Vegan, Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

This chocolate chip cookie recipe is from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Gluten-Free Vegan Cooking. I didn't have the millet or quinoa flour the recipe called for, so I substituted white rice flour. The other main flour I used, per the recipe, was Bob's Red Mill All Purpose GF Baking Flour. For the chocolate chips, I used Enjoy Life Mini Chips.

I've tried and failed to make gluten-free cookies before, so I was pleased when this recipe was successful. Not only do the cookies look and taste great, I think they also resemble the non-vegan, non-gluten-free cookies of my youth. Go ahead, feed these to your omnivorous, gluten-eating friends. Shhh...they'll never know!

One of the secrets to this recipe is chilling the dough before baking. Instead of my cookies melting in to one giant cookie blob, as has been the case with other recipes, they stayed round and beautiful.

cookie dough

going in to the oven

I allowed them to cool only about ten minutes before I couldn't resist the urge to devour a warm, gooey cookie. The recipe only makes about sixteen cookies. Next time I'll make a double batch!

still warm from the oven

Vegan/Gluten-free Omelet

Sometimes I have major recipe failures, but I was happy that the recipe for omelets in Isa Chandra Moskowitz's Vegan Brunch turned out great. These vegan omelets also happen to be gluten free and delicious.

You need a food processor to blend the omelet ingredients, which include sliken tofu, nutritional yeast, chickpea flour, arrowroot or corn starch, and a dash of this and that. (Get your hands on a copy of the book!) You cook the omelets just like a pancake, but they take a wee bit longer to brown than  a pancake.

Omelet cooking on the pan

Please turn omelet over to Side B :)

You can add any filling you like. We made a stir fry with broccoli, zucchini, collard greens, red peppers, and scallions. We also chopped up some tomatoes and had salsa on the side.

I'd say the toughest part about this recipe was flipping the omelet. You have to make sure it's fully cooked before trying to flip it, or it will fall apart. Also make sure your pan is oiled. My first omelet flipped pretty easily, but by the third one, it was sticking to the pan.

A lot of cookbooks are full of recipes that just don't work, but Vegan Brunch has been good to me. I think I'll be making this recipe again soon.

Brownie-Bottom Peanut Butter Cheesecake (vegan/gluten-free)

This recipe for Brownie-Bottom Peanut Butter Cheesecake is different from the previous recipe I posted for Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake. The previous recipe calls for four tubs of expensive vegan cream cheese. This recipe, from vegan baking gurus Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero's Vegan Pie in the Sky, uses silken tofu, peanut butter, and banana instead. Using a recipe that doesn't require vegan cream cheese makes it less expensive to make, and it's easier to obtain the ingredients. My local health food store sells Mori-Nu firm silken tofu, the tofu of choice for baked goods. 

The only change I made from the book's recipe was that I used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All-Purpose Baking Flour instead of regular flour. If you have an Ocean State Job Lot near you, they sell Bob's products at a great price.

When I make this recipe a second time, I think I'll use a mixture of gluten-free flours. I find that many gluten-free baking flours taste slightly bitter in the final product, but blending several flours together, such as rice flour and tapioca flour, lessens that bitter flavor.

I will also use a flat springform pan next time. The springform pan I had on hand was circular with a hole in the middle. I think the hole caused the inner sides of the cake to sink slightly. 

The cheesecake filling itself was great. I used a food processor to blend the ingredients, and the result was smooth and creamy. The cake does need to chill for several hours before serving. I chilled it overnight in the refrigerator. The cake holds up well when cold: you can cut a slice and it won't fall apart.

Happy Baking!

 

 

Lentil/Split Pea Soup

Homemade lentil/split pea soup with organic veggie broth, organic tomatoes, organic carrots, onions, organic scallions, and lots of herbs and spices: red pepper, cayenne, tarragon, thyme, rosemary, sage, oregano, basil, and bay leaves. 

 

 

Vegan/Gluten-Free Brownies

Vegan/Gluten-Free Brownies

This recipe is from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar by Isa Chanda Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. In the beginning of the book, they provide a gluten-free flour mix recipe. It includes almond meal, white rice flour, tapioca flour, ground flax seed, and quinoa flour. Because I've found quinoa flour is expensive and difficult to find, I subbed Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free All Purpose Baking Flour for the quinoa flour. I buy most of my ingredients at Ocean State Job Lot because they sell Bob's products at a lower price than the grocery stores.

I used MimicCreme's Healthy Top whipped cream. Does anyone have a good recipe to make vegan whipped cream from scratch?

Vegan/Gluten-Free French Toast

This recipe is from Vegan With a Vengeance.

- 1 loaf of Ener-G gluten-free bread
- 1/2 cup non-dairy creamer (I used coconut milk creamer because it's labeled "gluten free.")
- 1/2 cup non-dairy milk (I used almond milk)
- 2 Tbs. corn starch
- 1/4 cup garbanzo (chickpea) flour 
- 1 Tbs. canola oil
- Optional toppings: maple syrup, berries

1) Whisk together the milks and corn starch. 
2) Then add in the garbanzo bean flour and whisk. 
3) Toast several piece of gluten-free bread
4) Dunk the bread in the batter until it's coated. Throw it on the skillet. Brown each side for several minutes.
5) Top and serve warm. Yum!

Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Mousse Frosting (gluten free and vegan)

Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Mousse Frosting

Recipes available in Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World

These cupcakes are delicious. Including non-vegan and non-gluten-free cupcakes, I think these are near the top of the list for flavor and consistency.

For the chocolate cupcakes, I used the "Chocolate Gluten Freedom" recipe in Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World. The recipe calls for tapioca flour, ground flax seed, white rice flour, and quinoa flour. Thanks to Ocean State Job Lot's huge selection of Bob's Red Mill products, I was able to find every flour except quinoa. I happened to have 1/4 cup of Whole Foods' Gluten-Free All Purpose Baking Mix on hand, so I substituted that for the quinoa flour. I suspect almond meal would work just as well.

Gluten-free cupcakes do not rise as much as gluten cupcakes (according to the book), so you can fill the cupcake tins almost to the top. 

The frosting recipe I used is called "Chocolate Mousse Topping," and it is also found in the book. The base of the frosting is extra-firm silken tofu (like Mori-Nu, which is shelf stable). I found gluten free/vegan chocolate chips at my local grocery store in the gluten-free section. I thought about using Whole Foods' vegan chocolate chips because the ingredients appear to be gluten free, but because the package doesn't specifically say "gluten free," I decided against it.

Right from the blender, the frosting is pretty soft. It's the consistency of pudding right after you mix it up. Like pudding, the frosting becomes firmer after refrigeration. The recipe said to chill the mousse for an hour before serving. I did frost a couple of cakes after the mousse had chilled for an hour, but as you can see from the first photo at the top of this page, it was still quite soft. 

It took several hours for the mousse to become properly firm for frosting. The second photo was taken several hours later, and you can see that the frosting holds its shape much better. 

I love this recipe, and I think I'll continue to make it even for my gluten-eating friends. Many gluten-free baked goods have a jello-y consistency. They wobble when you shake the pans. These cupcakes are not like that. They are cake-y, as a cupcake should be. I am not a fan of overly sweet frosting, so this chocolate mousse hit the spot. It is light, fluffy, and not too sweet. I was thrilled with the results. 

If you don't yet own a copy of Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World, make sure to get your hands on one soon. Happy baking!

Asparagus Tofu Frittata (gluten free and vegan)

Asparagus Tofu Frittata

Adapted from Vegan With A Vengeance

 

This is one of the first recipes in the book Vegan With A Vengeance, written by the lovely women at the Post Punk Kitchen. There are two great things about this recipe. First, you can eat it for any meal. It's similar to a tofu scramble, so it's perfect for breakfast or brunch. I dressed it up with a side of broccoli and had it for dinner. Second, you can throw whatever you like in to the mix. I included asparagus, tomatoes, and artichoke, but you could easily add your favorite veggies.

This recipe is gluten free and vegan.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb extra firm tofu (a little more than one carton, although you could get away with one carton's worth if you didn't want to buy extra)

• 1 Tbs. mustard

• 1/4 to 1/2 cup gluten-free nutritional yeast, depending on how flavorful you want the tofu (I used a brand called Kal)

• 1 Tbs. gluten-free soy sauce 

• 1 Tbs. oil for frying

• 1/2 of a medium-sized purple onion

• 4 stalks of asparagus

• 1 small jar of marinated artichoke*

• 1 small jar of sun-dried tomatoes, chopped*

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 2 Tbs. thyme

• 1 tsp. turmeric

• 1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

* I couldn't find sun-dried tomatoes, so I used an artichoke/tomato tapenade that I found at the grocery store.

Supplies:

• An 8-inch oven-safe pan (a frying pan, cake pan, or pie pan will work fine)

• Skillet

Preheat the oven to 400°F

1) Crumble the pound of tofu into a bowl. Add the mustard and nutritional yeast to taste. Combine.

2) Sauté the onion, asparagus, artichoke, and tomatoes until tender. Add the garlic, thyme, and turmeric. Sauté for an additional minute.

3) Add the veggie mixture into the tofu mixture. Combine. 

4) Add the chopped basil. Combine.

5) Press the mixture in to your pan.

6) Bake at 400°F for 20 minutes. Then broil on the top rack for 2 minutes.

7) Let the frittata sit for 10 minutes before cutting and serving. Enjoy!

Vegan Gluten-Free Banana Bread Muffins

Vegan Gluten-Free Banana Bread Muffins

Mix used: King Arthur Flour gluten-free muffin mix

Ingredients:

- King Arthur Gluten-Free Muffin Mix

- 4 ripe bananas, mashed

- 1/3 cup oil or of choice (I used canola. Melt vegan butter first if using.)

- 2 Tbs. ground flax seed

- 6 tsp. water

- 3/4 cup of non-dairy milk (I used unsweetened almond milk)

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350°F

2) Beat together water and flax seed in a small bowl or cup

3) Combine all ingredients

4) Bake in muffin tins for 20 - 25 minutes

Enjoy! Makes 18 muffins

Tempeh-Hummus Sandwich & Lentil Soup

Tempeh sandwiches are my favorite, easy go-to meal. You can put whatever you want on yours, but my usual includes:
- Toasted Rye Bread
- Hummus
- Greens
- Onions (fried on skillet)
- Red Peppers (fried on skillet)
- Tomatoes
- Tempeh (fried on skillet with soy sauce)

The peppers, onion, and tempeh take about five minutes on the skillet, so it's super easy.

Lentil soup is also easy, though it takes longer to cook. It's very versatile: you can add anything you want! Here's how I made this batch:

1) Chop up one white onion, one large carrot, two stalks of celery, and five cloves of garlic. Throw them in a large pot with a tablespoon of olive oil. Heat on medium for about eight minutes.

2) Add one 14.5 can of diced petite tomatoes, whatever herbs you like, and some salt and pepper. Heat for five minutes.

3) Add 5 cups of vegetable broth and 1 cup of lentils. Bring to a boil, then turn down and simmer for 40 minutes.

4) Five minutes before the soup is done, stir in a few cups of spinach to taste.

Done!

Chocolate Pudding Pie

This Chocolate Pudding Pie recipe is super easy and can be found online here or in the book Vegan Pie In the Sky by The Post Punk Kitchen's Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero.

Quinoa Pilaf

This dish is actually a version of the stuffed acorn squash filling found in this recipe. 
If you don't have the time or money to buy everyone their own acorn squash, the filling is great on its own. I call it "quinoa pilaf."


Stir fry the following ingredients:
- red peppers
- broccoli 
- zucchini
- onions
- scallions 
- garbanzo beans
- almond slivers


Add whatever herbs you like! I used cumin, ginger, tarragon, thyme, rosemary, and basil.

Cook up some quinoa according to the directions on the packaging. Mix the veggies with the quinoa. That's it! 

 

Vegan Vanilla Frozen Yogurt

I made vanilla frozen yogurt using this recipe from VegNews. Instead of soy yogurt, I used coconut milk-based yogurt.

 

Yellow Kitchens

I wanted to post this photo because Brenda's kitchen is the same color as my blog, so I need to show my appreciation for mustard yellow. I spent a week taking care of her little fur babies a couple years back, and I'm pretty sure I want to have a mustard yellow kitchen one day. I definitely don't want a brown shag rug, though. Have you ever stepped in dog diarrhea with bare feet at 3AM when it's embedded in a brown shag rug? I hope not!

 

Corn Bread Muffins

These corn bread muffins take just a few minutes to make and are great with brunch! These were made from the recipe in Robin Robertson's 1,000 Vegan Recipes. I like to eat them with a side of tempeh and vegetable stir fry.

No-Bake Black Bottom Peanut Butter Silk Pie

If you've been reading this recipe section, it'll come as no surprise that I LOVE anything with peanut butter and chocolate. This pie is adapted from a recipe in the Post Punk Kitchen's Vegan With a Vengeance. Any references to "ICM" are towards one of the book's authors, Isa Chandra Moskowitz.

1 Chocolate Cookie Pie Crust (there's a recipe for this but I just buy one pre-made)

For chocolate pie bottom:
- 4oz chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup nondairy milk

For Filling:
- 12oz extra-firm silken tofu (like Mori-Nu...if you get anything other than extra-firm silken you will fail.)
- 3/4 cup peanut butter
- 1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 2/3 cup nondairy milk
- 1 1/4 cups boiling water
- 3 Tbs agar

Crust:
Melt chocolate in a makeshift double boiler (I use a glass measuring cup, stick it in the boiling water and stir). When chocolate has melted, stir in milk until smooth. Pour MOST of the mixture into the pie crust to coat the bottom. Save some to drizzle onto the finished pie later. Pop the chocolate-coated pie crust into the fridge to harden while you prepare the filling.

Filling:
Combine tofu, pb, sugar and vanilla in a blender. Blend until smooth. Boil the agar in 1 1/4 cups boiling water, stirring constantly until dissolved. This takes about 10 minutes.

When the agar is all dissolved, pour the liquid into a glass measuring cup. You want 1 cup of liquids total, so 1 cup minus the amount of agar you have equals the amount of milk you want to add to the blender. So, if you find yourself with 1/3 cup agar, add 2/3 cup milk to your blender and blend. If you have half a cup of agar, add half a cup of milk to the blender and blend. If you have more than half a cup of agar, you should dump it back into the sauce pan and continue cooking because you're not done.

Once you've added the appropriate amount of milk to your blender and blended it up, then add the hot agar mixture and blend again. This is your soon-to-be-gelatinous pie filling! Pour it into your pie crust. Then drizzle the leftover chocolate (you should've saved some from the batch for the pie bottom) on top and run a butter knife through it to make pretty designs.

Refrigerate covered and when it has firmed up, eat!!! ICM suggests it be chilled for at least 3 hrs but I've definitely eaten it in half that time.

Piece out!

Brownies

These brownies are amazing. The recipe can be found in Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar, written by the Post Punk Kitchen's Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. Omnivores and vegans alike devour them.

Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake

This cheesecake was made with a recipe from Lois Dieterly's Sinfully Vegan. There are many cheesecake recipes in this book, but I'm happy with this one! Here's a few photos before and after frosting.

Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream

This recipe is from The Vegan Scoop by Wheeler Del Torro, owner of Wheeler's Frozen Desserts.

3 Ripe Bananas
2 cups of soy milk (or other non-dairy milk)
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup peanut butter
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

|1| Peel bananas. Puree in a food processor with milk until smooth.
|2| Transfer liquid to a medium-size saucepan. Add brown sugar and peanut butter and cook over low heat until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and ad vanilla. Combine.
|3| Refrigerate 2-3 hours. Freeze according to your ice cream maker instructions.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Quick, easy and delicious! I can't remember where I got this recipe, but it's likely from the Post Punk Kitchen.

1 cup Earth Balance, softened (vegan butter)

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 tbs maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup chocolate chips (vegan...i like the Whole Foods brand and Tropical Source)

Oven: 350*F

|1| cream together butter, sugar, maple syrup and vanilla

|2| combine dry ingredients in separate bowl (except chips)

|3| mix dry into wet

|4| fold in chocolate chips

|5| cook 10-15 mins until golden

YUM!