The Joy of Colored Frosting

Christmas cookies are one of my favorite holiday past times . . . let me rephrase that, decorating christmas cookies is one of my favorite holiday past times. Yes, making them is a joy just as any other batch, but the special sprinkles, cutters, colors, and shapes that come along with this holiday season is but to be enjoyed only once a year.
This year, I bought a couple of new cookie cutter shapes .. a moose ( probably due to my sincere homesickness of the last frontier) and a snowflake (a derivative of this homesickness). I wanted to have ambigious "winter" shapes that veared from specific holidays of the season, thus to be enjoyed throughout many but not just one of these short winter days. With the new cutters on the table, some sprinkles, and food coloring all ready to go; a short, easy recipe was called for. I chose Isa Chandra Moskowitz (what else is new) to fill my cookie void.

In Vegan with a Vengeance I used her "Buttery Lemon Cutout Cookies" recipe. The recipe is easy, fast, and requires no "funny" ingredients. The cookies taste wonderful and are provide the perfect dough tinted canvas.
John and I decorated these cookies during Philadelphia's 2009 snowstorm - which couldn't have been more perfect. The icing came out to be a little lite, because I'm always weary of food coloring. They're like a love child between easter and christmas.

Now, for those of you out there who are also weary of food coloring (I don't know why, but there's something a little tooo unnatural for me in those elf shaped droppers) I have good news!!
A recent christmas present, "Babycakes"a cookbook which comes from the delightful animal and allergenic friendly bakery in NYC has some natural food coloring alternatives. This little treasure chest includes amazing vegan and sugar and gluten free recipes. However, besides treats (cookies, cakes, cupcakes, crumbles, scones .. if you love it, they got it) there's also a section on beverages and icings. Now, now, as you can imagine, a book with such lovely ethics is surely not going to grab the little elf dropper from the cupboard and drop in the recommended dosage. They color all of their frosting naturally with these awesome tricks!

Pink/Red: cherry, raspberry, cranberry, pomegranate, or beet juice all work.
Purple: blueberry juice - the more you use, the deeper the purple
Green: chlorophyll (ya know the green pigment in plants....) comes in liquid form at many health food stores!!
Yellow: turmeric - just a pinch!

Now, you may be thinking how these alternatives could change the taste of the frosting - nope. If you've ever had a babycake dessert you know damn well how wonderful they taste and would have no cause to question.

Enjoy!

Cheese to the Cake

Since I was a small small girl my birthday cake requests have and will always continue to be cheesecake. Ahh, cheesecake to me is the apex of desserts. The combination of sweet, creamy, and rich makes me melt and sends me straight to a feeling of pure ecstasy. Who couldn't love this dessert? Especially with its    multitude of accents: fruit for the semi-healthy guest, chocolate to really seal the deal, caramel to let the cream do its job, pumpkin as a vessel for nutmeg, the list goes on and on to please just about anybody.  I've personally never tasted a cheesecake that I didn't like (or one that didn't like me for that matter). Which has led me to believe that they are pretty easy to make. Have you ever had a bad cheesecake?

Becoming vegan obviously led me upon a small challenge for the next day of my birth. I must master the art of vegan cheesecake. Now, master is a pretty strong word, this I understand, and I am not there yet, but with each bake I am climbing a little higher.
The latest has been a chocolate hazelnut cheesecake that will require a tall glass of soy/almond/rice/hemp/oak milk.
I must warn you, this is not a child's cake. This is a cake that could, and quite possibly might, knock you off of your seat. Enjoy with sincere caution.

Anabell's Chocolate Hazelnut Cheese to the Cake

For the Crust: (works best with a spring form pan)
-14 "oreo" cookies ( I used wholefoods 365 brand Creme Sandwich cookies because they're like $2.00!)
-4 tbsp. butter @ room temperature

In a food processor chop or lightly pulse until the cookies have turned into nice little sticky crumbles!

For the Cake:
-2, 8 oz. packages of Tofutti Creamcheese
-6 oz. of Tofutti Sour Cream
-4 oz. of firm tofu (1/4 of a 12 oz. block)
-1 cup sugar
-1 tbsp. vanilla extract
-1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts

Blend all ingredients (sans the hazelnuts) together until nice and smooth.

For the Chocolate Layer:
-3/4 cup vegan chocolate morsels
-1 tbsp. butter
-2 tbsp. coconut milk

In a double broiler melt the chocolate with the butter and coconut milk. Constantly stir to prevent clumping. 3/4 of this mixture will be used as a layer over the crust, and the other 1/4 will be used to swirl into the cake. Now ... onto assembling ...

Assembling the cake:
Preheat oven to 400.
In a spring form pan squish your cookie crust down until the whole bottom is covered with an even layer roughly around 1/4 in. thick.
Pour  3/4 of your chocolate mixture over the entire crust.  Sprinkle your hazelnuts on top of the chocolate.
Pour in the cake "batter". Lift and drop your pan a couple of times to ensure an evenness. With a fork swirl in the rest of the chocolate.
Put in the oven and bake for about 40 minutes. The edges should be a nice golden brown. The cake itself will look/shake like a jello mold. Don't worry. You will need to let the cake cool and set. Let the cake cool for about 1 hour before putting it in the fridge. Then let it sit in the fridge for at least 4 hours before serving. The longer it sits in the fridge the better!! (try to go for an overnite adventure).

Look at that chocolate layer - whoo-ee!

a little slice of rich chocolatey heaven...

For another amazing cheesecake recipe with a nice raspberry swirl and graham crust, check out my february archive from 2009! Enjoy!

Me enjoying my finger licking good cake this year. If you don't have the time or motivation to make your own cheesecake and live in the Philadelphia area - check out Govinda's. That's where this strawberry cheesecake gem came from for my 25th! Its loaded with faux whip cream which Im not usually into, but on this occasion with this cake, amazing -!

Make it yourself Tofurkey

We've all seen the faux turkey loaf is the freezer section, the official thanksgiving replacement for us vegans and vegetarians out there. Well, I don't know about you guys, but Im sorry, those blow.  I think they're dry, flavorless, and don't even deserve the name "Tofurkey".  It's not like we've never eaten stuffing or turkey before and think that its suppose to taste this horrible. Yes, Im ragging on Tofurkey's because I've had the real deal. I've experienced a tofu based entree stuffed with real homemade stuffing, and it truly puts the store bought freezer Tofurkey meal to shame. This is also unbelievably easy to make, which leaves no excuse for the vegans out there during this holiday season. If you take the time (the most time consuming part is pressing the tofu ... I mean, come on ...) this truly is a holiday miracle.

I used a recipe that I found on the web @ www.yak.net/fqa/296.html.

John carving the Tofurkey 

But, there are a million different variations, and many other sites that offer great recipes.  You can also look at the tofu as an empty canvas and be totally creative! 
Enjoy!

YUM!! 

What a goooood looking plate!

Cake Day 2009

Cake Day. A friend of mine wanted to bake and eat a lot of cake. Naturally, she invited friends over to bake, frost, and sprinkle all day/night.

There was one vegan cake among the 20 or so which decorated the table, counters, and even china cabinet. It was delicious; chocolate with peanut butter smeared on top and topped with raisins lined in a pattern that resembled a collared shirt.
The array of frosting colors and cake creativity could have made Ebenezer Scrooge himself crack a smile and grab a fork.
If you're feeling blue, don't just make a cake, make a cake day.

Enjoy.

Product Review: Daiya Vegan Cheese

Ladies and gentlemen,
Buckle your seat belts.
I've got some ground shattering, car tipping, roller coaster dropping news!

We've all been there. Perusing the dairy aisle, looking for the infamous faux cheese products. The same players every time ... Vegan Gourmet, Rice Slices (pepper jack is pretty decent), Tofutti Slices, Almond, Soy, Sheese blandness ... and to top it off half of them have casein in them, so really what's the point? I know many vegans who don't even mess with faux cheese because its a lose lose situation.
Well, like I said, Buckle your seat belts because this is gonna rock your world!
It's a vegan cheese that is good! It melts! It tastes like cheese! It looks like cheese! It acts like cheese! It even talks like cheese ...

Daiya baby, Daiya. Its the best I've come across. And the cherry on top, it doesn't contain not only dairy, but no soy or gluten or rice or nuts! S-s-s-say wwhhaat? So what is in Daiya cheese alternative some may ask.... lets take a gander ...

Purified water, tapioca and/or arrowroot flours, non-GMO expeller pressed canola and/or non-GMO expeller pressed safflower oil, coconut oil pea protein, salt, inactive yeast, vegetable glycerin, natural flavors (derived from plants), xanthan gum, sunflower lecithin, vegan enzymes (no animal rennet or animal enzymes), vegan bacterial cultures, citric acid (for flavor), annatto.

I mean, that's not bad. But it's wonderful. Currently they are working on a retail launch strategy but haven't made the debut yet and are only selling to food services ... however, Wholefoods at Callowhill uses it to make delicious vegan cheesy dishes (such as cheesy broccoli and cauliflower and quesadillas) but ALSO sells it for 8.99/lb. in the prepared foods department! It comes shredded and I've been eating it by the handfulls. The roommates don't think its that great, but they also frequent di bruno bros ... so ... we can't compare apples and oranges now can we?

Last night I had a beautiful red pepper quesadilla, and for lunch today ... Mac N' Daiya!

If you're in the area and get a craving for cheesy nacho's you know what to do.

Buckeyes are a Beautiful thing

Buckeyes. When I mentioned these treats in front of my roommate he looked at me quizzically and repeated .."buckeyes?". Yes. B-u-c-k-e-y-e-s. Georgia, my loving and wonderfully gifted chef/baker mother, use to make these every year around the holidays. Since I can remember, buckeyes = warm house, cold weather, and endless sledding. Well, living in philly Im definitely not going to get my sledding fix, but the buckeyes are hear to serve at least some of my seasonal craving. I just adapted my moms recipe to a vegan recipe. Extremely easy to do; earth balance in place of butter and vegan chocolate in place of chocolate morsels. Wham, Bam thank you mam.

Perusing the web, I found that not all buckeye recipes are the same and they vary across the board. I'm not saying their's aren't great ... but I've already eaten three of these and I think Im going to skip dinner and go for more! They are dangerously good! I think my recipe might just be better.... the secret ingredient ... rice krispies. Who knew?


Georgia's Buckeyes (yields about 2 dozen)
-1 18 oz. jar chunky peanut butter
-1 stick earth balance
-3 cups powder sugar
-2 1/2 cups rice krispies
-10 oz vegan chocolate morsels

Combine all ingredients together except the chocolate until well blended. Make into balls and set aside. In a double boiler melt the chocolate. Dip the balls in the chocolate and set on wax paper. Cool and store in fridge. EJNOY!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars

This recipe has been in my book since 2004. I got it from a woman I was babysitting for whose son was allergic to eggs. While babysitting she asked me to make treats for his soccer game that night. As I was paging through books and eyeing what they had in the cupboard, this one checked out. Pumpkin ... check. Flour .... check. Sugar ... check. It is an insanely easy recipe and the result is awesome!! I immediately copied it down and when I got home jotted it in my "cooking, cooking, baking, baking" book, I suggest you do the same.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars
- 2 cups sugar
-1 cup earth balance
-1 (15 1/2 ounce) pumpkin
-2 tsp. vanilla
-4 cups flour
-2 tsp baking soda
-2 tsp ground cinnamon
-12 ounces vegan or carob chips

Preheat oven to 375.
Cream the sugar, e.b., pumpkin and vanilla. Mix until light and well combined.
Mix the flour, baking soda, and ground cinnamon. Stir the flour mix into the creamed mixture. Mix until well combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
Now, you can make cookies or bars. This is the time to decide. It you want to go for the cookies (it yields A LOT) drop by teaspoon onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake for about 12-15 minutes. Cool on rack. If you're going to opt for the bars - pour batter (which is going to be pretty stiff) into 9 x 13 baking dish. Bake for about 25 minutes.
Enjoy!