Here are a couple of my favorite classic strawberry recipes. Both can either be served with coconut whipped cream, Soyatoo, or vanilla ice cream (I used Soyatoo for both).

Strawberry Shortcake

(makes 6-8 shortcake biscuits)

2 cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons Earth Balance
2 tablespoons non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening
3/4 cup vegan creamer plus more for brushing. (I used coconut creamer, but soy creamer or MimiCream would be fine)

2 pints strawberries
1/4-1/2 cup sugar
Soyatoo or coconut whipped cream

Heat oven 450° degrees.

Wash, core, and slice the strawberries. Place in a bowl and sprinkle with 1/4-1/2 cup sugar (depending on how sweet the berries are). Let sit in the fridge while you make the biscuits.

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. With a pastry blender or two butter knives, cut in Earth Balance and shortening. Mix in creamer. Drop by large spoonfuls onto a baking sheet (if you want you could roll them out and cut with a biscuit cutter, but I like the rustic look of drop biscuits). Brush with a little creamer and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 15 minutes or until brown. Let cool. Split a biscuit in half, and place the bottom half on a plate. Top with cream and berries, the other half of the biscuit, then more cream and berries.

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

1 lb sliced fresh strawberries
1 lb sliced rhubarb
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
3 Tbsp cornstarch or arrowroot
1 tsp vanilla

double pie crust (you can double the recipe here)
2 Tbsp Earth Balance cut into small pieces.

Heat oven to 400°.

Combine the filling ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir well to coat. Let sit in the fridge while you roll out the crust. Roll out the bottom pie crust and transfer to a 9” pie plate. Pour the filling into the crust and sprinkle with the chunks of Earth Balance. Roll out the top crust and place on top of the pie. Crimp edges together and press with fingers into a fluted pattern. Cut several slits in the top to vent and bake on a baking sheet (to catch any drips) for 40 min. (if the crust starts to become too brown during baking cover with a foil ring). Let cool for a few hours before cutting.

A couple corn dogs with a pile of bue potato fries.

Those of you that have become regular readers may have caught on to the fact that I have a pension for deep frying. As part of my mission to make vegan food more accessible to the public at large, I like to offer a counterpoint to the typical image of the sprouts and tofu idea of vegan cuisine, and what better than with something battered and fried on a stick. Besides, deep frying is pretty much the best way to cook anything.

Feeling a bit of diner nostalgia, I decided to whip up some corn dogs. While I generally like to use a course grind cornmeal, you will want a finer one for these. In fact, I went all the way and used corn flour. Corn flour will give you a nice soft and moist cornbread coating. You will need some sort of stick as well. You can find popsicle sticks in the craft section of some stores, or you can use wood skewers or chopsticks. For the hot dogs you can use whatever brand you fancy, but I highly recommend Big Franks.

Vegan Corn Dogs

1 cup soy milk
Egg replacer to equal 2 eggs
1/4 cup oil
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/3 cups corn flour or fine corn meal
2/3 cup flour
1 can Big Franks, or other vegan hot dogs

Flour for dusting (about 1/2 cup)
Oil for frying
Popsicle sticks

Heat oil to 375°F

In a large bowl mix soy milk, egg replacer, oil, sugar and salt. Stir in baking powder, corn flour, and flour.

Fill a tall glass or jar (at least as tall as the length of your hot dogs) about 3/4 full with the batter. Dry the hot dogs with paper towels and lightly dust with flour (this ensures that the batter will stick). Drive a popsicle stick most of the way through a hot dog. Hold the stick and dip into the glass and swirl to completely coat. Hold the battered dog above the glass to allow excess batter to drip away. Carefully drop into the hot oil. Repeat with remaining hot dogs, refilling the glass of batter as necessary. Fry 2-3 corn dogs at a time, being careful not to crowd the fryer. Fry until golden brown, turning as necessary. Drain on paper towels and serve warm.

After finally getting around to making mochi I decided to take on my favorite dim sum dessert (mostly because it uses pretty much the same ingredients). Sesame balls (jin deui, Jian dui, or jen dai) are traditionally popular around Chinese new years but can be found year round at Chinese bakeries and dim sum restaurants. Essentially a deep fried daifuku mochi, it creates a perfect balance of a crisp crust, chewy rice pastry and sweet red bean paste.

The only real trick to these comes in the frying. As they begin to expand you need to use a spoon to press them against the side of the fryer to maintain their ball shape. It takes a little practice, but isn’t all that hard. If you can’t get it they will still taste great, they just won’t look as nice.

Sesame Balls

makes 10-12 balls

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 cup boiling water (plus more if needed)

3 cups glutinous rice flour

1/2 cup white sesame seeds

1 cup red bean paste (you probably won’t use that much)

Oil for frying

Heat oil in a deep fryer or wok to 350°

Dissolve the brown sugar in the boiling water. Place the flour in a large bowl. Add the dissolved sugar and mix until you have a sticky, caramel colored dough (add additional boiling water if necessary).

Palce sesame seeds on a plate of other flat bottomed dish. Fill a small bowl with cold water. Pinch off a piece of dough about the size of a golf ball and roll into a ball. With your finger poke a hole into the ball of dough. Roll a tsp of red bean past into a ball and press it into the hole. Pinch the dough to completely cover and seal (all of the filling needs to be completely covered). Dip the filled ball in the water and roll in sesame seeds. Repeat with remaining dough.

Fry balls in batches of 3-4. After the balls begin to float (about 2 min) use a metal spoon to gently press the balls against the edge of the fryer. Continue pressing and rotating to shape the balls into a round shape as they expand (and they will expand a bit). Cook until they have expanded to 2-3 times their original size and the outside is a deep golden brown.

Drain on paper towels. Serve warm.

For a while I worked a job in a neighborhood where the only store was a small, Japanese grocery. During that time I got hooked on daifuku mochi. Mochi, as far as I know, is a catch all term for a whole class of Japanese desserts made from glutinous rice flour. Mochi can be baked, broiled, wrapped around ice cream, and all sorts of other things. Daifuku are balls (or more of a patty or dome) of mochi filled with any number of fillings. The most typical filling is sweetened red bean paste, but they can also be filled with fruit, sesame, or white bean paste, among others.

As I got hooked on Daifuku, and started shelling out a buck a piece for them, I always thought they must not be that hard to make. Now, years later, I have found out I was right. Daifuku are exceptionally easy to make. For this recipe I added matcha powder for some color and flavor, but you can omit it if you want plain mochi. You will need to procure some glutinous rice flour, which you should be able to find at any well stocked Asian grocer (also, although it is called “glutinous” that just denotes that it is sticky. These are totally gluten-free).  You will also need some sweet red bean paste which you can purchase in prepared cans or make your own from dried beans.

Matcha Daifuku Mochi

1 cup glutinous rice flour
1/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup water
1/2 tsp matcha green tea powder

red bean paste for filling
potato starch or corn starch for dusting

Combine rice flour, sugar, water, and matcha in a large microwave safe bowl. Stir well and scrape sides down with a rubber spatula. Cover loosely with plastic and microwave, on high, for 2 minutes. Stir well and return to microwave for 1 more minute. The dough should be puffed up and deflate when you open the door. If not return for another minute. You should not need more than 4 minutes total.

Generously dust a working surface with potato starch. With a rubber spatula turn the mochi on to the board. Dust with more starch. Allow to cool just enough that it can be handled.  Pat the dough out a little and cut in to 8 even pieces. Place about a tsp of filling on each piece of dough and gather the edges and press to seal. Pat into shape and dust with starch. Daifuku store best individually wrapped in plastic and stored in the refrigerator.

These oddly named cookies may be a holiday classic, but that is no reason to overlook them the rest of the year. Although a few vegan cook books I own feature a recipe for snickerdoodles, they are lacking a key ingredient: cream of tar tar. Cream of tartar (or tartaric acid) gives these cookies their characteristic tart note and sets them apart from simply being sugar cookies rolled in cinnamon and sugar. Using a combination of shortening and margarine yields the proper balance crispness and chewiness. Give these a try next time you are out of chocolate chips.

Snickerdoodles

1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup Earth Balance or other vegan margarine, softened
1/2 cup non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening
Egg replacer to equal 2 eggs
2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Heat oven to 400°F

Cream together 1 1/2 cups sugar, Earth Balance, shortening, and egg replacer in the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl using a hand mixer). In a separate bowl, sift together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Add flour to shortening mixture and mix until the dough just comes together.

In a small dish mix remaining sugar and cinnamon. Scoop dough into balls about 1 1/2″ in diameter. Roll the balls in the cinnamon sugar and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone baking mat. Press the balls slightly to flatten. Repeat, spacing the cookies about 2″ apart.

Bake for 8-10 minutes.

Ok, for my last recipe for the Teese blog challenge, I decided to go with the appetizer classic potato skins. A relatively simple endeavor, but oh so good.

Potato Skins

2 large russet potatoes, thoroughly washed.
cheddar style Teese
vegan sour cream
Vegan bacon bits
Scallion, thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 400°. Prick the potatoes with a fork and bake, directly on the rack, until cooked through, about 45 min. Let the potatoes cool until they can be handled. Heat oven to 425°. Cut the potatoes in half and scoop out the insides, leaving about 1/4″ on the shell. Brush both sides of the potato skins with oil and top with Teese. Bake on a cookie sheet about 15 min, until the potatoes are lightly browned. Top with bacon bits, sour cream, and scallion.

Continuing with the Chicago Soy Dairy Teese blog challenge, my next creation hails from our neighbors to the north. Perhaps the greatest gift the Canadians ever gave the world, poutine is the ingenious combination of french fries, gravy, and cheese curds. Traditionally poutine used a thin brown (usually beef) gravy, rather than a thicker, creamy gravy. For mine I used Better Than Bouillon No Beef Base for the broth. If you prefer you could use a good mushroom stock instead (purchased or home made). The creamy texture of the Teese lends itself perfectly to be a replacement for cheese curds, and may be the best use I found for it.

Vegan Poutine

2-3 large baking potatoes
3-4 oz Mozzarella Teese, crumbled

Gravy
2 Tbsp Earth Balance
2 Tbsp flour
2 cups vegan beef flavored or mushroom stock
salt and pepper
Oil for frying

Peel the potatoes and cut into approximately 1/2″x4″ fries. Place the fries in a large bowl and cover with cold water. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan heat the Earth Balance over medium-high heat. Add the flour and cook, stirring, for several minutes to make a dark roux (it should be a dark brown, but not burnt). Stir in the stock and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until the gravy begins to thicken. Keep warm until ready to serve.

Heat oil to 375°. Drain potatoes and pat dry with paper towels. Fry, in batches if necessary, until golden brown. Drain on paper towels, and season with salt and pepper.

Place fries on serving dishes, pour gravy over the top, and top with crumbled Teese.

This was a 6-8" loaf and it only held about 1/2 the dip, so you may have left overs.

For my second creation for the Chicago Soy Dairy Teese blog challenge I decided to take on the party classic, spinach artichoke dip. I added smoked salt to give it a deeper base flavor and served it in a sourdough bread bowl. I would note that this recipe makes a lot of dip so you may want to plan on saving half for later.

Smoky Artichoke Spinach Dip

1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup flour
2 cups soy milk
5 oz Mozzarella style Teese, shredded or cut into small pieces
1 Tbsp Nutritional yeast
1 tsp smoked salt
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 onion, finely diced (about 1 cup)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
10 oz spinach, washed and chopped
2 14oz cans artichoke harts, drained, rinsed and chopped
black pepper
1 round sourdough loaf
chips, bread, pita, etc for serving

Preheat oven to 400°

In a medium sauce pan heat oil over med-high heat. Add flour and cook for a few minuets until it turns golden brown. Stir in soy milk and cook until it begins to thicken. Add smoked salt cayenne and nutritional yeast and adjust seasoning to taste. Add teese and stir through to melt. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a saute pan heat a small amount of oil over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook until soft and translucent. Add garlic. Stir in spinach, one handful at a time, until all is incorporated. Stir in the artichokes and cook for a few minuets. Fold in the Teese mixture and mix well. Season with black pepper and adjust salt if necessary. (The dip can be served at this point)

Cut the top off the round of bread and scoop out most of the bread inside the loaf. Fill with dip and bake on a cookie sheet for about 10 minutes. Serve with the removed bread and additional chips, crackers, etc.

Recently the folks at Chicago Soy Dairy were kind enough to send out some samples of their tasty vegan cheese, Teese, to those of us in the vegan blogosphere to see what we could come up with outside of the usual pizza or lasagna. Here is the first of what I came up with, more is on the way.

Portabella Teese Steak Sandwiches

2 Large Portabella Mushrooms, stems and gills removed and thinly sliced
1/2 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
1/2 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 Anaheim, ancho, or other mild green chili, seeded and thinly sliced
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 cub dry white wine
salt and pepper
2 Sandwich rolls or a baguette cut into sandwich size lengths
3-4 oz cheddar flavored Teese. Cut into small chunks

In a saute pan, heat olive oil over med-high heat. Add onions and cook until they begin to soften. Add pepper and chili and cook for a few min until peppers have began to soften. Add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and add wine. Cook until mushrooms are thoroughly cooked (the onions and peppers should be nearly caramelized by this point).

Split the rolls 3/4 the way through and lightly toast. Briefly heat the Teese in the microwave in a small bowl until melted. Divide the mushroom mixture between the rolls and poor the melted Teese over the top.

Although becoming a bit more popular recently, lavender is often overlooked as a culinary ingredient and relegated to the realm of bath products. Lavender has a lovely floral flavor that goes well with lemon, cream, and berries. Here we have a cake flavored with lavender and paired with a lemon “butter cream” and raspberry sauce. Using cake flour as well as a lavender syrup on the cake layers makes for an exceptionally moist end result. As with all flowers, make sure you get culinary grade, or no spray, lavender as otherwise flowers can be heavily sprayed with pesticides.

Lavender cake

2 cups soy milk, divided
2 tsp vinegar
2 Tbsp culinary lavender flowers
2 3/4 cup cake flour (I used King Arthur unbleached cake flour. If you can’t get cake flour you can sub 2 1/2 cup all pourpose flour plus 1/4 cup cornstarch)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup canola oil
1 1/2 cup sugar
4 tsp vanilla

Lavender Syrup

1/3 cup culinary lavender
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups water

Lemon “Butter Cream”

1/2 cup Earth Balance
1 cup non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 Tbsp lemon juice, plus more as needed
zest of one lemon (if you want a pure white frosting, you can use some lemon extract)
1/4 tsp salt
1 lb powdered sugar, sifted

Raspberry Sauce

10 oz frozen raspberries
3 Tbsp sugar
1/4 cup water
1 tsp arrow root dissolved in 1 tbsp water

To make the cake
Grease two 8″ cake pans and line with parchment. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350°
Combine 1 cup soy milk with vinegar in a mixing bowl and set aside to curdle. In a saucepan, combine remaining 1 cup soy milk and the lavender. Bring to a boil, remove from heat and let sit for five minutes. Strain and combine with the vinegar mixture. Add sugar, oil, and vanilla and stir to combine. In a separate bowl sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the flour to the wet ingredients and stir together until just mixed. Divide batter between the prepared pans (I use a scale to ensure even distribution). Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool completely before frosting.

To make the syrup
In a heavy saucepan combine ingredients and bring to a boil. Simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, until mixture begins to thicken. Let cool and strain.

To make the butter cream
In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment beat the Earth Balance and shortening until light and fluffy. Add vanilla, lemon juice, salt, and lemon zest and beat to combine. Add powdered sugar and beat on medium until frosting is smooth and fluffy. Add more lemon juice or soy milk if necessary to achieve a spreadable consistency.

To make the sauce
Combine berries, sugar, and water in a sacupan and bring to a boil. Cook until berries are broken down. Stir in the arrowroot mixture and cook until the sauce begins to thicken. Strain to remove the seeds and let cool.

To assemble the cake
Place a layer of cake on a plate or cake board. Brush or drizzle with lavender syrup and frost top. Place second layer on top, brush with syrup and frost top and sides.

To plate
Use a squeeze bottle or a spoon to drizzle some of the raspberry sauce on to each plate. Cut a wedge of cake and place on top of the sauce.