Vegan Baking Failures

• 2013-05-18

  Breakfast Cookies

  I have been obsessed with some of the really simple breakfast cookie recipes floating around the internet.

  First I came across these two ingredient cookies from The Burlap Bag in banana, and pumpkin.
  Then I saw Chocolate Covered Katie  had these cookies that use banana or applesauce, (I love using a bit of both) and adds some peanut butter.

  I love how simple these are to make, and super easy to customize.  Here is the basic outline of a recipe for you to start with:

  Breakfast Cookies

  • 1/2 cup quick cooking rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup fruit puree (banana, applesauce, etc.)
  • optional: 1-3 T. fat substitute (nut butter, flax, avocado)
  • optional: 1-3 T. add ins (dried fruit, chocolate chips, nuts or seeds)
  • optional: spices or flavoring (cinnamon, vanilla extract, pinch salt)

  Make sure to either grease or line your baking sheet.

  Make the cookies the shape you want them. (They won’t flatten out like traditional cookies.)

  Bake at 350 F for 15 minutes (longer for a crispier cookie.)

• 2013-03-17

  Traditional Irish Soda Bread and Vegan Buttermilk

  

  5 Different Non-Dairy Milks Reviewed

  How to Substitute Condensed Milk (Buttermilk, Evaporated, Sweetened Condensed, Powdered

  “It may or may not “curdle” like dairy milk, but homemade dairy-free buttermilk alternative still serves it’s purpose in recipes.”

  Rice milk, which I had on hand, is very low in fat and protein compared to traditional buttermilk (that’s why it doesn’t curdle).  So I added a pinch of protein powder and a 1/2 t. oil to my “buttermilk”.

  Irish Soda Bread
  2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  1 tsp salt
  1 tsp baking soda
  1 1/4 cups “buttermilk” (1 T. + 1/2 t. vinegar plus enough rice milk to make  1-1/4 cup)

  Preheat oven to 350 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper (I used silicon sheet).

  In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients and stir together. Add “buttermilk” and mix with a large spoon until the dough comes together. The dough will be quite sticky.

  Shape into a round and place on baking sheet. Cut an X into the top with a sharp knife and bake for about 45 minutes, until dark golden. A toothpick will come out clean.

  Cool on a wire rack for about 5 - 10 minutes before serving.

  For 8 mini loafs: Preheat to 425F. After mixing dough, divide dough into 8 even pieces (scoop with a large round spoon) and place onto prepared baking sheet. Smooth tops with very lightly floured fingers, then slash an X into the top of each with a sharp knife. Bake about 12 minutes, until golden brown.

• 2013-02-02

  M. K. Lawrie: Where do you get your protein?: Cooking with white beans

  mklawrie:

  A friend recently told me that she didn’t think she could be a vegetarian because she didn’t like beans. It got me thinking about some of the non-traditional, sneaky ways I cook with beans.

  1. Beans as a substitute for fat in baking recipes: Of course I thought I invented this when I started…

  Source: mklawrie

• 2012-12-15

  No-Knead fluffy dinner rolls

  This recipe was inspired by these recipes for dinner rolls at Oh she glows and bleeding espresso. 

  I brought these rolls to my sister’s house for Thanksgiving, my nephew said that they were better than store bought rolls.  Success!

  3 cups all-purpose or bread flour
  1 1/4 teaspoons salt
  1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
  2 T. oil
  2-3 T. liquid sweetener 
  1 1/2 cups water

  1. Combine the flour, yeast, and salt in a large bowl. Use a liquid measuring cup to measure 1-1/2 cups water.  Mix the oil and sweetener into the water. Add liquids to the dry ingredients and stir until blended; the dough should be quite wet (Iused a fork to mix by hand).

  2. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rest in a warm, draft-free place for at least 12 and up to 24 hours. The dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Rising time will be shorter at warmer temperatures or a bit longer if your kitchen is chilly.

  3. Grease a pie pan and set aside. Divide the dough into 12 pieces, shape into ball with hands and place the balls into the pie pan.  Brush the top with oil. 

  4. Cover pie pan with towel or plastic wrap and let rise for 1-2 hours. The rolls will expand and fill the pie pan during this time.

  5. When the rolls are almost done rising, Preheat the oven to 350F.  Bake the rolls for 25-30 minutes until golden and fluffy. Internal temperature of rolls should read 200 degrees F. Makes 12 pull apart rolls.

• 2012-11-28

  No-Knead Whole Wheat Bread

  When I first started this blog, I had recently aquired a bread machine off of freecycle.  The hinged lid was no longer attached, but it worked just fine.  Last March I accidently set fire to the lid .  Without a lid, the bread machine was useless. I’ve played around at making bread using other methods, but none were as convenient, or fool proof, as using a bread machine.  As a result I haven’t been making bread at home as often.

  Recently I read this article on gluten in modern wheat and then this article on gluten and long fermentation times in bread.  I decided to start using more ancient grains in my baking.  I also wanted to try longer fermentation times in bread making.

  Mark Bittman’s No-knead bread (video,  original nyt article) seemed like a simple place to start. I’ve tried a few of the versions from  The Apartment Therapy’s The Kitchn Round Up.

  But my favorite is also the newest, Almost No-Work Whole Grain Bread Recipe from Bittman’s Food Matters. This version uses whole wheat flour, a spatula to scrape the dough into a ball (no-kneading,) and you bake it in a loaf pan. 

• 2012-10-20

  Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oatmeal

  I like to make a single serving of oatmeal in a little dipper crock pot so it’s ready for me when I get up in the morning.  Alton Brown has a great recipe for Overnight Oatmeal.  The recipe is easy to alter to suit your tastes.  Here is one of my favorite variations.

  Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oatmeal

  1 apple, chopped
  1/4 c. steel cut oats
  1 c. water
  1 t. cinnamon

  Add all the ingredients to the crock pot, stir.  

  8 hours later, a delicious breakfast.

• 2012-08-26

  Flexible Protein bar

  This is based on Averie’s Vegan No-Bake Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Protein Bars with a few tweeks. I’ve crossed out things I skipped, and [put in brackets additions.]

  It is a really flexible recipe, so you can get a different flavor of protein bar by choosing different additions. original recipe here.

  Ingredients

  1 Ripe Banana, mashed
  1/2 c Maple Syrup (or agave, yacon syrup)
  [ 1/2 c. date syrup (5 chopped neglet or 3 medjool dates + 8T. water)]
  1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
  4 Tbsp Flax Seeds
  2 Tbsp Chia Seeds
  1.5 Tsp Cinnamon
  1/2 c Chocolate Chips (or carob) [ or raw cacao nibs]
  1/2 c peanut butter [or other nut/seed butter]
  4 scoops [1 c.] protein powder [substitute finely ground pumpkin seeds]
  1/2 c chopped figs (or other dried fruit), optional
  1/2 c Shredded Coconut
  1.5 c rolled Oats [I used quinoa flakes]

  Place bananas, dates, water, and vanilla extract into bender; blend until smooth. Add cinnamon and [choco chip substitute] 

  Yields: Approximately 10 decent sized bars

  Storage: Will keep in freezer for a month, and will soften up quickly at room temperature.

  Source: loveveggiesandyoga.com

• 2012-08-05

  Healthy Chocolate Oatmeal Banana Bread

  This bread is really good wtih peanut butter

  1/4 c. unsweetened cocoa
  6 T. ground flax (chia seeds work too.)
  3 T. hot water
  1 T. vanilla extract
  2 c. mashed very ripe bananas, room temperature
  4 T. date puree (4-5 small dates + 4 T water.)*
  1-3/4  c. oat flour**
  2 t. baking powder
  1 t. baking soda

  Directions

  Preheat oven to 350. Grease an 8 x 4 inch loaf pan.

  In a medium bowl mix together the cocoa, and boiling water. Add the ground flax, vanilla, mashed bananas and sweetener and set aside for ten minutes. (If I’m using dates, then I put them in a blender with boiling water, vanilla, and cocoa and let sit for several minutes.  Then blend until smooth, then mix with bananas and flax. And set aside again.)

  Meanwhile, mix the oat flour, baking powder, baking soda together.

  Mix dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Pour mixture into the greased loaf pan; turn the heat down to 325 degrees and bake for 45- 50 minutes.

  Notes:

  * or more for a sweeter more cake like bread.

  **If you don’t have oat flour, you can grind old fashioned rolled oats in blender, food processor, or even a coffee grinder. Measure after grinding into flour.

• 2012-07-04

  A Month of Popsicle Recipes - KitchenDaily

  I may be the only person left in Chicago without air conditioning, popsicles are a great way to cool down!

• 2012-07-02

  Peanut Butter Banana Donuts from Liz Lemon Nights

  These are SO GOOD!  I made some substitutions and cut the recipe in half.  You can find the original ingredients and complete instructions at Liz Lemon Nights. 

  2 T. creamy peanut butter
  1/4 c. date syrup 
  3 T. unsweetened unflavored non-dairy milk
  1/2 t. vanilla extract
  1 very ripe banana (practically black), mashed
  3/4 c. whole wheat flour
  1/2 T. (1-1/2 t.) baking powder
  pinch fine sea salt

  at 350 for 11 minutes.

  Also following the instructions for piping the dough out will result in prettier donuts.

  Source: lizlemonnights.wordpress.com