Scary good Pumpkin Cupcakes

Scary good Pumpkin Cupcakes

This recipe is a true classic in our house, every year for Halloween. They are not scary or pretty, but taste great!
The recipe is pimped from on of my favourite cookbooks "Vegan Cupcakes - take over the  world" Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero. This book is truly well used. It got sugar stains and chocolate splatters all over the pages. But as always I have to change the recipes for a less sugar craving European pallet. So if you start now, you should have time to bake them for tonight. Get baking!

Pumpkin Cupcakes

Mix all these wet ingredients together by hand :
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/3 cup cold pressed rapeseed oil
3/4 cup Xylitol or sugar
1/4 cup Soy milk
1 teaspoon good vanilla extract.

DON'T use electric mixer- it will get rubbery!
.
Now add all the the dry ingredients into the wets:
1 1/4 white flour or light brown self raising
1/2 tsp baking powder +1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda,
1 tsp Cinnamon, 1/4 tsp salt, little nutmeg and a little ground ginger.
Mix it all together with a fork.

Into 12 paper cases in a cupcake tin, 180 degrees in the oven for about 22 min.
Make sure they are cold before you add the frosting.


Cashew Butter frosting

I a food processors add :

1/3 cup cashew nut butter + 3 Tbsp soft non dairy spread. Mix for 1 min
Now add 1tsp vanilla extract, 1/3 Cup Maple syrup, 1/3 cup Soya milk powder and a small dash of cardamon.
Mix until soft and smooth.
Put in the fridge for at least 15 min, before frosting the cupcakes. Frost them with a knife and leave to set.

Hope you will enjoy these and a Happy Halloween to you all.

Greenwich Mess

On my walk with the dog through Greenwich marked this morning, I passed Rhodes Bakery. They had the most impressive and enormous meringues in their window. So trying to give the locale traders in Greenwich marked some business, I bought lots of meringues and lot of other goods. Every little helps!
I got inspired to make an old time English favourite dessert "Eton Mess".
Pimped by me to "Greenwich Mess".

So here is my dairy free, but for sure not sugar-free version.

Greenwich mess

Get out your most beautiful glasses and lets get messy! This is what you need :

• Meringue
• Fresh fruit - mine is strawberries and raspberries
• Soya yoghurt - with blueberries
• Soya cream
• Vanilla extract
• Real vanilla
• Dairy free custard

Mix up the Blueberry yoghurt with 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, some real vanilla and a bit of soya cream

Smash the meringue with a rolling pin or your hands to small bits. This is good stress relief - you can pretend it is somebodies head!! 

Now start to build, in no particular order, in the glass : meringue - fruit - yoghurt - soya custard - repeat until the glass is full. Keep an berry for the top. 

So the weather might not be that brilliant, Greenwich park is closed (if you don't have a ticket), the traffic is up the creek and Greenwich is not quite is usual self. But this dessert will chase away the Olympic blues!

Dig in and enjoy - use your spoon as you eat, to make it even more messed up!

  

Flap Jacks - Pimped!

Coming out of a cookery hibernation - writers creative mind drought, call it what you want.
I want to share with you a totally foolproof Flap Jack recipe, I have pimped from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's cookbook "River Cottage everyday".
I love his way of cooking and his philosophy about food.
When my Mother on law was still alive, we visited his "canteen" in Axmister many times. I can highly recommend it.

He call this recipe a Booster bar, but it is a good old fashion Flap Jack - just healthier.

Set the oven to 160 degrees and let start baking !! 

Ingredients 
125 gr vegetable spread or butter
125 gr brown muscovado sugar
125 gr no-sugar added smooth or crunchy peanut butter
75 gr of honey
grated zest of an organic lemon

Put these in to a pot and cook on low heat until it is all melted together. Keep an eye on this you don't want this to boil!

In another bowl :

200 gr Oat
150 gr dried fruits of your choice - I used dried cranberries and sour cherries in mine
150 gr Mixed seeds - Sunflower, pumpkin, sesame, poppy etc. Holland and |Barret got a premix called Omega sprinkle.
1 tsp w/top cinnamon - for the blood sugar
and some real vanilla powder or from a pod to bring the flavours out.

Mix the dries with the wets, and push it down with a spoon in a lined baking tray.
That is very important to line the tray, or you can't get it out afterwards. Been there - done that!

Into the oven for 30-35 min 160 degrees.
Allow it to cool before you cut it into squares. Please be patient and then enjoy!!

Pimp my Tex-Mex Left-over casserole

When I cook rice, I always cook too much. So when I found this recipe in a cookbook by Jean Carper, I was delighted. I have done it many times since, but it always turn out a bit different every time - depending what is left in the fridge and store cupboards. But here is the basic recipe:

Tex-Mex left-over casserole

• Cooked rice - how much do you have?
• Tomato Salsa from a jar or some small diced up tomato with some added spices
• Chilli powder - how hot can you take it?
• 1/2 can of black beans ( I love black beans xxx), you could also use kidney beans. Make sure to rinse them well before use.
• Tin or frozen sweetcorn a good handful
• If you like olives, add some chopped up olives black or green.

Mix it all together and into a oven-proof dish. If you really like it hot, add some pickled jalapeños.

Top-up with cheese of you choice - mine is dairy free!

Into the oven on 200 degrees for around 20 minutes until the cheese has melted.

Cook this once and I promise you, it will go on your frequent cooking list for the future.

Sweet Jacket smokey potatoe

This recipe is so simple and so tasty. It is from a danish cookbook called "Aldrig mere sukkerkold" meaning : no more sugar cold. It is all about controlling the GL in what your eat, to keep the blood sugar even and at the same time keep the big flavours. 
In Denmark you can buy this amazing smoked cheese called "rygeost" = smoked soft cheese.
But since I don't live in Denmark anymore and don't eat dairy products, i have pimped the recipe to suit my stomach. But i will give you the original version in brackets.

Jacket Sweet Smokey potatoe
 
(original version in brackets)

• 1 Sweet potatoe
• 1/4 cup Vegan Tofutti cream cheese (smoked soft cheese)
• 2-3 Tbsp Unsweetend soya milk or hemp milk (same amount as cheese of some greek youghurt)
• 1/2 tsp Liquid smoke (don't need this for original recipie)
• Chives
• Salt and pepper

Bake the sweet potatoe i the oven 200 degrees 40-60 minutes, this depending on the size of the sweet potatoe.
Meanwhile mix the creamy filling in a food processor or stire/mix together with a fork : cream cheese, soya milk, liquid smoke, salt and pepper. At the end stire in the chives.
Cut the steaming hot sweet potatoe open and add a big dollop of creamy smokey filling.
Beautifull!

Pimped Hummus

It has taken me years to get the perfect, to my taste, Hummus recipe.
So here it is with a little help from Rip Esselstyn and a bit of pimping (a lot) from me. Without any further nonsense :


Pimped Hummus

• 1 can of chickpeas - rinsed and drained
• 2-3 cloves of garlic
• 3 Tbsp Lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp Tahini
• 2 tsp Tamari or Braggs liquid aminos (is a soya sauce)
• 3-5 Tbsp water
• 2-3 Tbsp Vegenaise (egg free mayonaise)
• 1/4 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 Vogels herbamare herbal salt

Everything into the food processesor and blend untill the right texture.
You migh twant to add more water or salt. That is all up to your tastebuds.

Now you got all this wonderfull Hummus to eat.
Here is a brilliant way of turning it into a quick a tasty meal.
Got the idea from Neal Barnard's book Get healthy, go vegan

Humms Pizza

• One pita bread - I use "The food doctors" whole grain pita breads, but any whole grain pita will do.
• Tomatos
• Olives
• Soy cheese or any othe melting type of vegan cheese

Turn the oven on to 200 degrees. Spread the hummus onto the the pita bread. Cut the tomatoes into small chunks and slice the olives into thin slices. Add the two on top of the hummus and grate some soy cheese on top. In the oven for approximately 8 min.
Badabing!! Lunch is ready!

Caesar Salad - My way!

I absolutely love Ceasar Salad! But the shop bought dressing are calorie laden and full of dairy product, which is not on my menu. So here is my version with a little help from Rip Esselstyn and Kris Carr. 
But as always pimped by me.

Start with your croutons. Heat the oven to 150 degrees and chop some wholegrain bread into little squares, that could be gluten-free read as well. Spray the croutons with olive oil and Braggs liquid aminos. Sprinkle with 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp onion powder and some freeze dried parsley. Toss it around, spread out on a baking tray and into the oven for 5 - 10 min. The amount of spices depend of course on how big the portion of croutons are.
Remember to keep an eye on them, you want them golden brown, but not burned.

Now the so delicious dressing :

• 1/2 Cup Vegan mayonnaise  - egg free mayonnaise
• 1 tsp Dijon Mustard
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• the juice from 1/2 small lemon
• 1 tsp Nutritional yeast
• Dash of Lea and Perrins Worcestershire sauce
• a dash of fish sauce - optional.
• Salt and pepper to taste.

Blend the dressing, add water to get the right consistency. Drizzle it over a big bowl of Romaine and/or other mixed green lettuces.
Mix gently and shatter your croutons on the top before serving. Enjoy!!