Recipes

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Vegan Chocolate Cake

Dry Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 Cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar (reduce by 2 tbsp for a slightly less-sweet cake)
  • 6 tablespoons unsweetened non-alkalized cocoa
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt

Wet Ingredients:

  • 1 cup cold water
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Prepare an 8×8 inch pan or circular pan by greasing and placing parchment paper on the bottom. This will help with the release later on.
  2. Sift together dry ingredients into a large bowl
  3. Combine the wet ingredients and add them to the bowl with the dry ingredients
  4. Stir until smooth and scrape the batter into the pan and spread evenly
  5. Allow the cake to bake approximately 25 to 30 minutes, so that when a toothpick is inserted into the center, it comes out clean
  6. Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before attempting to remove the cake from its pan

 

Although this cake is fantastic by itself- for decoration, you can add powdered sugar to the top. For added flavor/kick, pair with a raspberry reduction, dulce de leche, or a chocolate sauce. If you would like to turn this batter into cupcakes, or would simply like to ice your cake, the icing I recommend making is as follows:

Ingredients:

        • 5 oz. dark chocolate
        • 2/3 cup heavy cream
        • 1 tsp vanilla extract Directions

 

Directions:

        1. Break up your chocolate if it is in block form
        2. Pour in the heavy cream and extract
        3. Melt in the microwave or over a double broiler and then mix together with a hand mixer or whisk until the desired consistency

 

 

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Deviled Eggs

Yield: 12 deviled eggs

Ingredients:

  • 6 eggs
  • 1/4 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 teaspoon white vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • Black pepper
  • Smoked paprika (for the garnish)

Directions:

  1. Place eggs in a single layer in a saucepan and cover with enough water that there’s 1 1/2 inches of water above the eggs. Heat on high until water begins to boil, then cover, turn the heat to low, and cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat and leave covered for 14 minutes, then rinse under cold water continuously for 1 minute.
  2. Crack egg shells and carefully peel under cool running water. Gently dry with paper towels. Slice the eggs in half lengthwise, removing yolks to a medium bowl, and placing the whites on a serving platter. Mash the yolks into a fine crumble using a fork. Add mayonnaise, vinegar, mustard, salt, and pepper, and mix well.
  3. Evenly disperse heaping teaspoons of the yolk mixture into the egg whites. Sprinkle with paprika and serve. If you are not serving immediately, keep chilled
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Sofritas Copycat (Seasoned Tofu)

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

  • 1 medium green bell pepper
  • 1 medium tomato
  • 1/2 medium onion
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 chipotle chilies, along with 2 tbsp adobo sauce from container
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 tsp red wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp ancho chile powder
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp dried oregano (Preferably Mexican or South American, but any will work)
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
  • 1 tbsp olive oil or similar
  • 1 (14-16 oz) package of extra firm tofu

Directions:

  1. Begin by pressing your tofu. To do this, place paper towels on a plate and then place your unpackaged tofu on top of the paper towels. Place another set of paper towels on top, along with another plate. Place some sort of heavy object atop the second plate. Leave alone for approximately 30 minutes.
  2. While the tofu is being pressed, begin to make your marinade. If you have a very strong food processor, you can kip cutting your vegetables, but if it slightly older, quarter the pepper, onion, and tomato
  3. Place all of the ingredients except the oil and tofu into a blender or food processor and process on the highest setting until you have a slightly chunky marinade
  4. Once your tofu is pressed, put your oil in a medium sized pan over medium-high heat.
  5. Cut the tofu into 8 even slices and place it into the pan. Allow the tofu to brown, cooking it until slightly golden on each side
  6. Process or chop up your tofu until it is in pieces approximately 1/4 inch large
  7. Place the marinade and tofu into a container and mix together. Allow the mixture to sit for at least 30 minutes. This can be left in the fridge overnight.
  8. Once you are ready to eat your Sofritas, place the marinated tofu and extra marinade in a pan with a dash of water and warm over medium heat.

Note: I enjoy eating this in a knock-off burrito bowl with black beans, lime-rice, tomato salsa, and lettuce, but this delicacy is amazing on its own!

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Simple Tostadas

Ingredients:

  • Tostadas
  • Refried beans (make sure they’re vegetarian! Amy’s is a great vegetarian brand)
  • Salsa
  • Cheddar Cheese (or any substitution)
  • Jarred or fresh jalapenos
  • Black olives (optional)
  • Other misc. toppings, such as guacamole, lettuce, or sour cream

Directions:

  1. Spread your refried beans on the tostada and build your other toppings on top. I prefer to do it in the order of: refried beans, salsa, jalapenos, olives, and cheddar cheese. If you are adding guacamole, lettuce, or sour cream add AFTER heating
  2. Place your tostadas on a baking tray/sheet and place in the oven or toaster oven. If your oven/toaster oven has a broil function, set to low and leave for about 4 minutes. Check regularly to ensure nothing is burning. If you do not have a broiler function, set your oven to a low temperature and monitor regularly.
  3. Once out, if you would like to add fresh toppings, do so! Allow for it to cool to a handling temperature and enjoy.

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Simple Avocado Toast

Ingredients:

  • 2 pieces of bread
  • 1 Ripe avocado (preferably medium or large)
  • Lime juice
  • Salt
  • Hot sauce (optional, I prefer Cholula)
  • A fried egg/egg white (optional)

Directions:

  1. Toast your bread as desired. I find that toastier bread leads to a better flavor dynamic with the toppings
  2. As you wait for the toast to finish, cut your avocado in half length-wise, and twist to open. If you have a sharp, heavy knife, whack the pit and twist to remove. If you do not, or are worried about cutting yourself, cut the half of the avocado with the pit into small slivers so that it pops out, or remove it carefully with a spoon.
  3. Once your toast is ready, scoop your avocado out of its skin and place ½ of the avocado on each piece of bread.
  4. Using a fork, mush the avocado and spread around the toast, dispersing as you see fit.
  5. Add your toppings to your taste and enjoy!

If you still need additional help with how to remove the pit and remove the avocado from its skin, see this tutorial

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Mandelbrot Cookies

Yield: 3 Dozen

Ingredients:

  • 3 Eggs (Can be replaced with egg replacer to make vegan cookies)
  • 1 cup Sugar
  • ½ cup Vegetable Oil
  • 3 teaspoons Vanilla
  • 3 ¼ cups Unbleached Flour
  • 2 teaspoons Baking Powder
  • 2 tablespoons Cocoa Powder
  • Sugar (for topping)

Optional Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons powdered sugar, to add to the Cocoa for a sweeter cookie
  • Lemon or Orange Rind
  • ¼ teaspoon Cinnamon
  • ¼ cup chopped Walnuts

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 325 °F.
  2. In a medium bowl, beat the eggs. Add sugar and mix well, then add oil and vanilla.
  3. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and any additional ingredients
  4. Add to the egg mixture to your dry ingredients and stir until well blended.
  5. Divide the dough in half and add the cocoa to half the dough.
  6. Take ½ of the vanilla half and ½ of the chocolate half, and squeeze them together to form a long marble

roll about 13 inches long by 3 inches wide. This is easily done right on the baking sheet with floured

hands. Repeat the process, forming one more marble roll with the remaining dough. Sprinkle sugar on

top. (This is how it is traditionally prepared)

  1. Alternatively, my family takes the same process but flatten the vanilla dough, place a log of the cocoa dough in the center, and roll it into a log with vanilla on the outside and cocoa in the center. It allows for a nice mix of the flavors! The dimensions will remain the same
  2. Bake these rolls for 30 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and once slightly cooler, cut into ¾ inch slices. Let the cookies cool well before enjoying
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Creamy Tomato Soup (Vegan)

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped coarsely
  • 3 cloves of garlic, chopped
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • Black pepper
  • 1 pound of potatoes (Ideally waxy, such as Yukon gold. This amount is about 2-4 average-sized potatoes)
  • 1 cup sun-dried tomato (not packed in oil, just plain, sun-dried tomatoes)
  • 6 cups water or vegetable broth
  • 1, 28-oz can of crushed tomatoes
  • Juice of 1/2 a lemon

Directions:

  1. Chop onions and garlic. Peel your potatoes and cut them into approximately 1-inch cubes.
  2. Preheat a large soup pot over medium heat. Sauté (cook) the onions in the olive oil until the onions are translucent- approximately 6 minutes
  3. Add the garlic, herbs, salt, and pepper. Sauté for 1 more minute, until the garlic is fragrant.
  4. Add the potatoes and sun-dried tomatoes. Pour in the water. Cover and bring to a boil.
  5. Once the soup is boiling, lower the heat to medium, cover, and let simmer for about 20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender and the sun-dried tomatoes are soft.
  6. Add the crushed tomatoes and heat through. If you have an immersion blender, puree the soup until very smooth. If you do not, transfer into a food processor once cooled, process, and reheat in the pot. Add lemon juice if desired.

For citation, click here

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Simple, Quick-Rise Pizza Dough

Yield: One pizza

Ingredients:

  • 280 g (2.5 cups) bread flour or all-purpose flour
  • 10 g (2 tsp) sugar
  • 6 g (1.25 tsp) salt
  • 3/4 tsp instant yeast
  • 1 cup water

Directions:

  1. Combined the flours, sugar, and salt in a large bowl
  2. Heat the water until about 110° F (warm, but not hot enough to hurt you if you put your finger in it)
  3. Place the yeast into the warm water and wait 2-10 minutes to see if it blooms (bubbles). Once it has bloomed, add it to the dry mixture and combine
  4. Knead until smooth and shape into a round ball. Cover with a clean dish towel or plastic wrap and let sit for 45 minutes
  5. Carefully stretch to the thickness and size you would like and enjoy with sauces and toppings of your choice

Note: typically, when I cook these crusts it takes about 8-9 minutes on a pizza stone, but it also can be placed on a metal tray and cooked that way. Do not place the dough directly on the rack because it will fall through and it will break your heart.

Citations

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Vegan Hazelnut Spread

Ingredients:

  • 1 generous cup (appx. 5 oz) of toasted, skinned hazelnut
  • 2 tbsp hazelnut liquor (like Frangelico or similar) or 1 1/2 teaspoons hazelnut extract
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 tbsp plain soy milk powder or some kind of dehydrated milk. (This can be left out if you want your spread to be darker or if you cannot find it)
  • 8-10 tbsp oil (peanut or hazelnut works best)

Directions:

  1. If hazelnuts are not pre-toasted, you can do so by allowing them to toast on a baking sheet for 8-10 minutes at 300° F. Once they are ready immediately remove from oven and place onto a large dish towel. Gather the ends of the towel so the hazelnuts are trapped inside and shake vigorously to remove the skins. Pick the hazelnuts out of the towel and proceed
  2. Empty the hazelnuts into your food processor bowl. Set to pulse and process the hazelnuts into crumbs and then until an oily paste forms.
  3. Scrape the sides and add the hazelnut liqour, vanilla extract, confectioners’ sugar, and coca. Blend until a crumbly mixture forms. Add the powdered soy milk and 4-5 tbsp of oil. Continue to pulse until the mixture resembles a thick fudge
  4. Drizzle a tbsp of oil at a time and pulse/scrape. Do so until the desired consistency is achieved. If you would like it to be sweeter, you may add about a tbsp more of sugar.

(Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container. To make it back into a spreadable mixture, place it outside of the refrigerator for about 20 minutes to warm up. Stirring may be necessary.)

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Vegan Latkes (Passover Friendly)

Yield: appx. 18 latkes

Directions:

      • 2 1/2 lbs white potatoes, peeled (Russet, Idaho, etc.)
      • 1 small yellow onion, peeled
      • 1/4 cup potato starch or cornstarch
      • 1/2 tsp salt
      • 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
      • 2 cups matzo meal (this is so that these Latkes can be eaten during Passover, but all-purpose flour works equally well.)
      • Lots of vegetable oil (for frying)

Instructions:

    1. Prepare vegetables as directed in ingredients section
    2. If using a food processor, use the grating blade to shred the potatoes and the onion. If shredding by hand, use a grater to shred all the potatoes. Dice the onion as finely as possible.
    3. Remove as much liquid from the potatoes as possible. Either press between paper towels, or place paper towels in a salad spinner and remove liquid that way.
    4. In a large mixing bowl, combine the potatoes and onions with the starch until the potatoes have released more moisture and the starch is dissolved (about 2 minutes)
    5. Add the salt and pepper and stir
    6. Add the matzo meal and mix well. Set aside for about 10 minutes. The mixture should now be liquidy, yet sticky
    7. Preheat a large, non-stick or cast iron pan over medium heart. Pour a 1/4 inch of vegetable oil. You will know the oil is hot enough if you add a bit of batter I and excited bubbles rapidly for around it. If it smokes, it is too hot and the temperature should be lowered.
    8. With wet hands, roll the batter into golf ball-sized balls. Flatten into thin, round patties.
    9. Fry about six at a time, frying on one side for about 4 minute, until golden brown. Flip over and fry for another 3 minutes.
    10. Transfer onto paper towels and allow to drain. To re-warm, place in a baking pan and keep at 200° F, or cover with aluminum foil