Recipes for Delectable Vegan Muffins

Here is a cookbook to treasure and use frequently--150 Best Vegan Muffin Recipes, by Camilla V. Saulsbury presents not only delicious and easy to make recipes but the author has done her research. The front of the cookbook contains information preparing muffins in general and helpful details about the  different  vegan ingredients.                             

 A few examples of scrumptious recipes: Jelly Doughnut Muffins, Morning Oatmeal  Muffins (a very nice way to have your oatmeal and a muffin, too), Tropical Fruit Muffins with Coconut Streusel, Fig Date Muffins, Pineapple Lime Muffins, and Raspberry Vanilla Muffins, to name just a few of many perfect recipes.

 Published by Robert Rose, Inc. $19.95.                                                           

Sample recipe:

Strawberry Yogurt Muffins (page 50)

Makes 12 muffins

At the height of summer, you can't have too many strawberries. Here, they are enveloped in golden muffins. The slightly tangy, not-too-sweet batter is a breeze to mix up.

•    Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C)

•    Blender

•    12-cup muffin pan, greased

2⁄3 cup   vegan granulated sugar or    150 mL

     evaporated cane juice, divided

1 cup     all-purpose flour  250 mL

1⁄2 cup   whole wheat pastry flour     125 mL

1 tsp     baking powder 5 mL

1⁄2 tsp   salt 2 mL

1⁄4 tsp   baking soda   1 mL

11⁄4 cups halved strawberries 300 mL

1⁄3 cup   vegetable oil 75 mL

1⁄3 cup   vanilla-flavored soy yogurt  75 mL

1 tsp     vanilla extract    5 mL

1.   Set aside 1 tbsp (15 mL) of the sugar. In a large bowl, whisk together the remaining sugar, all-purpose flour, whole wheat pastry flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda.

2.   In blender, process strawberries, oil, yogurt and vanilla until blended and smooth.

3.   Add the strawberry mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just blended.

4.   Divide batter equally among prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle with the reserved sugar.

5.   Bake in preheated oven for 19 to 24 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then transfer to the rack to cool.

 

Tip: Although they are somewhat harder to find, almond milk yogurt or rice milk yogurt may be used in place of the soy yogurt.

Excerpted from 150 Best Vegan Muffin Recipes by Camilla V. Saulsbury © Robert Rose Inc. www.robertrose.ca Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.

Alice Waters: Restaurateur, activist, author and humanitarian

On Friday, July 29^th, One Kings Lane is continuing its partnership with culinary pioneer and philanthropist, Alice Waters, and unveiling exclusive, step-by-step recipes from the menu of Waters’ famed restaurant, Chez Panisse, the leader in the organic and locally harvested food movement. The recipes will be featured on the “Get Inspired” page on One Kings Lane – this will be the only online destination where you  will be able to learn how to prepare gourmet meals, a la Alice Waters, in your very own kitchens:

https://www.onekingslane.com/get-inspired/entertaining/alice-waters-chez-panisse.php

This is a part of One Kings Lane’s partnership with Alice Waters to raise awareness for developing programs around edible education such as The Edible Schoolyard (ESY) in schools nationwide. The ESY programs provide urban public school students with a one-acre organic garden and a kitchen classroom. Using food systems as a unifying concept, students learn how to grow, harvest and prepare nutritious seasonal produce.

In addition to these exclusive menus, Alice Waters will also be selling her cookbook “In the Green Kitchen” at a special discounted price for One Kings Lane members.

Eastern Mediterranean Cuisine

The title alone--Purple Citrus & Sweet Perfume-- conjures up heady dreams of succulent aubergine, rose petals, pomegranate molasses and heavenly fragrances of an adventure in the kitchen. You might almost be content to just curl up and read London Chef Silvena Rowe's beautifully photographed cookbook. But gather your wits and try some of the inviting recipes, including Pink Grapefruit, Avocado and Pomegranate Salad with Nasturtium Flowers or Creamy Feta and caramelized Leek Borek (pictured at right) or Aleppo chili, or Hummus. Desserts? How about Pink Peppercorn and Cardomon meringues with mulberries and white chocolate? It is all so very, very tempting. So, just surrender.

http://www.purplecitrussweetperfume.com/

Published by  ECCO, an imprint of HarperCollins

Strawberry Delights; Sweet and Savory

http://www.californiastrawberries.com/

Take a look at the above site to find out not only about strawberries from California, but a simply terrific cookbook that will have you whipping up strawberry concoctions and quite delightfully unexpected dishes. For instance:

Moroccan Spiced Strawberry Jam, Grilled Salmon with Strawberry Ginger Salsa,

Thai Green Papaya Salad with Grilled Strawberries, Strawberry Lassi, and of course, Classic Strawberry Shortcake

 

Ad tips on how to freeze whole strawberries. A very usable, helpful, and nice to look at cookbook.

 

Organic Chocolate

                                                                                                                                                               

Chocolate. For Valentine's Day or any other day, why not choose chocolate that has a heart? Green and Black’s Organic Chocolate is not only organic, as the name says, but also Fair Trade Certified, meaning all of its products are made from Fair Trade ingredients. The farmers they work with receive a guaranteed minimum for their ingredients, along with an additional premium to invest in the social, environmental, and economic development of their countries. This ensures a higher quality of life for the farmers and a high quality of chocolate for the world.

                                                                  

                                                                                              
Green and Black’s Organic Chocolate offers 13 chocolate flavors, ranging from light to dark chocolate. Traditional varieties include Milk, Dark 70%, Dark 85%, and White, while the more unique flavors are Maya Gold, Hazelnut and Currant, Ginger, and the newest flavor, Peanut and Sea Salt.  Green & Black's also makes hot chocolate and baking bars, perfect for making a romantic Valentine’s Day dessert. Recipes can be found in the new Green & Black’s Organic Chocolate cookbook, Ultimate.

For more information about Green and Black’s, or to view  recipes, please visit http://www.greenandblacks.com/

Slow Cooking Indian Cuisine

Here is an appetizing cookbook that is informative to read and inspiring enough to make you want to get a slow-cooker, some basic ingredients and take the first steps, however tentative, to learning to cook and enjoy simple and tasty dishes from India. The Indian Slow Cooker by Anupy Singla, available in paperback from Surrey Books, an imprint of Agate Publishing.

The author's style is straightforward and no-nonsense but not without humor. The ingredients are explained and simplified and she shares some information on which foods are considered everyday and which are reserved for special occasions. And the recipes are creative and very do-able.

Highly recommended.

http://www.agatepublishing.com/book/?GCOI=93284100938990&fa=author&person_id=389

http://www.indianasapplepie.com/

Dreaming in Vegan

  There's so much more to Thanksgiving than turkey. If you have been thinking about dipping your fork just a little into the vegetarian and even vegan lifestyle, you can't do much better than starting with The Conscious Cook  by Tal Ronnen. (William Morrow, An Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers) The cookbook promises to bring you "Delicious meatless recipes that will change the way you eat," and it does. Chef Tal Ronnen admits to being a former meat-lover--steak, pastrami, veal scaloppini, spicy sausage. He became a vegetarian and then a vegan and was determined to create delicious and satisfying meat-free dishes that were as mouth-watering as those he had as a meat eater. His success is your reward. Here are a few ideas from the cookbook--perfect for Thanksgiving and any other time you want to cook consciously: Aritichoke Ricotta Tortellini with Saffron Cream Sauce,

Beet and Orange Autumn Salad, Green Beans with Fresh Cranberries,  Split Pea Soup with Tempeh Bacon and Chipotle Cream, Sweet Potato Biscuits, Oven-Roasted Banana Rum Cheesecake

Chef Ronnen also makes use of some pre-packaged vegetarian entree options, such as Gardein's  chicken-style strips and beef-style strips. (Gardein offers a limited edition Savory Stuffed Turk'y that would make a delicious entree for Thanksgiving or other feast. http://www.gardein.com/  Please see our Gardein review earlier). This allows for the cook to be creative but save some time, without sacrificing nutrition,or taste.

We aren't preaching vegetarianism or vegan choices. These are personal decisions. But when you can choose an alternative, even just once in a while, that tastes as delicious or better than meat, why not give it try? It might feel better to eat food you would be comfortable preparing from its very beginning to the table.
http://www.talronnen.com/ 

Eating like the French--an Attitude as Well as a Cuisine

You know you are going to like this book when the author states in the ouverture: " My philosophy isn't about 'dieting' in the conventional sense, but more about eating sensibly and pleasurable." and this--"How are you at dealing with ambiguity? Do you ever have cereal for dinner? A snack?...What's a main course versus a side dish? Can sides be lunch or a side dish a main course?" Mais oui, we say!
Inside Mireille Guiliano's  The French Women Don't Get Fat Cookbook you will find recipes, of course--and tantalizing and practical recipes they are--but you will also read about a different way of looking at food. This is a companion book of sorts to the author's French Women Don't Get Fat, a non-diet book on how to enjoy food and stay slim (and non, it is not le smoking!) For many people, food and eating have become something to be tamed or managed. Rather than taking the What must I do without approach to eating, perhaps try the How can I prepare my favorite nutritional food so that I am content to enjoy it reasonable portions? As the book reminds us, the most pleasure of eating something we love comes with the first 3 or 4 bites. There is no need to gorge ourselves or feel deprived and grouchy because we are missing out on the foods we love. Remember portion proportion. In this day of repulsive shows that feature people stuffing the biggest pizza or most enormous burger into their mouths as entertainment, it is great to take a step back and take a look at how we can eat (what we love) to live and not live to eat. After all, there are consequences, n'est -ce pas?

Recipes include--Vegetable Curry, Salmon with Endives and Oranges en Papillote, Pumpkin and Apple Soup, Red Berry Smoothies, Yogurt and Oatmeal Cake, and Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal, and so on. But you will enjoy reading it even of you don't think you like to cook. You may even change your mind.

Published by Atria Books, a division of Simon & Schuster

Food and Cooking,Vermont Style

It isn't often that you find a cookbook or other collection of recipes that's also just a real good read. Dishing Up Vermont is one of these rare finds. Written with care and love by Tracey Medeiros with perfectly composed photographs by Scott Dorrance, (and published by Storey Publishing) Dishing Up Vermont is a delicious slice of Vermont's best.

The framework of the book is the Vermont Fresh Network, a catalyst that connects a network of Vermont farmers, producers and growers with chefs and the result is that local agriculture finds support and restaurants and food retailers find the absolute finest produce and other ingredients,  locally grown and raised.
  The book is well organized with several indexes so the reader can find a particular restaurant or food establishment, grower or recipe.

Some of the very tempting recipes include --Vermont Asparagus with Parmesan Pepper Crumbs, Creamy Vermont Winter Pumpkin Soup, Curried Carrot and Sweet Potato Soup, Maple Nut Muffins, Cranberry Apple Crisp, even Grilled Cavendish Quail, and Emu Steaks with Soy Ginger Sauce.

It is a joy to just flip through and read the book and take in the photographs, even if you only think about making the Smoked Salmon, Goat Cheese, Apple, and Watercress Salad with Honey Vinaigrette.

http://www.storey.com/

A Beautiful Cookbook

If you love good food and wine, here is an impressive cookbook that brings both together beautifully.

The Bryant Family Vineyard Cookbook: Recipes From Great Chefs and Friends (Andrews McMeel Publishing; September 1, 2009; $50.00, jacketed hardcover) is a collection of more than 80 recipes from culinary masters celebrating the Bryant Family Vineyard. Barbara Bryant tells the story of the vineyard and award-winning travel photographer Robert Holmes captures the beauty of Pritchard Hill in exclusive photographs throughout the book.

This cookbook features recipes from such celebrated chefs as Thomas Keller, Eric Ripert, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Lidia Bastianich, Daniel Boulud, Charlie Trotter, Terrence Brennan, and Patricia Wells. Recipes range from such classics as Le Cirque’s famous Pasta Primavera and Eric Ripert’s Smoked Salmon Croque Monsieur to Barbara Bryant’s own original recipe for Cheddar Wafers as well as her recipe for Baked Wild Rice with Onion and Pecans and her Almond Biscotti. There is also Daphne Araujo’s Mushroom Lasagna and Daniel Boulud’s Roasted Turkey Breast with Endive, Apples, and Walnuts and Narsai David’s Chocolate Decadence .

Turning to the wine, the Bryant Family Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, first produced in 1992, has the reputation of a “cult favorite” among wine connoisseurs and has a waiting list of more than 6,000. As Park B. Smith of Veritas Restaurant noted in the foreword: “All of the chefs who have contributed to this book are artisans of their vocation. Their culinary delights are best appreciated, however, when teamed with the art of a winemaker. Food and wine are natural complements to one another.”

A beautiful cookbook makes a very nice gift and what is especially nice this time of year, or at any time, is that a portion of the proceeds from this book will be donated to The Bowery Mission, http://www.bowery.org an organization whose roots go back some 130 years with a goal “to be the most effective provider of compassionate care and lfe transformation for hurting people in New York City.” As stated on their website: “Last year, The Bowery Mission & Kids With A Promise provided homeless men and women with more than 362,500 meals, 78,500 nights of shelter and 50,000 articles of clothing, as well as showers, haircuts, 550 professional doctor’s appointments and 69 eye examinations.”

An elegant cookbook with wine pairings and benefits to a worthy cause. Sounds like a very nice choice.

Definitely Not Plain Vanilla

When mixing any ingredients you want to use the best so the result will be the best. Think of how often you use Pure Vanilla Extract. Now think of the purest, most fragrant and flavorful Vanilla. If you are thinking Nielsen- Massey Vanilla, you are on the right path.

Nielsen -Massey was founded in 1907 and quickly became Vanilla experts and trusted purveyors of the many forms of this at-once exotic and familiar aroma and taste. Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Sugar. Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Bean Paste, Rose Water, Orange Blossom Water, Pure Orange Extract, Pure Lemon Extract. Pure Almond Extract. Tahitian Gourmet Vanilla Beans. Pure Chocolate Extract. Pure Coffee Extract.

Think of the delights that can be conjured using these fragrant flavors! Just remember to add the flavors at the end of the cooking process or cream them with the butter to protect the delicate essence of the flavorings.

Worth a read is A Century of Flavor, Nielsen Massey Vanillas. This is a company history and cookbook you’ll want to have for the photos and text, as well as for the tantalizing recipes.

http://www.nielsenmassey.com/