C is for Cookie! Vegan cookie that is...

I don't know about you but lunch without a treat just isn't lunch. So last night I flipped through my new Spork Fed cookbook. If you don't know about these two L.A. based vegan cooking instructors check out their website www.sporkfoods.com. (I'm thinking of joining their online classes and a friend of mine already has.)  They share their knowledge of the medicinal side of foods which is very informative.  But getting back to the cookies... I wanted to make something different but that would be light and tasty to snaz up my boring lunch (don't need to bore you with these details).  I came across their recipe for Crispy Green Tea Cookies and had all the ingredients so I was ready to bake.  Boy, did these hit the spot!  Last night, I ate about 8 of them (they were about an 1 1/2 big don't get worried folks). They were crispy (I didn't need to bake them as long as the recipe suggests most likely because of the size) and tasty. Not too sweet but sweet enough to satisfy.  BUT as you know by now, I like to improvise in my baking/cooking.  Since I did not have any green tea, I went with a tea that I had (which is loads), by The Republic of Tea called Twenty Herbs.  I added 4 of the tea bags to the mix.  I also used strawberry syrup by Sonoma Syrup Co. to substitute for the the maple syrup.  Hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

Here's their recipe:

Ingredients:
1/3 cup non-dairy butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 T maple syrup
1 heaping T green tea leaves, finely ground (or 2 tea bags)
1/2 cup unbleached flour
1/2 cup spelt flour or whole wheat pastry flour
1/8 teaspoon sea salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream butter, sugar, vanilla, and maple syrup.
With a mortar and pestle (or some other chopping device), grind tea. Add tea to the mixture.  Slowly incorporate flours and salt.  Mix until the dough is uniform.  Do not over mix.
Place on a floured surface (I did not feel that I needed this step) and roll with a rolling pin until 1/8 inch thick.  Using a cookie cutter of any shape, press into dough.  Place formed cookies on a greased cookie sheet.  Bake about 22-24 minutes (use your judgement on the time, when I can smell them usually that's when they are ready).  Bake until golden around edges. Cool on a rack and store in a metal tin for up to 2 weeks.

Some tid bits from the Spork girls: What's the difference between whole wheat pastry flour and regular whole wheat flour?  Pastry flour is cut very fine and made from a soft wheat berry that is higher in carbs and lower in protein. The result is a more delicate tasting flour, which makes it great for baked goods.

Both green and black tea come from the same little shrub.  Green tea is a powerful cancer preventive because of its flavonoid content, and it is known to have more health benefits than black tea.

Thanks, Spork Girls for making vegan baking so tasty!!

What's for dinner- vegan chocolate cake

Last night, I had friends over for a French inspired dinner while watching Hugo.  I made Coq au Vin

while my friend made a vegan Tartine du Harvest.  lol!  (Harvest Tart) OMGoodness, so delicious!

  But the pièce de résistance, I have to say, was the vegan chocolate cake. I received this recipe years ago from someone when I used to make wedding cakes.  She gave the recipe to me and I alway remember that it was so tasty but haven't bothered making it in years... until last night.  The cake is so moist, you'll see why in the recipe and the chocolate fudge fondant is not like regular tasteless fondant but instead a rich, fudge-y decadent topping.  DO NOT be afraid of the balsamic vinegar.  In fact I used Pomegranate Vinegar and you do not taste it at all.  I also used chocolate soy milk. 

Vegan Chocolate Cake

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Oil two 9-inch round cake pans and line bottoms with parchment paper


Ingredients:

1 c. whole wheat pastry flour
1 c. unbleached white flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon powder
1/2 c. plus 2 T. Dutch process cocoa (a/k/a "unsweetened" cocoa)
1/2 c. Florida Crystals

1/2 c. canola oil
1 c. pure maple syrup
1 c. vanilla soymilk

1 c. water
2 tsp. balsamic or apple cider vinegar
1 T. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract


1. Sift dry ingredients into a large bowl: flours, baking powder and soda, salt, cinnamon, cocoa, and sugar. Stir with a wire whisk to mix.

2. In a separate bowl, mix the wet ingredients with a wire whisk until foamy: oil, maple syrup, vegetable-based milk (vanilla-flavored), water, vinegar, and extracts.

3. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix gently but thoroughly until the batter is smooth. The batter will be thin. Pour the batter into pans, dividing evenly, and bake on center rack of the preheated oven for 25 to 30 min. or until the center of the cake springs back when lightly touched or a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean.

4. Cool cake layers in pans on wire cooling racks for 10 min. Use a dinner knife to release cakes from sides of pans. Turn layers out of pans directly onto racks. Cool completely. Wrap layers tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate before assembling cake.

Vegan Chocolate Fondant

INGREDIENTS:

6 cups Florida Crystals confectioners' sugar, sifted

5 fluid ounces water

2 tablespoons light corn syrup

3 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate, chopped

1 teaspoon almond extract

DIRECTIONS:

In a saucepan, combine confectioners' sugar, water and corn syrup. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until it reaches a temperature of 92 degrees F (33 degrees C.) Remove from heat and stir in chopped chocolate and almond extract until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.