. For all those leery of tofu, fear not! You cannot taste or recognize any iota of tofu due to all the blending. All the tofu does is make the sauce creamier, hence why we left it the same amount, even when we halved the original recipe. We also used mushroom pasta sauce, which added an additional level of flavor that I greatly enjoyed. We also tried this with a regular (just marinara) pasta sauce and the taste was not as strong or appealing. It was still good, just not as great. So I recommend using your favorite pasta sauce if you try this. We also used LightLife vegan sausage and just cut it into small bite-size pieces. Also, as you can see from the picture, we used bowtie pasta not rotini. I really don’t think it makes a bit of difference, it all tastes great! Also, the recipe doesn’t specify the number it should feed, but I found that half the recipe was nearly a perfect amount for Matt and I. So if you are feeding 4, keep the recipe the same. Feeding 1? Quarter the recipe! And so on and so on.

Creamy Pasta Sauce & Bowtie Pasta

Creamy Pasta Sauce & Bowtie Pasta

Good job Matt! Now we just need to find another awesome meal that you can always be in charge of ;)

Vegan Jewish Apple Cake

Growing up my mother always made a Jewish Apple Cake that I absolutely loved. Why it is called “Jewish” Apple Cake I do not know. And no, I did not grow up Jewish :) . I’ve been a bad girl regarding fruit intake lately. Yes, I know….how is that even possible for a vegan? Well I tend to go crazy on veggies and no so much on fruit. Makes NO sense since I really do LOVE fruit. But anyway, dessert is a good way to get your cake and eat your fruit too ;) . So here you go, my latest creation: Vegan Jewish Apple Cake. Not only do you get your fruit, but the batter is delicious…so is the cake when baked too haha. Oh, and it has flax meal….so its “extra” healthy ;) .

Jewish Apple Cake

2 Tbsp flax meal with 6 Tbsp water

1/2 cup applesauce

2 cups sugar  (clearly not a diabetic’s cake but indulge would you? it has apples, eh? :) )

3/4 cup canola oil

1/4 cup vegan milk

2 Tbsp vanilla

4 Tbsp cinnamon (yes an entire 1/4 cup of cinnamon, trust me it is JUST right, not overwhelming)

2 cups flour (I use AP)

2 tsp baking powder

3 medium apples, sliced thin

 

1-Preheat oven to 350 Degrees F.

2-Peel and slice 3 medium apples (I used Gala and Red Delicious, although any kind would work…I would stay away from the more sour Granny Smith though). Set aside in a bowl of water with a tsp of lemon juice in it to prevent browning. Or you can mix everything THEN slice apples and add to mixture to reduce their sitting time.  

Apple soaking in H2O/lemon combo

Apple soaking in H2O/lemon combo

3-Whisk together flax and water to get “egg”-like consistency

4-Mix flax mixture, applesauce, sugar, oil, soymilk and vanilla together.

5-In a separate bowl mix together cinnamon, flour, and baking powder.

6-Combine wet and dry ingredients. Add apples and mix until evenly spread around.

Wet and dry mixed

Wet and dry mixed

 

Mix apples in gently

Mix apples in gently

7-Place in greased tube pan (I’m sure another type of pan would work, it would have to be large though since this batter fills the entire tube pan with little room to spare). Bake at 350 for about 50 minutes. Check at about 40 minutes and from then on to ensure no over-baking occurs.

Put batter into tube pan (however much you don't eat before that is ;) )

Put batter into tube pan (however much you don't eat before that is ;) )

8-Enjoy! This cake is good when it comes out of the oven but it is 10 times better after sitting overnight (covered of course). The crust that forms when baking moistens when it sits and the flavor really develops. How many cakes can you say get better with age? This one does! Well, not TOO old mind you, there is fruit in there….;) .

Hey there pretty lady.....

Hey there pretty lady.....

I’ve Got Donuts On My Mind…..

….Thanks to Sara over at Innocent Primate! Sheesh! All her talk about my donuts caused me to have to make some over the weekend. They only lasted about a day, but I made a half batch so it’s not THAT bad (and I’m not the only one eating them!) Thank god for self control or I’d have to cut back on my baking…and we all know I can’t have that!!

Yummy Goodness....

Yummy Goodness....

I’m really quite pleased with how well my recipe turned out. *Pats self on back* Ah, to hell with you Dunkin’ Donuts! I no longer need to let out a whimper when passing you by! ;)
 
**********
 
I’ve been newly introduced to the Noodles & Company “restaurant”. They have 3 options for vegans, all in the Asian noodles section. The three are: Japanese Pan Noodles, Bangkok Curry and Indonesian Peanut Saute. My favorite is Japanese Pan Noodles. Since I enjoy this dish so much I wanted to try to recreate it at home. Apparently the udon noodles you buy in a store are NOTHING like those served at Noodles & Company. The udon noodles at Noodles & Co are thick, whereas the kind you find elsewhere are pretty much spaghetti-esque. With that disappointment aside, I managed to make an excellent ONE cast iron skillet meal. Well, other than the apparatus you would use to steam broccoli and carrots to serve with it, as I did. Well, there are the noodles to be cooked too. But, you throw everything into ONE skillet, how about that then ;) .
One Skillet--How Awesome Is That??

One Skillet--How Awesome Is That??

I didn’t really measure anything, it’s not really my style. But I will hopefully have a recipe next time I make it and keep closer track. It wasn’t quite like the Japanese Pan Noodles, but it was delicious in its own right!!
Udon Noodle Stir Fry With Sesame Seed Garnish

Udon Noodle Stir Fry With Sesame Seed Garnish (Missing the Broccoli & Carrots)

Vegan Strawberry Ice Cream Review!

Yet again, I come to you speaking of lovely desserts from Sara at the Innocent Primate blog. This one is a WINNER! I’m not actually a fan of strawberry ice cream, before veganism and now. Perhaps I just don’t like the fact that fruit, a.k.a something healthy, is invading my good ol’ fashioned bad for you ice cream! Leave my ice cream alooooone!!! Okay, freak out aside, this strawberry ice cream was delicious! If you enjoy fruit in your ice cream, then you just MUST try her Strawberry Fields Forever ice cream (even a little nifty title huh). Hell, even if you are on the fence about fruit and ice cream, I demand you try this! I pulled out the demand card! ;)

**Waiting patiently to try ice cream**

**Waiting patiently to try ice cream**

 

Woo hoo! It is complete and ready for me to consume.

Woo hoo! It is complete and ready for me to consume.

The only change I made to Sara’s recipe was to use light coconut milk. I only had organic lite coconut milk available and refused to drive to the store just for full-fat coconut milk! The lite coconut milk did not seem to hinder the taste or creaminess of the ice cream. This came out super smooth, creamy and just luscious. I can only imagine how creamy it would be with full-fat coconut milk. Is it possible that it could be creamier? I dare not even contemplate such a thing! This was already much creamier than soymilk-based ice creams you buy and/or make. Although, I haven’t tried Purely Decadent’s new line of coconut ice creams. After this experience they in fact may need to be tried………oh yeah.
 
I’m not usually one to share, but when they are furry balls of love I can’t resist. My two boys LOVED the ice cream as well, and wanted way more than the spoonful I was willing to dish out. After all, they shouldn’t have too much sugar….they’re hyper enough already ;) .
A doggy ice cream party!

A doggy ice cream party!

Don’t be fooled by their tame appearance. This mutual sharing of the spoon soon broke down when Bruiser decided all the ice cream should be HIS and only his. Turns out Bruiser shares as well as I do ;) .

Dessert, Snack? And More Dessert!

The dessert bug hit me the other day. Perhaps it was my cravings for something sweet, or perhaps it was the fact that it actually didn’t feel 120 degrees in the house!! Regardless of the reason, I baked up a storm. Although”baked” isn’t the correct terminology for one of my desserts. Perhaps, baked and froze would be a better option.

I ordered popsicle molds off of Amazon some time ago, and have been using them endlessly since. Well a full set of 6 became available after Matt consumed the popsicles they once included, so I knew I had to try something new! Vegan Fudgsicles, Fudge Bars, whatever you wish to call them, were in fact calling my name. Usually when I first try an idea, I try a similar recipe first. This time, I followed a recipe so little that I can in fact proclaim this one as mine! The Fudgsicles (or Fudge Bars….I’m torn) came out rather well. They are rich, creamy and yummy. They are not overly chocolaty, but they have enough to cater to a chocoholic’s heart (like me).

Vegan Fudgsicles!!

Vegan Fudgsicles!!

Fudgsicles
 
1 package Mori-Nu Tofu (soft, firm, whatever you have–I actually used firm since it’s the only kind that is organic)
1/3 cup cocoa
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 Tbsp canola oil
1/4-1/3 cup soymilk (I used chocolate)
Pinch salt
 
Just blend all ingredients in your blender until smooth. Pour into popsicle molds, leaving 1/2 inch for expansion. This recipe actually made slightly over 5 popsicles, so feel free to drink the remaining liquid! Yummy chocolate shake!! Then freeze for about 3-4 hours. If you are impatient, just check them after 2 hours! I let them set overnight.
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Snack time!
 
Now I do not know if this actually classifies as a dessert, but I did make it during my dessert-aholic venture the other day! I had been meaning to make granola for some time, I had been making it weekly but have tried to avoid heating the kitchen as much as possible these days! I always make granola that includes cashews, raisins and coconut. This time was no different. I love to have this in soy yogurt, as cereal (as it is actually rather nutritious since I add flax meal and wheat germ to it before baking) and in parfaits. It is always a good go to snack for someone like me who has to snack constantly or she becomes, well, crabby ;) .
 
 
so it's not much to look at, but it is sooo good!

Granola: so it's not much to look at, but it is sooo good!

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Chocolate chip cookies. Is there any better phrase to be uttered? Perhaps vegan chocolate chip cookies would be the best phrase after all. I love my own chocolate chip cookies and have made numerous changes to it since I became vegan. Each change has succeedingly made it better (well there were some disasters, but lets not focus on the negative! :) ). My newest venture regarding my chocolate chip cookies was to make them “healthy”. If you’re thinking “how on earth can you make them healthy??”, then you’re on the right track. You see, I would like to imply that simply adding flax meal to the cookies will in fact make them healthy, and convince myself of this I will. So, by using flax “eggs” rather than my usual applesauce (which, lets face it, is also healthy indeed! So I guess these cookies were always healthy ;) ), I would have healthy chocolate chip cookies.
 
I was somewhat disappointed by the job done by the flax “eggs”. The batter tasted better to me, but the cookies themselves came out less moist than I desire. With the applesauce “eggs”, the batter tends to have a hint of applesauce in every bite, which isn’t a terrible thing but when you are looking for a full on bad for you taste, you become rather disappointed. But the applesauce does result in delicious and moist cookies. I’m thinking of varying the recipe to include 1 applesauce “egg” and 1 flax “egg”. My vegan chocolate chip cookies are forever changing….but will forever remain an AWESOME dessert!
 
Chocolate Chip Cookies in all their glory!

Chocolate Chip Cookies in all their glory!

Oooooh yeah baby!

Oooooh yeah baby!

 

 

 
 

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