Currently viewing the tag: "cookies"
2013 is officially here! To start the year off on the right foot, I needed a good meal and a sweet treat. First, the savory. Lasagna. Enormous noodles started the layered deliciousness. Then a creamy tofu ricotta with huge parsley kick. Then grilled eggplant. Repeat.
Next, while the lasagna bakes, something to smear on bread. I made a Northern bean horseradish artichoke hummus and doused it with Udo’s oil. Absolutely delicious!
Dinner is served! With more bread.
And now I have lunch for the rest of the work week. Ugh, back to work.
And now, these cookies that I have been meaning to make for quite some time. I was having a hard time finding vegan nonpareils. In fact, I am not sure that they exist. Even India Tree‘s has confectioners glaze. But I found these vegan rainbow sprinkles… so now I had no excuse!
The cookie dough was so good. I ate a lot of it.
It’s an involved recipe, requiring lots of kitchen goodies and wait time.
But then, adorable cookies–and lots of them. I actually froze half the dough and still had plenty of cookies to pair up.
My strawberry cream filling was over-whipped and seized up a little. No big deal.
Pretty butterfly cookies that I now get to eat.
Happy 2013!
Lieber’s, a Brooklyn-based Kosher food company, makes butterscotch chips for baking. Kosher marts are a great place to look for dairy-free items (or parve items, the Hebrew word for foods that are free of dairy and meat) as those who practice Jewish dietary law “answer to a higher authority.” Though egg and fish (and insect derivatives maybe?) may still be contained in parve food item, non-perishable pantry items usually do not contain these ingredients. Kashrut, Jewish dietary law, is directly linked to the Old Testament. It’s all very interesting to me. Anyway, Lieber’s makes a slew of products, many that can supplement a vegan pantry. Omni-staples, like gel(atin-like jello stuff), white chocolate chips, and… butterscotch chips.
An important distinction: Just because an item is vegan, does not mean it is uh, healthy. I feel like many still make this incorrect assumption. (And just because an item is vegan, doesn’t mean it is a quality food product.) Lieber’s butterscotch chips are vegan… and they’re also artificially colored, waxy and made of partially hydrogenated palm kern oil. Taste-wise, they smell better than they taste. Mostly because their waxy texture and after-feel taints a bite. They also don’t melt, making them stand out awkwardly like teenage pimples.
In a cookie made of the finest flours and sugars and deep, dark real chocolate, these butterscotch chips are out of place. All that being said, these are cookies. I extend flexibility to cookies because they are portion-controlled and meant to be sweet treats. I really can’t eat more than one at a time.
I do love the pretty contrast with the chocolate chunks. In my next batch, I’ll add some walnuts to up the heartiness.
And this has been in my head since I bought these chips.
I have traveled many a-mile to eat vegan food. A tradition that began 15 years ago when I went vegan still living with mom and dad here on Long Island. I used to drive to East Setauket to go to Wild By Nature. Two hours round trip in my 1981 Chevy Citation that was prone to overheating. Food that I could enjoy was well-worth it. And the stocked mini-fridge in my bedroom kept my goodies safe and separate. Since my early vegan roots, I’ve branched out significantly, finding vegan eats all other this great country and beyond. So I was pleasantly surprised and intrigued learning of Sweet To Lick, a Long Island based vegan bakery stelling goodies right here where I grew up. Besides being easier to find, vegan eats, especially baked goodies, have come a long way. Since I don’t think I’ve griped about since 2008, I’m going to do it again right now… inspired by the deliciousness of Sweet To Lick, a Long Island born and bred vegan, just like me.
Sweet To Lick’s stand at the Lynbrook Farmers Market, every Thursday.
The most important element to a vegan baked good is texture. There I said it. Whipping up a super-sugary buttercream and piping it on a wet sponge or a dry brick, and it’s largely still edible. But it’s not delicious. Texture stands as the determinant of true deliciousness. It is important in any baked good, but in vegan baking, more so as it is seemingly more difficult to achieve as evident by the many dry/dense bites I’ve sampled. The way your teeth find each other through a bite as they press the treat to your tongue–that is the most important sensation. How enticed your taste buds are comes after this experience. And I’ve found that it is the latter experience, the taste, where a treat becomes “pretty good.” After all, it’s rather easy to overcompensate for bad texture with sweet; processed food actually has most accustom to this, actually! Though I am a bit critical, it is kinda rare when texture and taste unite in the cause of knocking socks off. But Sweet To Lick did so… both with their cookies and their crumbcake.
The famous Ginger Ale Crumb Cake
Let’s look again at this beautiful piece of… cake. You can just see how great its texture is.
Taste: check! Texture: check! And an added bonus: creativity! Michael Sabet, Sweet To Lick’s head honcho, has raised the bar even higher. Besides mastering the traditional bites, creating a mere perfect chocolate chip cookie, he’s also got some very unique and playful flavor combinations. I bought the Elvis cookie made with fried banana and peanut butter. He also had chocolate cookie chip cookies, chocolate cookies with pieces of Oreo-type cookie inside!
I mentioned the chocolate chip cookies–the true measure of deliciousness. Sweet To Lick makes an amazing cho-cho chip cookie. Soft, subtle salt, not too many chips… perfecto. 
Find Sweet To Lick’s stuff around the Island and help push Michael Sabet into a storefront!
Clearly I am on a quest to find more vegan options around my great city. A satisfying spot for each of the varied tastebuds of my tongue. Some refined and steeped in foodie sensibility, others nostalgic and in need of comforting. Carb-heavy comfort. B.A.D., an all-night eatery with a slew of vegan options, most certainly appeased is the latter.
I first visited B.A.D. last year at their Williamsburg, Brooklyn location. The menu has since grown substantially. I stopped in bright and early one more to start the day right with one of their breakfast options. But first I was taken by selection of v-bombs strewn about the space on Avenue A in the East Village. I had to capture them while I waited for my breakfast. Thankfully the sweet waitress let me wander and shoot pictures.
The bad girl behind Bad Girl Bakery is a vegan herself so they do their own in-house baked goods which are mostly vegan, some of which are gluten-free. Let’s take a looksy:
Cookies–oatmeal cherry pecan and chocolate chip.
Brownies. Mmmmm.
Cupcakes. There’s the vanilla with rose icing.
My greasy, carb-y wonder of a breakfast: the Monte Cristo. This delicious way to start the day is like a grilled cheese made with French toast stuffed with veggie ham. Sweet, salty, savory, and satisfying. The homefries were both white and sweet potato. And boy do I appreciate that.
Let’s look again. This is hearty greasy spoon fare. Not for the faint of heart.
As my heart can handle quite a bit, I chose a dessert from the menu… the Chocolate Banana Chimichanga. This scrumptious end to breakfast had banana and chocolate wrapped in a tortilla and deep-fried. It would probably feed two but hey, that’s how I roll. So darn good.
Chocolate. Banana. Chimichanga. Yes!
Next time you are crawling home on Avenue A.. or up at the crack of dawn because your cat was demanding treats, eat the majority of of your daily intake of calories for breakfast at B.A.D. You’ll have the whole day to utilize it!
Ah, the days of lounging about leisurely making Milanos are over.
I used Isa’s great recipe but …had some missteps. First, I put in too much flour. Sure, I could have easily fixed this but once my hands were covered in dough, there was no going back. The bigger misstep was the chocolate…
I had two ounces of baker’s chocolate, semi-sweetened, and 4 ounces of unsweetened. So when I melted it down with some agave, it seized quickly, congealing a bit to frosting-like texture and keeping a bit of burnt taste.
That’s all the chocolate in the fridge so I made do. They are still pretty awesome.
But this time with 100% cacao from Ghirardelli. They’re all adult-like with bitter bits of black, deep dark chocolate.
The key is to take them out early and let them firm up on the rack to a perfect chewy texture.
I’ll admit I was generous with sweetener given the chocolate was unsweetened.
It’s going to be a long week back to work… I’m going to need these.
Shirley’s birthday dinner at Bhojan.
Leftover 3 Brothers pizza, weekday, Electrician‘s.
Chocolate chip cookies without the chocolate chips: “sweet treat” fix, weekend, Electrician’s
Pancake’s vegan birthday cakes, Pancake’s 9th Birthday Party, Merrick
Hunkered down within the Hurricane Irene pandemonium, the exuberance of local weatherpeople becomes kind of numbing. I am just going to talk about peanut butter for a little bit because Irene catch phrases are starting to bother me. With a jar of Peanut Butter & Co.‘s White Chocolate Wonderful purchased as a high-end emergency edible, I knew I had to make a batch of cookies. Inspired by this recipe, I cut the sugar since my peanut butter was sweetened with cane juice already and used 2 TB of arrowroot for a binder. Let’s look.
With my good camer a stowed in Brooklyn, I used my old point-n-shoot that has like 5 mega-pixels. Considering, I think I got some nice shots of these buttery and delicate cookies.
I tend to be turned off by a peanut butter cookie… thick, dense… and I wished I had some chocolate to add, but these were damn good.
Lest I forget I am under mandatory evacuation, New Jersey governor Chris Christie and New York City Mayor Bloomberg reminded me often.
Last minute low-ball bidding on Priceline is a skill I can add to my resume. Being V.I.V.B. (very important vegan bloggers), we needed a safe haven to recuperate from a long day of eating. Luckily, the boutique Indigo Hotel gave us a $100 room for about $50 bucks. After some restful sleep, an invigorating session in the sauna and some much needed exercise in the pool, we were ready for another day of eating.
For breakfast on a beautiful Saturday morning we stopped at Hibiscus in the bustling area of Kensington Market, a cute and hip neighborhood in downtown Toronto. I must admit that this was not our first choice for morning eats. We tried to go to Fressen for their brunch menu, which had me at “tofu omelette”, but they were closed. So Hibiscus it was. It was a delicious stop! I was thankful we were able to try this option, which otherwise would have not made the cut due to time restrictions.
Hibiscus is predominantly a creperie. Correction: predominantly a vegan creperie. To get more taste for our CAD, we split a sweet and a savory. Everything at Hibiscus; the crepes, coffee, sample treat by the register, ambiance and service; was great. Above is our savory crepe: Chutney, Pecan & Pear–a vegan pesto, fresh greens, sliced pear and pecan with some Daiya. It was more a sweet and savory crepe after a drizzle of agave and a sprinkle of cinnamon. So very good.
And the sweet! A Banana & {Vegan} Nutella–sliced banana, dark chocolate and hazelnuts, chocolate chips dusted with cocoa and powdered sugar. So. Darn. Good. Dare I say that there was a bit too much chocolate, however? There I said it. Both crepes had great texture, thin like a true crepe. [Not pancakes called crepes (worst offender: Caravan of Dreams: see here from my 2008 post)] Thanks, Hibiscus. Onward and outward, we cut across Toronto’s grid for our next sweet fix.
Bunners.
I’m going to say it again, Bunners. Bunners is an all-vegan and gluten-free bakery in The Junction in Toronto. Like the photo collage of my amazing cupcake above illustrates, they make a heavenly cupcake. I just couldn’t stop taking pictures of its pretty self. Then I bit it…
I have had a ton of vegan cupcakes in my lifetime. Bunners is up there as one of the best. Simply put, it’s got a great taste, scoring maximum cupcake points for a unique and nuanced flavor. Like Eco Bella Bakery in Rochester (post here), Bunners is not superficial sugarfest. There is a taste, there is texture and it’s their own recipe clearly. Their frosting is not a gritty pile of confectionary sugar. There is more to it. Overall, 5 stars on the cupcake scale.
Besides cupcakes, they’ve got a whole bunch of other baked goods like cinnamon buns, muffins, cookies and donuts.
Given I won’t soon be back in Toronto, I should have stocked up.
Thanks, Toronto! For the amazing vegan eats and for Jeff Mangum. Now it’s back to The States!
Continuing the all-vegan upstate New York theme, I bring you pictures of some wonderful vegan goodies hiding in a sleepy street in downtown Rochester, the treats of Eco Bella Bakery.
I’ve written of the pleasures of an all-vegan establishment before. What can often be a grueling process of ordering food becomes effortless. Of course the “grueling” process is well-worth it as my choice to be vegan for 14 years stands on many different foundations–one being I like to know exactly what I am putting into my body. At an all-vegan eatery I am suspended in the splendor of complete trust and the excitement of possibility.
In this state I usually eat too much. Case in point: the blueberry filled cupcake, alongside CandyPenny‘s chocolate and peanut butter brownie. The blueberry cupcake was spot on: a subtle, almost corn bread like cupcake topped with the perfect pipe of buttercream, garnished with some fresh blueberries and some colored sprinkles (India Tree?)
Also mine in the sweets frenzy: Rocky Road cupcake and delicious and delicate pecan-topped Snickerdoodle. The cupcake was very good, a subdued chocolate cake topped with all the Rocky Road requirements… chocolate chips, nuts and ♡Dandies marshmallows♡. Eco Bella does a fantastic job making goodies that are not overly sweet, something any food lover appreciates. Sugar ≠ deliciousness. Given how much sweetener is added to processed foods, one can say it’s used more often to fool a taste bud into accepting a whole bunch of crappy ingredients.
“Closer,” I say like Hannibal Lechter. Here is Rocky Road scrumptiousness next to the owner-recommended Snickerdoodle. Mmmm-a great start to the morning. Now onward to Canada.. Oh Canada…
I’ve made scrumptious strawberry shortcakes, heavenly black and white cookies, the vegan-elusive rainbow cookie, delectable Milano cookies, huge and fatty cinnamon buns, savory Red Lobster cheese and garlic biscuits, sweet bread, even cashew-cream-based vegan cannoli… all-vegan versions of the tempting treats I grew up craving. Treats I once had given up on. Twinkies, cupcakes, whoopie pies, cookies, and the list goes on and on.
All have proved, with flying colors, that animal products are just plain not necessary, to say the very, very least. It’s a quest that feeds my vegan values and has me continuing to look for veganization challenges.
I am moving onward to veganize yet another treat from my youth: the Scooter Pie. Ah, the Scooter Pie. Kris, Mike and Ken, I want to apologize. It was always me who finished the box. It was me that hoarded those marshmallow-sandwiched-chocolate-coated pies in a safe place behind the Ronzoni. I loved Scooter Pies, and I’ve been working up the energy to veganize them. So now… let’s rock.
Prep:
1. Prepare baking sheets. Line 2 standard sheets with parchment (for baking the cookies) and another high-walled baking sheet for the marshmallow to set. Cover the marshmallow sheet with a mix of 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar and 2 Tablespoons cornstarch. Make another batch of this mixture to sprinkle on top of the marshmallow as well.
Sandwich Dough {veganized from this}:
1 cup Earth Balance
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 Ener-G egg replacer
1 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2. Make cookie layer. With a mixer on medium speed, beat the Earth Balance until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the brown sugar and beat at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce the speed to medium, add the egg replacer and the vanilla extract, and beat to combine. Reduce the speed to low, add the flour and the salt, and mix just until a soft dough forms. Divide the dough in two, shape into disks, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Working with one disk at a time, roll out the dough to about 1/8-inch thickness. It’s best to secure your rolling space with some wax paper and have plenty of flour on hand as dough gets sticky. Using the biscuit cutter, cut out the rounds and place them on the parchment-prepared baking sheets, about ½ an inch apart. Refrigerate the cookies (on the baking sheets) for 10 minutes.
4. Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool on the pans for a couple of minutes, and then move to a cooling rack to cool completely. Pack in an airtight container after cool.
Marshmallow layer: {From these informative links: instructions and pictures}
5 tablespoons “100% soy protein” from Vitamin Shoppe
1/4 cup Ener-G egg replacer
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon guar gum
3/4 cup cold water
Sugar Syrup:
1 & 1/2 cup raw sugar
1 tablespoon vegetarian gelatin
1/2 cup water
1 cup brown rice syrup
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
5. To make the marshmallow layer, mix the dry ingredients together first in a stand mixer. Add the water and whip with a whisk for 15 minutes until you get formed peaks and an increase in volume.
6. While the above is whipping, prepare the sugar syrup. Mix the veggie gelatin with the raw sugar in a saucepan. Add the water and whisk quickly. You should have a thick mixture. Add the brown rice syrup, stir and turn on heat on the stove. Use a candy thermometer and cook the mixture, stirring occasionally, until it reaches 230 degrees. By this time, it should be thick and gloppy. The mixture will begin to gel as one large mass and you will be able to catch sight of the bottom of your pan as you stir. Hurry up and stop cooking! Stir in the vanilla.
7. Turn the stand mixer {with splatter shield in place} on high and whisk the fluff as you quickly add the sugar syrup. Add syrup quickly! The sugar gel is so sticky, it can climb up your whisk attachment and begin to gum up its connection to the mixer. Just dump it in with the mixer running as fast as it will go. Let whip for 10 minutes. Use a rubber scraper and pour the mixture into your prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle the top of the marshmallow with more powdered sugar and cornstarch, covering the top completely. Let marshmallow set in the fridge for at least an hour.
8. When cool, use biscuit cutter to cut layers for cookie assembling. Alternate with the cookie and marshmallow, making a layer/s. Allow chocolate to set in the refrigerator while preparing the chocolate. Tape down wax paper on a large flat to prepare for coating them with chocolate.
Chocolate Coating:
12 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 ounces cocoa butter, edible of course
9. Prepare the chocolate coating. Using a double boiler, melt the chocolate and cocoa butter together until completely smooth. Retrieve cookie-marshmallow layers from fridge and place them on a cooling rack on top of the wax papered surface. Spoon the melted chocolate over each cookie so that it runs down the sides and covers most of the cookie, gently pushing with the back of a spoon if need be. Allow scooter pies to set back in the refrigerator. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
10. Enjoy a delicious taste of your youth!
Snowflake time.
Christmas morning and Santa came!
Making quick use of the Electrician‘s new waffle maker and Williams Sonoma waffle tongs.
Christmas sugar cookies.
All dressed up.
Banana everything cookies from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar
Santa came again at my folks’.
Pancake in her festive collar.
Vegan Reporting By Location
