Treats
Stay in and Bake Banana-Tahini Muffins with Crystallized Ginger
People are putting tahini in everything these days, and these muffins are a perfect example of how versatile the sesame seed butter can be.
Wow Your Guests with Purple Sweet Potato Pie
Still looking for a fun dessert for the holidays? Now that you've got Thanksgiving under your belt, so to speak, it's time to plan the coming feasts, parties and get-togethers. Why not shake it up with a technicolor purple pie? Yes, this Purple Sweet Potato Pie is...
Poached Pears Make an Elegant Dessert, For a Break from Pumpkin!
I know we are in pumpkin pie season, but really, how many pies can you eat? Dare we break away for a moment to celebrate the beauty of the pear? I've been playing around with desserts that don't have any added sugar lately, and this recipe for Poached Pears in Cherry...
Bake a Raspberry-Nectarine Slab Pie, Make People Happy!
On a fine Saturday morning, everything seems possible. The day stretches before me, like a bottomless well of time, free to do something adventurous. Rested and ready, I make my way to the Farmer's Market most Saturdays, where tables of colorful produce stretch out...
Meal Prep: Make Chocolatey Zucchini Brownies
Chocolate is always in season, isn't it? Whether we are snuggled inside on a February snow day, or wilting in the heat of a humid August scorcher, chocolate always seems like a good idea. Right now, it's zucchini season, and I can think of no better way to put a...
Try Fresh Currants in this Easy Kanten
Kanten It was a great farmer's market find. Fresh Red Currants were ripe and ready at the market, and it was too hot to bake. So, I made kanten. Kanten is the plant-based world's answer to Jell-o, and it couldn't be more refreshing. Don't tell anyone it's vegan, just...
Strawberry Vegan Cupcakes You Need To Make Now
Some things just happen. Like the confluence of my own birthday with the arrival of petite "honeoye strawberries" at the Farmer's Market. Yes, Happy Birthday to me! I have a vegan baking class coming up, and the vegan cupcakes that I teach in that class are perfect...
Strawberry Season Bundt Cake To Rock Your World
It's Strawberry Season. That means, even here in Minnesota, the best, locally grown strawberries have finally reached their sweet, rosy ripeness. We make do all year with the bounty of California and Mexico, or do without. Until now. It's a short window, and deserving...
Bake Some Purple Carrot and Blueberry Bars for Prince’s Birthday
June 7 is Prince's Birthday I'm a Minneapolitan, and let me tell you, we all felt the loss when Prince left us too soon. He was our home town musical genius, rockstar, and part of our personal soundtracks since the 80's. He was also a quiet philanthropist, sharing his...
Vegan Meal Prep, In Bookstores Now!
Vegan Meal Prep, the Cookbook I was talking about meal prepping to a young person, at some point while testing the recipes for Vegan Meal Prep, and she said, "It's adulting." Vegan meal prepping is, in fact, a very special form of "adulting." Meal prepping is the...
Warm Up with Tasty Scones Made From Freshly Ground Flour
Fresh Flour Makes a Great Scone Nothing makes a snowed-in morning feel cozier than a batch of scones, still warm from the oven. Scones are so simple, simple enough that little shifts in technique and ingredients can make the difference between a decent scone and one...
Make Valentine’s Brownie Hearts to Win Your Sweetie’s
Valentine's Day Brownie Hearts As Valentine's Day approaches, it's all about finding a chocolate treat that will woo your sweet heart. Sure, you can buy a box of chocolates, or take that special friend out to eat. But nothing says I love you like a home baked...
Chocolate Tahini, the new PB and Chocolate? Bake Some Chocolate Tahini Bread
As a recipe developer, I pay attention to the food trends that are on the move. Some are absurd, like unicorn food, or charcoal in everything. But some flavors rise to the top by just being good. The latest seductive combo I've been flirting with is the merger of...
Make Easy Peanut Butter and Chocolate Crispy Bars
Peanut Butter and Chocolate Crispy Bars Are Calling Your Name! My neighborhood grocery store folks know how our minds work. When you stand in line at the register, they have thoughtfully provided a stack of appealing, easy to grab treats, to tempt the hungry shopper....
Rich, Luscious Truffles, Easy, Fast (and Vegan)
The holiday season is in full swing, and you really should have some treats planned by now. No? Well I'm here with a simple little treat that everybody will think was hard to make. I'm talking about Vegan Truffles. No Special Skills Are Needed to Make Vegan Truffles I...
Bake Persimmon Cookies for a Seasonal Treat
Persimmon and Hazelnut Cookies When the persimmons appear in the stores, you know the holidays are coming. That makes them a perfect candidate to use in a holiday treat, like these Persimmon and Hazelnut Cookies with Pomegranate Glaze. What The Heck is a Persimmon,...
Make Pumpkin Swirl Brownies with Ganache, for a Halloween Treat
Halloween is a candy and costume holiday. I know, I know, there is a history going back to the old country, when they carved turnips into Jack-o-lanterns to scare away the spirits. In my lifetime, it was all about being a kids, putting on a costume, and collecting as...
It’s Time To Bake an Apple Raspberry Galette
At the farmer's market last weekend, as I shivered in the 40 degree air, I marveled at the bounty of vegetables that the end of September brings. Summery sweet corn and tomatoes were there, alongside Fall-ish squash and apples. Strikingly, there was an abundant...
Fresh Fruit Tarts with Lemony Cream are a Summer Treat
For a seasonal treat that will convince your omnivorous friends that vegan desserts rock, try these Fresh Fruit Tarts with Lemony Cream.
Cool Off With Vegan Ice Cream Sandwiches
Pick one! When it's sultry out, I have to comfort myself by making ice cream sandwiches, popsicles, and other frozen treats. Whenever I throw a party in the summer, I start preparations ahead of time by making ice cream sandwiches for everyone. So, when I decided to...
When Peaches Ripen, Make a Peach and Berry Crisp
Oh July, you have won my heart a hundred times over. Yes, you were steamy in spots, but we managed to romance each other relentlessly. Of course, July includes a trip to Illinois, where I pick up my annual peach harvest. You may not have heard about the epic peaches...
Cool Off with Homemade Peanut Butter Pops with Chocolate Drizzle
Is it the heat, or is it the humidity? Who cares? It's Summer, and we love every minute of it. Even when we are seeking shelter in the air conditioning, we get to revel in the best summery foods. And that includes easy, homemade frozen Peanut Butter Pops. With...
Buy Local Strawberries and Make a Fresh Strawberry Tart, Feed Your Soul
Strawberries are the perfect metaphor for the sweet things in life. Pay attention, don't take the berries for granted, because they will pass. Change is constant, and the seasons come and go, despite our efforts to cling to what pleases us. Don't let the beautiful...
Make These Easy Rhubarb Strawberry Shortcakes, Celebrate Local Berries
The local strawberries have made their dramatic entrance, red and ripe and ready to add joy to your life. Rhubarb is still booming in my backyard, and the two flavors are a classic, seasonal combination. Because it's so hot and humid out, I planned ahead and baked the...
Wicked Healthy, the Vegan Cookbook that Bleeds
There's long been a trope, a recurring idea that meat eating is an essential part of manliness. Veggies are for girls, and possibly girly men, but real dudes dig burgers. Wicked, Healthy, Beautiful This silliness couldn't be further from the truth, and the latest book...
Can a Valentine’s Dessert Be Decadent AND Light? Crispy Pastry Nests with Aquafaba Mousse and Berries are!
Have you planned your Valentine's Day yet? Forget about going out, it's much snugglier to stay in and have your own private menu. The most important part of the meal is, of course, the Valentine's Dessert. It must be sensuous, it must be chocolate, and if you can make...
Make Mini Holiday Tarts in Six Flavors for a Delicious Dilemma
Do you wrestle with the decision of which pies to make at the holidays? Pumpkin, pear, apple, or even pecan sound so good, but do you really need four whole pies? This time, I'm making six different holiday tarts, each one designed to generously serve one person. This...
Bake Some Cranberry Sweet Potato Scones for Wintry Breakfasts
Not Just For Holidays Anymore Did you know that Wisconsin is the biggest producer of cranberries? Take that California, with your sunny, temperate weather. The snowy Midwest is the source of 60% of the bright red berries that we eat by the bushel at the holidays. As...
Naked Barley Chocolate Chip Cookies, Ancient Grains Make Great Pastry
If you read last week's post, you know that I've been playing around with beautiful naked barleys from Oregon. This week is another installment in the theme. Instead of making rolled barley into bars or pudding, I ground whole, naked barley into flour and made...
Start Seeing Barley-Make Purple Barley Pudding with Fruit
Barley doesn't get much play these days. This ancient grain was once the staff of life in some parts of the world. Analysis of archaeological sites in the Fertile Crescent find genetic evidence of it being domesticated and cultivated there 10,000...