Merry Christmas and Goodbye

I am feeling nostalgic this week, I think for a lot of reasons. Maybe it's because I just watched the series finale of Gossip Girl. Just kidding..sort of. :) But, this will be my last blog post on Vegan Blonde. I don't have the time anymore. But, I am doing this final post for probably my only reader, my beautiful niece, Jillian. But, Jillian...I'm going out with a bang and made 3 recipes for you!

Another reason for my nostalgia is this is my last week with my first graders and then I move up to sixth grade, which is exciting but I am sad to leave the first graders.

Last but not least, this Christmas is different. Every single member of my family lives in a different city.   Who knew that I would be the last one left in the Santa Barbara area? I never thought in a million years...But, I have an amazing Christmas to look forward to. I get to meet my new nephew Jackson David. I will spending the two weeks in Colorado for some much needed family time. Especially because of the number one reason for my sentiment. This is the first Christmas without my dad. He will be very missed.

I guess now is as good a time as ever to say goodbye to my blog and move on to bigger and better things. A bakery full of my recipes will be alive some day!

Anyways, to whoever this reaches. Happy Holidays and goodbye. :)

"Do whatever you want to do. It's nobody's life but yours." -My dad

1954-2012

Jackson 

Vegan White Chocolate Raspberry Cookies

Years ago, I had a white chocolate raspberry cookie at Disneyland. It was literally the best cookie I have ever had. I have thought about making it since. Today, I did. These are the best cookies I've ever made.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup vegan butter, room temperature
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1/2 cup vegan sugar
Egg replacer, equivalent of 2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup Raspberry Jam (store bought or homemade*)
1/2 bag of vegan white chocolate chips (http://www.veganstore.com/product/637/other-chocolates) or any vegan dark or semi-sweet chocolate chips


What to do:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease a large cookie sheet with canola oil.
In a separate medium bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, mix together vegan butter, coconut oil, sugar, egg replacer, and vanilla.
Add in flour mixture (mix will be very dry.)
Mix in raspberry jam until just incorporated.
Stir in vegan white chocolate chips.
Roll out onto baking sheet
Bake for 15 minutes.

*Homemade Raspberry Jam
2 cups frozen raspberries
1 cup sugar
In a saucepan, heat raspberries and add sugar. Stir for 15 minutes until boiling rapidly. After 15 minutes, set aside to cool.

Oreo Brittle

I love oreos! This is a very simple recipe that is great to give as small gifts for the holidays! The Candy Cane Joe's Oreos from Trader Joe's were out this year so I had to stick to traditional. But, I added a dash of peppermint extract to the chocolate and it was perfect! You could even crumble up candy canes and put it on the oreos as they are cooling! This easy peezy.

What you need:

Parchment paper

1 Box of Vegan Oreos (Joe's Oreos from Trader Joe's work)

2 Bags of vegan semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 teaspoon of peppermint extract

What to do:

Lay out parchment paper

Melt chocolate in a medium saucepan and add peppermint extract. Once melted, remove from heat.

Add in oreos and mash them with a spoon. Mix it up until they are covered in chocolate.

Spread over parchment paper.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Vegan Fudge

I took this recipe from a website. It came out pretty well. Check it out.
http://vegetarian.about.com/od/desertrecipes/r/veganfudge.htm

Coconut Cupcakes

These cupcakes are amazing! I added a simple chocolate frosting below but you can use whatever frosting you would like!

What you need:
 2/3 cup coconut oil (heated until in liquid form)
1 1/2 cup sugar
Egg replacer equivalent of 2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 cup coconut milk

What to do:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a large mixing bowl, cream together coconut oil and sugar. Add egg replacer slowly and beat in vanilla.
In a separate bowl, sift together flour and baking powder. Then add the flour mix to the liquid mix. Slowly add coconut milk until combined. Cool and then frost with a frosting of your choice!
 
Chocolate Frosting ingredients:
1/3 cup vegan butter, softened
1/3 cup coconut milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup cocoa powder
about 2 cups powdered sugar (depending on how thick you like your frosting)

What to do:
Mix all ingredients. Add powdered sugar last. Powdered sugar is hard to measure out for frosting, so just keep adding until it's at the consistency you want.

"Giving Up the V-card" An Article from Raptitude.com

This article struck a chord with me and I thought I should post it here. Good reading!

 It’s been a year since my most successful experiment. I had given up animal-derived foods to find out what it did for my health. After 30 years of indiscriminate eating, I finally gave the ethical issue surrounding animal food some honest thought, and ended up going vegan completely.
It’s been the best year of my life, and I’m convinced veganism is a large part of that. I won’t gush about the details but I’ll say that I felt altogether better physically and emotionally and I’m never going back to the way I used to live.
However, I don’t want to call myself a vegan any more. I’m giving up my V-card.
I’m still off meat and dairy and eggs, I still won’t buy wool or leather, I still won’t use animals for my entertainment, and I wish others would do the same. But my philosophy on it is quite different than it was a year ago and I don’t want to call myself the V-word. I’ll tell you why.
The first thing you notice when you go vegan is that everyone is mad, and they tell you you’re mad. You voluntarily enter the moral Twilight Zone. You discover a grotesque inconsistency between the beliefs people express and their behavior. You realize that we’re all highly irrational, and that it’s emotion that rules culture, and culture rules the behavior of individuals. No matter how much harm it causes, nothing we do needs to be justified as long as it’s popular enough.
Ask ten people on the street if they think it’s wrong to injure or kill animals for one’s amusement or pleasure, and nine or ten will say yes, of course. Chances are all ten of those people freely consume animal products, simply because they like to and they’re used to doing it.
A new vegan also encounters a bizarre compulsion in many otherwise friendly people to talk as loudly to you as possible about how delicious and juicy steak is. A certain contempt for you emerges seemingly from nowhere, and the most polite person can be overtaken by an urge to reiterate to you that they could never give up meat, because they just “love a good steak!”, presumably the way Michael Vick once loved a good dogfight.
For the recently converted, this inexplicable pseudo-hostility from everyday people can be alarming and it often triggers the kind of inadvertently sarcastic tone you saw in the last few paragraphs [Sorry! -D]. The effect is draining and alienating, and it’s hard not to feel a vague resentment for (or at least disappointment in) the ninety-nine percent of people who have no hesitation about exploiting animals if there is something enjoyable to be found in it. 

by David  http://www.raptitude.com/2012/04/giving-up-the-v-card/

Vegan White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Blondies!

I miss white chocolate. I will admit that is one thing that I miss, being vegan. There are usually vegan substitutes that satisfy my cravings...like vegan chocolate and cashew cheese. Yet, white chocolate is hard to find. I found a great recipe recently and tried to make it. It turned out well! Although, my friend told me it didn't taste like white chocolate but she said it was good! Anyway, I love blondies. This recipe turned out great, I couldn't stop eating them!

What you need:
1/2 cup vegan butter at room temperature
1 1/4 cup sugar (I used brown sugar)
Egg replacer equivalent of 2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup vegan white chocolate (http://bittersweetblog.wordpress.com/2008/02/18/the-white-stuff/)
1 cup semi-sweet vegan chocolate
3/4 cup macadamia nuts, chopped

What to do:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add egg replacer and vanilla. In a separate bowl sift together the flour and baking powder. Mix until incorporated. Mix in chocolate and macadamia nuts.
Pour into a baking pan an smooth flat. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes.

"Dona Lee" Seitan Wrap

There is a vegetarian restaurant that I love in Denver, CO called Watercourse Foods. My favorite thing there is the "Dona Lee Wrap." It consists of herb crusted seitan, vegan ranch, avocado, tomatoes, and lettuce. Not only does Watercourse have the best seitan but their desserts are to die for! They should hire me to promote for them. Anywho, my wrap turned out pretty good and will hold me over until I make it to Colorado again!

Seitan:

What you need:

1.5 cups vital wheat gluten
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup cold water
4 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon ketchup
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce

What to do:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together dry ingredients. In a seperate bowl, mix liquid ingredients. Add the liguid to the dry ingreadients. Knead for several minutes. Form into a log. Wrap in foil, twisting the ends Bake for 90 minutes.

Ranch:

What you need:

1 cup veganaise
1/4 cup almond milk
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teasppns chopped parsely
1/2 teasppn chopped dill.
1tablespoon cider vinegar

What to do:

Mix all of the ingredients together.

For the wrap: Put in whatever veggies you like. I like seitan, ranch, avo, tomato, and lettuce! Oh, and a side of sweet potato fries tops off this meal!

Sugar Free Vegan Banana Muffins

Happy New Year! While I am not big on New Year's resolutions, I did make two. One is to stop spending so much time on Facebook. It's lame. The second is to eat less processed food. So, that means a lot less sugar and packaged food. Therefore, I made these no sugar added, whole wheat, low fat muffins! They are super easy to make. They're not super sweet and you can taste how good they are for you! They are quite satisfying. I'm not giving up baking with sugar, vegan, butter and all that good stuff completely. But, I'm trying to make a small change. We'll see what other stuff I come up with. Anyway, here's to a happy, healthy New Year!

What you need:

3 ripe bananas, mashed
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup flax meal
1/2 cup oats
 1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup oats

 What to do:

In a small bowl, mash the bananas with a fork. Mix in the applesauce.
In a large bowl mix all of the dry ingredients. Then, stir in the banana and applesauce mix.
Fill the muffin pan about 3/4ths of the way full.
Bake for about 15-20 minutes.

Maple Walnut Cake

I have been looking for an excuse to make a cake. Unfortunately, none of my friends have birthdays coming up and I didn't have any cake-worthy events planned. But, I finally found an excuse! I felt like making it just for the sake of it. I made maple cake because I feel like it's a very winter-esque cake. It was really fun to make and pretty easy. It came out delicious! My friend even asked if I would marry him just so I could bake for him...I'm assuming that meant he liked it. Happy Holidays!

Ingredients

For the cake:
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour (you can also split the all purpose with whole wheat for a healthier spin)
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup vegan  butter softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
egg replacer equivalent to 2 eggs
1 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup almond milk
1 cup chopped walnuts plus 1/2 cup for top


For the frosting:
2 1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup softened vegan butter
1 teaspoon maple extract
2 tablespoons almond milk

What to do:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease two round cake pans.
In a medium bowl sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
In a large mixing bowl,  mix together butter and sugar. Then mix in eggs and syrup. Slowly mix in the flour mixture and almond milk. Stir in walnuts.
Pour the batter evenly into the two round baking pans.
Bake the cakes for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Remove the cake from the pans and let cool for about 20 minutes.

For the frosting mix all of the ingredients together. If it is too watery add more powdered sugar.

Assemble the cake and frost!

Chocolate Walnut Cookies

 
We are all getting ready for the holidays and what better way to prepare than to bake these yummy and cute cookies? My friend Melody helped me bake these and we had a blast!

What you need:
 
Cookie:
1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
2/3 cup sugar
2 egg equivalent egg replacer (Separated)
2 tablespoons almond milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup baking cocoa
 1 cup finely chopped walnuts

Filling:
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon softened vegan butter
2 teaspoons almond milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup semi-sweet vegan chocolate chips

What to do:

In a large mixing bowl, beat coconut oil and sugar together. Beat in the egg replacer, milk, and vanilla. In a separate bowl combine the flour and cocoa. Gradually add flour mixture into the wet mixture until combined. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
Mix egg replacer mix well. Shape dough into 1-inch balls and dip in egg replacer.
Then roll the dough in walnuts.
With the end of a round spoon handle, press in the center of each cookie. Bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

For the filling, mix all of the ingredients together. Spoon in 1/4 teaspoon into each cookie. Put as many chocolate chips as you would like to top it off.

ENJOY

Vegan Rice Krispy Treats

 Rice Krispy Treats are a classic. I'm not sure why it had never crossed my mind to make them. But, after spotting vegan marshmallows at the store the other day, inspiration struck. They are super easy and quick to make. My skeptical, non-vegan friend took a bite and said, "They taste like real ones!" So, I assume I succeeded in making vegan rice krispy treats!

What you need:

2 tablespoons vegan butter
2 cups vegan marshmallows (Dandies)
3 cups rice krispy cereal

What to do:

In a medium sauce pan over medium heat, melt together butter and marshmallows. Once melted, remove from heat and stir in krispy cereal.
In a lightly greased, sqaure pan press in the krispy mix. Press the mix down with a spatula. Cut into squares.

ENJOY!

Pumpkin Swirl Brownies.

I took a bite right before I took the picture! I couldn't resist...

Baking is one of my absolute most favorite things to do and it always makes me feel better when I'm having a less than perfect day. Today was one of those so baking was a must! I decided to keep with the pumpkin vibe since it's still fall and Thanksgiving is only 4 days away! I've been seeing recipes around for pumpkin brownie's and I couldn't resist creating my own! These came out super fudgy and delicious and absolutely made my day better...These are a must to try.


Ingredients:

1/2 cup vegan butter
2 ounces dark chocolate
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs (2 tablespoons flax meal + 4 tablespoons water)
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup whole wheat flour

What to do:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium sauce pan, melt together butter and dark chocolate.

 Once melted, remove from heat and stir in sugar, flax mix, and flour.
In a separate bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, sugar, and flour.
In a 9X9 greased baking pan, evenly spread out the brownie mix. Spread out the pumpkin mix on top and swirl in with a butter knife.
Bake for about 30 minutes and ENJOY!

 

So good with vanilla ice cream!

The batch right out of the oven.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

It's Fall! This means the holiday's are coming up and I am so excited! In celebration, I have been starting to make lots of pumpkin goodies! I have made here a delicious chocolate chip pumpkin bread recipe! It's pretty easy and super delicious! Happy October.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 cup vegan butter
1 can pumpkin puree (15 oz)
Egg replacer (equiv. 2 eggs)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup semi-sweet vegan chocolate chips

What to do:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, mix together sugar, butter, pumpkin, vanilla, and eggs.
In a separate bowl sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon.
Once sifted together, add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix well.Stir in the chocolate chips.
Pour into a baking pan of your choice i.e. a cupcake pan, a loaf pan, a bundt pan, and etc.
Bake for about 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Almond Butter Dark Chocolate Cups

These are so incredibly easy to make and don't call for a lot of ingredients. They're very decadent and rich!

Ingredients:
1 pound vegan dark chocolate
2 tablespoons earth balance butter
1 cup almond butter
1 cup brown sugar (or powdered sugar)


What to do:
In a double broiler, melt the chocolate and butter together until smooth. Remove from heat.
In a mixing bowl mix together the almond butter and sugar.In a miniature cupcake pan put about a teaspoon of the melted chocolate and spread it so it covers the sides. Put in about 1 teaspoon of the almond mix. Then cover the almond butter with dark chocolate. Freeze for about an hour.

 MAGGIE

I was in LA recently visiting a friends new apartment. As I walking to her house, the sweetest little white dog came up to me. She was so sweet while I petted her. She ended up following me all the way to my friends house and my first thought was I have to take her home! But, my mom, who is less impulsive than me, said no, it could be someones dog, although she seemed too dirty to me to have been taken care of. So, my friend Mary let me give her a bath. I looked on Craigslist and no one posted a listing for her. So, I took her to the LA Shelter where someone could find her if they were looking. I was so sad and scared because it was a kill-shelter. But, I had no other choice except to wait and see if someone claimed her. No one did and the day she went up for adoption I went and got her. She's the sweetest, most playful, energetic dog! I love her and I just had to share my new addition who literally just walked into my life.

Blackberry Oat Scones

I used to work at a small coffee shop in Summerland and they had the best pastries. My favorite was the blackberry oat scones. We got to take home the leftovers everyday. While there usually weren't any scones left, because they were so good, I remember one day there were two left. I was like oh, yay, I have a two day supply. I was driving home and I was like man, I really want a bite. So, I had one bite, then you know, another, then the last thing I know in my 10 minute drive home I ate both scones! (Don't judge.) They were that good! Since then, a few years have passed and I have yet to find a Vegan version of those scones. I decided to make my own, and they came out, in my opinion just as good as the others! Anywho, long story short, blackberry oat scones are delicious and I can't contain myself with scones, apparently.

What you need:
1 cup frozen or fresh blackberries
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup almond milk
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup rolled oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda

What to do:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a medium saucepan on medium heat stir together blackberries, sugar, and almond milk. Stir together until balckberries become very soft and are almost mashed up. It takes about 5 to 10 minutes.
In a large bowl measure out flour, oats, baking powder, and baking soda. Mix in blackberry liquid.
On a clean surface, sprinkle flour. Make about 2 pancakes about 1 1/2 inches thick. Cut each like a pizza into about four squares. There four you will have about 12 scones. Bake for about 20 minutes. Enjoy!

Raw Vegan Cheesecake with Berry Sauce

 I've been so busy lately, I haven't been able to make anything new! Thanks to my good friend Kyla, fresh back from a  summer in Paris, she suggested I attempt to make cheesecake! I decided a raw one would be interesting. So, I found a few raw cheesecake recipes and tried it out! This cheesecake takes some work but it is so worth it! You won't believe that raw, vegan cheesecake could be so delicious!!
 
What you need:

Crust-
1/4 cup dried coconut
1 1/2 cup raw walnuts (or any other nut like pecans or almonds!)
1/2 cup pitted dates
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Filling-
3 cups raw cashews (soaked in water for 1 hour)
3/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
3/4 cup raw agave
3/4 cup coconut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla

Sauce Ingredients-
1 cup frozen berries
1/2 cup dates or agave

What to do:

In a pie tin sprinkle the cocunut over bottom. This keeps the crust from sticking.
In a food processor grind up walnuts, dates, and salt. This will make a crust like substance. BUT, if  you have miniature, not very good food processor like me...Blend the nuts ad the dates separately. Then, in a bowl mash the dates and walnuts together (my hands worked well for this) until it is all mixed together.
Sprinkle the crust into the pie tin and then with a spatula press it down so it is like a crust.
In a blender, mix together all of the filling ingredients until smooth.
Spread the filling over the pie crust.
Place this in the freezer for about an hour.
While this is freezing, in a food processor blend together the fruit and dates. This takes some patience but it will eventually smooth out!
Once the cheesecake is cooled spread the sauce evenly over the top.
Keep in the refrigerator and enjoy! It's so yummy!

Vegan Dark Chocolate Pecan Bars

I love bars of any kind. I've been wanting to make some recently so I figured Pecan Bars would be good! These were delicious and irresistible. They're unbelievably easy to make! Have fun and hope you like!

What you need:

Crust:
1 cup white flour
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup cold vegan butter

Pecan Filling:
1/4 cup vegan butter
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon almond milk
1 cup whole pecans

1/4 cup dark chocolate

What to do:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
For the crust: Mix flour sugar. Cut in the cold butter until mixture is crumbly.
In a smaller, lightly greased baking pan press the mixture in.
Bake for about 20 minutes.
Remove from oven and set aside.

For the Pecan Filling: In a medium sauce and on medium heat pan melt the butter. Stir in the maple syrup, sugar, vanilla, and almond milk. Remove from heat and stir in the pecans.

Pour the pecan mixture over the pre-baked crust.
Bake for 20 minutes. 
Melt the dark chocolate and drizzle over cooked pecan bars.
Cook completely, if you can resist!

Vegan Double Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies

 My two sisters and their families came to visit California from Denver and Las Vegas last weekend. I had so much fun seeing them. In the midst of all of this family time I was able to bake with my niece, Jillian and  my nephew, Jake! They're both a little silly about vegan food but I convinced them to to try it out. They decided they wanted to make double dark chocolate cookies. Jillian and Jake pretty much made the cookies on their own and they came out delicious!

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon bakind soda
1 cup vegan butter
1 cup brown sugar packed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
egg replacer equivalent to 2 eggs
1/4 cup almond milk
1 1/2 cup dark chocolate chunks

What to do:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium bowl mix together flour, cocoa powder, and baking soda.
In a large bowl beat together the butter and sugar until creamy and then beat in vanilla and egg replacer.
Mix in the flour mixture slowly then mix in the almond milk.
Stir in the dark chocolate chunks.
Onto a lightly greased cookie sheet roll out cookies any size you want.
Bake for 10-15 minutes.

 He ate the whole thing!

My beautiful niece, Jillian.