Saturday, July 23, 2011

{ POTATO PEEL PIE MINIS }

 I hosted my book group a couple weeks ago. We read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (a MUST read, if you ask me), so, naturally, I had to serve potato peel pie.

I didn't use the original World War II recipe (potato peels + 1 T. milk to form a crust; 1 potato + 1 beet boiled in salt water and mashed for filling). I found a few ideas online and then made my own version. They were really tasty!

{ POTATO PEEL CRUST }

3 c. fleshy potato peels, grated
1 small onion, chopped

1 T. egg replacer + 1/4 c. water
2 T. baby food prunes
1/4 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 t. salt
  • Cut peels off of 8 small to medium potatoes. (I basically squared off the long sides of the potatoes and peeled the short sides, so you have some potato flesh with the peels.)
  • Grate peels using a food processor.
  • Chop onion and combine with potato peels.
  • In a separate bowl, whisk together egg replacer and water until frothy.
  • Whisk in prunes, flour, and salt.
  • Add potato peels and onions and mix until well combined.
  • Press a heaping tablespoon of peel mixture into each of 24 cupcake holders (lightly oiled).
  • Bake at 400 for 15 minutes.


{ FILLING }

I basically used my twice baked potato recipe for the filling and then sprinkled tiny diced (boiled) beets on top.

flesh of 8 small to medium potatoes, steamed
1 1/2 c. butternut squash, steamed

1/2 c. roasted garlic sauce
3/4 c. non-dairy milk
1/3 c. nutritional yeast
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1/4 t. paprika

1 beet, boiled and diced small
  • While crust is cooking, chop and steam potatoes and squash, then mash with potato masher.
  • Add remaining ingredients and mix until well combined.
  • When crust is ready, spoon potato mixture on top and sprinkle with beets.
  • Bake at 400 for 15 minutes.

{ "CHEESE"CAKE MINIS }

I hosted my book group a couple weeks ago and served these. They were a hit!

I used this "cheese"cake recipe. I made the full crust recipe and half the filling recipe. It made 24 minis (regular cupcake size). Next time I might do the whole filling recipe instead of half.

Directions:

{ CRUST }

For the crust, I used a little less than a tablespoon of mixture for each mini. (The backside of the tablespoon worked great for pressing and molding the crust.)
Bake the crust at 315 for 5 minutes (instead of 8). Allow to cool to room temperature before pouring in filling.

{ FILLING }

When crust has cooled, pour 1 to 2 tablespoons filling on top of each crust.

Bake at 315 for 30 minutes (instead of 50-60).

Allow to cool to room temperature before covering and putting in the fridge.

{ CHILLED DOUBLE CHOCOLATE TORTE }

Thanks, Angela, of Oh She Glows (again)! This dessert is beyond-words good! (Mom: "Quite possibly the best thing I've ever put in my mouth!") Yeah, it's really good.

{ NO-BAKE CHOCOLATE CRUST }

2 c. pecans
1/4 c. cocoa powder
1 T. peanut butter (original: 2 T. coconut oil)
1/4 c. pure maple syrup
1 t. vanilla
1/2 t. salt


{ CHOCOLATE AVOCADO MOUSSE }

2 c. avocado flesh (2-3 avocados)
1/3 c. almond milk
2/3 c. pure maple syrup
1 T. peanut butter
1/4 c. cocoa powder
1 T. arrowroot powder (or cornstarch)
1/4 t. salt
1 t. vanilla
1 c. + 2 T. chocolate chips, melted

  • Lightly oil a 7-10 inch pie dish (or springform pan).
  • Process pecans until crumbly (you want some chunks).
  • Add remaining crust ingredients and pulse until just mixed.
  • Scoop mixture onto prepared pan and press down firmly and evenly with slightly wet fingers or a spatula.
  • Put crust in freezer to set while making the mousse.
  • Place all mousse ingredients, except chocolate chips, in food processor.  Process until smooth.
  • Melt chocolate chips in microwave and scoop into processor.
  • Process until smooth.
  • Remove crust from freezer and scoop mousse on top of crust.  Smooth out as much as possible and then freeze for 2 hours to firm.
  • Allow to sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes before serving.
  • Cover leftover torte and store in freezer.
This is delicious served with this coconut cream!

{ HEAT WAVE SUMMER SALAD }

Oh She Glows has quickly become one of my favorite sites. This is another one of hers, with a couple of adaptations. I served it last night with cabbage pitas, and I'm eating the leftovers right now. So good!

{ SALAD }

1 c. wheatberries (2 c. cooked)
1 can garbanzos, drained and rinsed*
2 c. chopped peaches
1 c. chopped strawberries
1 c. blueberries
1/2 c. chopped almonds


{ DRESSING }

1/4 c. apple cider vinegar
2 T. pure maple syrup
1 t. dijon mustard
1/4 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. salt


fresh baby spinach

  • Cook wheatberries.
  • Combine all salad ingredients.
  • Whisk together dressing ingredients and pour over salad.
  • Serve over fresh baby spinach. (Original recipe has sauteed kale instead.)


*I forgot the garbanzos last night, and it was still delicious. I added them into my leftovers today, and I like them. In the future, I'll just do with or without depending on my mood.

Sunday, July 10, 2011

{ BROCCOLI RAISIN SALAD }

Elna and Mom found this one on Rawmazing and tweaked it slightly.  Loved it!

{ SALAD }

6 c. chopped raw broccoli
1/2 medium red onion, chopped
1 c. raisins
1 c. sunflower seeds

{ DRESSING }

1 c. raw cashews, soaked 2 hours
1/4 c. fresh lemon juice
1/4 c. pineapple juice
1 T. apple cider vinegar
1/4 c. water
1 shallot (2 T. chopped) (or red onion, or sweet onion)
1 clove garlic
1 to 2 T. agave nectar
1 t. mustard powder
1 pinch salt (optional)

  • Blend dressing until silky smooth.
  • Pour over salad and combine until well coated.

{ PISTACHIO CAKE }

I recently read Jeanne Ray's Eat Cake for my book group.  I thought it was a fun read, and the recipes all looked delicious but very un-vegan and very high fat.  The pistachio cake recipe was the only one that seemed remotely convertible.  Here it is--veganized, whole wheat, and with no processed fats.  It was delicious!

3/4 c. shelled pistachios

1 c. whole wheat flour
2 t. baking powder
1 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. salt (omit if using salted pistachios)

1/2 c. non-dairy milk
1/4 t. vanilla

1/3 c. water + 1 1/2 T. egg replacer powder
3/4 c. wonderslim
1/2 c. evaporated cane juice
1/2 c. sucanat

  • Preheat oven to 350.
  • Process pistachios in food processor until finely ground, but not pasty.
  • Add the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Pulse to mix.
  • In a mixing cup, combine milk and vanilla.
  • In a separate bowl or mixer, whisk water and egg replacer until frothy.
  • Add wonderslim, evaporated cane juice, and sucanat, and mix well.
  • While mixing on low speed, add the pistachio flour and milk in batches, alternately, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.
  • Mix just until combined.
  • Pour batter into a lightly greased 9x13 baking pan.
  • Bake on 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

(We ate half of it a couple days ago, and I'm serving it like this for my daughter's birthday today: with vegan lemon cream cheese frosting.)

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Printing Error

Users beware:  Sometimes when using the printing option for a recipe, random ingredients are left out (no obvious sign they're missing).  It just happened to me twice.

Does anyone know how to fix this problem? And, in the meantime, if you use the print option, double check the ingredient list before printing.