Tag Archives: recipes

Magic Instant Pizza Crust – RAW

08 Thursday Nov 2012

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RAWmazing.

(yeah, I know – that’s an old one…)

I always thought I’d never make a raw pizza. For the same reason I’d never make raw bread or even a raw quiche. I recently stumbled upon a recipe for a raw quiche: It took more then 24h to make it, when you count the time for dehydration. That’s just not for me… I am a little… impatient, let’s just leave it like that.

But then… there was the idea to try an instant crust. I didn’t think it would really work… And I was surprised when I liked it even better than a dehydrated pizza crust! It’s a little more moist and not like a cracker!

I am in love with the simplicity of this recipe.

It’s magic. You see? My little friend has been working on that recipe… uncooking everything. And in the end, there was my first homemade raw pizza!

 

Magic Instant Pizza Crust

  • 1 cup sunflower seeds (or 1 1/4 cups almonds)
  • 1 cup flax seeds
  • 1 tsp dried oregano and basil
  • 1/4 tsp see salt
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 3-5 tbsp water, as needed

Grind the sunflower seeds and flaxseeds until powdered. It does not necessary have to be very fine powder, feel free to leave it a little more coarse. I like the texture. Mix in herbs, salt oil and water and needed to create a dough you can knead without sticking to your hands.
Form a circle, add tomato sauce and all veggies you love. I love to use avocado as my “cheese”, of course, you can use any vegan cheese you want, like raw nut cheese or any other vegan cheese.
Voila, that’s homemade RAW Pizza crust without a dehydrator! It’s that easy!

In case you don’t have the possibility to grind nuts and seeds, just use store bought almond meal and flax meal (Flax- or Leinmehl, in German Reformhäusern or Bioläden). You’ll still get a delicious raw pizza crust!

Of course it doesn’t taste one-to-one like a cooked pizza crust! The mouthfeel is completely different – but it’s the idea and the spices that count. It’s fun to make and delicious – give it a try! Even if you make the raw crust, you could still add cooked tomato sauce. Just saying. (There are great recipes for raw tomato sauce, too, if you want to try it!)

Mini Pumpkin Pies – no bake

28 Sunday Oct 2012

Posted by in Playful food and photos

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Make it small. I like small sized food. Small cookies = more cookies. Small cupcakes = more cupcakes.

Small pies = more pies!!!

And you have a whole pie to yourself… I think that’s great. Plus it’s no bake, so these pies are not only really cute, but also fast and easy to make. Could you ask for anything more?
Oh, and by the way… I think pumpkins are the only reason why fall has a right to exist at all. (You have to know that I don’t really like any season but summer. And yes, I know, I live in a very bad spot concerning my weather preference…).

Come on, they are cute!

The filling is rather a pumpkin pudding, or a pumpkin cream. But it’s one of the most delicious thing I had lately. If you add some corn starch, you could even use this cream as a filling for baked pumpkin pie.

For the crust: It’s raw crust, made from dried fruit, nuts and oats. You could actually use any kind of nut and dried fruits like dates, figs, apricots… I just used what I happened to have in the house. Feel free to use whatever you have on hand!

Mini Pumpkin Pies

  • 100g (1/2 cup) raisins
  • 80g (1/2 cup) almonds
  • 50g (1/2 cup) rolled oats
  • cinnamon
  • 200g (one can) pumpkin puree
  • 3-4 Tbsp Maple Syrup
  • 175g (6 oz or half a package) silken firm tofu
  • additional sweetener to taste
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp ginger and cardamon
  • dash of salt, nutmeg and cloves

For the crust, combine the raisins, almonds rolled outs and a dash of cinnamon in your food processor (or vita-mix like blender). Press the dough into silicon muffin pans are into tartlet  pans. It should look like this:

For the filling, mix pumpkin puree, tofu, maple syrup and spices in your food processor or blender (I used homemade pumpkin puree, but it won’t make a big difference). Taste test and add more sweetener, if you like.
Fill the pumpkin cream into the crust and you’re ready to enjoy miniature pumpkin pies!

Spider, pink flower, bat. Nothing wrong here!

Trick or treat…

Great, “This is Halloween” is stuck in my head right now! I guess I will have to watch the movie some time soon… eating mini pumpkin pies and thinking of other Halloween food.

Happy Halloween!

Do you go to a Halloween Party and will you dress up?

Simple Apple Pie Smoothie

21 Sunday Oct 2012

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I never expected it… but this smoothie really taste like apple pie filling! It’s fresh, raw, foamy, yummy. The dates yield a delicious caramel flavor and sweetness. The almonds make it extra creamy and perfect.

I made this so often for breakfast this week. Seems to be my favorite right now. Another great part: It’s not pricey! Apples are the seasonal fruit right now, at my grocery store, it’s the freshest and cheapest thing I can get.

But what I like best about this smoothie: It’s so easy! I usually have all the ingredients at hand. You only need one kind of fruit! Just apples, no more.  And you won’t believe how delicious it is until you tried!

Apple Pie Smoothie
one big Smoothie

  • 2 apples, cut into quarters
  • 1/8 cup almond (about one hand full)
  • about 5 dates
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 cup ice cubes
  • 1/4 cup water or as needed
  • optional: some oats or flaxseed – make it a breakfast!

But everything in your blender, ice cubes first. Add as much water as needed for desired consistence. Blend – and enjoy! If you like your smoothie even sweeter, you can add some stevia.

I put some oats and flax seed in my smoothie as a breakfast – the oats make a great “pie crust”. You could also crumble some graham cracker on top of your smoothie. Or decorate it with some cream and cinnamon!

Dive in – Yellow turnip in Yogurt Curry Sauce

17 Wednesday Oct 2012

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For everyone who’s wondering what a yellow turnip (or sometimes rutabaga, “Steckrübe” in German) is: No, it’s not an exotic vegetable. It’s actually a very traditional vegetable in Europe. An old one, though. But people tend to forget quickly. And they miss out!

Yellow turnip is a kind of cabbage, but unlike most cabbage, it’s easier to digest and easy on the stomach. It’s sweet taste reminds me of parsnips. In case you had too much pumpkin (wait… is there something like to much pumpkin?), this is another great nourishing  vegetable for fall that fills you up, too.

Okay, it’s not only the yellow turnip! I love this easy but great curry sauce! It won’t taste like soy, even if you use soy yogurt. Take care that you have enough sauce. It’s creamy and yummy.

Yellow Turnip in Curry Yogurt Sauce

  • 1 yellow turnip
  • 1 – 1,5 cups/ 250g  soy yogurt
  • 0,5 cup / 125 ml water
  • 2-3 tsp indian curry powder
  • 1 tbsp Oil
  • salt
  • pepper
  • optional: fresh or dried herbs (I used wild garlic)

Peel the yellow turnip and cut it into pieces. Take care that you peel it thoroughly, the peel tastes bitter. Put the turnip in a pot, cover with water, add some salt and cook until soft (15-20 min).

Heat the oil in your pan and add the curry powder. Roast the spice until it smells nice and aromatic. Let the oil cool down a little, then add 0,5 cup of water and the soy yogurt. Stir, then add salt and pepper to taste. Add the yellow turnip – or serve separately! I like to add the yellow turnip and let it sit for a little while, so it takes on the curry flavor from the sauce.

Yes, I could take a bath in that sauce. That little guy likes to dive in, too. Trust me. It’s that good.

And of course, you could serve the sauce with any other vegetable, too! Use it for mushrooms, carrots, eggplants, parsnips,… Or use it as a dip!

 

… did you ever try Yellow Turnip?

Baked Apple Cream

07 Sunday Oct 2012

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It’s fall.

A few days ago, there were the first leaves on my car when I wanted to drive home from work. That means: summer is over. It’s fall.

So it’s time for fall flavors! Pumpkin is one of my favorites. Fresh pears and apples. And all the spices! Cinnamon, cardamom (my all time favorite), ginger…

Right now, it’s time for another apple dessert. Baked apples are a favorite treat around Christmas time in Germany. Okay, we were talking about recipes for fall… But however. If you ask me, one can eat baked apples all year round!

Baked Apple Cream 

  • 750 ml / 3 cups unfiltered apple juice (cider)
  • 3 tbsp corn starch
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 apples
  • about 50g (two hands full) raisins
  • about 50g (two hands) chopped almonds
  • 3 tsp brown cane sugar
  • dash of salt
  • 1 tsp coconut oil

Melt the coconut oil in a non-stick frying pan on medium  heat. Add the almonds and roast them for a few minutes. Then add the sugar and fry until it’s melted and caramelized.
Chop the apples and add them to the sugar almond mixture. Add cinnamon and put aside.

Stir the cornstarch into the apple juice until combined. Heat the juice (stir!) until it boils and turn into a thick cream. Remove the pot from the stove and add the apples-almond mixture.

Enjoy!

 

Someone has to clean up, after all…

 

I had to make this dessert twice. The first time, it was gone before I could take a picture…. it’s that good.

It tastes great warm or cold!

And of course, you could add all the spices you want. Ginger would be great. Mulling spice. Cardamom. Whatever you like!

 

Chocolate “Rocher Mousse” – or cup cream!

26 Wednesday Sep 2012

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You know Ferrero Rocher? Those golden balls with the hazelnut in the center? (For smarty pants: rocher is French for rock).

I always wondered who cared for the crispy outside anyway… the cream is what matters! Very good message: You can have all the cream for yourself. It’s vegan, raw and healthy. It doesn’t taste vegan, raw or healthy (don’t ask me what vegan, raw or healthy actually tastes like… but you know, sometimes you serve something made from whole wheat and people tell you it tastes healthy. Most of the time, it’s not a compliment).

It’s easy and quick, too.

Do I have to say more?

Thinking about it… I guess this is cup cream. Hey, there are cup cakes, too. Old story. Now it’s time for cup cream!

Chocolate Rocher Mousse 

  • 1 large, ripe avocado
  • 2-3 tbsp cocoa powder
  • 2-3 tsp cane sugar
  • 1-2 tsp agave syrup
  • 3 tbsp chopped hazelnuts
  • dash of salt

Mash the avocado (I just used a fork, to special tools here!) and mix in the cocoa, cane sugar, agave syrup, hazelnuts and salt. Serve in a cup (otherwise it’s no cup cream, you know…). Decorate with chopped hazelnuts.

Smile! It’s chocolate!
Did you ever think of using this cream as a spread? I put some of it on a slice of bread – similar to nutella! Yummy!

I can tell you, it’s always a mess when legos are stealing food…

Black Forest Punk Rock

20 Thursday Sep 2012

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Punk Rock!!!

Black Forest Punk? Why not?
I like to combine what seemingly doesn’t fit together!

Black Forest Cake is a very traditional cake from Germany. A real classic. Something that definitely has to be “veganized”! Yes, many people think that German food and Veganism go as much together as… punk rock and the Black Forest area.
Let me tell you something: They definitelly go together! People didn’t even notice that my cake was vegan. 1 : 0 for vegan cake!

The Germans even have a special word for cream cakes like this: “Torte”. Yes, they love cream cakes. They hardly ever use icing, cream is much more common.

I usually don’t like the combination of fruit and chocolate… with just a few exceptions! This cake is one of them. Oh, it was my Mom’s birthday cake, by the way…

Ring of fire cherries!

Don’t be afraid:
Yes, you do need more then one day to make this cake. But it’s a cake you won’t make every week, so that’s fine! Don’t worry, it’s really easier then you might think!

Black Forest Cake 

Chocolate Cake layers

  • 2 1/2 cups (300g) whole wheat pastry flour (Gemany: Weizenmehl Typ 1050)
  • 6 1/2 tbsp (50g) cocoa powder
  • 1 cup (200g) sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract OR 2 packages vanilla sugar
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • dash of salt
  • 1/2 cup (120 ml)
  • 1,5 cups (350 ml) water

Short crust

  • 1,5 cups (200g)  whole wheat pastry flour
  • 1/2 cup (100g) margarine (Earth balance or Alsan…)
  • 1/2 cup (100g) sugar
  • about 3 tbsp water (as needed)
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda

Filling

  • 1 glas canned cherries (25 fl oz / 750 ml)
  • just over 2 tsp agar agar
  • 1 tbsp corn starch
  • 2-3 packages soyatoo
  • sweetener to taste

Day 1: Prepare the cake layers and the short crust
Mix all the ingredients for the cake layers in a big bowl. Don’t overmix!
Put the batter in an oiled pan (about 24 cm or 9,5 inches) and bake for about 40 minutes (350 F / 180 C)

Short crust: Mix all the ingredients for the short crust. Press the dough into the buttom of an oiled pan (24 cm or 9,5 inches). Bake for about 25 min (350 F / 180 C)

Day 2: Filling and decoration
Whip the soyatoo and add sweetener to taste. Put the cream in the refrigerator.
Boil the cherries (juice and fruit) with the agar  agar and corn starch for about two minutes (don’t use a microwave!). Let the filling cool down for a little while (it should not be firm yet).
Now you need a cake ring or the ring of a springform pan.
Place the cake ring on a big plate or baking tray. Put the short crust into the ring. This is the button layer. The cake ring should stand loosely around the short crust.
Put some cherry juice on top of the crust and let it cool down. Work slowly and wait until the juice get firm. This layer can be really thin (2-3 mm / 0,1 inch).
Now you can add your first layer of cream (about 1 centimeter / 0,4 inch).
Cut the chocolate cake you made the day before into two halves, using a big and sharp knive, so you have two round cake layers. Put the first cake layer on top of the cream layer.
Now you add the cherries. Place them on top of the chocolate cake layer. You can also add some of the juice if you want. Now there’s another cream layer. Fill in the space within the cherries with the cream. Add the second cake layer. Now your almost done! Cote the cake with the rest of the cream. Decorate the cake with chocolate flakes and 12-14 cherries.
Important: The cake tastes much better if you let it sit in the refrigerator for one night!

In the process: Decorating the cake!

Note: The traditional recipe calls for cherry brandy (“Kirschwasser”) – I just left it out cause I don’t like it… Feel free to sprinkle some cherry brandy on the cake layers if you want to.

This was a birthday cake – I definitelly won’t make cakes like this every day… Also, it was the first big cream layer cake I made – it’s easier than I thought it would be! And so yummy!

A (bad cell phone) picture of the different layers. There was not much time to take pictures of our food at the party and I didn’t want to cut the cake before serving…

Very Berry Vanilla Yogurt Cake

30 Thursday Aug 2012

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Finally: The cake from the header. Yes, I know, you had to wait quite a while for this. And some people have asked me about it. Well… here it is!

 

Don’t worry, he got his peace of the cake!
It was my birthday cake this year. I wanted a summery light and refreshing cake. A cake that doesn’t make you feel yucky after one peace.  As it was summer, it was obvious that there had to be a lot of fruit in this cake!

 

So, that was all I knew before I made the cake: A lot of fruit, some yogurt and a vanilla cream. Yes, I can work with that. The result: Very Berry Vanilla Yogurt Cake.
Creativity can be so yummy!

Very Berry Vanilla Yogurt Cake

  • 3oog / 1 1/4 cups / 10,5 ounces soy yogurt (I recommend to weight the yogurt)
  • 200g / about 1 1/4 cups / 7 ounces mixed frozen or fresh berries (I recommend to weight it)
  • dry sweetener to taste
  • 2 tsp agar agar powder or 2 tbsp agar agar flakes
  • 1 vanilla pudding mix (like Dr Oetker organic vanilla pudding. For Germany: Ruf Vanilla pudding)
  • 1 cup soy creamer (Germany: Alpro Cuisine) or canned coconut milk
  • 1 cup soy milk
  • 1,5 cups vegan graham cracker crumbs (or any other vegan cookie. “Zwieback” works, too)
  • 3-4 Tsp melted Earth Balance / Alsan

Mix Graham crackers and Earth Balance in a bowl. Use your fingers to press the mixture evenly into the buttom of your plate.
Now prepare the Vanilla Cream: Prepare the Vanilla pudding according to the instructions, but use half a cup of creamer (or coconut milk) and half a cup of soy milk. Pour the pudding on top of the crust and let it cool down in the refrigerator.
Time to prepare the yogurt layer! Blend the mixed berries. Put the blended berries in a pot and boil them up with the agar agar (don’t forget to stir a lot!). Finally, mix the yogurt and the warm berry mixture in a bowl. Add sweetener to taste (you cold either use stevia, xylit, cane or coconut sugar. Don’t use liquid sweetener cause the yogurt might get thick if you do) Pour the yogurt berry mixture in your pan on top of the vanilla cream. Let the cake cool down in the refrigerator (it takes about 6  hours for the agar agar be completely thick. Don’t remove the cake from the pan before completely cooled down.)
Once the cake is firm and cooled down, you can remove it from the pan and decorate it! Be creative! (Remember: Being creative can be really yummy!)

I think my little friends have discovered something in my kitchen…

And here’s a piece of the cake with both it’s layers.

Just to give you an idea what it looked like!
You can use any kind of yogurt and any kind of milk you want. However, I’d recommend to weight the yogurt and the berries. Weighting the ingredients is more exact and will yield to the best results when using agar agar.

Have you ever made a vegan yogurt cake? (Or: Have you ever made a yogurt cake in the first place?) You should! It’s fun and it’s delicious!

 

Banana Cookie Dough Blizzard

26 Sunday Aug 2012

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Do I have to say more?

You can’t imagine how excited I was when I thought about my own twist on the traditional blizzard. Big chunks of cookie dough. A creamy base made from frozen bananas and even more cookie dough. Heaven.

I’ve had some trouble to explain to my not American friends what a blizzard actually is though! Might have been the hardest part of making my own blizzard (you see, making your own blizzard is really easy!). I started to describe it as something like a milkshake with big chunks of something, like cookie dough! The consistence is somewhere between soft serve and milkshake. It’s a little to thick for a milkshake and the cookie dough chunks are a little too big for a milkshake. It is a… well, a blizzard! (That was the point where I just gave my friend a blizzard for test tasting. He liked it.)

It’s that good. I had it for breakfast…

Banana Cookie Dough Blizzard
2-3 servings 

  • 3-4 frozen bananas, very ripe
  • about 2 tbsp Almond milk
  • 1/2 batch cookie dough

Put the frozen bananas in your blender or food processor.  Process bananas, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl if necessary. (When you make this in a vita-mix, use the tamper). Finally, add some cookie dough and process until combined. (I used about 6 cookie dough balls. It depends on the size of your cookie dough balls though. Use as many as you like!). You should have a soft serve type consistency when done. If think the mixture is still to think, add some almond milk and process again. Pour the blizzard into a glass and stir in your desired amount of crumbled cookie dough. Crumble some cookie dough on top, too!  Serve your homemade blizzard with a spoon.

I never thought making my own blizzard could be that easy!

All the cookie dough goodness!

On a personal note: I created a facebook page for this blog and I’d be glad if you like it! =)

All lovin’ no oven!

23 Thursday Aug 2012

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Who doesn’t love cookie dough? I mean, seriously! I never quite understood why some people actually bake cookie dough! As I didn’t grow up with cookie dough treats, I’ve told you about my excitement when found out about cookie dough ice cream before…

And isn’t cookie dough the most playful food ever? You make any shape from dough, using your hands or cookie cutters and eating half of the dough while doing so…

Yes, you can do really exciting, creative shapes… or you can just form balls like I did. Yummy, rich, buttery cookie dough balls. Not your average cookie dough though! This is a healthier, almost raw version! But as delicious.

RAW Cookie dough 

  • 2/3 cup cashews
  • 1/3 cup rolled oats
  • 2 tbsp agave
  • 1 tbsp whole cane sugar (for the typical cookie dough flavor. Can be replaced by brown cane sugar or more agave)
  • dash natural vanilla powder or a piece of a vanilla bean
  • optional: chocolate chips

Put all the ingredients (except chocolate chips) in a heavy duty blender (use the tamper) or a food processor and mix. Once all the ingredients are combined, you can either add chocolate chips by hand or put them in your blender / food processor and mix for a few more seconds.
Form the cookie dough into any shape you like. Don’t forget test tasting!

Want something more special? What about cookie dough banana sandwiches?

Trust me, it’s a perfect combination.

It’s delicious. Take care. You might have to share. Maybe double the batch? You could also dip either the cookie dough balls or the sandwiches in chocolate! (I wasn’t feeling like chocolate though. Plain cookie dough is as good as the chocolate ship version though!)
And stash some bananas away! There will be a new twist on banana ice cream later this week…