Give Them Something Better

Author: Stephanie Howard

Vegan Pumpkin Pie Throw down…the winning recipe!
I have been collecting vegan pumpkin pie recipes ever since I became a vegan almost 16 years ago. The funny thing is, I never make pie. My mother-in-law makes pie and she does a very good job! When she enters her pies into a pie contest, she wins first and second prize! So on Thanksgiving she whips out 6 or 8 pies before I could even figure out where to start. Therefore…I don’t make pie. Until now.
We have been doing a Meatless Monday Supper Club once a month as a follow up to the Forks Over Knives Movie. After watching the film many people wanted to change their diets but were not quite sure what to do, so our monthly supper clubs help people try new recipes and learn more about making positive health changes.

This month’s theme was Thanksgiving, I knew everyone would want a really good Pumpkin pie recipe. But, my mother-in-law’s pumpkin pie is not vegan (her apple, peach, and cherry ones are, and yes she makes all of them!) I had to come up with something new. So I chose four recipes that that I had collected to do a throw down.

Enter the contestants…
Pie #1 – Patty’s Foolproof Pumpkin Pie (recipe below) (firm texture more like a traditional pumpkin pie, nice color, had a few cracks)
Pie #2 – Julie’s Mini Pies (recipe here) this recipe has a video so you can watch too. I omitted the sherry and used extra coconut milk to replace the liquid. I also used a traditional crust.(nice texture, dark in color, the most attractive pie, I think)
Pie #3 – Mori Nu’s Pie Recipe (soft texture, light in color)
Pie #4 – Vegan Librarian’s Pumpkin pie (recipe here) I used coconut milk in place of soy milk. (fairly good texture, dark in color but covered with a wonderful pecan streusel topping which made it appear very appetizing but did not look like a traditional pumpkin pie.
The results were mixed, all the pies were good and had redeeming qualities. However, the overall winner was # 1. But some loved the crumble topping on #4 and others insisted # 2 was perfect. I think the least favorite was #3 but one or two loved it. So in the end it is just a matter of preference. My favorite was #1 and I might occasionally put the crumb topping from #4 on #1.

Pie # 1 – Patty’s Foolproof Pumpkin Pie (From Patty Lavanture’s Country Life Cooking School)
- 1 cup soymilk
- 1 cup cane juice crystals
- 1 block Mori-Nu Regular Silken Tofu, extra firm
- 2 tablespoon oil
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon agar powder
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon each: ginger, allspice and cloves
- 15 oz. can pumpkin
1. Blend all of the above EXCEPT PUMPKIN for about 2 minutes on HIGH until creamy smooth and warm. Lastly, add pumpkin and mix again, just until blended evenly.
2. Pour into UNBAKED pie shell.
3. Bake @ 425o for 15 minutes; reduce temperature to 350o and continue baking for 45-50 minutes more. Cool and serve with whipped topping. (May also be served slightly warm – will have a softer texture.)
November 8, 2011
Meatless Monday Supper Club–Thanksgiving

The Tofu Turkey…you’ve always wondered does it really taste like turkey? Should I make one and risk wasting five pounds of tofu? Okay, maybe you haven’t wondered…but I have!
Several years ago I saw someone on a cooking show make a Tofu Turkey, they even “stuffed” it! since then I have seen it around the internet and have had others insist that I should make it. I have procrastinated until now.
As I was planning the Thanksgiving edition of our Meatless Monday Supper Club. I figured it was a good place to test the recipe on a bunch or real “turkeyeaters”

I looked around on the web and decided to try this recipe because it had a great step by step tutorial and some nice pictures. Unfortunately, it didn’t get the rave reviews I had hoped for. Several people thought they may try it and cut the Thyme, most were unhappy with the texture and the flavor.
The rest of our menu included…Meatless Loaf, Dressing (aka stuffing), vegan green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, brown gravy, cranberry relish and pumpkin pie.
I’ll be posting the recipes this week so keep an eye for them. You going to especially see the pumpkin pie post…I had so many recipes for pumpkin pie and couldn’t decide which one to make so I made four different kinds and had the guests judge them for both taste and texture.
And the winner was….
You’ll have to find out tomorrow.

November 8, 2011
Vegan Nougat…even a little healthy!
Over the past few weeks Cara at Fork and Beans has been creating some amazing homemade vegan candies. Things like Twix bars and York peppermint patties and the like. They all looked so good I had to try a few myself. You can see my version of the Butterfinger here, I got it down to just 4 healthy ingredients!
At some time during my correspondence with Cara I promised her a nougat recipe. Unfortunately this week has been out of control busy and I have not cooked any fun stuff. However, a promise is a promise.
I have made this recipe many times so I am going to post it here without a photo. All of you adventurous types who love to try something fun and new in the kitchen can post your photos and link back to this post!

Almond Butter Nougat!

2 cups almonds
1/3 cup carob or chocolate chips (optional)
1 cup soy milk powder ( I use Better than milk)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1. Put almonds in a food processor and process until very, smooth. they key to this recipe is that you want to process it so long that the oils start separating from the almonds so that it begins to look oily. (I have tried this with almond butter but it never comes out nice and chewy.
2. Add remaining ingredients and allow to mix until VERY smooth and thick. If you have a small food processor you may need to cut the recipe in half or do it in bathes.
3. Press into a shallow pan.
At this point you can cut it into squares and eat plain or fancy it up like a candy bar. I like to press peanuts into the top and cut it in to “reasonable” sized pieces and dip them in Carob (or chocolate if you like) and it satisfies my Snicker craving.
Disclaimer…I have just learned that there are many different kinds of nougat from crunchy to chewy and everything in between depending on where you are from. This is a chewy sweet American Style nougat that you would find in a candy bar
October 28, 2011
Call me Crazy! It was so worth it!–Homemade Butterfinger Candy Recipe
It is my first real day off from the Emmanuel Institute kitchen in a month and what do you suppose I am doing? You guessed it I am cooking! I love to try new things, at Emmanuel we don’t experiment too much…really who wants to mess up lunch for 25 or 30 people. I sure don’t.
I have been working on some projects for our graduation reception, which is just around the corner. I always like to serve something a little fancy for all of the guests. Well, in the process I came across a recipe for a butterfinger candy bar and I go to thinking I sure would like to try that, so I did. The first recipe was didn’t come out crunchy but it tasted good. So I went back to the drawing board today.
I was looking at this recipe. It seemed to me that we were making a simple hard candy and adding it to peanut butter. So I decided to try a very simplified version. I didn’t want to use corn syrup so I decided to try maple syrup…maple hard candy is a common treat. So I used maple syrup with an pinch of Cream of Tartar (check out the cool sight that explains why). I heated to 300 degrees and added it to some crunchy all natural peanut butter. Vola! It is remarkable! It so much like I remember a Butterfinger candy bar and wow it is so easy to make.

Homemade Butterfinger candy!

1 cup pure maple syrup
1/8 teaspoon Cream of Tartar
1 cup natural peanut butter, crunchy or smooth, you choose!
1. Pour maple syrup into a small sauce pan.
2. Add Cream of Tartar and stir. (no more stirring)
3. Bring to boil and continue boiling until you reach the “hard crack” stage about 300 degrees
4. Pour into a glass bowl with your peanut butter and stir.
5. Spread into a shallow glass dish coated with cooking spray.
6. Score into one inch squares with an oiled knife.
7. Refrigerate until hard.
It tastes great just like this, but…to make it just like the store bought we need some chocolate. We prefer carob at our house so here is what I did.
1/2 cup peanut butter it the bottom of a glass bowl. Spread it along the sides so that when you put in the 1 1/2 cups of barley malt sweetened carob chips not one of them touches the glass. Microwave for one minute and then stir like crazy. It should become nice and smooth. If you have a few lumps you can put it back in the microwave for 10 seconds, not longer and stir again. Carob burns easily so be careful. Dip your “butterfinger” candies in the carob place on wax paper and allow to cool.
Be careful these are so good you may just want to keep eating them…no one better lay a finger on my butterfinger.
October 19, 2011
Caramel Apple Bread Pudding…Healthified and Veganized!

Apples…caramel…fall…they just go together. I was searching for a fall recipe to share at our last supper club and came across this recipe from the people at EatBetterAmerica. I love this for finding healthy recipes. It is not a vegetarian or vegan site, but they like to “Healthify” recipes, that is make them healthier. So what I like to do is come along behind them and “Veganize”.
I’ll admit that when I made the recipe for the first time I miss read one of the ingredients and so my version is more different than planned but it was so good I just stuck with it. I made two big ones for the supper club and they were gone! My poor disappointed daughter she almost didn’t get any! But one of the nice people who help me shared hers and all was well.

For the orignal recipe click here.
Here is what I did:

Caramel Apple Bread Pudding

1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup vanilla soymilk
1/2 cup silken tofu
2 tablespoons chia seeds (optional)
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon substitute (recipe below)
1 teaspoon vanilla
12 cups Multigrain French bread cut into 1-inch cubes
1 small apple diced
1/4 cup toasted pecan pieces
1/4 cup brown rice caramel glaze from (Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World)
Pre-heat oven to 350°F.
Spray 9-inch spring form pan dish or pie plate with cooking spray.
Blend all ingredients except bread, apples, pecans and caramel topping in a food processor until smooth.
Fold in bread and apples, press into spring form pan and sprinkle with almonds.
Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until golden brown and set. Cut into wedges. Drizzle caramel topping over each serving.

Cinnamon Substitute Recipe

I like to use a substitute for cinnamon because it can be irritating to the lining of the stomach. You can always use cinnamon if you like.
2 parts cardamom
1 part coriander
and just a dash of Cayenne pepper
Mix it all up and store in an air tight container in a cool dry place.

This recipe came out very good, I already have ideas to turn it into a great breakfast casserole. Something easy to serve to the students or for a Sabbath morning treat!

October 7, 2011
Meatless Monday Supper Club – Making Substitutions
We had a great time at our Meatless Monday Supper Club tonight! It is such a blessing to get together with friends from the community and share a meal together. It’s a double blessing if it is a heart healthy plant based meal that will help us grow stronger and healthier.

Our discussion tonight centered around how to change your own recipes to have more whole, plant based foods. I had several people bring their own favorite chili that was already vegetarian. Then I chose this recipe off of the internet because it had such great reviews and we discussed what substitutions to use to make it healthier and vegan.

It really wasn’t too challenging here is what we did…

Chili
- 1 pkg. Smart Ground (ground meat substitute)
- 1 (46 fluid ounce) can tomato juice (low sodium)
- 1 (29 ounce) can tomato sauce
- 2 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 (15 ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can diced tomatoes with green chilies
- 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
- 1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon raw sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1/4 cup chili powder
1. Place onions, peppers and ground beef substitute in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until onions are soft.
3. Add remaining ingredients Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Simmer for 1 1/2 hours. (Note: If using a slow cooker, set on low, add ingredients, and cook for 8 to 10 hours.)
Did you you know that you can make a pot of chili and eat it a different way all week long. Not that I would recommend it but here are some ideas.

Sunday – Bowl of Chili served with chopped onions, soy sour cream, and chips.
Monday – A plate of whole grain spaghetti topped with chili served with a fresh green salad.
Tuesday – A nice baked potato topped with chili and some cashew cheese sauce.
Wednesday – Vegetarian Hotdog topped with chili and diced onions served with some Baked French fries and something green.
Thursday – Chili with some wholegrain corn bread and a green salad
Friday – Brown Rice topped with Chili and salad
Sabbath – Frito Pie or Haystack
Check back in a day or two and I will post the Carmel Apple Bread Pudding recipe that I “healhified” for the supper club. I am certain that you will want to have that recipe!
October 4, 2011