Meggan Leal

Name: Vegan Jello Shots
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 2 min
Total time: 1 h 7 min
Yield: 2
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 8 Pack Vegan Gel Snack Cups (Snack Pack or Kool-Aid brand); 1/2 c (120ml) vegan liquor or wine of choice

Easy Vegan Jello Shots

February 7, 2021 // by Meggan Leal// Leave a Comment

Vegan jello shots are just as delicious as the non-vegan version, but without the cartilage! And this recipe is super simple with only two pre-made ingredients.

What are jello shots?

Jello shots are alcoholic cocktails made with a gelling agent added. This causes the chilled shots to become semi-solid and extra fun to slurp up!

Is there an added nutritional value? I mean, maybe a little protein..? But these are supposed to be fun, not healthy. So don’t come into this recipe thinking I’m going to give you the fountain of youth or heal your gut or anything.

This is purely for funsies. Vegan funsies.

Jell-O isn’t vegan??

No, no it is not.

Traditional Jell-O shots are made with gelatin. Gelatin isn’t vegan, so we are going to get rid of that and swap it for something animal-free.

Gelatin (or gelatine for non-Americans) is made by boiling the connective tissues (skin, tendons, cartilage, etc.) of animals. It gels once it comes to room temperature and is the base for the Jell-O brand’s variety of gels.

It’s usually made from pork, with some kosher varieties made exclusively from beef.

So no, it’s not vegan at all.

What can we use to make it vegan?

Thankfully, there are a few options for gelling things that are vegan-friendly!

The two main ones are both made from seaweed:

Agar agar – This is used heavily in the vegan baking world for substituting gelatin in things like marshmallows, mirror glaze, and and even as an egg sub.

It is also the easiest to find in your local market. I use the Telephone Brand because I can find it!

Carrageenan – This is mostly used in vegan cheese-making because it gives a more dairy-like texture to the cheese than agar does. It has a creamier mouthfeel, and can set up firmer.

You’ll want kappa carrageenan rather than iota carrageenan. It is harder to find in person, but can easily be obtained online.

What about vegan alcohol?

The good news is that pretty much every unflavored hard liquor out there is vegan. That means you’ve got your choice of these main guys, plus lots more:

Vodka
Rum
Whisky
Gin
Brandy
Tequila

The problem comes when you start going for flavored varieties – especially those containing ‘cream’.

Wines are also problematic because many are filtered using egg whites or gelatin made from fish bladders (isinglass). They can also have milk sugar (lactose) added for sweetness.

So if you want to use wine in your vegan jello shots, you’ll need to do a little research to find one that fits the bill.

Barnivore is a really wonderful website that has a directory of alcohols and whether or not they’re vegan.

How to make easy vegan jello shots

You’re gonna either hate me or love me right now, so just prepare yourself. It’s because the recipe is so easy that a child could but A CHILD SHOULD NEVER EVER MAKE THIS.

Please make sure you’re of age before making and/or consuming jello shots, and do so responsibly.

Step One: get your vegan jello

Rather than leave room for error on the math to make vegan jello from scratch, this recipe calls for a little bit of cheating.

Did you know the popular budget jello brand Snack Pack by ConAgra is totally vegan? They’re made with carrageenan! And the Kool-Aid brand is made with carrageenan, as well!

So step one of these vegan jello shots is go out and buy some Snack Packs or Kool-Aid gels in whatever flavors you want.

Keep in mind that the Snack Packs are a bit more firm than the Kool-Aid gels, which are softer and may require some additional starch or agar to solidify well for cut outs or 3D shapes..

Snack Packs are also labeled as being gluten-free while Kool-Aid’s variety is not. In addition to that, Snack Packs use carob bean gum, while Kool-Aid’s has locust bean gum – in case the gums make a difference for you.

Step Two: Get your alcohol

As noted above, most unflavored liquors should be vegan. Most wines are not. Check with Barnivore to see if you want to use is, if you’re in doubt.

Step Three: Melt your jello

Open up your jello packs and dump them into a large glass measuring cup if you want to microwave it to meltiness, or a saucepan if you prefer to do it over the stove.

And in 30 second increments in the microwave or over low heat, stir and melt and stir until nice and liquidy. Once you have liquid, either take it out of the microwave or off the stove.

Step Four: Add your alcohol

Just pour it in and stir.

Step Five: Portion it out

There are a few different ways you can choose to portion out your vegan jello shots:

1. In plastic condiment cups – This is the most common way to do it. I use compostable 2oz cups and they work great. Plus, you can put lids on them to prevent my dumb cats from hopping up on the table and ingesting some.

2. In shot glasses – Either plastic or glass, these work well, too.

3. In syringes – Yes, syringes. People love this idea, especially for Halloween. Just make sure to use the kind without the needle. Feeding syringes from the pet store work great. The 60ml variety is the one I’ve seen used the most.

or go the easy route and get Jell-O shot syringes from Amazon:

4. Jelly roll pan – Pour into a pan and cut out after it’s set. This is especially cute for holidays like Valentine’s Day where you can cut out hearts and other shapes to keep with the theme. Just make sure it’s the right size to be able to get your cutter through the amount of jello. And you’ll likely have to triple the batch or more for most pan sizes.

For cut outs, you’ll want to add a bit of starch (corn, tapioca, or potato) to the mix to help firm them up. Add about 1.5 tsp per four-pack of jellos as you’re melting it. You’ll need to make sure to bring it to a boil to activate the starches.

5. Silicone molds – This is fun to do 3D shapes. I also like using my hot cocoa ball hemisphere mold to make boozy raindrop cakes.

Just like for the cut outs, you’ll want to add a bit of starch (corn, tapioca, or potato) to the mix to help firm them up. Add about 1.5 tsp per four-pack of jellos as you’re melting it. You’ll need to make sure to bring it to a boil to activate the starches.

6. Jello cups – You can simply reuse the cups the jello came in! This is a little more ecologically friendly, although you’ll get a double shot in each cup (which may or may not be a bad thing). Empty yogurt cups also make a great recycled option!

7. Fruit rinds – Wash well and then cut some thick-skinned fruit in half (like oranges, pomegranates, kiwis, or even watermelons if you’d like to go big or go home). Then scoop out the flesh and pour in your vegan jello.

You can serve the halves if they’re small enough, or portion out slices once the jello has set – though you may want to score them before filling if the skin is very tough.

Step Six: Chill

Pop your vegan jello shots into the refrigerator and allow them to firm up. This will take anywhere from 30 minutes to 3 hours, depending on how cold your fridge is and the size/shape of your containers.

Step Seven: Enjoy your vegan jello shots responsibly!

Sip, slurp, spoon, or plop upside down and enjoy. 🙂

How to store your vegan jello shots

You’ll want to keep these in the refrigerator until you’re ready to enjoy them. Discard after about a week.

You can technically freeze them, but they may be gritty and kind of off-putting once they thaw, so I don’t recommend doing that.

Fun ways to spruce them up

Do I have some ideas on how to make these a little more exciting? Heck yeah, I do!!

1. Try adding a little something extra to the rims of your shot containers. My personal favorite is lime juice and Trechas because it’s just beautiful with all kinds of fruit. Lime juice and salt is always yummy with tequila. Agave and toasted coconut is also scrumptious!

2. Mix in some edible glitter! Make sure that it’s actually edible and not just “non-toxic” – those aren’t meant for eating, just for looking at.

3. Edible confetti is a fun topper. Gold stars are my favorite! Make sure to add these at the last possible moment so they don’t dissolve.

4. Whipped cream on top! You can either go with store-bought vegan squirty cream, or make my American meringue buttercream and super-whip it up to light and fluffy. Add a dollop on top and enjoy!

If you don’t want the added fat, just go with plain meringue. You can use my recipe for meringue kisses – just put it on top of your shots instead of dehydrating them.

5. A lot of folks like to add chopped fruit or vegan candies and gummies to it. I’m not a fan of this, but if you are then mix those in just as the gel starts to set in the fridge, at about 15 minutes or so.

6. Add a splash of vegan heavy cream like Silk or Elmlea double cream (or some melted ice cream if you can’t find one of those!) to each shot and swirl with a toothpick.

Making them without alcohol: Virgin vegan jello shots

So how can you make these without alcohol? You can just omit it! Though, the only real reason to do this is to mix something in or make smaller portions.

Or you could swap the alcohol with something else like juice, vegan cream, or sparkling water.

Making them with extra alcohol

Go ahead and add more alcohol if that’s your thing. Keep in mind that the more you add though, the softer the jello will be.

What if I want to make them from scratch? Or make them without dyes?

Well, that’s a whole different recipe. Lol. I haven’t written that one yet, but there are plenty out there on the interwebs in the meantime!

Recipe Card:

Yield: 2 cups (473ml) of jello

Vegan Jello Shots

Vegan jello shots are just as delicious as the non-vegan version, but without the cartilage! And this recipe is super simple with only two pre-made ingredients.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 2 minutes

Additional Time 1 hour

Total Time 1 hour 7 minutes

Ingredients

8 Pack Vegan Gel Snack Cups (Snack Pack or Kool-Aid brand)
1/2 c (120ml) vegan liquor or wine of choice

Instructions

Empty snack cups into a large microwave safe measuring cup if microwaving, or into a saucepan if using the stove.
Microwave for 30 second intervals, stirring between until gel has all melted, or if using stovetop, melt over low heat while stirring.
Mix in your alcohol.
Pour into your preferred containers (options listed in the blog post).
Chill the shots in the refrigerator until firm - 30 minutes to 3 hours depending on the size and shape of your shots.
Serve and enjoy responsibly!

Notes

1. Snack Pack gels are firmer than Kool-Aid gels. If you want yours firmer, add about a teaspoon and a half of starch (corn, tapioca, or potato) before melting and bring it to a boil.

2. If you'd like to rim the shots, do so before pouring in the jello.

3. Replace the alcohol with juice, sparkling water, or vegan cream for virgin shots.

4. Feel free to add in edible glitter or confetti, or whipped cream on top for extra fun.

Please enjoy these responsibly!

*The total amount of jello in the 8-pack ends up being exactly 1.5 cups, or a little over 350ml

Vegan Gingerbread Cookies – Chai Espresso

December 12, 2020 // by Meggan Leal// Leave a Comment

Vegan gingerbread cookies with a little something extra – chai and espresso! Spicy, no-chill, and no-spread, they’re easy to make for any occasion.

These cookies are gorgeously spicy, keep their shape while baking, aren’t too sweet, and are nice and firm (but still keeping a soft bite) for making houses or figures or whatever else you want to do with them.

This is a fully baked cookie with its cutter put back over it to show absolutely zero spreading!

These are not puffy, soft, bread-like cookies. They’re identical in texture to my sugar cookies for decorating.

This recipe started when I realised that I had all the spices already mixed together. Like pumpkin pie or apple pie spice, my gingerbread spice was ready and waiting!

Chai Tea

Chai in India just means “tea”, so technically I’m using bags for masala chai. But here in the United States, they just say chai.

My chai tea bags I have hundreds of in my collection (I’m a huge fan – and if you are too, you should check out my chai spice cake) have a perfect menagerie of gingerbread spices.

They have ginger and cinnamon, black pepper, star anise, clove, and cardamom. All I needed to do was amp up the ginger and cinnamon and add some molasses, and I was golden!

So that’s what I did.

What if I don’t have chai tea?

If you’re wanting to make these vegan gingerbread cookies, but don’t have chai tea – you can totally mix your own blend!

If you want to make your own spice mix, you can totally do that.

Just blend together 1/2 teaspoon each of:

ground anise
ground clove
ground cardamom

And a half tablespoon plus one quarter teaspoon each of:

ground ginger
ground cinnamon

What are we using instead of eggs in these vegan gingerbread cookies?

Our egg replacement in these vegan gingerbread cookies is aquafaba.

Aquafaba is the cooking water from beans and other legumes. NOT the soaking water – the cooking water.

The ratio of starches and proteins means that aquafaba is moderately good at binding things, and it provides the moisture we need for our cookie batter. And believe it or not, it’s pretty darn neutral when it comes to flavor.

I use aquafaba in tons of recipes that usually use egg whites. It whips up beautifully for meringue cookies, is miraculously stable enough for vegan macarons, and even makes the silkiest no-cook meringue buttercream I’ve ever had.

You can use aquafaba from any beans you want, but I usually use it from canned chickpeas or kidney beans since that’s what I eat most of.

Why the espresso?

Uhhh.. Why not?

Do you know where you are? Cooking on Caffeine. No caffeine, no cook. That’s how it works here.

You can leave it out if you want, though. But you shouldn’t.

Seriously, have you never had a chai latte? HEAVEN.

The espresso is for more than just caffeine, though. It adds a very nice bitterness to round out the sweetness and other spices in the cookies. It also adds a nice dark hue reminiscent of holiday gingerbread cookies.

Other ingredients for the cookies

I forgot the cinnamon for the photo 🤦🏼‍♀️

You’ll need some flour. All purpose is what you want, not bread flour or strong flour or cake flour. All-purpose flour = cookie flour.

You need some brown sugar. The darker the better! Since it can be difficult to find vegan brown sugar, you can use your favorite granulated sugar and add a half a tablespoon of molasses to it. If you can’t find molasses or don’t want to use it? Coconut sugar is a great substitute.

For the fats in our cookies, (since they are vegan gingerbread cookies) we are using a mix of shortening and vegan butter. You can actually use all shortening if you want, but you cannot use all butter.

Grab some extra ground cinnamon and ground ginger.

Equipment to make the cookies

I use a stand mixer with a paddle attachment.

An oven.

You can also use a hand mixer or just a sturdy whisk or spoon with a medium or large mixing bowl.

I use a coffee grinder to powder my chai tea.

Life wouldn’t be possible without my amazing silicone spatula for scraping down the paddle and out the bowl.

You need a rolling pin and a cookie sheet that’s lined with either parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

And of course, you need cookie cutters!

How do you make the dang cookies?

If you’ve ever made my classic sugar cookies (regular or gluten-free) you’ll recognize this process! The only thing we are doing differently this time is adding our spice mix to the aquafaba before adding it in.

So first thing’s first – preheat your oven to 350F (about 175C) and line your cookie sheet to have it ready.

Next, blend your fats (the shortening and butter) together with your sugar. Only do this on low speed until the mixture is evenly blended.

While the fats and sugar are blending, empty your tea bags into a coffee grinder and grind the chai to a fine powder.

Add the chai, cinnamon, and ginger, and instant espresso powders to the aquafaba.

Stir the aquafaba mixture until well combined. It’ll look like a thick sauce.

Slowly pour the aquafaba mixture into the mixer running on slow speed one tablespoon at a time.

Once everything is mixed together and cleans the sides of the bowl, your dough is ready! It’s the perfect consistency when you can poke your finger into it without crumbling the dough or having it stick to you. It’ll leave a perfect impression.

You do not need to chill the dough.

If you don’t want to use it right away though, wrap it well and keep it in the fridge for up to a week or the freezer for up to six months. Just bring it to room temperature before unwrapping and working with it.

Form the dough into a ball and turn it out on a floured surface. Press it down and sprinkle flour on the top of the dough to keep it from sticking to the rolling pin.

Roll it out to your desired thickness. I do 3/8″ for thicker, softer cookies. 1/4″ is great for thinner, crispy crunchy cookies.

Cut out your shapes and transfer them to your lined cookie sheet. Re-roll dough scraps and cut out as many cookies as you want. Add a teaspoon of water if your dough starts to dry out.

Bake the cookies for 10-11 minutes or until the tops of the cookies no longer appear wet.

Allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheet for five minutes before carefully transferring them to a wire cooling rack. Allow them to cool completely before icing or using for construction.

How do I decorate them?

Not the gumdrop buttons!

I mean, not unless you find vegan ones, anyway. 😉

Gingerbread cookies are usually iced in royal icing, so that would be my first suggestion. Try adding a bit of nutmeg to my vegan royal icing recipe to take the cookies up another notch!

Royal icing is also what you’d use to glue them together for a glorious gingerbread house.

They are also great with cream cheese buttercream – the tanginess plays off the spice so beautifully.

And here’s a filtered list of vegan candies available on Amazon you can go crazy with decorating to your heart’s content!

Can I make these gluten-free?

You definitely can make gluten-free vegan gingerbread chai espresso cookies! (boy that was a mouthful).

All you need to do is use my gluten-free sugar cookie recipe and add the spices and instant espresso to the aquafaba before adding it in – just like here. 🙂

Troubleshooting

Is your cookie dough too crumbly? Add aquafaba in, a teaspoon at a time until it’s the perfect consistency.

Is your cookie dough too wet? Slowly add in flour, 1/8c at a time until it’s the perfect consistency.

Did your cookies spread? Either your butter has too much water in it or you mixed at too high of a speed. Try using more shortening and less butter, and only mix on slow speed.

Are your cookies very tough and way too chewy? You probably overmixed the dough (this develops the gluten in the flour). Only mix on low speed, and stop mixing as soon as everything is combined.

Are the cookies super dry? If the cookies came out very dry, they are overbaked. Knock a minute or two off of your baking time.

How do you store the baked cookies?

Keep them in an airtight container. They’ll stay fresh for.. pretty much ever as long as they’re airtight. Try to eat them within a week for the very best flavor, though.

Pin it For Later

Recipe

Yield: 12 cookies

Vegan Gingerbread Cookies with Chai Espresso

Vegan gingerbread cookies with a little something extra – chai and espresso! Spicy, no-chill, and no-spread, they’re easy to make for any occasion.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar (softened)
1/4 cup (55g) vegetable shortening
1/4 cup (55g) high-fat vegan butter*
2 bags chai tea**, ground into powder
1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 tablespoon ground ginger
1 serving instant espresso powder*** (optional)
3 tablespoons (45ml) aquafaba
1 5/8 cup (200g) all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line your cookie sheet.
Cream the sugar, shortening, and butter in a stand mixer on low speed with a paddle attachment.
While the sugar is creaming, mix the chai, cinnamon, ginger, and espresso powders into the aquafaba.
Once the sugar is thoroughly mixed into the fats, add the aquafaba mixture one tablespoon at a time.
Add the flour 1/4 c at a time.
Mix the dough on low speed until it pulls away from the sides of the bowl and forms a doughball - perfect consistency is when you can press your finger into it and the dough doesn't crumble or stick to your finger - but keeps a perfect impression.
Lightly flour your rolling surface and turn your dough out onto it.
Lightly flour the top of your dough and roll it out to your desired thickness.
Cut out your shapes and place onto your lined cookie sheet.
Bake for 10-11 minutes, or until the tops of the cookies no longer appear wet.
Allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheet for five minutes before carefully moving them to a wired cooling rack to cool completely.
Decorate**** and enjoy!

Notes

*My preferred butter is Country Crock Plant Butter sticks. Earth Balance and Miyokos also work. If you can't find a butter with at least 75% fat, increase the shortening to 3/8 cup and decrease the butter to 1/8 cup.

**See recipe post if you don't have chai tea bags, or wish to mix your own blend.

***I use Cafe Bustelo single serve espresso powder packets. They taste great and are super convenient.

****My vegan royal icing is perfect for decorating and gluing these cookies

Vegan Brownies from Box Mix

December 5, 2020 // by Meggan Leal// Leave a Comment

Vegan brownies from box mix is easy. I’ll show you how to do it, why your past attempts failed, and how to get perfect egg and dairy-free brownies every time.

It seems most attempts I see from folks trying to make vegan brownies from boxed mixes are total fails.

The problem is that most folks think that they can easily sub out the eggs perfectly for a vegan alternative – one to one. That’s not the case when it comes to brownies, but it’s an easy thing to fix!

Dat crackle! In my opinion, a brownie isn’t a brownie without a crackled top.

How your vegan brownies from box mix failed

Double, double toil and trouble,
Edges burn and batter bubble..

If you have tried, and failed to make vegan brownies from a box mix, my guess is that either one of two (or possibly both) things happened:

1. You baked a pretty darn realistic recreation of the La Brea Tar Pits

I have seen hundreds of posts on social media of brownies just like these.

“Please help! My boxed brownies look like molten tar boiling away in my dish. What did I do wrong??”

“What happened to my brownies?? I subbed the eggs and measured perfectly – the batter looked great but now it looks like burnt death!”

Videos of boiling asphalt in people’s ovens make me sad. Yes, they’re a little entertaining. But also sad.

2. You baked a giant, greasy, quadrilateral hockey puck.

These brownies are really good for self defense. Not so good for dessert. And honestly, they’re probably really, really terrible for actual hockey.

Hockey Puck Brownies usually start as Tar Pit Brownies, and once they’re allowed to cool they become harder than stone. You practically need a chisel to get them out of the pan!

There are other ways veganized box mix brownies fail too, of course – but these two classes of spectacular disasters account for 99.9% of the cries for help I witness.

Why your vegan boxed brownies failed

Yes, I know. You measured perfectly.

Maybe you even used a scale and got it down to the very gram. You probably did.

Whether you used applesauce, bananas, a can of soda, a commercial egg replacer, or flax or chia – I believe you. You measured right.

That’s the problem.

Most boxes of brownie mix require two eggs and around 2/3c to a full cup of oil.

Eggs absorb oil. Your vegan replacement doesn’t.

It’s as simple as that, really. You’re using too much oil.

Whether you’re using fruit or veggie puree or a starch slurry or a gloopy flax egg – if you’re not reducing the amount of oil it’s too much.

You are deep frying your brownie batter in the worst, least appetizing, least edible way possible.

What do you need to make the best vegan boxed brownies ever?

So this really depends on what kind of brownies you like.

Either you like gooey, delicious, rich, chocolatey, fudgy brownies..

or..

You’re wrong. #sorrynotsorry

(if you prefer cakey brownies, may I interest you in my chocolate whacky cake recipe that would make a perfect replacement if you baked it in a shallow pan)

I shall teach you to make the best fudgy veganized box brownies you’ve ever seen or tasted.

*These are not a health food. These are not superfoods. These are not enhanced with healthy things for the sake of healthiness. These are decadent, rich, wonderful morsels of blissful joy that are meant to be enjoyed occasionally as a treat.
**I won’t judge you if you eat the whole pan, though.

Choose your box

Honestly, I grab the cheapest one that says ‘fudge brownie’ on the box. It’s usually my store’s budget brand – Hill Country Fare. It’s delicious and it works.

Check the ingredients to make sure it doesn’t contain eggs or milk – most don’t unless they’re labeled as milk chocolate – but still check! EVERY TIME.

I’ve never, ever seen a brownie mix with gelatin or lard or any other animal product besides milk in it. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist though.

CHECK. THE. INGREDIENTS. EVERY. TIME.

Check what ingredients you need to add to it.

It should just be two eggs, oil, and either water or milk. If it requires anything fancier than that, find a simpler one.

Choose your egg replacer

I have tried so many. So so so many. The best one you can grab at any grocery store is ground flax seed.

Get it in either the baking aisle or the supplement aisle with the laxatives. Yup. It does that. Yay fiber!

Can’t do flax? Use ground chia seeds instead!

Choose and reduce your oil

Any oil with a high smoking point will work here. These include vegetable oil, soy oil, canola oil, avocado oil, and grape seed oil.

Olive oil and coconut oil can both start to burn, but might not so it’s up to you. I recommend against them in boxed brownies, though.

My personal favorite? Melted butter. Yes, you read that right. I use Country Crock Plant Butter sticks and oh man do they put these brownies over the top! SO GOOD. (no this isn’t a sponsored post, I just really honestly love them)

NOW THE REALLY SUPER IMPORTANT PART: REDUCE YOUR OIL BY HALF THE AMOUNT THE BOX CALLS FOR

My box calls for 2/3c of oil. So how much do I need? 1/3c. Thank you for coming to today’s lesson on fractions.

(For oil free brownies, replace the oil with applesauce or another fruit/veggie puree. They won’t be the most perfect fudgy, crinkly-topped, amazing brownies ever – but they’ll still be yummy)

What kind of liquid do I use?

Um.. Coffee?

Really. Coffee. It’s honestly the best choice here, because the coffee brings out the richness of the chocolate.

If you don’t want to use coffee, just use some other unsweetened liquid. Water, tea, and milk are all great choices. Just make sure that they’re room temp when you add them!

What to do with the liquid?

If you try to make your vegan boxed brownies with flax eggs, half the amount of oil, and the perfect amount of liquid – you’re in for a bad time.

The oil we’ve taken out of the equation needs to get replaced with another liquid otherwise your batter will be way too thick.

So easy math here: use the entire amount of liquid the box calls for, PLUS however much oil you left out. For my box, That meant 3/4c of liquid PLUS another 1/3c to make up for the oil I left out. So a total of 3/4c + 1/3c of liquid.

What equipment do I need?

You’re going to need:

an oven
medium or large mixing bowl
a whisk
an 8×8 or 9×9 baking pan
parchment paper or baking spray

How do you actually make the brownies?

You’re going to follow the instructions on the box, just using your replacements. 🙂

If you want to be like me though, this is how I do it:

1. Preheat your oven according to your box instructions.

2. Pour out the contents of the box into a medium or large mixing bowl. Use a whisk to stir it around a bit to make sure there’s nothing wrong with it (like weevils or foreign objects or whatever). Just trust me.

3. If your mix looks good, make each “egg” by mixing one tablespoon of ground flax with 2.5 tablespoons of warm water. Leave it to sit while you..

4. Melt your butter. I do it in the microwave on high for 20 seconds and stir.

5. Line your baking pan with parchment paper or give it a spritz with nonstick cooking spray. I prefer parchment because the spray and I have trust issues.

6. Use your whisk to combine all the ingredients just until they’re combined. DO NOT OVERMIX YOUR BATTER.

7. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake according to the box instructions. But, because you have trust issues, check it 15 minutes early with a toothpick.

8. Pull it out once it’s done and let it cool.

LET. IT. COOL.

STEP AWAY FROM THE BROWNIES.

Ok but for real, I won’t judge you if you dig in right away. With a spoon. And a big ole scoop of vegan vanilla bean ice cream on top.

9. Once the brownies are cool, slice and enjoy!!

Wait, hold on. How do I check if my brownies are done with a toothpick?!

Very simply!

Insert a toothpick into the middle of your brownies. If it comes out dyed brown, they’re not done yet. If it comes out with some crumbs on it, they’re perfect.

If it comes out dry.. You’ve overbaked your brownies. I’m so sorry. This is what you want to do if you want “cakey” brownies, though. So take solace in knowing some people prefer them this way.

Can I do this with gluten free box brownie mix?

Yes, you can! I recommend that you make superflax eggs for gluten-free, though. To do that, use aquafaba instead of water in your flax.

How do I store these brownies?

In your belly and the bellies of your loved ones.

Other than that, they will do well in a covered container at room temp for 2-3 days or well-wrapped in the freezer for about three months.

What can I do to spice these brownies up?

Soooo many things!

Sprinkle with course sea salt
Swirl in some melted peanut butter
Add chocolate chips
Stir in your favorite vegan candy
Sprinkle with colorful sprinkles
Mix in chopped nuts, peanuts, or seeds
Swirls of caramel
Swirls of cream cheese
Top with granola
Add cayenne and cinnamon for Mexican hot chocolate flavor
Add Dandies marshmallows and graham cracker crumbs for s’mores brownies
Drizzle royal icing and scatter crushed candy canes on top for holiday brownies

How do I make them if I don’t want to use a box mix?

Check out some of these awesome from-scratch recipes from my friends!

Chocolate Chip Brownies from Sara Kidd

Tahini Hazlenut Brownies also by Sara Kidd

Very Fudgy Chocolate Chip Brownies by Fran Costigan

Low Carb Gluten-Free Microwaveable Brownie by Me!

Video Tutorial:

coming soon

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Macaron Troubleshooting: Mottled Macarons and 10 Ways to Prevent Them

November 10, 2020 // by Meggan Leal// Leave a Comment

Why are my macarons mottled and stained on top? Learn what causes it and ten ways to prevent mottled macs.

If you’d like to see other installments in the Macaron Troubleshooting Series, click here!

And for more mac fun join our vegan macaron community on Facebook!

WHAT ARE MOTTLED MACARONS?

Mottled macarons whose tops have darker colored spots and blotching. They look stained, like they’ve had water sprayed on them.

WHAT CAUSES MOTTLED MACARONS?

Macarons become mottled when either there is excess liquid (either oil or water) in the batter, or they were not baked high or long enough to sufficiently evaporate it out.

EXCESS OIL

Excess oil can come from three sources, and will make your macarons not only mottled, but hollow and the tops will be very fragile.

OILY ALMOND FLOUR

If your almond flour contains a lot of oil, there are a couple of things you can do to try and save it:

1. Dry it out in the oven. Spread your almond flour out on a clean baking sheet and pop it in the oven at around 200F (just under 100C). Bake it for 20 minutes and turn the oven off, and let it hang out in there for another 10 minutes before pulling it out and letting it cool.

2. Pulse it with your powdered sugar. This is less reliable than #1, but might help if you already have your oven preheated for the macarons or you don’t have time to wait for the almond flour to bake.

Simply put the almond flour and powdered sugar for your recipe in a food processor or blender and gently pulse until everything is combined well.

MAKE SURE TO USE VERY SHORT PULSES! If you hold that button down, you’ll release *more oils* and turn it into almond butter. Almond butter is delicious, but doesn’t make good macarons.

ADDED OILS

Many times the flavors people try to add to their macaron batter contain oil. Whether it’s lemon oil, peppermint oil, or something with naturally occurring oils like cinnamon or cocoa, these additives can wreak havoc on your macs.

The same holds true for colors. Make sure you are not using colors that contain oil! Candy colors made for chocolate will destroy your batter. Some natural colors like yellows that contain turmeric and greens with matcha can also cause problems.

If you’ve never made successful macarons before, you should leave out the flavors and colors until you can consistently make great batches. That way you know it’s the additive that’s causing the issues!

OIL FROM YOUR EQUIPMENT

If you use your silicone mats to make cookies, or your mixing bowl for buttercream, there’s a chance that some oil may have hung around on your equipment and sabotaged your macarons.

You should always wipe down all of your pans, mats, spoons, whisks, bowls, etc. with some vinegar prior to beginning the recipe to get rid of any residual grease that might deflate your meringue and doom your macarons.

Also beware of bits of buttercream falling from your mixer into the bowl!

EXCESS MOISTURE

If either your batter contains too much moisture, or it doesn’t have a chance to escape during baking, you could get mottled macarons.

INCORRECT MEASURING

One reason for this could be that the batter is too wet. This happens when your ratios are off.

Maybe you tried to estimate instead of measuring, or you’re using cups and spoons instead of weighing out the grams with a kitchen scale.

Even the best of us sometimes mess up too, though. It’s possible you accidentally added too much aquafaba (or water for folks who make potato protein macarons) or not enough dry ingredients.

This will also happen if you are making Italian macarons and didn’t heat the sugar up enough (which leaves extra water in it), or added too much color.

The result of way too much color being added to macaron batter. They are mottled on top and the feet oozed out from the bottom. — I added waaaaay too much color to this macaron batter. The mottling just got worse and worse as they sat, too.

MERINGUE AND MIXING ISSUES

If your meringue is underwhipped or your batter is overmixed, it could also cause your macarons to be too saturated with moisture.

When you whip the meringue to stiff peaks, what you’re doing is creating billions of teeny tiny bubbles. It makes the batter light and airy, and allows it to dry out in the oven. If you don’t whip the meringue stiff enough, the bubbles aren’t there to allow moisture to escape easily.

Likewise, if you overmixed your batter during macaronage, you’ve popped all the bubbles you made during the meringue stage and the same problem arises.

Whip your meringue well and be sure you do not overmix your batter. It’s better to be too stiff and undermixed than to have mottled puddles for macarons.

HEAT PROBLEMS

Even if you did everything else right, when your oven is not hot enough it will cause your macarons to be too moist.

The oven temperature needs to be high enough to evaporate the moisture in the macarons before it has a chance to soak the outer shell of the cookie. It also needs to be hot enough to dry out the macaron before the meringue has a chance to deflate.

Anything lower than around 210F (100C) and sometimes even hotter than that depending on the batter and the weather will not dry out your macarons fast enough.

Chances are that if your tops are mottled, the macarons have no feet, and your macarons stick to your mat or paper, your oven wasn’t sufficiently hot.

BAKING TIME

Not baking long enough will also cause these problems.

Even if you vaporize the moisture in the outer parts of the shells with sufficient heat, if you don’t bake long enough the liquid will spread and settle on the surface. This will give them a mottled, stained appearance.

Under-baking will also leave your macarons raw on the inside, and they will be very fragile. Another sign that this is what has occurred is that they will stick to the mat.

If your macarons stick to the mat, become mottled AFTER baking, are raw inside, but have great feet, your oven was probably hot enough but the baking time was too short or you opened the door too much during baking.

CHECK YOUR FILLINGS

If your macarons baked perfectly with no problems, but become mottled after maturing, the culprit is your filling.

When you fill macarons with something very wet like jam or curd, the shells will absorb the moisture and become soaked and soggy.

Either switch the filling for something fat-based like buttercream or ganache, or give the bottoms of your macs a swipe of melted chocolate or frosting to make them waterproof before filling them.

MATURATION

If you mature them at room temperature, they can also over-mature after about 6-12 hours depending on the filling. Room temp maturation is good if you’re in a rush, but otherwise – keep it in the fridge.

TEN WAYS TO PREVENT MOTTLED MACARONS

Here is your checklist to make sure your macarons don’t come out mottled:

10 Ways to Prevent Mottled Macarons

Mottled macarons can be caused by plenty of different things, but here are 10 ways you can avoid them:

Instructions

1. Wipe down all of your equipment with vinegar before you begin.

2. Measure everything accurately by the gram with a good kitchen scale.

3. If making Italian macarons, make sure you bring your sugar syrup to the correct temperature.

4. Whip your meringue very well.

5. Do not add color or flavor with oils or meringue-deflating ingredients (if in doubt, leave it out!)

6. Do not let your batter sit for too long before piping (two hours max).

7. Make sure your oven is hot enough.

8. Make sure you bake them long enough and don't open the oven door.

9. Do not use very wet fillings without sealing your shells first.

10. Mature them in the fridge.

Notes

Find my vegan Italian macaron recipe here.

Find the ingredients and equipment I use for macarons here.

Join our vegan macaron community on Facebook here.

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Allergy-Friendly and Vegan Pastry Recipes:

Macaron Troubleshooting: Burning Bottoms

November 3, 2020 // by Meggan Leal// Leave a Comment

Why are my macarons burning on the bottom? Learn why the bottoms burn, and easy ways to fix it.

Burning Bottoms

Your oven is spot on, you’ve confirmed it with eight different thermometers. The meringue was perfect. Your macaronage is on point. but your macs are spreading and coming out crispy and brown and burnt!

What the heck?!

Ask yourself these questions:

Macaron Pans

What color is your pan?

Dark, heavy pans (like many used in Germany!) hold on to heat. Imagine talking a walk on a sunny day in a black t-shirt. Like you, your macs are going to feel a lot more toasty than what the thermometer says!

Most (dare I say all?) macaron recipes are written for shiny silver colored aluminum pans.

Aluminum pans (like these) conduct heat efficiently. The only way they’ll burn your macs is if you have them too close to the bottom heating element.

So is all lost if you only have dark colored pans?

NO!

Just turn your oven temperature down about 10-15°F to account for it and you should be fine! AND! This goes for all the recipes you make with it, not just macarons. You’ll experience a lot more success this way in all your baking ventures!

Macaron Mats

What kind of mat are you using?

Silpat style mats (like these) are what I prefer to use because the macarons hold their shape (on parchment, they go kind of oblong).

These mats also protect your macarons a bit from the heat on the bottom. My macaron recipe is written for these mats, but you can totally adjust for parchment if that’s what you’ve got!

Parchment paper: if you’re using parchment paper and your macarons are burning on the bottom, adjust your oven temperature about 5°F lower.

Using a dark pan with parchment paper? Just add the degrees together! Lower the temp 15-20°F and you should be good!

Thick silicone mats (like these) can either hold on to heat or shield heat depending on their color. Darker = hotter. Play with the temp accordingly and find your sweet spot.

Personally, I hate these mats so much. Lol. But my friend Eggless French Mac Master Deepa Jha uses them like a pro, so I suppose all hope is not lost. 🤪

Teflon and copper mats (like these) transfer heat more like parchment paper, so try turning the thermostat down a few degrees if you use them.

BONUS: Two More Things to Try

Are the bottoms of your macarons still burning even though you’re using silpat style silicone mats and a silver aluminum tray? Here are some things you can try:

Double up your pans! You can stack a second pan and it will help shield the macs’ bottoms from the heat while the rest can still bake nicely.

Raise the rack! If the heat in your oven comes from bottom coils, you can try baking the macs in the middle or even upper rack. Just don’t put them too close to the top of the oven or they might not get enough air circulation to dry out properly.

That’s it for today! Hopefully these tips will help you in your baking adventures!!

If you’d like more help with your macaron making, I’d love you to join our thriving Facebook community!

Do you have any other tips? Share them in the comments below!

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Allergy-Friendly and Vegan Pastry Recipes:

Easy Vegan Cheese for Pizza (Nut-Free, No Blender)

October 14, 2020 // by Meggan Leal// 2 Comments

Vegan cheese for pizza that actually tastes good, is quick and easy to make at home, and doesn’t use nuts or cashews? Yes!

I told you on my Easy Vegan Cheese Sauce recipe that it could be used to make a million and one different cheesy applications, and I wasn’t kidding! From my crave-worthy Choriqueso to nachos to vegan or dairy-free Philly cheesesteaks and more – it’s a great recipe to have in your arsenal.

This recipe transforms it into the perfect topping for all your homemade pizzas (and anything else you’d love pizza cheese on!). It browns in the oven, has some stretch to it, and even re-melts when you heat the leftovers back up.

Cheesy vegan steak sandwiches — A yummy, cheesy topping for all your vegan ‘steak’ sandwiches!

Here are some of the reasons you’ll love this recipe:

It’s vegan! Whether you’re lactose-intolerant, allergic to dairy, or just choose not to consume animal products, now you have a great cheese for your pizzas.

It’s easy! This recipe uses easy-to-find ingredients and no expensive equipment – not even a blender.

It’s fast! No need to worry about setting overnight or even for an hour. If you decide last minute to make pizza for dinner, that’s fine! This recipe comes together in less than ten.

It’s delicious! Not only does it check the boxes of vegan, fast, and easy – it also tastes great. It can be hard to find a recipe like that!

It’s allergy-friendly! Dairy is just the tip of the iceberg here. This cheese sauce also boasts being nut-free. Since most vegan cheeses contain cashews or other nuts, this is pretty impressive and inclusive.

Equipment Needed

A stovetop or burner. You’re going to be cooking this sauce over a stove. You could use a fancy heating blender if you have one, but the stove works just fine.

A small saucepan. I prefer non-stick, but if you don’t have one that’s ok. A one-quart is plenty big enough.

A silicone spatula. A wooden spoon, a plastic heatproof spoon, or a metal spoon will work fine too (just don’t scratch your non-stick pan with the metal!), but silicone works the best.

Ingredients Needed

Two batches of my cheese sauce base recipe. It should be more than enough to cover two medium or large pizzas with some left over. This will definitely depend on how thick you pour it on, though.

If you’re only making one pizza, feel free to make only one batch of the cheese sauce and halve the additional ingredients.

Miso. Miso is a fermented soy bean paste, and the more mild white miso works well here. It’s used for its tangy fermented flavor (similar to the lactic acid in dairy cheese).

If you’re soy-free or can’t find it, you can omit it or substitute it for two times the amount of fermented sauerkraut brine. Yes, I just said that. Thanks to 86eats.com I’ve learned how wonderfully cheesy it can make vegan cheeses taste!

Vegan Mayonnaise. Yes, mayo.

Mayo adds some cheesy tang to the recipe, as well as adds some fat – which is lacking in the base, but definitely needed on pizza! If you’re oil-free though, you can omit this and add extra miso or sauerkraut brine instead.

Check the ingredients and look for a soy-free variety if you need one!

Mmm Garlic. Pizza is Italian and garlic is a requirement. It just is. Granulated or paste work best here, or it’ll make your cheese chunky. That doesn’t sound good at all.

Salt. Pizza cheese is salty! Please don’t forget to salt your sauce. Table salt, pink salt, whatever salt – just not black salt unless you’re making an “egg” pizza!

How to Make It:

It really couldn’t be easier!

Just whip up the vegan cheese sauce base, then stir in the rest of the ingredients (except the salt). Then, salt at the end to taste!

That’s it! Really!

How to Use It:

I pour it hot directly on the pizza. That’s the easiest way! Once it starts to cool, it’ll start to get kind of gloopy and slime-like, and it makes it harder to get an even ‘coat’ of your vegan cheese on the pizza.

Mini cheesy pizza with sliced red baby bell peppers — This is what cold cheese sauce will look like on your pizza before you bake it.

If you’re using leftover, cooled cheese sauce, it’ll be gelatinous and pretty off-putting as is (this is what happens when the heat-activated tapioca starch gets chilled). No worries, though! Just use a spoon or ice cream scoop to put it on the pizza and it’ll melt beautifully.

Bake your cheesed pizza at 480F for 15 minutes to get it to bubble and brown nicely. Five to ten minutes longer if you’re like me and like it to be a bit extra or if you’re using cold cheese sauce from the fridge.

Vegan Cheese GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY — Delicious, melty vegan cheese after baking!

How to Store Leftover Vegan Cheese for Pizza:

If you happen to have any sauce left over, just pop it into a sealed container and put it in the fridge.

It’ll keep for three to five days.

Leftovers will turn semi-solid and gelatinous, but will melt beautifully once heated again.

Video to Make the Base Cheese Sauce:

Follow the video above to make the sauce – just remember to add in all your other ingredients except the salt after the cheese is done. Salt to taste at the end, and enjoy!

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Printable Recipe Card:

Yield: 2 cups

Easy Vegan Cheese for Pizza

Vegan cheese for pizza that actually tastes good, is quick and easy to make at home, and doesn’t use nuts or cashews? Look no further!

Prep Time 1 minute

Cook Time 9 minutes

Additional Time 15 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Ingredients

2 batches Easy Vegan Cheese Sauce Base
2 tsp white miso paste
2 tbsp vegan mayonnaise
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Salt to taste

Instructions

Make the vegan cheese sauce base according to recipe instructions
Stir in the remaining ingredients until well mixed
Pour evenly over pizza or other desired vehicle for eating cheese
Bake at 480F for 15 minutes, or until bubbly and browned on the edges.

Notes

Store leftover cheese sauce in a covered dish in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.

If using cold cheese sauce, scoop with spoon or ice cream scoop onto pizza before baking, and add 5 minutes to the baking time.

If you cannot find or don't want to use miso (it's soy-based), substitute it with 4 tsp of fermented sauerkraut brine.

This is enough cheese to generously cover two medium or large pizzas with some left over - depending on how thick you pour it on.

Allergy-Friendly and Vegan Pastry Recipes:

Aquafaba in Baking: 8 Amazing Pastry and Dessert Recipes

February 24, 2020 // by Meggan Leal// 2 Comments

Aquafaba in baking is a miracle of the vegan world. Replacing eggs has never been easier! Try magical bean water today!

All it takes is to crack open a can of your favorite legumes (or cook your own). Drain off the brine and use it instead of eggs in plenty of recipes. From cookies to bread to icing and more – you’ll be amazed at what aquafaba can do for your baking.

I’ve gathered a list of my own aquafaba recipes as well as a couple favorites from my friends 86eats and Gretchen’s Vegan Bakery. Let me know what you make and how you liked it!

Easiest Vegan Meringue Cookies Ever with Aquafaba

Thanks to aquafaba, vegans and other egg-avoiders can now enjoy crispy meringues whenever they want, again.

American Meringue Buttercream (vegan)

If you love Swiss meringue buttercream but hate the work it takes, this is the recipe for you! No cooking required.

Vegan Royal Icing

Royal icing has never been so easy, thanks to aquafaba! Just mix and whip and ice.

Challah Y'all, Vegan Challah

Photo Credit: www.86eats.com

The classic Jewish enriched dough bread, made vegan instead of egg-heavy thanks to aquafaba.

No-Chill, No-Spread, Vegan Rolled Sugar Cookies

Classic sugar cookies made with aquafaba instead of eggs, with the twist that they don't need to be chilled before baking.

No Chill, No Spread, Vegan, Gluten-Free Rolled Sugar Cookies

The same classic sugar cookies as above, but made both vegan and gluten-free.

Aquafaba Italian Meringue Buttercream Recipe - Gretchen's Vegan Bakery

Photo Credit: www.gretchensveganbakery.com

The most stable buttercream you can get your hands on. It's a bit of work, but well worth it!

Vegan Italian Macarons with Aquafaba

The holy grail of aquafaba recipes: macarons. Not for the faint of heart; they're tricky to master, but not tricky to eat!

Allergy-Friendly and Vegan Pastry Recipes:

Vegan Cheesecake Dip (dairy-free, nut-free, coconut-free, cream-cheese-free)

February 14, 2020 // by Meggan Leal// Leave a Comment

Two inexpensive and easy-to-find grocery items combine to perform magic in this simple but tasty twist on cheesecake. Make it tonight to impress all your people!

Ok, so this recipe almost feels sacrilegious. I feel kinda bad for even posting it but 1. it’s freaking delicious and 2. it’s freaking easy and 3. I tried so so hard to get an actual cheesecake recipe up for you guys in time for Valentine’s Day, but I fell hard from my high horse after my first attempt succeeded wildly and then I couldn’t replicate it. SO EXPECT ACTUAL CHEESECAKE SOON. But until then, this should fill the hole in your heart where cheesecake used to be.

Even though this isn’t an actual cheesecake, it tastes exactly like one. And it’s way super easy to customize to be any flavor of cheesecake your heart desires. And?? It’s free of all top eight allergens except for soy (sorry soy-avoiders, but I promise I’ve got one coming out for you shortly!).

But before you go any further… THIS RECIPE IS NOT HEALTHY. If you’re looking for a healthy recipe, just turn back now. Close your eyes and cover your ears and go back to where you came from because this is not it. My goodness, is it not. At all. But it’s a great treat every once in a while and super simple to whip up if you need something at the last minute for some bunch-of-ingredient-avoiders.

SooOooOOoo can I get a drum roll, please?!

Ingredients

That’s it. Lol.

I told you it was simple!! And not healthy. BUT SO GOOD.

1. Pick your favorite vegan yogurt – whatever you like to eat in whatever flavor you want your vegan cheesecake dip to be. Are you nut-free? Well then don’t pick one with nuts, silly. Need to avoid coconut? Don’t get that one. I used soy for mine since soy is in the second ingredient, and I didn’t want to double up on allergens.

2. Pillsbury Creamy Supreme cream cheese frosting. No, you stop it. Don’t get mad at me. I told you this wasn’t healthy!! I warned you. You’re not allowed to get mad at me for this! The readymade frosting tastes like cream cheese and sugar, which are two big ingredients in cheesecake. Badabing badaboom. It comes in both a tub and a pre-filled pastry bag. Either one works.

(Betty Crocker Cream Cheese frosting might also work, but it does have a ‘may contain milk products’ warning on it, and contains ‘natural flavors’ which are always dubious. Use at your own risk)

The yogurt is fermented (which adds cheesy tang) and has probiotics, which is awesome. But the probiotic content doesn’t negate the fact that this is totally not a health food – so stop trying to make that happen! Geeze. Just enjoy it as a treat!

What ingredients are in this frosting??

The only top allergen is soy. It’s certified gluten-free, and while it’s not certified vegan, the plant-based community has overwhelmingly decided that it is free of animal products.

Here’s the ingredient list though – just.. just don’t think it’s gonna be healthy. And don’t try to feed it to your WFPB friends.

I hate those ingredients! Can I just use your cream cheese frosting recipe??

You can give it a shot, as long as everything is cold. You’re not going to be able to warm it up or the frosting will split. It might even split if it’s cold because the yogurt has a lot of moisture and my frosting doesn’t have added emulsifiers. I’m working on a recipe for those of you who can’t use the packaged stuff, though.

I suppose if you really really really really really hate the frosting, you can go ahead and use vegan cream cheese instead. But this recipe is magnificent because it doesn’t use cream cheese! But whatever, do what you want. 😉 You’ll need to add a sweetener of some sort to it though, or it’ll just taste like fruity cream cheese. Which isn’t a bad thing, necessarily. Just ain’t cheesecake.

Wait.. did you say warm it up?

Heck yeah I did. Because the frosting has so many emulsifiers (ingredients that help water and oil become best friends instead of mortal enemies), this can be served as a warm dip! And I absolutely love it warm contrasted with some ice cold fresh fruit. Omnomnom.

You definitely don’t need to serve it warm though, and the warmer it is the thinner the cheesecake dip will actually be. So it’s up to you how you want to serve and eat it. Cold, hot, or room temp. They’re all wonderful.

Can I add anything to it?

For sure! I melted in a little cocoa butter for the pot in the photos, actually! I, believe it or not, don’t really like sweets too much, so I added the cocoa butter to calm the sugar sweetness down without compromising the viscosity/thickness of the dip. Unsweetened chocolate would also be a great choice if you wanted to go the rich chocolate cheesecake route.

Stirring in chopped, freeze dried fruit is a marvelous addition (peaches! omg freeze dried peaches in this.. hnnnggg..).

I stirred some cheesecake crust crumbles for a little bit of crunch and was not disappointed. You could try crushed Oreos or graham crackers and I’m sure it would be mouth-watering, too!

It’s so hard to hold the camera to take pictures with one hand while trying to sprinkle cheesecake crust crumbles INTO the cheesecake dip and not just around it with the other.

Oh, and if you want to add color, just stir it into the yogurt before you mix everything together.

How do I make it?

First step: Open the yogurt.
Next step: Put the yogurt in whatever you want to serve the vegan cheesecake dip in
Next: whisk/stir in spoonfuls of the frosting until you like the texture of the dip. Keep in mind that the more frosting you add, the sweeter it’s going to be.
Finally: stir in any additions you want and serve with whatever vehicles you want to use to get it into your mouth

Note: If you want to serve the dip warm or to add chocolate or cocoa butter, I recommend heating all the ingredients up slowly together in a saucepan before pouring into your serving dish.

What do I dip into this magical vegan cheesecake dip?

I’m not here to tell you how to run your life, but pretty much anything you wanna put in your mouth can get dipped into this cheesecake dip.

Bananas are good, oranges are bomb, and granny smith apples are totally my favorite. Fresh fruit and yogurt! Heck yeah! So healthy!! NO. STOP THAT. IT’S NOT HEALTHY.

If you’re a sugar fiend, try out some marshmallows! Or some graham crackers would be perfection to complete the cheesecake flavor profile. In the picture, I’m dipping one of my gluten free sugar cookies to keep with the whole GF theme.

Just about any fresh fruit, dried fruit, cookies, crackers, spoons, or whatever else you’d love to throw onto a cheesecake would be great in this cheesecake dip. If you dipped an actual slice of cheesecake into this vegan cheesecake dip, that would be epic and I want to see a picture.

Can I turn this into an actual cheesecake?

Please excuse me while I cry.

I totally did. And it was magnificent. I did one part yogurt to two parts frosting and froze it and it was perfect.

And then I could never make it happen again.

Sad, melting disaster of a cheesecake. 😭

If you want to give it a try, you’re more than welcome. Just don’t tell me if it works out because I will just cry more.

And if you don’t want to give it a try and need a tried and true recipe, check out Gretchen’s Vegan Bakery. Cheesecakes are totally her specialty, and she has tons of amazing recipes for them!

How can I make this vegan cheesecake dip healthier?

Please leave me alone so that I can go make it!

Ok! Geeze! Go!!

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Recipe:

Vegan Cheesecake Dip

Two inexpensive and easy-to-find grocery items combine to perform magic in this simple but tasty twist on cheesecake. Make it tonight to impress all your fans!

Prep Time 1 minute

Cook Time 2 minutes

Total Time 3 minutes

Ingredients

vegan yogurt of your choice
Pillsbury Creamy Supreme cream cheese frosting

Instructions

1. Open the yogurt and the frosting

2. Put the yogurt in whatever you want to serve the vegan cheesecake dip in

3. Whisk/stir in spoonfuls of the frosting until you like the texture of the dip. Keep in mind that the more frosting you add, the sweeter it’s going to be.

4. Stir in any additions you want and serve with whatever vehicles you want to use to get it into your mouth

Notes

If you want to serve the dip warm or to add chocolate or cocoa butter, I recommend heating all the ingredients up slowly together in a saucepan before pouring into your serving dish.

Easy Creamy Vegan Tomato Basil Sauce

February 10, 2020 // by Meggan Leal// 1 Comment

Simple ingredients with big time flavors combine to give you a creamy, luscious pasta sauce with the classic Italian taste you love and the creaminess you miss from before your dairy-free days. No nuts, no coconuts, and no funny business, but still easy as can be with amazing results.

One of the things I missed the most when I gave up dairy was a good, luxurious, comforting cream sauce for my pasta. There are plenty of recipes out there that use blended cashews or other nuts, or even coconut cream. I don’t like spending the bajillions of dollars on cashews, and I don’t really like coconut a whole lot, so that’s a no from me, dawg.

There is an amazing recipe by Oh She Glows for Cauli-power Alfredo which I’ve made and is tremendously delicious, and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to give it a go. It’s work though, including a food processor/blender and I am lazy – so I’ve only made it once despite how delicious it is.

I made a spaghetti squash lasagna with the cauliflower alfredo back in 2016 and I still dream about it to this day

What I Needed

So what was I looking for, exactly? An easy creamy pasta sauce that doesn’t take a whole lot of time, doesn’t need blenders or food processors, doesn’t use nuts, and did I mention I want it to be creamy?

Easy. Creamy. Quick. Delicious.

What It Ain’t

This isn’t an alfredo sauce or comparable. I’ve got one of those on the way, but this is a tomato-based cream sauce (my favorite before I gave up dairy). So if you’re looking for a white cream sauce, check out the one I linked above or stay tuned for mine coming out soon.

Let’s Get Down to Business

Ingredients You Need

Tomatoes: For super duper ease I used canned tomatoes. Whole tomatoes are going to be the best quality, but diced tomatoes ain’t too bad themselves. I go for diced because I like them. You definitely can use fresh tomatoes – and big, juicy vine tomatoes are going to be your besties for this recipe. Just measure out about 30oz (850g), chop them up, and give them a few minutes in your hot pan before moving on to the rest of the recipe.

Onions: I like to use sweet onions, but plain white or even yellow onions will work fine here. I buy pre-chopped onions from my store because I have arthritis and laziness.

Garlic: Again, I buy pre-minced. It works fine for me and tastes enough like garlic to make me happy. (See “onions” above for why I go this route). Feel free to use fresh, or substitute with granulated garlic if that’s your jam. Use a half a teaspoon if you use dry, though. Or more. I’m not about to tell anyone to curb their garlic usage! (I actually use way more than I put in the recipe, but I’ve been accused by a lot of people of using too much garlic and I didn’t want to offend any palates out there)

My cheat code for arthritis and laziness

Oil: In the spirit of this being Italian food, I use extra virgin olive oil. This one is my most favorite – it’s actually Tunisian. Yeah, I know, Tunisia isn’t in Italy. But most “Italian” olive oils aren’t even usually olive oil anymore, and this one is and it’s absolutely delicious. Can’t do olive oil? Use whatever neutral oil floats your boat – or just sub with your favorite vegan butter!

Basil: Basil is 1000000% my most favorite herb of all time, and if you can get it fresh it’s amazeballs. Italian basil, of course. Thai basil might be a bit too spicy for this application, but you can give it a shot if you’re feeling adventurous! If you can’t find fresh, feel free to use dried. Just follow the notes in the recipe card below. Can’t do basil? Try it out with oregano and thyme instead. Throw in a little rosemary and sage and your tastebuds will be very happy. 🙂

The Special Ingredient: as I was sitting around thinking about how I could make a creamy vegan tomato basil sauce without cream, as I often do, I scanned through my mental list of things that could possibly make it creamy as I noted above. Nuts, but expensive (and allergenic). Cauliflower, which is delicious but tedious and requires horsepower. Coconut, but blech. I could use my easy cheese sauce, but that wouldn’t give it exactly the creamy, luxurious mouthfeel I was wanting. Then.. it hit me.

Carbonara.

Carbonara is a creamy Italian pasta sauce that has absolutely zero cream in it. Its creaminess is achieved with eggs. They’re stirred in at the end to form a glossy, creamy, divinely delicious sauce with zero dairy. So what can we use instead of eggs to make a vegan version? What else but aquafa–

Just kidding.

For once I’m not using aquafaba!! I’m using something that uses it though! Mayonnaise. It’s a creamy emulsion of oil and vinegar traditionally made with eggs, but vegan mayo gives us the perfect creaminess we are needing in our sauce without the use of eggs, dairy, nuts, coconuts, or magic – well at least not much of it, anyway.

Process Notes

One of the best tips I have included in this recipe is to microwave the garlic and onion with your olive oil. This is a nifty trick I learned from Alton Brown in his book I’m Just Here for the Food 2.0. It softens the onion and mellows the garlic perfectly to cut out a good chunk of time from your stove-top cooking. Just be aware that your microwave will smell like onions and garlic for a while.

You can use your hands to smush up the tomatoes in the traditional rustic Italian manner, but again – arthritis. I use a potato masher for a good, texturous, chunky sauce. If you don’t like your sauce to be chunky, you can totally use a blender or food processor.. Or just use tomato sauce and save yourself some dishes?

Save that pasta water! It’s important because the starches in the water bring the oils and waters together for a creamy emulsion in your sauce. Check out this awesome video for a demonstration.

As far as how much of your vegan mayo to add – it’s up to you! I recommend starting with two tablespoons, and see if you like that level of creaminess. If you want it creamier? Add two more tablespoons. Rinse and repeat.

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Yield: 4 servings

Easy Creamy Vegan Tomato Basil Sauce

Prep Time 2 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Additional Time 5 minutes

Total Time 22 minutes

Ingredients

2 tsp minced garlic
2 tbsp minced onion
2 tbsp olive oil (or other neutral oil)
2 14.5oz cans of diced or whole tomatoes
handful of fresh basil, divided
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
12oz pasta, prepared according to package instructions MINUS four minutes
1/4 c reserved pasta water
4-8 tbsp vegan mayonnaise (depending on how creamy you want the sauce to be)

Instructions

Put your water and salt to boil for your pasta
Heat a large saucepan or skillet over medium high heat
Stir together your onion, garlic, and olive oil in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave for one minute on high
While your onion mix is in the microwave, empty your tomatoes into your hot pan and stir, letting some of the liquid evaporate off
Add your onion mix into the tomatoes and stir well
Add your uncooked pasta to the boiling water and stir well. Set a timer for the time it takes it to cook MINUS four minutes
Tear half of your basil into small pieces and stir into the tomatoes
Use a potato masher or fork to smash your tomatoes into smaller pieces, and let the mixture cook down until thickened to your liking (I let it go for about four to five minutes at medium-high heat)
Drain your pasta and add to your tomato mixture along with 1/4c of the pasta water
Stir well and lower the heat to medium-low, allowing the mixture to thicken more for five to six minutes until the pasta is al dente
Tear the remaining basil into small pieces and add to the pasta
Remove from heat and stir in the mayonnaise for a magically cream-less creamy tomato basil sauce!
Salt and pepper to taste
Garnish with fresh basil and vegan parmesan, and enjoy immediately with some yummy carbs

Notes

If you don't have fresh basil, you may substitute 4 tsp of dried. Add it all together at the first addition rather than dividing in half

If you're soy-free, try Sir Kensington's vegan mayo! We love Hellman's, but it does contain soy.

We use gluten-free pasta and Barilla's is our favourite!

Vegan Choriqueso (Queso Dip with Chorizo)

February 1, 2020 // by Meggan Leal// Leave a Comment

The combination of spicy, acidic chorizo and smooth, creamy cheese is one of my favorite appetizers in Mexican cuisine. This warming comfort food has turned dairy-free, vegan, and allergy-friendly here, and I think you’ll love it as much as I do.

This recipe comes on the heels of my Easiest Vegan Cheese Sauce Base recipe, and is the first one I’m publishing using it! But don’t worry, I have lots more on the way. 🙂

So if you haven’t already, take a quick peek over there and acquaint yourself with it because you’re going to need a double batch for this recipe.

What is choriqueso and how do I eat it?

Choriqueso is a fondue made from melting white cheese (usually Oaxaca, which is very similar to mozzarella) and adding fried chorizo. Sometimes onion or tomato can be added, or even bell pepper. One of my favorite varieties in Mexico was served with sautéed mushroom slices!

Overall, the cheese itself is very mild in terms of flavor – but the punch comes when the chorizo is added! It’s spicy, acidic, and bright red. The flavor is addictive and pairs beautifully with all kinds of other foods. I even use it in my Quick and Easy Vegan Pozole recipe to add amazing depths of flavor that would normally take hours to develop.

It’s eaten with chips, fresh tortillas, bread, or whatever else you can get your hands on to dip and scoop it with. You’ll be in heaven if you try it over fries!

Ingredients

The ingredients you’ll need here are

1. a vegan Mexican style chorizo (Cacique soyrizo is my favorite),

2. vegan mayonnaise,

3. vegan butter or oil,

4. chopped white onion,

5. lime juice,

6. miso paste, and

7. salt.

Some fresh cilantro leaves to garnish are also lovely. And of course, you’ll need the double batch of cheese sauce.

This recipe as written contains soy – but if you avoid it, check out this spice mix and add one tablespoon + one tablespoon of vinegar to your ground meat replacement of choice, and Sir Kensington’s Fabanaise is soy-free, as well!

Equipment

Equipment and tools you’ll need are:

A stovetop burner,

a medium sized pan,

a silicone spatula,

an oven-proof bowl big enough to hold at least four cups,

a smaller heatproof bowl that can hold at least a cup,

an ovenproof platter or pan to bake the larger bowl on (in case of overflow), and

an oven to bake it in.

Process

1. Preheat oven to 400°F

2. heat your pan over medium heat, and add your butter/oil

3. add the chorizo and stir well until it starts to appear more dry (about 3-4 minutes)

4. add the onion and miso paste, stirring well to incorporate

5. once the onions are translucent, separate a third of the mixture and set aside for garnish

6. add the cheese sauce

7. stir well until completely incorporated

8. add lime juice and stir well

9. add mayonnaise and stir well

10. taste test and add more salt if desired

11. pour cheese mix into oven safe bowl (unless your pan can go straight into the oven, then do that – fewer dishes to wash!)

12. add remaining chorizo to top

13. set bowl on baking tray in oven and bake for 20 minutes

14. remove from oven, squeeze fresh lime juice and sprinkle fresh cilantro over the top, and serve the choriqueso immediately

Video Tutorial

(Currently uploading)

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Yield: 3 cups

Vegan Choriqueso

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Ingredients

2 batches Easiest Vegan Cheese Sauce
2 tbsp vegan butter or oil
4 oz vegan Mexican-style chorizo (see notes in post for soy-avoidance)
1/2 c diced white onion
2 tsp miso paste (use chickpea miso if avoiding soy, or omit entirely)
4 tsp fresh lime juice
2 tbsp vegan mayonnaise (see notes in post if avoiding soy)
Salt, to taste

Garnish

Juice of half a lime
1/8 c chopped cilantro leaves

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F

2. heat your pan over medium heat, and add your butter/oil

3. add the chorizo and stir well until it starts to appear more dry (about 3-4 minutes)

4. add the onion and miso paste, stirring well to incorporate

5. once the onions are translucent, separate a third of the mixture and set aside for garnish

6. add the cheese sauce

7. stir well until completely incorporated

8. add lime juice and stir well

9. add mayonnaise and stir well

10. taste test and add more salt if desired

11. pour cheese mix into oven safe bowl (unless your pan can go straight into the oven, then do that – fewer dishes to wash!)

12. add remaining chorizo to top

13. set bowl on baking tray in oven and bake for 20 minutes

14. remove from oven, squeeze fresh lime juice and sprinkle fresh cilantro over the top, and serve the choriqueso immediately

Notes

If you want to turn up the heat, try adding your favorite hot sauce!

If you’re pressed for time, this can be made without baking - just pour into a bowl and serve!