Holiday Eggnog Steamer

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I started Vegan Tuesdays back in early September in an effort to become more proficient in vegan cuisine, to reduce my consumption of dairy and to try and feel a bit healthier. Three months into Vegan Tuesdays and I’ve never felt more inspired. Putting together my Vegan Tuesday posts and testing out different vegan recipes has definitely breathed new life into me (and into my kitchen). I’ve really enjoyed Vegan Tuesdays and am incorporating more and more vegan dishes into my weekly menu plans. I’m especially looking forward to trying some holiday-inspired vegan recipes this upcoming season. 

First up? A deliciously, creamy cup of holiday eggnog – vegan style! :) This eggnog is good. Really good. I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed this holiday beverage over the weekend while cuddled up in a blanket reading a book. It has all of the delicious flavour of eggnog without the dairy and eggs. It’s rich without being overpowering. It’s subtly sweet with the perfect hint of spice. And it’s heart warming and comforting – everything a holiday drink should be. Promise me you’ll give this yummy drink a shot. 

Wishing you all a wonderful week. And to all of my American friends, have a great Thanksgiving! Please feel free to send me leftovers. xo


Ingredients
  • 2 and 1/4 cups of plain soy milk  (or almond milk)
  • 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of rum extract (to taste)
  • 1/8 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
  • 1/8 cup of granulated sugar*
  • 1/4 cup of bourbon or amber rum (optional)
  • nutmeg for garnish

Note: Use soy milk that is either unsweetened or lightly sweetened (about 5 grams per cup or less). If you use sweetened soy milk, do not add any additional sugar as directed in the recipe.

Note 2: If you use the bourbon or amber rum, reduce the amount of rum extract to 1/4 teaspoon


Method

1. In a small saucepan, heat the soy milk over medium heat until steaming and gentle bubbles form around the edge.

2. Stir in the vanilla extract, rum extract, sugar and ground nutmeg. Add bourbon or amber rum if using.

3. If you have a milk frother or a hand immersion blender with a frother attachment, froth the eggnog mixture. Pour eggnog steamer into mugs. The foam will settle at the top. Garnish with freshly ground nutmeg.

* if you are making this a vegan beverage, be sure to use vegan granulated white sugar *

Yield: 2 cups of holiday eggnog steamer

Source: loosely adapted from Canadian Living Magazine December 2012

Cinnamon Bun Apple Cobbler

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Hello! Hope you are all having a wonderful weekend. My weekend has been really nice and relatively relaxing! Yesterday, my dad took my sister and I out for lunch at a local french restaurant called Le Garage. Dad and I both had a veggie burger for lunch and have concluded Le Garage has the best vegetarian burger in town. The black bean patty has a perfect crunchy crust and is doused in a homemade sweet-chile mayo. Amazing! After lunch, we headed out to do some Christmas shopping all together. It was a really nice way to kick off the season together. After spending the day with my dad and sister, I met Jesse to help our friend move to his new house. The move when fairly quickly and then we celebrated by going out for Indian food. I had the best navrattan korma last night. Yesterday was a really good food day. *hehe*

Today, I decided to watch some CFL football playoffs and do some baking. First thing on my list was this Cinnamon Bun Apple Cobbler. Jesse adores cinnamon buns and equally loves apple crisp. When I stumbled upon this recipe recently, I immediately thought of him and decided I needed to make it as a treat for him.

 Although it looks like a lot of work, the cobbler itself is pretty easy. The cinnamon buns are more of a buttermilk biscuit with no yeast as you’d find on top of a usual cobbler. Therefore, there is no need to let the dough rise. The dough itself was very easy to handle. Time spent on baking this dish is definitely worth it. I made the cobbler earlier this afternoon, so we could each enjoy a serving with tea later today. We both devoured our share and contemplated having a second serving. Hmmm…we’ll have some more for dessert after dinner later. *hehe*

What I loved best was that the cinnamon buns had a slight crunch on top, but remained soft and chewy otherwise. It was a great contrast to the soft, caramel apples underneath. I think this would be the perfect thing to serve at a holiday brunch. It’s simple, but seems extra special. A true winner for all of the family to enjoy!

I’ll be back on Tuesday with a new recipe for Vegan Tuesdays! I cannot wait to share it :)

Filling Ingredients
  • 1/3 cup of unsalted butter, softened*
  • 1 and 1/4 cups of packed brown sugar
  • 2/3 cup of large-flake rolled oats (not instant)
  • 1/3 cup of all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
  • pinch of salt
  • 8 sweet-tart baking apples; peeled, cored and thinly sliced

Cinnamon Bun Ingredients
  • 1 and 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar*
  • 1 teaspoon of baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda
  • 1/4 cup of cold unsalted butter, cubed*
  • pinch of salt
  • 2/3 cup of buttermilk* (2/3 cup of milk + 1/2 tablespoon of white vinegar)

Topping Ingredients
  • 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar*
  • 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
  • 2 tablespoons of butter, melted*

* If you want to make this vegan, you can use a vegan butter substitute, vegan granulated white sugar and buttermilk made with diary-free milk with some vinegar 

Method

Filling

1. Combine the flour, rolled oats, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl.

2. Add in the softened butter and mix well with your hands to ensure butter is well distributed into the filling. Reserve 1 cup of the filling.

3. Toss the non-reserved filling with the apple slices. Place the apple filling into an 8-inch square baking pan or baking dish. Press down and set aside. Preheat oven to 375’F.

Cinnamon Buns

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Using a pastry blender or two forks, cut in the chilled butter until crumbly. Drizzle with the buttermilk, tossing with a fork to make a shaggy dough.

2. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough 6 times (until the dough comes together). Roll out the dough into an 8 inch square. 

3. Sprinkle the reserved filling on top of the dough. Press to adhere.

4. Roll up the dough into a cylinder. Cut crosswise into 9 pieces. Arrange the pieces on top of the apple crumble filling.

Topping

1. Stir the sugar with the cinnamon. Brush bun tops with melted butter. Sprinkle buns with the sugar/cinnamon topping.

2. Bake at 375’F oven until the top is puffed, golden and the filling is bubbly (about 50 minutes). Note: cover the top with foil if the cinnamon buns are browning too quickly. 

Serve warm.

Yield: 9 individual servings

Source: Canadian Living Christmas Edition 2012

Coconut Ginger Quinoa Salad with Apples

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Hello! Hope you all had a wonderful long weekend! Our weekend was pretty quiet, as we are both just getting over a flu bug. Plus, we got a large amount of snow here on the Canadian Prairies on Saturday. It’s very much starting to look like Christmas around these parts! And I’m not complaining. I love snow…until January. :) Then I could easily be rid of it! Sadly, it often does not leave here until April. *hah*

Yesterday, Jesse and I went to see the new James Bond movie and loved it. It’s highly entertaining with a good story-line. After the movie, we watched some football with my dad (sadly, the team we were cheering for is out of the playoffs…*pouts*) and then we had an awesome dinner put together by my mom. She made a huge selection of Asian-inspired food including a teriyaki vegetable stir fry, spring rolls and a pineapple rice dish. Delicious!

Speaking of delicious, this coconut ginger quinoa salad with apples is one of my all-time favourite salads. The ginger and coconut really make this dish special. So simple, but so flavourful! It’s also one of my favourite things to make to bring for lunch during the work-week. It’s incredibly filling as a salad, but also doubles as an excellent filling in wraps along with some fresh veggies. 

When I first started blogging, I posted this delicious salad on The Fig Tree. But the post seems to have been lost in the archives – rarely to be seen. What a shame, since this is really a delicious, nutritious salad with tons of protein and fibre. Plus, it’s vegan! So, I thought I’d resurrect this yummy recipe for this week’s Vegan Tuesday post along with a new photo. It’s a nicely balanced light salad that can offset all of rich foods that we indulge on at this time of year.

Hope you have a fantastic week. I’ll be back in a few days with another new recipe. I’m thinking something sweet! :)

Ingredients
  • 1 and 1/2 cups of vegetable stock
  • 1 cup of quinoa; rinsed well
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons of freshly grated ginger
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 apple; diced
  • 1/3 cup of unsweetened shredded coconut
  • 1 cup of frozen shelled edamame
  • 1/2 cup of blanched almonds or sliced almonds

Method

1. Toast the almonds in a saucepan over medium heat for about 3 minutes; or until the almonds are fragrant and slightly golden. Ensure you stir often while the almonds toast, so you do not burn them. Note: you need not add any oil to the saucepan to toast the almonds, as they release their own oils as they brown. Remove almonds from the pan and set aside.

2. In a medium saucepan, add the vegetable stock, grated ginger and some salt and pepper to taste. Add the rinsed quinoa and bring the mixture to a boil. Once at a rolling boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes.

3. Once the quinoa has cooked for 10 minutes, remove from heat and add the frozen edamame. Allow the mixture to stand for 5 minutes; covered. This will allow the edamame to defrost and cook slightly.

4. Remove the lid and allow the mixture to cool. Add the apples, almonds and shredded coconut. Serve at room temperature.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Source: recipe adapted from Vegetarian Times March 2010