Every year for the last several years I’ve been experimenting with the seeds that come with my fall pumpkins. I enjoy roasting them and candying them but I’ve always grappled with their often tough mouthfeel. I always seem to be gnawing on them for eternity as the texture slowly starts to remind me of sawdust. Every year I’ve tackled this problem differently; usually simmering them in water for a certain amount of time to soften them before roasting. This tactic has only yielded me marginally more tender pumpkin seeds. I needed to take this further.
A few months ago I picked up my first slow cooker. After some initial testing I found that slow cooking the pumpkin seeds in water on high (about 210F (99C) for 10 hours allowed me to roast them to perfection. Using this method, your pumpkin seeds will be crispy on the outside and give way to a subtle chew on the inside as they release their flavors. Oh yeah, the flavor. Now that found the optimum texture, I opted for a savory punch thanks to the shiro miso, paprika and a dash of sugar and cayenne for depth of flavor. Now I can finally really enjoy pumpkin seeds as an easy going snack.
This Vegan Maple Roasted Peanut recipe makes an addictive snack. Once I was on a San Francisco Muni train and was in the process of getting busted for both sneaking on without paying and eating while on the train. As the Muni cops closed in, I clutched my container of Maple Roasted Peanuts tightly.
This Cherry Candied Almond recipe is an excuse for me to combine two of my most favorite flavor combinations: cherries and almonds. I used brown sugar and olive oil for a more complex sweetness profile and just the right amount of almond extract to bind the cherry and almond flavor in holy matrimony. Try these as a relatively guilt-free vegan snack, add them to salads or sprinkle them on your ice cream.
Peanut butter and maple syrup have this amazing relationship. I think they might be in love with each other. This Vegan Peanut Butter Maple Fudge recipe is really easy to make and you have the option of adding chocolate chips if you want to crank up the flavor/passion levels even more.
Don't get me wrong, I love vegan cream cheese alternatives from companies like Tofutti. It's just that I've been wanting to have an option for something that's a little more natural. Creamy Vegan Cashew Cream Cheese doesn't taste like cream cheese as much as some of the space age alternatives but it's close enough for me. Keep in mind that if you forego using the xanthan or guar gum in this recipe it won't be as creamy. It's use is recommended- we're trying to emulate lactose here so we need all the help we can get.
I used to own a vegan baking company called Enchanted Oven Baking Co. This Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookie was one of the cookies I sold, individually packaged, to health food stores around the San Francisco Bay Area around 2003-2005. Here it is in all its glory. This recipe has been modified from a 200 cookie batch so please excuse the wonky measurements.
Brown rice syrup, cinnamon, vanilla and just the right amount of chocolate chips really brings out the best in these dense, chewy peanut butter cookies.
I used to own a vegan baking company called Enchanted Oven Baking Co. This Vegan Maple Walnut Wonder Cookie was one of the cookies I sold, individually packaged, to health food stores around the San Francisco Bay Area around 2003-2005. Here it is in all its glory. This recipe has been modified from a 200 cookie batch so please excuse the wonky measurements.
Maple syrup, rolled oats, cinnamon, vanilla and just the right amount of raisins and walnuts really bring out the best in these dense, chewy maple oatmeal cookies.
I used to own a vegan baking company called Enchanted Oven Baking Co. This Vegan Ginger Almond Madness Cookie was one of the cookies I sold, individually packaged, to health food stores around the San Francisco Bay Area around 2003-2005. Here it is in all its glory. This recipe has been modified from a 200 cookie batch so please excuse the wonky measurements.
Molasses, ginger, cinnamon, almond extract, cloves and just the right amount of almonds really bring out the best in these dense, chewy ginger snap cookies.
I used to own a vegan baking company called Enchanted Oven Baking Co. This Coconut Mac Daddy Macaroon was one of the cookies I sold, individually packaged, to health food stores around the San Francisco Bay Area around 2003-2005. Here it is in all its glory. This recipe has been modified from a 200 cookie batch so please excuse the wonky measurements.
Brown rice syrup, coconut, vanilla extract and just the right amount of macadamia nuts really bring out the best in these dense, chewy coconut macaroons.
I used to own a vegan baking company called Enchanted Oven Baking Co. This Chocolate Coconut Mac Daddy Macaroon was one of the cookies I sold, individually packaged, to health food stores around the San Francisco Bay Area around 2003-2005. Here it is in all its glory. This recipe has been modified from a 200 cookie batch so please excuse the wonky measurements.
Brown rice syrup, coconut, cocoa powder and just the right amount of chocolate chips really bring out the best in these dense, vegan, chewy chocolate coconut macaroons. Please Note: For best results it's crucial that this recipe is followed exactly.
I used to own a vegan baking company called Enchanted Oven Baking Co. This Chocolate Cherry Bomb Cookie was one of the cookies I sold, individually packaged, to health food stores around the San Francisco Bay Area around 2003-2005. Here it is in all its glory. This recipe has been modified from a 200 cookie batch so please excuse the wonky measurements.
Brown rice syrup, cocoa powder, a touch of almond extract, just the right amount of chocolate chips and dried Ranier cherries really bring out the best in these dense, chewy chocolate brownie cookies.
This Vegan Protein Power Granola recipe is great for a hearty first meal of the day because it's low in sugar, high in protein and high in flavor. It gets the bulk of its protein from hemp protein powder. It then utilizes natural sweeteners like maple syrup, chopped dates and raisins for a complex sweetness profile that won't send blood sugar levels through the roof, if you don't drown it in maple syrup anyway. Walnuts and pecans round out the crunch department in this vegan granola while providing a tasty contrast with the hemp powder.
This Vegan Protein Pancake recipe is perfect for breakfast if you really want to make sure you get an adequate dose of protein during the first meal of the day. They utilize your choice of just the right amount of hemp protein powder or soy flour and feature chopped walnuts to further increase the protein ante and add to the flavor department. Cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger give these vegan pancakes a satisfying flavor that goes great with a splash of maple syrup (or fresh berries if you're hyperventilating at the idea of consuming too much sugar).
This Hearty Vegan Breakfast Muffin recipe was created because I wanted a healthy, hearty vegan muffin that provided good energy for the first meal of the day without giving me a mega-dose of sugar like most other muffins often do. These fruit sweetened muffins contain no refined sugar, more protein, complex carbs and fiber than most other muffins because they feature ingredients like dates, raisins, walnuts, rolled oats, hemp protein powder or soy flour, maple syrup and molasses. These ingredients lend a delightfully complex taste and contribute to a dense hearty texture. They're easy to make and provide about one week of breakfasts. Try them topped with almond butter.
This Vegan Peanut Butter Bar recipe makes perfect vegan energy bars for sporting events, a nutritious snack for people on the go or simply just dessert. Peanut butter and chocolate is such a delectable flavor combination it may be banned in some countries. Add maple syrup and brown rice syrup to enhance chewiness and provide a complex sweetness profile and you had just better be careful walking around with these bars.
This Vegan Cashew Crunch Bar recipe makes perfect vegan energy bars for sporting events, a nutritious snack for people on the go simply just dessert. These gluten-free bars offer a satisfying crunch as well as a nice chewy texture thanks to a cashew butter base which is sweetened with maple syrup and brown rice syrup, then studded with everything from hemp seeds to millet to crushed cacao nibs.
Every year for the last several years I’ve been experimenting with the seeds that come with my fall pumpkins. I enjoy roasting them and candying them but I’ve always grappled with their often tough mouthfeel. I always seem to be gnawing on them for eternity as the texture slowly starts to remind me of sawdust. Every year I’ve tackled this problem differently; usually simmering them in water for a certain amount of time to soften them before roasting. This tactic has only yielded me marginally more tender pumpkin seeds. I needed to take this further.
