#plantbasedbaking

IMPROV BAKING - 4 common baking substitutions to rely on

Maia’s latest piece for CLC offers up tried and true guidelines for all your baking substitution needs. In this time of quarantine cooking there’s a good chance you’ve run out of something or other. What better way to keep baking than to know a quick swap for eggs, flour mixtures, or sweeteners? As a seasoned baker, Maia’s baked goods @plantmatter are a great example of working with what you’ve got handy.

“Let’s remove the outmoded understanding of baking as a practice reserved for rule-abiding perfectionists. Baking can be expressive and experimental. Not every muffin will dome and not every cookie will be chewy at its center. But baked goods, by definition, are ephemeral. And they beg you to make them again as soon as you’ve finished the last bite. (Take the homemade no yeast bread alternative we whipped up this week.) There is no better medium in which to improvise than one that disappears as soon as you share it.” YES! Baking as a fluid, creative outlet. Don’t get caught up in have the exact right ingredients. Bake to express, experiment, and enjoy. Check out the 4 common guidelines Maia whipped up for us over on closedloopcooking.com!

Annnd an IG special recipe for #glutenfree #vegan chocolate chip cookies I improvised last night: They are wonderfully light and crumbly and I’ve eaten 3 for breakfast. I’m telling myself it’s ok because they’re sweetened with just maple syrup. Sure, me.) Ingredients: - 2 cups GF flour mix - 1.5 tsp baking powder - .25 tsp  baking soda - 1 tsp kosher salt - 1 flax egg (1 tbsp flax seed meal + 2 tbsp water, let sit 5 min) - 1/2 cup almond milk (or other non-dairy milk) - 1/3 cup melted coconut oil - 1/3 cup maple syrup - 2 tbsp almond butter (or any nut butter) - 1/2 cup dark choco chips To-do’s: 1. Preheat oven to 350. Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt together.  2. Add almond milk to flax egg, add to dry ingredients. Add melted coconut oil, maple syrup. Mix well. Add in almond butter and chocolate chips and mix once more to combine. 3. On an ungreased baking sheet spoon out 2 inch (approx) balls of cookie dough. (Dough will be sticky, you can also use your fingers here.) Flatten out dough balls slightly for a disk like shape. Bake 9 - 12 minutes, until edges are  a slight golden brown. 4. Let cool and enjoy! Lasts about 3 - 4 days in an airtight container.

🌟 GOOEY, FUDGY, DELICIOUS CHOCOLATE BROWNIES 🌟

Ive followed a couple of vegan brownie recipes before, but they never really tasted AMAZING. For this one, I just winged it with some brownie ingredients and they turned out so delicious!

Recipe:

200 g vegan dark chocolate (I used lindt 70%. Use 100g melted into the mixture and chop the next 100g into chocolate chips)

1 cup brown sugar

2 tbs maple syrup

Chia egg ( 2 tbs chia seeds with 4 tbs water, soaked for a few minutes)

pinch salt

4 tbs vegan butter (I used nuttlex)

4 tbs oil ( I used sunflower)

1 cup plant milk or more depending on the consistency (I used coconut milk)

3/4 cup chopped almonds

2 handfuls raisins

2 tbs coco powder

1 cup self raising flour

1 1/2 cup plain flower

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius. Melt 100g of chocolate and the vegan butter in a heat proof bowl over simmering water until completely melted then take off the stove. Next, add in the sugar, maple syrup, vanilla extract, coco powder and oil. Stir through. Then, add in the flour and plant milk (may need to add in more milk depending on the consistency), the chia egg, the chocolate chips, almonds and raisins. Stir it through. Grease a baking tray with the oil or butter and pour the mixture in. Bake for 40 minutes and serve warm. 

VEGAN DATE-CHOCO-COCONUT BLISS BALLS

I love bliss balls so much because 1) they are ridiculously easy and 2) they taste ridiculously delicious! They’re the perfect snack to make in bulk and store in the fridge for that much needed sugar hit throughout the week. I usually make about 15 of these guys, store them in a jar or air tight container and pack them in my lunch for uni or work. Bliss balls are so great because all you need is a dried fruit base (dates, apricots ect) and then you can add in whatever is in your cupboard! This is my recipe but feel free to omit or add in whichever ingredients you have on hand. They usually last about a week in the fridge

RECIPE:

2 handfuls of pitted dates

1 tablespoon nut butter (peanut or almond)

1 tsp coconut oil (or swap for 1 extra tsp nut butter)

1 tsp coco powder

2 tbs rolled oats

1 tbs chia seeds

1 tbs desiccated coconut 

1 tsp maple syrup 

1 tsp water (only add if needed)

+ extra desiccated coconut for rolling

These vegan and gluten-free double chocolate zucchini muffins are moist, chocolatey, and packed with hidden veggies. They make for a delicious snack or breakfast treat that everyone will love!

Ingredients: 1 cup shredded zucchini. 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce. 1/4 cup maple syrup. 1/4 cup almond milk. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. 1 cup gluten-free all-purpose flour. 1/4 cup cocoa powder. 1 teaspoon baking powder. 1/2 teaspoon baking soda. 1/4 teaspoon salt. 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips.

Instructions: Warm the oven up to 350F 175C and put paper liners in a muffin tin. Shred the zucchini and mix it with the applesauce, maple syrup, almond milk, and vanilla extract in a large bowl. Gluten-free flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt should all be mixed together in a different bowl using a whisk. Mix the dry and wet ingredients together until they are just mixed. Add vegan chocolate chips and mix well. To make muffins, put about three quarters of the batter into each cup. Put it in the oven and bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean. After taking the muffins out of the oven, let them cool for 5 minutes in the pan before moving them to a wire rack to cool all the way through.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Delicious vegan banana bread, perfect for healthy snacking.