heartyspoonful

To tell you the truth, I've been stalling to post for a few weeks now. It's the longest writer's block I've ever had to go through. I mean, if there isn't a grade to earn, I suppose my brain just shut down and didn't even bother. So, the recipe sits here and because I just want it printed out, I should just go for it, no gimmicks or sarcastic commentaries.

When I transitioned to veganism, brownies were the first mountain I had to climb. Avocado brownies were such a foreign concept even back then. But I tried and it all worked out for the better. Guess who makes brownies almost every week now? Obviously, since variety is the spice of life, sometimes you just have to change it up once in a while. Basically, Minimalist Baker helped me keep it spicy. Dana is such a creative soul that sometimes, I find myself adding so many of her recipes in my favourites folder. Not a bad thing, really. Because I was on a chocolate kick, I decided to try out her recipe for vegan peanut butter swirl brownies. I mean, come on, PB and chocolate? When have I ever turned down this combo? (Way, way back when, I used to fight my brother for Reese's PB Cups on Halloween... Although, I don't think there was much need for that because he hated them.)


Vegan Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Brownies
Makes 9-12 squares
Adapted from Minimalist Baker

Ingredients:

• 1 15-ounce can black beans, well rinsed
• 2 flax eggs
• 3 tbsp coconut oil, melted
• 3/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/4 cup coconut sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/3 cup dark chocolate chip + more for topping

 

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a square pan with coconut oil and set aside. 

 

Prepare flax egg by combining two tbsp ground flax with 5-6 tbsp of water in a food processor. Add all ingredients up to baking soda in the food processor and pulse until smooth. 

 

If the batter is too thick, add water, a tbsp at a time. Ensure that the batter isn't  runny. Add chocolate chips and mix with a spoon or spatula.

Evenly distribute the batter in the prepared pan. Add dollops of peanut butter and swirl with a knife. Top with more chocolate chips. 

Bake for 35-45 minutes (I baked mine for 35 minutes), or when the edges are crispy, but the middle is still soft. 

Let cool for at least 30 minutes in the pan. If it's still quite soft and delicate to remove, let cool in the freezer for a few minutes to set. 

Enjoy! xx

I'm a dessert girl. Like big time. I rarely ever turn down a good plateful of dessert. Even when I've had a hearty dinner, my brain and heart will whisper, "Go on, girl, eat that cake." Thing is, I don't always reach for chocolate. 

Some of my friends are veritable chocoholics. They'll have a bar of chocolate or prefer a big slice of chocolate cake. I, on the other hand, don't really like all-chocolate anything. Please, don't stone me just yet. It's not often that I'll buy a bar of chocolate and eat half the bar. My dessert of choice isn't always a chocolate cake, unless of course that's the only vegan dessert on the menu, then please, I'll take a big slice. Mostly, when my body craves chocolate, it's either a) it's PMS or b) I'm emotionally off-balance. Weird? Perhaps, but it is what it is. 

My go-to dessert choice is medjool dates, a banana and tablespoonful of peanut butter or almond butter. I always have this combo as my dessert every night. Of course, I bake a lot of cookies and brownies as well, and I do eat the desserts that I make. Trust me, I do find myself standing in my kitchen, holding two slices of brownies with no regrets in the world. I'm only human after all. 

On a rather cloudy and sad-looking day, I found myself reaching for chocolate. No, excuse me for the possible TMI, but it wasn't because of PMS. It's emotional, you see. I'll admit that I'm currently not in the best emotional state. I'm all right, but I have too many emotions quelling inside that, I suppose, I'm trying to silence. That's not always the best way to go. I'm working on it. If chocolate can appease some of my worries, then so be it. I just have to feed my soul for it to shine again. 

Spot the odd strawberry. 

Chocolate-Covered Peanut Butter & Tahini Balls

Makes 11 balls

Ingredients:

Let me tell you a story.

Once upon a time, in a land of tropical fruit trees and rice plantations, there was a young girl named Carla, who was crowned the “Princess of Picky Eaters.” In this faraway land, animal meat was deemed as the holiest of foods. Well, after their beloved rice, of course. Children, Carla the Picky Eater included, were often told by their well-meaning elders that they’re lucky to have animal meat served on their plates because there were those less fortunate than they are who didn’t even have a grain of rice to eat. With this kind of talk, Carla ate the meat served to her though with a heavy heart and clenched teeth.

One day, an aunt scolded Carla for chewing on the same piece of steak for 10 whole minutes. She couldn’t for the life of her bring herself to swallow that steak. After some angry  scolding, Carla managed chow down that one piece. With a heavy heart, she forced herself to hold back her tears. She ate the rice and cut the steak in tiny pieces. It took her more than an hour to eat enough and so her aunt told her to just leave her plate and go to her room. Still hungry, little Carla dreamt of the actual food she liked: banana, peanut butter and local strawberry jam. The one with the whole strawberries of course! She heard a knock on her door and just like a fairy godmother, her grandmother brought her a plate of peanut butter & jelly sandwiches! It was gooey and the strawberry jam oozed out of the bread when she squeezed it. The young girl chewed and chowed and eat her sandwich in five minutes.

… and she lived happily ever after. (I wish.)

But it’s true. I was a problem child. I didn’t like all meat, I abhorred beef—it’s just so heavy. I felt so bad for the pigs as well. My brother had chickens growing up so chickens were more like pets to us. Although, I must admit that I did like fish and seafood, growing up near the ocean and all. I think when I started my vegan journey, fish was the hardest for me to give up. Of course, seeing the actual damage fishing produces to our bodies of water as well as to the defenceless species of fish brings me back to our sad reality. (As a side note, I must admit that I’m not the best vegan out there, but I’m trying my hardest not to purchase leather or fur. I’ll explore this subject more on another post.)

This story also brings me back to my early days as a peanut butter & jelly enthusiast. I have years of discovery and trial here, mixing various sorts of peanut butter (crunchy, smooth, flavoured) with different fruit jams. I’ve had tropical jams (pineapple, mango, passion fruit), “normal” jams (strawberry, raspberry, blueberry) and artisan jams (fig & ginger, blood orange with rosemary, strawberry & basil). But nothing beats strawberry jam, I have to say. (Another side note, I’m an advocate for creativity, but honestly, some jam flavour ideas do sound, well, “sophisticated,” but I reckon they should never be conceived.)

But always with banana slices.

So, after all this intermission, I want to focus on what this recipe post is for. It’s been a long while since I’ve made homemade pancakes. I’ll blame it on my Sunday laziness. And the fact that since Sundays are usually my run-days, I really don’t want to take another hour just to prepare breakfast. Today, however, after running 8 km on thick snow and a rather disappointing flour-y blueberry pancakes from Aux Vivres (everything else is a-okay), I wanted to make myself pancakes BUT with peanut butter and fresh berries. I do avoid jams now because of the sugar content. I’ll go for fresh fruits on the side if I’m having a peanut butter sandwich now as an adult (but with a banana of course). Just thinking about this recipe makes me want to make another batch.

Vegan and Gluten-Free PB&J Pancakes
Serves 2 (makes 6 pancakes)

Ingredients:

In a medium bowl, mix together mashed banana, flour, almond milk, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.

Heat a non-stick pan. When hot enough, lower the heat and pour batter 1/3 cup at a time. Flip pancakes after 2-3 minutes or when bubbles appear. Cool on a wire rack.

For the peanut butter sauce, in a small bowl, mix peanut butter and hot water. Gradually add more water depending on the consistency desired.

Place pancakes on a plate and serve with fresh berries and banana. Drizzle peanut butter sauce.

Enjoy! xxx