CINNAMON ROLLS

Serves 24

Ingredients
1 cup Almond Milk
1 cup flour (separated)
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
2 eggs equivalent Egg Replacer
1 1/8 tsp salt
3 cups flour
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup Earth Balance
3 tbsp cinnamon
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
2 tsp almond milk (separated)

1. In a mixer bowl, wisk 1 cup of flour and the dry yeast in the warm almond milk. Let it sit for 10 minutes. 
2. Add sugar, salt, and Egg Replacer. Mix well.
3. Place the dough hook to the stand mixer and add flour 1 cup at a time, mixing in between. Mix well until incorporated.
4. Grease a large bowl with a spray oil and cover for 1 hour. The dough will double in size.
5. While the dough is rising, mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl.
6. Grease two baking dish with spray oil and set aside.
7. Cut the dough in half and roll out each dough separately on a clean lightly floured surface. Thickness should be 1/4 of an inch. (Mine were probably thinner) It doesn't have to be perfect.
8. Using a pastry brush, brush Earth Balance evenly on the dough, then evenly coat the dough with the sugar/cinnamon mix, dispersing evenly on the two rolled out dough.
9. Start to roll the dough from the long end.
10. Cut the dough in 1 inch slices. Each rolled out dough should make 12 cinnamon rolls.
11. Place in greased baking dish. 12 on each baking dish.
12. Cover with a clear plastic wrap and let them double in size for 20 minutes.
13. Preheat oven 350 degrees.
14. Bake for 20 minutes or until they are golden brown.
15. To make the icing - mix together the granulated sugar, vanilla extract, almond extract, and the 2 tsp of almond milk. Place in a small zip lock bag and seal. Evenly drizzle the icing to all the cinnamon buns. ENJOY!
    
    * Another option is to lightly sift 1/4 cup of granulated sugar to the 24 rolls.

One day I was browsing through my instagram feed and came across home baked cinnamon rolls. Obsession became an understatement so I had to make my own vegan version. It wasn't bad for my first run around. The experience was fun. I'm not a huge fan of drowning things with icing, so I made it minimal. Let's just say that all 24 rolls were gone by day 3. I gave  rolls to my parents and brother, but still... it was gone fast!

Vegan Mongolian Beef

VEGAN MONGOLIAN BEEF

Serves 8

Ingredients
Oil (vegetable or olive)
1/2 teaspoon ginger, minced
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/2 cup soy sauce (low sodium is best) or Coconut Aminos
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 bag VeriSoy Vegan Beef Slice
1/3 cup potato or cornstarch
1 large onion sliced thinly

1. Soak the VeriSoy Vegan Beef Slice in hot water for 20 minutes. These slices will double in size. (The directions says to soak it for 40+ minutes, but with hot water, the time is less)
2. While the slices are soaking, prep the other ingredients as well as slicing the onions.
3. In medium heat, add some oil in a wok or a pot and then saute the onions until they're half cooked. Remove and set aside.
4. Squeeze the water out from the VeriSoy Vegan Beef Slice and place in another container. Sprinkle the starch and mix to coat evenly. 
5. Heat oil in a wok and fry the slices on both sides. (I fried these in 3 batches) Set aside.
6. In the same wok, add oil and saute the garlic and ginger till golden. Add the soy sauce, water, and brown sugar. Whisk then bring to a boil. The sauce will thicken. 
7. Add the sauce to the beef slices and mix evenly.
8. Add the onions and mix.
9. Serve over rice.

Local Asian markets are treasure troves of vegan, vegetarian, and paleo diet finds. The market we go to sell the VeriSoy Vegan Beef Slice and the VeriSoy Vegan Soy Slice (Chicken) for a fraction of the cost (about $5 or less) compared to what is listed in the links from Amazon. Before going vegan, I was a strict disciple of the Paleo diet and the Whole 30 lifestyle. To this day, I still practice some of its principles and use cassava flour, almond meal, potato starch, coconut milk, and sweet potato starch in my cooking repertoire - depending on my mood. Also, I'm Asian and I can't live without white rice.

I digress, the dish above was delicious. Every Saturday after church, we have our traditional family lunch and I brought this dish. My meat eating dad and my brother said this was excellent and questioned how it was made. That to me, is a win.

Vegan Spritz Cookies

VEGAN SPRITZ COOKIES

(Recipe adopted from ValyasTasteOfHome)

Serves: 7 dozen

Ingredients

1.5 cups room temperature Earth Balance butter
1 cup sugar
1 Egg Replacer
2 tbsp. almond milk
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
½ tsp. almond extract
3 ½ cups. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder

food coloring (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Thoroughly cream Earth Balance butter and sugar.
2. Add Egg Replacer, almond milk, vanilla and almond extract. Beat well until smooth about 3 minutes on high speed.
3. Stir together flour and baking powder. Sift it into the creamed mixture.
4. Stir on low speed until all flour combined and the dough will look smooth in texture.
5. Do not chill. Place dough into Cookie Pro Ultra and press cookies onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
6. Decorate them with Jam or Christmas sprinkles of your choice. Bake one batch of cookies for 8 minutes at 375 F.
7. Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing them from the pan to cooling rack.  

First of all, this was THE most frustrating baking experience EVER! There is a learning curve with using a cookie press and I'm at the left of that curve. The directions LIED! Pressing the lever once and then pull up was utter FAIL. Everything was trial and error. Also, in my opinion, I would have liked it less sweet. However, our 6yo and the rest of the family loved it and said the sweetness was perfect. 

Despite it all, it was worth it spending time with Maksim. He loves baking with me. I took advantage & squeezed in math lessons with measurements.

Carmelized Onion Bruschetta

CARMELIZED ONION BRUSCHETTA

(veganized)

Serves 15

Ingredients

1 tsp Earth Balance

1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp brown sugar
2 onilns (medium, sliced thin)
1 garlic clove (minced)
1/2 cup vegetable broth
1 baguette
1 tbsp olive oil
2 roma tomatoes (diced)
fresh basil

1. Heat Earth Balance butter and oil in saucepan. Add onions and saute several minutes until onions begin to wilt.
2. Reduce heat to medium low, add salt, sugar, and garlic and sate for 30 minutes.
3. Increase heat to medium high and stir in broth. Saute until almost completely reduced.
4. Slice bread into 1/2" slices, brush with oil, and place on rack on broiler. Broil each side until golden.
5. Remove and top with onions, tomatoes, basil, and fresh pepper.

I got this recipe from my mother's drawer in her dining room. It must have been there for over ten years. It was mailed to her by the realtor that sold them their home over 15 years ago. It was perfect timing since my mind was trying to decide what to bring to trivia night. It was fantastic! Friends loved it.

To make it a lot easier and to my liking, I brought already broiled baguette pieces from the local grocery store. Also, I prefer my bruschetta cold. It was chilled in the refrigerator before taking it to trivia night. Another alteration is that I chopped the onions instead of cutting i with long strands. Not a fan of stringy slimy onions. It turned out great and has such a good flavor.

Vegan Arroz Caldo

Vegan Arroz Caldo
Original Recipe by Eleanor Arkhipova

Serves 8

Ingredients:

• Olive Oil
• 1 large bulb garlic chopped (or more)
• 1 tbsp grated ginger (or more)
• 1 Vegan Half Chicken chopped
• 2 cups water
• 2 cups vegetable stock
• 2 cups cooked white rice
• salt and pepper to taste
• spring onions chopped

Method:

1. Saute chopped garlic in olive oil until golden.
2. Add grated ginger and mix.
3. Add chopped Vegan Half Chicken. Saute until chicken is slightly golden.
4. Add the water and vegetable stock. Mix  and bring to a boil.
5. Add the cooked white rice, mix, and bring to a boil. Put on medium heat for 10 minutes. May need to add more water.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste.
7. Top with chopped spring onions.

Secret: The more garlic used, the stronger the flavor. Can also top it with more fried garlic, more veggie chicken, and or steamed broccoli.

This is Filipino dish that is usually cooked during the Christmas season. It is our version of the feel good chicken soup that warms the soul. My mother cooks this for my son whenever he is sick. When he was a picky 3 years old, he loved it. He called it, "Chicken Rice Soup."

You can use any veggie chicken available in the health food market, but I came across these VeriSoy Vegan Half Chicken at the local Oriental Store. Bought 8 pieces to stock up my freezer. Having been an omnivore in the past, this vegan chicken tastes the closest to chicken, if not, tastes better. I love that they shaped it as half the bird, only smaller. Hilarious! If I'm lazy, I slice it lengthwise and fry it just so. It's wonderful.

Stuffed Mushrooms With Sautéed Green Beans

Stuffed Mushrooms With Sautéed Green Beans

Original Recipe by Eleanor Arkhipova
(Serves 4)

Ingredients Stuffed Mushrooms

• 2 packages whole mushrooms
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 onion chopped
• 1 red pepper chopped
• 1 stalk celery chopped
• 3 slices of vegan whole wheat bread pulled apart
• 1 tbsp oregano
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 2 tbsp unsweetened almond milk
• salt and pepper to taste

Ingredients Green Beans

• 2 12 oz packages of green beans
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp onion powder
• salt and pepper to taste

Method Stuffed Mushrooms

1. Preheat over 30 degrees Fahrenheit. 
2. Wash mushrooms and remove the stem from the caps. Set caps aside and chop the stems. Set aside.
3. In a medium sized pot or wok, saute the onions in medium heat until translucent. Add the red pepper and celery. Mix until cooked.
4. Add the pieces of whole wheat bread and mix well.
5. Add oregano, garlic powder, onion powder. Mix.
6. Add the unsweetened almond milk and mix. 
7. Salt and pepper to taste.
8. Grease a baking sheet with oil spray.
9. Place mushroom caps on the baking sheet to be filled.
10. Stuff the mushrooms with the bread stuffing.
11. Bake for 15-20 minutes until mushrooms are cooked and the stuffing looks crunchy.

Method Green Beans

1. Cut the ends of the green beans.
2. In a large pan, add olive oil and then saute the green beans in medium heat.
3. Add the garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper to taste. Mix.
4. Cook until desired crispiness.
5. Serve as a side dish with the stuffed mushrooms.
6. Enjoy!

Talk about the ultimate side dish dinner. The mushrooms went on sale at the local Aldi's so we took advantage. This went fast because it was so delicious and oh so simple. Once again, add more spices as needed.

Scrambled Tofu

Srambled Tofu

Original Recipe by Eleanor Arkhipova

(serves 4)

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 medium onions chopped
• 12 oz firm tofu
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp vegan chicken bouillon
• salt and pepper to taste
• chives or parsley to garnish

Method:

1. Sautee onions in olive oil in medium heat until translucent.
2. Drain the tofu and squeeze out as much water from the block as much as possible. In a separate bowl, crumble the tofu with a fork then add to the pan. Mix.
3. Add all the spices and mix thoroughly.
4. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5. Let cook for five minutes adding more spice as necessary.
6. Top with chives or parsley.
7. Serve with vegan hot-dogs and avocado.
8. Enjoy!

I like this version of the scrambled tofu. It packs so much flavor - then again, I LOVE spices and am not afraid to use it. Thus being said, the spices I used in the picture were double the amount indicated in the initial recipe above. It was delicious. My father-in-law actually thought it was scrambled eggs at first sight. I thoroughly enjoyed this breakfast. YUM!