Cookies!

Everyone loves cookies no matter who the hell you are. These are a great rendition that incorporates all the ingredients of an almond joy candy bar into a vegan, chewy, crisp, and soft cookie that puts your average old double chocolate chip cookie to shame. Grab some of these for a snack, or breakfast (or lunch, or dinner, or dessert). 

Almond Joy Cookies

1/2 cup earth balance
1 cup agave nectar
1 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp water 
4 tbsp potato starch
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp salt
1 3/4 cups white whole wheat flour
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup whole almonds

Mix together the earth balance and agave nectar until smooth and creamy. Add vanilla, water and potato starch until its perfectly mixed together. Sift all the dry ingredients into the wet and stir to combine. Add the chocolate chips, coconut, and almonds. Scoop golf ball sized mounds of dough onto a prepared baking sheet (covered with parchment paper). Bake at 350F for about 18 minutes.

 

Ice Cream Sandwiches!!!

So it was the greatest wish of the recent birthday girl to have ice cream sandwiches to beat the hell out of the summer heat. No cake on her birthday you say. Well take a look at these babies before you get your shorts all in twist.



Macadamia Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies with Coconut Bliss Chocolate Hazelnut Fudge Coconut Ice Cream

1 cup Earth Balance
1 cup Agave nectar
1 cup brown rice syrup
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups whole wheat white flour
1/4 cup arrowroot
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup macadamia nuts chopped
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 333F
Whisk the poop out of that EB and syrup until its is light and fluffy. Add vanilla. Sift the flour-y ingredients into the wet. Add coconut, macadamias, and chocolate chips. Mix to combine. Scoop onto a baking sheet and flatten slightly. Bake for about 2o minutes until golden brown. Depending on the size of your cookie you may need to adjust the baking times.

Once completely cooled stick them in the fridge. Get your ice cream pint and a serrated knife. Slice into 6 equal sized rounds. Remove the carton scraps and make yourself a ridiculous sandwich. Enjoy!

We also ate pizza with the newest Daiya Vegan Cheese. It was less than extraordinary. More on that in the next post.

Cookies, Cannellini Salad Letuce Cups, Polenta Seitan Skillet Redux

Dinner tonight was influenced by all the food blogs out there. I tried my hand at the combination of polenta, greens and seitan at decided to stray away from the one-dish idea. I pan fried the polenta, sauted the greens with garlic, seared the seitan, and added a few little bits. The cannellini bean salad was served in bibb lettuce cups with a garlic aoli.

Cannellini bean salad.

1 clove Garlic, smashed, minced, and made into a paste with salt
3 green onions, sliced on the bias
1 can cannellini beans
2 heirloom tomatoes, diced
olive oil
rosemary
salt and pepper
lemon juice

Mix together to taste

Garlic Aoli

1 box silken tofu
2 T olive oil ( sub water for low fat)
Lemon juice
3 cloves roasted garlic
salt

Whizz together in blender or processor.

Tear the lettuce leaves from base to make a cup, spoon salad into cup. Drizzle aoli over the top.

Seared braised seitan, polenta rounds, grilled king trumpets, roasted turnips, wilted swiss chard, demi-glace gravy.

Two Recipe takes on Agave Chocolate Chip Cookies.
I am working on perfecting these and will post the recipe when it is perfect. In the mean time I am going to eat a lot of cookies. I'm happy.