Vegan Cookie & Cream Cupcakes For Kristina (+ more nutella banana cupcakes)

yes, i crush oreos with a mortar and pestle

Kristina turns 16 today! Kristina has recently become vegan and can almost never eat the things I bake. I think I want to learn how to bake more vegan things. This is a new challenge to myself.

For the occasion of Kristina's birthday I made vegan cookies & cream cupcakes. I've made these before and the recipe is very dependable. Really, I don't think much is sacrificed here just because there is no dairy. I found this recipe in "Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World". The recipe is exceedingly simple.

I also made some more banana nutella cupcakes for my mom because she's become somewhat obsessed with them. She's admitted to eating four in one sitting.

Ingredients:

cupcakes-

1 cup soy milk

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup canola oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 cup all purpose flour

1/3 cup cocoa powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

10 vegan chocolate cream-filled cookies, crushed (oreos are now vegan but i think Trader Joes O's are quite good)

Frosting:

3/4 cup nonhydrogenated vegetable shortening

3/4 cup nonhydrogenated margarine

4 cups powdered sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/4 cup plain soy milk or soy creamer

5 chocolate cream filled cookies, mashed finely

1. preheat oven to 350 and line 12 cupcake tins

2. whisk together soy milk and vinegar in a large mixing bowl and set aside for at least 10 minutes so that the milk can curdle

3. Add the sugar, oil, vanilla extract, almond extract into the soy milk/vinegar mixture and beat with an electric mixer until foamy (about 3-4 minutes)

4. sift together flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda, and baking powder

5. gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and fold until just combined

6. fill the cupcake tins about 3/4 full

7. baking for about 20 minutes-the tops will slightly crack

8. let cool in pan for 10 minutes and then let them cool completely out of the tins

9. frost generously

For Frosting:

1. beat the margarine and shortening together

2. add the powdered sugar in small increments

3. add vanilla and soy milk

4. fold in cookie crumbs

Purple Long Beans

When I see produce that I've never encountered before, I can't help myself.  At the Silverlake Farmers Market I found purple long beans and they seemed fairly exciting.  They are a little frighteningly long and they look like some sort of water snake (does this exist?).  I suppose I could have chopped them into smaller bits but they were sort of fun to keep long.  My mom was thoroughly afraid of them.  She said they gave her the goosebumps and that they looked liked worms.  She actually shuddered.  Okay, the appearance is a bit alarming but they taste quite good--a bit sweeter than a green bean.  

Ingredients:

One bunch purple long beans (15 long beans)

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 tablespoon oyster sauce

2 teaspoons sesame oil

1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds

1. boil the long beans in salted water for about 2 minutes

2. drain and immediately shock in a cold water bath

3. in a non-stick pan, saute the garlic in sesame oil

4. add the long beans and oyster sauce

5. toss with sesame seeds

*for a vegetarian version, just replace oyster sauce for black bean sauce, or I'd imagine Trader Joe's Soyaki would be good here too

Indochine Vien

Okay.  I'm very excited to write my first scathing review.  Thomas and I were craving a light dinner and so we opted for Vietnamese.  We had to pick a place with vegetarian options for Thomas' sake and so we came across Indochine in Atwater Village after doing a little internet research.  

First of all, the service was pretty awful-and I'm really not one to be picky about service.  We ordered the spring rolls as an appetizer, and while Thomas thought they were great I thought the hoisin/peanut sauce ratio was a little heavy on the hoisin side.  Thomas ordered the vegetarian pho and I ordered the vegetarian bun.  The vegetarian version of bun substituted the usual fish sauce for a soy vinegar sauce, which was kind of welcome because too much fish sauce gives me a headache.  Thomas' pho was nothing extraordinary.  Both our dishes were $8.  Truthfully, I've had much better Vietnamese for cheaper and with better service, most notably in Westminster.  Indochine felt like a glossed up Americanized/hipsterized version of Vietnamese.  Let's face it, Vietnamese food is best at a restaurant that requires you to wipe down your chopsticks with a napkin before use. 

Was that scathing? Did I do a good job?

3110 Glendale Blvd

Los Angeles, CA 90039