Raspberry Swirl and Coconut-Chocolate Chip Muffins - Vegan

delicious modifications of this recipe.

Raspberry Swirl - Prepare the basic muffin recipe omitting mixed berries and portion into greased muffin cups. Dot the top of each muffin with 1 t of seeded or seedless raspberry preserves, swirl just a bit with a butterknife. Bake as directed.




Coconut-Chocolate Chip - Pepare basic muffin recipe, omitting mixed berries and using unsweetened coconut milk for the non-dairy milk measurement. Mix in 1 C dark chocolate chips and .5 C unsweetened shredded coconut, toasted. Bake as directed.

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies - Vegan

modified from Vegan with a Vengeance.

Substantial, peanut-buttery and not overwhelming, these cookies are an excellent afternoon snack. The dough itself is easy to prepare by hand - no mixer necessary.




Peanut Butter-Oatmeal Cookies
makes about 2 dozen

2C AP flour
2 t baking powder
1 t salt

2 C sugar
.75 C smooth, all-natural peanut butter (Crazy Richards)
.5 C non-dairy milk
.5 C canola oil
2 t molasses
2 t vanilla

2 C old fashioned "rolled" oats


Preheat oven to 350 F.

In a small bowl, combine dry ingredients and set aside. In a medium bowl, combine the wet ingredients until well mixed. Stir in the flour mixture until just combined before incorporating the oats.

By hand, form into walnut-sized lumps and round between your palms. Place on lined baking sheet and flatten to 1/4" thick. Bake 12-15 minutes, until edges just begin to brown.

Cool on wire rack completely before consuming or storing.

Oatmeal Cranberry Raisin Cookies - Vegan

This recipe is modified from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook, veganized and tweaked just slightly. These cookies are soft and chewy at the center, slightly crispy at the edge and full of sweet jewel-like dried fruit.




Oatmeal Cranberry Raisin Cookies
makes 2 dozen

1 C whole wheat white flour
.5 C AP flour
1 t baking soda
1 t ground cinnamon

1 C sugar
2/3 C canola oil
1/3 C agave nectar
1 t molasses
1 t kosher salt

2 T flaxseed meal
3 T hot water

3 C rolled oats
.5 C raisins
.5 C dried cranberries


Preheat oven to 350F.

Whisk together dry ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. Stir together flaxseed meal and water and let stand 5 minutes.

Cream together oil, sugar, agave, molasses and salt, by hand or on a stand mixer. Incorporate flax mixture and stir in dry ingredients. Mix in oats and fruit.

Scoop generously with a tablespoon onto parchment-lined baking sheets and bake 8-12 minutes, until golden brown. Remove to wire rack to cool.

Seat of the Pants Spiced Strawberry Jam - Vegan, Gluten Free

This jam can be prepared with myriad variations - drop the puree if you don't have it on hand, play with the spices, adjust the sweetness to your liking. Provided you keep the sugar content above four cups, the preserves ought to gel just fine thanks to the pectin provided by the apple.



Seat of the Pants Spiced Strawberry Jam
fills 5 halfpint jars or 10 quarterpints

5 C strawberries, hulled and halved (from about 1.5 pounds of fruit)
4-5 C sugar
1 C strawberry puree
3 T lemon juice
1/3 tart apple, with skin, cut into several large pieces
1 large piece lemon rind - roughly 3 x 1.5-inches, including yellow zest and some white pith
5 whole cloves
1 whole cinnamon stick, about 3 inches
.5 t vanilla extract

Use a paring knife to knick 4 small cuts in the lemon rind. Insert a clove into each hole. In a large pot, mash strawberries with sugar until only a few large chunks of fruit remain. Add lemon juice, apple and spices in a large pot and let stand one hour to macerate.

Place pot over medium-low heat and stir occasionally until sugar is fully dissolved. Increase heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally and crushing berries with back of spoon.

Meanwhile, Set 8 clean half-pint canning jars in a water bath along with 8 rings and any canning equipment that has not yet been sterilised. Bring to a boil; keep at a boil 10 minutes before reducing heat to low until preserves are ready. Set dome lids in rack for dunking or have at the ready with tongs.

Attach a candy thermometer to the preserve pot, taking care that the probe be at middle-depth and neither touching the pot or sitting above the preserves. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the mixture reaches 215ºF. It will take some time for the mixture to reduce sufficiently to reach this temperature. The preserves will foam as they cook - simply stir them down if they reach too high. Increase heat to medium-high if necessary.

Once the preserves have reached 215ºF, remove from heat and let stand in the pot 2 minutes. Skim off any foam that has accumulated and remove spices, rinds, etc. Add vanilla extract and stir preserves once to distribute fruit pieces.

Meanwhile, sterilise dome lids by dunking in water bath.

Portion preserves into hot sterilised jars, leaving .5-inch headspace. Place dome lid on lip of jar and screw on ring until finger-tight. Process in boiling water bath 5-6 minutes. Remove from bath and let cool, undisturbed for 24 hours.

Label and store up to 9 months in a cool, dark location.



Eat them on a gluten-free roll and you're set for breakfast.