chocolate chip cookie heaven
Once upon a time I thought I had found the way to make the best chocolate chip cookies ever but my quest for delicious cookies continued. The problem with my early attempts was that it relied heavily on refrigerating the dough overnight which just doesn’t work for me. When I want cookies, I want them immediately. Not to mention, I found the results inconsistent, every batch coming out a little differently. I’ll be the first to admit that cookies are not my forte, but that’s really a result of me liking cookies more than any other treat, chocolate chip cookies especially. I just have no time for sub-par cookies in my life, so I generally wouldn’t even try to make them if I didn’t think the result was what I wanted.
Then this magical recipe entered my life. It’s not only the easiest thing ever, but it also doesn’t include any egg replacer that causes so many cookie mishaps. I messed around with this quite a lot but it is the simplest version that works the best.
There is a problem with these cookies though, you will not be able to stop eating them. They’re crispy and amazing. When still warm, they have the perfect chewiness. These are my dream cookies.
Chocolate Chip Cookies
1/2 c Earth Balance
1/2 c brown sugar
1/3 c granulated sugar
2 Tbsp water
1 tsp vanilla
1 c flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
chocolate chips (I use about 6 oz)
Preheat oven to 300°
Mix EB and sugars with electric mixer until they are combined and have a sort of gelatinous, smooth texture. Add in the water and vanilla and mix until combined. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, salt and baking soda. Mix the dry ingredients into the wet until you have a very sticky dough. Be careful not to over mix. Add in your chocolate chips. Spoon onto a cookie sheet in globs about the size of a tablespoon. They will spread out so don’t worry about the shape.
Cook for 14 minutes. Make sure you let them cool for at least 5 minutes before moving to a cooling rack, or eating.
Enjoy!
French Toasties
Hi, my name is Alix and I’m a toast addict. You may think I’m joking when I say that but it is entirely true. I have had an unhealthy obsession with bread basically forever and toast has been a staple in my diet for years. If my day doesn’t start with toast, it generally doesn’t go right. When I get my hands on a fresh loaf of bread, I’m happier than a kid who got a pony for Christmas. This week, an unexpected trip to a not-so-local farmer’s market provided me an amazing loaf of rustic Italian bread. It was a soft loaf, with a thick crust that wasn’t too crunchy; the perfect thing for french toast.
I woke up already fantasizing about the delicious breakfast I was going to have when I realized that I had no tofu, a key ingredient for my usual French Toast recipe. Not to be detered, I brainstormed my own recipe. To my surprise, it was just as good as my usual. I can’t take all the credit, as having fresh bread makes all the difference, but I will say this was simple and remarkably good.
Vegan French Toast
makes about 4 servings
1 cup vanilla soy milk
1 Tbsp Earth Balance, melted
1 Tbsp corn starch
2 Tbsp flour
1 tsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
4-6 thick slices of your favorite bread
Whisk together all ingredients (except the bread) in a large bowl. Dip the bread in the liquid and let soak. Heat a bit of oil in pan on medium high. When the oil is hot, place the soaked bread in the pan and cook until the outside layer is slightly crisp. Flip carefully and cook the other side. Lower the heat slightly and cook the first side again to further brown the outside and make sure the inside isn’t soggy. Repeat with the other side. Serve immediately with your favorite toppings.
Dandies marshmallow ghost cake
A few months back when I heard the announcement that Chicago Soy Dairy would be making jet puffed vegan marshmallows, I already knew the first thing I would be baking with them. Marshmallows are the one thing that I have missed since I was a vegetarian. I love the sugary flavor, the soft texture and especially the taste when roasted over a flame. As a teenager, when I discovered marshmallows had gelatin in them, I was honestly devestated. Since then, I’ve made my own marshmallows with the kit from Angel Food and indulged in the true confection that is Sweet and Sarah’s marshmallows.
Last Halloween, when I was planning spooky desserts to make, I came across this cake decorated with miniature ghosts. Sadly, the adorably constructed ghosties were made out of marshmallows and it was really only their cylindrical shape that gave them their ghostly appearance. I was not pleased with how my homemade marshmallows turned out, otherwise I would have made another stab at creating cylindrical ones myself. Instead I found myself making ridiculous frosting ghost cupcakes.When I heard about Dandies I was exstatic. Not only do I have another vegan marshmallow option, but I could finally fulfill my dream of making a ghost cake.
I wanted a dark cake so I baked up a chocolatey coffee cake. I topped the bottom layer with a few Dandies just to see how they would bake. They puffed up in the oven and turned a beautiful golden brown. Though I had initially made a vanilla frosting go to go with it, I used so much to cover the cake that I had to top it off with some left over cookies and cream frosting. I then made my little ghost friends by sticking the Dandies on toothpicks and frosting their heads with vanilla frosting. The cake turned out amazingly. It was decadent with a contrast of rich chocolate and coffee with vanilla and cookies. My favorite part was the Dandies baked in to the center. Not only did it taste great, but it looked awesome; a perfect combination of spooky and cute.
We were so excited about the cake, Shawn made a little animation from it full of cute Dandies ghosts. I love it! I also had a ton of fun roasting these guys with a creme brulee torch (as we have an electric oven and no burners).
Vegan Ghost Cake from Shawn Bannon on Vimeo.
February roundup
Okay I have to admit I’ve been a bad blogger this month. I have been distracted by a number of things and have not devoted the time to this blog that I would like. In an attempt to find some redemption, I have a few things to report on.
One of the first points made is that in a troubled economy, many people turn to comfort foods. This fact on it’s own, isn’t what irked me. What got under my skin was the equation of Kraft brand foods with comfort foods. Who doesn’t love a grilled cheese sandwich and bowl of tomato soup when they’re having a bad day? That’s why it’s called comfort food. It certainly does not mean it needs to be junk. “Pasteurized prepared cheese product” is not food. The tomato soup and grilled soy cheese you see above has all the appetizing qualities and simplicity of any good comfort food and it’s vegan.
Without going on a diatribe about how bad certain processed foods are, I just want to point out that if you want something simple and inexpensive there are vegan alternatives that cover these bases as well. Not every meal you make has to be gourmet. If you want a box of mac and chreese that is better than that blue box you had when you were a kid Roads End Organics makes some amazing vegan versions that are not only insanely delicious but under $2 a box. I recommend the Shells and Chreese especially.
I suppose I’m just upset by the fact that something like this interview even made it onto the air. I can’t believe that someone can go on and say that Velveeta mixed with salsa is a healthier direction. How about just salsa? How about delicious fresh tomatoes, chopped and seasoned with herbs and spices? Doesn’t that sound more appetizing? I realize I’m ranting a little, but I’m just a bit shocked still that on the same station I hear reviews of local farmers markets that I also heard this garbage about processed junk and how to market it to people when they economy is down.
And moving on…
For Valentine’s day breakfast he cooked up some tofu scramble, camp style of course. Tofu and mushrooms mixed with nutritional yeast, ketchup, mustard and cooked over flame in vegetable broth. It was seriously delicious. We also enjoyed the typical camping fare: veggie dogs, veggie burgers and oatmeal. You can check out some more of our misadventures and Shawn’s beautiful photos of the trip over at studiodrome‘s blog We even made it in the local paper!
Vegan Benedict – AGAIN!
I just can’t help it, vegan benedict (tofu florentine, whatever you like to call it) is just one of my favorite breakfasts. It is in fact one of my favorite prepared meals altogether. If there is a vegan restaurant that serves this dish for breakfast I always order it, even if there are other delicious breakfast options. It’s just that good. Obviously, one cannot just go out to breakfast all the time, especially for such a basic dish. I’ve tried a couple different versions in the past but this is by far the closest to the real thing, not to mention it was super easy.This attempt came out really well. Satisfying and yummy all at once. The cayenne gives it a bit of a kick and all the flavors compliment each other wonderfully. I suppose that is the nature of the dish. Definitely a perfect way to start the morning. I ended up having a bit of hollandaise leftover and just mixed it with some tofu to make a tofu salad sandwich, which was also excellent.
I really love how this recipe came out but I think I’ll continue to experiment.
Vegan Benedict
sourdough english muffins
spinach
tofu
tomato (I used roma), sliced
olive oil
hot sauce
garlic minced
onion powder
salt
pepper
vegan hollandaise (recipe follows)
To prepare the tofu, slice into 1/2 inch slabs. Pour about a tablespoon of olive oil into a pan and warm over medium heat. Add minced garlic and let brown a bit before adding the tofu slabs. Sprinkle the onion powder, salt and pepper onto the tofu to taste. Pour a bit of the hot sauce on the tofu as well. Let cook for about 5 minutes or until slightly browned and flip carefully onto other side. Again season the other side of the tofu with a bit of hot sauce and let cook until brown. Flip one last time and lower heat. Add the spinach, a large bunch, into the pan and stir until softened.
Vegan Hollandaise
1/2 cup vegenaise
2 tsp dijon mustard
lemon juice from 1 small lemon
1/8-1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste
approx 1/4 tsp turmeric (for color)
Mix all the ingredients until combined.
Toast the english muffins and spread with a bit of Earth Balance. Lay a slab of the tofu on top, then a slice of tomato, then spinach and top with the hollandaise.
Enjoy!
