Chocolate Snowballs

One of my favorite holiday cookies are polvorones.  I love how the buttery shortbread engulfed in powdery sugar just melts in your mouth.  It's no wonder that these cookies make their way onto the Christmas cookie tray every year.  They are easy to make and usually one batch of dough yields 2 or 3 dozen cookies so there's still plenty to put on the tray after you've nibbled here and there.

This year though, I wanted to take my favorite polvorones and up the decadence factor by making them chocolatey.  Like a little brownie bite, these snowballs are sure to be a crowd-pleaser!
 
Dry ingredients:
1 1/2 cup unbleached flour
3/4 cup Ah!Laska baker's non-dairy cocoa
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Wet ingredients:
8 tbsp (1 stick) Earth Balance butter, room temperature
3/4 cup succanat or organic dark brown sugar
1/4 cup evaporated cane juice
2 tsp Ener-G egg replacer
1/3 cup vanilla soy milk
1/2 tsp vanilla

Coating:
1/2 cup vegan powdered sugar


Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt in bowl.  In separate bowl, cream butter for several seconds.  Add brown sugar and evaporated cane juice and blend together.  Add egg replacer, soy milk and vanilla to butter mixture and blend.  In three separate intervals, add flour mixture to butter mixture and beat together.  On the last addition, you can mix with your hands since the dough will be a bit tough to beat with an electric mixer.


Once combined, roll into a ball and cover with plastic.  Refrigerate dough for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place powdered sugar in shallow bowl.  Pinch off about 1-1/2 tbsp size of dough (I used a melon ball scooper) and roll into ball-shape.  Place dough into powdered sugar, roll dough around and coat completely.  Do not shake off excess.  Place coated dough on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.  Bake for 12 minutes.  Cool on wire rack.  Makes about 36 cookies.

Mookie's Pumpkin Cranberry Bread Pudding

My dog, Mookie, inspired this week's dish.  A couple weeks ago, I went to The Bread Basket in Camarillo and splurged on a pumpkin cranberry muffin to eat the next morning for breakfast.  I woke up bright and early and got busy with my morning routine: walk the dogs, feed the dogs, get ready for work, etc.  When I had finished all that, I was finally ready to eat!  I put the muffin in the microwave for 10 seconds, just to warm it up slightly, poured myself a mug of steamed soymilk and sat down to watch a little TV before I had to leave for work.  I went to grab my phone (to set the alarm so I wouldn't be late).  I was gone literally seconds, but when I came back, the muffin was gone and all I could hear was licking noises in the corner.  Mookie had devoured the entire muffin, complete with paper wrapper!  After my initial anger had subsided, I did recognize that it was my fault for leaving the muffin out in the open (albeit, on the table), and perhaps it was just too delicious to resist with the muffin fumes wafting all around.  Needless to say, I was sad because I really wanted the muffin and now was craving the pumpkin cranberry combination. 

And so, I decided to make my own, of course, but with a twist.  I love bread pudding, so I combined the two to make a wonderfully rich, vegan dish.  With the spicy sweet pumpkin and tart cranberries bursting in your mouth, nothing says "The holidays are here!" better.

9 cups bread, cut into 1-inch cubes (You can use any kind of bread, whether it's the pre-sliced white bread or full, uncut round loaves.  I prefer either white, sourdough or sheepherder loaf.  I also like the uncut loaves because then I can cut it to the 1-inch cube size myself.  I got this country bread loaf from Heirloom Bakery in South Pasadena, California.  I removed the crust all around and then cut it into slices and then cubes.)

15 oz. can pumpkin
1 cup sweetened vanilla soymilk
1/2 cup succanat sugar or vegan brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease 9 x 9 pan with canola oil.  Set aside.


In large bowl, mix pumpkin, soymilk, sugar and spices.  Whisk until uniform.  Add cubed bread to bowl and mix to coat.  Allow bread and pumpkin mixture to sit together for about 5-10 minutes, allowing the mixture to absorb into the bread.  Add cranberries and toss again, being careful not to mix too enthusiastically so the bread stays cubed.

Pour into prepared pan and press the mixture down to fill the corners.  Bake for 40 minutes.

Serve warm or cold, plain or dolloped with some Soyatoo whipped topping.

Sweet Tooth Sweets

I have a BIG sweet tooth.  When I went vegan, I wasn't sure what would be in store for me because I couldn't imagine baking without eggs, sugar, butter.  I thought the cakes would taste dry, gritty, "healthy", in short, not yummy.  But I was utterly wrong.  My baking experiments have turned out great, sometimes even better than their counterparts, and every time, the only reason my friends know it's vegan is because I told them.

But, I don't always have time to whip up a batch of cookies or cupcakes, so in a pinch, I have some faithful standbys to help me when I need an afternoon pick-me-up!

Justin's Peanut Butter Cups:  These peanut butter cups are so rich, so creamy, so chocolately, and sooooooooooooo much more delicious than a plain old Reese's.  What's even better is that it has less sugar than Reese's and they're organic!  Only the dark chocolate cups are vegan because the milk chocolate ones obviously have milk.  Justin, I <3 you.

Alternative Baking Company:  My favorite, favorite, favorite cookie hands down!  The Explosive Espresso Chip cookie reminds me of the Neiman Marcus cookie (you know the one that is now part of urban legend history).  It has that chocolatey goodness with a hint of coffee.  And the Double Chocolate Decadence cookie is this chocolate lover's fave.  As an bonus, follow the helpful tips on the back of the package and microwave the cookie for 30 seconds- it truly tastes like a cookie straight out of the oven!

Isabella's Cookie Company:  I've seen these cookies at different markets here and there, but never got them because everything contained eggs, dairy, etc.  But imagine my surprise when I went to Whole Foods the other day and saw they created a vegan line-up!  The V-chip, V-nutter, V-oat, V-coco and their newest flavor: The V Break-feast!  Maple waffle cookie with chocolate chips and bacun.   It tastes like bacon strips smothered in maple syrup.  It's definitely an acquired taste, I'll admit, but if you like sweet and savory together, this is the cookie for you!

Holiday biscotti

Christmas is upon us.  I pulled out the decorations from the garage and got into the holiday spirit.  I decorated the tree, hung the doggie's stockings, and baked up a batch of holiday biscotti.  With green pistachios and red cranberries, these cookies quickly got me in a festive mood!

"Dry ingredients"
2 cups unbleached flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp EnerG Egg replacer


"Wet ingredients"
1/2 cup vanilla soymilk
1/3 cup applesauce
1/2 cup evaporated cane juice
1/2 tsp vanilla


"Mixins"
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup shelled & roasted pistachios


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place parchment paper on cookie sheet.


Combine dry ingredients in one bowl and wet ingredients into another bowl.  With electric mixer, beat wet ingredients together just a few seconds (to combine the applesauce with the milk).  When complete, add the dry ingredients.  It is best to add a little bit at a time, in 3 or 4 separate, rather than all at once.


Keep beating dough until the flour mixture is just about incorporated (you will complete the rest of the mixing by hand).  Add cranberries and pistachios and knead the dough, trying to incorporate the last of the dough around the bowl as well as spread the mixins evenly in the dough.

Place dough on cookie sheet and form into a log about 3-1/2 to 4 inches in width and about 14 to 15 inches in length.  The dough will be sticky so wet your hands slightly with cold water and you can shape the log without a problem.

Bake for 40 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow cookie to cool for a few minutes.  Cut into individual pieces, about 1-inch.  Place the cookies on their side and bake for an additional 25 minutes until golden.

Serve with coffee, tea, or even a steaming cup of soymilk!  Enjoy the holiday season!

Dahling... I'm ready for my close-up!

I am admittedly one of those people that dress their dogs up and take pictures.  If they were "humans", I would totally show these pictures later in life to their prom date or future spouse.  So, it comes as no surprise that I also take them to have their picture with Santa and the Easter bunny.  And that was how I met my friend, Sharon Hardy of Sweet Potato Pet Photography.

It was Halloween last year and I was taking the dogs to a Halloween get-together given by Happy Angels Dog Rescue.  The paperwork was not quite finalized on Tokki and I wanted to appear like a good pet parent, so of course we were going to show up and show off our successful 3-week fostering period.  But afterwards, we were going to hurry back to Pasadena for our spooky pet portrait sitting at Centinela.

When I arrived, there was a pet photographer taking photos of all the rescued dogs and their respective mommies and daddies.  Mookie had a great time mingling (Tokki was still on the reserved side so she spent time cuddled in my lap, which of course, made her more adorable.). At one point, I was watching Sharon work (she was so great with all the different dogs and their personality) and it hit me. Why am I rushing back to get pictures done when great photos were being done right here?  I called up Centinela and cancelled the appointment and it was one of the best moves.  The pictures I got back from that day were so amazing.  Also, I was so taken by Sharon's altruistic spirit.  At the time, not only was she donating her time and energy for Happy Angels, she also donated half of the proceeds from pet sittings to the favorite charity of your choice.

A few months ago, I approached her to take photos of our Animal Care for Artist team for Strut Your Mutt.  She immediately said yes and Laura and I were overwhelmed with her generosity.  She took some unbelievable photos of our team "babies."

Strut Your Mutt 2011

Strut Your Mutt 2011

I have taken hundreds of photos of Mookie and Tokki, and will take thousands more I'm sure in their lifetime.  But none of them will ever manage to capture the essence of their personality quite the way Sharon does.  While Mookie and Tokki always look sad in my photos (I'm not sure if it's the costume or the photographer; it's a toss-up), Sharon's photos reveal their true character.

Mine vs.

Sharon's

Pet photos may seem like a waste or an unnecessary extravagance to some people.  But I know when the time comes and my babies leave for Rainbow Bridge, I will have some amazing shots to go with my memories of long ago.

Again, mine.

And Sharon's

Not your typical PB&J

I have always liked peanut butter and strawberry jam sandwiches.  When I travel, they are my go-to carry-on meals because they're easy to make, easy to stuff into my purse and aren't perishable.  I remember one trip to Italy with my sister, her then-boyfriend-now-husband, and another friend of ours, we got in late to our lodging and all the restaurants were closed.  I pulled out my loaf of bread and peanut butter and jam jars and just like that, we had dinner!  Ahhh, the memories...

Anyway, I decided to make a PB&J with a twist.  So go ahead and let these little gems rekindle your love of PB&J (VegNews Bucket List #49).

1/2 cup peanut butter (creamy)
8 tbsp (1 stick) Earth Balance butter, room temperature
1/2 cup succanat sugar or vegan brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup unbleached flour


Preheat oven to 350. 


Cream peanut butter and sugar together in large mixing bowl.  Add sugar.  Once combined, add vanilla and salt and mix.  Add flour in 2-3 batches and mix until crumbly (the last bit of flour, you may want to use your hands instead of an electric mixer).


Roll approximately 1 tbsp of dough into ball.  Press center of dough to form a well.  You may have to pinch and round the sides of the cookie if it cracks.  Place about 1/2 tsp of your favorite jam in the center of the cookies.

Bake for 12-13 min.  Cool on cookie sheet for about 5 minutes then transfer to wire rack with foil sheet placed on to (so the cookie doesn't fall through the slots).  Be careful because the cookie is rather on the fragile side.

Cool completely then enjoy with a tall glass of milk and remember all the schoolyard lunches mom used to make....

A Gobble Gobble Alternative

I don't know who ever saw the potential of acorn squash, or butternut squash for that matter, as a good thing to eat.  I mean, it has this really, really, REALLY hard skin and you need a really, really, REALLY big and sharp knife to get through it!  I suppose the early farmers had their machetes or something equivalent and just slashed right through the "shell", and they were rewarded with... more hard "flesh" and stringy "hair."  But you scoop out the strings & seeds, you roast the rest and voila!  A meal is born!

This year, I will be opting out of our traditional turkey and instead making a roasted acorn squash complete with "stuffing."  The squash has a nice wintry feel to it, slightly sweetened with a little maple syrup.  The rice has some elements of a traditional Thanksgiving stuffing like celery and new twists like red bell peppers and cashews.  This makes enough for 8 squash pieces or 4 squash with a bowl of stuffing as a side dish.

To begin:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

1 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 tbsp canola oil
1/2 tsp red chili pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
1 (or 2) acorn squash, quartered.
Mix together syrup, oil and spices in small bowl.  Brush onto the center and sides of each squash piece.  Bake for 40-45 minutes until squash is soft and tender.

(Listed in the order that they are used)
2 tbsp canola oil, split
1 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup baby carrots, slivered
1 garlic clove, fine dice
1 package (2 cups) Trader Joe's Wild Rice Medley
1/2 cup vegetable broth
1/4 bell pepper, small dice
1 granny smith apple, chopped into bite-size pieces
1/3 cup toasted cashews

Heat 1 tbsp oil in pan.  Add celery & carrots and saute for about 3-4 minutes.  Add additional oil to pan and add garlic, rice and broth.  When rice is cooked, remove from heat and add bell pepper and apple.  Toss.  The veggies wills till have some crunch to them, which is a nice contrast to the roasted acorn squash.

Spoon a generous helping into each squash and serve.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Buns anyone?

I'm talking the cinnamon kind.

I love cinnamon rolls.  The swirls of sweet cinnamon sugar nestled in between the layers of soft, pillowy dough and a rich, gooey glaze melting down the sides of a freshly baked bun- an indulgence for sure!  So when I heard about VegNews Bucket List #16 Cinnaholic, where patrons could pick from an assortment of tried and true combinations or create their own, I just had to try it.


I drove up to San Francisco early one Friday and made it to Berkeley just before lunchtime.  I picked up the Old Skool flavor (traditional cinnamon bun with glaze) and a S'mores (with cinnamon graham cracker bears, dandies marshmallows and chocolate syrup).

Old Skool

S'mores

They were so good that I had to make another stop on my way out of town on Sunday afternoon for the drive home and got the daily special: Raspberry Streusel (raspberries and granola oats).

Raspberry streusel

This place should definitely be on your list of "things to do and see"!  I wonder if I can convince my sister to bring some with her next week for Thanksgiving...

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!

Thanksgiving is approaching and I am excited!  My sister and her husband will be joining us this year (they flip-flop with his family) and we are cooking a vegan feast together!  I've scoured through my vegan cookbook arsenal and we've got some great ideas for stuffing, veggies, and potatoes.  Along with my cooking duties, I will be breaking out the springform pan and making a pumpkin cheesecake.


This one has a deep pumpkin flavor that goes hand-in-hand with the rich creaminess of a cheesecake.  The pecans also add a little extra "fall season" feel.

Crust:
1 1/2 cup ground vanilla wafers (about 30 cookies)- I used Back to Nature Madagascar Vanilla wafers
1/3 cup pecans
3 tbsp evaporated cane juice
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
8 tbsp (1 stick) Earth Balance butter


Filling:
2- 8 oz. Tofutti cream cheese
1/4 cup vanilla soy milk
3/4 cup evaporated cane juice
1- 15 oz. can pumpkin
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
2 tbsp soy flour


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.


In small bowl, combine cookie crumbs, cinnamon, sugar, and butter.  Combine with fork until mixed.  Pour into 9-inch springform pan and press against sides and bottom of pan.  Place in oven for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in kitchenaid mixer or bowl, combine cream cheese and soymilk for about 30 seconds.  Then add evaporated cane juice.  You should have a creamy, uniform mixture at this point.  Add pumpkin and remaining spices and mix.  Last, add the soy flour (to help thicken us the filling).

Pour into prepared pan and bake for an additional 65 minutes.  The center will be slightly jiggly, but it will firm up.  Cool completely at room temperature and then refrigerate overnight.  Cooling in two steps helps the cheesecake top not to crack.


Serve with soyatoo whipped topping or just plain.  I've even seen a recipe for a cranberry drizzle which sounds great against the rich dessert.

Farmer's Market Finds

There’s a big push these days to “buy local” and “shop at the local farmer’s market.”  I thoroughly love roaming aimlessly through the stalls without an agenda or a grocery list.  I only buy what looks good.  Some days it could be radishes, another day sweet pluots.

Some of my favorite ones are:

Mission-West District in South Pasadena:  They are open every Thursday evening from 4-8 pm, so it’s a great place to go after work.  I have a route that I walk from central Pasadena into South Pasadena and it takes me right by there in the evenings.  I bought some great hummus and pita bread (and when I wasn’t vegan, a great tasting kebob stick.)

Victory Park in Pasadena:  According to the website, they are open every Saturday from 8:30-12:30, but my friend and I have gone close to noon and the farmers/vendors are nowhere near shutting down.  If I’m not mistaken, they are actually there until 2 pm.  They have many, many farmers there, almost 15-20 vendors, so there’s no shortage of produce.  They come as far as Nipomo sometimes, up near Santa Maria.  My favorites this summer included mushrooms, fingerling potatoes, peaches, and nectarines.

Broxton Ave. in Westwood:  This is a small operation, located on one of the side streets near UCLA.  It’s great because it’s near work and they changed their hours so my friend "Stripes" and I can go on our lunch break.  The fruit & vegetable vendors had some great produce- so fresh and vibrant looking!  And even though peak season is over, there are some farms still harvesting strawberries and they looked perfectly red, juicy, and oh so sweet!  $6 for a tray of 3 baskets was a great deal!  Our next great find was Bolani: East & West Gourmet Food.  Their specialty is a vegan and all-natural Afghan food called bolani: flatbread stuffed and baked with different fillings.  They had spinach, pumpkin, potato and lentil.  All of them have less than 150 calories (the pumpkin bolani has only 84 calories!) a serving and are packed with fiber and protein.  They also have some great spreads & dips like cilantro pesto, eggplant pesto and sweet jalapeno jelly.  One word: AMAZING!

DIY energy bars

I have a hard time with "mile marker" snacks during marathons.  The well-meaning volunteers hand out such things like crackers & cheese sandwiches, chocolate cookies, fruit jelly snacks (along with the occasional banana or orange), which do serve their purpose of providing energy, but they're obviously not vegan.  So mostly I pack a few CLIF shot blocks (which are vegan-friendly!) and some pretzels in my belt pack.  But honestly, it's not enough to sustain me for 26 miles!  So, I created my own energy bar to keep on hand.  With pretzels, salted nuts, and tart cranberries, this bar has the sodium, protein and glucose needed to keep me going to the finish line!

There are also a number of other great benefits:
1) It's so easy to make your own.
2) I'm not a huge fan of raisins (in fact, I don't keep any in the house in case my mischievous Mookie sniffs his way into a container).  But it seems that a lot of trail mixes and energy bars have them in it.  But by making my own, I get exactly what I want!  You can add coconut (if that's your thing) or granola or... the sky's the limit!  Oh, although, hold off on the chocolate chips because they'll melt from all the heat.  You're better off leaving it as a dip at the end.
3) I also save a little bit of money.  Most bars are in the $1.25-$1.50 range and these cost about $0.75 to $0.80, depending on what nuts are added (I use the more expensive macadamias and cashews, but you can stick to peanuts if you're on a budget.)

1 cup coarsely chopped dried apricots (about 20)
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup roasted salted peanuts
3/4 cup roasted salted cashews
1/2 cup roasted salted macadamia nuts
3/4 cup roasted whole unsalted almonds
1/3 cup roasted salted sunflower seeds
(I used mostly salted nuts to replace the sodium I lose during races, but if you're watching your intake, then I would use the unsalted variety.)

2 oz. coarsely broken pretzel sticks
4 cups brown rice crispy cereal
(In all, you want about 10 cups of "stuff".)

1 1/4 cup brown rice syrup
8 tbsp (1 stick) Earth Balance butter
1/2 cup evaporated cane juice

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Using 11" x 17" jelly roll pan, cut parchment paper to cover bottom and sides of pan.  Set aside.

In small saucepan, combine brown rice syrup, butter and evaporated cane juice.  Heat to boiling.

Combine dried fruits, nuts, pretzels and cereal in large mixing bowl.  Pour boiling syrup mixture into cereal mixture and stir to coat.

Pour mixture onto pan and press flat using a silicone spatula.


Bake for 30 minutes.  Cool for approximately 10 minutes and score into 20 pieces (I did 18 rectangles about 2" x 5" [3 rows of 6 across] and then had a small 2" strip at the bottom which I cut long ways into 2 pieces.)  Each bar is approximately 350 calories.


If you want to be extra fancy, you can melt some chocolate chips (Sunspire or Enjoy Life brand) and brush a layer of chocolate on the bottom of the bar.


Wrap individual bars in parchment paper and store in airtight container.

Taste the Rainbow

Whole Foods sells salad shakers in their deli section.  My favorite layers quinoa, their three bean edamame salad, some extra veggies, and a light, sassy vinaigrette.  I love them because they contain all the stuff to make a nice, satisfying meal, all wrapped up in a 16 oz. cup.

Then there's a flat lid and a dome lid. Inside the dome is a little container of dressing. You separate the flat lid and dome lid to remove the dressing, pour the dressing on the salad, replace it with the dome lid and shake...

shake...

shake!

Even though summer is over, it doesn't mean you can't have a festive, colorful meal.  I decided to make a lunch shaker and as an extra bonus, one for dessert as well.  You'll definitely get in your "5 a day!"

About 1 1/2 cup each of:

Shredded purple cabbage

Shelled edamame

Canned corn

Carrots, cut into small slices

Tomatoes, cut into quarters then slices

Divide all ingredients among 4 cups

For the dressing, add the following to a blender:

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

Zest and juice of 1 1/2 orange

12 mint leaves

While blending, pour 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil into blender. The dressing makes 4 servings.

To continue to theme, I made a dessert cup as well with:

1 container blueberries

4 Kiwi

1 pineapple, cored, sliced and diced

1/4 canteloupe, sliced into small pieces

1 container raspberries

1/2 cup dandies marshmallows

Organic Ah!laska chocolate syrup

This one does not do well shaken. I did and it became a big gloppy mess, albeit a yummy gloppy mess. You would do better to use the sauce on the side and just dip the fruit.

When I say the possibilities are endless, I truly mean it this time. From different veggies to different dressings, you can create a new salad practically every day!

Note: I bought the "accessories" at Smart & Final: cups, flat lids and dome lids.  The sauce cup and lid I took from the cafeteria at work, but they sell them at S&F too.  With regards to the dome lids, I could only find ones with a hole in the top (for those people that want to add whipped topping to their frappuccino).  If you can find ones without the holes, great!  If not, then you can put a saran wrap on the inside before you close the lid and shake the salad.