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Recipes

Kale Caesar Salad with Spiced Pecan Croutons

The inspiration behind this recipe was partially the vegan fascination with kale, but also an ongoing attempt to perfect a nut-based vegan caesar dressing. Additionally, I first made this particular recipe for a Thanksgiving meal several years ago, and while I knew the salad needed a little something other than kale and dressing, I didn’t want to go for traditional croutons because I knew the meal was already going to be so carb heavy. So enter pecan croutons. I wanted the flavor to be reminiscent of traditional garlic croutons, without all of the bread. These pecans are super savory, with a little buttery flavor, plus garlic and a hint of woody rosemary, melded with the caramel nuttiness of a toasted pecan. While completely delicious on their own, they actually taste incredibly similar to bread based croutons when mixed into the salad! Even more luckily, most of the people at this meal either had never tried kale before, or hadn’t like it until then, and I got many requests for the recipe. So even though I’m a few years late, here it is!

Munching on some kale in the field. Austin TX, March 2012

Munching on some kale in the field like a true vegan. Austin TX, March 2012

Caesar Dressing:

1 c raw, unsalted cashews, soaked overnight or boiled for 15 minutes
1-3 cloves of garlic (you can add more or less to taste)
1/2 c water
juice of 1/2 a lemon
2-3 tbsp capers
2 tbsp caper brine
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1-2 tbsp maple syrup or agave (optional)
1/2 tsp salt
pepper to taste

Add all ingredients to a food processor, and process until smooth, scraping down the sides when necessary. Adjust seasonings to taste, and add more water if you find the dressing is too thick.

Spiced Pecans

1 c shelled pecan halves
2 tbsp non-hydrogenated vegan margarine (or olive oil)
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp dried rosemary, crushed
1 tsp smoked paprika
salt to taste

Melt the margarine, and add the spices. Toss the pecans in the margarine mixture, and then toast about 5-10 minutes in a 350 degree oven, stirring occasionally (I actually prefer a toaster oven for this). The pecans are done when they smell faintly toasty, and have just begun to brown. Be careful not to burn them. Nobody likes burnt nuts. Cool.

To Assemble:

1 recipe Caesar dressing
1 recipe toasted pecans
1 large bunch of kale

Strip the kale from the thick, stem and either chop or rip into bite sized pieces. Add the dressing, and using your hands, massage the dressing into the kale until the leaves are coated evenly, and have begun to wilt ever so slightly. Toss in the pecans and serve.

Better Than Buzzfeed’s Thanksgivikkuh Ideas (tipsyshades.wordpress.com)

November 11, 2013 By Ashley

Uncategorized

Better Than Buzzfeed’s Thanksgivukkuh Ideas

About a month ago, there was a link being passed around the interwebz, that happened to not be about a certain pop star, but rather about what could quite possibly be the best holiday ever: Thanksgivikkuh. After reading their suggested menu, I found I was rather let down. While many of the items were Thanksgiving classics re-imagined, I felt that in some aspects, it missed a lot of what I love about Hanukkah. As usual, it took me about 10 minutes to imagine what I would make, and I wanted to share that menu with you here.

5th Night of Hanukkah, December 2012

While much of the inspiration for this menu is centered around the oil theme of Hanukkah (aka frying) I couldn’t quite bring myself to fry everything. I also don’t have a list of things I always make for Hanukkah because Hanukkah was the first holiday meal I got to plan (and execute as I say on my resume) myself. When I was 16, I decided I really wanted to make the family Hanukkah meal for my dad’s side of the family, so instead of paying attention in Chemistry for a month, I planned a menu, down to the timing of when I would make everything. While my very first Hanukkah dinner wasn’t entirely vegan, I gave the meal a theme of olive oil/Italian inspired dishes. The next year, I had a second chance to make Hanukkah (this time entirely vegan!) so I chose a Southwestern theme, and based everything, including the latkes (to which I added cilantro) around that theme. While I had told myself the next Hanukkah theme I was going for was an Asian inspired meal, with Thanksgivikkuh happening for the first and probably only time, I knew this years theme had to be Thanksgiving. (Of course it’s also the first time I am not in the US for Thanksgiving, but yay for having so many American friends over here who want to celebrate Thanksgiving, and so many non-American friends who are interested in seeing what this Thanksgiving thing is all about.)

Latke with apple sauce, December 2012

The way I’ve decided to tackle this is by posting my menu this week, and then posting what recipes I can from it once or twice a week in the weeks leading up to the holiday. Unfortunately, several of these items are (as usual) things I’ve dreamed up in my head, so I won’t be able to give recipes until after Thanksgiving. But on the bright side, Hanukkah is 8 days long! So there will still be plenty of time to make everything.

I’ve organized the menu into Appetizers, Mains and Desserts, but let’s be real, categorization is arbitrary, I say eat what you want when you want it. In fact, when I serve each of these things is definitely subject to change (I’m looking at you Kale Caesar salad!)

Appetizers

Mushroom crusted green bean tempura served with a cool and creamy French onion dip. How about that for green bean casserole in one bite!
Sage flecked latkes with Cranberry Apple sauce (the sauce is the one thing I liked from the Buzzfeed menu).
Massaged Kale Caesar salad with spiced pecan “croutons”
Roasted squash soup with fried sage leaves (and maybe some fried capers because they rock)

Main Dishes

Mama’s “Shabbos” tofu cutlets (marinated with sherry and tarragon)
Cornbread sausage stuffing fritters with sherry mushroom gravy
Pumpkin baked ziti (rather than sweet potato noodle kugel) from Veganomicon
Oven roasted brussel sprout fries

Desserts

Sweet potato soufganiyot (that’s Hebrew for doughnut) filled with either cranberry or pecan pie*

*I actually don’t usually make pecan pie. My mom started a tradition of making macadamia nut pie, so as long as I can find macadamia nuts here in Israel, I will be making macadamia filled soufganiyot.

Macadamia nut pie, November 2012

A note on the menu items: a few of these things are definitely items from Thanksgivings past, such as the cornbread sausage stuffing, which I make every year, just like my mom (though of course mine is vegan). I also made the Kale Caesar with pecan croutons several years ago for a Thanksgiving spent with my dad and their neighbors. Everyone loved it so much, I figured it needed repeating. The pumpkin baked ziti is one of my mom’s favorite recipes that I made for the day after Thanksgiving a few years ago, but I put I’m adding it to this menu because of the sweet potato noodle kugel suggested on Buzzfeed’s menu. It’s a pretty similar concept, and boy is it good. As for the mains,I don’t usually make any kind of “centerpiece roast” because despite all of my cooking and food loving, I always have more than enough food between the side dishes the host makes, and the 2-3 sides I make. However, I wanted a delicious protein packed main that is easy to make (and can be made in advance) that I will also be able to make here in Israel, so I added the tofu, inspired by the Shabbos chicken my mom used to make when I was growing up. As I’m sure everyone has also noticed, I’ve completely reimagined green bean casserole for this menu. To be quite honest, I’ve never had it because no on either side of my family likes it. But at my friends’ insistence, I wanted to add something that was a nod to the classic dish, while also updating it, and giving it more of a Hanukkah twist. Let me know if you make any of these and how they come out, or how you plan to celebrate Thanksgivikkuh!

Up next: Recipe for Kale Caesar salad with spiced pecan croutons.

Kale Caesar Salad with Spiced Pecan Croutons (tipsyshades.wordpress.com)
Vegan Cornbread Sausage Stuffing (tipsyshades.wordpress.com)

November 8, 2013 By Ashley

Recipes

Rumpkin Pie Chai Cupcakes

Given that I was leaving the US two days after my birthday to the land of (soy) milk and (date) honey, where it has been fairly consistently sunny and warm (aka Paradise. I’ve gone to the beach more times since I’ve been here than I have in the last few years. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that my Ulpan (Hebrew language school) is about a block away from the water) I thought it was necessary to try and make as many autumny recipes as possible before I left, so for my second birthday cupcake (the first being the Apple Orchard cupcake) I of course had to do something with pumpkin.

Vegan Pumpkin Spice Latte (not chai) at Peacefood Cafe Downtown in New York City

While I briefly discussed that the cupcakes I have been making are all part of a theme, what I didn’t reveal was that I actually have a whole list of cupcakes to make sitting on my phone, combining seasonal ingredients, with tea and/or booze into awesome cupcakes. Well some of them are seasonal, some are based off of favorite cocktails, while others are inspired by well known tea based drinks. Mental cupcake creation is one of my favorite things to do when I have a long trip to take, and as I dream up cupcake combinations, I have finally taken care to write all of them down. The task now, is to slowly test out these cupcake combinations to see what works, what doesn’t, what’s popular, what I can effectively make gluten free etc.

Rumpkin Pie Chai cupcakes with the pumpkin peeking through a patch of frosting. Garnished with a sprig of thyme.

There were several factors that went into the creation of this cupcake. First, how to best incorporate some booze into the already popular Chai Latte cupcake from VCTOW (that’s Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World…I’m not going to pull a Rachael Ray and always say the abbreviation and what it stands for, I promise). This is one of my dad’s favorite cupcakes, and the best part is, they’re super simple to make on their own. I thought a good spiced rum would fit nicely with the flavor profile, so that was settled quite easily. Then came choosing an appropriate filling. On my list I actually have written both pumpkin pie and cashew cardamom mousse. I wanted something that would meld nicely with the spices already present in the cake, but when it came down to it, the pumpkin craze had already begun, and nothing could beat a chai spiced cake with a deliciously creamy pumpkin pie filling. I generally consider spiking my frostings, just for the extra dose of booze, but because I was making these in tandem with the apple cupcakes (rather than packing….sorry Dad. And Jordan. I bake when I’m stressed, ok?) I needed to make my life a little easier and use only one frosting for both cupcakes. So on went the cinnamon buttercream. The last element to these cupcakes were attempting to make them gluten free. I have tried several different flour mixes for cupcakes with varying successes. This time, I used some leftover from the mix suggested in The Allergen-Free Bakers Handbook by Cybele Pascal. I’ve found that this mix creates a cupcake that is a little more dense than I would like, but the secret to the chai cupcake recipe is the addition of some non dairy yogurt, which creates a moist, light cake. I wanted to see if the combination of the yogurt with the flour blend would create a more satisfactory texture. Good news: it did!

Autumn in Israel

Frequently, when I write down my cupcake ideas, I like to dream them up as the perfect package, complete with elegant if not time consuming garnishes. After all, I would eventually like to sell these (in which case maybe I should stop giving away all my secrets!), but usually, I just don’t have the time to make some of these complicated little additions, nor can I necessarily finance all the resources. For example on the apple cupcakes, I really wanted to throw on a little piece of pie crust, because yum. Crust is totally the best part of the pie. Also, they go crazy for garnishes like that on cupcake wars, but when it came down to it, not only was in nice to have a slice of fresh, crisp apple on top, it also added a nicer color, and, took significantly less work. When it came to garnishing the Rumpkin cupcakes, I found they needed a pop of color to brighten them up. Luckily, I had some sprigs of thyme that had dried up in my fridge, and added the perfect touch of color/actual pumpkin patch vibe I was going for. While I didn’t intend them to add anything flavor-wise, thyme and pumpkin make a pretty nice pair, though you could also probably use a sprig of rosemary or even a sage leaf (talk about an autumn classic, pumpkin and sage).

And now for the recipe:

Chai Cupcake (adapted from VCTOW)

1 scant cup non dairy milk
4 black tea bags or 2 tbsp loose black tea
1/4 c dark or spiced rum
1/4 c canola oil
1/2 c vanilla or plain non dairy yogurt
3/4 c granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 c gluten free flour blend*
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
Pinch to 1/8 tsp ground white or black pepper

*I used the the flour mix from the Allergen-Free Bakers Handbook, but you could try whatever you have on hand (or regular flour, and leave out the xanthan gum). I just can’t vouch for the final product using a different gluten free flour combo.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line muffin pan with cupcake liners. Heat the milk in a small saucepan over medium heat until almost boiling. Add tea bags, remove from heat and cover. Let sit for about 10 minutes, then squeeze all the excess milk from the tea bag/leaves and discard. Measure the tea mixture, and rather than top off with milk, top off with rum, so the mixture equals 1 cup of liquid. (This is why you can even start off with a little bit less milk even). In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, yogurt, sugar, vanilla, and the tea mixture until all lumps disappear. Sift in flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and all the spices into the wet ingredients. Mix until large lumps disappear; some small lumps are ok. Fill tins full and bake about 20 to 22 minutes until a sharp knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool.

Pumpkin Pie Filling

1/2 can pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling, you want plain old pumpkin)
1/2 c coconut milk
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1 tbsp tapioca starch (cornstarch would probably work too)
1/4 c sugar or maple syrup or to taste
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp allspice
pinch of cloves
1 tsp vanilla extract
1-2 tbsp spiced rum

Combine everything but the vanilla and the rum in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until well combined and smooth, then cook until it just starts to boil, stirring frequently. The mixture should smooth out even more and then thicken to a thick, custard-like consistency. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla and rum.

Cinnamon Buttercream*

1/2 c nonhydrogenated vegan margarine
1/2 c nonhydrogenated shortening
3 1/2 c confectioners sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2-4 tbsp non-dairy milk

*You really only need a half batch for 12 cupcakes. I made this whole recipe in conjunction with the apple cupcakes, and was able to frost 2 dozen with this amount of frosting.

Beat the shortening and margarine together until well combined. Add the sugar and cinnamon and beat for another about 3 minutes more. Add the vanilla and 2 tbsp of the non dairy milk. Beat for another 5 to 7 minutes until fluffy. If it is too dry add more milk, 1 tbsp at a time.

To assemble:

Put the pumpkin pie filling in a piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Using your pinky finger, poke a hole in each cupcake. Fill with as much pumpkin pie filling as you can, leaving a nice round dollop of filling on top of the cupcake. Fit a separate piping bag with a star tip and fill with the cinnamon buttercream. Pipe little star flowers all around the pumpkin. Garnish with a sprig of something green.

Sorry for the lack of pictures with this post! I was in the middle of moving, and didn’t think to take more. Mostly, I’m happy I took five minutes to write down these recipes. Also, I probably should have gotten this out sooner, but good thing pumpkin is still entirely appropriate to eat throughout November!

November 3, 2013 By Ashley

Recipes

Vegan Apple Orchard Cupcakes

It’s been a few years since I’ve had the opportunity to go apple picking, but nonetheless, apples are still one of my favorite fruits. As much as I don’t look forward to fall (I know blasphemous, but I really dislike cold weather, even autumn cold) I still look forward to apple season, when I can get fresh crisp apples in all kinds of sweet and tart varieties. My favorite apples are usually a pleasant blend of sweet and tart, with just a hint of berry in the finish, like the pink lady apple. And while I definitely prefer all of my fruit fresh, apples are probably my favorite to eat cooked into a pastry, be it pie, cake or muffins. It came as no surprise then, when I discovered Woodchuck hard cider about two years ago, and instantly fell in love. It’s the perfect drink to casually sip, and never gets old given the preponderance of seasonal flavors and special batches. I particularly like the Summer blend, with it’s hint of blueberry, as well as the 802, which is slightly richer and has some deep caramel notes. Of course it was completely necessary to turn my favorite drink into a cupcake, one which is perfect for a northeastern autumn—or my birthday, which falls at the end of September. I hadn’t planned on making my own birthday cupcakes this year, but I accidentally joked about doing so when I invited my friend out for my birthday party, and everyone kinda took that seriously. So I heeded their advice and made not one but two kinds of cupcakes (the second of which I’ll post about at a later date).

Woodchuck Winter and Woodchuck Pink

I blended the cider into a cake with just a hint of warming cinnamon, and then filled it with a scrumptious spiked apple filing, and topped it off with a cinnamon buttercream. It’s garnished with a slice of fresh apple, and drizzled with a little dulce de leche. The first time I made these, I actually used several different spices in the cake, but I found that they overpowered the cider, whereas I think cinnamon will be complementary, and add that hint of warmth we expect with apple cakes, without overpowering the cider flavor.

Apple Orchard cupcakes in all their glory

Cupcakes:

3/4 c hard apple cider, such as Woodchuck 802
1/4 c non dairy milk
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 1/4 c all-purpose flour
2 tbsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
3/4 c brown sugar
1/3 c canola oil
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners Combine the non dairy milk and the vinegar, and set aside while you mix the cider, sugar, oil and vanilla together in a large bowl. Add the milk mixture, and beat (a fork does the trick) until the mixture looks fairly homogenous. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture in two batches, mixing well before adding the second batch. The batter should be fairly smooth, with only some small lumps remaining. Add the batter to the liners, filling until each is about 3/4 full. Bake for 18-22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool.

Apple filling in progress, complete with bourbon

Apple filling:

1 medium sized apple, diced small. Skins on or off. (I used a pink lady apple and left the skins on for color)
1-2 tbsp Earth Balance (or other non hydrogenated vegan margarine)
2 tbsp maple syrup (or to taste)
1/2-1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup water
3 tbsp liquor of choice*

*I used bourbon here because that’s what I had and I didn’t want to buy a whole new bottle of something since I was moving out of my place the next day, but I think an apple brandy would also be excellent in this filling. Melt the margarine in a skillet over medium heat, add the diced apples and sauté for about five minutes until they just start to caramelize, add the cinnamon, water, and maple syrup and cook until soft, then let the water reduce until there’s only about a tablespoon of liquid left. Now add the liquor, and (VERY CAREFULLY, this step is not entirely necessary, mostly it’s fun) light it aflame! Let the flames burn out, then cook down until there’s only a tablespoon or so of liquid left. We don’t want soggy cupcakes. Remove from heat, and set aside to cool. Cinnamon Buttercream (adapted from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World):

1/2 c non-hydrogenated shortening
1/2 c non-hydrogenated vegan margarine (like Earth Balance)
3 1/2 c confectioners sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2-4 tbsp non dairy milk

*You really only need a half batch for 12 cupcakes. I made this whole recipe in conjunction with the chai cupcakes, and was able to frost 2 dozen with this amount of frosting.

Cupcake assembly process

To assemble:

1 apple (I used another pink lady)
Dulce de Leche*
Piping bag fitted with a large star tip
Paring knife
a few tbsp of lemon juice

*I used this recipe to a T because I already had it on hand, but if I were to make it specifically for this recipe, I would probably substitute the Jameson for apple brandy. Just make sure you match the liquor to what you use in the filling. Using the paring knife, cut a circle out of the top of the cupcake, so you end up removing a small cone of cake (you can almost see it in the picture). Do not discard the excess cake! Add about a teaspoon of the apple filling to the center, so the hole is just full. Fill the piping bag with buttercream and pipe a beautiful swirl over the top of the cake to cover the filling. Take the apple, and cut off one side, close to the core (but don’t cut into the core). Slice that side into very thin slices (so they look similar to the photo all the way above), discarding (ie eating…ok or maybe sharing with the dog if you’re nice) the weird triangular ends. Dip the slices in lemon juice and pat dry. Place the cake piece you cut out just off center of the cupcake, with the smooth part perpendicular to the cupcake surface. Now lay the apple slice over the cupcake, so it is leaning on the little cake cone. Drizzle the with dulce de leche, and serve! While these look fairly delicate, I managed to transport them from my apartment to a dinner and then a bar with my friends, and then even managed to take the (one) leftover cupcake to my mom’s in NJ.

October 25, 2013 By Ashley

Uncategorized

Everything’s Bigger in Moscow: Vegan in Russia

Going to Russia was pretty scary. Not only do I not speak the language, but I also couldn’t even read the language (until I started doing major night before flight research). Now why would anyone go to Russia you ask? Because the Russian airline Transaero had the cheapest flight to Israel by over $100 less, so I went to Russia. The options were a three hour layover and a thirteen hour layover, and I figured when else would I go to Moscow practically for free, so I got a visa and gave it a go.

The first mistake I made was not calling my airline to double check that they had my dietary needs noted. To be fair, I was moving 9000 miles and there are a lot of things I forgot to do. (My second mistake was not insisting that my carry on was too heavy because it contained electronics, which I found out were exempt only after I was transferring stuff to another suitcase in the middle of check in). I only assume a vegan diet can be accommodated because on the way over they did have a vegan meal for me (after I asked, and clumsily explained I couldn’t have dairy). Definitely make sure you know how to say “milk” and “eggs” in Russian, though “vegetarian” seemed to be easily understood. My meal was rice with veggies in tomato sauce, plus some fruit, a slice of bread and smart balance. In the morning however, the breakfast options were pancakes or omelets, though I can’t be sure what the kosher breakfast was.

Aeroexpress train at Kievskaya Station

My seat mate on the way over was a Marine Corps veteran from West Virginia, who chewed tobacco the majority of the flight, asked very loud questions concerning the habits of the Hasidic Jews (inspired by the preponderance of black hats on the flight), and had a Russian wife, who was still in Russia. In the nine hours we were next to each other, he told me about training in Israel, Britain, Morocco, and the Philippines, plus how badass he thought Israeli women were after army training, and a few of the stupid things he did that got him docked a pay level (they included swimming in the English channel and getting tattoos). He also told me he hates flying now since he doesn’t have a parachute strapped to his back anymore, so he always gets drunk before getting on the plane. He detailed why his grandmother’s biscuits were so good, and how he learned to make Italian food from a friend’s mother in Brooklyn, and told me stories about being a truck driver. Honestly, this guy had to be at least as entertaining as an in-flight movie would have been, but of course, there was none on the nine hour flight over, just one on the three and a half hour flight from Moscow to Tel Aviv. I’ve determined this is because Transaero expects all of their customers to be so ecstatic about going back to the Mother Land, that they don’t need any other form of entertainment.

“Metro Kievskaya”

The weather in Moscow was cold and grey, which I found to be instantly depressing. As I made my way from the airport on the express train, Aeroexpress, to the city center, I formed a plan of action which revolved around getting to the Le Pain Quotidien in the Red Squarea as soon as possible because I needed breakfast. As I quickly discovered upon disembarking from the train, metro rides can only be purchased with cash, and as I had planned on using my card for everything, had none. A nice Russian guy took pity on me wandering aimlessly around the metro station and swiped me into the most architecturally grandiose metro station I had ever seen. I luckily found my train, thanks to my newfound ability to read Cyrillic, and took it to “Plotshadt Revolustuii” or Revolutionary Square, one of the three metro stations to serve the Red Sqaurea.

The tunnels of Kievskaya metro station

While my immediate concern was to find something for breakfast as soon as possible, I exited the station onto an enormous, but largely empty plaza, with no way to possibly find my bearings. While I knew the address of the restaurant was only a few blocks north of the square, I had no map street map to guide me. Based purely on hope (and maybe a little bit of instinct), I just began to walk towards the big buildings looming in front of me. After about 5 minutes of walking through the square, seemingly getting no where, I saw a big sign for Starbucks! Everyone from New York knows that Starbucks is the international sign for free bathrooms and free wifi. So, I went to Starbucks inside an exceedingly fancy mall and got a soy chai tea to drink while I charged my phone, contacted my parents to let them know I hadn’t been thrown into a Soviet prison, and screen capped maps on my phone in order to get to my ultimate destination, Le Pain Quotidien (or Хлеб Насущный “Khlebb Nasushchnyy” in Russian). While I found it quite ironic that I’d flown halfway across the world to end up in Starbucks, it was also a great place to stumble upon since the girls who worked there spoke more English, and I knew they would (almost) definitely have soy milk, a great snack in a pinch.

Where I found myself upon exiting the metro station. Disheartening, I know.

While Le Pain was in fact only a few blocks away, I found while dragging my suitcase over the cobblestones that blocks in Moscow were rather large. In fact the buildings on them also seemed to be larger than those in NY. I guess maybe they thought buildings and streets should be proportional to the size of the country. It was a relief to enter into the warm restaurant, where I sat in the cozy non-smokers section. Like the Le Pain Quotidiens in New York, everything that was vegan was very clearly labelled on the menu by an orange carrot, so unless you had any additional dietary restriction, it was unnecessary to ask any questions. I got the “Mediterranean platter” which came with a delicious eggplant spread, plain hummus, and the seasonal pumpkin hummus. Now I love hummus, but the pumpkin definitely didn’t work. It was served with three different kinds of bread. Nice and simple, though maybe not entirely culturally appropriate. I mean who goes to Moscow to eat hummus on their way to Israel? I do. After my meal, I figured it was high time to do a little sight seeing, and convinced myself to exit out into the cold. Had I done a little more planning, I could have gone to a vegetarian restaurant called Avocado near the city center that I saw recommended on several websites. Of course I would have worried a little about the language barrier, they supposedly did have some good vegan options.

The Kremlin is in the background. Also, it’s closed on Thursdays

Around the corner from Le Pain. Notice the building to person ratio (and the comically large windows)

This is not the one I went to, but the other one didn’t have a Cyrillic sign

And yes, I made sure to snap some pictures of St. Basil’s Cathedral

G.U.M. the former Soviet mall, now populated exclusively by high-end designers

I made my way back to Vnukovo airport several hours early, with enough time to grab a snack before my flight, before remembering that that would be nearly impossible. I also had some rubles left that I had wanted to use up, so after wandering the international departures terminal for far too long, I settled on going to a dessert place whose only vegan options seemed to be a few drinks and some vegan snack bars made of fruit and nuts. I drank a rather delicious Raspberry Basil frozen concoction, which had a rather smooth texture, rather like it was made with sorbet, rather than fruit and ice. I was glad because there was no accidental vegan meal on the next flight, and I was so hungry by the time they were serving food I almost cried (again, totally my fault for not calling ahead or packing adequate snacks). The male flight attendant once again rescued my and gave me surprise! more hummus, as well as 4 fruit cups. The female flight attendant had basically told me too bad they didn’t have anything, so I was especially grateful for bread, hummus, and fruit. I then happily settled in for a nap for the remainder of the flight to Tel Aviv, tired but brimming with excitement for what was to come.

October 19, 2013 By Ashley

Recipes

Tipsy Shades of Earl Grey

Some may say I should have opened with the title post, but as any good musical theatre fan will tell you, sometimes the show doesn’t even have a title song (My Fair Lady, Les Miserables…I could go on), but when it does, quite frequently it is not the opening number. Given the natural progression of concepts, I thought it was more appropriate to begin with the Car Bomb Cupcake, which got me into booze cakes in general, then lead you by the hand to the one thing I love more than booze cakes—tea. You may think I thought long and hard about this title, but the truth is, I happened to wake up one morning and think, “You know, it would be really funny if I started a tea and cupcake bar called Tipsy Shades of Earl Grey.” While it wasn’t a totally serious thought at the time, it did get me thinking about how to incorporate both liquor and tea into cupcakes, which was definitely something of a challenge, as I had really only made one tea infused cupcake before (Masala Chai, not Earl Grey). The rules of the challenge were that cupcakes had to include either tea or alcohol, but preferably both, in complimentary combinations. I also decided tisanes, such as Rooibus could be included as tea. Alcohol is exceedingly easy to incorporate, but tea, not so much. Despite being a big tea drinker (I can easily consume several cups a day), most of the tea I drink is flavored, but not necessarily flavors that are as classic as Earl Grey, or Masala Chai.

December Tea Party with Earl Grey tea from France

One would think my first creation along these lines would have been the classic Earl Grey cake, but instead, I was thinking more along the lines of something fit for a graduation celebration, and thus came up with a champagne cake with a champagne and rosewater infused strawberry filling, topped with white chocolate mousse, and champagne syrup. I did in fact make that cake, but the recipe definitely needs to be tweaked before I can share my secrets, so I’ll just leave you with this picture for the time being. (The folly of using an iPhone was that I had a better picture earlier on in the day, which didn’t save, so I hastily snapped new pictures of all the cupcakes I made that day with fading light, and unkempt wrappers).

Gluten-free champagne cupcake with champagne and rosewater infused strawberries, vegan white chcoolate mousse, and a strawberry “flower” garnish.

And now, what I know you have all been waiting for: The Tipsy Shades of Earl Grey cupcake. This cupcake is so steeped in pop culture—from the popular literary reference, to food worlds new obsession with infusing Earl Grey tea into everything—I should probably change its name to the PopCulture Cake (the earl of pop culture?) While it isn’t the booziest cake I’ve ever made, far from it in fact, it has a really unique flavor profile. The cake has beautifully moist, but light crumb, and a slightly citrusy flavor with complex undertone from the intense blend of tea that I used. Due to time constraints, the first time I made the Earl, I settled for just brushing the top of the cake with some Grand Marinier, but really, I wanted to make a Grand Marinier infused custard to inject into the center of the cake. From there, I dipped each cupcake in a rich, Earl Grey infused chocolate ganache. To be perfectly honest, the first time I saw Earl Grey chocolate, I was definitely a little skeptical about how the flavors would compliment each other. I bought it as a gift for my stepmom’s birthday because two of her favorite things are Earl Grey tea and chocolate, and this was a neat little package that was too hard to resist. Luckily for us, it was quite tasty, and she enjoyed the chocolate a lot, so I had a good feeling that repeating the combination on a cupcake would go over well.

Mini citrus fruit in a tea cup

What is Earl Grey tea anyway? It is not in fact a specific variety of camellia sinensis, the plant that tea leaves come from. It is simply black tea flavored either with bergamot oil. According to the incredibly reliable Wikipedia, one may also find such delights as “Lady Grey” tea—which includes either lavender or Seville orange peel in addition to the bergamot, “French Earl Grey” which includes rose petals, and “Russian Earl Grey” which includes either more citrus peels, or lemongrass in addition to the bergamot. Given the preponderance of rather complicated tea flavors nowadays, Earl Grey is quite simple, but also exceedingly delicious. (I just wanted to point out, I feel like the register of language I’m using became way more elevated once I started discussing the tea. Clearly my brain correctly associates “tea” and “Earl” with British aristocracy and an elevated form of English).

Earl grey cupcake brushed with Grand Marinier, topped with Earl Grey chocolate ganache and a twist of orange and lemon zest as garnish

Earl Grey cupcake (from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World):

1 c non dairy milk
4 Earl Grey tea bags or 2 tbsp loose leaf Earl Grey tea
1/4 c canola oil
1/2 c vanilla or plain non dairy yogurt (just don’t use the new Greek style yogurts. They are much harder to work with.)
3/4 c granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 c all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1/2 tsp orange zest

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and line a muffin pan with cupcake liners. Heat non dairy milk in a small saucepan over medium heat until almost boiling. Add tea, cover, and remove from heat. Let sit for 10 minutes, then squeeze the tea to remove as much liquid (and flavor) as possible. Discard the tea. Measure the milk mixture and add some more if it is less than 1 cup. In a large bowl, whisk together oil, yogurt, sugar vanilla, and tea mixture until all yogurt lumps disappear. Yogurt tip: if you buy the individual serving cartons, which are usually 6 oz, just dump it in with out measuring, but don’t scrape out the container! It’s much easier than actually measuring out 1/2 a cup but you end up with the same amount.

Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and zests into the wet ingredients and mix until the large cupcakes disappear; some small lumps are ok. Fill tins full, and bake about 20 to 22 minutes, until a sharp knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool completely, then brush with Grand Marinier

Earl Grey Ganache:

1/4 c coconut cream (full fat coconut milk works just as well. The cream is just what solidifies at the top of the full fat coconut milk can)
1 Earl Grey tea bag or 2 tsp loose leaf Earl Grey
1/2 c semisweet chocolate (chocolate chips are fine, as is a bar that has been chopped up)
2 tbsp maple syrup

Heat the coconut milk in small saucepan until almost boiling. Add the tea, remove from heat, and let sit for about 7 minutes. Squeeze the leaves to extract excess liquid and thus infuse more flavor into the milk. Add the chocolate and maple syrup and stir until smooth. Let cool slightly, then dip the top of each cupcake into the ganache, and let cool until set. Garnish with twists of lemon and orange zest (there are zesters that will take tiny strips off for you, or you can use a vegetable peeler to take of large strips and use a pairing knife to turn them into tiny strips).

If you wanted to fill the cupcake with a Grand Marinier pudding (not giving a recipe since I haven’t actually made this yet), you could leave off the Grand Marinier that’s brushed on top of the cupcake. Or not, if you want to up to booze factor just a little bit.

October 12, 2013 By Ashley

Recipes

The Vegan Cook-Off

As I mentioned in my last post, the recipe was invented as an entry for the vegan bake-off, but I unfortunately wasn’t accepted as a competitor. When I got an email saying there would be a second competition, I didn’t hesitate to sign up. Luckily for me, it was an appetizer round, and I knew just the dish to enter. It was something I had dreamed up several years before while watching The Next FoodNetwork Star, as I am wont to do. I can’t even remember what challenge inspired me, but I kept it in mind until last Hanukkah, when I needed a savory snackum to round out the fried confections I was also serving.

This is what I eventually called “Deconstructed Hummus and Pita”, though the name didn’t come until it was necessary to give it a name for the competition. It is a zatar rubbed pita crisp, topped with a dollop of creamy tahini sauce (or as the tahini jar calls, techina salad), lemon sesame roasted chickpeas, and just a drop of fiery zhoug. Zhoug, is a Yemenite hot sauce made with chiles, garlic, and cilantro (there are also red versions).

The competition took place in early June at the Bell House in Brooklyn. Competitors had to arrive with their dish fully cooked, and were given a small table on which they could assemble and display their dish. My dad came to help out for the first hour, but given the space constraints, we weren’t able to assemble even close to the 250 required samples. As they announced the start of the competition, I looked up from my tupperware and spoons to see an extremely large and daunting crowd of hungry people, lined up and ready to eat. I felt like I ran out of assembled samples within the first fifteen minutes, and if it weren’t for an incredibly kind audience member (I’m not sure if audience is the best description), I probably would have been out there making pita crisps into the wee hours of the night.

After a whirlwind two hours of serving up samples, the crowd was quieted down, and the judging began. There were three peoples choice winners and three winners picked by the judges. Each judge introduce the winner by first announcing a runner up, dishes that were good or interesting, but had a technical flaw. The third place runner up was an Artichoke soup, with a beautiful velvety texture, but was unfortunately under seasoned. The judge who announced the third place prize was the one non-vegan judge. He began by saying the third place winner was so simple, they felt like it was wrong to choose it, but in the end, they had to because they kept going back for more. And then they called my name! The second place winner was a french cheese log, and in first place was a “pulled pork” barbecue jackfruit potsticker, which I unfortunately didn’t get a chance to try. All in all, it was a really exciting experience that I would totally compete in again. Here is the list of all the winners with descriptions of their dishes. https://www.facebook.com/events/582557058436070/ If you scroll down, there are also some pictures that were taken, including one of me onstage, in true 50s housewife form.

And now for that recipe (remember quantities are approximate; taste everything):

Pita Crisps

Flat-bread pita (4 usually makes a good amount)
1/4 c olive oil
2-3 tbsp zatar
2-3 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Mix together oil, zatar and salt. Dredge the pita in the oil mixture using your figures to distribute the seasoning evenly. You can do this before or after you cut the pita. It takes longer if the pita is cut, but the seasoning is distributed a little better. Either way is delicious! Cut the pita into 8 wedges, then cut each wedge in half crosswise, so you have 16 triangles (don’t cut them lengthwise, we’re not making pita strips). Make sure both sides are well seasoned, then lay flat on a cookie sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, turning once about halfway through. You want the pita to be golden and thoroughly crisp. If they are browning too quickly, you can turn your oven down 25 degrees.

Techina

1 c tahini
1 c water
juice of one lemon
2-3 cloves of garlic
pinch of salt

Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender and process til smooth. Adjust the water and salt, depending on how thick you like the sauce to be. It will also thicken in the fridge.

Roasted Chickpeas

1 16 oz can of chickpeas
2-3 tbsp techina
juice of half a lemon
zest of one lemon
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp paprika

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, and mix until the chickpeas are thoroughly coated with the sauce. Tasted and adjust salt and lemon. I like it to have a pretty bright lemony flavor. Transfer to a casserole pan (I’ve used lasagne sized pans as well as a pie plate). Bake for about an hour, stirring every 10-15 minutes, so the sauce cooks evenly over the chickpeas. They are done when the techina is pretty dry and brown. The chickpeas should be nice and chewy, not crunchy.

Zhoug

1 bunch of cilantro
2-3 chile peppers, seeds left in or removed, depending on how hot you want it
2 cloves of garlic
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp cumin
a few tbsp oil or water to seal the paste

Combine all ingredients except the liquid in a food processor and pulverize to oblivion! Stream in the liquid and pulse to combine.

To assemble: Top a pita crisp with a dollop of techina, 3 or 4 chickpeas and a dot of zhoug (or more if you want it hotter).

I wanted to post this sooner, but I figured now it’s extra appropriate since I just moved to Israel! Enjoy!

October 4, 2013 By Ashley

Recipes

Beer, Baileys, and Cupcakes

I’ve gotten a lot of requests for a food blog in the last few years, and I figured the time was ripe to give in to peer pressure.

This is the “Irish Car Bomb” cupcake, named after the drink (I apologize if you find that drink offensive, but I didn’t make it up). I invented this recipe when I decided to enter the vegan bake-off last February. I think I applied too late (too late for another cupcake anyway), so I didn’t get to compete with it, but I did make it for fun several weeks later as a treat for my coworkers. I then improved on the recipe for my friends 21st birthday a few weeks after that.

This cake is all vegan, all the time. In fact, I considered calling this blog “The Olive Branch” because I feel like a plant based symbol of peace of was an appropriate description my cuisine. Alas, tea, booze and cupcakes have managed to take over, and this is the one that started it all.

This cupcake is a chocolate stout cake, with a Jameson chocolate truffle baked into the center, topped with a homemade “Bailey’s” (or I guess I could just say dairy free Irish creme) buttercream, and drizzled with a Jameson spiked dulce de leche. I know there’s no tea in these, but in order to get to tea time, I had to go through booze time.

I did adapt the cupcakes into a whole cake recently (yesterday) which made me realize that I’m not particularly fond of making whole cakes. From here on out, I will only be taking orders for cupcakes. And now, for the recipe. There are a lot of components, but most of them can be made well in advance.

A note on my cooking: when I cook, I generally tend not to have any kind of recipe, and to just dump things into a pot or pan and see what happens, but I can at least try to guesstimate proportions when I post stuff now. I do use actual recipes when I bake, so those are easier to provide, though they also still generally involve a fair bit of tweaking.

Dulce de (coco) leche (adapted from Alton Brown):

1 can full fat coconut milk
1 can light coconut milk
1 cup of sugar
1 vanilla bean, split with seeds scraped
1/2 tsp of baking soda
Irish whiskey (I used Jameson)

Combine the coconut milks, sugar and vanilla bean and seeds into a size pan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and stir occasionally until the sugar has dissolved, then stir in the baking soda (the mixture bubbled up quite violently when I did this, so I would definitely lower the heat first). Bring back to a gentle simmer, and cook for an hour, stirring occasionally. After an hour, remove the vanilla bean, and then continue to cook until it is a dark caramel color, about 2 hours. Turn off the heat and incorporate the whiskey. The thicker the mixture, the stronger you can make it (since you can use the whiskey to thin it out). Strain through a fine mesh sieve and allow to cool. Serve on cupcakes or ice cream (or on a spoon…or finger as was the case last night). Store in the fridge (I keep mine in a squeeze bottle).

Irish Cream

1 can of full fat coconut milk
1 can of light coconut milk
1/2 cup of sugar (brown sugar works too!)
3/4 cup espresso or strong coffee (I used a heaping tablespoon of instant coffee dissolved into 3/4 cup hot water
1 heaping tablespoon cocoa powder
Whiskey to taste (about 1 cup, but really, make it as strong as you want it)

Combine the sugar and coconut milks in a pot and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally until the sugar dissolves. Simmer for about 10 minutes, until just slightly reduced, and stir in the coffee mixture. Remove from heat and add the whiskey. Enjoy over ice, stirred into coffee, hot chocolate, soy milk! Store in the fridge.

Jameson chocolate truffles (adapted from Chloe’s Kitchen)

1/2 cup full fat coconut milk, with the cream stirred in
1 1/2 cups of semi-sweet (or bittersweet) chocolate, either chips or chopped
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt
2 shots worth of whiskey

Warm coconut milk in a sauce pan over medium heat, until barely boiling. Add chocolate and stir until smooth. Remove from heat and add vanilla, salt and whiskey. Pour in a pie plate or loaf pan and chill until firm. Form into walnut sized balls, using a tablespoon and freeze until ready to use. If you want a stronger truffle, I would reduce the amount of coconut milk before adding more Jameson because we want the ganache to set up firm.

Cupcakes (adapted from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World)

1/4 cup non-dairy milk
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 cup plus 2 tbsps all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder (I prefer Cocoa Rouge by Guittard. It has a really deep chocolatey flavor that is exceedingly smooth, rather than bitter)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup canola oil
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup stout (I used Brooklyn Brewery chocolate stout. Most Guinness is not vegan in the US)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, and fill a cupcake tin with liners.

Combine the milk and vinegar in a large bowl, and let stand (to curdle just a little) while you work on the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Combine the milk mixture with the stout, sugar, oil and vanilla. Stir together until foamy and well combined. Add the dry ingredients to the wet in two batches, mixing until well combined, about 2 minutes. Distribute the batter evenly among the cupcake tin, so each is about 3/4 of the way full. Place a frozen truffle on top of each cupcake, and bake about 18-22 minutes. The cake should spring back lightly at your touch. It will not be possible to use the toothpick test for doneness because of the truffle, which should have become encased in batter while baking. Let cool before frosting.

“Bailey’s” buttercream

1/2 cup Earth Balance (I prefer sticks for frosting)
1/2 cup shortening
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tbsp espresso powder
1 tbsp whiskey
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup vegan Irish Cream

Beat together shortening and margarine until fluffy. Add sugar and cocoa pwder and beat a few minutes longer, until well combined. Then add the espresso powder, whiskey, vanilla and “Baileys” Beat together about 5 minutes, until smooth and creamy.

To assemble: either pipe or spread frosting onto cooled cupcakes. Drizzle with dulce de leche. Eat and repeat.

Here’s a picture of the full sized cake version. Making this was definitely a case of Murphy’s Law, as one thing after another tried to trip me up. Tweaks I made to convert this include adding more liquid as well as some Earth Balance into the ganache, so as to make it spreadable. Turned out, even though I loved the consistency, I think I over filled the layers, and ended up with ganache oozing out into the icing, so that’s where the chocolate shavings came in. The writing was dulce de leche mixed with confectioner’s sugar in order to stiffen it up a little bit. The birthday boy and friend thought it looked great (though I would have liked to make a cleaner presentation of it), and gave me ultimate praise for taste.

Whew! Well that was quite the recipe typing marathon. I promise I don’t always make stuff that is this complicated, but I can promise it will always be delicious!

September 18, 2013 By Ashley

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