Moms Apple Muffins

One of the many things I love about being so close to family is baking with my mom. All the skills I have learned in the kitchen, I acquired from her. Lately she has been on a muffin kick so last weekend we got our hands dirty and made some apple muffins. They turned out delicious! Since we are 95% Vegan :) , we used rice milk.

Here’s how you can make some delicious muffins too! I am trying something new, more pictures to help describe what I’m talking about when making something. I am a visual learner. I find mixing this by hand works best. A stand mixer might over work the batter resulting in bricks instead of muffins. Happy baking!

Ingredients

  • 1 C Flour
  • 1 C Whole wheat flour
  • 3 TSP baking powder
  • 1/2 TSP Salt
  • 1/2 C Sugar
  • 3/4 C Rice milk
  • 1/3 C Vegetable oil
  • 1 Egg
  • 1-2 Small/medium apples ( I used Washington Apples. I love the flavor)
  • 1/4 TSP of EACH cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves & ginger

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray a 12 muffin pan with non stick spray.

Dice the apples into small cubes. This is how I got nice little cubes. Slice the apple into wedges, then slices the wedges lengthwise then dice. Sorry no picture for that one, I got a head of myself. Then in a bowl, mix the cinnamon, ginger, cloves and nutmeg with the apples. Set aside.

In a bowl, combine the flours, salt and baking powder. I use a whisk, it works great to combine everything.

In a separate bowl combine the sugar, oil, milk and egg just enough to break up the egg yolk. Again, a whisk works best.

Now, pour the sugar & egg mixture into the flour bowl. With a spoon, fold everything together until its just about combined, then add the apples.

Slowly fold everything up a little more. Its important not to over work the batter because doing so causes all the air bubbles to pop thus not allowing your muffins to rise.  Yup, I had to Google that one because honestly I didn’t know what happens when you over work dough or batter. Its just what my mom said. Now I know :)

OK now you are ready to fill the muffin pan. I like to start out with adding just a little bit of batter to all the cups, then when all 12 are filled, going back and adding more as needed. That way I know that when a recipe calls for 12 muffins/cupcakes and I end up with 6, I probably overfilled the pan. This way I can go back and fill the ones that dont have much batter in them so they will all be relatively the same size.

Bake in preheated oven for 15-18 minutes. Baking time will depend on your oven. Gas ovens, like my moms, tend to get a bit hotter than what you set the temperature to. So start with a low baking time and go from there. Just check to make sure they are done by using a toothpick. If it comes out clean, they are done!

I dont want to offend the many Vegans out there by using the word Vegan and posting a recipe that has an egg in it. My family and I are trying our best to eat animal free but sometimes we fall off the wagon, as with this recipe.
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Bisquick beer biscuits

I love Bisquick. You can make just about anything with it. I love to make the biscuit recipe that comes on the box, but instead of milk, I use beer. I grew up with my mom making them all the time. This time I made a double batch and froze the biscuits to have anytime. Here’s how you can do it.

Ingredients

  • 2 1/4 C Bisquick
  • 3/4 C beer, IPA or a dark beer taste the best

Directions

Combine ingredients until a nice ball forms, you may nee do add more Bisquick if the dough is too sticky. Roll out the dough to the thickness you want. Cut out the biscuits them lay them on a cookie sheet. Place the cookie sheet in the freezer for 30-45 minutes, or until the biscuits are frozen solid.

                                  

Once the biscuits are frozen, place them in a paper bag then in a plastic bag. The paper bag will keep the moisture out and prevent the biscuits from sticking together. Place the bag back in the freezer and you will have biscuits whenever you want!

To heat, set oven to 400 and bake until the biscuits are golden brown, 8-10 minutes.

 

 

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Quinoa garbanzo bean salad

Trying to maintain a vegan diet, I have had to become more creative in the kitchen. I came up with this quinoa garbanzo bean salad today. It turned out great! Of course you can add or omit whichever ingredients you want. Instead of garbanzo beans you can use black beans and add some corn for a yummy side dish to tacos.

Ingredients

  • 1 can garbanzo beans drained
  • 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
  • 1 TBSP cilantro minced
  • 1/2 C cucumber diced
  • 1/2 C red bell pepper diced
  • 1/2 C tomato diced 
  • 1/4 C green onion minced
  • 1/4 mushrooms chopped
  • 1/2 avocado diced
  • 1 TBSP lemon juice
  • salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Drain garbanzo beans and set aside. Cook quinoa according to package. In a bowl, mix all the ingredients until well combined. Service as a side or enjoy as a snack.

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Blakes black bean salsa

My husband has a nack for coming up with some great salsa recipes. Here is is latest creation.

Ingredients

  • 14.5oz Can Rotel with green chiles, dont drain
  • 15oz Can black beans, drained
  • 14.5oz Can diced tomatoes , dont drain
  • 1 Tablespoon garlic
  • 1/4 Teaspoon ginger
  • 2 1/2 Teaspoons cumin
  • 1/2 red bell pepper chopped
  • 1/2 white onion chopped
  • 1/2 Tablespoon lime juice
Directions

Simmer the first 6 ingredients over medium heat for 15 minutes. Let col for about 15 minutes then pour all ingredients in a food processor. Processe to desired consistency. Refrigerate for an hour then serve with tortilla chips. Enjoy!

 

 

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Vegan Lasagna

This turned out absolutely delicious! No one will ever know its vegan.

Ingredients

  • 8 oz package lasagna noodles
  • 1 pound firm tofu
  • 13.5oz can spinach-drained
  • 1 pound tomatoes sauce (add your own spices)
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon garlic powder
  • 14oz vegan mozzarella
  • 1 bag Boca Burger meal starters veggie crumbles

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 350. Cook the lasagna noodles as directed, set aside. In a food processor combine the tofu, spinach, lemon juice, salt and garlic powder, set aside. In a 9×13 glass pan, lay one layer of lasagna noodles out, should fix 3 across.  Spread a layer of the tofu mix on the lasagna then the burger crumbles then the cheese. Repeat until the noodles are gone. On the top layer pour the tomatoes sauce evenly over the lasagna then sprinkle with the remaining cheese*. Bake for 45 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling.

*I baked my lasagna a head of time without the cheese on top. Then when we are ready to eat I will sprinkles the cheese on top and bake at 375 till the cheese is slightly brown.

Enjoy!

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Sheppard’s Pie…vegan style

I have always loved Sheppards pie so when I found a vegan recipe I was super excited to try it. I found this one on the PETA website.

Ingredients

  • 4 medium potatoes, diced
  • 2 Tbsp. margarine
  • 1/4 cup soy milk
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
  • 12 oz. faux ground beef-style crumbles (I used Morning Star Meal Starters)
  • 1 10.5-oz. can Campbells mushroom gravy (or 1 1/4 cups prepared vegetarian gravy of your choice)
  • 1 6-oz. can mixed peas and carrots, drained
  • Salt, garlic powder, pepper, and cayenne, to taste
Directions
 Boil the potatoes for 20 minutes, or until tender. Drain and mash with the margarine and soy milk or nondairy creamer. Season with salt and pepper.  In a medium pan, sauté the onion in the oil until translucent.In a medium bowl, mix the cooked onions, faux beef crumbles, mushroom gravy, peas and carrots, and spices. Pour into a pie pan. Top the crumble mixture with the potatoes, spreading to the edges.Bake in a 350°F oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until the potatoes are browned and the crumble mixture bubbles out the edges.

Next time I think I will use frozen peas and carrots instead of the canned.

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Vegan mac and cheese

This turned out delicious!

  • 16oz package of elbow macaroni or pasta of choice (I usedBarilla whole wheat pasta
  • 3 cups shredded Daiya Cheddar Cheese
  • 3 tablespoons vegan butter
  • 3 tablespoons flour
  • 2 to 2 1/2 cups* unsweetened rice or soy milk (see recipe below for notes)
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • Salt to taste (or omit, the Daiya is pretty salty)
  • 1/4 teaspoon paprika
  • Enough panko bread crumbs to liberally cover (I used an “Italian” flavored variety)
  • Red chili flakes to taste (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cook pasta about 5 minutes until it’s just tender. Don’t cook all the way or it will fall apart when you bake it.
3. Drain pasta and transfer to greased baking dish. I packed it all into a smaller 8×10 dish so it would set up nice and thick.
4. Mix in about 2/3′s of the cheese into the pasta and set aside.
5. In a small pot melt the butter. Add the salt & pepper, then whisk in the flour until combined. Stir in the milk. Keep stirring until it starts to boil, then keep stirring for about another minute until it thickens up. *(Start with 2 cups of milk but if sauce gets too thick just add a little bit more, you don’t want it to be like a paste, just a thickened liquid).
6. Pour the milk mixture into the pasta and mix everything well. Top with the remaining cheese. Cover everything with a generous layer of breadcrumbs. Give the whole thing a light dusting of paprika.
7. Pop in the oven for 30 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling and top is starting to brown. If you like it spicy sprinkle some of the chili flakes on top when serving.

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Tofu walnut balls (vegan meatballs)

These meatballs turned out great. We used some Greek spices we got at the City market in KC.

Preheat oven to 350. Grease pan.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 Cup quick oats
  • 3/4 Cup finely chopped walnuts
  • 1/2 Tsp chili powder
  • 1/2 Tsp Greek seasoning(or Italian seasoning)
  • 1 Tsp pepper
  • 1/2 onion finely chopped
  • 2 Cups bread crumbs
  • 1/4 Tsp garlic powder
  • 2 Tbsp finely chopped parsley
  • 1 Cup water
  • 1/4 Cup soy sauce
  • 1 Pkg firm tofu

Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl, add wet ingredients. I used my stand mixer and it worked out well to incorporate all ingredients. Roll into small balls and place on greased pan. These will not spread out so you can place them close together.  Bake for 40 minutes. We enjoyed ours with some whole wheat paste and red sauce. My husband also made his meatballs and we ate them together to compare. My husband actually preferred the vegan meat balls over the meatballs.

 

Oh yeah and we had some Texas toast…it was in the freezer. Have to get rid of all the non-vegan stuff anyway.

 

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Vegan chocolate brownies

This is an altered recipe I found on allrecipes.com. Its super chocolaty and almost has a cake like texture, goes great with almond milk. Make a vegan frosting and spread it on top to make it extra delicious.

Pre-heat oven to 350. Spray a 9×13 pan with Bakers Joy.

Ingredients:

  • 2 Cups all purpose flour
  • 2 Cups granulated sugar
  • 1 Cup dutch processed cocoa powder
  • 1 Tsp baking powder
  • 1 Cup of water
  • 1 Cup of oil
  • 1 Tsp pure vanilla extract

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, sugar and baking powder. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the oil, water and vanilla extract until just combined. Turn the mixer on low speed and slowly add the flour sugar combo until well combined. Pour into pan and bake 25-30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

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FAO Schwarz Baby Chef

When it comes to nutrition, I want the best for my son. So when I saw this baby food maker, I had to have it. Being on sale at Babies R Us was a plus! Originally about $150 bucks, I scored it for about $40. I used it last night and it is amazing. I sliced up some apples and placed them in the steam side, they were done in about 10 minutes. Perfectly fork tender. Then I placed them in the blender side and added some canned pumpkin to make pumpkin apples sauce. Its delicious, although my son is still getting used to the pumpkin taste.

Then for bed time I used the bottle warmer option and that worked perfect as well. The bottle wasn’t too hot and it wasn’t cold.

You have to read the directions though, there are a lot of parts to it. The water in the steam side does get hot so be careful. The blender side is a bit noisy, but it works well. Cleanup was easy. I cant wait to use it again!

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