So I have neglected this blog for an entire year and I have realized, unfortunately, that I miss adventuring. Now while I am stuck on campus finishing off my senior year, there is no reason for life to be boring! So I have decided to pick up this blog again in honor of my favorite type of adventure--cooking!
I love to cook and talk about food so I hope you feel inspired to try some new recipes! Everything here is vegan, sugar-free and absolutely delicious (I promise).
Oh and please email me any time with your adventures (kitchen related or not)! Email me at KarinaHCosta@gmail.com.

Sunday, December 27, 2009

Vegan Mexican Chocolate Cake with Spicy Chocolate Sauce

Nothing serves the holidays and birthdays like an amazing chocolate cake. This is hands down the best chocolate cake recipe I know (vegan or not vegan), and also one of the simplest. Taken straight from PPK, with some spices added to give it a little something extra. Don't be afraid of the chili, it is not overwhelming and just adds a little something. If you don't want to use it though, just leave it out!

This cake uses a 9 inch springform pan. For a layered cake simply double the recipe and use two pans.

Vegan Mexican Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:
  • 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
  • 1 cup all purpose unbleached flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup good cocoa powder
  • 1 cup milk substitute (I used unsweetened almond milk)
  • 1/2 cup canola oil or light olive oil
  • 1 1/2 cups pure maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
Directions:
  • Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a 9 inch springform pan with non stick cooking spray.
  • Sift together flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and chili powder.
  • In a saucepan, heat the milk on low-medium heat. When it is slightly bubbling, add the cocoa powder and wisk well until it is dissolved. Remove from heat.
  • Combine the other liquid ingredients in a bowl and whisk well. Add the cocoa mixture and combine. Add the wet ingredients to the dry.
  • Pour batter into prepared pan, bake at 350 F for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick or butter knife comes out clean.
While the cake is cooling, prepare the chocolate sauce:

Spicy Chocolate Sauce

Ingredients:
  • 1/2 lbs (about half a package) semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • approx. 1 cup milk alternative
  • approx. 1/3 cup maple syrup
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/3 tsp chili powder
Directions:
  • With a double-boiler, add the chocolate chips and add milk until the chips are just covered.
  • Once the chocolate has melted, add the vanilla. Stir continuously.
  • Now add the maple syrup until you have reached your desired sweetness. This will depend upon the chocolate chips and milk used. If the sauce is getting too thick, add more milk just a splash at a time.
  • Once the sauce has reached your desired thickness and sweetness, add the cinnamon and chili power.
  • Remove the sauce from heat and pour on top of the cake. Now serve!

Thursday, November 12, 2009

OMG Amazing Vegan Oatmeal Cookies

This is a good. Plain and simple. Probably the best vegan cookie recipe I know. This is based on nothing and is a wholly Karina original.

Vegan Oatmeal Cookie Recipe

Ingredients:
  • 2/3 cup oats
  • 1/4 cup + 1 tbs flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup apple sauce
  • 3 tablespoons maple syrup
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • chocolate chips (or dice an apple for a just as delicious option)
Directions:
  • Preheat oven to 350
  • Combine all the ingredients and mix well
  • Lightly grease a cookie sheet
  • Scoop about 2 heaping tablespoons of batter for each cookie (makes 8)
  • Stick in the oven for 10-15 minutes (when the top starts to slightly brown you are good to go)
  • Devour until done
Have fun!

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

End of the Week Curry Soup

This is what I make when I am running out of fresh produce and everything is about to go. It is basically a high end version of 'Kitchen' only it is so good I get overly excited when I realize I have the stuff to make it. It is inspired from Karina Kitchen's Moroccan Coconut & Chickpea Soup.

End of the Week Curry Soup

Ingredients:
  • 3 cups vegetable broth
  • 4 cloves garlic, chopped
  • 1 onion, cut into thin slivers
  • 1 large yam or sweet potato, peeled, diced
  • 1 red pepper, seeded, cored, diced
  • 2 apples, peeled, cored, diced
  • 1 tomatoes, diced
  • 1 15-oz. can beans (chick pea works best, but I've made it with kidney beans)
  • 1 15-oz. can coconut milk
  • 1 lime, juiced
  • 1 tablespoon curry powder
  • A pinch cinnamon, cumin, ginger, and cayenne pepper
  • Sea salt and pepper, to taste
Now throw everything in a pot and cook, covered, over medium heat until the vegetables are tender, about thirty minutes.

Add just before serving:
1 cup packed spinach or greens
Hot red pepper flakes (optional)

Slowly stir while the greens cook down. Now serve!

This works great with some fresh bread or a scoop of thick yogurt. Enjoy!

Friday, November 6, 2009

Pumpkin Pasta Casserole with Camalized Onions and Walnut Topping

This recipe is inspired from a recipe in the glorious Veganomicon. The recipe is also absolutely wonderful and will warm the stomach on any cold fall day.

Pumpkin Pasta Casserole with Camalized Onions and Walnut Topping


Main Ingredients:
  • 1 pound uncooked pasta (I did GF spirals)
  • 2 onions, sliced very thinly
  • olive oil
  • 1 serving cashew ricotta (below)**
  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup
  • 1/4 t. ground nutmeg
  • White pepper and cayenne
  • 2 cups or 1 15-oz can pumpkin puree (not pie mix)
  • 1/4 cup vegetable broth or apple cider
**To be honest I only used about half of the ricotta recipe because I wanted to save the rest for later.

Cashew ricotta (makes 2 cups):

  • 1/2 cup cashew pieces (approx. 4 oz.)
  • 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 cloves fresh or roasted garlic
  • 1 lb. firm tofu, drained and crumbled (emphasis on drained)
  • 1-1/2 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1-1/2 teaspoon salt
**Second note: This recipe called for a food processor. Now I haven't tried this, but I bet ten bucks that if you don't have a food processor you could use 1/2 cup cashew butter and mix everything together by hand. It will take a lot of hand power, but will probably still be good!

Walnut Topping:

  • 8 oz. walnuts, diced fine to resemble bread crumbs
  • 1/4 c. Earth Balance or olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons dried, rubbed sage
  • 1/2 t. ground paprika
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 375. Lightly grease a 9×11 or 9×13-inch pan with olive oil. Prepare pasta according to package directions. Drain, rinse, drain again and set aside.

While pasta is cooking, make the caramelized onions: preheat a large, heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat. Saute onions in oil until some onion bits are very brown and caramelized, about 12 to 15 minutes. Set aside.

Make the cashew ricotta: In a food processor, blend together the cashews, lemon juice, olive oil and garlic until a thick creamy paste forms. Add the crumbled tofu to the food processor, working in batches if necessary, until the mixture is thick and well blended. Blend in the basil and salt.

Place cashew ricotta in large bowl and fold in pumpkin puree, maple syrup, nutmeg, white pepper, cayenne, and vegetable broth. Add the cooked pasta and the caramelized onions. Pour mixture into the prepared pan and level with a spatula, pressing slightly.

Make the walnut topping: Melt margarine or heat oil in a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat. Stir in the walnuts, dried herbs, and paprika and season with salt and pepper. Stir constantly until the mixture is lightly coated, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and spread over pasta mixture.

Bake 28 to 30 minutes, until the top of the top is golden brown. Cool for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Any Fruit Cobbler

Any fruit you say? Cobblers in general are delicious in all flavors, but the problem is that you have millions of cobbler recipes floating around out there. So I always have to look up separate recipes for 'peach cobbler' or 'apple cobbler' or 'tri-berry extreme deluxe cobbler'.

Well I am done with that. Here is a standard recipe that works beautifully with all types of fruit. It is also very versicle and can be made gluten free if needed. This recipe has been adapted from a PPK peach cobbler recipe.

Ingredients for the Filling:
  • 4 pounds fruit (peeled and pitted if needed)
  • 3 tablespoons flour (for GF: Bob's Gluten Free Flour Mix works)
  • 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
  • Zest of 1 lemon, finely grated
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Spices to taste**
**Keep in mind what fruit you are using, for peach or apple cobbler I like: 1/2 teaspoon ginger powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon allspice, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon cloves. But that combination of spices might taste weird with something like...blueberries. So just use your logic!

Ingredients for the Topping:
  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/3 cup applesauce
  • 2 tablespoons canola oil, plus some oil to brush the surface
  • 1/3 cup maple syrup
  • 1 cup milk (or apple cider!)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • FOR GF: add 1/2 teaspoon xanthum gum
Note: This makes a thick crust. If you are not into that, just half the topping or double the filling.

Directions:
  • Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F
  • To make the filling:
    • In a large sauce pan, cook the fruit over low-medium heat, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the juices are being released
    • Sprinkle in flour, toss to coat
    • Add remaining ingredients, mix together and let cool
  • To make the dough:
    • In a large bowl mix together dry ingredients
    • In a seperate bowl wisk together wet ingredients
    • Slowly pour wet into dry, mixing together dough with a wooden spoon or a firm spatula. Careful not to overwork it.
  • Assemble the cobbler:
    • Lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish
    • Pour fruit batter into the dish
    • Spoon dough mixture over the top, spread with a spoon
  • Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the crust is slightly crispy
Done! I hope you enjoy and feel free to be creative!

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Rice Milk and Rice Yogurt Recipe

So ever since I stopped eating sugar I have been having a lot of difficulty with various milks. Unsweetened soy milk is too chalky for me and rice milk is just too watery. Almond, oat, and almond milk are hard for me to find unsweetened and hazelnut is just impossible to find at all.

But then it occurred to me...why don't I just make my own milk? So I did! This recipe is from the VeganReader and makes about 2 quarts.

How to make Rice Milk

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup uncooked organic long grain brown rice
  • 8 cups water for cooking
  • More water for diluting
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • Sweetener of your choice (I like a combination of maple syrup and vanilla)

Directions:

  • Thoroughly wash the rice.
  • Put 8 cups of water in a big pot and bring it to a boil over high heat.
  • Pour in the rice.
  • Cover the pot and lower the heat to let the water simmer for 3 hours.

I will be honest, the cooked rice after 3 hours looks like a failed rice pudding you would probably throw away, but I swear that is what it should look like! Now add the salt.

Using a blender, fill it halfway with the rice mash and half way with water. BLEND. Strain twice into a large pot or directly into a mason jar. You will probably have 2 or 3 batches to blend. Now add a sweeter (if you so desire)! Done!

The final 'milk' will be really thick and creamy. Feel free to add more water to the mixture for your desired consistency. Or...keep half of it as milk and make the other half into rice yogurt!

How to make Yogurt (vegan style)

Now yogurt is something I have always wanted to try, but never found a milk I thought would be thick enough to make into a yogurt. After decided to make my own rice milk however, I knew I had to try yogurt.

The recipe is real simple:

Ingredients:

  • 1 quart rice milk (or any milk for that matter)
  • 3-4 tablespoons yogurt with LIVE cultures and NO PRESERVATIVES (I just went ahead and bought some real greek yogurt because of the sugars in soy yogurt, but you can buy whatever yogurt works for you or powdered yogurt cultures from most health food stores)
Directions:
  • Heat the milk on the stove top to ~150 degrees F (this is to kill any unwated bacteria)
  • Cool the milk to somewhere between ~100 and 110 degrees F. Warmer then this will kill off the yogurt cultures.
  • Add the yogurt and mix thoroughly.
  • Add the mixture to a clean and sterilized glass jar. Seal the jar. The jar MUST be sterilized or else you will get some nasty stuff in there.
  • Find a warm place (again, ~100 degrees F) for the glass jar to go (I like the oven on very very low with the light on) and leave it there for 4-8 hours. The timing depends upon how sour you like your yogurt. This is the tricky stage however because if the temperature goes above 110 the cultures will die off, so keep an eye on the prize!
The final product will be a bit more watery then your traditional yogurt, but I hear you can add agar if you want to thicken it up.

Well there you go! Homemade milk and yogurt! What more could you ask for?