Red Love Pizza

A delicious idea for a themed pizza night with the kiddies!  The special ingredient is always LOVE!

Dough
2 1/2 to 3 cups flour2 1/4 tsp yeast
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup warm water
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp dried parsley

Toppings
red pizza sauce
Daiya mozzarella shreds
red peppers
red onions

1: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
2: Mix flour, yeast and salt together
3: Add olive oil, warm water, salt and dried parsley
4: Cover and set aside for 10 minutes

5: Oil baking pan and spread dough out in shape preference.  I chose heart!

6: Bake for 10 minutes

7: Add toppings, including pizza sauce

8: Red onions and red peppers (or whatever you prefer...I was going for a "red" theme!)

9: Add Daiya

10: Get creative ;)

11: Bake for 10-15 minutes until Daiya is completely melted. 

Optional: Broil for 1-2 minutes to brown Daiya and outer edge of crust if you'd like.

Baked Ziti

I'm fairly certain this dish is even more scrumptious on Day Two!  Leftover City, here I come! 

1 package ziti style pasta
2 cans of tomato sauce (seasoned with garlic, oregano, salt and pepper) OR
  Jarred pasta sauce (if you'd like something quicker)
10-12 basil leaves cut chiffon style
1 package Daiya Mozzarella cheese

1: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
2: Prepare pasta according to packaging, drain and set aside
3: Add pasta, sauce and basil together in a cake or casserole pan

4: Top with Daiya and a bit of salt

5: Bake for about 25 minutes, then broil on high for 2-3 minutes until Daiya is lightly browned

Serves: 8

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Wafer Cookies

Super, super sweet... like, toothache sweet!  Delicious with a glass of vanilla soy milk!

3/4 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup Earth Balance
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg replacer (1 tbsp flaxseed + 3 water)
1 tbsp soymilk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup chocolate chips

1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2: Cream together Earth Balance and peanut butter

3: Add in both sugars, egg replacer, soymilk and vanilla

4: Next, add in flour, baking powder and salt, then fold in chocolate chips

5: Form into balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet

6: Use a fork to press cookies and bake for 10-12 minutes

7: Let cookies cool for up to 20 minutes to allow them to harden a bit

Cheesy Jack & Scallion Breadsticks

2 1/4 cup Bisquick
3/4 cup soy milk
3 stalks of scallions
2 slices of Daiya jack wedge cut into small cubes

1: Preheat oven to 450 degrees
2: Mix Bisquick and soy milk together

3: Add scallions and Daiya jack cubes

4: Gently stir them into the mixture

5: Spread a little extra Bisquick on a flat surface and kneed dough about 20 times

6: Twist breadsticks and place on an ungreased baking sheet

7: Bake for 8 minutes, remove from oven and serve while hot!

This recipe makes 12 breadsticks.  I like to add a bit of olive oil on top, sprinkle some salt and bake for another minute or two.  YUM!

Red Velvet Chocolate Brownie

 Loooooooooooooooove!!  I honestly may go into a sugar coma... so chewy delicious! 
★★★★!

Dry ingredients:
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup cocoa
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt

Wet ingredients:
1 cup vanilla soy milk
2 egg replacers (1 tbsp ground flaxseed + 3 tbsp water = 1 egg)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tbsp vanilla extract
20 drops red food coloring
1 cup boiling water

1: Preheat oven to 350°F
2: Mix all Dry Ingredients together in a medium bowl
3: Add all wet ingredients (except the boiling water) and beat until completely smooth, about 2 minutes
4: Slowly stir in boiling water... the batter will be extremely thin, that's okay!
5: Pour into a greased, floured pan
6: Bake for 30-35 minutes

Cool completely and frost.

Winter Cookies

Time for seasonal baking to begin!  These delicious sugar cookies were made from this recipe.  Let's decorate!

Creamy Sugar Frosting
2 cups confectioner's sugar
2 tbsp Earth Balance
1 tsp vanilla extract
Up to 3 tbsp of soy milk (add one tsp at a time until you reach the desired consistency)
various food coloring

Here are the vegan decorations we used:

• shredded coconut
• raisins
• gum drops
• Dandie's Marshmallows
• Ghirardelli semi-sweet dark chocolate chips
• VeganSweets white chocolate chips
• lots of sprinkles!

Pumpkin Spice Cookies

 If you're feeling like a seasonal treat, I demand that you make this cookie!  So many variations!  The package instructions are just a base...add some white chocolate chips to make these cookies unforgettable!

1 package Krusteaz Pumpkin Spice Quick Bread
1 stick (or 1/2 cup) Earth Balance
1 tbsp ground flaxseed (w/3 tbsp water) *egg replacement
1 tsp vanilla extract

1: Preheat oven to 350
2: Mix egg replacement (1 tbsp flaxseed meal/3 tbsp water) and let sit until flaxseed is absorbed
3: Add pumpkin spice mix, soften Earth Balance and vanilla extract and mix well

4: Scoop dough onto cookie sheet using 1 tbsp measurements.  If you'd like a thinner wafer-like cookie, flatten them before putting them into the oven.

5: Bake for 8-10 minutes until bottom of cookie is slightly browned.  Mine needed the entire 10 minutes and baked perfectly

6: For convenience sake, I used Duncan Hines Creamy Home-Style Cream Cheese (other processed frostings have milk in them, so be careful to read the label!)  I like to add a tsp of almond extract and whip the frosting to give it a creamier texture

7: Set aside to cool completely before frosting. 

A perfect Autumn treat! :)

Boxed Doughnuts

Definitely a work-in-progress thing, but this will do if you're aching for a good old fashioned cake doughnut.

1 box Duncan Hines Spice Cake mix
3 tbsp flaxseed meal
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/3 cup water

1: Preheat oven to 350 F. 
2: Prepare egg replacement by mixing 3 tablespoons flaxseed meal with 9 tbsp water and set aside for a few minutes until it thickens.

 3: Mix all ingredients together in a mixer or by hand until smooth

 4: I started out mixing it in a bowl, but decided to try it in the Ninja blender with the cookie mixer accessory

 5: I baked them for about 18 minutes, but I must warn to let them cool completely before trying to remove them from the pan

 

This is a good way to make quick doughnuts, but I prefer to make them from scratch normally.  Nonetheless, my housemate ate them all.  :)

Another lesson I learned tonight: boxed cake mix does work in a mini donut griddle either:

This is after three attempts with different cook times...

Banana Bread

3 overripe brown bananas
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup melted Earth Balance
1 egg replacer (1 tbsp ground flax seed/3 tbsp water)

Optional:
1/2 cup walnuts (traditional bread)
-or-
1/2 cup mini Ghirardelli semi-sweet chocolate chips (LOVE for muffins!)
-or-
1 tsp nutmeg (if you'd like to try a doughnut-inspired bread)

1: Preheat oven to 325°
2: Mash bananas and stir in all ingredients
3: Grease bread pan (with Earth Balance) and pour mixture in.
4: Bake for 45-60 minutes, checking with a toothpick in the center until it comes out clean.  The baking time really varies depending on oven/altitude.


YUM!  This bread is THE BEST the day after when it has been refrigerated!  <3

Fancy Français Sugar Cookies

1 1/2 cup white flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/3 teaspoon salt
1 stick (or 1/2 cup) Earth Balance
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 egg replacer (I like to use 11/2 tsp flax)
Optional: 1/3 cup soy milk

1: Preheat oven to 375ºF
2: Very thoroughly mix all ingredients together, dry ingredients first, then wet ingredients.  Continue by adding soy milk (or water) one teaspoon at a time until mixture sticks together when squeezed (but is still a little bit crumbly).
3: Roll the batter out and create shapes using cookie cutters or do as I did and cut into squares with a pizza cutter.
4: Bake on a non-greased cookie sheet for 7-8 minutes.  Watch the time; remove from oven when slightly browned on the bottom.

Creamy Sugar Frosting:
2 cups confectioner's sugar
2 tbsp Earth Balance
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
Up to 3 tbsp of soy milk (add one tsp at a time until you reach the desired consistency)
neon food coloring

Fudge Frosting:
1 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
1/2 cup Hershey's powdered cocoa
2 tbsp Earth Balance
1 tbsp vanilla extract
Up to 3 tbsp of soy milk (add one tsp at a time until you reach the desired consistency)

Mint Marble Cookies

Mint Marble Cookies

Part 1:
1 1/2 cup whole wheat (or white) flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick (or 1/2 cup) Earth Balance
   (you can use 1/2 cup vegetable if you need to)
1 tbsp vanilla
1 egg replacer (I like to use flax)

Part 2:
1/2 cup cocoa
Trader Joe's Mint UFO chocolates

1: Preheat oven to 375ºF
2: Very thoroughly mix all ingredients from Part 1 together, adding water a teaspoon at a time until mixture sticks together when squeezed (but is still a little bit crumbly).
3: Add 1/2 cup cocoa.  It is extremely important that you fold the cocoa into the batter and not mix it together.  You want the batter to be "marbled" not completely brown, so once the cocoa is absorbed into the batter, STOP.
4: Roll the batter out and create shapes using cookie cutters or do as I did and use a small canning jar/glass dipped in flour (to avoid sticking) to create equal-sized circles.
5: Add a mint UFO to the top and bake on a non-greased cookie sheet for 7-8 minutes.  Watch the time; remove from oven when slightly browned on the bottom.

Alternate: If you like things extra minty, you could also keep the cocoa portion of this recipe separate, mix 1 tsp mint extract with 2 tsp water into the cocoa and then slowly add the cocoa to mix as describe above in step 3.

Sugar Cookies

1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup Earth Balance (1 stick) *preferred   
   (OR  1/2 cup vegetable oil)
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 egg replacer (1 1/2 tsp Ener-G Egg Replacer or potato starch
     with 2 tbsp of water, premixed)
Brown sugar to sprinkle over mixture
Water

1: Preheat oven to 375°
2: Mix flour, baking soda and salt in small container and set aside
3: In larger bowl, cream together sugar, Earth Balance/vegetable oil, vanilla and prepared egg replacer
4: Slowly add flour mixture, hand-beating it into the creamed mixture
5: Depending on if you chose to use Earth Balance or vegetable oil, the dough may be a bit crumbly.  If this is the case, add water 1 tsp at a time until the dough sticks together in little balls without falling apart
6: At this point you may choose to roll it out to use cookie cutters, ball them and smash them down into circles or do as I did and cut them into squares
7: Bake for 7-8 minutes on an ungreased baking sheet.  The cookies may take a minute or two longer, depending on where you live altitude-wise, but you will know they are done when you lift them and they are slightly light brown on the bottoms
8: Cool them for at least an hour before frosting.  Enjoy :)







Frosting option: 1 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tbsp water/rice milk/almond milk (your preference)
1/2 tsp vanilla or almond extract
*option 1 tsp Earth Balance for creamier frosting

1: Mix all ingredients together
*Note: I used neon food coloring, but if you'd like to go the natural route, blueberries, strawberries and pomegranates make bright colored frostings.

Russian Tea Cakes

1 cup Earth Balance (2 sticks)
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons of vanilla
1/4 teaspoon of salt

powdered sugar




1: Heat oven to 400ºF
2: Cream butter, 1/2 cup powdered sugar and vanilla.  Stir in flour, salt and optional nuts until dough holds together

3: Shape into 1-inch balls and space 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheet
4: Bake 9-11 minutes until lightly brown on bottom, then cool on a wire rack for one minute
5: Roll in powdered sugar, cool for a couple minutes, then roll them with a second coat
Enjoy :)

.::Options::.
-Toast flaked coconut on a flat baking sheet for about 3 minutes, then add it to cookie dough
-Add 3/4 cup minced nut of your choice.  Pecans and/or almonds are my recommendation

She thought of him fondly as plan "B" by Anne Taintor