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!

 

 

Cranberry-Cherry Sauce for Holidays

Does your family serve that congealed, gelatinous cranberry sauce from a can at the holidays?  It may even have gelatin in it, rendering it non-vegetarian.  If so, here's a fix from Country Living magazine!  It's got fresh cranberries, it's completely vegan, and it's simple to make.  Happy holidays!

Ingredients:

1 (12-oz) package fresh cranberries

2/3 c. sugar

1/2 navel orange (with skin), cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1/2 c. dried cherries

1/4 t. salt

Method:

In a medium saucepan, combine all ingredients over medium-low heat.  Stir frequently until sauce is thick, about 20 minutes.  Let cool to room temperature and remove remainder of orange slices before serving.  This can be refrigerated up to 2 weeks, then brought to room temperature before serving.

Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins

I've mentioned these muffins before but just gave you a link for the recipe on Ocean Spray's website.  Allow me to type it out for you here with my slight modifications.  These muffins are deliciously seasonal.  They're sweet in an earthy way, not a cloying way, because they're sweetened with brown sugar and molasses instead of refined white sugar.  I made them last weekend.  Maybe they would be a perfect breakfast for your family during the coming weekend!

Ingredients:

2 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 c. brown sugar

1 t. baking soda (not baking powder)

1 t. ground cinnamon

1/2 t. nutmeg (OK in this recipe, even though I don't like it in savory recipes!)

1/2 t. salt

1 c. canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)

1 c. (or more or less - you decide) fresh cranberries (Ocean Spray suggests using 6 oz. sweetened dried cranberries.  I think that would be fine during those times when fresh ones aren't available, but I like the fresh ones better.  I buy them when they're available and freeze them for the coming year.)

1/2 c. canola oil

1/4 c. rice milk

1/4 c. molasses

1 egg (Vegans can use Ener-G's Egg Replacer.)

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease a 12-muffin tin or line the muffin cups with paper baking cups.

Combine the dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl.  Combine the wet ingredients in a separate mixing bowl.  Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients, mixing until just moistened.  Fold in the cranberries.

Divide the batter equally between 12 muffin tins.  Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove muffins from tins and cool on a wire rack.

Makes 12 muffins.

Cranberry-Apple Crumble

I tried this recipe twice recently, and it's really good. It's not mine, so I'm just including the link. The first time I made it, I did it almost according to Martha's instructions. I substituted vegan Earth Balance margarine for the butter, and it worked fine. Also, I did not chop up my cranberries, and I liked it that way.



The 2nd time, I doubled the recipe, but I didn't double the recommended size of the dish. I squeezed it all into a pan that was smaller and, although it fit, it wasn't as good. The crumble topping really does need to spread out over that area. Also, don't cut down the amount of butter (or, in my case, margarine). I thought it called for a lot of butter/margarine when I made it the first time (only because the quantity seemed like a lot, not because it tasted like too much), so I cut some out the 2nd time, and it wasn't as good. Use the full amount!

http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/apple-cranberry-crumble

Follow this advice, and you'll have a delicious autumn dessert (or breakfast! Why not?!).