Some of my fondest memories growing up are of my family’s typical lazy, laid-back weekend brunches. These brunches usually consisted of our favorite whole grain pancakes, my dad’s tofu scrambler, and some veggie sausage links.
I’m the type of person who likes to eat relatively soon after waking up most mornings, and this was especially the case as a kid. Saturday and Sunday mornings however, I would find myself holding off on my normal breakfast of cereal in hopes that my dad would offer to make tofu scrambler and pancakes for us. Luckily for me, this happened more weekends than not.
Despite the fact that we ate this almost every week, no one ever got tired of having tofu scrambler. It’s that good. In fact, if there was any left in the pan after the 5 of us had our fill, we’d often just leave it sitting on the stove. After an hour or so it’d be completely finished off as people (well let’s face it, mainly me) walking by would sneak in a bite or two. Continue Reading »
Posted in breakfast, brunch, side dish | Tagged bell pepper, recipe, scrambled tofu, tofu, vegan | 1 Comment »
A couple of weeks ago I was sitting on my couch petting my cat after dinner dreaming of desserts. I often do this. That is, think about desserts and without actually making any or eating any. It’s just kind of a thing to do.
Anyway, as I was sitting there, I had this sudden desire to eat a blueberry coffee cake with a big topping of limey-fresh crumb. I’m not sure where this desire came from, seeing as I have never been a big coffee cake girl. (This might be related to the fact that I’m not a coffee person in general). I let the idea simmer in the back of my mind over the next couple of weeks, almost forgetting about it, dealing with other life-events.
Continue Reading »
Posted in dessert, side dish | Tagged blueberries, coffee cake, crumb cake, key lime, recipe, vegan | 6 Comments »
It goes without saying that it’s a cold, windy, blizzardy day in Chicago. Most of us are stranded at home, or at least pretended that we were to avoid the trek to work. And Leila, my beautiful sister and fellow blog writer, came for a visit. As it wasn’t the best day to venture out into the city, we stayed at home and made burgers to remind us of warm summer nights spent out in the backyard. Actually growing up we didn’t grill outside that frequently, but burgers make a great summer backyard meal, and so it’s close enough.
I bought a bunch of rainbow chard last week, and had come up with a burger recipe to use it in. Today’s snow day was the perfect time to stay home and make the burgers. I was super happy with the way the burgers came out, nutty and rich, with a hint of lemony tang. The burgers were surprisingly filling, and despite their delicious flavor and my voracious appetite I was unable to eat more than one and a half!
Continue Reading »
Posted in entree | Tagged chard, navy beans, recipe, vegan, veggie burgers, walnuts | 7 Comments »
If there was ever a sassy cupcake, this would be the one. A dash (well, maybe more) of peppery cayenne, a sprinkle (okay, more than that) of spicy sweet cinnamon and the smoothness of the delectable chocolate. I used your traditional moist and rich chocolate crazy-cake recipe as the base, just adding the cinnamon and cayenne for flavor. It pairs perfectly with the cinnamon buttercream frosting I’ve topped it with.
I first made these cupcakes on Día de los Muertos, but they were gobbled up too quickly for any pictures. Today isn’t Mexico’s Day of the Dead, but it has been a super cold month here in Chicago, and we could all use a little warming up and what better way to do it than by eating cupcakes with a kick? If a little spice in your belly doesn’t warm you up, an extra pound or two might. Okay, but really, Chicago weather gods, it’s been way too cold and grey lately! Send us some nicer weather! Continue Reading »
Posted in dessert | Tagged baking, buttercream, cayenne, chocolate, cinnamon, cupcakes, recipe, vegan | 16 Comments »
December 26, 2010 by Leila
Have you ever had a florentine? A lacy, crisp little cookie with caramelized sugar, almonds, and a swirl of dark chocolate. These are one of my husband’s all-time favorite cookies. They sell them in a quaint little bakery in Boston’s Italian North End neighborhood that is both a local favorite and a magnet for tourists.
In fact, when we were in Florence on our honeymoon, Josh had us stop in every bakery we passed, searching for the city’s namesake cookie. Desperately hoping to try the “real thing,” we were sorely disappointed. We found plenty of delicious treats in Florence–hearty Tuscan ribollita, killer dark chocolate sorbetto, complex Chianti–but no florentines.
Continue Reading »
Posted in dessert | Tagged almond, baking, caramel, chocolate, cookie, Italian, orange, recipe, vegan | 10 Comments »
November 22, 2010 by Leila
Okay, okay, so you probably already have a favorite banana bread. I know I do. (See Veganomicon p. 228.) But you have room in your repertoire for one more. If you try this recipe, you will understand.
While traditional banana bread is dense and chewy, these muffins are fluffy, tender, and they melt in your mouth a little. Instead of the usual assertive banana bread spice blend, these have a light vanilla scent, a little tang, and a hint of zest. They are hovering dangerously on the border with a cupcake. Muffcake? Cupkin? Whatever, just give me another one!
So what’s the secret here? It was scouted and reported by my dear friend, J., who alerted me to the work of genius that is the Cordon Rose Banana Cake from The Cake Bible. The key, J. tells me, has to do with the way you blend everything together.
Continue Reading »
Posted in breakfast, dessert | Tagged banana, cake, chocolate, cupcake, muffin, recipe, vegan | 6 Comments »
Growing up, marble cakes were my favorite cakes. A special treat, reserved for special events, vacations, and the like. Recently I wanted to eat some marble cake, but wanted to take my childhood favorite to the next level. Using an orange scented white cake base and layering with a rich chocolaty batter to make a zebra stripe pattern, then topping it with some orange buttercream frosting, made for the perfect citrusy and rich dessert.
The cake is not your typical fluffy textured cake. It has a moist but dense, almost flourless-like texture (though it is definitely not a flourless cake). It’s perfect served with coffee or tea. As a morning treat or for dessert. I just can’t get over how pretty this cake is!
Continue Reading »
Posted in dessert | Tagged buttercream, cake, chocolate, marble, orange, recipe, vanilla, vegan | 11 Comments »
« Newer Posts - Older Posts »
