Pumpkin cranberry muffins

There is something about pumpkins that I love, maybe its their color or the round chubbiness of them, or that they sit on peoples front door steps waiting for a face. Whatever it its I love them and the taste of them!

Local  cranberries hit the store the other day, so I picked up a bag. I am waiting for the veggie stand down the road to put them out, last year I got a huge ziplock bag full! Pumpkin and cranberry mixed together is like Ernie and Bert.

I whipped these up this morning with the roasted pumpkin puree I made the other day.  Perfect with your morning coffee (or tea).

Pumpkin cranberry muffins

1 1/2 cups unbleached flour
1/2 cup organic cane sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp salt

1 cup pumpkin puree
3 tbsp olive oil
3/4 cup soy milk mixed with 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp ground flax seed mixed with 3 tbsp hot water

1 cup fresh cranberries- pulsed through a food processor ( just to break them up a bit)
Walnuts on the top are optional.

Preheat oven to 375
Mix dry ingredients together in a bowl
Combine wet ingredients, pour into dry and stir it up.
Add the cranberries and scoop into a muffin tin. (grease it if you don't have muffin liners)
Bake for 30 minutes or until done.

Tortilla tofu scramble

Tortilla tofu scramble

2 tbsp olive oil

1 onion- small diced

1 clove garlic- minced

1 green pepper- small diced

1 package of soft tofu

1 tsp chili powder

pinch of turmeric

10-15 tortilla chips

1 scoop salsa

handful of cherry tomatoes- cut in half

sea salt

freshly ground pepper

In a pan, heat oil add onion and garlic. Saute until soft

Add green pepper and tofu, gently break up the tofu with spatula

add chili powder, turmeric, chips, salsa, and tomatoes.

Stir up, until heated. Season to taste.

She was pretty happy with herself picking out the bread this morning at the market, she had the first piece! 

Sunday Morning

Pancake mix

1 1/4 cup flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tbsp sugar
Pinch of salt
1 cup rice milk
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 tsp apple cider vinegar

Mix in a bowl until combined.
Cook low heat on lightly greased cast iron pan.
Serve with maple syrup.

Rhubarb Citrus Marmalade

My mom and dad have been visiting for the last week, its been great having them around. My dad is Mr. Fix-it, so we have been finishing the downstairs bathroom ( it was just a toilet in a room, no sink or lights, etc). It is going to look great when its finished. I will share a photo when its done :)

I have also had access to a point and shoot camera, thanks mom and dad!

When I have my table at the market there are always other vendors that are willing to do trades and I got a big bag of rhubarb! I left it in the fridge for a few days trying to figure out what I wanted to do with it, and I finally decided to make a marmalade with it.  I have little experience with canning, but my mom was here and she encouraged the no pectin. So I went for it. It turned out perfect, not to sweet and with a little tang.

Rhubarb Citrus Marmalade

2 pounds of rhubarb

3 cups organic sugar

1 cup strawberries- sliced

1/2 grapefruit

1/2 orange

1 tbsp ginger

• In a food processor chop the rhubarb until almost minced. 


• Place in a large heavy bottom sauce pan along with the sugar and strawberries.


• Next add grapefruit, orange and ginger into the food processor (peel and all) and whiz until finely minced


• Add to rhubarb mixture.


• Bring to a boil and simmer for an hour or until resembles a jam like consistency.

Bacon & cheese scones

When I woke up this morning I had a craving for bacon. Probably because I stopped at the store yesterday and picked some up so I knew I had some in the fridge. I told J that I wanted a bacon scone and he said " do it up", in other words make it.

I found this vegan scone recipes and it turned out great! The only thing I did that was different from this recipe was I used Yves veggie bacon and cut it up into little pieces.  The aroma of these baking was so good... I found myself standing at the window of the oven watching and counting down the minutes.


I tried to take a decent picture with the itouch but its doesn't do them justice.

Coconut banana flax waffles

It is my daughters 14th birthday, and we are celebrating this morning with waffles! She loves pancakes, but I thought it would be fun to dust off the waffle machine ( I haven't used it for years). I am planning on making some owl cupcakes for her...check them out at happy vegan face.

I am loving all the new blogs I am discovering because of Vegan MOFO. There is so many recipes that I can't wait to try. It is challenging trying to post something everyday, but it is also fun trying to come up with recipes.

I had a poll on my blog asking my readers what they would like to see/read more of? Kid friendly was voted for the most, so that is what my goal is for a little bit trying to  making fun vegan food for kids.

1/2 ripe banana-mushed
1 cup non-dairy milk ( I used rice)
2 tbsp coconut oil melted + 1 tbsp for brushing on waffle maker
1 tbsp ground flax seed- mixed with 3 tbsp boiling hot water

1 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Mix up wet add to dry.
Use waffle machine according to direction.
Brush a some melted coconut oil on the griddle before adding the batter.

Weekend vegan breakfast

I can never have too many fresh veggies in my fridge! I had no idea what I was going to make when I stepped into my kitchen this morning.  I opened the fridge and started from there. Mushrooms(check), red pepper(check), onion (check), potatoes (check), tomatoes (check), avocado (check), a very small piece of tofu that we had used yesterday (check).

Yes there are a few steps in this recipe but it was fun! First I grated up 3 medium sized potatoes, placed  in a bowl of water. Once everything was chopped and ready to go I drained the potato of the water. Grated 1 onion, chopped 1 tbsp fresh parsley, 2 green onions sliced ,1 tbsp flour,1 tsp baking powder,1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch, sea salt, freshly ground pepper. Mix it up. In a hot pan add oil, and make a patty sized amount of potato mixture fry both sides. Place on a baking sheet and in the oven at 375 for 20 minutes.

Next with the same pan that you used to fry the potato, drain off any excess oil. On medium high heat add 1/2 small diced onion, 5-7 mushrooms sliced, 1 red pepper small diced, 1/2 cup crumbled tofu, 1/4 cup nutritional yeast, pinch of cumin powder, 1/2 tsp sea salt, and 1/4 cup water. Cook it down until all the water is absorbed.

The salsa is the easiest part...1 tomato cut into quarters, place it in a food processor, a handful of fresh cilantro, 1 clove garlic, and sea salt. Blend until desired consistency.

Layering potato, tofu, salsa, potato, tofu, salsa. For the top I cut up a little avocado.

Blueberry Banana Crumb Muffins

 

I have had a bunch of bananas sitting in my fridge for the last few days and they were looking very sad :(  I like to freeze bananas that don't look so appetizing anymore. I take them out and put them in a bowl on the counter to defrost. There is a yuck factor to them, super slimy, but the flavor in baked goods is AWESOME!  I had every intention of using them that day (which was 3 days ago). So in the fridge they went waiting to be used in something yummy. 

What could be yummier then fresh baked muffins in the morning? Bananas have there own sweetness, especially when they are at there peak of ripeness, so I cut down on the sugar. I think I could of left the sugar out.

 

2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 cup organic cane sugar

1/4 tsp sea salt

3 ripe bananas

1 cup almond milk

1/4 cup vegetable oil + 1 tbsp

1 tsp vinegar

1 cup blueberries

Topping

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup oats

3 tbsp organic sugar

3 tbsp earth balance

Preheat oven to 350

Mix dry ingredients in large bowl

Mix wet ingredients in medium bowl

Pour wet into dry. Mix well.

Fold in blueberries

Spoon into greased muffin tin, crumble topping over and bake for 30 minutes

More of my favorite places and quick cinnamon oatmeal...camping styles

We went camping for the last few days....It was amazing! If you live in Nova Scotia there are many provincial parks that offer great camping, our favorite is Risser Beach. If you ever have the chance, you should visit there. When its sunny out the beaches are beautiful.  This is just some of the beauty we seen....
 

  Rissers Beach

our camp

 

 Luna

Early morning

Carters beach

I know that oatmeal is not for everyone...but my littlest one LOVES it! Its pretty simple to make and because this is my food blog/diary , I thought I would share it :) 

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup organic quick oats

1/2 tsp cinnamon

3 tbsp raisins (optional)

maple syrup ( a must!!:)

non-dairy milk

bring the pot of water to a boil, add oats,cinnamon,and raisins.

Cook for 3-4 minutes. Stirring until thickens

Spoon into a bowl and pour on the maple and milk!!

Good to the last drop

Don't forget to enter my Acai powder Giveaway!

Sunday Brunch: Beach Session

We went down to the beach last night and had a fire, it was nice. I probably had one too many glasses of wine...hence the breakfast. I don't usually make breakfast, unless we have a guest and we do. Our good friend is staying with us...he leaves in a couple of hours. This is a tofu scramble with dilly baked potato wedges and fresh salsa.


I pulled out the Tofu Xpress that I got in the mail the other day...and squished all the water out of the tofu. I got a good cup worth of water out in a matter of minutes! The Tofu Xpress is heavy duty...it has a big spring that pushes all the water out. It made the scramble texture really good, I used medium instead of firm.

Viva Granola sells them in Canada

The potatoes wedges I baked in the oven, drizzled with sunflower oil and sprinkled with dill, garlic powder, sea salt and freshly ground pepper. This time of year I  get my potatoes from a vegetable stand on the side of the road, I think its an elderly couple that lives there? Its a pretty cute set up, just a small red stand and they put at the end of there driveway with a price list. Its on the honour system, they just leave a can out. I really like where I live.

Here are a few of the pictures we got of our beach session.....something we do a lot.

Our Oceans and beaches are precious.

 beautiful bubble gum clouds

Ocean having an sunset swim

having a nap

It's Bagel Time!

Bagels are really fun to make! I quite enjoyed myself in the kitchen toasting the seeds, rolling the dough, boiling the bagels, sprinkling the seeds, and watching them carefully in the oven so they didn't burn.

The process was easy...there was no back breaking kneading involved (maybe a couple minutes). My bloggie friend Vegan Thyme makes bread all the time, she inspired me.

This is my first attempt at a basic bagel. I will defiantly be making these again. I got the recipe of of vegweb.com. I made a dill tofu spread to go on top piled with sprouts and cucumber and you got major yum factor.

Tofu spread

1 block tofu
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 Tbsp dried dill
1 dill pickle- minced
1 clove garlic-minced
1/2 shallot-minced
1 lemon- juiced
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

Chai granola breakfast parfait

Granola...the ultimate "hippie" food (granola people, good for a laugh). Whatever, I love it! Especially the aroma, when its baking in the oven.  This is a great alternative to all the crap cereal out there in the world.

For the parfait part I used a "fancy" glass, as my daughter likes to call it. Scooped a little raspberry soy yogurt into the bottom, sprinkled granola over top, finished with another blob of the yogurt and frozen wild blueberry's.


This recipe is adapted from the Rebar cookbook, one of my favorites pre-vegan. You can add whatever dried fruit, nuts or seeds you love, that's the best part. Its super easy to make and keeps in an airtight container for up to a month!!

• 4 cups traditional rolled oats
• 1 cup kamut flakes
• 1/2 cup oat bran
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup almonds ( sliced, whole, or slivered)
• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
• 1 Tbsp ground cardamon
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground clove
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2/3 cup maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup raisins

Combine all dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
In a smaller bowl, whisk wet together.
Pour wet into dry and stir until evenly coated.
Spread into two 9 by 13 cake pans ( so when you stir it up, it stay in the pan).
Bake at 275, stirring it up every 15 minutes for 45 minutes.
Bake until lightly golden.
Add raisins once cooled.

Broccoli and Caramelized Onion Quiche

I have been super busy the last couple of weeks...I am getting ready for the Hubbards Farmers Market getting supplies planing out what I am going to make. This seems so easy, but its really a job itself. I am also teaching another vegan cooking class which involves planning a menu and making sure the recipes work. I am back cooking again for a couple which I did last summer! All this plus the regular things in life that keeps one busy :)

The Hubbards Market is this Saturday from 8-12pm, and because its more of a morning thing I decided to go the breakfast/brunch route. I have been checking out recipes for vegan quiches, and found lots. Its hard to pick one, because they all sound so good. I read the ingredients and if it sounded good I added it, increased the amounts, added a few of my own thoughts.

Orginally I was going to make the quiches in individual tart pans, but then I thought that I would be too time consuming. Its hard to cook sometimes when you only have two hands! So I opted for muffin tin style.
So far, so good, I haven't had one fall apart yet...

• 1 block firm tofu- crumbled
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 onions- sliced
• 2 cloves garlic-minced
• 1 bunch broccoli- chopped into small florets
• 3/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 tbsp dried dill
• 1/4 tsp chili flakes
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• freshly ground pepper

In a food processor add tofu and mix until smooth and creamy- adding water if necessary, to help with the texture.

In a saute pan, heat oil on medium heat, add onions let caramelize (about 10 minutes)
add the garlic and broccoli, saute until soft.

In a large bowl combine tofu and broccoli mixture along with everything eles. Stir it up good.

With you favorite pie crust recipe... cut out rounds and push it into a muffin tin.
scoop the tofu mixture into the shell.
Bake at 375 for 35-40 minutes

Coconut Bacon

I use to make this every day when I worked at Aux Vivres in Montreal, a well known vegan restaurant.(the best vegan BLT's ever). This place ( the cooks) taught me a lot about vegan cooking, and is one of my major influences in my cooking style today. I was really craving this for the past few weeks, and have been googling recipes.

Lucky me, when I was at the grocery store coconuts were on sale! I have never really hacked a coconut open before, and thought this would be a fun project, and I was right.

I first popped the eye of the coconut open with a screw driver and the end of a hatchet. Then I emptied the milk out, which I got a cup worth, give or take?  Leeluu and Papa drank the milk :)

Next I took the coconut into the garage and steadied it between my two feet and hacked it open with a few quick hits. I know it sounds crazy, but it was entertaining.

The problem with using fresh coconut is that you have to peel off all the inner part before you can grate it. Which is pretty time consuming. I did this once the kid was in bed :P

Once you have all the grated coconut, empty it in to a large bowl and pour the marinade over it, let it soak for 5 minutes or so. Squeeze the juice from the coconut, the dryer the better. Place on to a baking sheet and put in a 325 degree oven, every 10 minutes give it a stir do this for 30 minutes. Let cool. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Marinade

1/4 cup tamari
1 tbsp liquid smoke
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp Topical Traditions Coconut Oil- melted
1/4 cup water
1/2 tsp garlic powder
4 tbsp maple syrup
2-3 tsp sea salt

Banana Pankcakes, and the lucky winner is...

It is pancake month, and there is nothing I enjoy more then a fluffy fried dough smothered in maple syrup!

This is a as simple as it gets for recipes, mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together, pour in milk (with a splash of apple cider vinegar) and a little oil.

I like to add bananas, I am a Jack Johnson fan, so its always nice to listen to the banana pancake song while you make'm.

The little fork in the picture is my kido climbing on the chair, and making her way up to the table, ready for breakfast.

Thanks everyone for entering the contest and checking out a really cool company, Bumblebar! Random.org picked the lucky winner, #29 Alice in Paris!
Congratulations, please email me with your address.

Good Morning Tea Biscuits

My friend made tea biscuits the other day for the play group she was hosting, when we walked into their home it smelled so good.
I was sad, they were not vegan.
Then she asked me...how do I make them? I have never made vegan biscuits.
This morning I wanted to make some, so I google it, and found this recipe.
They are really easy to make, just be sure not to over knead the dough, otherwise they will be rock hard.


vegan biscuit recipe

Cinnamon Buns

I was planning on trying my hands at making cinnamon buns, and last night was the night! The kneading the dough was the toughest part...5- 10 minutes. I think I managed to do 7.Had to take my sweatshirt off to do it.

Kneading dough is an art all in itself.  So once the dough doubled in size, at least 2 hours I left it on the counter. Keep in mind I live in cold climate, so I am certain it would be less time if you lived somewhere warmer:P

Now most of my recipes are my own, or adapted from somewhere. But because I wanted a fool proof recipe, I googled the best vegan cinnamon bun recipe, and found this one...
http://www.thebestvegancinnamonbunrecipe

Seemed simple enough. So I put everything together and keep it in the refrigerator over night, so in the morning the smell of cinnamon was what got them out of bed:)

Rolls

2½ t active dry yeast
½ C unbleached sugar
1 C soymilk, warmed
2 eggs worth of egg replacer OR 2 T ground flaxseeds whisked together with 6 T hot water
⅓ C Earth Balance margarine, melted
4½ C unbleached flour
1 t salt

1 C brown sugar, packed
2½ T ground cinnamon
⅓ C Earth Balance margarine, softened

Frosting

About 3/8 (3 oz) of a container of Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese
¼ C Earth Balance margarine, softened
1½ C powdered sugar
½ t vanilla extract
⅛ t salt

Mix yeast, sugar, and heated soy milk in a large mixing bowl and let stand until foamy.
Add egg replacer, melted margarine, flour, and salt. Mix well and knead for 5-10 minutes. The dough should be firm and smooth, not sticky. Set the dough aside in a covered bowl and let double in size.
After the dough has doubled, turn it out onto a floured work surface, cover, and let rest for 10 more minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine brown sugar and cinnamon.
Roll dough into a 16x21 inch rectangle. Spread dough with margarine and sprinkle evenly with sugar/cinnamon mixture. Roll up dough and cut into 12 sections with a sharp knife.
Place rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking pan. (A cookie sheet also works fine.) Cover and let rise until nearly doubled, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Bake rolls in preheated oven until golden brown, about 15 minutes. While rolls are baking, beat together Tofutti, margarine, powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt. Spread frosting on warm rolls before serving.