Ice-Cream and Giggles

It is amazing how time flies when you are doing a PhD: it is hard to think that it has been months since I have posted!  In the past few months, I have finished data collection, started writing in earnest, been to Egypt and simultaneously evacuated from Egypt by the university due to the bombings in Cairo. Regardless, I did get 2 weeks in Luxor, conducting field work at Karnak, crossing the Nile most days and getting some tourist attractions in. How did I survive in Egypt as a vegan? It is possible, and I mostly survived off bananas, fries, oriental salad, vegetable tagine and tomato soup. Oh, and Clif bars and vegan gelato, a gem that was a gelato shop run by German expats on the East Bank. It was a bit of a culture shock too, seeing starving horses pulling horse drawn carriages, donkeys carrying four people on its back, and stray dogs that obviously needed veterinary assistance, ASAP. Though I did give money to people to feed their horses, in most cases I am sure the money never reached their mouths.

The Ramesseum early in the morning.

To the mars bar slice, though: during an Australian Day BBQ at a friend's house, a large tin of rocky road and mars bar slice was provided for dessert (I was given Oreos for a vegan option). It was amazing how quickly the mars bar slice disappeared, even to the expense of the rocky road. Naturally, I didn't partake, but it did make me determined to make a vegan version. A little bit of context: mars bar slice was my signature dish in high school: I knew the recipe off by heart and I would make it for every celebration and birthday. Plus you know, occasionally just because.

Though it has been more than 3 years since I have had mars bar slice, I think I never made it because I thought a vegan version wasn't possible. That is where twilight bars come into play (not associated with the movies, thankfully). Not made for "vegetarian" vampires, but human vegans, they are a decent copy of the famous mars bar. Unfortunately, these babies are hard to come by (not to mention expensive), but worth it in the long run. I decided to make a small batch, and I was pleasantly surprised! Not a complete copy of the original, but a decent substitute. As my dad said, they are less creamy (the nougat ratio seems to be less in the twilight bar compared to the original mars bar), and if you are a true purist, use rice bubbles, not rice puffs. My boyfriend is not a fan of brown rice puffs, so he was disappointed while I loved them (he is infamously picky about food, however: everyone loves my cooking except for him). Regardless, if you make this I hope you adore them!

Makes around 9 small squares.

You will need:

2 x 60 g twilight bars
50 g vegan margarine
1 1/2 cups brown rice puffs or vegan rice bubbles
100 g vegan chocolate

Method:

1. In a double boiler, melt the chopped twilight bars with the margarine on medium to high heat. It will take 15 minutes to melt everything, and make sure the nougat is melted (it is always the last to melt, so be patient).
2. If using brown rice puffs, toast in the oven for 5-8 minutes on 180 degrees. Skip this step if using rice bubbles.
3. In a bowl, combine rice puffs with melted twilight bar mixture. Make sure it is thoroughly mixed before pressing into a small square lined tin. Place in the fridge.
4. Meanwhile, melt your chocolate of choice and spread over the base. Let it set in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour before cutting and serving.

During a recent trip to Melbourne for a conference, I managed to find time to visit Matcha Mylkbar: a 100% plant-based cafe whose specialty is...you guessed it, matcha (and vegan poached eggs). To me, though they looked like "eggs", they tasted of coconut and cheese. Which I think is good, as I was never the biggest fan of eggs to begin with.

Naturally, when I returned to Sydney I was determined to have a go at making them myself. With nothing to go off except that I knew the "white" was made of almond milk and coconut, and the "yolk" center sweet potato, coconut, and flax seeds, I made up a recipe with my taste buds as a guide. Though these don't taste as amazing as the original (which took the cafe months to perfect), I think they come close! Plus, they are much cheaper to make than flights to Melbourne every time I want one!

Note, you will need some sort of semi-circle mould. I got mine for $5 off eBay, which had six semi-circles.

Prep: 15 minutes, Setting: 40 minutes. Total time: 45 minutes.

Serves 6.

You will need:

For the egg white:

1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/2 cup coconut milk
scant 1 tbsp agar agar

For the egg yolk:

75g sweet potato, steamed and mashed
1 tbsp coconut milk
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
1/2 tbsp ground flax seeds
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp vegan margarine
1.5 tbsp water

Method:

1. In a saucepan, combine the almond milk, coconut milk and agar agar. Bring to boil, stirring constantly, until it is bubbling rapidly. Leave for 1 minute, then divide between your moulds, filling up 3/4. Place in fridge to set, and leave the excess aside (it will be reused).
2. Combine all ingredients for the yolk in a food processor. Set aside.
3. Once the white has set, using a spoon scoop out the center of each white. Put these leftovers back in a saucepan on low heat with the other excess whites, and slowly bring to boil again. Meanwhile, spoon in the "yolk" mixture into these cavities.
4. Top the egg with more white once ready. Let set in the fridge again.
5. When serving, heat the egg in the microwave for 30 or so seconds.

There has been one recipe that I just haven't been able to crack as a vegan: the chocolate chip cookie. I have made countless of recipes that claim to be the "best vegan chocolate chip cookie," but they never seem to cut it. To explain, though, my "ideal" cookie that I am trying to re-create is the subway cookie: a dough that will spread out and result in a chewy cookie. Cakey cookies are a no-go for me.

A few weeks ago, I thought I had found that recipe on Vedged Out. The cookie spread out like perfection, and the dough was delicious. They even were approved by my omnivore co-workers. The problem? It was cakey and crumbly. So crumbly the cookies at the bottom of the container I stored them in were crumbs. Though, to be honest, they were gluten free. So it was back to the drawing board.

At first, I thought the problem was the binder. The recipe used aquafaba for the egg replacer, so I decided to add some egg replacer powder to the aquafaba. I remade it. But, even just a teaspoon of egg replacer seemed to ruin the balance of the dough and resulted in a chunky and really dense cookie.  It didn't spread out at all.

Finally, I did my homework. I read up on the science of the best cookie dough. I melted the vegan margarine, I didn't overmix the dough, and I refrigerated the dough overnight. I let the dough "warm" to room temperature so that it would be less likely to hold its shape and the margarine would melt. I thought I had it.

It, like the others before, were a fail. Somehow it was the worst fail. It was a brick, and didn't melt at all.

Finally, I gave up on making these cookies gluten free (sorry, sister). I used bread flour, as recommended by the article regarding the science behind the perfect chocolate chip cookie. I also removed baking powder (again, rising = cake), melted the margarine again, and used aquafaba from beans, not chickpeas. All my fail attempts used chickpea brine, so I am inclined to think bean brine somehow improved this recipe. Basically, I think this is the most perfect the chocolate chip cookie recipe can be, for now at least. And it just goes to show how important method is.


Recipe based on Vedged Out.

Prep: 10 minutes. Resting Time: 3 hours (optional).


Makes 18-22 cookies.

You will need:

1/2 cup vegan margarine
3/4 cup coconut sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla essence
3 tbsp aquafaba from a can of beans
1 cup plus 2 tbsp bread flour or plain flour
1 cup vegan sugar-free dark chocolate chips

Method:

1. Melt the margarine in a bowl in the microwave. Once melted, add the sugar, soda, salt, vanilla, and aquafaba. Mix together using a hand whisk.
2. Sift in the flour, mix but don't over mix. Add chocolate chips. Let rest at room temperature for a few hours (optional). If you refrigerate the dough it won't melt and ooze as much.
3. Preheat oven to 160 degrees Celsius. Spoon tablespoon-size chunks of dough on a lined baking tray. Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes.

In the midst of data collection, database creation, writing a literature review and a 7,000w candidature essay, dense and nutritious food is what my brain needs. Oh, and coffee! These caramel slices really hit the spot. The nutty base, sweet caramel, and chocolate ganache are perfect together. Though I am a bit biased, not only does my sister love these treats, but my boyfriend's omnivore sister liked them! She liked them so much she actually asked for the recipe! So if that isn't an incentive to make you create these ASAP, I really don't know what is. ;)

Prep: 25 minutes. Cooling: 1 hour. Total Time: 1 h 25 minutes.

Makes 12-18 slices.

You will need:

For the base:

1 cup gluten free rolled oats
1 cup raw almonds
4 tbsp maple syrup

For the caramel:

3/4 cup almond butter
3/4 cup maple syrup
100g coconut butter (or coconut oil, but it won't be oil free)
1 tsp vanilla
dash of salt

For the ganache:

150g vegan sugar-free dark chocolate
170g lite coconut cream or milk

Method:

1. Blitz the oats and almonds in a high-speed blender or food processor until a flour is formed. Add maple syrup. If it is still too dry, add a dash of water. Press down firmly into a lined baking tin of the desired size.
2. For the caramel, in a saucepan over low heat combine the almond butter, maple syrup, and coconut butter until smooth. Add vanilla and salt, then pour on top of the base. Place in the freezer.
3. For the ganache, melt the chocolate and cream together in a saucepan over low heat until a smooth ganache is formed. Pour over the caramel layer then place back in the freezer and let it set for an hour or so.

Notes:

- This slice doesn't travel well, as the ganache layer wants to melt off the delicious caramel layer. I recommend bringing the slice in the tin if you wish to take it to a party, replacing it in the freezer to let it cool, then cutting it when you want to serve it.
- Try cutting the slice up then wrapping each square individually and placing them back in the freezer for easy to grab snacks.

Last week, my mum came back from a fruit market with a punnet of feijoas. I had never heard of them before, but apparently they are from Brazil and they smell so fragrant! Naturally, I wanted to make something magical with them, but as I had never tasted them before I altered a recipe for the flavour combinations, and I came up with this vegan muffin with coconut, feijoa and nutmeg.

For those wondering, feijoa's, in my mind, kind of taste like a tart apple, and according to wikipedia, are supposed to taste like a combination of pineapple, apple and mint. But seriously guys, you have to smell feijoas. They actually smell like perfume, in a good way.

Now, to the muffin itself. It features an aquafaba egg (chickpea brine), maple syrup, vegan margarine, plus coconut and nutmeg and of course, brown rice flour. If you have never tried an aquafaba egg, usually around 60g of aquafaba equals a large egg, and is great because if you are making a normal recipe with eggs vegan it will ensure the recipe's liquid ratios are maintained, whilst also making your baked goods fluffy.

These turned out so perfect, and don't even taste gluten free or vegan. I really think the secret is the aquafaba egg! My mum (who is kind of skeptical about vegan food) even approved of them, and said they taste like flowers, in a good way.

Makes 6 cupcake sized muffins.

Recipe altered from Food to Love.

Prep: 10 minutes, baking: 20-25 minutes. Total time: 30-35 minutes.

You will need:

60 g vegan margarine
1/4 cup maple syrup
60 g aquafaba (chickpea brine, or the liquid from a tin of aquafaba)
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
1/2 cup almond milk mixed with 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup dessicated coconut, plus more for topping
3/4 cup sifted brown rice flour
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
4 feijoas, peeled and diced finely

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Beat the margarine with the maple syrup and vanilla, add aquafaba and sifted flour. Beat. Add milk, nutmeg and baking powder.
2. Hand mix in the rest of the ingredients.
3. Divide mix between a greased cupcake tin, it should make 6. Top with extra coconut.
4. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Let cool before eating.

My boyfriend's favourite cake ever is caramel mud cake. He isn't much of a cake person, like I am, but he will make an exception for caramel mud cake. Back when we first started dating over 3 years ago (before I was vegan), for his birthday I made him this cake. And he loved it. It is one of the only foods he has really liked that I have made for him (he is the most critical person ever of my cooking). Years later, he would mention, "Now that caramel mud cake was good". For his birthday this year, I thought I would make him another caramel cake, and I even contemplated making a non-vegan one, just for him.

But I couldn't do it. The thought of making him a cake full of eggs and milk literally wracked me with guilt.

So the solution? I made a vegan one. One that isn't trying to be healthy or gluten free, but one full of sugar, oil and fat. Now, this is a cake.

What is with the popcorn you may ask? Popcorn is one of my boyfriend and I's favourite foods. We literally cook a massive bowl of popcorn and sit down in front of the TV on a regular basis. And finish it. Plus, you know, it makes this cake extra caramelly.

So what do you really need to know about this cake? It features a fudgy caramel mud cake full of vegan white chocolate and brown sugar, a buttercream icing, caramel sauce and caramel popcorn. Much caramel, much goodness.

Recipe altered from here, and inspired by La Pêche Fraîche.

 Serves 8 - 10.

You will need:

For the cake:

200 g vegan butter
200 g vegan white chocolate
200 g brown sugar
180 ml hot water
1 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp vanilla essence
120 g aqaufaba mixed with 1 tbsp egg replacer
150 g plain flour
150 g self-raising flour

For the salted caramel sauce:

1/2 cup sugar
30 g water
1 tbsp glucose syrup
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp coconut cream
2 tbsp vegan maragrine
1/4 tsp salt

For the buttercream:

50 g butter
1.5 - 2 cups icing suagr
1 tsp vanilla essence
1-2 tbsp almond milk

Plus 2-3 cups vegan caramel popcorn (store bought or homemade)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 140 degrees Celsius fan-forced. Grease a circle cake tin.
2. Melt butter, white chocolate, sugar, water, maple syrup and vanilla in a saucepan on low to medium heat. Once smooth, let cool for 10 minutes then beat in the aquafaba egg and sift in the flours. Stir the flours in with a spoon.
3. Pour into the cake tin and cook for 1 hour to 1 hour and 30 minutes (depends in the depth of the cake tin).  Let cool.
4. Once cool, make the buttercream icing by beating the butter, adding the icing sugar and mix until desired consistency. Ice the cake.
5. For the salted caramel sauce: in a saucepan melt the sugar, vanilla, water, and syrup. Stir in until sugar is dissolved then turn heat up to high and let the sugar burn. Once the mix has turned the colour of amber, remove from heat, and whisk in the coconut cream and butter. Let cool.
6. Assemblage: pour the cooled sauce over the iced cake and top with popcorn. Serve! Avoid putting the cake in the fridge until you are ready to serve to avoid popcorn going soggy.

These lil' babies are a current obsession of mine. Great for snacks for work, uni, school, you name it! Though they rarely last 2 days in a row at my house (between my sister and I), they are really easy to make if you have time constraints and good if you're one for prepping meals.

Cookie Dough Protein Balls (recipe altered from One Green Planet)

Prep: 10 minutes.

Makes 15-18.

You will need:

1 cup rolled oats
2 tbsp ground flax meal
1 cup almonds
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp vanilla essence
15g vegan vanilla protein powder (like a pea and rice protein)
4 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp water
1/4 cup vegan dark chocolate chips

Method:

1. Blitz oats, almonds and flax meal until a fine meal is achieved in a food processor. Add rest of the ingredients minus choc chips until a dough is formed.
2. Using a spoon, mix in the chocolate chips. Roll into balls as desired.

Do you have a recipe in your family that is so well used that the page is discoloured with water or (almond) milk stains, and falls open when you get the cookbook down from your shelf? That recipe in my family would have to be the Women's Weekly scone recipe. Simple, easy and really hard to stuff up (though easy to stuff up if you try to make GF. Trust me). I veganized this traditional recipe for Mother's Day, and they were a real hit!

Makes 10.

Prep: 10 minutes, Cooking: 15 Minutes. Total Time: 25 minutes.

You will need:

2 cups of self raising flour
2 tsp sugar/coconut sugar
15 g vegan margarine
1 cup lite soy milk

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 240 degrees Celsius (fan-forced). Sift the flour into a bowl, and mix in the sugar.
2. Rub in the margarine until well mixed.
3. Using a knife "cut" in the soy milk until a dough is formed.
4. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough and use a 5 cm circle cutter, cut out the scones. Lay them touching in a circle tin that has been greased and floured
5. Brush each scone with soy milk or aquafaba.
6. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

After being vegan for 2 years, there are still some things I have forgotten that I used to love. One of them is top deck chocolate: white chocolate spliced with dark chocolate, ugh so good. And so easy and quick to make! It really doesn't deserve a recipe, but I decided to upload it to remind people of this delicious chocolate perfection.

Easy recipes are kind of my thing now, and are all I really have time for since I started my PhD two months ago, and work 2 days a week. So somehow I have to accomplish 40 hours of PhD work in the remaining 5 days, write an article by the end of June, have a social life, and cook. So I apologize if I won't be posting regularly here (not that I really do anyway), but I will try to update here every so often! If you want to see what I am up to food-wise, you can always check out my instagram.

Makes 2 x 100 g blocks.

You will need:

100 g vegan white chocolate
100 g vegan dark chocolate

Method:

1. Melt the white chocolate in 1 minute intervals in the microwave. Once melted, divide between 2 chocolate moulds and smooth out. Put in the fridge for 10 minutes.
2. Repeat using dark chocolate, and pour on top of the set white chocolate. Smooth out and let set for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

As promised, here is another May the Fourth (Star Wars Day) themed food! 'Cause what is the point of posting recipes for May the Fourth unless people know about them prior and can make them on the day? Basically for these I veganized a recipe by Diamonds for Dessert, though let me tell you, these are not for the faint hearted! Not only does this recipe require four blocks of vegan white chocolate (meaning these are a little pricey to make), but they are fairly time consuming (not that you could tell by looking at them, heh). However, if you really love Star Wars, Yoda, matcha tea, and chocolate, then these babies are for you! The truffle is made of cashews, white chocolate, and matcha, resulting in a super smooth and rich dessert. So rich, people, so rich! Oh, and they're accidentally gluten free, so yea, my sister can eat them too (insert painting nails emoji here).

Prep: approx 4 hours.

Makes 10-12 truffles.

You will need:

For the truffle:

240 g vegan white chocolate (I used Sweet William)
1/2 cup cashew cream (1/2 cup soaked cashews blended with 1/4 cup water until smooth)
3/4 tsp matcha powder
dash of salt

For the decoration:

100-150 g vegan white chocolate
Green food colouring (vegan)
1/2 - 1 tbsp coconut oil
20 g vegan dark chocolate
20-24 vegan white sugar pearls, for eyes

Method:

1. In a double boiler/saucepan on low heat, melt the white chocolate. Once melted, whisk in the cashew cream and salt. Sift in the matcha powder. Once combined, pour into a bowl and put in the fridge.
2. Every 5 minutes whisk the mix in the fridge as it slowly sets. This will take 1 hour to 1 hour and a half, though you can speed this up by putting it in the freezer for intervals.
3. Meanwhile, melt 150g vegan white chocolate and add some green food colouring. Using a piping bag, draw the chocolate into little long triangles for Yoda's ears on some baking paper on a tray. Make sure you have around 24-26 of these ears, with some extra (just in case!). Place this tray in the fridge to set. Leave the excess chocolate at room temperature on the kitchen bench.
4. Once the truffle mix is firm enough to roll, with slightly damp hands, roll into balls, around 10-12. Place back in the fridge.
5. Once the truffles and ears are set, it is time to assemble. Firstly, reheat the green white chocolate, and add around 1/2 tbsp to 1 tbsp melted coconut oil so that it is really smooth.
6. Dip each truffle in the white chocolate mix with a fork, letting the excess chocolate drain. Stick an ear into each side of the ball, then spoon some more chocolate on top, letting excess drain before putting onto a tray lined with baking paper. Repeat until all balls are done then put in the fridge.
7. While they are setting put two white pearls for eyes on the balls.
8. Melt the dark chocolate, pour into a piping bag and draw your design on Yoda, including 2 forehead wrinkles, pupils, and ear marks. Place back in the fridge and serve when ready.

As I am sure you are already aware, May the Fourth (Star Wars Day) is coming up. Although I am already brainstorming ideas (wookie cookies, yoda truffles, BB-8 cupcakes), I thought up that in the lead up to it I might share some of my star wars related recipes.

Now, to the raweos! You can make these like normal oreos of course if you do not have a death star cookie cutter (I got mine off eBay), but they are delicious in any form they may take.

Serves 10.

Total Time: 40 minutes.

You will need:

For the biscuit:

1 cup of raw cashews
1/4 cup cacao powder
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup rolled oats
2 tbsp flax meal/ground flax seeds
1 tbsp coconut oil
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla essence

For the filling:

1 cup cashews soaked overnight or in boiling water for an hour
4 tbsp maple syrup
1 vanilla bean, scraped out

Method:

1. Blitz all ingredients for biscuit in a food processor until combined and a dough is formed. Roll out between two sheets of baking paper and cut into circle shapes (should make around 20). Place in the fridge to set for 20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, make your filling! Combine all ingredients in a high speed blender (vitamix is great for this). Once smooth, pipe onto one cookie and top with another. Repeat. Eat immediately or let set in the fridge for 30 minutes.

As a chocoholic, Easter is one of my favourite times of the year. Whilst on the day I am thinking of making a simple carrot cake and eating some Hot Cross Buns, these are also on the list! Simple, easy, and festive, what is not to love?

Serves 6.

Prep: 10 minutes, Refridgeration: 30 minutes. Total Time: 40 minutes.

You will need:

200g vegan chocolate (I used Lindt 70% dark)
100g crunchy noodles
60g chocolate covered almonds or vegan mini Easter eggs
gold leaf, optional

Method:

1. Melt the chocolate in a saucepan, mix with the noodles in a bowl until everything is covered.
2. Divide mix between 6 muffin patties and put in the fridge for 30 minutes.
3. Top with almonds and gold leaf before serving.

When I saw this post on A Beautiful Mess, I just had to make a vegan version of their birthday cake popcorn that was much, much easier to make, i.e. didn't involve packet cake mix (because: effort!). And dayum, it did not disappoint! I warn you: this popcorn is supremely delicious and addictive! So make sure that someone else is with you when you make this so you don't accidentally eat it all yourself ;).

Serves 4.

Prep: 8 minutes, Refrigeration: 10 minutes. Total Time: 18 minutes.

You will need:

5 cups of air popped popcorn
100g vegan white chocolate
2 tbsp coconut oil
1/2 tsp vegan butter essence
2 tsp vanilla essence
1/2 tsp baking soda
Vegan sprinkles, for topping

Method:

1. Melt the chocolate in a saucepan on low heat, and add the coconut oil, butter essence, vanilla essence and baking soda. Once smooth, mix it with the popcorn. Place on a tray, and sprinkle with sprinkles.
2. Place in the fridge for 10 minutes before eating/inhaling.

Tim Tams are so quintessentially Australian, and I am so glad a vegan one exists by the brand Leda (which they call Chocolence)! I made these super quick, easy and delicious cheesecake balls for my sister's birthday, and as I used the Leda biscuits, these balls are also gluten free!

Makes 15-20 balls.

Prep: 30 minutes, Freezing: 30 minutes.  Total Time: 1 hour.

You will need:

225g vegan Tim Tam-style biscuits
225g (1 tub) tofutti better than cream cheese
170-200g vegan "milk"-style chocolate
20g vegan white chocolate
20g vegan dark chocolate

Method:

1. In a food processor, blitz the biscuits until a fine crumb is formed. Add the tofutti cream cheese, and blitz.
2. Roll into balls and place on a tray lined with baking paper (slightly damp hands helps to roll the balls easier!). Once rolled, place the tray in the freezer for 30 minutes.
3. In a saucepan on low heat, melt the 170g of chocolate for the coat. Using a fork, dip each cheesecake ball in the chocolate, letting the excess chocolate drain. Place on another baking paper lined tray. Repeat until all balls are coated, and place in the freezer until chocolate is set.
4. Finish by melting some white and dark chocolate, and drizzling them over the balls.

Lately I have become OBSESSED with the chocolate and peanut butter combo. How I have ever missed it, I have no idea. It all started when my boyfriend got me a packet of Cleo's Peanut Butter cups for Valentine's Day, and the rest is history.

This slice is easy, delicious, and reminiscent of a snickers bar. Plus, most importantly, it involves that ever amazing peanut butter and chocolate combo. It features:

A crumby cashew cookie base,

a smooth and oozy peanut butter caramel,

and most importantly,

chocolate.

Vegan Snickers Slice

Serves 10.

Prep: 30 minutes, freezing: 1 hour. Total Time: 1 h 30 minutes

You will need:

For the base:

1/2 cup cashew butter
1 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp coconut flour

For the peanut butter caramel:

10 medjool dates, soaked and pitted
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp peanut butter
1/4 cup water
1/2 tsp vanilla
dash of salt

For the topping:

1/4 cup roasted peanuts
50 g dark vegan chocolate

Method:

1. In a food processor combine the ingredients for the base. Once combined pressed into a small square tin that is lined with baking paper.
2. Combine all ingredients for the caramel until smooth, then smooth over the base. Sprinkle with peanuts, and if desired, drizzle with chocolate now or later, once it has been cut up. Freeze for 1 hour.
3. Cut into bars before serving.

Ah, the lamington. The sponge cake, sandwiched with cream and jam, rolled in chocolate and sprinkled with coconut. The ultimate Australian classic perfect for Australia day.

I decided to take this traditional dessert up a notch by combining it with my favourite treat: donuts. I made a baked gluten free donut, sliced and filled it with whipped coconut cream, raspberries and jam, topped it with a chocolate ganache and, the finishing touch, coconut. Yum doesn't quite cover it!

Serves 6-8.

Prep: 20 minutes, baking: 12 minutes. Cooling: 30 minutes. Total time: roughly 1 hour.

You will need:

For the donuts:
 
1 tbsp ground flax seeds soaked in 2.5 tbsp water
2 tbsp melted vegan margarine
1/3 cup coconut sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 cup buckwheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla essence

For the filling and assemblage:

Approximately 4 tbsp berry jam of choice
1 x 400 ml coconut cream, refrigerated overnight
80 g sugar free vegan chocolate
12-18 raspberries
Coconut shreds

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. For the donuts, mix the flax egg, vegan margarine, sugar, almond milk, vanilla and baking powder and soda in a bowl. Sift in the flour. Mix.
2. Pour mix into a piping bag, and pipe into a donut tin. Makes 6-8 donuts. Bake for 10-12 minutes.
3. Let the donuts cool for at least 30 minutes, then slice horizontally.
4. Meanwhile, spoon out the coconut cream into a bowl, discarding water. Whip.
5. In a saucepan, melt 80 g of the chocolate with 6 tbsp of the coconut cream (keep the rest of the cream for the filling). Whisk until combined. Let cool to room temperature (the fridge helps to speed up this process).
6. Fill each donut with whipped coconut cream, jam, and 2 raspberries sliced in half. Pour the ganache on top of the donut, and sprinkle shredded coconut on top. Serve!

I made these truffles to take to my boyfriend's house for Christmas lunch so that there was a dessert available to me (super important), and they were a hit among the non-vegans. Though these are rich, if you are a chocoholic like me, you can eat three in a row! It was inspired by a cooking show my parents were watching on SBS (I have forgotten the name), though these truffles feature a fig, date, pistachio and "butter" filling, a smooth dark chocolate coating, and can be either finished off with toasted almonds or sea salt flakes. Plus, with the chocolate coating, these babies can stay fresh in your fridge for weeks, if they can last that long!

Makes 18-24 truffles.

Prep: 30 minutes, Cooling: 1 hour. Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes.

You will need:

170 g dried figs
170 g medjool dates, pitted
80 g shelled pistachios
40 g lite vegan margarine
1/4 tsp salt
150-200 g 70% dark vegan chocolate (e.g. Lindt)
40 g chopped blanched almonds
2 tsp sea salt flakes

Method:

1. In a food processor, blitz the pistachios until a meal is formed, then add the figs, dates, margarine and salt. Blitz until combined then roll into balls, placing them on a tray lined with baking paper.
2. Toast your almonds, by placing them in a non-stick fry-pan on low heat, using a wooden spoon to turn them over and cook them. You will smell them when they are ready, and they will start to take on a brown-ish colour. Place almonds in a bowl and set aside.
3. Melt your vegan chocolate. Then, place each truffle on a fork, dip in the chocolate, and let the chocolate drizzle away. Place on the baking paper, and top with either almonds or sea salt flakes. Repeat. Place truffles in the fridge for around an hour to set.

Vegan tiramisu has been on my to-do list for a while. However, it is just so fiddly, and I did not want to partake in these "raw" tiramisu's that seem so un-geniune and a poor replacement for the original version. Though to be honest, there is only one tiramisu I have ever liked, and that is the one by Michelle's Patisserie. I prefer one sans alcohol, so this is a "virgin" tiramisu so to speak, that does not lack in the good stuff.

So for lady fingers, I simply made a small sponge cake, which I cut into strips and baked again. The coffee syrup is self-explanatory, though for the cream I didn't want ten thousand ingredients with hard to find materials such as soyatoo (which is also full of sugar). I mixed cashews with tofutti cream cheese (which does have a little bit of sugar), plus some maple syrup, vanilla, and almond milk, which worked a treat (my dad even found the cream, by itself, quite tasty). Naturally, the whole thing is also dusted in cacao powder. Rich, yes. Delicious, yes. And it tastes exactly how I remember Michelle's Patisserie's tasting. Plus, it is not too hard to assemble and make, you just need to prepare yourself for a few steps.

Serves 2 - 4.

Prep: 35 minutes. Baking: 25 + 15 minutes. Soaking: 1-2 hours. Total Time: approximately 4 hours.

You will need:

For the ladyfingers:

3 vegan eggs (3 tsp egg replacer powder to 6 tbsp water)
4.5 tbsp maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup + 3 tbsp buckwheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp coconut butter

1. Preheat the oven to 150 degrees Celsius.
2. Beat the egg replacer powder with water for 1 minute until frothy. Add the rest of the ingredients, sifting in the flour. Beat. Pour into a lined square tin (12 cm x 12 cm).
3. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes, cut the square in half, then each half into small "fingers". Put this on a lined baking tray, and bake for 15-20 minutes (still on 150 degrees Celsius). Let cool.

For the coffee syrup:

3 tsp instant coffee
1/2 cup boiling water
1 tbsp coconut sugar

1. Add all ingredients to a jug, let cool and set aside.

For the cream filling:

1 tub Tofutti Cream Cheese
1/2 cup soaked cashews, rinsed and drained
1/3 cup almond milk
1 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp maple syrup

1. In a food processor/high speed blender add the cashews, almond milk, vanilla and maple syrup until a smooth base is formed. Add the cream cheese until the mix is smooth.

Assembly:

You will also need a small square tin or 2 glasses
Plus cacao or cocoa powder for dusting

1. Layer some cream in the bottom, layer the sponge fingers. Drizzle the coffee syrup on top, dust with cacao powder, then add more cream. Repeat, by adding more sponge fingers, coffee, cacao powder etc. Finish it with the cream and sifted cacao powder on the top. Keep in mind you might not end up using all the coffee syrup!
2. Place in the fridge, and let the tiramisu soak overnight or for at least 1-2 hours (it's worth the wait, trust me!)

These donuts were inspired by a trip I took to Melbourne about 6 months ago. I went to a vegan bakery and bought all these delicious vegan donuts, and one was a sausage style donut filled with mock cream and jam. So decadent, I just had to have a go at 1) making mock cream and 2) making donuts (again). Apart from brownies (i.e. chocolate) and ice cream, donuts have to be my favourite treat.

Prep: 60 minutes, Cooking: 20 minutes, Rising: 1 hour 15 minutes. Total Time: 3 hours 5 minutes.

Makes 5 - 6 donuts.

You will need:

For the donuts (recipe altered from here):

1/2 tbsp natvia sugar
160-185 ml warm water
1 tsp dry yeast
1 tbsp melted vegan margarine
1 1/2 cup plain flour or bakers flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp natvia sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder

For the mock cream:

1/4 cup vegan margarine
65 g natvia icing sugar mix
approx. 1.5 tbsp boiling water
1 tsp ice cold water

Plus sugar free jam, for the filling and more icing sugar for dusting.

Method:

1. In a bowl or bread maker, add 1/2 cup warm water, 1/2 tbsp natvia sugar, yeast and salt. Let rest for 5 minutes, then add the rest of the ingredients. If too crumbly, add 1 tbsp of warm water at a time until a dough is formed (I added 4 tbsp more). Let the machine knead the dough for 30 minutes.
2. Remove the dough, place in a bowl, cover in plastic and let rise for an hour.
3. Cut the doughnuts into desired shape (e.g. circle, with hole, sausage). Place on a lined baking tray and let rise for 15 minutes.
4. While donuts are rising, slowly heat some vegetable oil in a deep saucepan. Once simmering, but not too hot (if too hot the doughnuts will burn on outside and won't cook the inside), add one doughnut at a time, cooking for approx. 3 minutes, making sure you flip the donut halfway.
5. Once they have been cooked, prep the mock cream. In a bowl, dissolve the icing sugar in some boiling water (1/2-1 tbsp). Mix. In another bowl, beat the vegan butter until creamy and almost white. Add the icing sugar mix slowly for around 10 minutes. Add 1 tsp boiling water, beat, then add 1 tsp ice cold water, and beat again.
6. Decorate your donuts! I sliced the sausage donuts and filled them with cream and jam, then dusted everything with icing sugar.