Mocha Cupcakes

So someones birthday is quite soon & I'm making them cupcakes

I decided to give Mocha Cupcakes a go after the sucess of the Chocolate + Ginger ones.

The recipie is really similar, however this one won't make very many (cause really how many cupcakes can I person eat and not want to die after!)

1/2 cup of cold strong coffee
1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/3cup + 2tbsp sugar
2 tbsp canola oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup all purpose- flour
3 heaped tbsp cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
tiniest pinch of salt imaginiable
2tbsp instant coffee


*Pre heat oven to ~ 180 deg & Line baking tray with cute looking cupcake papers :)

* Whisk wet ingredients
* Add sugar, oil + vanilla extract + beat until foamy
* Sift dry ingredients & add in batches to the wet ingredients
* Beat until lump free (ensure especially no lumps of instant coffee ick!)
* Fill cupcake papers 3/4 way full and Bake for 10-12 minutes if mini or 18-20 if normal size. Could also make American size ones and bake for a bit longer. They would be epic!! Just follow the toothpick rule and you'll be right.


So at a guess this would make 12-13 mini cupcakes... half a dozen (6) normal cupcakes and about 4 American cupcakes....

To frost these babies I'm going to make dark chocolate icing (cocoa powder + icing sugar + water and a drop of oil to give it shine and crackle) + then possibly white normal icing to make lines depending on how fancy I get

Event baking is the only time it gets decorated

Photos to come later (along with all the other things you've been promised)

Asian Inspired Cauliflower Soup

Another experiment - this one I like, still fairly mild cause it would appear I like subtle broth based soups... but still so good.

Ingredients
20-40g dried shitake mushrooms (quickly immerse in hot water, discard first lot of water and chuck in pot)
1 large head cauliflower roughly chopped (I threw the leaves in too)
4-5 medium carrots sliced (don't peel them the skin is good for you!)
5ish cups of chopped celery (leaves would work too)
30g salted black beans
1 lge tbsp ginger paste
1 tbsp chili powder
4L water


Put everything in a large pot on the stove and simmer for an hour. Done!

** could blend after to make a pure type thing, could also add more of the ginger/chili as well as stuff like onion/spring onion/garlic etc.

Nutritional Information
(based upon 1.25kg cauliflower; 325g carrot; 625g celery; 20g mushrooms; 30g blackbean, 1tbsp chili powder + 2 tbsp grated ginger)

Assuming 4 servings

cal: 187
protein: 10.5g
CHO: 41g
fibre: 15.5g
fat: 1.25g

Epic Bailey's Chocolate Cheese Cake (non-vegan)

This was a Birthday Present for someone....

Base
185g choc biscuit crumbs (blended)
60g icing sugar
4 tbsp cocoa powder
60g butter

Oven 180deg

Mix all ingredients + press into a 23cm cake pan

Bake for 10minutes then take out and cool.

Filling (2 options, I used #1)
Option #1
600g cream cheese
250g caster sugar
3 tbsp cocao powder
2 tbsp flour
3 egg
125 ml sour cream
"3" tbsp baileys

1. In an electric mixer combine cream cheese, cater sugar, cocoa, flour and mix at a medium speed

2. Incorporate sour cream + baileys in on the low speed

3. Pour on top of base and bake @ 230deg for 10 minutes then reduce to 120deg and bake for a further 60 minutes.

OR

Option #2
2 1/2 pounts cream cheese
2/3 cup caster sugar
5 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
1 cup baileys

1. Combine cream cheese + sugar + eggs (1 at a time)

2. Slowly incorporate vanilla & baileys

3. Sprinkle choc chips on base, and then pour over filling. (feel free to add more choc chips if you want).

Bake at 350F for 1hr + 20minutes


Topping - Vegan Chocolate Mouse

*Coming Soon*

Banana & Oat Bites

So bites are what would happen if cookies and muffin's had babies

They taste yummy

These suckers are also pretty healthy

1 cup quick oats (or rolled)
1 cup blended/ground quick oats
1/4 cup sugar/sweetener
1/4 tsp salt + cinnamon + nutmeg (each)
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup mushed banana
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 - 3 tbsp oil

**optional 1/3 cup walnuts

Oven heated to 350F (170-180)

mix everything up

dollop onto baking tray covered with baking paper into appropriate shapes/ sizes

Good for 12-15 minutes untill cooked throught (tho they are quite nice a little mushy on the inside if you want to eat them warm)

Photos comming !

Beetroot

So one of my biggest soapboxes is beetroot.

Strange I know, but the number of people who have only eaten that stuff in a can, and who don't even realise what a real beetroot looks like let alone tastes like in Australia is sorta sad.

So I'm going to tell you way to eat real beetroot, cause its amazing. I've even added some bad pictures of me and beetroot cooking. They are shocking cause I only have a phone at the moment. but I do love enjoy cooking beetroot, it makes me feel a touch like a serial killer.

Ok so beetroot you can
*bake
*boil
*grate - raw
*fry
*juice
*BBQ

It can be added to soup, salad (raw or cooked), eaten as a roast vegetable, sliced and sprinkled with pepper, cinnamon (haven't tried this one). I have to admit, I really like jsut eating them warm after I've peeled them. Hmm so tasty!

So here is how I cook them most of the time
big saucepan of boiling water
Chuck em in (top and tail them but leave the skins on to prevent bleeding too much)
The water should turn a blood red in about 30-90 seconds :D
Cover and boil/simmer for 30-60minutes (till you can stab them and they are soft, kinda like when you cook a potato etc. )

Drain and cover in cold water. As soon as you can handle, pick them up and 'rub' the skins off. It should just slide off, if it doens't you've under cooked them.

Then either eat asap, or put in a container in the fridge. Should last just over a week, if you can stop yourself from eating them all within 1 -2 days.

Tastes amazing, so good for you, and so much fun to cook (feeling like a mass murderer, however that could only appeal to people like me)

Just remember it is beetroot, so if you get covered in the red juicy stuff it will stain, also whip it off bench tops asap, cause apparently it can stain them too.

Good luck. Let me know/post your own pictures if you want :)

Couple of Tea/Hot Stuff to Drink Ideas

Some of these are from or modified from 'How it all Vegan' Amazing book!
Some of these arose from freegan & urban gardening adventures

Ginger Tea #1
1tbsp fresh grated/chopped ginger to 1 cup hot (not boiling water)
a touch of cayenne pepper
sweetener to taste


Ginger Tea #2
1tbsp fresh grated/chopped ginger
1tbsp lemon juice (1/3-1/2 lemon)
a sprig of fresh mint or spearmint
to 1- 1 1/2 cup hot(not boiling water)

With the ginger teas, either you can seep them in a tea pot for 10 minutes, or preferably, heat to infuse all the flavours either on a stove top (simmer 10-15minutes) or in a microwave for 5-10 minutes

**Important Note (make sure you don't have things like catepillars on your mint)!!!


Cheats Chai
1 generic black tea bag (Irish Breakfast), 1/2 tsp mixed spice

Add the mixed spice when you'd add the tea bag while you make your normal cup of tea. Stir it once or twice to mix it in. Done

*can also be done with powdered ginger &/or cinnamon and tastes amazing.


Lavender Tea
Get 1 -2 flowers and put in one of those tea ball things
Basically this will last you for about 2-3 months. You just start off having it immersed in hot water for a few seconds, as its crazy strong initially, to up to 10minutes towards the end.

Just be careful with this one cause apparently drinking too much lavender tea can be toxic (I never found a quantifiable way to measure too much but keep it to 1-2cups a day and you'll be fine). Also make sure you use cooking lavender, I'm not sure if there is any detriment to using more commercial varieties but I've heard the taste is inferior.

Odd taste, but I like it.


Apple Cider Health Drink
1/2 fresh lemon sliced
1tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 -2 tsp sweetener (I've used treacle, maple syrup and stevia in the past all good)
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
2 cups water

Simmer in a saucepan for 5 minutes (as it supposed to be good for you I haven't used the microwave for this one, but I'm sure you could is so inclined)

Makes 2 super strong cup, or 3-4 cups diluted with water. Definatly will explode in your mouth.

I'll stop there, but a whole post to rosehips will be coming up.

Also things I plan on trying if I can find include blackberry leaves, lemon rind, and violets.

Chocolate + Ginger Cupcakes

These babies are amazing.... I was so in love when I made them for my birthday this year, so I thought I'd share the love

1 cup soy milk (non dairy milk)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup granulated sugar (I used white cause I'm bad like that)
1/3 cup canola oil (I used rice bran oil)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (I used that one with the little seeds in it)
2 tsp ground ginger
1/3+ cup finely chopped crystallized ginger (I use the one thats soaked in glucose syrup not the one with the sugar on the outside)
1 cup all purpose flour (wheat/ G/F)
1/3 cup cocoa powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

** I usually over estimate the soda & powder

Oven 180 = 12 normal size cupcakes
* whisk soy milk + vinegar = curdle
* add sugar, oil + vanilla extract + ginger powder and beat till foamy
* sift dry ingredients into a seperate container and add in 2 batches to wet to avoid lumps
* beat till the lumps you couldn't avoid are gone (can make a few bubbles but don't over beat too much it makes them flat)
* mix in crystalized ginger
* fill 3/4 way full into lined tin
* bake 18-20 (toothpick test)

You can also make them into mini cupcakes, just cook for less time.

Enjoy x

Cabbage Sushi

Cabbage Nori Rolls
How to make cabbage 'rice'
1/2 head Napa or Chinese cabbage (any cabbage works)
Cut the cabbage into half lengthwise. Cut one half into 4 wedges lengthwise. Place the wedges in a steamer basket with the carrots and steam until tender, about 5 minutes. Cool completely.

You can also just chop up any old cabbage and steam/microwave it.... but above is the fancy way that I stole the idea from.
Once the cabbage has cooled, dry it thoroughly by placing it on a kitchen towel or sushi mat covered with paper towels. Roll up in the towel or mat, squeezing lightly to remove excess moisture. Remove any thick, tough pieces and set them aside.

I use it all, but the removing the moisture deal is SUPER improtant otherwise your nori will be soggy and nothing appart from straight spirulina tastes as bad as soggy nori. It will ruin your whole meal.

Then just use the cabbage as you would rice... and chuck whatever you normally would in there
You can also use pea shoots (buy them fresh in the same area as alphalpha. Shredded lettuce also works, mainly iceberg, but others might. Just be careful the flavours compliment the nori.

ingredients I love include
carrot, cucumber, tofu OR tempeh, avocado, capsicum (red)

other slightly more strange ones included;
baked pumpkin w/ or w/out skin, baby spinach, and my newest favourite grilled slices of mushrooms (the bigger the better the mushroom), fresh bean shoots (canned taste bad always) also fresh asparagus would be nice too... or maybe baby corn, I'll try it and get back to you

things that don't work but should
enoki mushrooms, it was horrible... anything that = soggy nori

Some sushi making tips

#1 - put the shiny side down not up
#2, roll as tightly as possible
#3 wet the end before you roll (about 2cm)
#4 wet your knife before you slice it into rings (best tip I ever learnt)
#5 experiment, at worst it won't taste amazing and you'll know better next time

Sunday Lunch # 2

Shared with the fabulous Craig, Brenton, Kira & Rachel...

Soup # 2

1 cup green/brown lentils (1-2days sprouted)
2 cups red lentils
400g mushroom sliced
400g celery chopped + the leaves from a bunch
1 large bunch fresh rainbow kale
4 baby carrots

4heaped tsp massel salt reduced 'chicken' style stock powder
cumin, chilli powder, powdered ginger, pepper, tumeric, garam masala - to taste


cook lentils for 20minutes (covered in +1inch hot water)

chuck in everything else, cover with more water/to your fav consistency

cook till stuff is soft.


Done :)

also yummy raw foodist treats (didn't happen but I thought I'd chuck it in regardless)
1 dried date
1 raw almond ( you can use roasted ones if you suck at life - not due to the raw factors but due to the fact they don't taste as good)

Take date, remove pip, place almond in newly created void & smoosh up so it looks untouched

and then eat it... SO good especially with really good coffee

 AND COMING SOON



Rachel's G/F Vegan Brownies