Category: Vegan Desserts

Categories
Chocolate Cheer Classic Favorites Easy Baking No-Bake Recipes Vegan Desserts

I Created A Monster. I Tried To Stay Away From The Monster. The Monster Was Too Delicious, So It Won. And Then I Won.

YOU GUYS.

I’m going to keep you in suspense when it comes to what I made for this post for just a little longer…

…But only so I can show you the AWESOME spot I helped put together!

I can’t tell you how proud I am of this thing. Really, I am so, SO happy that I was even able to be a part of it. It was so much fun, and I personally think it’s a pretty brilliant little piece, thanks to an amazing cast and crew (the writer/director knocked my socks off with this one, and no that’s not because I’m a little biased toward him ;)).

So, yes, being able to finally debut this was exhilarating. My mood has certainly improved thanks to all of the kind words attached to this video, even though most of the credit isn’t mine. Still, I’m super happy.

Weird, right? Weird to see “super happy” on this blog. Ah well. Let’s all just try to deal with it as best we can, shall we?

Ok, on to the actual dessert portion of today’s meal. Aren’t you just dying to know what I made? Ok…deep breaths everyone…I made…

Peanut butter cups!

Wait! Hear me out! I know there have been many stranger, more complex, more interesting baked goods on this site. I know. But nothing, and I mean NOTHING, works for me quite the way the magical combination of chocolate and peanut butter does. I’m not even exaggerating. That these were incredibly easy to make only rocked my already-rocking world until up was down and happy was Sad Shibow. Let’s get it, kids.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups (makes 24 mini cups)

3 cups of semisweet chocolate chips (I used Trader Joe’s brand, of course)

1 cup of all-natural peanut butter

1 cup of confectioner’s sugar

A handful of Peanut Butter Puffins (Sorry again for the product placement, but these things rule my universe. If they somehow do not rule yours, use a handful of graham cracker crumbs)

Big pinch of salt

Line a 24-cup mini muffin tin with cupcake liners.

So, some of you will be pleased to know that these particular cups are vegan as well. Hoorah to you, and me, and everybody!

Set chocolate chips in a large bowl over a pot of simmering water. Stir constantly until completely melted. Now, drop about half a teaspoon’s worth of the melted chocolate into each cupcake liner, and use the back of the spoon to coat the bottom and sides completely. You will have leftover melted chocolate, which we’ll be using in a bit, so please don’t get crazy with what you’ve got left.  Once you’ve coated every liner, send the tin into the refrigerator for about 15 minutes, or until the chocolate hardens up.

While you wait, start in on the peanut butter mixture. In a medium-sized bowl, stir together peanut butter, sugar, Puffins and salt. You should be able to hand-stir this thing. You should also probably taste test, to mentally prepare yourself for the awesomeness you will be dealt once this whole thing comes together.

Once your chocolate’s hardened, remove the tin from the fridge and evenly distribute your peanut butter filling among the cups.

Then, drop more of your melted chocolate (you may need to re-melt at this point) on top to completely cover the peanut butter, and flatten the tops with the back of a spoon as best you can. Send back into the fridge for about half an hour or until the chocolate has hardened completely.

So…how were they? Well, fortunately I was not alone in making and trying these, as the lovely Sylvapotamus was available and generous enough to assist. I cannot tell you how lucky I was that someone else was present to devour these with me, because I’m pretty sure eating 24 of these things would be deemed unacceptable in most circles…

…not in mine though. 😉

Advertisement
Categories
Desserts with Fruit Easy Baking Frozen Desserts No-Bake Recipes Sort of Healthy Strange and Yummy Vegan Desserts

Deep Thoughts With Sad Shibow [Feat. Avocado Pops]

As you all know, life is rough. As you all also know, I often like to complain about how rough life is. I’m not going to bore you because I’ll seem redundant, and these days if you’d like a refresher on something I’ve said in the past, all you have to do is type some words into the search bar and find your prize. Alls I’ve got to say is that sometimes being an adult is no picnic. Every now and then it’s a ten-course meal at a five-star restaurant. But sometimes it’s just a bowl of cereal from that box of Cheerios you’ve had in your pantry forever.

Wasn’t kidding about those deep thoughts. 😉

Now, let’s be real. Last week was tough on me. In addition to dealing with life’s everyday stresses, I found myself coping with some rather unfriendly behavior from people I believed were in my corner. It was pretty heartbreaking, especially since it involved hurting not only me, but people I deeply love. And no one messes with the loves of Sad Shibow.

So, here I am feeling low thanks to some randoms trying to put together a Bollywood puppet show (Get it? Pulling strings? And I’m Indian? Deep thoughts!) when what do I see on Facebook but Butter Lane‘s latest Blogger of the Week, and it’s…

Sylvapotamus brought to my attention that this says “worldpress.” What the hell, I say, I’ll take it!

Me! You guys, they picked me! Now, this may seem small to a lot of people, and hey, it is sort of small in the grand scheme of things. But to me, it’s huge, and not only because this place has the BEST cupcakes I have ever allowed into my belly. So, what’s the big deal?

Half of the dozen cupcakes we picked up this weekend. You can’t still be wondering why I love this place so.

About a year and a half ago, around my 24th birthday, I was in a not-so-great place, for many many reasons. I was so down that I’d lost the desire to do pretty much anything I enjoyed, including bake. I happened to see something somewhere on the great many internets about cupcake classes at Butter Lane, and decided to woman up and book a class. It was so entertaining and enlightening that it made me finally want to get back into my own kitchen. When my boyfriend recently asked me why I loved the place so much, I told him that it basically made me grateful for things again. So…thank you, BL. DEEP THOUGHTS!

Ok, onto the make-stuff portion. Originally I was going to tell you all about the delicious, easy-peasy cookie dough ice pops I made. While they were, indeed, pretty simple to make, I found them to be kind of gross. This is not the fault of the author of this recipe at all. It is, instead, my bad, for believing that skim milk could, and should, always take the place of whole milk. In life, I’ll usually try to take the healthier route when it comes to my eating habits (I say “in life”  expecting you all to pretty much ignore every buttery post on here for a hot second). I do the whole wheat bread instead of white thing, the no-soda thing, boringboringblah you get it.  I’ve even convinced myself that I enjoyed frozen yogurt much more than I enjoyed ice cream. And while I do like to get my Yogo on every now and then, I recently discovered that I was, to put it as  eloquently as possible, trippin’. Ice cream > fro-yo. Who knows what else I’ve brainwashed myself into believing was right. Wait… so just to check… is steak any good?

Anyway, we’re dealing with another odorous NYC heat wave. Everyone smells like the aquarium (Why doesn’t anyone know what that smells like?!) and I’m super cranky all the time, so obviously you best believe I’m not going near the oven. Oh, and, we did kind of just buy and eat a dozen cupcakes over here, so we need something a teensy bit light. Let’s make avocado pops! Weird enough for you? In case they’re not, check these out!

Now, ya’ll know I’ve been meaning to make these forever, but I guess it got cold again before I could. So…yeah. Let’s just do this.

Avocado Pops (Uh, makes, like, a set number of pops, and that number is determined by what you decide to use as molds)

1 cup of water

1/2 cup of granulated sugar

2 small ripe avocados

Pinch of salt

2 tablespoons of fresh lime juice

I used paper Dixie cups, FYI.

Combine the water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Let cool to room temperature. This is known as simple syrup, and can also be used for your boozy mixed drink of choice, should you be 21+ and need such information.

Meanwhile, peel and pit your two avocados, and mash the flesh in a medium-sized bowl until smooth. Add in salt and lime juice, then stir in your simple syrup. You can use a blender or mixer if you’re feeling lazy ;).

Pour into your molds and send into the freezer for at least 5 hours. I filled my Dixie cups about halfway, and ended up with five pops.

The night we first tasted these was an excellent night. There was champagne, an even split of the last Butter Lane cupcake, and a viewing of Blues Brothers (I’d never seen it! It was so awesome!). So, how’d these pops do?

Yes, those are toothpicks, which are actually useless. Do better than Shibow did, kids. Do better.

I loooooooved these things. LOVED them. They’re creamy, tangy, sweet and unbelievably refreshing. I’m sad I only ended up with five, but happy they are super easy, because these are being made again ASAP.

Categories
Cakes Chocolate Cheer Easy Baking Vegan Desserts

It’s Wiggity Wiggity Wacky Cake

One of the many ridiculous events of the past few weeks. Yes, it is a screen shot of a video that the boyfriend took of me driving a Uhaul. God I love technology.

You all have to deal with groan-inducing titles like this one because I have a case of the sniffles and can’t think clearly enough to come up with something awesome. Weeks of unpacking, cleaning, dusting and rolling around on not-quite-clean carpets in fits of delirium (this has not been an easy move) have finally taken their toll on my body. I would very much like to assume the fetal position and take a season-long nap on the couch, but I fear this will be frowned upon. Instead, I must soldier on, baking cookies and cakes to keep loved ones happy. Lord, am I brave.

I’m ill. Indulge me.

So, a couple years ago I found a recipe for something called a wacky cake. I felt a strange pull toward this cake, and can only assume its name and I have something in common. I’m not really sure why it’s called a wacky cake (it’s also known as a dump cake, but sometimes my brain is five years old and finds that name disgusting) but hey, let’s just go with it, man.

I decided to go with this particular cake as one of three desserts (and that’s me holding back, kids) that would be featured at our housewarming shindig for two reasons: 1. it’s easy and I needed something easy because I was pulling my hair out and slowly rocking back and forth while trying to figure out if I should roll clockwise or counterclockwise along the carpets, and 2. it’s vegan, and I know some awesome vegans. I also know some awesome non-vegans who had no idea that this sweet treat was animal byproduct-free.  Ha! How you like me now?

Oh, this cake is also very kid-friendly, as it contains both baking soda and vinegar, which, if you’ve ever done that 6th grade science project involving creating your own volcano (mine never worked!!! WHY?!), you know will fizz up and create some serious joy for very little money. And I am all about the cheap thrill. Wait…

Wacky Cake (makes one 9-inch round cake)

1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour

1 cup of sugar

3 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa

1 teaspoon of baking soda

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of vinegar

1 teaspoon of vanilla

5 tablespoons of vegetable or olive oil

1 cup of cold water

3/4 cup of non-dairy semisweet chocolate chips, optional (I used the Trader Joe’s brand)

Oh, the other great thing about this cake is that it’s made it one bowl. Easy clean-up! Yay! Anyway, preheat your oven to 350°F.

In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Then, dig two small wells and one larger well in the dry mixture. Pour vinegar in the first, vanilla in the second, and your oil in the third.

It looks like a panda! Not really.

Then, pour cold water over the mixture, stir, and watch it fizz! Mix together until all ingredients are completely combined, then add in about 1/4 cup of your chocolate chips, if you plan on using them, and stir.

Send this into the oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick comes out with some crumbs stuck to it and the cake springs back a little when you touch it. Let it cool in the pan for ten minutes, then flip onto a separate plate and let it cool completely.

If you decide to make the chocolate topping (DO IT!), set the remaining 1/2 cup of chocolate chips in a medium-sized bowl over a pan of very hot water. Stir until totally melted, then pour evenly over the top of your cake. It should take about 45 minutes to cool and completely harden. Oh, I also tried to get fancy with it and make a little powdered sugar elephant stencil on top. You can see for yourself how that worked out below. Spoiler alert: it looks dumb…

…But it tastes amazing!

Categories
Easy Baking Holiday desserts Puddings Sort of Healthy Vegan Desserts

Pumpkin Bread Pudding, And The Sasquatch That Changed Everything

51ldCQfoLxL._SL500_AA300_
51ldCQfoLxL._SL500_AA300_

Originally, this was going to start out as yet another post dedicated to all things pumpkin and Thanksgiving. Now it’s the post where I rant about how tired I am of the city life and need to hunker down in the forest somewhere. Why the forest? Well, I saw this terrible, terrible movie a couple of weeks ago. It was an independent movie that apparently garnered rave reviews at the Sundance Film Festival and caused me to worry about the fate of society (not because of anything particularly moving within the film, but because I can’t understand how a group of reputable professionals who supposedly know a little bit about cinema could stand this thing). I’m hesitant to tell you the name of the movie. As you can probably tell by now, I’m hesitant to even tell you the premise. But it involves a Sasquatch who sounds like James Earl Jones and enjoys peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. And it’s a drama. But all I could think of was this:
Just spectacularly awful, but I couldn’t look away, because a. I think I was amazed that the yeti costume from Harry and the Hendersons has held up so well and, b. the film was shot in the forests of Oregon and that kind of made me want to make the entire state my new hiding place.

Yes, I am having visions of picking up my bakeware and hightailing it westward. Maybe it’s the ol’ quarter-life crisis popping up again, or maybe it’s just restlessness from spending my entire life in Da Hurst (That’s Elmhurst, for all of you fancy folk who don’t know Queens. Please don’t Google Map me.), but I am tired. Some random old dude rammed into me on my way home from work the other day, just because he could! Seriously, he went out of his way to walk toward me and knock into me (Yes, I do believe he was certifiably deranged, but still). Some other random young dude stomped on my tiny foot on the F train that same night and did not apologize! ANIMALS!

The chances of me actually fleeing the state anytime soon are pretty slim, but I still think it’s time for a change, for the above reasons and trillions more that have nothing to do with baking. Maybe I need a new neighborhood to call home and a new challenge to completely sink into. Does anyone have an obstacle course you can throw my way, or perhaps a complicated mathematical formula in need of solving? I can’t help with the latter, but I’d be able to find someone who can and maybe make a new friend in the process. Maybe I can even teach the nerd to bake.

Speaking of baking… oh, this is a baking blog, isn’t it? Ok, this bread pudding is legitimately one of my favorite holiday desserts. I’d made it last year and could not wait to bust it out yet again this Thanksgiving. I’d pulled it from an interactive column that the New York Times started last year. All of the recipes are vegetarian or vegan (this one’s vegan), and all of the ones I’ve tried out have been amazing. And that’s coming from someone who enjoys cheese. And bacon. Oh bacon. Wait…no… let’s focus:

Chocolate Pumpkin Bread Pudding

1 cup of coconut milk

15 ounces of canned pureed pumpkin

1/2 cup of brown sugar or maple sugar, or a mix of both if you’re wild like that

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoons of nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon of ginger

1/2 teaspoon of ground cloves

10 cups of cubed, crusty bread of your choice (I used a 14-ounce loaf of French whole wheat bread)

3/4 cups of semisweet chocolate chips (I used Ghirardelli which don’t have dairy in them, if you want to keep it vegan up in here)

2 tablespoons of brown sugar

Confectioners sugar for dusting (optional)

Preheat your oven to 350ºF and grease a 9×13″ baking dish. In a blender, puree coconut milk, pumpkin, sugar or syrup and spices until completely smooth.

SONY DSC
SONY DSC
SONY DSC
SONY DSC

Toss your bread cubes with this mixture, then stir in chocolate chips until completely covered. Super easy, right? Even better: this can be a make-ahead dessert, in that you can stir everything together and toss this into the refrigerator, covered, up to three days before you plan to bake it. Um, in that case though, don’t preheat the oven until you’re really ready to bake. I guess that should go without saying, but I’d rather be safe, especially since ya’ll know where I live now.

Sprinkle on brown sugar evenly over the mixture, then bake for 25 to 30 minutes until the top is lightly browned. Cool for about ten minutes, then dust with confectioners’ sugar if you please, and enjoy.

SONY DSC
SONY DSC

I don’t think this picture does the pudding justice. I really love this dessert. I love it so much that I kept a good chunk of it back in my refrigerator. Sharing, schmaring, am I right? If you ever want to reheat the leftovers, I recommend throwing it back into the oven at 200ºF for ten minutes. Or, if you live in the woods, heat a skillet over a small bonfire. If you’re lacking wood, set out a couple of PB&J sammies for the neighborhood Bigfoot and you’ll be set in no time. God, that movie really ruined me.

Categories
Easy Baking Holiday desserts Puddings Sort of Healthy Vegan Desserts

Pumpkin Bread Pudding, And The Sasquatch That Changed Everything

Originally, this was going to start out as yet another post dedicated to all things pumpkin and Thanksgiving. Now it’s the post where I rant about how tired I am of the city life and need to hunker down in the forest somewhere. Why the forest? Well, I saw this terrible, terrible movie a couple of weeks ago. It was an independent movie that apparently garnered rave reviews at the Sundance Film Festival and caused me to worry about the fate of society (not because of anything particularly moving within the film, but because I can’t understand how a group of reputable professionals who supposedly know a little bit about cinema could stand this thing). I’m hesitant to tell you the name of the movie. As you can probably tell by now, I’m hesitant to even tell you the premise. But it involves a Sasquatch who sounds like James Earl Jones and enjoys peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. And it’s a drama. But all I could think of was this:

Just spectacularly awful, but I couldn’t look away, because a. I think I was amazed that the yeti costume from Harry and the Hendersons has held up so well and, b. the film was shot in the forests of Oregon and that kind of made me want to make the entire state my new hiding place.

Yes, I am having visions of picking up my bakeware and hightailing it westward. Maybe it’s the ol’ quarter-life crisis popping up again, or maybe it’s just restlessness from spending my entire life in Da Hurst (That’s Elmhurst, for all of you fancy folk who don’t know Queens. Please don’t Google Map me.), but I am tired. Some random old dude rammed into me on my way home from work the other day, just because he could! Seriously, he went out of his way to walk toward me and knock into me (Yes, I do believe he was certifiably deranged, but still). Some other random young dude stomped on my tiny foot on the F train that same night and did not apologize! ANIMALS!

The chances of me actually fleeing the state anytime soon are pretty slim, but I still think it’s time for a change, for the above reasons and trillions more that have nothing to do with baking. Maybe I need a new neighborhood to call home and a new challenge to completely sink into. Does anyone have an obstacle course you can throw my way, or perhaps a complicated mathematical formula in need of solving? I can’t help with the latter, but I’d be able to find someone who can and maybe make a new friend in the process. Maybe I can even teach the nerd to bake.

Speaking of baking… oh, this is a baking blog, isn’t it? Ok, this bread pudding is legitimately one of my favorite holiday desserts. I’d made it last year and could not wait to bust it out yet again this Thanksgiving. I’d pulled it from an interactive column that the New York Times started last year. All of the recipes are vegetarian or vegan (this one’s vegan), and all of the ones I’ve tried out have been amazing. And that’s coming from someone who enjoys cheese. And bacon. Oh bacon. Wait…no… let’s focus:

Chocolate Pumpkin Bread Pudding

1 cup of coconut milk

15 ounces of canned pureed pumpkin

1/2 cup of brown sugar or maple sugar, or a mix of both if you’re wild like that

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoons of nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon of ginger

1/2 teaspoon of ground cloves

10 cups of cubed, crusty bread of your choice (I used a 14-ounce loaf of French whole wheat bread)

3/4 cups of semisweet chocolate chips (I used Ghirardelli which don’t have dairy in them, if you want to keep it vegan up in here)

2 tablespoons of brown sugar

Confectioners sugar for dusting (optional)

Preheat your oven to 350ºF and grease a 9×13″ baking dish. In a blender, puree coconut milk, pumpkin, sugar or syrup and spices until completely smooth.

Toss your bread cubes with this mixture, then stir in chocolate chips until completely covered. Super easy, right? Even better: this can be a make-ahead dessert, in that you can stir everything together and toss this into the refrigerator, covered, up to three days before you plan to bake it. Um, in that case though, don’t preheat the oven until you’re really ready to bake. I guess that should go without saying, but I’d rather be safe, especially since ya’ll know where I live now.

Sprinkle on brown sugar evenly over the mixture, then bake for 25 to 30 minutes until the top is lightly browned. Cool for about ten minutes, then dust with confectioners’ sugar if you please, and enjoy.

I don’t think this picture does the pudding justice. I really love this dessert. I love it so much that I kept a good chunk of it back in my refrigerator. Sharing, schmaring, am I right? If you ever want to reheat the leftovers, I recommend throwing it back into the oven at 200ºF for ten minutes. Or, if you live in the woods, heat a skillet over a small bonfire. If you’re lacking wood, set out a couple of PB&J sammies for the neighborhood Bigfoot and you’ll be set in no time. God, that movie really ruined me.