The Best-Ever Vegan Chocolate Sorbet

I previously published the following recipe about 8 years ago, and it still is really too good to be true...dangerously delicious. I make it every summer!

I got the original recipe from Southern Living magazine, and I've been making it so long I don't even know or remember if I do anything differently than they suggested.  I can't find it online anymore, so maybe they didn't love it as much as I do.

 

Ingredients:

5 c. water
2 ¼ c. sugar
1 c. cocoa
1 bag vegan chocolate chips

1. Bring the water and sugar to a boil in a stockpot. Boil, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved (about 1 minute). Whisk in cocoa until blended (no lumps). Reduce heat and simmer, whisking occasionally, 30 minutes. Remove from heat. Gradually add the chocolate chips, whisking until smooth after each addition. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour.
2. Pour the chocolate mixture into a freezer-safe container (like popsicle molds!).
3. Move the ice cream to your kitchen freezer, and let it “cure” in the freezer for 24 hours.

Ice Cream Sandwich

A seriously yum snack from Dash magazine...

 

 

Ingredients:
1 pint Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia ice cream (or your ice cream of choice)
1 package Pepperidge Farms soft-baked Montauk chocolate chip cookies
1/2 of an 11- or 12-oz. pkg chocolate chips
1 T. canola oil

Method:
Allow the ice cream to soften slightly.  Lay 4 cookies upside down on your work surface.  Spread each cookie with a thick layer of softened ice cream (up to an inch thick).  Top the ice cream with another cookie, right-side up.  This should leave the "right side" of each cookie facing out.  Wrap each sandwich with plastic wrap, and freeze for at least 1 hour.

In a small bowl, mix the chocolate chips and canola oil.  Microwave on 50% power in 30-second increments until the chips are melted.  Use a fork to whisk out the lumps.

Cover a small cookie sheet with waxed paper.  Unwrap each sandwich and dip half of it into the melted  chocolate.  Set on waxed paper, and freeze the sheet for about 15 minutes or until the chocolate is hardened.

Wrap in plastic wrap again, and freeze at least an hour.  Ready to eat!  Serves 4.

NOTE:  If the sandwiches have been freezing for several hours, they may need to soften slightly before eating.  Enjoy!

Irish Chocolate Potato Cake

Here's a confection for your St. Patrick's Day celebration.  Scott made this yesterday with a caramel drizzle, and it's DEE-licious.  Since the cake contains dark chocolate, potatoes, and almonds, I like to think of it as sort of "healthy" for cake.  (Disregarding, of course, the 1/2 lb. of butter and 1 lb. of sugar!)

The cake recipe came from www.europeancuisines.com, and the icing came from a decade-old issue of Vegetarian Times.  We served it after a "St. Patrick's Eve" meal of vegetable and tofu pot pie (recipe here) and boiled cabbage for an Irish-feeling meal.

Ingredients:
1 c. cooked potato (see below for specific instructions on the potatoes)
1 1/2 T. AP flour
1 1/2 T. cocoa

2 1/2 c. AP flour

1/2 t. cinnamon

2 rounded t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

1/2 lb. butter or vegan margarine (I like to use Earth Balance vegan margarine.), at room temperature

2 1/3 c. (1 lb.) granulated sugar

4 eggs

9 rounded T. finely-grated chocolate

5 rounded T. ground almonds

2/3 c. plant-based milk

1 batch caramel icing (recipe below)

Method:
Be sure to prepare the potatoes in advance and allow them to cool COMPLETELY.  Do not add them to the batter if they are even slightly warm.  If you do, the result will be a heavy cake that may fail to rise or rise only partway.  To prepare the potatoes, peel and chunk 2 medium potatoes and boil until soft when pierced with a fork.  Drain them completely, and dry them briefly over low heat.  Remove from heat.  When completely cool, mash well with a potato masher or ricer.

Mix 1/2 T. flour with the cocoa in a small bowl.  Prepare a tube pan (like a Bundt pan) by spraying it well with non-stick spray.  Be sure to cover every crevice and fluting.  Now add the flour/cocoa mixture to the pan and shake it around until every surface is coated.  Failure to proper cover every crevice and surface may result in a cake that does not unmold properly, so take the time to do this part correctly.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Sift the 2.5 c. flour once by itself.  Sift it a second time with the cinnamon, baking powder, and salt.

Separate the egg whites from the yolks and set the yolks aside.  In a small mixing bowl, whip the egg whites until stiff but not dry.  Set the whites aside in the refrigerator until ready to use.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter with the sugar until light and fluffy.  Add the egg yolks, one at a time, to the creamed mixture, beating well after each addition.  Stir the grated chocolate and ground almonds into the butter mixture.  Add the potatoes and stir again.  Add the flour, alternating with the plant-based milk, beating gently after each addition.

When the flour and milk are fully incorporated, fold the whipped egg whites carefully into the cake batter.  Spoon the completed batter into the prepared cake pan.  Tap gently once on the counter to settle.

Bake for 1.5 - 2 hours.  With a wooden skewer, start testing for doneness at 1.5 hours and periodically after that until the skewer inserted through the tallest part of the cake comes out clean.  Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 20 minutes in the pan.  Invert on a baking rack and remove from pan to cool completely.  Drizzle with caramel icing (or the icing of your choice), and serve.

Caramel Drizzle Icing

Ingredients:
1 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 c. plant-based milk
2 T. vegan margarine
1/4 t. salt
1 t. almond extract
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar

Method:
Combine brown sugar, plant-based milk, margarine, and salt in a medium saucepan.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly.  Reduce heat to low and cook until mixture is slightly thick, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Remove from heat.  Stir in almond extract and gradually beat in powdered sugar.  Stir until smooth and creamy.  Let icing cool slightly, and pour over cake.  Icing sets as it cools.

Black Forest Cookies

Here's a good recipe from waaaaayyyyyy back at the beginning of the blog:  Black Forest Cookies (recipe here).  You can consider them sort of "seasonal", because they have cranberries and nuts in them.  Hey, that makes them kind of healthy, too!

 

I'm taking these to take to my mom's house for Thanksgiving tomorrow.  Happy Thanksgiving from all the Today Tomorrows!

 

 

Pumpkin-Banana Muffins

This is a muffin recipe I got from a friend maybe....15 years ago?  I modified it to have pumpkin and chocolate chips and nuts.  It makes the muffins more interesting and more healthy!

Ingredients:

1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour

1/4 c. sugar

2 1/2 t. baking powder (Try to buy the kind that does NOT have aluminum in it.)

3/4 t. salt

1 egg, beaten (If you want to make these vegan, use Ener-G Egg Replacer.)

1/2 c. plant-based milk

1/3 c. canola oil

1/2 c. canned pumpkin purée (NOT pumpkin pie mix)

1 banana, peeled and mashed with a fork

1/2 c. chopped walnuts or pecans

1/2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional, but delicious!)

Method:

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.  Grease a 12-muffin tin (or line with cupcake papers).

In a 2-quart bowl, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt until well-blended.  Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, and pour in the egg, milk, oil, pumpkin, and banana.  Mix with a wooden spoon until just blended.  Fold in nuts and chocolate chips, if using, until just evenly distributed.

Divide the batter evenly between the 12 muffin tins.  Bake 20 - 25 minutes until golden.  Cool on a wire rack.

NOTE:  If you don't have any canned pumpkin, you can omit the pumpkin and just use 2 mashed bananas.

Hot Chocolate Mix

Even though we've had a pretty warm winter, there have been chilly mornings and evenings that were still just right for hot chocolate.  Here's a recipe I got from Martha Stewart that allows you to make your own hot chocolate mix.  As her publications point out, you can make this mix and have enough to last you through the hot chocolate season.  It's economical, and it allows you to make vegan hot cocoa.

Ingredients:

3 1/2 c. sugar

2 1/4 c. cocoa

1 T. salt

plant-based milk, for serving

Method:

In a large bowl, sift the ingredients together.  Store them in an air-tight container.  To serve, pour 1 c. plant-based milk into a microwave-safe mug.  Zap the milk to the desired temperature, then add 3 heaping tablespoons (or more or less, to taste) of the mix and stir well with a fork to break up all the powdered lumps.

To make a larger batch, heat the plant-based milk in a saucepan, taking care not to boil it.  Add 3 T. of the mix per cup of milk used.

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies

Are you freaking out, because you have to go to a "big game" party today, but you don't have anything planned to take?  Personally, I'm taking a layered Mexican dip to my sister-in-law's house, but this candy-cookie that I usually make at Christmas is easy and quick, too, if you're looking for a sweet thing to take.  I got this recipe from my mom (Hi Mom!).  She's been making this at the holidays for decades.  The amounts are flexible...make as many or as few as you want.

Ingredients:

chocolate bark (This is the meltable chocolate that you can buy by the pound in the baking section of your grocer.)

waxed paper

Ritz crackers

peanut butter (I'm not sure if the truly natural kind will work.  It seems like it might be too wet.  I use the Jif natural, which is still creamy instead of wet somehow.)

optional:  white chocolate bark for garnish

Method:

Melt chocolate in the top pan of a double-boiler (or we usually use a slow-cooker on the lowest setting).  Cover a cookie sheet with waxed paper.

While the chocolate is melting, spread a generous amount of peanut butter between 2 Ritz crackers to make a sandwich.  Make as many cracker-sandwiches as you want.  When the chocolate is fully melted, dip each peanut butter cracker sandwich into the melted chocolate to completely coat the sandwich.  Remove with a fork, scraping off the excess on the side of the pan.  Place the coated sandwich on the waxed paper to set.  Once you're done dipping, put the cookie sheet in the fridge to harden up the chocolate.

Once the chocolate is set, you're set, too!

Optional garnish:  To make the white zig-zags shown in the photo, melt some white chocolate bark in the microwave, zapping a few seconds, then stirring, then zapping, then stirring, until the chocolate is melted.  Pour the melted chocolate into a Ziploc bag and zip it up.  Using kitchen shears, snip a corner off the bottom of the bag.  Zig-zag the chocolate over the covered cookie sandwiches while they're on the waxed paper.  Put in the fridge to set as normal.

Scott would like to add:  Go Giants! 

Chocolate-Chip Coffeecake

This one is a similar story to the stuffed chard leaves:  got it from The Commercial Appeal, original recipe from Carol Borchardt (I believe she is a personal chef.), I made some modifications to suit me.  The only story change here is that today wasn't the first time I've made this one.  I've had to work on it a bit to get a topping version I really like.  Here it is:

For the cake:
vegan margarine and flour for the pan
1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. sugar
2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
a 6-oz. container of plain vegan yogurt (although, honestly, I've used lemon-flavored vegan yogurt, and it worked fine...I'm sure other fruit-flavored yogurts would be fine.)
1 egg (or if you want this cake to be vegan, try using Ener-G's Egg Replacer)
1 t. vanilla or almond extract
1/2 c. canola oil


For the topping:
1/4 c. chocolate chips (and, hey, nothing's stopping you from using more, right?)
1/4 c. all-purpose flour
2 T. brown sugar
2 T. granulated sugar
1/4 t. ground cinnamon
2 T. vegan margarine (I like Earth Balance vegan margarine.), cold
1/3 c. chopped pecans


To make it happen:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Farenheit.  Grease an 11-inch x 7-inch (or 11-inch x 8-inch) baking dish with vegan margarine.  Put a handful of flour in the pan and shake it around so that the butter is coated with flour (discard any remaining flour in the pan).


In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake-ingredients flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  In a smaller bowl, combine the yogurt, egg (or egg replacer), and vanilla/almond extract.  Add the yogurt mixture and the canola oil to the flour mixture.  Stir until well-blended, and pour into the prepared pan, spreading evenly over the bottom of the dish.


Sprinkle the chocolate chips evenly over the batter.  In a small bowl, mix the topping-ingredients flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and cinnamon.  Cut the cold vegan margarine into small chunks.  Using your fingers, mash the margarine chunks into the flour-and-sugar mixture so that the mixture becomes crumbly.  There should be no visibly powdery ingredients left, no trace of flour or sugar.  Mix the chopped pecans into the crumbles, then spread evenly over the cake batter.


Bake 35-40 minutes.

Salty Chocolate-Pecan Candy

Here's a recipe you can use for a Christmas get-together. It came from my friend, Pam, who said she got it from a "Southern Living" magazine. It's deceptively easy for how delicious and addictive it is!

1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
3 (4-oz.) bars semi-sweet chocolate baking bars (Pam recommends using Ghiradelli brand, and I can confirm that I have used it with excellent results.)
3 (4-oz.) bars white chocolate baking bars (again with the Ghiradelli)
1 t. coarse salt

Roast the pecans. You can do this in a skillet over medium-low heat. Just shake the pecans around in the pan so that they don't burn. When they become fragrant, they're done. It takes maybe 5 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 225 degrees.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Break each chocolate bar into 8 equal pieces. (Ghiradelli comes pre-sectioned into 8 square pieces, making this quite simple.) Arrange your 48 pieces in a checkerboard pattern of brown and white on the cookie sheet with the pieces touching.

Bake the chocolate at 225 degrees until the chocolate is melty. Remove the pan to a wire rack. Using a wooden toothpick or skewer, swirl the melted chocolate into a marbled pattern. While the chocolate is still melty, sprinkle it evenly with the coarse salt and toasted pecans. Press the pecans into the chocolate slightly to ensure they adhere in the final product.

Chill the pan in the refrigerator 1 hour or until firm. Break the sheet of chocolate into pieces. You can store it in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month. Enjoy!

Chocolate Coconut Pecan Pie

Happy Independence Day! This recipe comes from an acquaintance named Ginger, and I am not sure where she got it. I didn't change a thing about it, because it's so good already.

1/2 c. sugar
1/3 c. golden brown sugar
1/3 c. light corn syrup
2 Tbsp. unsalted vegan butter, melted
1 tsp. almond extract
1 pinch salt
3 large eggs, beaten (I have used medium eggs with perfectly fine results.)
3/4 c. sweetened, shredded coconut
3/4 c. chocolate chips
3/4 c. whole pecans
1 frozen pie crust

Place a large baking sheet on the oven rack (middle of the oven), and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. With a fork, mix the sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, melted butter, almond extract, and salt in a 1.5-quart or larger bowl to blend. Mix in the beaten eggs. With a spoon, stir in the shredded coconut, chocolate chips, and pecans. Pour the filling into the frozen pie crust. Place the pie on the baking sheet in the oven. Bake until the crust is golden brown and the filling is set in the center (about 40 minutes). Transfer pie to rack, and cool before serving.

Chocolate Sorbet

The following recipe is really too good to be true. Delicious vegan ice cream! And no “weird” ingredients! I got the original recipe from Southern Living magazine.

5 c. water
2 ¼ c. sugar
1 c. cocoa
1 bag vegan chocolate chips (I use Ghirardelli semisweet chocolate chips with great results. The bag says it “may contain trace amounts of milk,” but milk is not a listed ingredient. I assume the disclaimer is just due to processing on machinery used for other, non-vegan products. If that doesn’t work for you, just pick a chocolate chip that does.)
about 15 lbs. ice for the ice cream freezer
rock salt

1. Bring the water and sugar to a boil in a large saucepan. Boil, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved (about 1 minute). Whisk in cocoa until blended (no lumps). Reduce heat and simmer, whisking occasionally, 30 minutes. Remove from heat. Gradually add the chocolate chips, whisking until smooth after each addition. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour.
2. Pour the chocolate mixture into the freezer container of a 4-quart ice cream freezer. Freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions, about 45 minutes.
3. Move the ice cream to your kitchen freezer, and let it “cure” in the freezer overnight.

This makes about 5 cups of unbelievably delicious ice-cream-like sorbet.

Tofu Chocolate Pie or Pudding

This is a recipe I modified from Mori-Nu, the only company I know that makes silken tofu. You need to use silken tofu for this recipe - not the crumbly Chinese kind.

2 packages silken tofu, (extra-firm for pie, firm for pudding)
3/4 c. raw honey
1 T. almond extract
1/2 c. cocoa powder
1 prebaked pie crust or graham cracker crust (if making pie instead of pudding)
2 T. chopped nuts (optional topping for pie)

In a blender, purée each package of silken tofu individually until really smooth. Do one package, then move the smooth, puréed tofu to a large mixing bowl, then do the next package, and move that to the mixing bowl, too. Add the honey, almond extract, and cocoa. First, mix with a spoon to get the cocoa wet to prevent it from flying everywhere when you start the mixer. Then use a hand mixer to thoroughly combine all ingredients into a smooth, chocolatey batter.

For pies, pour the mixture into a prebaked pie shell. For pudding, pour into individual serving dishes or a serving bowl. Sprinkle chopped nuts, if using, over surface of pie. For either pudding or pie, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Serve cold.

Serving Suggestion: I have put a thin layer of raspberry or other fruit preserves in the pie shell before pouring in the tofu batter. You could also top with chocolate shavings or confectioner's sugar. For pudding, you can use it to make parfaits or top with berries or other fruit.

One more note: You could probably adapt this to be vegan by substituting agave nectar or rice syrup for the honey. If you try it, let us know how it turns out!

Black Forest Cookies

Hello all! I made a new cookie recipe yesterday that I thought I'd share. I even like to think of it as somewhat healthy, since it has nuts and dried berries in it. It's super easy to make. Just a warning that the batter does not look like normal cookie dough. It just looks like melted chocolate. I was afraid it would not cook up into a cookie, but it did! Here it is:

Black Forest Cookies (I got this online at, I think, the Ocean Spray cranberry website .)


1 11.5-oz. bag chocolate morsels (I used a 12 oz. bag Ghiradelli semi-sweet with good results.)
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. vegan butter
2 eggs
1 t. almond extract
3/4 c. flour
1/4 t. baking powder (There is no salt called for in the recipe, which worried me. I thought that was needed to "activate" the baking powder. Worked fine with no salt.)
1 6-oz. package Craisins (dried, sweetened cranberries)
1 c. coarsely chopped pecans or walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Pour 3/4 c. chocolate morsels into an uncovered large microwave-safe bowl. Set remaining morsels aside. Microwave morsels 2 - 3 minutes on high. Stir until chocolate is smooth.

Stir in brown sugar, butter/margarine, eggs, and almond. Add flour and baking powder, mixing thoroughly until combined. Stir in remaining morsels (You may want to let it cool a little. If it is still hot, it will melt these as well.), Craisins, and nuts.

Drop by tablespoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 12 - 15 minutes (depending on how firm you like your cookies) or until cookies are puffed and set to the touch. Cool on cookie sheet 2 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and cool completely.


Makes about 2.5 dozen cookies.


The calories are listed as 140 per cookie, but I made them bigger than 1 tablespoonful each, so I know mine were more! It actually also has a little protein, vitamin A, and calcium, per the recipe specs from online. I hope you enjoy it!

***Note: Use egg substitute to convert to a vegan recipe. :) I've used Egg Replacer in other recipes in the past. If you try it, let me know how it turns out!