Sticky Toffee Pudding Cheesecake

I briefly mentionined this cheesecake a while ago, and now am finally posting it! I made it for Christmas dinner's dessert and everyone, including myself, loved it. (And so you can see why it all looks a mess as I was more concerned with just serving it to everyone versus it being beautiful. Though it is still beautiful to me.)

There's a graham cracker crust which goes up the sides of the cheesecake, a layer of cheesecake, a layer of toffee sauce, a layer of sticky toffee pudding cake, topped by another layer of toffee sauce, broiled and THEN topped with more toffee sauce. Delicious delicious. It's a great special event dessert and though it takes a bit of time to make, it's not difficult.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Cheesecake Pops
Lemon Cheesecake
Pumpkin Cheesecake
Brown Sugar Apple Cheesecake

Sticky Toffee Pudding Cheesecake
Slightly adapted from Willow Bird Baking who used Food Network’s pudding recipe

Makes 12 servings

Cheesecake
2 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 large eggs

Sticky Toffee Pudding
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup pitted dates, finely chopped
1 1/4 cups boiling water
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Toffee Sauce
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup packed light brown sugar

Make the cheesecake: Preheat the oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9" springform pan. In a bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs and butter, making sure to moisten all the crumbs. Using a flat-sided glass, press into a thin layer covering the bottom and sides of your cheesecake pan. The crumbs should come up the side of the pan 2.5 inches. Bake the crust for 6 minutes and let it cool as you make your cheesecake filling.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and sugar on medium-high speed until well blended. Beat in the flour. Beat in the vanilla until well incorporated. (Scrape down the sides of the bowl as necessary.) Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl between each addition. Pour the filling into your crust.

Bake until the top is lightly browned, puffed and cracked around the edges, and the center moves only very slightly when the pan is lightly shaken (about 40 minutes). Check while baking periodically and put a pie shield (or strips of foil) around the top of your pan to protect the crust edges if they’re getting too dark. (If you do this, make sure the shield/foil doesn't touch the cheesecake.) Let cheesecake cool at room temperature for at least 3 hours, then put in the fridge to chill overnight or for 8 hours.

Make Sticky Toffee Pudding: In the meantime, grease a 9-inch round cake pan. Place a parchment paper round in it to line the bottom.

In a bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder. In a separate small bowl, mix the dates, boiling water, and baking soda. Set this aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy (2-3 minutes). Add the egg and vanilla and beat to combine. Gradually add in the flour mixture, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Gently fold in the date mixture with a spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until the pudding is set up and firm, about 35 minutes (jiggle the pan and watch the middle). Let the pudding cool completely in the pan on a wire rack before inverting it onto a parchment paper lined plate. If you are going to assemble the cake right away, after cooling put the cake in the freezer to firm up, otherwise put it in the fridge overnight (covered with plastic wrap).

Make the Toffee Sauce: In a small saucepan, combine the butter, heavy cream and brown sugar. Bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Turn the heat down to medium low, and boil gently for about 8 minutes, or until the mixture is thickened.

Assemble the cake: Preheat the broiler. Spoon about 1/3 cup of toffee sauce onto the surface of your cheesecake to serve as a “glue” and gently place your sticky toffee pudding layer on top, pressing to adhere. Top this layer with about 1/3 cup of the toffee sauce and spread this around evenly on top. Place the cake under the broiler until the topping is bubbly, about 1 minute (keep a close watch and rotate for even bubbling if necessary). Carefully remove the sides of the springform pan. Serve slices with extra toffee sauce, and whipped cream or ice cream (if desired).

Whole Wheat Buttermilk Drop Biscuits

I had some leftover buttermilk - though now I have no idea what it was for, maybe the pralines I made my mom - and we were going away for a few days so I went to search for a quick and easy buttermilk recipe. I love biscuits and love when I can make biscuits and don't have to roll out any dough!

These are super quick to put together as you just whisk the dry, whisk the wet, stir together and drop onto a cookie sheet. I went with all whole wheat flour and was a bit scared as to whether they'd be too dry but they turned out really well and E was in love with them.

I forgot to say thanks to the people who shared some of their things they were grateful/happy about last week - it made me happy to read!

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Squirrelly Scones
Peppered Pear and Goat Cheese Scones
Three Seed Biscuits
Baking Powder Biscuits

Whole Wheat Buttermilk Drop Biscuits
Adapted from Pink Parsley who adapted from Cook's Illustrated

makes 9-10 biscuits

2 cups white whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp sea salt
1 cup cold buttermilk
8 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 475F.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the melted butter and buttermilk, stirring until small clumps are formed.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and use a rubber spatula to stir, until they are just incorporated, and the batter starts to pull away from the sides.

Use a large cookie scoop (or a greased 1/4-cup measuring cup) to scoop out the dough and drop on an ungreased baking sheet, spacing the biscuits about 1 1/2 inches apart. Each biscuit should be about 2 inches in diameter and 1 inch high.

Bake until the tops are crisp and golden-brown, 12-14 minutes.

Hummingbird Cake

It's been so long since I've posted a cake recipe!! And I forgot to take a picture of the whole cake, oops.

I made this for a family dinner and everyone seemed to enjoy it. The cake has banana, pineapple and pecans, and then it's covered in a cream cheese frosting. It is my firm belief that you can never go wrong with cream cheese frosting. The cake mostly tasted like banana and I was disappointed to not taste the pineapple. But I suppose the cake can be forgiven for that as it was really moist and soft.

I'm glad I tried it and would recommend it if you like banana cakes, but for me I'd rather try a different cake next time.

If this sounds good you might also like:
Rustic Chocolate Chip Banana Oat Cake
Apple Walnut Cake with Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting
Toasted Pecan Eggnog Ring
Maple-Walnut Cake

Hummingbird Cake
Adapted from The Magnolia Bakery Cookbook

Cake
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups canola oil
2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups mashed, very ripe bananas
1 eight-ounce can crushed pineapple in unsweetened juice, drained
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Frosting
2 eight ounce packages cream cheese, softened slightly, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened slightly, cut into small pieces
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

Preheat oven to 325F. Prepare two 9"x2" round cake pans by lining the bottom with parchment paper and greasing the sides with butter.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In the work bowl of an electric mixer (fitted with the paddle attachment), add the oil and sugar. Beat on medium until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until light, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the vanilla, bananas and pineapple. Then add the dry ingredients in thirds, beating after each addition until smooth. Fold in the pecans.

Divide the batter between the prepared pans and bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cakes cool in pans for 10 minutes, then remove from pans and cool completely on wire racks.

To make the frosting: In the work bowl of an electric mixer (fitted with the paddle attachment), add the cream cheese and butter. Beat until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the vanilla extract. Gradually add the sugar and beat until well incorporated.

When cake has cooled, spread some of the frosting between the layers, then frost the top and sides of the cake with the cream cheese frosting.

Black Russian Rye Bread

Usually I buy Silver Hills Squirrelly bread but occasionally I'll buy black Russian bread from the grocery store which I love. And when I do buy the black Russian bread I usually use it for one of my favourite meals - autumn panzanella. I want to bake bread more often so thought this was a good one to try making at home. The ingredient list is crazy including unsweetened chocolate, caraway seeds, fennel seeds, espresso powder, shallot, cornmeal, molasses, apple cider vinegar, wheat bran and various flours.

I was really happy with how it turned out - very soft but with a slight chew. Not surprisingly very flavourful. Definitely a success. It's not the kind of bread that I like eating on its own everyday (ex. toasted with butter or cheese) as it does have a strong flavour, but to use it occasionally to make a sandwich is a nice change. Years ago I remember making this vegetarian reuben (with avocado instead of corned beef). This bread would be perfect for a reuben.

One thing I did not like was that it has you set the dough on a mixture of cornmeal, flour and caraway seeds. The caraway seeds were too strong for me so I'd recommend omitting them (not from the dough just from this extra step).

I'm submitting this bread to YeastSpotting.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Yeasted Garlic Zucchini Bread
Freshly Fruited Yeast Bread
Carob Pumpernickel Bread
Buttermilk Honey Bread

Black Russian Rye Bread
Adapted from The Bread Bible

Makes 2 medium round loaves

1/2 cup warm water (105 to 115F)
2 tbsp active dry yeast
Pinch of sugar
1/2 cup molasses
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
4 tbsp Earth Balance vegan butter (or regular unsalted butter)
1 oz unsweetened chocolate
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
3 cups dark rye flour
3 cups bread flour
1 cup wheat bran
2 tbsp caraway seeds
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp instant espresso powder
1 tbsp minced shallot
1/4 cup medium-grind yellow cornmeal
1 tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour

1. Put the warm water in a bowl or measuring cup. Add the yeast and sugar, stirring to dissolve. Let stand at room temperature for 10 minutes, or until foamy.

2. In a small pot, add 2 cups water, molasses, vinegar, butter, and chocolate. Heat to 105F to 115F. Ensure the butter and chocolate has melted. Set aside. In a separate large bowl, combine the whole wheat, rye bread flours. Set aside.

3. In the work bowl of a heavy-duty mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add 2 cups of the mixed flours, bran, caraway seeds, fennel seeds, salt, espresso, shallot, yeast mixture and chocolate mixture. Beat vigorously until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the remaining mixed flours 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough clears the sides of the bowl. You might not use all of the flour. The dough will be very sticky but firm.

4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead in any remaining flour mixture to make a springy yet dense dough, about 3 minutes. You might not need to use all of the flour. Form the dough into a ball.

5. Place the dough in an oiled bowl, turning it to ensure all sides have been oiled. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until doubled in bulk, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

6. In a small bowl, combine the cornmeal and flour. Prepare a baking sheet with parchment or a Silpat. Sprinkle the cornmeal/flour mixture on the baking sheet.

7. Gently deflate the dough. Divide into 2 equal portions and shape each into a tight round loaf. Place the loaves, seam side down, on the baking sheet. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise until puffy and almost doubled in bulk, 45 minutes to 1 hour.

8. Twenty minutes prior to baking, preheat the oven to 350F.

9. Using a serrated knife, slash the top of the loaves with an X no more than 1/4 inch deep. Place the baking sheet on the center rack of the oven and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the loaves are crusty and sound hollow when tapped with your finger. Transfer the loaves to a cooling rack and cool completely before slicing.

Whole Grain Sour Cream Apple Muffins

Does anyone else make muffins as often as I do? I don't even love muffins actually. I much prefer scones. But muffins are easier to make and also easier to make healthy. Though why I try to make my muffins healthy, and then eat chips at night I have no idea.

Anyway, I got obsessed with the idea of a sour cream apple muffin, and found this whole grain version. They also have oat bran, raisins and walnuts. The muffins turned out soft, though a bit dry, but I think I overbaked them a bit. What's your favourite kind of muffin?

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Strawberry Lemon Sunflower Seed Muffins
Banana Peanut Butter Oatmeal Muffins
Maple Pecan Muffins
Morning Glory Muffins

Whole Grain Sour Cream Apple Muffins
Adapted from Pinch My Salt

Dry
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup oat bran
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon

Wet
1 cup sour cream
1/3 cup canola oil
2 eggs
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla

1 apple, diced
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare a 12 cup muffin tin by oiling or using liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients (flour through cinnamon). In a separate bowl, whisk together wet ingredients (sour cream through vanilla). Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Fold in apples, raisins, and nuts. Divide batter between the muffin cups.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Carrot Chia Spelt Muffins

This was the view from my office on Monday! I left work early and didn't go to work yesterday. I think the snow has mostly stopped for now, but it's going to be really cold (-13C, feels like -23C).

I love Angela's baked goods. She's always coming up with delicious new healthy snacks like these muffins. And it's no easy feat to create yummy AND healthy muffins. These ones have carrot, chia seeds, cacao nibs, spelt flour and raisins.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Blueberry Spice Spelt Muffins
Pineapple Carrot Ginger Muffins
Double Chocolate Avocado Muffins
Coconut Banana Muffins

Carrot Chia Spelt Muffins
Adapted from Oh She Glows

Makes 12 muffins

Dry:
2 cups spelt flour
3 tbsp raw cane sugar
1 1/2 tsp pumpkin spice
1/4 tsp sea salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tbsp cacao nibs
3 tbsp raisins

Wet:
2 tbsp chia seeds
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp non-dairy milk (I used unsweetened plain soy)
1 cup grated/shredded carrot
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 c maple syrup
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 375F. Prepare 12 cup muffin tin with oil or liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together wet ingredients. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and mix until combined (don't overmix). Divide batter evenly among the muffin cups.

Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Yeasted Garlic Zucchini Bread

So I didn't ask - how were everyone's Christmas and holidays? Any exciting gifts? Delicious foods? We spent time going around visiting all of our local family, which was great. I made Russian grandmothers' apple pie-cake for Christmas Eve dessert and a sticky toffee pudding cheesecake for Christmas day dessert. (And my favourite salad, which has toasted almonds, snow peas, red bell pepper, and a parsley onion dressing.) My favourite gift was a pyrrha wax seal necklace from E. Now that things are back to normal, I'm starting to catch up with your blogs and hear about your holidays!

This is the bread I used with the white bean & walnut bruschetta (highly recommend trying that too!) I doubt I would've made this recipe had I not been looking for ways to use up our CSA zucchini. But I'm really glad I was pushed into making this. You can't really tell there's zucchini in the bread, it just adds moisture. But you can definitely taste the garlic, which I love. The bread was nice and chewy, which I also loved. My dough flattened out a lot - maybe it needs even more flour (I added an extra cup) so I'd recommend trying to gather or shape the dough higher if possible. But there was also nothing wrong with this flat loaf. I'm submitting this bread to yeastspotting.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Freshly Fruited Yeast Bread
Pull-Apart Cheesy Onion Bread
Light Brioche Burger Buns
Hot Crossed Buns

Yeasted Garlic Zucchini Bread
Adapted from The Cook's Encyclopedia of Baking, found on Sizzle N Spice

Makes 1 Loaf

1 pound zucchini, grated
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 tbsp salt
1 package active dry yeast
11/4 cups lukewarm water
3 1/2 to 4 1/2 cups all purpose flour (original recipe calls for 3 1/2 cups, but I found it needed more)
Olive oil, for brushing

1. In a colander, alternate layers of grated zucchini and salt. Leave for 30 minutes, then squeeze out the moisture with your hands.

2. Combine the yeast with 1/4 cup of lukewarm water, stir and leave for 15 minutes to dissolve the yeast.

3. Place the zucchini, yeast and flour in a bowl. Stir together and add just enough of the remaining water to make a rough dough.

4. Transfer to a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with a plastic bag, and leave to rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 11/2 hours.

5. Grease a baking sheet. Punch down the risen dough with your fist and knead into a tapered cylinder. Place on the baking sheet, cover, and leave to rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 45 minutes.

6. Preheat the oven to 425F. Brush with olive oil and bake until golden, 40-45 minutes. Cool on a rack.

Banana Trail Mix Loaf

This very moist and soft loaf is my favourite vegan banana loaf. (My favourite non vegan banana bread is this banana apple one.) E thought it wasn't as sweet as regular banana bread - and it wasn't with only 1/3 cup sugar. But for me it's actually the perfect sweetness. Plus I added in some Trader Joe's Temping trail mix (with peanut butter chips, chocolate chips, dried cherries, almonds and cashews) which adds some sweetness. Sometimes I buy trail mix because it seems like a good idea but then I either forget to eat it, or don't want to eat it (like the giant bags of trail mix at Costco). I always get so sucked in by the Trader Joe's ones. So many enticing combinations!

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Mom's Banana Apple Bread
Apple Cinnamon Bread
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Loaf
Candied Maple Walnut Pancake Loaf

Banana Trail Mix Loaf
Adapted from ExtraVeganZa

Makes 1 loaf

2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup safflower oil
1/4 cup applesauce
1/3 cup natural cane sugar (Sucanat)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup nondairy milk (I used unsweetened plain soy)
1 1/4 cups bananas, mashed (about 3 bananas)
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 cups trail mix (for a vegan loaf, ensure your trail mix is vegan)

Preheat the oven to 350F. Prepare a 9"x5" loaf pan with foil, parchment, or oiling it. Set aside.

In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, combine the oil, applesauce, sugar, vanilla, nondairy milk, and vinegar, and whisk together until emulsified. Stir in the bananas. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and gently stir together, being careful not to over mix. Fold in the trail mix.

Transfer the mixture to the loaf pan, and smooth the top with the back of a spatula. Place the pan in the preheated oven and bake for about 60 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack.

Chocolate Caramel Crunch

Merry Christmas eve!!! And Merry Christmas as I won't be posting tomorrow. Hope you all have a wonderful time with family, friends and delicious food. :)

A snowman ornament I made this year.

Before I started my new job, I tried to write up a ton of blog posts since I have so many things I haven't blogged about. Which is how I've been updating my blog so frequently despite my great lack of free time! It's nice to just have them all ready. But I've been sneaking in some Christmas goodies so that you won't be seeing them in January when you're sick of them! Well I always love seeing Christmas baking and don't get sick of it but I imagine there are people who do, or who make resolutions to stop eating Christmas goodies after eating so many over the holidays. Anyway!

So here is one of the delicious things I made this here. I've wanted to make this since I first saw it on David Lebovitz's blog, then saw it on everybody likes sandwiches, then on Dinner with Julie. Finally it's on my blog! I like making at least one bark/candy type thing at Christmas. This one is super easy. You make caramel (but in a really easy way without a candy thermometer), pour it on top of crackers, bake, then top with chocolate. Next time I'll get the salted soda crackers because I love that salty sweet combination. It might sound bizarre to include crackers in this bark, but the caramel completely soaks into them. So they're more like a vessel for the caramel and to help add the crunch.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Chocolate Cookie Bark
Candy Cane Bark
Peanut Butter Truffles
Quintuple Chocolate Brownies

Chocolate Caramel Crunch
Adapted from Dinner with Julie, everybody likes sandwiches and David Lebovitz

I bought the crackers with unsalted tops this time, but next time will buy the salted ones.

Box of soda crackers (I used Premium Plus)
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup packed golden brown sugar
1 cup chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate

Preheat the oven to 375F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil. Line the pan with crackers.

In a medium saucepan, bring the butter and brown sugar to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour evenly over the crackers, spreading it with a heatproof spatula to cover.

Put it into the oven and immediately reduce the temperature to 350F. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until deep golden. Remove from the oven and scatter with chocolate chips; let sit until they soften, then spread evenly over the caramel.

Let cool completely, then break into chunks, or cut/score into squares while still warm. I found that it broke really easily into perfect squares (because each piece is a soda cracker).

Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

The Cookbook Giveaway is closed! I used a random number generator and Genevieve of Vanilla & Spice won Appetite for Reduction!

I don't like cookies that are too soft and cakey, but you know what the best thing about these cookies is? They're soft. How do they get away with this being the best thing about them? They're also thick and dense. Soft, thick and dense. Is that a contradiction? Maybe, but it works. I can't say these are my favourite oatmeal cookies, as I do prefer ones that have crisp edges and spread out more, but there is room for these ones too. Other people who tried them really enjoyed them.

Abby loooooves her cube. She has two and I have another one in the closet when those ones have to be thrown out. She likes hiding inside and doing sneak attacks, diving through them, sleeping inside, and "pumping iron". (I should post a video of Abby pumping iron, which is basically her sitting next to the cube, with one paw on it, and pressing down repeatedly while staring randomly around the room.)

If these sound good, you might also like:
Detox Blonde Macaroons
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Pumpkin Ginger Molasses Cookies
Vegan Homestyle Chocolate Chip Cookies

Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies
Adapted from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar

Makes 2 dozen cookies

1/3 cup nondairy milk (I used unsweetened plain soy)
2 tbsp ground flax seeds
2/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup oil (I used safflower)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups quick cooking oats
1/2 cup dried cranberries

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat mats.

2. In a large bowl, use a fork to vigorously mix together the soy milk and flax seeds. Add in the sugar and oil and mix until it resembles caramel, about 2 minutes. Mix in the vanilla. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, spices, and salt. Mix in the flour mixture with the wet mixture. Fold in the oatmeal and cranberries.

3. Drop dough in generous tablespoons, about 2 inches apart, onto the baking sheets. Flatten the tops a bit, since they don't spread much. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.

Blueberry Spice Spelt Muffins

These are supposed to be blueberry ginger muffins. But while I love ginger in savoury dishes, I'm not a huge fan of it in sweets. So I omitted the crystallized ginger. But the muffins still tasted strongly of ginger due to the 2 teaspoons of ground ginger. In the future I'd change the spice levels and combination. I'd probably use 2 teaspoons of cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon cloves (my favourite spice) and 1/4 teaspoon ginger. I will definitely make these again, as I loved how nice and soft they were.

Abby looks either like she's about to fall off the pillow, or like I'm annoying her. Both are likely.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Pineapple Carrot Ginger Muffins
Bakery-Style Berry Muffins
Double Chocolate Avocado Muffins
Coconut Banana Muffins

Blueberry Spice Spelt Muffins
Adapted from Vegan Brunch

Makes 12 muffins

2 1/2 cups whole grain spelt flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup yogurt (soy yogurt for vegan muffins)
1 cup nondairy milk (I used unsweetened plain soy)
1/3 cup safflower oil
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups blueberries

Preheat the oven to 375F. Prepare muffin tins with oil or liners.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices. Make a well in the center and add the yogurt, milk, canola oil and vanilla. Stir to combine. Fold in the blueberries.

Scoop the batter into the muffin tin; it should almost fill the entire tin. Bake for 28 to 32 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffin comes out clean. Let cool for a few minutes in the tin before transferring the muffins to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Detox Blonde Macaroons

Coconut is one of my favourite things. Fresh coconut, dried, coconut milk, yum. And I've been wanting to make some variation of these vegan macaroons for too long. They're truly delicious. Lots of coconut flavour, incredibly soft, a bit chewy. Gluten free too! The original recipe had almond extract but I detest that fake almond flavour so just added more vanilla. I gave a bunch away and kept the rest in the freezer, and yes they are amazing from the freezer too. Oh and I made my own coconut butter! (Which is just pureeing unsweetened shredded coconut. Magic.)

I'm sending these to the cookie blog hop.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Coconut Creme Brulee
Coconut Shortbread
Coconut Madeleines
Coconut Lemon Bundt Cake
Chocolate Oatmeal Coconut Cookies

Detox Blonde Macaroons
Adapted from Oh She Glows who adapted from Healthy Hoggin

Yield ~22 macaroons

2 2/3 cups shredded unsweetened coconut (or 1 cup coconut butter)
2 (additional) cups shredded unsweetened coconut
3/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp kosher salt

1. Preheat the oven to 300F and line a baking sheet with a non-stick mat or parchment. In a food processor, process 2 and 2/3 cups of shredded coconut for about 5-8 minutes until coconut butter forms. You will have to keep scraping down the sides of the bowl. Alternatively, you can use 1 cup of store bought coconut butter.

2. Once you have made the coconut butter, mix all ingredients together in a bowl.

3. Scoop about 1-2 tbsp of dough onto a baking sheet. You don’t have to leave much room in between as they do not spread out. Bake one sheet at a time for 25-28 minutes at 300F. Watch them closely after 22-23 minutes. The bottoms of my macaroons were golden in colour.

4. Allow the macaroons to sit for 30 minutes so they can firm up. If you do not do this, the macaroons will crumble, so this step is crucial! Store in the fridge or freezer.

Gumdrop Cake

Have you guys started planning out what Christmas baking you're going to do? I loooove making my list and would love to hear what you guys are planning on making or have already made. So far I've made:
+Andes Chocolate Mint Cookies
+Snickerdoodles
+Pecan Tassies
+my grandma's shortbread
+this gumdrop cake!

I plan on also making my grandma's chocolate coconut snowballs, and maybe some other things. But anyway, onto the gumdrop cake. We were waiting in line at the grocery store and I came across this recipe in a Canadian Living holiday magazine. Gumdrop cake!! That sounded exciting. I've never baked with gumdrops. And it has a jar of maraschino cherries, which I love. Basically it's like a different version of fruitcake, though I've never made fruitcake and have rarely eaten it. But that's what I think.

The recipe they printed in the magazine was a bit vague so I was scared how it would turn out but I'm happy with the results. The cake is tinged pink from the maraschino cherry "juice". I wasn't sure how I'd like gumdrops in a cake but it turns out I love them - at least in this style of cake. The cherries and raisins are great too, the cherries more than the raisins. I was wary of the almond extract as I detest that fake almond flavour, but I went with it. And it turned out successfully. It's not something you'd want to eat a lot of given its strong flavour and sweetness, but to have a little nibble, it's great and something different.

I love giving out Christmas baking, but I'm just wondering - is anyone else as OCD as me about it? I can't handle putting different types of cookies with different textures, dryness levels and flavours all in one tin. The mint from the mint chocolate cookies might make the snickerdoodles minty! Or the shortberad might absorb moisture from the pecan tassies and make them dry! I love how a mixed tin of cookies looks, but I have to put them in separate bags first, then into the tin. What do you do? Anyone have a good solution to my cookie mingling problem?

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Perfection Pound Cake with Lemon Curd
All-In-One Holiday Bundt Cake
Cream Cheese Pound Cake and Strawberry Sauce
Toasted Pecan Eggnog Ring

Gumdrop Cake
Adapted from Mrs. P. Ramsay in Victoria (found in Canadian Living holiday magazine)

The original recipe stated "1 package of raisins, 1 package of gumdrops and 1 jar of maraschino cherries". Not sure what size was intended to be used, but I just used what was available at the store and have noted the sizes I used in the recipe.

375 g package raisins
375 mL jar maraschino cherries, drained with juice reserved, and sliced in half
200 g package gumdrops
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
1 cup milk plus juice from the cherries (I used unsweetened almond milk)
4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder

Soak the raisins for 1/2 hour in hot water. Drain well. Mix together the raisins, cherries, gumdrops and 1 cup of the flour. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 325F. Prepare a bundt pan by buttering it, making sure to get into all the crevices. Cream together the butter and sugar. Add in the eggs and mix well. In a separate bowl, combine the vanilla extract, almond extract, milk and juice from the cherries. In another separate bowl, whisk together the 3 1/2 cups flour, salt, and baking powder. With the mixer on low, alternately add the flour mixture and liquid mixture, starting with the flour mixture. Mix until just combined. Fold in the fruit mixture.

Pour the mixture into the prepared bundt pan and smooth the top. Bake at 325F for 30 minutes, then 300F for 1 1/2 hours. Remove from the oven and let it cool completely in the pan before turning it out.

Vegan Pumpkin Scones

I love autumn, I love winter. But I do miss having at least some natural light to take photos! I wanted to post about this pumpkin scone recipe while you guys are still (hopefully) enjoying pumpkin! I used to love the pumpkin scones from Starbucks and pumpkin scones are something I've always wanted to make but just never did. Until I saw these vegan pumpkin scones on cupcakes and kale and felt immediately inspired to make them about 10 minutes after reading her post! And they are amazing.

I don't usually put glazes on scones or cakes but in this case I followed her suggestion. The glaze is the perfect complement to the scone, which is biscuity but not super fluffy and flaky (this is a good thing). I did find the dough to be extremely dry and it was sort of difficult to form the dough into rounds. She does say that the dough will be dry, but next time I might add 1/2 tbsp more milk. My glaze was more liquidy than hers, maybe because I used a natural sugar?

And can I just confirm something with you guys - whole wheat pastry flour is the same thing as white whole wheat flour right? That's my understanding of the flour situation.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Pumpkin Ginger Molasses Cookies
Pumpkin Muffins
Pumpkin Cheesecake
All-In-One Holiday Bundt Cake

Vegan Pumpkin Scones
Adapted from cupcakes and kale

Makes 1 dozen small scones

2 cups white whole wheat flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ginger
1/8 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp cup cold earth balance margarine
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
2 tbsp non-dairy milk (I used unsweetened almond milk) - next time I would try using 2 1/2-3 tbsp milk
5 tbsp brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 400F. In a large bowl sift together all of the dry ingredients. Using a pastry cutter cut the cold earth balance into the mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. In another bowl, mix the pumpkin, milk & sugar. Add this to the flour bowl and mix to combine. You'll end up with a fairly dry dough. Turn this out onto a lightly floured surface and divide it into 3 equal balls. Flatten each one into a round disk that's about 6 inches across and 1/2 inch thick. Using a sharp knife, cut each disk into quarters and place them on a parchment or silpat-lined baking sheet. Bake for 15-16 minutes. Remove from the oven, allow the scones to cool and then drizzle them with spiced glaze.

Spiced Glaze
5 tbsp sugar
1/2 tbsp flour
1/4 tsp molasses
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ginger
pinch cloves
1 1/2 tbsp non-dairy milk

Mix everything together in a small bowl and drizzle onto the scones either with a spoon, or from a plastic bag with the tip cut off.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Remember when I said that I have two new favourite vegan cookie recipes? Well this is the other one. I love that they're thick and don't spread much. These ones are softer and maybe a bit chewier than my other favourite. Having one or two after dinner is the perfect satisfying dessert, and they're great straight out of the freezer.

I've made them with whole wheat pastry flour and also with spelt flour - and I would definitely recommend only using whole wheat pastry flour. Spelt made them too soft and they spread more. I thought it would be a great idea to make them with cacao nibs instead of chocolate chips - bad idea!! I have a huge container of the spelt cacao nib peanut butter cookies that has been in my freezer for months. I'm trying to work my way through them (this is a clear indication that it was a bad experiment) but it's taking forever.

I love Abby's little pink nose.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Peanut Butter Squares with Milk Chocolate and Oats
Lazy Girl's Chocolate Chip Blondies
Dark and Dangerous Triple Chocolate Cookies
Peanut Butter Chocolate Pillows

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from 101 Cookbooks and (never home)maker

Makes 24

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup natural peanut butter
1 cup maple syrup
5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Place racks in the top third.

In a medium mixing bowl combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. in a separate larger bowl combine the peanut butter, maple syrup, olive oil, and vanilla. Stir until combined. Pour the flour mixture over the peanut butter mixture and stir until barely combined - still a bit dusty looking. Stir in the chocolate chips, but don't overmix. Let sit for five minutes, give one more quick stir, just a stroke or two. Now drop by heaping tablespoonfuls onto parchment-lined baking sheets. Press down on each one gently to flatten a bit, with a silicone spatula or the back of your hand (if the dough is sticky then wet your hand). Bake for 10, maybe 11 minutes - but don't over bake or they will be dry. Let cool five minutes and transfer to a cooling rack.

Pumpkin Ginger Molasses Cookies

While I love pumpkin loaves, muffins, cakes and cheesecakes, I do not like pumpkin cookies. They're too soft and cakey - something I don't think cookies should ever be. But these pumpkin ginger cookies were too intriguing to resist. They're not the chewy ginger molasses style cookie. And while they are definitely soft, they're not too cakey. I've now found a pumpkin cookie I can say I really do enjoy.

I bought a sugar pumpkin this year (which was used half for soup and half was roasted and put on Halloween night nachos). You know what I've discovered? I don't like pumpkin on its own. In baked goods yes. But it's too watery and not quite the right flavour for me. (I seem to have a lot of rules as to when I do and don't like pumpkin, eh?) I think the thing I love most about pumpkins is the idea of it. I love how cute they are. I love the spices that usually go with it. I love that it makes me think of fall and Halloween and homey comforting things.

But my favourite winter squash to eat is definitely kabocha, followed by butternut and delicata (which I tried for the first time this year). I love being able to eat the squash skin - and I can't believe I didn't know you can eat the skin of butternut squash (thanks Joanne.) Why do recipes always tell you to peel it then?? Silly loss of nutrients and deliciousness.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Pumpkin Cheesecake
Pumpkin Muffins
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Loaf
All-In-One Holiday Bundt Cake

Pumpkin Ginger Molasses Cookies
Adapted from Two Peas & Their Pod

I used Earth Balance butter instead of regular butter (as the original recipe calls for), and I'm wondering if I maybe should have added a touch more salt to the recipe to compensate for that. I'm not sure if the original recipe used salted or unsalted butter. But I thought this recipe could use a bit more salt - maybe 3/4 tsp instead of 1/2 tsp.

Yields 3 to 3 1/2 dozen cookies

1/2 cup Earth Balance butter, room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar, plus 1/4 cup for rolling the cookies
1/2 cup pure pumpkin
1/4 cup molasses
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/3 cups white whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar together until creamy and smooth. Add the pumpkin, molasses, egg, and vanilla extract, mix until well combined.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, spices, and salt. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until combined. Refrigerate the cookie dough for at least 1 hour. The dough can be chilled for 2-3 days.

3. When you are ready to bake, preheat oven to 350° F. Line a baking sheet with a Silpat or parchment paper. Place sugar in a small bowl. Roll tablespoon-sized balls of dough in sugar until well coated and place on prepared baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10–12 minutes, or until cookies look cracked and set at the edges. The cookies will still be soft. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a 2-3 minutes after removing them from the oven, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Pineapple Carrot Ginger Muffins

I love carrot cake, especially when there's pineapple in it. These muffins are healthy carrot cake you can have for breakfast! The ginger is prominent (freshly grated) but not too strong. I found the texture a bit wet, but that could be because I used flax eggs instead of regular eggs - and maybe I should have just added 2 tablespoons of ground flax and no additional water instead? Something to try for next time.

Random personal tidbit for the day - Thursday is my favourite TV day. I love Grey's Anatomy, Vampire Diaries and Secret Circle. More so the first two, but I'm a sucker for any supernatural show.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Healthy Carrot Cake Power Scuffins
Garden Harvest Cake
Morning Glory Muffins
Spiced Carrot Muffins

Pineapple Carrot Ginger Muffins
Adapted from The Muffin Myth

Makes 12 muffins

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup oat bran
1/3 cup loose packed brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tin (398ml) crushed pineapple – don’t drain!
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 flax eggs (2 tbsp ground flax + 6 tbsp water, let it sit for 5 minutes)
2 tbsp fresh grated ginger
2 cups grated carrot (about 3 carrots)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare muffin tins and set aside.

In a medium bowl, sift dry ingredients together. In a slightly larger bowl, whisk together crushed pineapple, flax eggs, olive oil, and grated ginger. Add the dry ingredients all at once, and stir until just combined. Add grated carrot and walnuts, stirring to distribute evenly through the batter. Spoon into prepared muffin tins. Bake for 30 min, rotating the tins half way through. Gently release the muffins from the tins, and turn onto their sides in the tins to cool.

Vegan Homestyle Chocolate Chip Cookies

I have two new favourite vegan cookie recipes. I know there are a million chocolate chip cookie recipes but these are too good not to post about. Not to mention ridiculously easy to put together. They don't spread too much, don't puff too much. They have nice crisp edges, and soft but not cakey middles. I've tried them with all purpose flour and with spelt (all purpose was better with crispy edges, spelt resulted in a cookie that spread more and was softer - light spelt might work well though). I've tried them with chocolate chips and with M&Ms (not vegan, I know). It's a great base cookie recipe to add in whatever you like.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Chocolate Dipped Cherry Shortbread
Chocolate Oatmeal Coconut Cookies
Chocolate Marble Chunk Cookies
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Vegan Homestyle Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from Vive le Vegan!

Makes 8-10 large cookies

1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup unrefined sugar (I use sucanat)
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup oil (I usually use olive oil but safflower or canola would be good too)
1/3-1/2 cup non dairy chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a bowl, sift in the flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Add the sugar and salt, and stir until well combined. In a separate bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, vanilla and oil. Add the wet mixture to the dry, along with the chocolate chips, and stir through until just well combined (do not overmix).

Place large spoonfuls of the batter on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a Silpat, and flatten a little. Bake for 11 minutes, until just golden (if you bake longer, they'll dry out). Let cool on the sheet for no more than 1 minute, then transfer to a cooling rack.

Chocolate Cut-Out Cookies

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!!!!

E wanted to make a happy pumpkin, while I went for a crazy vampire pumpkin.

I wanted to make some Halloween cookies for E to bring to work and I have my Halloween cookie cutters that must be used! I was looking for a vegan sugar cookie recipe but then came across these chocolate cut-out cookies which seemed like more fun.

The dough was super easy to roll out, which made me so happy as rolling out dough can be stressful. The cookies tasted good, though I didn't love them. They could have been more chocolate-y. The texture was like a chewy sugar cookie. I was going to use royal icing to frost them but saw this confectioner's icing (which is vegan) and the recipe said it dries hard. Perfect! Sadly, it does not dry hard. Or maybe I put on too thick of a layer - but I did follow the recipe. The icing does dry to some degree, just not hard like royal icing. Which means if you stack the cookies for a length of time, the icing will come off on the cookie on top of it. Anyway, I had fun making them and go to use up some of my black sprinkles too. :)

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Sugar Cookie Bars
Ginger Spice Cookies
Dark and Dangerous Triple Chocolate Cookies
Peanut Butter Chocoalte Pillows

Chocolate Cut-Out Cookies
Adapted from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar

Makes 2-3 dozen 2-3 inch cookies (depends on your cookie cutter, I got about 28)

2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup safflower oil
1/4 cup nondairy milk (I used unsweetened plain soy)
1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup Dutch cocoa powder
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

1. In a mixing bowl, vigorously mix the sugar, oil and nondairy milk. Mix in the vanilla extract.

2. Sift in the flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt. Mix until well combined. The dough should be stiff but pliable. Divide in half, and form into discs; flatten and refrigerate for about an hour.

3. Preheat oven to 350F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpats. Roll dough out about 1/8 inch thick onto a lightly floured surface. Use a cookie cutter to cut out shapes and a thin spatula to transfer the cookies to the baking sheets. Roll the dough scraps out to get a few more cookies.

4. Bake for 7 minutes. Let cookies cool on the baking sheets for 2 minutes before moving them to wire racks to cool completely. Store in a tightly sealed container.

Confectioner's Icing
Adapted from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar

2 cups sifted powdered sugar
2 tbsp nondairy milk

1. In a large bowl, whisk together all the ingredients using a wire whisk until smooth. Combine to form a glaze that can be easily spread with an icing spatula or piped from a pastry bag with a small round tip.

2. If the icing is too thick, whisk in 1 tsp at a time of either nondairy milk or water. If too thin, whisk in more powdered sugar by the tablespoon until a desired consistency is reached.

Bakery-Style Berry Muffins

These are the kind of muffins that I rarely make. White flour and a decent amount of sugar and oil - though actually I've seen muffins with more sugar and oil/fat so I guess these aren't too terrible. Well taste wise, they are not terrible at all. They're the perfect muffin - soft insides with hard tops. If you want to retain the crisp muffin tops, freeze the muffins immediately after cooling - then when you want to eat them, thaw them on the counter and eat shortly after. While I did not make these with soy yogurt (I've actually never tried non dairy yogurt if you can believe it), that's what the original recipe calls for so I'll leave it that way. I can't wait to try other mix-ins using this muffin base.

If this sounds good, you might also like:
Double Chocolate Avocado Muffins
Coconut Banana Muffins
Healthy Carrot Cake Power Scuffins
Blackberry Orange Tea Scones

Bakery-Style Berry Muffins
Adapted from Vegan Brunch

Makes 12 muffins

2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup soy yogurt
1/2 cup nondairy milk (I used unsweetened plain soy)
1/2 cup olive oil (or canola or safflower)
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups frozen mixed berries (I used raspberries, blackberries and blueberries)

Preheat the oven to 375F. Prepare a muffin tin with oil or liners.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the center and add the yogurt, milk, oil, and vanilla. Stir to combine. Fold in the berries.

Scoop the batter into the muffin tin; it should almost fill the entire tin. Bake for 26 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick or butter knife inserted through the center of the muffin comes out clean. Let cool for a few minutes in the tin, then transfer muffins to a cooling rack to cool completely.