Insert corny pun here.

In my pre-vegan days I’d baked a savoury muffin or two, but they all involved cheese and sometimes ham. This was my first vegan savoury muffin attempt, and I think I may just have found another reason to hang out in the kitchen.

Corny pun muffins

1/2 C soy milk
2 t apple cider vinegar
2 C SR flour
1 t baking powder
1 T nutritional yeast
2 t egg replacer
pinch cayenne
pinch salt
1 C cornmeal
4 T vegetable oil
1 t liquid smoke
420mL can creamed corn

Preheat oven to 190 C/ 375 F.
Mix together soy milk and vinegar with a fork. Put aside until begins to curdle.
Mix together dry ingredients in a large bowl, stirring until well-combined.
Fold in remaining ingredients, mixing until just combined. Spoon into lightly oiled muffin tin and bake for 25 minutes or until cooked in centre.
Makes about 16 muffins.

P.S. I adapted and seriously re-jigged the Sweet Potato Corn Bread recipe from How it all Vegan, making it savoury and substituting creamed corn for the sweet potato. They turned out ever so slightly dry to eat straight from the oven, but serving them with a little Nuttelex or even relish/salsa would make them damn near perfect.

Gingery Banana Muffins

Yay! It seems like I’m not the only one with a soft spot for autumn/fall.
To celebrate all the autumn-love, here are some muffins!

Gingery Banana Muffins

2 bananas, mashed
2 t vanilla
1/4 C vegetable oil
1/4 C blackstrap molasses
1/4 C maple syrup
1 t egg replacer
1 t baking powder
2 C SR flour
1 t allspice
1 t ginger
1 t cinnamon
walnuts to top muffins (optional)

Preheat oven to 160 C/ 325 F and lightly oil a 12-muffin tray.
Combine bananas, vanilla, oil, molasses and maple syrup in a large bowl.
In a smaller bowl mix together remaining ingredients with a fork.
Fold dry ingredients into banana mixture until just combined.
Spoon into prepared muffin tray and lightly press a walnut into centre of each one.
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until cooked in centre. Leave muffiins in tray for 5 minutes and then turn on to wire rack to cool. Makes 12.

P.S. I used equal parts molasses and maple syrup as sweetener because I love that caramelly taste in a muffin, but you could easily replace them with 1/2 C white or brown sugar, or replace the molasses with golden syrup or treacle. Easy peasy.

Seasons

Autumn is my very favourite season: I love the layering, the bright white skies, and the ever-lingering possibility of soup.

After a devastating and tragic summer that seemed like it would never end, the weather is finally starting to cool. It rained this morning and I’ve been stocking up on homemade soup (which I love–seeing containers full of smoky split-pea soup in the fridge makes me happy).
I’ve got sweaters on the brain and new cowls in the shop, targeted more towards us southern hemispherists than those of you heading into spring.

I’d like to share a little of my autumnal buzz with you. Leave a comment on this post telling me which season is your favourite and why, and the delectable sock yarn pictured above could be yours. Entries close Wed 1st April.

Yarn: ‘The Man in Black’ Princess Bride colourway from Knit It Up
Materials: 100% Superwash Merino Wool
Weight: Fingering
Yardage: 390 yards

A gingery day.

I’m a big ginger fan, loving it in both sweet and savoury incarnations. But today I think I found something approaching ginger heaven: a small mug of ginger tea sweetened with a little maple syrup, and served with cake. But not just any cake.

This cake, possibly the most delicious cake ever invented. It’s quick, easy, and once you’ve preheated the oven you’re almost done.

I used all white flour due to a lack of wholemeal flour on hand, and arrowroot in place of the potato flour, ’cause that’s what I had in the pantry. I’d never tasted blackstrap molasses before and people seemed to have mixed reactions to it, so I half-chickened and where it says ‘molasses’ I substituted half golden syrup. Oh, and I added a pinch of ground cloves–just because I’m constitutionally incapable of following a recipe without tinkering.

All of the above resulted in the most tender, aromatic and heartwarming dessert I’ve had in some time. Yum!

For Rosies

What motivated me to start an etsy shop? A few tendencies of mine could help explain it:

For me, the urge to do something creative is deeply ingrained–it’s a longstanding part of me; it’s why I craft, write and cook. I like to make something new, create something that’s not quite the same as anything that’s gone before.

I also appreciate the creative works of others: I am frequently moved–to tears, to thought or to action–by well-crafted cinema, literature or music. I was an etsy buyer long before I became a seller.

The experiences of selling on etsy that have stayed with me have been the custom orders or otherwise greatly communicative transactions: when you make something that becomes treasured by another, that’s when the object and the craft comes alive.

So, unbeknowst to myself, I started an etsy shop because
(a) I love to make new things,
(b) I crave recognition and appreciation for my craft, and
(c) I want to connect with others through the making of things by hand.

I am currently offering in my shop four items of warmth and comfort that I will be donating to Rosies Street Outreach if they are still unsold on March 26th. This initiative comes from a trait I’ve recently recognised in myself: I love to give. Like, seriously, ridiculously love it. It makes me over-the-moon happy to make things for those who need it.

So, with this in mind, I’ve decided to do it regularly. I will create and list things available in my etsy shop for a limited time, and then periodically give them away before they start gathering dust. Any money earnt will go towards yarn ad keeping the process going.

If you like the idea, think I’m nuts or know of a worthy cause, please comment! I don’t bite, and if you comment I’ll think you’re awesome.

Yay for vegan cheesy sauce.

This sauce is super simple:

3 T vegan margarine (I like Nuttelex)
1/3 C flour
425mL soy milk
2 T nutritional yeast
1 t minced garlic
pinch black pepper
pinch smoked paprika

Place all ingredients in saucepan and whisk together over low heat until smooth. Sauce is done when it begins to thicken.
Enjoy!

Delish served with steamed cauliflower, broccoli, squash and brussel sprouts. Yum.