Desserts and Pastries

Name: Vegan Gingerbread Cookies with Chai Espresso
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 12
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

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.

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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:

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.

Koala Macaron Template & Tutorial

January 13, 2020 // by Meggan Leal// Leave a Comment

To support ongoing bushfire relief efforts in Australia

Printable pdf macaron template and tutorial page. All profits will be donated to The Trustee for NSW Rural Fire Service & Brigades Donations Fund via Celeste Barber’s fundraiser on Facebook.

Name your own price, but donations of all sizes are appreciated – no matter how small. To adjust the price, simply edit the amount in the field below. Once you purchase, you’ll receive an email with the download link.

Use this template and tutorial to make your own koala macarons (also can be used for meringue cookies or royal icing transfers). Be sure to share your creations on social media and tag @cookingoncaffeine and #baking4bushfires.

Tune in to Dream Confections, LLC’s Facebook this Saturday, January 18 to watch her create them live! Click here to view the event.

Get all of my product recommendations in my Amazon Shop.

Grab all my macaron recommendations on the Macaron Recipes & Resources page so that you can feel fully prepared to make some awesome koalas and spread the #baking4bushfires love!

Allergy-Friendly and Vegan Pastry Recipes:

Silk Vegan Heavy Whipping Cream Review

January 3, 2020 // by Meggan Leal// 33 Comments

Wondering if the new dairy-free, vegan heavy whipping cream alternative from Silk is perfect? I asked the questions and found the answers.

First of all, this post is NOT sponsored by Silk or any brand other than myself – Cooking on Caffeine. What you’ll find here are my own personal, honest opinions, based on how I use the product and my own tastes.

I stumbled on this product at my local Walmart today while looking for my favorite oat milk creamer (which they didn’t have, and I am upset). It was next to the dairy whipping cream, and was flanked by their new dairy-free half and half (which I didn’t purchase).

Of course it caught my attention, and of course I bought it. I have so many questions! I have so many recipes to test! Does it go well in coffee like cream? Does it actually whip up (and stay whipped)? Does it make perfect, luscious ice cream? How does it cook? Does it give a silky mouthfeel like dairy cream? Does it separate like dairy cream? Can I overwhip it?

Whew. So many questions.

The most important question is obviously whether it’s good in coffee or not.

And I’m sure you have the same questions I do, so I’ve decided to do all the testing and post the answers here because we all need answers!

Let’s get the dairy-free whipping cream party started!

What’s it made of? Is it safe for my allergy or diet?

According to the packaging, it’s certified gluten-free, so that’s the one allergen you can be 100% sure you’re safe with here.

Unfortunately, there is a cross-contamination warning for dairy, soy, and tree nuts. What does that mean? It means this product is made in the same building that houses those allergens – they aren’t included in the whipping cream, but they can’t give a guarantee that particles haven’t found their way into it.

Super special thanks and shoutout to Raechel Carr from the Deliciously Dairy Free Facebook group for sharing the screenshot below of her email response from Silk regarding cross contamination with us!

Silk's email response regarding cross contamination risk

If you are extra sensitive and risk anaphylaxis if you consume dairy, tree nuts, or soy – this isn’t the product for you. if you are allergic to coconut, this is not safe for you as coconut is a main ingredient. It also contains fava bean protein, which is a legume – so avoid if you’ve got a legume issue. It also contains guar gum and sunflower seed oil and lecithin – so avoid if needed. See the email above for more info.

The bottom line is that if you’re avoiding animal products, this is safe. If you’re dairy-free by choice, you’re safe. If you’re only mildly intolerant of dairy, tree nuts, or soy, you make the call but you should be ok.

If you don’t have to avoid cross contamination, this is an exciting product because it’s made without soy ingredients! It has historically been very difficult to find whipped cream alternatives that are soy-free – so now the soy-avoiders can rejoice!

It’s also sugar and carb-free, so the keto/low carb community will rightfully be dancing for joy when they find this product!

You will also notice a complete lack of carrageenan – which is nearly unheard of for dairy-free alternatives.

Beyond just ingredient items, this vegan whipping cream is Non-GMO Project Certified, which will put a lot of minds at ease who are concerned about that sort of thing.

Guess what’s also missing? Palm oil. It’s pretty much a win win win win.

What does it look like?

It’s pure white and thicker than milk.

How does it pour? What’s the viscosity like?

It isn’t as thick as I imagined it would be – more like a half and half type consistency than heavy whipping cream – but definitely better than any plant milk I’ve come across, except for super fatty canned coconut milks.

What does it taste like?

It tastes like.. nothing really. It’s not sweet at all, but there are no bitter or sour notes either. It’s completely neutral.

Is it great in coffee?

Um, YES. I absolutely loved it in my coffee!

Back in my dairy days, I drank my coffee with half and half – and this is exactly like it.

I was afraid it was curdling as I poured it into my hot coffee (which I brew quite strong) since most plant milks separate right away. It looked like it was doing it, but as soon as I stirred it all smoothed out.

And guess what? It stayed that way! It didn’t separate at all over the 45 minutes I had it sitting. Huzzah!

Does it whip?

This answer is a little more complicated.

Yes, it whips. But not well. I used a cold bowl and cold beaters and cold whipping cream, and I added some pure powdered sugar since whipped cream should be a little sweet, but could only get it to very soft peaks. It would be perfect for dolloping over hot pie or fresh fruit. (Note: I was using my humble four-speed Kitchenaid hand mixer. Something more powerful may have been able to get to stiff peaks)

After mixing for a little more than five minutes on high speed, it started to separate – badly. Just like dairy whipping cream (which I guess could be considered a good thing? It’s like dairy except that I couldn’t get it to stiff peaks).

HOWEVER! I drained off the liquid “whey” (I poured the contents of the bowl into a fine mesh sieve and stirred it around with a rubber spatula, pouring out whey as I could) and whipped what was left AND IT WAS GLORIOUS. It was super stiff, fluffy, smooth, creamy, and delicious. I put some on my coffee and it was amazing.

The only issue here is that there is the faintest aftertaste of coconut since it’s concentrated, now. It isn’t bad though. I dislike coconut and it’s not enough to bother me. Other than that, it’s just like fresh dairy whipped cream!

So does it whip? Yes, no, yes.

As for the “whey”, I’m going to try using it as milk in a cake recipe. (Update: I ended up using it in my coffee as creamer and it was darn delicious)

It’s kind of disappointing that half of the whipping cream is going towards “whey”, but the quality of the concentrated whipped cream is high enough that I may just keep buying it for things like flavored butters.

Can I overwhip it?

Yes, yes you can. See the above paragraph. 😉

Does it stay whipped?

It will if you fridge or freeze it immediately. Within an hour, the room temp whipped cream was already super soft and melty. Because of this I don’t recommend trying to put it between cake layers unless the cake layers are absolutely frozen, going straight into the freezer, and going to be served while cold. To see the before and after freezing, check the paragraph below – but here is a before and after of the room temp whipped cream:

And here is a before and after of my refrigerated whipped cream, two hours between photos:

Does it freeze well?

After being whipped, YES! Here is a before and after photo of it being whipped, separated, and whipped again (as outlined above) as a small sample:

**I have a bit of un-whipped in the freezer overnight and I’ll test it in the morning and update here with results** I’ll also be testing homemade ice cream with it in the near future. (Update: it whipped up fantastically!)

Does it heat/cook well?

Oh, does it.

It’s a thing of beauty, y’all. Even if you have zero interest in trying to make whipped cream, you’ll love cooking with it! I made a five minute alfredo to test if it would 1) heat without curdling, and 2) tolerate an acid (lemon juice) being introduced and still hold up. It also has salt, and a handful of other seasonings for testing.

I’m happy to report that it passed with flying colors! And it was delicious. I’ll get the recipe up soon!

Does it curdle/separate?

In coffee it does not (YAY!) but it does while whipping after soft peaks. You’re safe to cook with it, though!

Is it everything I’ve been dreaming of?

Well, maybe not everything. I wish it whipped up stiffer right out of the carton, but apart from that I am super impressed! I’m having visions of all kinds of pasta sauces, flavored vegan butters, and of course – delicious coffee.

If you want whipped cream though, you’ll have to work for it and chill it right away. And if you don’t want to do all that work, I suggest trying my American meringue buttercream recipe and letting it whip for 15 or so minutes. You’ll get a light and silky faux whipped cream that’s much more stable than this one.

Overall, I think this is a quality product and I will definitely be purchasing it again. I hope that they can get rid of the cross contamination risks so more folks can enjoy it. Despite its shortcomings though, it’s exciting that we have things like this becoming commercially available, and I can’t wait for them to get better and better!

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Allergy-Friendly and Vegan Pastry Recipes:

Easiest Vegan Meringue Cookies Ever with Aquafaba

December 23, 2019 // by Meggan Leal// Leave a Comment

Vegan meringue cookies are super easy to make, with ingredients you probably have right now.

Thanks to aquafaba, vegans and other egg-avoiders can now enjoy meringue whenever they want again. Here, we are making the ever-loved crispy meringue cookies enjoyed by people around the world, but with a twist that makes them easier than even egg-white meringues.

What is Meringue?

Meringue (pronounced murr-ANG, with a soft g like in “sang”) is the product of whipping egg whites (or in our case, the vegan alternative aquafaba, which is the water from cooked or canned beans and other legumes).

When you whip them at high speed they turn foamy, then fluffy, and then the fluff firms up and can be baked or torched, or folded into batters to make super light and airy bakes.

Meringue has traditionally been used for a plethora of different recipes and applications: Angel food cake is made using it, macarons and macaroons are made with meringue, meringue buttercream and royal icing are both meringue-based sweets. It is used to cover baked Alaska and meringue pie and to make marshmallows. It’s even used to top some types of cocktails!

And then there is the humble meringue cookie.

What is a Meringue Cookie?

The meringue cookie is, at its simplest, dehydrated meringue. The fluff is prepared with sugar and sometimes different flavorings, then dolloped or piped onto a lined baking tray (or dehydrator tray) and baked at a very low temperature until all the moisture evaporates out.

What you’re left with is a crispy, sweet cookie that melts in your mouth in an instant. It’s basically the crunchy version of cotton candy/fairy floss.

They can be enjoyed on their own, made into “pops”, or used to adorn other desserts.

What can I add to it?

Unfortunately, meringue is a very unstable mixture. It won’t hold on its own in raw form without stabilizers like agar agar and xanthan gum, and once it’s baked it needs to be kept absolutely dry or it will absorb any and all moisture in the air and turn into sticky marshmallows (which isn’t normally a bad thing, but when you want crispy cookies it’s not exactly a celebratory occasion).

Beyond that, oil will immediately deflate your meringue if it’s mixed in, or will prevent it from ever fluffing in the first place if introduced at the beginning.

The oil thing is important, because it severely limits us on what we can mix into the aquafaba for meringue: Flavoring oils can deflate it instantly. Even citrus peels have been known to do it because of their high oil content. Cinnamon and turmeric will kill it. Cocoa powder has enough oil that it will also destroy it. Butter and coconut oil are no-gos.

In this same token, you need to make sure that all your utensils and bowls you’re using to make the meringue are free from grease. I do this by wiping everything down with vinegar before I start.

Things you CAN add to your meringue include alcohol-based flavoring like vanilla and almond. You can also add citrus juice. I like to add drink powder like KoolAid or Tang. You can fold in nuts or chocolate chips or even candy cane bits for a minty treat during the holidays.

Just make sure that your additions are not oily/greasy and that they won’t release fats at low baking temperatures.

Feel free to add sprinkles, edible dust, or spray color before they bake (as long as they’re oil/grease-free) for some added pizzazz, as well.

Sprayed with silver before and dusted with gold after dehydrating for New Year’s treats.

You can also drizzle them, dip them, or coat them with chocolate after they’re dehydrated and it will keep the crispness safe.

Cute little Santa hat meringues made by dipping the dried meringue in white chocolate and sprinkles

Cooking vs Baking vs Dehydrating

There’s a difference between what we are doing here and baking/cooking the meringue. The meringue itself has already been cooked during the bean-making/canning process, so we don’t need to do it again. And if we did, we would melt it.

Cooking our meringue at temperatures higher than 210°F or 99°C will turn them to delicious, sweet, candy soup. The aquafaba will return to liquid form because the sugar melts and it has no structure to hold on to, anymore.

The sugar we add into the aquafaba crystalizes while whipping and gives us the framework for our meringue. The millions of minuscule bubbles formed as we incorporate air hang onto that sugar framework, and it’s what allows the meringue to stand. If you melt the sugar, the whole thing is going to go down with it.

Now, sugar itself doesn’t melt until 337°F/170°C so I’m not talking about the sugar melting from the heat. It melts because your aquafaba starts to boil. Water boils at 212°F/100°C, and our aquafaba is made primarily of water. So it boils, all its bubbles pop, it dissolves the sugar, and you get a puddle instead of crispy cookies.

So that being understood, we want to keep our temperature low and slow, here – under that boiling point of 212°F/100°C. We want to slowly evaporate the moisture out of the cookies rather than cook them.

If your oven doesn’t have a setting that low, you can turn it to the lowest it does have and keep the oven door cracked open. My favorite technique for this is just to stick a wooden or silicone spoon in the door to keep it from closing.

Apart from the oven, an actual dehydrator machine will work beautifully for these guys.

What equipment do I need?

For this recipe, you need a small saucepan and stovetop/burner. A silicone spatula will also be useful.

You’ll need a large mixing bowl, either glass or stainless steel (or the bowl of a stand mixer).

You’ll need a mixer, either a stand mixer with a whisk attachment or a handheld mixer will work. You can use a regular whisk and do this by hand – but I don’t recommend it at all. I’ve done it and it took almost two hours and I was sore for days after.

You need a baking tray. I recommend light colored aluminum, but if all you have is glass or dark colored metal, just turn your temperature down another 10°F.

You need either parchment paper or a silicone mat to line your baking sheet with.

You need a large spoon or ice cream scoop if you want to make rustic-style dollop meringues, or a piping bag and large tip/nozzle if you want to pipe them.

Different ways of piping or scooping your meringue cookies

And you need either an oven or a dehydrator.

What ingredients do I need?

The ingredients here are really simple!

Aquafaba and granulated white sugar.

Everything else is optional.

For the optionals, I’m going to include a quarter teaspoon of something acidic to help the meringue fluff a bit. Acidity strengthens the structure, so you can add vinegar, cream of tartar, or even lemon juice and it’ll help the meringue to be more successful.

Oil-free flavors and colors are also optional. Just remember to forgo cinnamon, cocoa, turmeric, and other ‘strong’ flavors as they can melt your meringue. Vanilla is highly recommended though (if you’re not allergic) because it’ll make your meringue taste like marshmallows!

If your aquafaba is unsalted, you may want to add a pinch of salt to offset the sweetness a little.

The process: how to make the easiest vegan meringue cookies ever

Preheat your oven or dehydrator to the lowest temperature it will go. If it won’t heat lower than 210°F/100°C, keep them oven door ajar.

Line your baking sheets or dehydrator trays with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

Shake your can of beans (or homemade beans) and pour your aquafaba into a small pan (make sure to thoroughly clean the rim of the can first).

Pour half the amount of aquafaba in sugar to the pan (pour the sugar in until it forms a small mountain whose ‘peak’ is slightly above the aquafaba).

Over medium heat, stir the mixture until the sugar has completely dissolved.

Once the sugar has fully dissolved, turn off the heat and pour the aquafaba syrup into your mixing bowl

Add a 1/2 tsp of vinegar or lemon juice, or 1/8 tsp of cream of tartar, or your acid-based drink powder now if you’re using them.

With your mixer with whisk attachment or beaters, whip on medium speed until the mixture is foamy, then add your vanilla.

Turn the mixer up to high until you get stiff peaks. This means that the peaks that form when you lift the whisk don’t bend or fall over, but keep their shape.

Spoon, scoop, or pipe your meringues onto your lined baking sheets in whatever shapes you’d like

Put into your preheated oven or dehydrator and bake/dehydrate for two hours or until the cookies come clean off the baking sheet when cool and are dry all the way through.

How do I store them?

Store your crispy little cookies in an airtight container with either dry rice or silica packets to absorb any humidity. As long as they are kept like this, they will be good indefinitely.

If they happen to get sticky from humidity before you get a chance to put them away, just pop them back into the oven/dehydrator until they dry back out.

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Video Tutorial:

Coming soon!

Recipe

Easiest Vegan Meringue Cookies Ever with Aquafaba

Thanks to aquafaba, vegans and other egg-avoiders can now enjoy meringue whenever they want, again. Here, we are making the ever-loved crispy meringue cookies enjoyed by people around the world, but with a twist that makes them easier than even egg-white meringues.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 2 hours

Additional Time 1 hour

Total Time 3 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients

1/4-1/2 c aquafaba, any plain
1/8-1/4c granulated sugar, vegan

Optional

1 tsp alcohol based flavor extract (such as lemon, vanilla, or almond)
Gel or powder food coloring
1/2 tbsp citrus juice for flavor
2-4 tbsp chopped nuts, chocolate, or candy bits
1/4 tsp acidity: vinegar, lemon juice, cream of tartar, etc.

Instructions

Preheat your oven or dehydrator to the lowest temperature it will go. If it won’t heat lower than 210°F/100°C, keep the oven door ajar.
Line your baking sheets or dehydrator trays with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Shake your can of beans (or homemade beans) and pour your aquafaba into a small pan (make sure to thoroughly clean the rim of the can first).
Pour half the amount of aquafaba in sugar to the pan (pour the sugar in until it forms a small mountain whose 'peak' is slightly above the aquafaba).
Over medium heat, stir the mixture until the sugar has completely dissolved.
Once the sugar has fully dissolved, turn off the heat and pour the aquafaba syrup into your mixing bowl.
Add a 1/2 tsp of vinegar or lemon juice, or 1/8 tsp of cream of tartar, or your acid-based drink powder now if you’re using them.
With your mixer and whisk attachment or beaters, whip on medium speed until the mixture is foamy, then add your vanilla.
Turn the mixer up to high until you get stiff peaks. This means that the peaks that form when you lift the whisk don’t bend or fall over, but keep their shape.
Spoon, scoop, or pipe your meringues onto your lined baking sheets in whatever shapes you’d like.
Put into your preheated oven or dehydrator and bake/dehydrate for two hours or until the cookies come clean off the baking sheet when cool and are dry all the way through.

Notes

Store your crispy little cookies in an airtight container with either dry rice or silica packets to absorb any humidity. As long as they are kept like this, they will be good indefinitely.

If they happen to get sticky from humidity before you get a chance to put them away, just pop them back into the oven/dehydrator until they dry back out.

Macaron Fillings

December 22, 2019 // by Meggan Leal// Leave a Comment

From buttercream to ganache and more, find all the dairy and egg free plant-based fillings you need to make your vegan macarons stand out in a crowd:

You can also browse my Amazon Store at www.amazon.com/shop/cookingoncaffeine where you can find all the supplies and ingredients I use and recommend.