Let Me Eat Cake

Anyone that knows me, knows that I am not always the most responsible with money. From time to time, I just say fuck it and go spend. I like doing it, it feels good and I rarely have remorse, even when I get the credit card bill. I go from being flush to broke all the time and I am pretty used to it. When I feel flush, I spend and when I am broke, I stay home.. and ground myself. I have never had long term goals to strive to. even though I am not the biggest thrill seeker or risk taker out there, I try very hard to live in the present. I don't want to die with thousands saved away for a rainy day. I make mistakes all the time, but I rarely dwell on them. Shit happens and  hopefully in the end I will make more good decisions than bad and most of my risks will pay off.

This week, I noticed a large amount of money sitting in my account. Not so much that I could pay off everything I owe and be good, but enough that it was like I was a month ahead. I happily paid all my bills for the month... not realizing that I had forgotten I was holding money int here for a cheque that was going to be coming out soon... So that cheque, all my bills and my rent all were withdrawn and just like that I was broke until next pay day. So much for being responsible!!

Normally Sunday is my day to make lots of food, do lots of food shopping and plan out the week. This week was a little different. Even though I could have gone and got groceries, I figured maybe this would be a good time to see what I can do with what I have. Sometimes my best creativity comes out when I am forced to look at what I have stocked and figure out what to cook with it.

I think this week is going to be an interesting one. I have lots of grains (Rice, barley, Wheat  berries, cornmeal), but not so much for protein (Chickpeas, dried beans and a little bit of tofu).  I have decided that I am only going to purchase food with whatever cash I can find in my apartment... so far I have found about $10, but opted to do laundry with it.

Feeling a little down about this forced grounding... I started really craving something sweet. I had an overwhelming urge to buy cake mix. Luck for me, I seemed to have enough ingredients kicking around to make a cake.. not a mix, but from scratch. It's always better from scratch. the nice thing about a cake is that almost all the ingredients are ones that are pantry items.. nothing that really goes bad. Really all you need is flour, sugar, milk, chia egg and baking powder. From there add any other ingredients you see fit. My favourite cake is golden yellow cake... I am pretty sure that nice golden colour comes from all the egg they put into most recipes. I decided that I needed to figure out how to veganize this..

Giant Vanilla Golden Cupcake Cake 

*Makes 1 small cake (8" pan), double for using in a 9 X 13"

Cake:

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp white sugar
• 1/2 Tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 chia egg (1tsp ground chia + 2 Tbsp water)
• 1/4 tsp tumeric (makes it golden)

Icing:

• 1/2 cup vegan butter, melted
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (you may add more if you like)
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp chili powder
• 1/8 tsp cayenne powder
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract or almond extract
• 2 cup of icing sugar 

Toppings:

• Toasted Coconut
• Chopped walnut

For the Cake: Pre-heat the oven to 350 F. Get a sieve and sift the flour with the sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Use your mixer and now mix in the butter, milk and vanilla until well combined. Now add the egg and the tumeric and mix very well (About 3 min or so). Prepare your pan but either spraying with cooking spray or using shortening to crease it. Add a little flour and cover it on the bottom and sides.

With cakes, sifting is always better

Another great thing about this recipe, only one bowl

Pour the batter into the pan. For mine, I used what seems to be a giant cupcake pan. Honestly I am not really sure what the real purpose of this small of a pan is, but it works perfect for me. I tend not to share my cakes, so whatever I make either gets thrown out or eaten. Personally I would rather just make less.

Giant cupcake, ready for the oven!

Put the cake into the oven and bake. Mine took about 35-40 min, but if you were doing cupcakes, I would think about 23-30 minutes. Keep an eye on them. To tell if they are ready either use a toothpick (Insert it into the centre of the cake and it is ready when that comes out clean) or look for when the edges start to pull in from the pan.

The worst part... waiting for the cake to cool

And.... ready for icing

Once the cake is done, let it cool fully before icing.

For the icing, melt the butter in a bowl. Sift in the cocoa, cinnamon, chili powder and cayenne. Now add in the the icing sugar and mix until it is well absorbed. I used about two cups, but it depends on what consistency you like. I recommend adding the icing sugar by a half cup until you get the desired consistency.

Trick to this icing, combine everything but icing sugar first

Then.. add a ton of sugar... a ton

Lastly, get some fun toppings like coconut, chopped nuts, sprinkles.. what ever you want and add them on top of the icing.

Top of the cupcake to you!

This cake is so good. A little spicy (No heat, but you can tell it isn't a mix!) the tumeric gives it a beautiful golden yellow colour and the chocolate icing is just the right amount to get a good amount on the cake.

Since I used a giant cup cake pan, I decided to lop off the top of the cupcake and make it into a mini cake. Check out the results... I think it turned out pretty awesome.

Oreo Stuffed Cookies

One of the happiest days of being vegan was the day that I learned Oreo's contained no dairy. What does that say about them? Well for one, there is not much natural to them... definitely would not consider these a health food! It also says to me, that once in a while it's a perfect treat for me. I have no control when it comes to Oreo's, and really most cookies. I generally keep them out of my house because if they are here, I eat them until they are gone and never feel good after.

Not long ago, my boyfriend, Tony, sent me a picture... See below. I took it as a challenge and I am pretty sure it was meant to be interpreted that way. Really, how could I not try to make these knowing that they were vegan and knowing that I am a self-proclaimed cookie master! Tony did a little research for me by tasting different cookies with Oreo's and we determined that, yes, chocolate chip is the way to go. Lucky for me, I make a mean chocolate chip cookie... so why not put them on cookie steroids by stuffing another yummy cookie inside!

These cookies are monsters. Basically, consider one cookie, three cookies. Yummy chocolate chip cookie on the outside and warm Oreo in the middle. I can't think of something better to have after a long day...

How did I make these? It's actually pretty easy. You can take any chocolate cookie recipe you have on hand.. just remember that it will really only make half the number of cookies, so double if you want lots, but these cookies are pretty filling. I don't think I would recommend eating more than one in a sitting.

I used my chocolate cookie recipe found here

Now, when you have your dough ready, make each cookie dough into a ball. Press down with your hand or a spoon and then place an Oreo on top. Now take a second cookie and place on top. Make sure the cookies are large enough that they wider than the Oreo. Next, grab the dough and press the edges together to they are sealed.

Make your cookie dough, place an Oreo on the dough..

Place the second cookie dough on top and seal.

Pre-heat your oven to 375 F (Or if using a different recipe, just follow their cooking instructions). Bake the cookies to the recipe, mine took about 10 minutes. Keep an eye on them for when the edges go golden brown... That means they're ready. Also, space the cookies out well, they can spread a bit.

Let them cook on a rack for about 5-10 minutes and then transfer to a plate.

there is an Oreo hiding in that cookie!!

Let me just say, oh man are these amazing. I wasn't too sure about the combo at first, but who ever came up with this Picture Tony send, they are genius. I am so glad Tony sent these to me now. He is finally coming up to brave Canadian winter and see me on my birthday... maybe he'll luck out and I'll make these for him so he has a snack for when he gets off the plane. He is the best for coming all this way just to celebrate my big 3-0, I should return the favour. What better way than a double threat cookie!

This recipe got me thinking... what else could you stuff inside a cookie? Fruit, obviously. I did that once with a sugar cookie and strawberries... they were good. What about peanut butter? Jam? Icing? Pumpkin? My brain is going a mile a minute.. mostly because I just test tasted these cookies and I am on an obvious sugar high... I think this will not be the last of stuffing food into cookies.... But what to try next?

Bannock and Babysitting

Last night I didn't blog. I didn't blog because I was tired after doing some baby sitting at my sister's. Not that it was difficult, her kids were pretty well behaved for toddler/baby. Really I have done much more strenuous things and not felt as tired... Maybe her kids are energy suckers, I don't know. Luckily for me, she made some vegan dinner so I would not starve while hanging with her kids. She had a veggie chili which once day I will get the recipe for. It is a black bean, corn, tomato mix. Really good, kind of more sweet than chili flavoured actually, but it really tastes great.

Kind of random, but with this she served up some Bannock... vegan bannock to be exact. I actually looked this up and it seems most bannock recipes are vegan. How awesome is that? I love when something just is and always was vegan. Makes my like easier. I assume it at some point was made in animal fat, but really veggie fat is just as good if not better.

 I have had bannock before. It is an awesome, sweet, filling bread that is native american. I have a grandma recipe for bannock and I have had it at a restaurant before... and I have to say in my limited experience... you need a little old lady to make this to really perfect the recipe. That said, my sister made an attempt.. and she did good.. like REAL good. This was the lightest bannock I have ever tried. I don't know if that is because of the switch for vegan ingredients.. or the fact that this recipe happens to have a lot of baking powder... Probably a bit of both. You must give this recipe a try.

I apologize, but no pictures right now. At the time, I didn't realize I would be blogging about this. I am hoping to try this recipe for myself and maybe reduce someone the sugar in it ... I will post pictures if I do.

Laura's Vegan Bannock
*Recipe from some dad from daycare. Thanks!

• 3 cups flour
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup sugar - (Note from Laura - I'm SURE you could reduce. The last bannock recipe I made had 1 tbsp, haha. 1/4 would be fine I bet)
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 1 cup raisins (optional) - I bet blueberries would be good (Laura did not put these in, but agree with her comment!)
• 3/4 cup shortening
• 2 cup water

Pre-heat your oven to 400 F. Mix dry ingredients. Add shortening, mix with hands till texture is like large oatmeal (also seen described as wet sand). Now put 2 cups cold water in a bowl on the side and make a well in the flour mixture. Pour in 1/4 cup of the water into the well. Swirl in center till it forms a soft ball. Place on an un-greased baking sheet and keep repeating until the flour is gone. Make sure the dough is not sticky after you may the ball. If it is, add some more flour

Pat down dough in the pan and square off with a knife. Poke two holes in the centre of each square.

Bake for about 35 minutes

Laura - Thank your day care buddy for this recipe. It was so good. I am craving more now and if I had enough shortening, I would be in the kitchen making it!!

Hopefully will be back cooking things on my own tomorrow. I have some stuff ready to go, just not enough time to make it happen. It has been a busy week. This weekend could not come soon enough. 

Peanut Butter Whiskey Cookies

I did not have the best day today... things at work are not going exactly to plan, my meeting ran long and had to skip the gym and as usual, I forgot about after work commitments which kills almost all of my time for cooking and relaxing after work.

After a long day, I really want to have a decent meal and if that can't be had, at least a good snack. I remembered when I first moved out on my own making peanut butter cookies quite a bit. Mostly because they only required a couple ingredients and took no kitchen appliances or time to make. Today, I decided these were a must... Even though these are good enough to stand on their own, I thought maybe I could do something to make them a little different than the basic recipe... What else goes good after a long day at work? Whiskey!

With very little additional work, I jazzed up this super easy recipe and turned it from an after school snack, to an after work snack. You could swap out the whiskey for other alcohols... spiced rum I think would be very good here. I origianlly  planned to have some chopped pecans on top, but I didn't have any on hand.. I instead used some apple slices. Apple and whiskey go, apple and peanut butter go, so I can only assume that Apple, peanut butter and whiskey all go perfect together.

Here we go with the recipe. The basic recipe is just the peanut butter, sugar and chia egg. From there, you can add things as you like. Just remember to balance the wet and dry ingredients. If the batter is too wet, the cookies will be flat and crunchy. If the batter is too dry, they will get cakey.

Peanut Butter-Apple Whiskey Cookies
*Makes 15 cookies, 20 minutes
Ingredients:

• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 cup sugar (I used brown, but white works too)
• 1 chia egg (1 tsp ground chia seeds whisked with two Tbsp water)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp whiskey (I admit, I free poured... )
• 1/4 tsp instant espresso (optional.. this is my secret ingredient in most baked goods)
• 2 Tbsp Flour (Again this is an estimate depending on how cakey you want the cookies. Add by the table spoon)
• 1 apple, peeled and sliced thin

Very easy to make. Pre-heat the over to 325 F. In a bowl mix the peanut butter, sugar chia egg, salt whiskey and instant espresso. Once everything in combined, add a Tbsp of flour and mix. Does it look like cookie dough? If it is too thin, add another tablespoon of flour. I would not go beyond 4 tablespoons though.

The ingredients... looks kind of gross, but thinking these are going to taste great!

I wanted a crispier cookie, so I only added a little flour.

Now, take a spoonful of dough and roll it into a ball and place it on an un-greased cookie sheet. Press each cook dough ball down with a fork until flat. Top with apple slices and some extra sugar. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Keep a close eye on them, you don't want to over cook!

Roll into a ball and flatten with a fork.
This will make the cookie, look like a cookie

Ready for the oven!

And.. the result? Well, first I wish I hadn't eaten half the apple and put slices on all the cookies. As you can see above, I ran short and figured sugar was enough. It was good, but the apples make it so much better.

The apple looks good and tastes even better!

These cookies are pretty boozey, if you are not into boozey cookies, use vanilla instead of the whiskey. or cut the alcohol in half. Me personally? I can't wait to eat these with a glass of whiskey on the rocks for dunking ;)

The Clever Rabbit - New Vegan Restaurant in Edmonton

Not too long ago, a new vegan / vegan friendly restaurant opened up in Edmonton. I don't know how it took me so long to get there, but I finally went this past weekend. I dragged my ass out of my apartment before noon and headed out for one of the first vegan brunches at restaurant.. possibly ever.



Clever rabbit is on 124th Street and just north of 107th Avenue. It is only open for breakfast and lunch which for me means that I will only be able to get there on the weekends. Walking in at noon on a Saturday, I was welcomed by a display of vegan baked goods. For vegan people in this city... you know that this is a big deal.

The menu was pretty simple, but had a number of good options. As someone that has no friends that are vegan, what I was most impressed with was that they default all items on the menu to vegan, but will sub in non-vegan on request. What a nice change! I never really thought that I minded that every time I go out to eat, I have to ask for things to be substituted or taken out of dishes... It is really nice to have things vegan by default and people can add when they want something more... carcass-y. Why can't all restaurants be that way?

Vegan donair - and yes, it is good! No meat necessary here

 So my thoughts on Clever Rabbit? I love the name and the casual atmosphere inside. They don't seat many in there, so I really hope that they promote the vegan baking and get some take-away traffic in addition to sit down. I was a little worried when I walked in as the place was pretty empty, but it seems that everyone was just sleeping in and within 30 minutes of getting there, the tables were full. The staff was friendly and prompt. I had a coffee which was really good. I normally wouldn't even comment on the coffee, but it was just a good brew. The kind where you don't need milk and sugar. They also have smoothies there, which I did not try, but may next weekend. One drawback for me was they had juices, but they were all canned and carbonated. Since they are doing the breakfast thing and the smoothie thing, it would have been really great to have fresh juice... but pretty minor I think. The carbonated raspberry lemonade was awesome.

This is what a garden salad SHOULD look like!

My sister, who came out with me, had tofu scramble and it looked and smelled really good. For the $9.00 price tag, you got a lot. She barely got through half of it. I decided to try the vegan donair. First time I had seen one of these and it was so good. Good enough that I wish these guys were open at 3:00 am for post bar munchies. Since they're not, I can wait patiently for the next morning. I had a salad with my donair and though just a garden salad, it was more like the salads I make at home. Lots of seeds, nuts, fruit and veggies. So much better than most restaurants where a garden salad is romaine/iceberg and some carrots and onion.

Why we went here in the first place - Vegan breakfast!
Behold scrambled tofu.. even better than non-vegan scramble

After brunch, we got some homemade vegan donuts and they were so, so good! A little on the heavy side (often happens I find in vegan baking), but the flavour was bang on and it cured a two year craving for donuts. I really wanted a cinnamon bun, but the last one was taken while I was there. Another reason why I need to go back. I have really struggled to find good decent vegan baking in this city. There are some fabulous cupcakes and muffins out there (Pure muffins, so good!), but beyond that, I have to make my own. Sometimes, I just want someone else to do the cooking and cleaning.

In short, vegan or not... Go give Clever Rabbit a try. I think you will be impressed!

More pumpkin! And the Perfect Muffin Formula

Well, this may be the last of the pumpkin recipes for a while. I am starting to feel a little pumpkin'd out! I already made a soup and a dessert, so I figured it was time for breakfast. I Have heard of a few ways to incorporate pumpkin into breakfast. Oatmeal, smoothies, breads and muffins. I have one cup of pumpkin left, so I get a choice of one of these. I have decided on muffins and maybe if there is a bit left over I will see if can incorporate it into a green smoothie! Maybe I'm not so sick of pumpkin yet.

I am not sure what else I can say... pumpkin is awesome. It is such a versatile vegetable. 


So, muffins... have you ever heard of the perfect muffin formula? Well, you are in for a treat! There are a few of these out there, but they all generally end at the same result. Good muffins. All you need is to have the formula of how much dry and wet ingredients are required to get the right consistency. This is my formula:


Perfect Muffin Formula
Makes 12 muffins

Wet Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup earth balance or oil (butter makes it more cakey, you can use more, but I wouldn't go over 1/2 cup)
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 chia egg (1 tsp chia seed and 2 Tbsp water)
• 1 to 1 1/2 cup of choice liquids (flavour): apple sauce, vegan yogurt, sour cream, juice, mashed banana, milk, pumpkin, fruit etc. If you are using a thini liquid like water, use 1 cup, if you are using thicker luiquid, use 1 1/2 cups

The dry ingredients:

• 1-1/2 to 2 cup flour (depending on how much wet ingredients you have)
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 - 1 tsp salt
• Extra dry ingredients: herbs, spices, zest, fruit, nuts, seeds, chocolate etc.

Preheat your oven to 375 F. Get two bowls and mix your wet ingredients and dry ingredients separately. Add the dry into the wet and stir until just combined. It's OK if your batter is lumpy. Next if you are adding chocolate chips, nuts sees etc. Add them last (If you didn't do this, that's OK). Bake for 20 - 25 minutes for muffins. 


*Note: You can make this recipe into a loaf, just bake at 350 F for 50 - 60 minutes.


Here is how I made my muffins:


Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins

• 1/4 cup earth balance
• 1/2 brown sugar
• 1 chia egg (1 tsp chia seed and 2 Tbsp water)
• 1 cup pumpkin
• 3/4 cup milk

• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup oat meal
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp all spice
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Follow the above instructions. I put the chocolate chips in last and then topped each muffin with a walnut and a little extra brown sugar.

Prepare the wet and dry ingredients..

Add dry to the wet and stir

And.. bake

So next time you want to have some muffins and want to show off that you don't need a recipe, remember this basic formula. Also remember that you want a somewhat thick batter at the end (in between cakes and cookies). If yours is too thick, add a little more milk, too thin? Add a little extra flour. There are no real rules.

Pumpkin Upside Down Cake

It is Thanksgiving and in my family, we don't do much. However my sister's family does.. So I will be crashing their festivities tomorrow and to ensure that they will let me, I decided to break out the big guns and make Pumpkin Upside Down Cake.

Confession, I forgot to add the chia eggs! Otherwise, this cake holds together just fine.

I actually got this recipe from a funeral. It was so good, that I knew I couldn't leave without finding out what this delicious dessert was. Luckily I did get to take it home with me. It is ridiculously easy to make, but I never thought I could have it again because it called for three eggs and evaporated milk. The eggs was not an issue except for that I normally only make recipes with one or two substituted eggs. Evaporated milk is a whole other issue.

Is there a vegan evaporated milk? Can this be done? I had never seen one before, so I did some googling to find out what was out there. Turns out it is pretty easy. Get some soy milk powder and then double the ratio of dry to water.

So with that small obstical out of the way, here it goes. Let's veganize the best pumpkin recipe I have tried!

Pumpkin Upside-Down Cake
*Addapted from some maritimer's recipe

• One 14 Oz (414 ml) can of pure pumkin
• 1 1/2 cups of soy milk
• 3/8 of a cup of instant soy milk powder
• 1 cup of sugar
• 2 tsp chia seeds
• 4 Tbsp water
• 4 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 box of vegan cake mix
• 3/4 cup melted vegan margarine

Pre-heat the oven to 350 F and grease a 9 X 13" cake pan. 

First, make the evaporated milk. Combine the soy milk powder and the soy milk. I used my magic bullet to mix them together, but if you don't have one, just stir it really well until combined. Next, make the chia eggs. Grind the chia seeds in a coffee grinder (or if you have a magic bullet, use it here). Pour in the water and let it sit for a couple minutes. Next whisk or blend in the magic bullet your grinded seeds and the water until it has an eggy consistency.

Like almost all baked goods, mix, pour, bake. So easy!

Now, combine the milk, sugar, pumpkin, egg and spice in a bowl and stir until combined. Pour the mixture into the greased cake pan and distribute it evenly. Now pour the cake mix on top and the top that with the chopped pecans. Lastly, take the melted margarine and pout this all over the cake (as evenly as you can get it. if there is dry cake mix still, that's OK)

Bake it in the oven for 50 - 60 minutes or until it is browned on top. Let it cool for an hour or so before serving. Serve with vegan ice cream or whipped cream.

Ahh... pumpkin bliss in one hour. 90% of that is just sitting around waiting. That is the hardest part.

If this won't allow me to be able to bust in on other people's thanksgiving, I don't know what will!

Blackberry-Cherry Breakfast Bars

I hesitated when I titled this as a breakfast bar. They kind of remind me of a blackberry-cherry crisp or crumble. That said, I have been eating these for breakfast and they are a great way to start the day. Who needs a boring breakfast when you can snap your taste buds awake with this fresh, sweet and tart bar.

Above = morning bliss

I adapted this recipe from Colour me Vegan. The book's version has only able 150 calories per bar, but with my changes... they are definitely more than that, but my addition of peanuts and pecans also add some good fats and protein which is good to have in the morning.

Either way, these are worth the time it takes to bake them. The labour is minimal.

Blackberry-Cherry Bars (Breakfast or Dessert)!
*makes 12-16 bars and takes about an hour

• 2 cups of berries (I used about 1 cup blackberry and one cup cherry, but do as you like)
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 2 Tbsp water
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon 
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup quick cooking oats
• 2/3 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1/4 cup ground chia seeds
• 1/8 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 handful (about 1/8-1/4 cup) of chopped pecans
• 1/3 cup melted margarine
• 2-3 Tbsp melted peanut butter

Alright, preheat the oven to 350 F. In a sauce pan, combine the berries, sugar, water, lemon, vanilla and cinnamon and stir well. Cover and bring to a boil and then reduce it to a simmer and stir often for about 8-10 minutes. While the sauce is cooking combine all remaining ingredients except for the margarine and peanut butter. Stir the dry ingredients well. Pour into it the melted margarine and peanut butter and stir until its combined. 

Action Shot!

Take half of the mixture and press it into a 8 X 8 pan. bake it for about 20 minutes or until it is golden. At this point the sauce should be done. Remove it from the heat and set aside while the base cooks. Once it is finished, pour the berry mixture on the base and then top with the remaining dry mix. Press lightly and then cook it again for 20-25 minutes. Let cool completely before serving if you can... If you can't wait, it will crumble, but still tastes good!

Yes, the plate is dirty because I couldn't wait and ate one before the picture! BUSTED

Whew, that was a lot of ingredients, but these bars pack a powerful punch. Full of healthy ingredients (and some not so healthy... but hey no one is perfect). I can;t think of a better way to start the day... All I have to do now is find some will power to not eat them all before the morning!

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

As a kid, I did not like most vegetables. In fact, you could probably count the foods I would eat with one hand and I did not tolerate foods and flavours combined. However, my mother tricked me with chocolate zucchini bread. Except for the name, you would never know as a kid that there were vegetables in there at all. Who ever came up with this combo was genius.

That's right, I took a bit before i could snap a pic... I couldn't resist!

I stole my mom's recipe when I moved out and I still have the scrap piece of paper I wrote it down on. It's faded and covered in chocolate, but I am pretty sure I have it down. The original recipe called for eggs so I replaced them with chia seeds. I think they are my favourite egg replacer for baking. Plus they are insanely healthy. Combine that with the dark chocolate and zucchini and basically this is a healthy snack.... well in moderation!

Why so healthy? Chia seeds are load in potassium, really high in omega-3, high in amino acids and are a complete protein. I use dark chocolate it this recipe and that is on the list of super foods. Full of antioxidants, dark chocolate is known to be good for your heart and lower cholesterol.. Then there is zucchini, another great source of antioxidants and has beta carotene, vitamins C and A. It is also low calorie and high in fiber.

Even though there is white flour (easily substituted for whole wheat, I didn't have any at the time), I stand by this is a decent snack... better than processed junk food anyways.

The recipe....

Chocolate Zucchini Bread
Makes 1 loaf

• 1 1/2 chia eggs (click here for recipe)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1 square melted unsweetened chocolate
• 1 1/2 cups grated zucchini, leave the skin on and buy organic if you can (about one large one)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda

Easy batter, once your prep is done, it takes 5 minute to combine

Pre-heat the oven to 350 F. Make your chia eggs and then add to a bowl and beat until fluffy. Add the oil and sugar and beat again for a couple minutes. Stir in the melted chocolate, vanilla and grated zucchini. In a second bowl mix the dry ingredients and pour the wet into the dry and stir until combined.

The hardest part... Waiting for it to cool!

Bake for 50-60 minutes (test with a tooth pick, it should come out dry). Cool 15 minutes in the pan and then transfer to a cooling rack.

Photo credit: www.epicurean.com

Just like mom used to make. And for all you non-vegans... this recipe was tested with five non-vegan colleagues.. It's not just me, this is a truly addictive recipe.

Cherry Pineapple Pie

Healthy? Well, I certainly think there are worse things out there!

I know I keep saying that I am going to make healthier food choices, but I have been craving cherry pie for ages now. Today I decided that not only would I fulfill my craving, but i would jazz it up with another favourite fruit.. Pineapple!

Making a pie can be as simple as purchasing a pre-made pie crust and dumping canned filling into it to making everything from scratch. I have provided the from scratch version here.

Now even though this is a pie recipe, it definitely has some nutritional benefits. First - Pineapple. It is full of Bromelain which is supposed to help with digestion, breaking down proteins. Also full of vitamin C, manganese and B1, Pineapple is great for your immune system and over all health. Want to know if your pineapple is ripe without cutting it? Pull on one of the leaves and if it comes out easily, it's ripe. If it doesn't, just leave it out for a day or two.

Cherries - well to start, they are beginning to be recognized as a super fruit. They are full of antioxidant and also contain other important nutrients such as beta carotene (19 times more than blueberries or strawberries) vitamin C, potassium, magnesium, iron, fiber and folate. Cherries also contain melatonin, which has been found to help regulate the body’s natural sleep patterns, aid with jet lag, prevent memory loss and delay the aging process.

So even though this is a sugary somewhat fattening snack. Everything in moderation and there are lots of benefits!

Cherry-Pineapple Pie
The crust:

• 3 cups of whole wheat pastry flour
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 2/3 cup of shortening
• 4 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup water + 3 Tbsp if needed

Combine all the dry ingredients together and cut in the shortening in 3-4 batches. Once the mixture is pebbly, combine the vinegar and water and add it in in 3 batches. Add extra water by the Tbsp until the mixture forms a dough. Chill in the fridge for one hour and then cut it in half. Roll out each half to 12" circles for the bottom and top of the pie.

Or... Buy pre-made vegan pie crust (be careful of ingredients, most pre-made contains lard

The Filling

• 5 to 6 cups fresh pitted cherries, about 2 1/2 to 3 pounds
• 1/2 cup pineapple juice or water
• 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 4 tablespoons cornstarch / Kuzu / arrowroot

First prep your cherries by pitting them. Combine the cherries with remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to low and cook, stirring frequently for about 10 minutes. Cool and then pour into pie.

Or buy a large can of cherry pie filling!

Next, assemble the pie. First roll out the bottom crust on a piece of wax paper. Use the paper to transfer it to your pie plate. Next chop up a fresh pineapple to about 1/2 - 1" cubes (or use canned. You can use the juice from the canned pineapple to make the cherry filling). Put a handful of the chopped pineapple in the pie plate, add the cherry pie filling and then add more pineapple. Cut a small hole in the centre of the top pie crust and then place on top of the pit. Press along the edges to seal and cut of any leftover dough.

Preheat the over to 450 F. Bake the pie for 10 min and then lower the heat to 350 and cook for 40 - 50 minutes. Keep an eye on it. My crust started browning early, so to stop it from burning I put a loose piece of foil on top.

Let it cool for at least 30 minutes before serving.

See? Pie can be made in minutes if you're using the pre0made items, but a little bit of extra work and you can make a tasty pie from scratch.