Get Well Ringo! cupcakes and Falafel Sandwich.

Sexy lowfat vanilla cupcake recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World. I used strawberry soy yogurt instead of vanilla and added chopped strawberries to the batter. On top, I used full fat cream cheez frosting that I had leftover in the freezer and fresh cut strawberries.

I heard Ringo was not feeling well and cancelled a show this past week. Hope he feels better today! These cupcakes are so yummy!

Falafel recipe from Vegan with a Vengeance. I modified it a bit. Added spinach, garlic-herb oil that I made the other day with fresh sage, oregano and basil from the garden. I also subbed oatmeal and garbanzo bean flour (besan) for the breadcrumbs. And I baked instead of fried. Perfection!
Stuffed into a pita bread pocket with hummus, lettuce, arugula, cucumber, tomatoes and garlic sauce that I concocted from tahini, vegan mayo, lemon juice, garlic and cilantro. Also a few shakes of Tabasco for heat!

Vegan Jelly! (or Jello!)

A childhood favorite revisited. I have always liked Jell-o with Cool Whip. Now that I'm vegan, I have to find animal-free products. Found this brand of strawberry jelly from Samosa House in Culver City which has a small market that sells international goods.

Yay!

Easy instructions.

Delicious topped with Coco Whip!

Victoria Sponge.

Victoria Sponge: 2 layers of vanilla cake with jam (strawberry) and cream (vegan buttercream) sandwiched in the middle and the whole thing dusted with powdered sugar. No more explanations necessary!

Edited to add: I came back to get some a few hours later and there were ANTS all over my cake! Had to throw it out. Oh well, at least I had one slice. :(

Muffins for the Weekend & Thai Red Curry

Delicious muffins that I made yesterday and today. I finally cracked open my brand new copy of 'Vegan Brunch' and made the "Bakery Style Berry Muffins". I used strawberries in mine. I also made fluffy banana-cinnamon muffins from a recipe I adapted at vegetarian times. Find the recipe here.



And a simple Thai red curry with potato, carrot, eggplant, mushroom, zucchini, tofu and onions. Mmm.

Spaghetti with Spinach and Mushrooms + Strawberry-Mango Crumble

I made this pasta recipe the first year I went vegan. I had just subscribed to Vegetarian Times magazine and I was exploring and trying recipes from various issues. That was about 2 1/2 years ago so I thought I'd come back and make this dish again. This recipe requires baking the dry spaghetti in the oven for a while to toast them which creates a nutty flavor. The toasted spaghetti is then cooked in a broth flavored with mushrooms, tomato paste and harissa (a North African red chili paste) and allowed to plump up which creates a rich and silky texture. The mushroom flavored broth with the kick of spice from the chili made it taste similar to asian style noodles. Very comfort foody.


Not the best picture, I was too anxious to start eating! I served it with fresh slices of ciabatta bread.

I also made a strawberry mango crumble for dessert. Behold...



I veganized this recipe which simply required substituting Earth Balance margarine for butter. Otherwise it was all as written. I did switch out rhubarb for strawberries, I kind of think they have a similar tarty sweetness, don't you?


Not pictured but I had this with a scoop of vanilla non dairy ice cream. It was perfect. So glad I made this!

Raw Breakfast Pudding

Last week my friend Cassidy gave me some raw strawberry pie that she made. It was deeelicious! I wanted to recreate that flavor by making this breakfast pudding. It has the consistency more like yogurt I think but the flavors were spot on. A sweet and creamy mixture of bananas, strawberries, dates and cashews. Yummy.

Raw Strawberry-Banana Pudding

8 dates, pitted
1/2 cup raw cashews
2 ripe bananas
6 strawberries, frozen
juice of 1/2 an orange

Soak dates and cashews together in a bowl of hot water for about 20 minutes. Discard the water and put the dates and nuts in blender along with the other ingredients and blend until smooth. Pour into a bowl, cover with cling film and place in the freezer for about 20 minutes. (This step is not necessary. I liked eating it cold.) Serve.