Montag, 30. April 2012

MINI-CHEESECAKE





This is not going to be a new recipe. Just a variation of my "Cherry-Cheesecake Recipe". I had some leftovers and decided to make little cheesecakes with the ingredients. It´s so simple and doesn´t need a lot of time! You only have to grease such a small form and put it there with dough. Fill in the "cheese-mixture" and cover it with the dough. Take a fork and firmly press the edges of the dough. Cut a cross in the middle of the batter and put it in a 180°C oven. I´m not sure how long it has baked.. but it should be something around 15 minutes!!!  Let it completely cool down and sprinkle with powdered sugar!!!


Sonntag, 29. April 2012

SUN-DRIED TOMATO PESTO


SUMMER-TIME IS PESTO-TIME!!!... okay it´s not summer but i´m waiting for it =)
I really love pesto in all variations. It´s so easy to prepare and so versatile!!! You can add every ingredients you like and create everytime a new flavor!!! This time sun-dried tomato pesto has its turn. It´s great for pasta but even as spread for sandwiches. And the best thing is.... it´s gluten-free AND yummie at the same time!

Ingredients:
  • 120g sun-dried tomatoes (without oil; it should also work with oil)
  • 40g pine nuts
  • two hands ful of basil
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 6-8 tbsp good quality olive oil (or more, but i don´t wanted it too fatty)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  1. Place sun-dried tomatoes in a bowl and cover with boiling water for 20 minutes, or until tender. (don´t throw the liquid away, you will need it for the pesto)
  2. Heat a pan (without oil) and roast the pine nuts until golden brown.
  3. In a blender combine the sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, pine nuts and  basil. Process until well blended. Add olive oil and about    10 -14 tbsp of the soaking water. I think using more oil makes it even better!!
  4. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  5. If you don´t wanna use up all the pesto, just fill it in a clean perserving jar and cover with olive oil. Put the lid on and put it in the refrigerator. Here it will remain stable for at least 2 weeks!

Donnerstag, 26. April 2012

VEGAN SWEET HOI-SIN DUCK WITH STIR-FRIED NOODLES


Yes... this should be my last recipe with seitan or vital wheat gluten, cause my doctor diagnosed me with a gluten-allergy. This is why i have to dispense with it for a long time. Too bad, cause the taste of the duck breast filet was amazing! The recipe for the marinade is from a grillbook called "fired up". I just added some extra flavours. =) so try it out and convince yourself !!

Ingredients for the Sweet Hoi-Sin Duck:
  • 3 duck breast filet from alles-vegetarisch
  • 2 tbsp light soy-sauce
  • 3 tbsp Hoi-Sin-Sauce
  • 3 tbsp ketchup
  • 3 tbsp agave syrup
  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • some fresh coriander leaves
  • 2 cloves of garlic, sliced
  1. Wash off the filets under cold water and dab it off with a kitchen towel
  2. Cruciform scarify but not too deep.
  3. Mix all the other ingredients in a flat box and marinate the "fake-meat" in it.
  4. Heat a pan and fry well.
  5. You can eat it now, or put it in a casserole with the rest of the marinade and grill it.


Ingredients for the Stir-Fried-Noodles: (sorry again for my inaccurate amount)
  • chinese egg-free noodles 
  • carrots, cut into strips
  • broccoli florets
  • onions, cut into coarse pieces
  • red pepper, cut into strips
  • china coal, cut into coarse pieces
  • a small piece of ginger, grated
  • 2 cloves of garlic, grated
  • Hoi-Sin-Sauce
  • soy-Sauce
  • some sugar, salt and pepper to taste
  • peanut oil
  • coriander leaves
  1. Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the noodles according to package intructions. Drain, rinse in cold water, drain again, and set aside.
  2. In a  pan, heat about 1 tablespoon of peanut oil over medium high heat and stir fry the garlic, ginger  and the vegetables. Season with a little salt, and stir fry until the vegetables are cooked but still crisp/crunchy.This shouldn't take too long. Set aside in a bowl.
  3. In the cleared pan heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium high heat and add your noodles. Toss them around, get them well coated in the oil, and break up any clumps.  Pan fry the noodles, stirring and flipping them frequently until some of the noodles get a nice and crunchy golden brown exterior. Then season with the Hoi-Sin-Sauce, soy sauce, and sugar. Taste and see if it needs additional seasoning. add the vegetables into the skillet, toss until everything is evenly distributed into the noodles.
  4. Sprinkle with some coriander leaves and serve it with the grilled duck breast filet.

Dienstag, 24. April 2012

PUFF-PASTRY STICKS WITH CREAMY ONION FILLING


When i was filling the puff pastry with apples i was thinking about a savory filling for some puff pastry appetizers or snacks. Then i reminded me of this delicious vegetarian puff pastry strips that my colleague once brought to work. Her recipe was with cheese and sour cream cheese. I neither had a vegan cheese nor a vegan sour cream cheese at home. In Addition... they are very expensive. So i tried to make them with drained yogurt and without cheese and i really was so surprised how good they have become. It´s really an easy and yummie snack for partys or something like that!!!

Ingredients:
  • 2 sheets of  puff pastry
  • 500g unsweetened soy-yogurt
  • 1/2 - 3/4  package organic onion soup powder
  • 3 tbsp poppy seeds
  1. Fill yogurt into coffe filters and let it drain overnight or at least 2 hours.
  2. Mix the drained yogurt with the onion soup powder. Taste from the mixture. Don´t take too much of the powder. It shouldn´t be too spicy!
  3. Roll out the  puff pastry into equal-sized pieces. Give something of the yogurt mixture on one of the sheets. Place the second sheet evenly on top of the first sheet, pressing lightly to seal.
  4. Use a sharp knife and cut the dough into strips. Spread the poppy on a work surface and place the strip on it. Press a little bit, so that the poppy can stick on the dough.
  5. Twist each strip into a spiral shape and transfer to a perpared baking sheet. Press down at the tips.
  6. Bake in a pre-heated oven according to package instructions or until puffed and golden.

Sonntag, 22. April 2012

APPLE POCKETS


These little apple-triangles are absolutely the easiest dessert ever. And .... it´s sooooo delicious! You can fill it however you like!
I decided to make an apple-cinnamon filling and it was great! You can add raisins if you like or serve it with vanilla ice-cream!! YUMMIE!!!

Ingredients:
  • 1 package puff pastry
  • apples
  • cinnamon
  • powdered sugar

  1. Peel the apples and cut them into small pieces.
  2. Season with cinnamon to taste
  3. Put apples into a pot and cook lightly until smooth.
  4. Cut puff-pastry into squares and place the apples on a triangle part of the square.
  5. Now fold the square into a triangle and use a folk to press the edges together.
  6. Bake according to package instruction and until it´s golden brown.
  7. Sprinkle with powdered sugar


             
                                               

Dienstag, 17. April 2012

EASY THAI-CURRY


Ingredients (serves 2-3)
  • 150g rice
  • 1 zucchini, sliced
  • 1 red pepper, cut into strips
  • 1 yellow pepper, cut into strips
  • 1 - 2 handful broccoli florets, cooked
  • 1-2 handful sugar pea pods, cooked
  • 1/2 chili pepper, finely chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, chopped
  • salt, pepper, paprika, a lot of curry powder
  • 1 can of coconut milk
  • 1-2 tbsp peanut oil
  • 1/2 bunch of spring onions or 1 onion, diced
  1. Prepare your rice according to package instruction
  2. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and add onions and garlic. Saute for about 1-2 minutes.
  3. Add peppers and zucchini and saute for another 2-3 minutes.
  4. Add the rest of the vegetables and season with salt, pepper and paprika.
  5. Pour the coconut milk into the pan and bring it to boil.
  6. Season with salt, pepper, chopped chili pepper and a lot of good quality curry powder.
  7. You could also use a curry paste instead of the powder and you can also add any kind of veggies you like.

Montag, 16. April 2012

EASTER BREAD

I know, my last post is already a while ago. But that shouldn´t mean, that i wasn´t still diligent in the kitchen. I was just waaaay too lazy to translate my recipes. But now i collected a lot of new recipes that i will blog during the next days.
Today i start with my yummie easter bread, that i was baking for my family. It´s a sweet yeast bread with raisins, which you can eat for breakfast with margarine and  jam or any other sweet spread. I found that recipe on the internet (i don´t know the page) and just veganised it.

Ingredients (makes 2 small breads)
  • 600g all purpose flour
  • 1,5 packages dry yeast
  • 250ml - 300ml soymilk
  • 120g vegan margarine
  • 80 - 90g sugar
  • 1tsp salt
  • lemon zest of 1 lemon
  • egg-replacer for 3 eggs
  • 120g raisins 
  1. Mix the flour with the yeast and sieve on a clean work surface. Form a hole in the middle for the other ingredients
  2. Let the butter melt in warm milk. (not too hot)
  3. In a bowl mix together sugar, salt, lemon zest, and the milk/margarine mixture.
  4. Now add the mixture into the hole and start kneading until everything is well combined. Put it on a warm place and let it rest for about 20 - 30 minutes.
  5. During this time, put the raisins in a small bowl and cover with boiling water.
  6. After 30 minutes drain them well and knead raisins together with the dough. 
  7. Put the bread on a baking sheet with parchment paper, take a sharp knife and cut a cross in the middle of the bread and let it rest until it´s doubled in size. 
  8. Preheat oven to 180- 190°C and bake for about 150 minutes. After 15 minutes cover with aluminium foil to become not too dark.

Mittwoch, 4. April 2012

KIWI-COCONUT-CUPCAKES


Everytime i go shopping i see this yummie kiwis and think... oh i´ll take some home to eat something really healthy!! But in the end they collect in a large fruitbowl at home, waiting to be eaten. =)
This time i had something about 10-15 kiwis and i saw them and just thought... hmm they could be really great in cupcakes!!! So this is what came out!!! Yummie kiwi-coconut cupcakes. I personally am not a fan of these super-sweet buttercreme frosting, and i think o lot of other people too. But i still haven´t found any other beautiful solution to decorate cupcakes. Mh maybe you have an idea??
But now to the very simple recipe!!!! The basic-recipe is from that page holycowvegan. I just added some other or further ingredients.

Ingredients for the dough:
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 3 tbsp coconut flakes
  • 1 1/2 cups kiwi puree
  • 1/3 cup canola oil
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla sugar

Ingredients for the kiwi-buttercreme frosting
  • 200g vegan margarine (i haven´t had shortening, so i would use 100g margarine +100g shortening)
  • 300g confectioners´sugar (i know there should be more, but for me it´s too sweet. so feel           free to add more sugar)
  •  4 tbsp soy-cream (you can also use yogurt or milk)
  • kiwi-puree to taste (pressed trough a fine sieve, to leave out the kiwi kernels) I had about 3-4 tablespoons
Decoration:
  • some coconut flakes
  • kiwi-fruit (quartered slices)

  1. Sift all the dry ingredients into a bowl and set aside.
  2. In another bowl beat the wet ingredients until well-mixed.
  3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix with a whisk, but just until everything is well combined (don´t overmix!!!)
  4.  Divide the batter equally among 12 cups of a muffin pan lined with cupcake liners. Fill the cupcakes only a maximum of three quarter full.
  5. Bake in a preheated 175°C oven about 24 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcake comes out clean.
  6. While cooling the cupcakes, you can prepare the kiwi-buttercream frosting.  
  7. Cream together the margarine and the shortening until fluffy.
  8. Now add the other ingredients and beat until mixed
  9. Give the mass into a pastry bag and decorate your cupcakes!!! =)

VEGAN GRILLED SEITAN-SANDWICH WITH BALSAMIC ONIONS



This is my first try to prepare seitan since a long time! Because i´m never sure, with what method i should prepare the seitan, i used this recipe to test 4 different ways of preparing seitan:
  • baking in aluminium foil
  • steaming in aluminium foil
  • steaming without aluminium foil
  • roasting in oil
I expected, that baking will be the best result, but my favourite was the seitan which was steamed, wether with or without foil, cause most of the flavour remained in the seitan.  This is really a matter of taste. Preparing the seitan with foil makes it a little bit harder than without. The recipe for the balsamic onions is from a bbq-book, called "fired up". And i really really love that sweet taste of the onions!!!  But... now i´ve talked enough. Just try it out =)


Ingredients for the seitan-dough:
  • 1 cup gluten flour
  • 1 tsp chopped fresh thyme
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 2 tsp paprika
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 tsp harissa
  • 2 tsp tomato paste
  • 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 1 tsp salt (it could be one more)
  • some drops of hot sauce
  • 3/4 cup water

  1.  In a bowl mix together the dry ingredients and in a second bowl the wet ingredients. 
  2. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and knead the dough about 10 minutes until everything is well mixed. 
  3. Now it´s time to decide how to prepare the seitan. For steaming just heat some water in a pot, put the steaming tower on top of the pot and steam (with lid on) until the seitan has a good consistensy. I can´t say how much time this will need, cause i cut it into small pieces. If you are steaming it in one piece i think it needs something about 50 - 60 minutes.


Ingredients for the marinade:
  • oil
  • 2 tsp cumin powder
  • 1 tsp paprika powder
  • chili flakes to taste
  • a handful of parsley (chopped)
  • 2 cloves of pressed garlic
  • some lemon-juice
  • some salt 
  1. Mix all ingredients together and marinade the seitan for at least 1 - 2 hours.
  2. Now you can grill the seitan, but i think also frying in a pan should work.


    Ingredients for the balsamic onions:
    • 2 red onions
    • 2 tsp olive oil
    • 1 tsp high-quality balsamic vinegar
    • some chopped parsley
    • sea-salt
    1. Peel the onions and cut them into rings.
    2. Heat a coated pan on medium heat and brush it with a little bit of the olive oil.
    3. Put the onion rings side by side in the pan and let them gently fry for about 10 minutes. Only turn it when they have a nice golden colour. Then also fry the other side. 
    4. Take the pan from the hotplate, mix together the rest of the olive oil the balsamic vinegar, the parsley and the salt and add it to the onions. Let it rest for about 30 minutes (on a warm place).


    Further ingredients:
    • bread (i had a sourdough bread, but you can also use a white bread)
    • tomatoes (sliced)
    • salad
    • cucumber (sliced)
    • ketchup or any other sauce you like
    1. Roast the bread-slices on a grill, grill-pan or in the oven and face? the bread with all the  
        ingredients.

      Sonntag, 1. April 2012

      VEGAN CHERRY-CHEESECAKE

      For weeks i wanted to bake a yummie cheesecake, but my first try to prepare cheesecake-brownies was a totally disaster. So yesterday i dared it the second time. Is this sentence right??? I have no idea, but i think you know what i mean =) This time i made a chocolate shortcrust  with yummie cherry-cheesecake filling... and ...to be honest... the result is really good. Ok, here and there is something to improve but these are really small things. The "cheese" was a little too hard. So i would leave out one of the two tbsp. of cornstarch. I also would add a little bit more lemonjuice. In this recipe i had 2 tablespoons. Next time i think i would use 3-4 tablespoons. But this is a matter of taste. =) The recipe is for a 26cm cake tin.

      Ingredients for the dough:
      • 300g all-purpose flour + some extra flour for the cake tin
      • 1 tsp baking powder
      • 1 tsp soy-flour + 2 tbsp. water (stired)
      • 1 tbsp cacao powder
      • 150g margarine (it shouldn´t be too hard) + some extra margarine for the cake tin
      • 150g sugar
      Ingredients for the filling:
      • 1kg soy yogurt
      • 130 - 150g sugar
      • 3-4 EL lemonjuice
      • 250ml oat cream or soy cream
      • 1 tbsp cornstarch
      • 2 bags of custard powder
      • 1 glass of cherrys (drained about 350g)
       additional: some powdered sugar to dust the cake

      1. Give the yogurt into coffee filters and place it on a sieve to drain. You can make this over night cause it will need at least 5-8 hours. At the end you will need 500 - 600g of drained yogurt.
      2. Mix the flour with the baking powder and the cacao powder and sift it on a clean work surface.
      3. Add the soy-flour mixture and the sugar to it. Cut the margarine into small pieces and give it to the rest. Now it´s time to knead everything to a compact dough.
      4. Wrap the dough in transparent foil and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
      5. Roll out two-thirds of the dough in the size of the cake tin. Grease and flour the cake tin and put the dough into it. (don´t forget the edges!!!)
      6. Add all the filling-ingredients (except the cerries) into a bowl and purree everything with the immersion-blender to get a smooth mass.
      7. Carefully fold in  the cherries and pour the mass into the cake tin.
      8. Use the rest of the dough to form small pieces and put them on the cake.
      9. Put it in a 180 °C oven and bake for 50- 55 minutes. 
      10. Let the cake completely cool down and dust the cake with some powdered sugar.