Tag: Dessert

• Cleveland Eats

  Posted at 7:35 AM by Brittany, on September 23, 2015

  I discovered a new hashtag last week, which led me to conclude that if you put the word “eats” after any large city you’ll find photo after photo of delicious looking food.

  I also discovered #SeattleEats is amazing and I’ve been missing out. For this post though, all attention goes towards Cleveland and all my delicious eats.

  

  Cleveland Vegan decor.

  It should come as no surprise that one of the highlights of my trip to Ohio (second of course to the wonderful company I had) was all my exploration through food.

  I was fortunate enough to try a handful of new to me eateries, which is naturally the first thing I’m posting about. Food is life after all.

  

  

  “Beet” still my heart.

  First up to bat is this quinoa, beet, and sunflower seed burger from Cleveland Vegan. It knocked my socks clear into next week. The food was fresh and full of flavor, the staff was friendly and fun, and the decorations were absolutely adorable.

  

  Young love in a sea of plants.

  Root vegetables everywhere just like the carrot shown above.

  

  This place was so legit I had to go twice. Once for “real food” and once for “the best food.” Also known as dessert. Also known and my life force.

  Also known as triple chocolate cupcakes.

  

  Sigh.

  Cleveland Vegan wasn’t the only place with too legit to quit desserts, oohhh no. I made my rounds to a cafe down the way for brunch with a side of sugar.

  I’d love to give a hug to the person that coined the term brunch. It’s fantastic, and when I participate in the event known as brunch I feel fancy.

  

  The Root Cafe was fully equipped with bearded men, fair trade coffee, and vegan food that filled my soul with rainbows and kitten whiskers.

  

  Breakfast burrito packed with sweet taters, beans, broccoli, and enchilada sauce.

  The inner vibe was equally fantastic.

  

  

  

  My lovely brunch date.

  

  Oreo like cookie.

  If that Oreo like cookie wasn’t enough to bring me back to Ohio, the vegan mac and cheese from Forage Public House is. I’ll be recreating this masterpiece VERY soon.

  

  

  I also got a salad. I think that counts as balance.

  

  Last, but most CERTAINLY not least was the vegan cinnamon roll I obtained from Natures Bin – “a non-profit organization whose mission is to help people with disabilities develop skills and confidence leading to sustainable employment.”

  There is so much yes about that mission statement.

  

  

  I needed a moment of silence while eating this roll.

  I ate so much more than this while on the other side of the US, but these were the highlights. All of these places had a common theme – sourcing local and organically grown produce for a true farm to table meal. It’s no wonder I loved the food so much.

  Still to come are my adventures in Amish Country, my trip to an apple orchard, wandering through sunflowers, riding trolleys downtown, and pretending to be Tarzan in a forest filled with trees. Until next time.

  Q: Do you eat the same when you’re on vacation as you do in everyday life? 80% yes, 20% treats.

  

  | 65 Comments Tagged Cleveland, Cupcake, Dessert, Ohio, Vacation, Vegan

• Chocolate Salted Almond Butter Bites

  Posted at 7:02 AM by Brittany, on April 28, 2014

  For as long as I can remember I’ve tried to watch my salt intake. I never add it to my meals, and even the slightest amount makes me feel like a swollen slug. I have to drink at least 100oz of water just to combat the tiniest intake of salt. Blech.

  

  
  While I don’t use salt much in my cooking, I always use it in my baking. The amount of salt in most baked goods is less than a teaspoon, but that small pinch is powerful. When I was in high school I took a food science class, and little did I know one very small piece of information (& then some) I learned would stick with me all these years.

  

  
  Salt is known to enhance, and awaken the flavors combined in baked goods. It creates a balance that make your treats that much sweeter. For this reason alone, I never skimp on the salt when I bake/create sweets…it’s a staple in all my recipes. Chocolate and salt are commonly paired together, and this is simply because they just mesh..really well.

  I’ve always been a sucker for the chocolate, almond, and salt combo. When I worked at Trader Joe’s I would often sneak into the back room to see if any chocolate salted almonds were open and I would grab a handful (or five) to give me an extra boost around noon.

  

  You can imagine my excitement when I saw this recipe on Amanda’s blog, the second recipe from her blog that I just had to make. These truffle bites looked perfect, but they were missing one thing…salt! I also used gluten free pretzels instead of wheat.

  Chocolate Salted Almond Butter Bites 

  
  Ingredients 

  • 1 cup crushed gluten free pretzels
  • 1/2 cup creamy almond butter
  • 2 tbsp. honey
  • 1/3 cup semi sweet vegan chocolate chips
  • Sea salt

  Directions 

  1. Line a baking sheet or pan with wax paper and set aside.
  2. Pour your pretzels into a high speed blender, or food processor and pulse until you get a meal like consistency. Do this until you have enough “powdered” pretzels to make 1 cup.
  3. Once pretzels are crushed, pour them into a medium sized mixing bowl and add in your almond butter, and honey. Mix until fully combined. Once combined place your bowl into the freeze to set for about 10 minutes.
  4. After the mixture sets, form dough into small ball bites, this should make about 12 total. Place your bites onto your wax paper lined pan, and put back into the freezer to set for another 10 minutes.
  5. While you’re waiting for the bites to firm, melt your chocolate chips using a double boiler, or a microwave. I don’t own a microwave so a double boiler is what I use.
  6. Dip each bite into the melted chocolate and roll around with a fork to ensure each side is coated, remove and place onto the wax paper.
  7. After each bite is coated, immediately sprinkle sea salt on top before the chocolate sets.
  8. Place back into the freezer and let set for as long as you can refrain from eating. At least 15 minutes.

  
  The most common comment I got about these: “Wow, I love the salt on top..it goes really well with the chocolate.” Booya.  Salted chocolate paradise.

  Q: Do you use salt in your baking/treat making?

  

  | 56 Comments Tagged Dessert, Gluten Free, No Bake, Recipe, Sweets, Treat

• Chocolate Chip Coffee Cookies – Gluten Free & Vegan

  Posted at 7:22 AM by Brittany, on April 23, 2014

  When I first took the plunge and adapted a vegan lifestyle, I felt inspired. Suddenly my meals and baked goods were each a new experiment, and I was revamping my old favorites to make them new. I fell completely in love with plant based foods.

  

  Fast forward two years and my baking sometimes has another label slapped onto it -gluten free. I haven’t talked about it much on the blog, because I really dislike labels, but I have adapted a 95% GF diet. Simply because I feel better without all the breads/wheat intake.

  My digestion is amazing, and I don’t feel sluggish or bloated. I say 95% because I will occasionally eat a roll, a cupcake with whole wheat flour, or if I go out to a restaurant I will eat what I am served, but when I am at home I go GF for most of my meals.

  

  I’ve been baking a lot of treats lately that don’t call for flour at all, which has made this adventure easy, but I decided it was time to revamp my all time favorite cookie recipe. I made it gluten free, and added ground coffee…because I could. Don’t let the terms “vegan” and “gluten free” fool you though, these are one of my more naughty treats.

  Chocolate Chip Coffee Cookies

  

  Ingredients

  • 2 cups all purpose GF flour (I use Namaste Foods GF flour, it’s a cupforcup flour)
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1.5 tablespoons fresh* ground UN-brewed coffee beans
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup melted coconut oil
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup xylitol (or raw sugar)
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup applesauce
  • 1.5 cups semisweet chocolate chips

  *fresh coffee has the most flavor

  

  Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. I use stone wear to bake my cookies so that I don’t have to line a baking sheet, but if you don’t have any line a cookie sheet and set aside.
  2.  Combine the flour, xanthan gum, baking soda, ground coffee and salt. Set aside.
  3. In a medium bowl, mix together the melted coconut oil, brown sugar and xylitol until well combined. Mix in the vanilla, and applesauce until light and creamy. Mix in the dry ingredients until well combined. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand using a wooden spoon. Place cookies onto a lined cookie sheet, or large pizza stone. Cookies should be about 3 inches apart.
  4. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted.

  

  Now..keep in mind…these are gluten free. The raw cookie dough itself is not as tasty as regular floured dough, but I did still eat enough dough to feel slightly sick. What can I say, I’m a dough digger. These are fluffy, soft, and full of sugar. Perfect.

  

  I shared these treats with some civilians* and they loved them. I found that the flatter and wider the cookie, the more balanced the flavors. Shorter and taller cookies had a bit of the flour taste, so make sure you make them an even size. I am officially obsessed.

  *non vegan/GF eaters

  Q: Does the title GF/Vegan scare you…or intrigue you? 

  

  | 60 Comments Tagged Cookie, Dessert, Gluten Free, Recipe, Vegan

• Vegan Coffee Fudge

  Posted at 5:35 AM by Brittany, on April 11, 2014

  Remember this post I posted a few weeks ago, when I attempted to make some fudge? I ended that post with a simple request: please share with me a delicious vegan fudge recipe. Well, my request was granted by the fabulous Brandi over at The Vegan 8.

  

  

  I’ve been in love with Brandi’s blog for a while now, but never attempted any of her recipes despite how amazing they all look! Simple, but delicious recipes with 8 ingredients or less? Count me in. Brandi shared with me her 3 ingredient fudge recipe, and while this recipe looked perfect as it was, I decided it needed one more ingredient.

  

  Vegan Coffee Fudge

  

  Ingredients:

  • 1 heaping cup semisweet vegan chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup solidified coconut butter
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1.5 tblsp fresh ground UN-brewed coffee beans*
  • Sea salt to sprinkle on top

  *Make sure your coffee is not only freshly ground, but also freshly purchased. Old coffee has minimal flavor.

  

  Directions:

  1. Line a baking pan with wax paper and set aside. The dimensions will depend on how thick/wide you want your fudge. I used an 8×6 pan, because that’s what I had.
  2. Using a double boiler melt your chocolate chips and stir until smooth. Then stir in the coconut butter, vanilla, and 1 tblsp ground coffee. Stir until melted and well combined.
  3. Pour mixture into your pan, and smooth out with a spatula. Mix your remaining ground coffee with some sea salt (about 1 tsp, depending on how salty you like things) and sprinkle generously on top of the fudge mixture.
  4. Place into your fridge to set for a couple hours. Or if you’re impatient like I am, place into the freezer for less wait time.
  5. When ready to consume, set out on your counter to soften for about 30 minutes.

  

  These…are…unreal. SO epic and delicious. I am amazed. I ate enough coffee fudge to power me through a non stop spin class, and that class justified every bite I took. If you are looking for an easy vegan fudge, make these. You won’t be able to stop with just one.

  

  Q: Coffee flavored treats yay or nay? Ohhh HELL yay!

  

  | 53 Comments Tagged Chocolate, Dessert, Fudge, Recipe, Treat, Vegan

• Raw Vegan Banana Cream Pie

  Posted at 4:24 AM by Brittany, on March 12, 2014

  While perusing the black hole that is Pinterest, I stumbled upon a recipe I just had to conquer. This was one of those, “if I don’t make this in 5-7 days I may spontaneously combust.” It was serious. I pinned it, and promptly bought ingredients the next day.

  

  

  Raw..vegan..and full of deliciously healthy fats? I’m sold.

  

  Creating an exceptional food item makes me feel alive. It’s similar to the feeling I get when I complete a really hard run. I feel accomplished, and that I’ve done something wonderful. Pair the two together and I’m on cloud nine. These happen together often, because I don’t normally like to eat two slices of pie unless I’ve earned them with a good run.

  

  Raw Vegan Banana Cream Pie 

  By Minimalist Baker

  Ingredients

  FOR THE CRUST:

  • 1 cup raw walnuts (perhaps a bit more, my crust was a little on the soft side)*See note
  • 1 cup pitted dates (soaked for 10 minutes in warm water and drained)

  FOR THE FILLING:

  • 1 1/4 cups raw cashews soaked for at least 4 hours or overnight, then drained
  • 4 Tbsp coconut oil, melted
  • 1/4 cup agave nectar or maple syrup (I used maple flavored agave)
  • 1 medium just ripe banana
  • 1/3 cup full fat coconut milk (I mixed the cream on top into the milk before measuring)
  • 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 4 Tbsp lemon juice

  

  Directions

  1. Place soaked dates in a food processor or blender and process until small bits remain and/or it forms into a ball. I used my blender. Remove and set aside.

  2. Process or blend walnuts until a powdery consistency is achieved. This step was difficult with my blender, and some nuts were chunky (not a big problem though.) A processor would be better. Add back in dates with a pinch of salt and mix to combine.

  3. Press into a medium pie pan lined with parchment/wax paper. Press until flat, going up the sides about 1/2 inch. My crust didn’t end up filling all the sides. Place in freezer to set.

  4. Add all filling ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth and creamy. It should be silky smooth when completely combined. Then pour into crust and smooth with a spoon. Cover and freeze until set. At least 4-6 hours, but I left mine overnight.

  5. When ready to serve let your pie sit out for about 10 minutes. Then top.

  *Note: This crust isn’t like a “typical crust.” It will still be a bit soft despite being the in the freezer. This is why you will want to ensure you use a wax lined paper, it will make getting your slice out of the pan a cinch. Or you can just dig right in with a spoon, that works too.

  

  I used the leftover coconut milk to make a quick whipped cream, and then sprinkled peanuts on top. Simple, but delicious! I have a chargeable whipped cream canister that makes for effortless whipped cream, but if you don’t have one this recipe is great.

  

  I hope you’ll understand why I had two slices, I just couldn’t stay out of this pie! My last slice was drizzled with some almond butter, it was the perfect addition.

  

  

  

  Q: Who wants a slice?? 

  

  | 54 Comments Tagged Dessert, Food, Pie, Raw, Recipe, Run, Vegan

• Certified Dough Digger

  Posted at 4:05 AM by Brittany, on February 3, 2014

  Lately I’ve been reading a lot of blog posts that contain waffles. A lot of waffles. This leaves me craving a crispy, crunchy, waffle almost more than a cupcake. Almost. I love waffles, but I don’t usually eat them in the morning, I like them more..decadent.

  

  This may just be my new favorite dessert. The crispy texture of the warm waffle, with the cold melting sweetness of the (coconut milk) ice cream was delectable.

  

  I must confess, I am a digger..an ice cream digger. This cookie dough ice cream didn’t stand a chance against me and my spoon. I dig, and I dig, and I dig..until all that’s left is a mushy mess of milk and chocolate. Let’s be honest though, no one buys chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream for the chocolate chunks..it’s all about the dough!

  

  I know I’m not the only one that does this though, in fact it’s more common than you would think. I guarantee at least 2/3 of the comments I get on this post will admit to being a dough digger. No shame in our game! This cookie dough ice cream was the perfect balance to the waffle, but other great combos would be classic vanilla or chocolate, and fancier combos like chocolate brownie, or mocha almond fudge. MMMMM…mocha.

  

  Just like that..I have another post dedicated entirely to one tasty treat. When the treats are that good, they deserve their own post!! I’m also trying to figure out my camera on my own (I still haven’t opened my manual book.) I’m discovering what works best as far as locations, lighting, backdrops (for example: This light colored backdrop doesn’t work for the top half of this photo, and a darker color would have been better for the ice cream.)

  

  Needless to say, I’m having a ton of fun playing photographer despite my amateur shots. What a great hobby to develop.

  Q(s):

  • Have you tried the ice cream/waffle combo?
  • What flavor would YOU put on top?
  • Are you an ice cream digger?

  

  | 55 Comments Tagged Dessert, Ice Cream, Vegan, Waffles

• Virtual Vegan Potluck: Classic Chocolate Cupcake

  Posted at 12:24 AM by Brittany, on May 11, 2013

  When I first started to brainstorm what dessert I wanted to bring to this potluck, I knew I wanted to do something epic. Bigger and badder than the the rest. Something unique, something with an interesting ingredient, something with…beans. So that’s what I did. I made some black bean chocolate cupcakes with a peanut butter frosting, and they both failed so miserably. I salvaged the “cupcakes” and turned them into a brownie like mixture (waste NOT) but the frosting was toast. Into the garbage it went. Time to reevaluate.

  I decided to go with a classic chocolate cake, and make a vanilla frosting. I’ve made vanilla frosting before with Earth Balance vegan butter and it was delicious. I didn’t have enough on hand and decided to test the Gods by using coconut oil instead. Mistake number two. I knew coconut oil with a vanilla frosting tasted like..well..coconut oil. I love coconut oil as much as the next vegan, but I don’t enjoy the flavor of it on it’s own. Frosting number two down the drain. I was starting to loose my patience, but I had to finish these.

  Finally, I decided to top my classic chocolate cupcakes (which turned out GREAT) with a classic chocolate frosting. OH and a homemade PB cup. After a 9 mile run in the hot sun, and 3 hours of baking in a hot kitchen, I was more than willing to stick with a classic. I’ll get wild in my kitchen another time.

  

  Classic Chocolate Cupcakes

  For the cake:

  • 1 cup vanilla almond milk
  • 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1/3 cup cocoa powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup raw sugar
  • 1/3 cup melted coconut oil
  • 1.5 teaspoons vanilla

  Preheat oven to 350F. Line muffin tin with 12 cupcake liners. In a bowl whisk together the almond milk and the apple cider vinegar and set aside for a few minutes to allow to curdle. While you wait for the mixture to curdle, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl and set aside.

  Once your mixture is curdled, pour in the sugar, melted coconut oil, and vanilla. Mix together until foamy. Once foamy slowly pour (in two batches) the dry ingredients into the wet and mix until there are no visible lumps. Evenly distribute the mix into 12 cupcake liners. The liners should be about 3/4 full. Bake 18-20 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.

  

  For the icing:

  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil
  • 1/4 cup vanilla almond milk
  • 3/4 cup cocoa powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

  I mentioned earlier that coconut oil does not work well with vanilla frosting. It does however work with the chocolate. The cocoa powder is strong enough to overtake the flavor of the coconut oil.

  In a medium-large mixing bowl, using an electric hand mixer, mix the powdered sugar with the coconut oil. Add the almond milk, cocoa powder and vanilla, and continue to mix until smooth.

  

  For the PB cups I simply melted some chocolate chips and lined the bottom of a small cupcake liner. I stuck the base layer in the freezer for about 20 minutes. Then I put a layer of peanut butter (fresh ground works the best to bind the chocolate together) and put back into the freezer for 20 minutes. Lastly, I melted more chocolate chips and covered the top. No measurements with this, I just eyeballed. If you make too much…who am I kidding there could never be too much.

  These cupcakes were shared by many, including Megan when we had our blogger meet up! Her birthday was two days after our meet up so I baked these for her to drown her sorrows in..she turned a quarter of a century! Kidding…

  This post is one of many in a virtual potluck, to see more vegan treats visit the blogs before and after mine by clicking the buttons below.

  
  

  

  | 80 Comments Tagged Chocolate, Cupcake, Dessert, Vegan, Virtual Vegan Potluck

• Vegan Pumpkin Pie

  Posted at 12:44 PM by Brittany, on November 25, 2012

  A few of you (5 to be exact) asked for the pumpkin pie recipe I made a few days ago! I sadly have no idea where this recipe came from, and since I made some alterations of my own I think it’s safe to post it!

  Vegan Pumpkin Pie

  

  Ingredients:

  For the crust

  • 1.5 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 cup coconut oil
  • 4-8 tablespoons almond milk (vanilla)

  For the filling

  • 1 (15oz) can of pumpkin (I ended up adding more as the taste testing went on before baking, not much maybe another half of a cup)
  • 15 oz firm silken tofu
  • 3/4 cup raw sugar
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon (and then some!)
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves

  

  Directions:

  For the crust

  Preheat oven to 400F and get your pie plate out. In a large bowl sift mix together the flour and salt. Add in the oil slowly bit by bit stirring with a fork until it’s all added in. The flour should resemble coarse sand. Sprinkle in the almond milk 2 tblsp at a time and mix with your hands until you form a solid dough. Be sure not to over work the dough. Form the dough into a ball and set on a piece of wax paper. Place another sheet of wax paper ontop and toll out the dough until it’s in a wide enough circle to fit your pie plate.

  The directions then say to poke all over the dough with a fork, and bake for 12-15 min before adding the filling. I did not do this step. I actually didn’t see this part until right now as I type this..oops. The pie turned out fine, but you may choose to include this step.

  For the filling

  Empty silken tofu into your blender of food processor, I used my blender. Blend until smooth. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until everything is combined well. Pour the filling into the pie pan lined with your crust and bake at 375F for one hour, or until a toothpick comes out smooth.

  

  I did have a piece right as it came out of the oven, and found that this texture holds up better when it’s cooled overnight or for a few hours. Once left in the fridge for the night, it solidified enough to be an exact replica of non vegan pumpkin pies. The tofu blends in well to the myriad of other flavors and adds some great protein to accompany the fiber from the pumpkin. Who said eating pie was bad!?

  

  Q: Have you ever made a dessert using tofu? Would you?

  

  | 45 Comments Tagged Dessert, Pumpkin, Recipe, Vegan

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