Chai Shortbread Tea Bag Cookies

I have a serious obsession with cookies lately. All I want to do is make incredibly intricate cookies full of swirls and patterns or shaped by hand or with my a few neat cookie cutters. I have seen pictures of these tea bag cookies floating all around the blogosphere for a few months now. They have been on my to do list since I originally saw them, but I was waiting for the right occasion. One of my friends moved away last month. As someone who likes tea a lot, she likes it even more than I do.
So I broke out the chai spices, the black tea, and got to work with my bench scraper. The recipe that I used for my cookies was decent, but not the best. The cookies didn't have near as much flavor as I was hoping for, even though I added extra spices, vanilla bean, and a few teaspoons of ground tea leaves to the dough. I only chilled the dough for an hour because I was pressed for time, so if I were to try it again I would definitely let it sit for 24 hours to help the flavors develop more. I also suggest melting the Earth Balance, steeping chai tea in it, and then allowing it to cool & resolidify before making the shortbread dough.


After your dough is chilled, you roll it out like any other cut out cookie dough. You have a few options of the cutting process. You could either trace a tea bag on a bit of parchment and cut it out to use as a template or free hand the process. I went for the latter option. You can use a knife, but I found a bench scraper to be the easiest tool to work with. After cutting each tea bag, I poked a hole in the top with a Wilton #5 round tip. I did this largely because I was worried that the cookies would swell a bit after baking and my string would not fit through the holes. If you have thin baker's twine, than you can easily get away with a #3 or #4 if you want them to look a bit daintier.
After baking, I dipped the cookies in dark chocolate thinned with a teaspoon of coconut oil. I threaded my string through the holes and made tags with a bit of fancy paper I had left over from some other craft project.


Overall I definitely think these cookies were a success. They didn't taste exactly like I wanted them too, but their cute factor was an overwhelming win at her going away party. Do you like getting really crafty in the kitchen or do you prefer straight forward baking? Have you seen any other adorable baked goods lately?

Confetti Birthday Cake

Last week was my 24th birthday. I decided that this year I was going to break out one of my fancy aprons and make myself a really ridiculous birthday cake. I didn't have any intention of eating it, because I am a little overwhelmed with sweets lately. But I knew if I made it took enticing enough, it would slowly disappear from the kitchen.
I have somewhat of a problem with hoarding sprinkles. I looked into my giant tupperware bin full of sprinkles and pulled out several types that I had never opened. If I won't use them on my own birthday cake, then what good are they? It's like filling cabinets full of china that never gets used. Beautiful, but a waste.
I also filled the cake with a tart cherry filling. This was only my 3rd time making a layered cake at home, and my first time filling one. I was a little too nervous about the cherry juices leaking out and piped my rim too far into the center of the cake. Be reckless and just do a thick line around the edge of the cake. That way you can pack in more cherries per bite!
I wanted a colorful, shiny, sprinkle encrusted cake. Coating the top is easy peasy. The sides are where it gets a little tricky. I set my cake on the edge of my kitchen sink and tilted it slightly and basically tossed handfuls of sprinkles onto it. This is not incredibly effective. I sort of had to push the sprinkles into the cake. I wasted tons of sprinkles and eventually got frustrated and stopped attempting it. I was fine with the patchiness on the sides. I was also really pleased that when I washed all the sprinkles into the food disposal and turned it on that a burst of colored water shot out!




Confetti Birthday Cakee
Three 9"cakes, each approximately 1.5" thick

2.25 cup almond milk
2 tbsp white vinegar
4.5 tsp ENER-G mixed with 1/3 cup water
2.5 tbsp vanilla extract
2.25 cup sugar
0.75 cup oil
4.5 cup flour
2 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1.25 cup sprinkles

Curdle the milk with the vinegar. Make ENER-G eggs and allow to thicken for several minutes. Add vanilla, sugar, oil, and egg replacer to the milk. Sift dry ingredients into mixer. Add wet to dry and stir until just mixed. Add sprinkles, and mix until distributed evenly.
Pour batter into three oiled 9"cake pans. It is also recommended to cut parchment circles for the bottom of each pan, as the sprinkles tend to stick to the pan. Bake at 350 for 40-55 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool fully before icing.



Tart Cherry Filling

48oz tart cherries
2 cup cherry juice
0.5 cup sugar
0.5 cup cornstarch

In a small bowl combine 0.5 cup of cherry juice and cornstarch, set aside. Combine tart cherries, 1.5 cup of juice, and sugar in medium sized sauce pan. Allow mixture to come to a boil, stirring frequently. Once rapidly boiling, add the cornstarch slurry to the pan. Whisk until smooth. Allow mixture to boil several minutes until the juice reduces to a thicker syrup like consistency. The mixture will thicken as it cools.


I iced the cake with a triple batch of the vanilla buttercream from VCTOTW. I am not an icing fan, so this was just enough for the rims inside the layers, a thin layer all around the exterior of the cake. If you are wanting to pipe borders or want a thicker layer of frosting, you will definitely need a larger batch of frosting.
You are also probably going to have cherry filling left over. That's not a problem. Throw it in your fridge and use it to top some waffles the next morning. Get wild and add some coconut whipped cream and maybe another handful of sprinkles, it's still your birth week after all.
Have you ever made yourself a birthday cake? Or bought yourself a really extravagant birthday gift? I think those are my favorite things to do. Each year I buy myself a few small things that are a little silly, but that I want. This year I bought a pack of mint striped paper straws, a mouse cookie cutter, and a tooth cookie cutter.

M&M cookies

I have been searching for vegan M&M's for quite a while now. For a while the only option was Whizzer's chocolate beans, but they were not ideal. The chocolate was a little bitter, and while it's nice that they were dyed naturally, the colors were a little boring.
I finally heard about Vermont Nut Free Chocolates a few weeks ago and immediately ordered three 16oz bags of their dark chocolate skippers**. After the cost of shipping, it was $25 well spent! They not only look identical to M&Ms but taste exactly the same. I think someone would be hard pressed to tell the difference between them.
I have used most of the first bag making M&M cookies. I have a lot of plans for the remaining candy, but it might end up with me just eating them on the couch while I watch movies.


Vegan M&M Cookies
recipe adapted from Ghiradelli

1 tbl Ener-G powder
1/4 cup water
1 cup Earth Balance
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup Vermont Nut Free dark chocolate skippers

Preheat oven to 350. Combine Ener-G and water and allow to thicken. Cream Earth Balance and sugars. Add egg replacer & vanilla. Slowly mix in flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir in dark chocolate skippers slowly, being careful not to crush the candy shells. Scoop onto silpat or parchment lined baking sheet. Slightly flatten the tops of cookies and bake 10-12 minutes, until edges of the cookies are slightly browned.

These cookies remind me of being a little kid. They are so bright and colorful and satisfying. I think my birthday approaching has me feeling a little nostalgic. I've been watching a lot of children's movies like Hook & Willy Wonka. It's a nice little escape from everyday stress. What's your favorite childhood film?

**A few people have been confused by the Vermont Nut Free Chocolate website. If you read carefully, the ingredients for the dark chocolate skipper are listed immediately after the milk chocolate skipper. You will see that they don't contain any sort of dairy product. There isn't any verification on the sugar (whether it is bone char processed or not), but they are vegan enough for me.

Peanut Butter Ice Cream

I'm warning you now that as summer approaches this blog might devolve from a baking blog into a blog devoted to frozen desserts. Maybe a few raw treats too, but I know I'm not going to want to turn on my oven. Baking in the summer heat is like going to bikram yoga without feeling better about your health after! I went to a few bikram yoga classes last summer and was not the biggest fan. But then again I think it's definitely one of those practices that many people hate while doing it, but love it after they have left. I just can't get over with overwhelming sweaty-ness. Yoga poses that I could do in my sleep become something completely challenging because there are ounces of salt water dripping into my eyes and causing my feet to slip across my mat. No thanks! I will stick to antigravity yoga. Still a bit of the shock factor, but I find it much more rewarding. Hanging upside down for a few minutes at a time stretches out my spine and limbs in ways that I crave.


Speaking of craving, I have been daydreaming about all sorts of ice cream and sorbet and popsicle flavor combinations. I'm feeling really inspired by The Vegan Scoop. I've made several recipes now, and all of them have exceeded my expectations. This peanut butter ice cream was no different. Chock full of peanut butter, it tasted just like the inside of a frozen Reese's cup. To keep up with the frozen Reese's cup taste, I sandwiched a scoop of ice cream between two chocolate chocolate chip cookies. It was a mess. I was far too impatient to wait for the ice cream to harden enough to cut it with a cookie cutter, so I just scooped a mostly frozen blob of ice cream on the cookies and devoured it. Be thankful that I spared you from the pictures. It was gluttonous and magical and sinfully sweet.
If you are a fan of nut or seed butters, then this recipe is something you should definitely try out. I'm sure it would be just as wonderful with almond butter or sunflower butter!
Are you a yoga fan? Or do you have another favorite type of exercise? My gym hours have been on a resurgence with all the recipe testing I have had to do for work lately. I do a one hour antigravity class once a week, and then mostly stick to the elliptical and a few weight machines the other days. I use to be a huge fan of zumba and spin, but our the classes at my gym are so packed that it's difficult to make it in. I've done a few kickboxing classes, but none are offered at my current gym. I'm interested in trying a few other things. Do you go to a gym or workout at home? Do you have a favorite workout video?

Pizza, Soda, & Donuts, Oh My.

Unless I am traveling home to Tennessee to visit with my parents & friends, then I am traveling with the intention of eating wild food. Vegan food tourism is something that I whole heartedly buy into, which is maybe why I am so jealous of Kristin at Will Travel for Vegan Food!
We had a whirlwind weekend in Philadelphia and NYC for my partner's birthday. We drove from DC to Philly Friday afternoon, which ended up taking almost four hours! Traffic was so terrible, but we had a batch of fresh baked vegan M&M cookies (post coming soon!) to keep us content. As soon as we arrived, we ate at Blackbird pizzeria (for the first of 3 times). Their cubano sandwich is phenomenal if you like smoked tofu. Their pizza crust is also amazing. I generally stick to the plain or veggie slices, but if you want a lot of toppings you should definitely get the Haymaker! Blackbird also carries a few sodas, but I am always intrigued by the DRY flavors. This time I got a vanilla bean DRY soda, and it was by far my favorite that they offer.
We got breakfast Saturday morning at Grindcore House, another steady favorite. I always get a whole wheat everything bagels with scallion cream cheese, iced coffee, and a Vegan Treats cannoli. Greg always gets a Vegan Treats peanut butter brownie. We are definitely consistent.
After lots of walking around Philly, another trip to Fante's kitchen supply store, and lunch at Blackbird again, we took a Megabus to NYC.
Our bus ended up being pretty late. While we missed out on ice cream at Lula's, we still made it to a friend's birthday BBQ and our main plan for the weekend. If you haven't heard of Sleep No More, you should immediately look it up. It's an interactive theatre performance set in a 6 story hotel. The performance is a 3 hour production of Macbeth set in the 1920's. It is three hour long loops with a finale at the end. Once in the hotel there is no speaking, you must wear your mask at all times, and you are responsible for your own experience. You basically are allowed to wonder around this giant hotel, touch anything, and follow any character. It is mindblowing! We are already determined to go back again.


Strawberry sprinkle doughnut from Dun-Well
Sunday morning, I was insistent on getting Dun-Well Doughnuts before our bus left. I have had their donuts before, but never been to their shop. My housemate brought some home on April Fool's Day and hid them from us. When I found them, I bit into what I thought was a chocolate glazed donut. Much to my disappointment, it turned out to be a Mexican hot chocolate donut. I am not a spice person at all, so I got pranked twice. Needless to say, I was excited to judge them on their other not spicy flavors. Between the two of us we got a dozen and a half donuts. I ate six donuts in two days. I got a chocolate glaze, raspberry jelly filled, blueberry glaze, strawberry glaze with sprinkles, and two cinnamon sugars. I wasn't a huge fan of either the strawberry or blueberry glaze. But the rest of the donuts were really solid. My partner's favorite is easily the PB&J. He got I think 4 or 5 of them. Even though I am not a big PB&J fan, I took a bite of one and it was really great. I know their flavors vary every day, depending on what they make, so I am excited to try more in the future!
I also had an odd realization after eating so many donuts. While Dun-Well's were all delicious, it dawned on me that I really prefer baked donuts. I feel like all the subtle flavors in the glaze and in the donuts themselves get lost in the overwhelming taste of oil.


Assorted dozen from Mighty O
Do you love donuts? I really LOVE the donuts from Mighty O. When Greg visited Seatle for work, he mailed me a dozen donuts! He really gets me. Maybe someday I will also make it to Las Vegas so I can get a few from Ronald’s, or Portland so I can get VooDoo! Then I think I will have all my vegan donut bases covered.

Lavender Shortbread

Spring always messes with my head. Partially because of allergies, but also because of all the weather fluctuations. It's raining, and then a few fours later it's all sunshine. The temperature is all over the place, with really cool mornings and sometimes downright hot afternoons. Shortbread is such a spring treat to me. It's not too sweet, so it's perfect with a cup of tea on a chilly morning or during a rain shower. Yet the lavender adds those subtle floral notes that remind you to keep you chin up because summer is on the way.
I used a recipe very similar to the the shortbread in Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookies Jar or you could use the shortbread crust recipe from Vegan Pie in the Sky. I added 3/4 tbsp of culinary lavender to the dough. If you slightly chop the lavender or at least crush the buds between your fingers before adding it, it will help the flavors release into the dough. I pressed my shortbread into 4" tart pans. I filled them to the top because I wanted a thick cookie. I sprinkled them with vanilla sugar, and baked them for about 35 minutes. The sugar gives the tops a really beautiful shine and nice texture. After they cooled for 30 minutes I removed them from the tart pans, and cut the circles into quarters. If filling the pans as full as I did, you should have 2 full pans, and and then a bit of extra dough.
If eating shortbread by itself isn't your cup of tea, a lavender shortbread crust would really amp up a lemon or berry tart.

Vanilla Sugar

This has been such an overwhelming seven days. I had a doctor's appointment to discuss my recently developed carpal tunnel syndrome, baked a bunch of treats for my partner's birthday, had a whirlwind weekend in Philly/NYC, got a sinus infection, and then worked several twelve hour days trying to finish up recipe development. The sinus infection set me back a bit because I couldn't taste, and I still am having trouble hearing out of one of my ears.
The bakery has inspections today, and pending that we pass, I will start in the new space on Monday! While it's all very exciting, I fully expect to work 50 plus hours next week trying to wrap things up before May. We need to place food orders, price cost everything, bake everything, train my assistant, and I still have to finish up all the recipes. Whew!
Aside from lavender, there is one other smell that instantly soothes my nerves. And that's fresh vanilla beans. However, I have this terrible habit of splurging on vanilla beans, and then "saving" them for something special. But they end up sitting around for far too long because I don't want to waste them on anything that might not be perfect. I was creating a package for a Vegan Secret Swap I participate in and decided to include a jar of homemade vanilla sugar. It's a great use for vanilla beans (especially ones that have toughened a bit), and helps you savor them for infinitely longer.


If you are going to give someone a jar of vanilla sugar, I highly recommend adding the seeds from a split vanilla bean to 1/3-1/2 cup raw sugar. The flecks of the beans make it look incredibly elegant. If you are into being a bit more resourceful, there is another option. After you scrape a vanilla bean pod for some delicious ice cream or caramel, rather than throw away the pod store it in a small jar of sugar. The flavor will still seep into the sugar. The longer you let the vanilla sugar sit, the stronger the flavor will be! It's generally best to wait at least a few days before using your sugar.