So Delicious!

A few of you guessed right. My mystery review is on the new coconut yogurt line from Turtle Mountain, and it's good. The folks at Turtle Mountain are masters at creating delicious flavor combinations, as seen in their ice cream and soy yogurt lines. The So Delicious coconut yogurts are no exception.

Not only did I make sure to taste all of the different flavors (I know, it's a tough job!), but I also tried baking with them, to see how they held up in a recipe. The results were excellent! I used the plain coconut yogurt in butterscotch blondies (from My Sweet Vegan), as well as a couple of other cookie and cake recipes. The yogurt baked up great, providing the baked goods with a moist crumb and great flavor.

Although I am a big fan of the Soy Delicious soy yogurts, it's nice to have options and be able to mix things up, and these coconut yogurts are just the thing. They're perfect to eat straight out of the carton, layered into breakfast parfaits with granola and fresh berries, mixed with fresh fruit and frozen into popsicles, or used as a creamy topping for summer desserts. There are oodles of delicious things you can make with the coconut yogurts, limited only by your imagination. The Passionate Mango was one of my favorites, with the lovely tart taste of passion fruit.

So, if you are in the mood to try something tasty and new or are looking for some soy-free alternatives, you should give these coconut yogurts a try. The fat count is a bit higher on them (about 6 to 7 grams) than most soy yogurts, but that is to be expected from coconut milk. On the other hand, the calorie count is low, they are dairy and lactose free, rich in medium chain fatty acids, are an excellent source of vitamin B12, contain pre- and probiotics (for good intestinal health), are cholesterol free, free of trans fat and certified vegan. Sounds good to me.



As a side note, Turtle Mountain has also come out with a couple of new flavors for their soy yogurt line, and they are fantastic too! I am addicted to the Key Lime, which I am dying to try in a cheesecake or pie. The Lemon Drop flavor is also really good, and is excellent eaten straight with fresh summer berries.

Strawberry Freezer Jam

I've got the strawberry freezer jam recipe for you. I'm thinking that it will work with any fresh summer fruit. I had planned to pick raspberries today and give it a try, but the berries just aren't quite ready for picking yet. I will probably try it with raspberries, boysenberries and peaches once they're ripe, and let you know how it works.

If enough people are interested in the Instant Clear Jel, let me know and we can start carrying it on our website. It's pretty amazing stuff, and I've used it super-successfully for everything from nacho cashew cheeze to lemon curd to gelato. This is seriously some of the best jam ever, and it tastes like fresh picked strawberries. So good!

Now for the quick Jam recipe:


Julie's Strawberry Freezer Jam

5 cups smashed fresh strawberries
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar (I used organic sugar which I whizzed in a processor to make super-fine)
5 tablespoons plus 1 tsp Instant Clear Jel

1. Place smashed strawberries in a large bowl.

2. In a smaller bowl, mix together sugar and clear jel, whisking until well mixed. Add the sugar mixture to the strawberries, whisking until very well mixed and sugar looks dissolved. If you don't stir it well, the starch will thicken in clumps. This should only take a minute or so.

3. Let strawberry mixture sit for 10 minutes to thicken completely. Scoop into clean jars, seal with a lid and place in freezer.

Dark Chocolate Chip Cake And A Giveaway

Yes, this is one amazing chocolate cake. It’s just as fabulous with frosting as it is without. I think of this recipe as “a little black dress”. It works for fancy or casual occasions; it has widespread appeal and always makes people smile.

The recipe is included on the Everyday Dish DVD, so I can’t publish it here. What I can do though is a DVD giveaway, because everyone must have this recipe (along with the 15 other fabulous vegan recipes on the DVD). Now here’s the scoop:

You can enter the giveaway through the comments. One entry per person is eligible. Anonymous comments have to include a first or last name.

I will randomly select a winner by putting all of the names in a big mixing bowl, and will announce the winner here on the blog. Once the winner is announced, they will need to email me within 2 days, or I will have to randomly select another winner. I’m not sure when I will announce the winner, so check back often.

Vegan Cheese

Had any bad vegan cheese lately? I've been wanting to blog about Sheese since trying it about a month ago. It's a line of Vegan cheese imported from Scotland. They have all kinds of flavors, as well as both hard and spreadable varieties (my personal favorites are the smoked cheddar and the blue). If you've been missing cheese, than Sheese just might be for you.

I had pretty much given up on the idea of vegan cheese up until this point. In my humble opinion, nothing has come close to the taste or texture of real cheese so I avoided them. I think that Sheese comes closest to the real thing. And I can once again serve cheese platters (with grapes, dried dates and crackers) when I entertain. It also seems to work well in recipes like beer bread, biscuits, panini and tacos. I haven't tried it in a sauce yet, but will test it out sometime soon.

It also seems that Bute Island Foods (the company that makes it) is pretty cool too. Four guys that were brought up as vegetarians and are passionate about producing vegan food (and they're cute too). You can find it online at Food Fight, or go to blackduckimports.com to get a complete list of where it's currently sold.

Enjoy!

Fresh-Baked Cinnamon Rolls

Although I'm in the kitchen cooking all the time, I don't always have time to bake for fun. I love my job, but every now and then it's fun to bake something special that has nothing to do with work. Case in point...these home-baked cinnamon rolls. And yes, they're vegan too.

My son has this thing for cinnamon rolls, and he nags me regularly to make them. Of course, he has a few rules too -absolutely no raisins or nuts! I decided to oblige him and bake up a batch. I adapted a recipe of Bryanna Clark Grogan's for her awesome Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls (the recipe's in her subscription newsletter). I was out of pumpkin for the filling , so I rolled them up with some softened Earth Balance, brown sugar and lots of cinnamon. The icing on top is powdered sugar, vanilla and a little soy milk. These were absolutely delish, and my son was one happy camper.

Happy Baking!

Chocolate Chip Espresso Cookies

Did I mention that they're vegan too? These cookies are my son's favorite. They have a nice coffee punch, with a hint of cinnamon. Soft and chewy, they're actually even better the second day (if they last that long). If you worry about caffeine, you can use decaf, but there's only 2 tablespoons in the whole recipe, and it makes a lot of cookies. They would probably be wonderful with a handful of toasted pecans too. The cookies freeze well, which I love because then I have them on hand for a quick treat. What can I say but, start baking!

Julie's Chocolate Chip Espresso Cookies
Preheat oven to 350°F
Makes about 28 large cookies

3-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon instant coffee
1 tablespoon finely ground espresso
1-1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2/3 cup canola oil
2-1/4 cups packed brown sugar
Egg replacer for 2 eggs (I use Bob's Red Mill brand)*
About 1/3 cup soymilk
1 tablespoon pure vanilla
2 cups rolled oats (old fashioned)
2 cups chocolate chips or chunks

1. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, coffee powder, espresso, baking soda and cinnamon.
2. In bowl of stand mixer, beat together oil and brown sugar. Add egg replacer and vanilla, beating until smooth. Add flour mixture to oil mixture, beating just until mixed. Add soymilk, beating until mixed. If dough is too dry, add an additional tablespoon of soymilk. Stir in the oats and chocolate chips (dough will be pretty stiff).
3. Scoop mixture onto parchment lined baking sheets, lightly press tops of cookies with hand and bake in preheated oven for 14 minutes, or until puffed and slightly cracked on top (but still soft to the touch). Let cookies cool on baking sheet completely before removing.

*Make sure to blend egg replacer with necessary liquid before adding to batter

Ginger Peanut Tofu Salad

If you're looking for a delicious lunch idea... this recipe's for you! The recipe and video can be found on the Everyday Dish website.

This salad has quickly become a family favorite. I'm always looking for healthy, protein-packed salad ideas, and this one fits the bill. I started by using peanut butter instead of mayo. Then I added ginger, garlic, Siracha sauce and, well, the rest is history. So good! It's great on a sandwich, with whole grain crackers, or even as a filling for sushi.

We went to the coast last weekend for my birthday, and knowing that there are usually few vegan options in restaurants, I brought a double batch of this salad. I'm really glad that I did. It hit the spot, and was fun to serve with Lebanese cucumbers and slices of baguette. And, I was happy that I didn't have to live on hummus all weekend.

Cleaning Produce

I buy lots of fresh produce, between the farmer's market and all those quick runs to the grocery store. I've always looked for the best way to clean them, and I think I've finally found the answer.

I first noticed the Lotus machine over a year ago. I happened to be walking by a store in the mall, and felt compelled to go in and check it out. I wasn't the only one. There was a big crowd quickly forming around this machine. This is how it works: you put your fruit and veggies in the bowl and top with tap water. The machine infuses the water with ozone to neutralize up to 99.9% of bacteria and pesticides on foods.

I wound up getting the machine last summer, just in time for all the fresh summer berries that I needed to prepare for my pie book. I literally ran 50 pounds of berries through it; the berries came out plump and juicy.

It works like a charm, taking just a few minutes to run a batch of produce through it. I even find that the produce stays fresher longer once it's been sanitized. It's a very cool machine for anyone that is looking to safely clean their fruits and veggies without chemical cleaners. As an added bonus, it also comes with a separate squirt bottle that you can fill with tap water to clean and sanitize your home (chemical free). We clean all of our wood floors, door knobs and countertops without the need for harsh chemicals (killing bacteria with the ozonated water).

This machine really works. I'm not a spokesperson for this company, but I certainly use it everyday. Now I can eat my veggies worry-free.

Vegan Kimchi

It was hard to decide what to blog about first. But after an afternoon of kimchi making, the answer was clear.

It's very hard to find vegan kimchi, if not impossible. Kimchi usually contains seafood, which is why we started to make our own. Crispy, crunchy, spicy, delectable kimchi. I could (and often do) live on the stuff. My kids like to eat it as an after-school snack.

Rather than posting the recipe now, we decided to film our kimchi making adventure. Stay tuned, as the video will be posted soon on the website. Look for it on the "cooking show" page (recipe included). Then you too can make up a big batch of vegan kimchi!