Posts

Vegan Pumpkin Muffins

/in /by

The pumpkin muffin is an essential baked good for the fall season, and we’ve made a vegan version that doesn’t skimp on the deliciousness of this classic treat. It’s fluffy and moist, with warm spices to compliment the rich pumpkin and crumbly streusel topping. We hope you enjoy these muffins as much as we enjoyed perfecting them.

 

Ingredients:

1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

2 T ground cinnamon

¼ tsp ground cloves

¼ tsp ground nutmeg

1 cup white sugar

½ cup brown sugar

1 15 oz can pumpkin puree

½ cup neutral oil (ex: canola or sunflower)

1 tsp vanilla extract

 

For the Topping:

3 T brown sugar

3 T all-purpose flour

1 T neutral oil

 

Instructions:

Prepare your muffin tins. This recipe makes about 12 muffins. To get the best rise and to keep your muffins looking wonderfully baked, I recommend spacing out your muffins. Only put a muffin liner in every other space to keep the muffins from squishing each other as they puff up while baking. 

 

Preheat your oven to 400F°.

 

In a medium bowl, add your all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. Whisk them together until incorporated and set it aside. 

 

In a separate, large bowl, add your pumpkin puree, white sugar, brown sugar, oil and vanilla extract. Whisk together until well combined. 

 

Add your dry ingredients to your wet ingredients and mix until just combined.

 

Scoop a generous spoonful of batter into each muffin liner. If you’ve filled all 12 and still have some batter left, go back and add extra to each one until it’s all used up. 

 

Make your streusel topping. Add your all-purpose flour, brown sugar, and oil to a small bowl. Whisk together with a fork until well combined. Sprinkle it on top of each muffin until you run out. 

 

Put your muffins in the oven and bake for 20-22 minutes, depending on your oven. I recommend setting a timer for 20 minutes and seeing how much they need after that. They should be puffed up and golden brown, especially on the edges. 

 

Allow them to cool and enjoy!

Vegan Udon Noodle Stir Fry

/in /by

Can’t decide what’s for dinner? Look no further than this quick-and-easy recipe for a deliciously savory stir-fry with nutritious vegetables and protein. These noodles work wonderfully for lunch leftovers and satisfy cravings for takeout noodles, without sacrificing any flavor. If you’re a meat eater, any meat protein could easily be substituted in. 

Ingredients:

1 8 oz package of udon noodles

1 6 oz to 8 oz package of plain seitan (or homemade seitan)

2 carrots

2 heads of baby bok choy

1 bunch of spring onions or scallions

4 cloves of garlic (pre-minced is fine)

6 T tamari 

2 T sesame oil

1 tsp sugar

½ tsp ground ginger

 

Instructions:

In a medium-sized pot, bring 3 cups of water to a boil while you prepare your vegetables. 

Thinly slice your green onions and set them aside in the refrigerator. 

Peel and mince your garlic if you’re not using pre-minced. Set aside. 

Wash your carrots and baby bok choy. 

Peel your carrots and julienne them, then set them aside. 

Chop the leaves of your baby bok choy into strips about ½ inch wide and set aside. 

By the time you’ve finished prepping your vegetables, the water in your pot should be boiling. Add your noodles and set a timer for 6 minutes. 

In a large pan, add 1 tablespoon of sesame oil and garlic. Cook on medium heat until the garlic becomes golden and fragrant, about 1-2 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

Add your carrots and seitan. Sauté them for 2-3 minutes, until they begin to soften. Then toss in your baby bok choy and cook for 2-3 minutes. Stir occasionally. 

When the timer for your noodles goes off, turn off the heat and strain them. Add them to your pan, but don’t stir them right away. 

In a measuring cup, add your tamari, sugar, ground ginger, and 1 tablespoon of sesame oil. Whisk until combined, then add it to your pan. 

Stir the dish until the sauce evenly coats the noodles, then turn the heat up to medium-high and cook for another 5 minutes to allow some of the noodles to crisp up. 

Garnish with your spring onions and serve. Enjoy!

 

Vegan Linzer Cookies

/in /by

These festive Linzer cookies can be cut into any shape you’d like; snowflakes for winter, flowers for spring, or hearts for Valentine’s Day like we’ve done for this batch. Subtly sweet and buttery, they pair wonderfully with any flavor of jam or fruit preserves sandwiched between them. Whether you dust them with powdered sugar or leave them plain, they make for a delightful treat for you or your valentine to enjoy. 

 

Ingredients:

12 T vegan butter (room temperature)

½ cup granulated sugar

1 tsp lemon zest

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 ⅓ cup all-purpose flour

¾ cups almond flour

¼ tsp salt (omit if you’re using salted vegan butter)

A jar of jam or fruit preserves for filling

Powdered sugar for decorating

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 350°. Prepare two large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. 

Zest about ½ of your lemon into a large mixing bowl. This will come out to about a tablespoon, or a little more depending on the size of your lemon. 

Add your vanilla, sugar, and room temperature vegan butter to the large bowl with your lemon zest. 

Beat until well combined and the mixture is light and fluffy. Set aside. 

In a medium mixing bowl, sift together your flour, almond flour, and salt if you’re using unsalted vegan butter. 

Add your dry ingredients to your wet ingredients and mix until they’re just combined. Be careful not to overmix, or your cookies will turn out chewy rather than crunchy. 

Divide your dough in half and set it, covered, in the refrigerator for 10 minutes. If you want to move quickly, you can also put it in the freezer, but only for 5 minutes at a time. Either method will help the butter firm so your dough won’t be a greasy mess while you’re trying to roll it. 

Prepare a surface to roll your dough and sprinkle flour on it and the rolling pin. 

Remove your dough from the refrigerator and roll it into a ⅛ inch thick sheet. 

Cut the dough into shapes using a cookie cutter and repeat until you’ve used as much dough as you can. 

After you’ve cut all your cookies, cut a hole in the center of half of them. You can do this using another cookie cutter, or if you don’t have one small enough, other circular objects in your kitchen such as a bottlecap. Additionally, if you have an uneven number of cookies, I recommend leaving them uncut in case some of your other cookies don’t turn out. 

Assemble your cookies on your prepared baking sheet and bake them for 10-15 minutes, or until the edges begin to turn brown. Every oven is different, but I recommend setting a timer for 12 minutes to see how they’re coming along. The cookies you’ve cut holes into will take less time to bake and I recommend checking on them after 10 minutes to ensure they get too brown. 

Once they’re done, set them on a cooling rack and let them cool completely before you fill and decorate them. 

When they’ve cooled, use a fine sifter to sprinkle powdered sugar on top of the cookies you’d cut a hole in the center of. 

Then, on the underside of each cookie you didn’t cut a hole in the center of, scoop about a tablespoon of jam or preserves and spread it evenly. 

Very carefully, place your sugar-dusted cookies on top of your jam-covered ones and gently press them together so they’ll stick. 

Enjoy!