Christmas has gotten the best of me. I've listened to Christmas Wrapping by the Waitresses at least thirty times, packages have been sent to Riversiders, the lights are up, my tree is decorated, hell, I've even sent out my Christmas cards! I havn't been able to bake my normal Christmas cookies this year because it just makes me miss too many people a bit too much, so instead I made these little candies. They're super Christmas-ey and pretty easy to make. I adapted this recipe from a butter cream enthusiast website which can be seen here:http://www.chocolate-candy-mall.com/chocolate-covered-buttercream-candy-recipe.html
My version:
4 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. mint extract
1/2 cup plus 1 tbs. earth balance
3 tbs. soy creamer
12 oz. vegan wheat free chocolate chips (trader joes are the best for the price)
2 tbs. canola oil
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 candy canes (crushed)
wax or parchment paper
-Mix powdered sugar, mint, 1/2 c. earth balance, and creamer together. This works best with your hands. make sure it's very well mixed so you don't have any super minty bites and some super boring bites.
-roll mix into 1 inch balls and chill overnight.
-melt chocolate, vanilla, 1 tbs earth balance, and 1/2 the oil in a double boiler. If the chocolate still seems a bit too dry add the rest of the oil.
- dip balls into chocolate, squish one side into the crushed candy canes, then set on wax paper to cool.
*I've found it's easiest to dip one side in chocolate, let it dry, then dip the other side in. But do whatever is easiest for you.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Friday, December 18, 2009
famous cake!
Okay, well maybe famous is a bit of an exaggeration, but it's their myspace default picture! This cake wasn't wheat free but it was vegan. If I remember correctly it was a betty crocker box of chocolate cake made with strawberry soda and kosher frosting. It was one of the first cake's I baked and was actually a collaborative effort with Josh and Lachlin. We baked this cake to convince Mischief Brew to come play a show in Southern California. It worked! and it was a grrrrrrreat show! Check out their epic music here: or
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
carrot cake rice pudding!
This is one of those recipes that was invented by going through my food stash and saying "well, this might work" or "this needs to be used sooner rather than later...". I havn't tried it on too many people yet but the kids who were at the SFSU business building occupation last week sure seemed to enjoy it! This is also soy and nut free and can be sugar free.
*if you can't find fresh cardamom use dried seed pods. using the pre-ground cardamom powder really, really doesn't do this recipe justice.
Makes enough for 4 desserts or 3ish breakfasts.
ingredients
-2 cups of brown rice
-1 shredded carrot
-1/2 cup raisins
-1/3 the seeds from one fresh pod of cardamom (chopped)
-2 cups (ish) rice milk
-1/2 cup agave or sugar
-1/3 cup shredded coconut
-cook the rice.
-cover rice with rice milk so that there is about one inch of milk over the rice.
-cover, cook over low heat for 15-20 minutes.
-stir in agave and cardamom. continue to cook until the milk is gone and the rice is the consistency of, well, rice pudding.
-stir in coconut, raisins, and carrots about ten minutes before removing from heat. If you forget to do this just add 1/4 cup more milk and and cook for 15 more minutes.
Serve warm.
*if you can't find fresh cardamom use dried seed pods. using the pre-ground cardamom powder really, really doesn't do this recipe justice.
Makes enough for 4 desserts or 3ish breakfasts.
ingredients
-2 cups of brown rice
-1 shredded carrot
-1/2 cup raisins
-1/3 the seeds from one fresh pod of cardamom (chopped)
-2 cups (ish) rice milk
-1/2 cup agave or sugar
-1/3 cup shredded coconut
-cook the rice.
-cover rice with rice milk so that there is about one inch of milk over the rice.
-cover, cook over low heat for 15-20 minutes.
-stir in agave and cardamom. continue to cook until the milk is gone and the rice is the consistency of, well, rice pudding.
-stir in coconut, raisins, and carrots about ten minutes before removing from heat. If you forget to do this just add 1/4 cup more milk and and cook for 15 more minutes.
Serve warm.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
split pea dahl
This recipe is great if you have to cook for a lot of people. It is gluten free, soy free, nut free, and, of course, vegan so it's perfect for potlucks and other occasions where there are lot's of picky and allergy ridden people around.
This recipe makes enough to serve 4 very hungry people or 6 regularly hungry people.
ingredients:
-2 cups yellow split peas
-2 cups white or brown basmati or jasmine rice
-1 bell pepper
-2 carrots
-1.5 cups cauliflower
-1 small red onion
- 1/2 to one cup coconut milk
-1 cup raisins
-1 cup shredded coconut (unsweetened, or not)
-2 tbls si racha rooster sauce
-some olive oil and/or earth balance
-3 tbls red curry
-1 tsp. tumeric
-a few pinches of cinnamon and/or nutmeg
-pinch of cumin
-pinch of salt
-cut cauliflower into bit size pieces, dice bell peppers, and chop carrots. Place cauliflower in a steamer and steam for 15 minutes. Once cauliflower starts to get a bit mushy add bell peppers and steam until both are sufficiently baby food status.
-boil the carrots over medium heat until they're somewhere between crunchy and mushy (about 10-15 minutes).
-While this is steaming start cooking the split peas and rice (especially if you're using brown rice). To cook the peas add 1 peas to a little less than 2 cups of boiling water. Bring water back to a boil then reduce to low/medium heat and cover. Let simmer for 15-20 minutes then start stirring every ten minutes until the peas have become a paste.
-Saute onion in 2 tbs of olive oil/earth balance until translucent. Once onions are almost done add curry, tumeric, cumin, salt, and cinnamon. Once this becomes very fragrant, remove from heat and stir in 1/2 cup of coconut milk.
-Once the cauliflower and bell pepers are done place them in a blender and add the onion coconut milk mix and si raca sauce. Pulse until the mixture is completely pasty adding more coconut milk if it looks too dry. Make sure to lift the lid of the blender to let the steam out after every three pulses or so to avoid a crazy volcanic explosion of hot food. (This stuff does not come off of ceilings very easily, trust me.)
-Add this mix into the split pea mush and mix it up, again adding more coconut milk if it seems too dry.
-Taste dish and adjust spices accordingly.
-Mix in carrot pieces.
-Put raisins in a heat proof bowl and cover with boiling water for 5-10 minutes (this makes them plump and juicy). drain.
Serve dahl with rice and offer raisins, coconut, and extra si racha sauce for toppings. This is also really yummy to eat with na'an if you're not gluten free.
This recipe makes enough to serve 4 very hungry people or 6 regularly hungry people.
ingredients:
-2 cups yellow split peas
-2 cups white or brown basmati or jasmine rice
-1 bell pepper
-2 carrots
-1.5 cups cauliflower
-1 small red onion
- 1/2 to one cup coconut milk
-1 cup raisins
-1 cup shredded coconut (unsweetened, or not)
-2 tbls si racha rooster sauce
-some olive oil and/or earth balance
-3 tbls red curry
-1 tsp. tumeric
-a few pinches of cinnamon and/or nutmeg
-pinch of cumin
-pinch of salt
-cut cauliflower into bit size pieces, dice bell peppers, and chop carrots. Place cauliflower in a steamer and steam for 15 minutes. Once cauliflower starts to get a bit mushy add bell peppers and steam until both are sufficiently baby food status.
-boil the carrots over medium heat until they're somewhere between crunchy and mushy (about 10-15 minutes).
-While this is steaming start cooking the split peas and rice (especially if you're using brown rice). To cook the peas add 1 peas to a little less than 2 cups of boiling water. Bring water back to a boil then reduce to low/medium heat and cover. Let simmer for 15-20 minutes then start stirring every ten minutes until the peas have become a paste.
-Saute onion in 2 tbs of olive oil/earth balance until translucent. Once onions are almost done add curry, tumeric, cumin, salt, and cinnamon. Once this becomes very fragrant, remove from heat and stir in 1/2 cup of coconut milk.
-Once the cauliflower and bell pepers are done place them in a blender and add the onion coconut milk mix and si raca sauce. Pulse until the mixture is completely pasty adding more coconut milk if it looks too dry. Make sure to lift the lid of the blender to let the steam out after every three pulses or so to avoid a crazy volcanic explosion of hot food. (This stuff does not come off of ceilings very easily, trust me.)
-Add this mix into the split pea mush and mix it up, again adding more coconut milk if it seems too dry.
-Taste dish and adjust spices accordingly.
-Mix in carrot pieces.
-Put raisins in a heat proof bowl and cover with boiling water for 5-10 minutes (this makes them plump and juicy). drain.
Serve dahl with rice and offer raisins, coconut, and extra si racha sauce for toppings. This is also really yummy to eat with na'an if you're not gluten free.
cilantro lime tofu and black bean tacos
This is one of the first meals I ever had as a vegan. Josh's mom made it for me before I really knew how to cook and it was wonderful to finally eat some good comfort food after days of raw veggies and soy milk. I've adapted the recipe a bit because she used to think that salt and pepper were the only real spices. This recipe is also in the Invisible Children cookbook that we made so long ago.
1 block of extra firm tofu drained and squeezed, no need to press it though
2 c. black beans drained
3 limes zested and juiced (is zested a real word?)
1 bunch of cilantro chopped
1/2 can of corn
4 cloves garlic minced
2 tbs tequilla
veggie oil
cumin
nutritional yeast (opt)
salsa verde
taco shells/ corn tortillas
-squish tofu into small clumps (it's fun to do with your hands but i suppose you could chop it if you really wanted to)
-Add lime juice, zest1/2 the cilantro,tequilla, 1 tbs oil, garlic, nutritional yeast, cumin, and about 1/4 cup salsa verde to the tofu and stir. Wrap this and let it marinate for at least an hour.
-heat skillet with a bit of oil, add tofu and fry until most, but not all, moisture is gone. Add black beans and corn about 5 minutes before removing from heat.
Serve with tomato, salsa, guacamole, and whatever else you put on your tacos.
*it's really good with mango salsa which can be easily by cheating and blending 3/4 red salsa (salsa authentica from trader joes works well) and 1/2 a mango
1 block of extra firm tofu drained and squeezed, no need to press it though
2 c. black beans drained
3 limes zested and juiced (is zested a real word?)
1 bunch of cilantro chopped
1/2 can of corn
4 cloves garlic minced
2 tbs tequilla
veggie oil
cumin
nutritional yeast (opt)
salsa verde
taco shells/ corn tortillas
-squish tofu into small clumps (it's fun to do with your hands but i suppose you could chop it if you really wanted to)
-Add lime juice, zest1/2 the cilantro,tequilla, 1 tbs oil, garlic, nutritional yeast, cumin, and about 1/4 cup salsa verde to the tofu and stir. Wrap this and let it marinate for at least an hour.
-heat skillet with a bit of oil, add tofu and fry until most, but not all, moisture is gone. Add black beans and corn about 5 minutes before removing from heat.
Serve with tomato, salsa, guacamole, and whatever else you put on your tacos.
*it's really good with mango salsa which can be easily by cheating and blending 3/4 red salsa (salsa authentica from trader joes works well) and 1/2 a mango
quiche!
2 c. (ish?) pumpkin seeds not it shells
1/4 c. olive oil (divided into 1/8ths)
1 box of firm silken tofu
1.5 onions
a large handful of shitake mushrooms
a bundle of mustard greens
4 cloves of garlic
1 tbs. dijon mustard
1/2 tbs. cumin
3 tbs. nutritional yeast
1 tbs. basil
1 bay leaf
Crust:
-heat the oven to 350 or so
-using a blender or processor chop the pumpkin seeds until they are as close to flour as they can be. a few chunks and whole seeds
are okay.
-mix the seed flour and 1/8 c olive oil. it will be a crumbly, but that's okay. put it in a pie pan and squish it down and up on the sides. You may need more or less olive oil. you can also use earth balance if you wish, this would probably work better, actually. i'm just trying not to eat the stuff lately.
- after it looks nice and crusty stick it in the oven for 10-15 min. until it starts getting a bit golden.
Filling:
-saute the onions in the remaining olive oil with the bay leaf and the basil.
-remove bayleaf when onions are done.
-blend the tofu with the sauted onions until creamy.
-saute the chopped mushrooms for about 6 minutes, then add the chopped mustard greens and cook until the greens are almost completely limp.
-add spices, mustard, and nutritional yeast.
-stir these in with the tofu onion mush.
-pour into pumpkin seed crust
-bake at 350 for 20-40 minutes, checking every 5 minutes after 20. The reason the cook time is so broad is because sometimes the veggies have more moisture than other times. I'm not quite sure how to fix this yet.
Let the quiche cool for a bit then eat it up! I suggest eating it with a pinch of cumin, and some salsa.
Also, you can add any kind of veggies and spices. The only staple ingredients in this recipe are tofu, onion, and nutritional yeast. This is just my favorite variation right now.
1/4 c. olive oil (divided into 1/8ths)
1 box of firm silken tofu
1.5 onions
a large handful of shitake mushrooms
a bundle of mustard greens
4 cloves of garlic
1 tbs. dijon mustard
1/2 tbs. cumin
3 tbs. nutritional yeast
1 tbs. basil
1 bay leaf
Crust:
-heat the oven to 350 or so
-using a blender or processor chop the pumpkin seeds until they are as close to flour as they can be. a few chunks and whole seeds
are okay.
-mix the seed flour and 1/8 c olive oil. it will be a crumbly, but that's okay. put it in a pie pan and squish it down and up on the sides. You may need more or less olive oil. you can also use earth balance if you wish, this would probably work better, actually. i'm just trying not to eat the stuff lately.
- after it looks nice and crusty stick it in the oven for 10-15 min. until it starts getting a bit golden.
Filling:
-saute the onions in the remaining olive oil with the bay leaf and the basil.
-remove bayleaf when onions are done.
-blend the tofu with the sauted onions until creamy.
-saute the chopped mushrooms for about 6 minutes, then add the chopped mustard greens and cook until the greens are almost completely limp.
-add spices, mustard, and nutritional yeast.
-stir these in with the tofu onion mush.
-pour into pumpkin seed crust
-bake at 350 for 20-40 minutes, checking every 5 minutes after 20. The reason the cook time is so broad is because sometimes the veggies have more moisture than other times. I'm not quite sure how to fix this yet.
Let the quiche cool for a bit then eat it up! I suggest eating it with a pinch of cumin, and some salsa.
Also, you can add any kind of veggies and spices. The only staple ingredients in this recipe are tofu, onion, and nutritional yeast. This is just my favorite variation right now.
My favorite weekend breakfast
This is easy, really cheap, and seems fancy enough to really impress people. Also, according to Erik, it gives you the full feeling that makes veganism great.
Spinach
Mushrooms (I use white cremini because I'm cheap, but it's really good with portobellos)
Red onion
Lemon Juice
Red potatoes
Cherry tomatoes (If you're feeling fancy)
Olive oil
Red wine
Garlic
Spice*
Cut up the potatoes and boil them for about ten minutes
In another pan saute the mushrooms in the olive oil, add a splash or two of wine, then add the onion.
When these are starting to get soggy add in the spinach and spices and cook until spinach is a kinda soggy but still has a bit of crunch too it.I put the garlic in here raw but if you want to cook it put it in with the rest of the spices. Stir in halved cherry tomatoes if you want.
When the potatoes are pretty much cooked drain them and fry them in oil. A few minutes before they're done squeeze a bit of lemon juice on them and spice them.
I vary the spices according to my mood. Today I mixed some dijon mustard, cinnamon, mustard, celery salt, ancho chili peper, and za'atar in the mushrooms and used only za'atar on the potatoes. Other good spices are rosemary, cloves, thyme, majoram, and fennel.
This is really good with figs as a side or a fruit salad with lots of figs and nuts.
Also, if you're not wheat free the sauce from the mushrooms is reeeealy good for sopping up with sourdough bread.
If I buy everything for this at the market by my house it costs less than 10 to make enough food for 4 people. :-)
Spinach
Mushrooms (I use white cremini because I'm cheap, but it's really good with portobellos)
Red onion
Lemon Juice
Red potatoes
Cherry tomatoes (If you're feeling fancy)
Olive oil
Red wine
Garlic
Spice*
Cut up the potatoes and boil them for about ten minutes
In another pan saute the mushrooms in the olive oil, add a splash or two of wine, then add the onion.
When these are starting to get soggy add in the spinach and spices and cook until spinach is a kinda soggy but still has a bit of crunch too it.I put the garlic in here raw but if you want to cook it put it in with the rest of the spices. Stir in halved cherry tomatoes if you want.
When the potatoes are pretty much cooked drain them and fry them in oil. A few minutes before they're done squeeze a bit of lemon juice on them and spice them.
I vary the spices according to my mood. Today I mixed some dijon mustard, cinnamon, mustard, celery salt, ancho chili peper, and za'atar in the mushrooms and used only za'atar on the potatoes. Other good spices are rosemary, cloves, thyme, majoram, and fennel.
This is really good with figs as a side or a fruit salad with lots of figs and nuts.
Also, if you're not wheat free the sauce from the mushrooms is reeeealy good for sopping up with sourdough bread.
If I buy everything for this at the market by my house it costs less than 10 to make enough food for 4 people. :-)
peanutbutter chocolate rice crispies!
It's official. I am starting a food blog in order to aid me in my procrastination from school work. To all of you that read this: kudos to you for seeing the start of this project. I eventually want to start a real food blog and maybe even a zine of yummy vegan and probably wheat free foods. If you care to participate I would love for this to be a collective effort (cough Talene cough cough).
Today I decided that I couldn't study without food. I made a fabulous cabbage salad with homemade sweet cucumber dressing and rice crackers. It satisfied my hunger but sparked my sweet tooth. I'm too lazy/poor/busy to go to the store and get stuff to make wheat free cupcakes or even stuff for fudge. As usual I was craving something chocolaty with peanut butter and thus invented these yummy ball things. In the end they kinda ended up like that one cereal mix thing that was really yummy and always at parties in 5th grade, but whatever.
Melt a gigantoid scoop of peanut butter over low heat, add in a spoon full of earth balance, throw in a handfull of chocolate chips, if you don't have enough chocolate chips add in about 1/5 cup of cocoa powder, add in some powdered sugar (I used natural peanut butter so it wasn't very sweet, if you're using Jiffy or something you probably don't even need the sugar here) after this was all nice and melty I poured in some brown rice crispies (maybe two cups??) basically enough to where they were all covered in chocolate but there wasn't too much chocolate left over... Finally I put out a sheet of wax paper and covered in in powdered sugar and scooped the balls onto the paper rolling them around to make cute little sugar coated balls! Sooooo yummy.
Now I'm all fat and happy and feel too lazy to study. haha
P.S. Everything I used was organic and wheat free except the powdered sugar which was generic store brand. This means that you can argue that these are indeed health food, not junk food. :-) You could also omit the chocolate chips and just do the cocoa powder which would reduce the sugar and calories a bit if you wanted.
Today I decided that I couldn't study without food. I made a fabulous cabbage salad with homemade sweet cucumber dressing and rice crackers. It satisfied my hunger but sparked my sweet tooth. I'm too lazy/poor/busy to go to the store and get stuff to make wheat free cupcakes or even stuff for fudge. As usual I was craving something chocolaty with peanut butter and thus invented these yummy ball things. In the end they kinda ended up like that one cereal mix thing that was really yummy and always at parties in 5th grade, but whatever.
Melt a gigantoid scoop of peanut butter over low heat, add in a spoon full of earth balance, throw in a handfull of chocolate chips, if you don't have enough chocolate chips add in about 1/5 cup of cocoa powder, add in some powdered sugar (I used natural peanut butter so it wasn't very sweet, if you're using Jiffy or something you probably don't even need the sugar here) after this was all nice and melty I poured in some brown rice crispies (maybe two cups??) basically enough to where they were all covered in chocolate but there wasn't too much chocolate left over... Finally I put out a sheet of wax paper and covered in in powdered sugar and scooped the balls onto the paper rolling them around to make cute little sugar coated balls! Sooooo yummy.
Now I'm all fat and happy and feel too lazy to study. haha
P.S. Everything I used was organic and wheat free except the powdered sugar which was generic store brand. This means that you can argue that these are indeed health food, not junk food. :-) You could also omit the chocolate chips and just do the cocoa powder which would reduce the sugar and calories a bit if you wanted.
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