Tofu Florentine for a Lazy (L)ass

Now that the weather has been hinting at the arrival of fall(is it here yet?!), I’ve been in ‘hearty breakfast’ mode.  Let me introduce you to my favorite dish to devour before an AM hike.  This guy is an Easy Tofu Florentine that any crusty eyed morning monster can put together without the aid of 5 cups of coffee.  Believe you me, there have been many early morning breakfast mishaps in my life …  but this recipe will never steer me wrong.

Recipe

Ingredients

1-2 T Olive Oil

1 Ezekial Whole Wheat English Muffin

1 C Frozen Spinach

2 slices Extra Firm Tofu

FYH Vegan Caesar Dressing

Nutritional Yeast to sprinkle on top

Directions

• Get your giant cast iron skillet ready by heating olive oil on a medium flame
• Cut English muffin in half and place face down on the skillet
• Place the tofu slices next to the English muffin slices
• Flip both the tofu and English muffin when they are browned on the first side
• While the second sides are browning, add frozen spinach to the skillet and sautee until defrosted
• Turn off your stove and begin to assemble!  Place the English muffin slices face up, scoop half the spinach onto each face, and top with the tofu slices.
• Spoon the FYH Vegan Caesar on top of the whole magilla and sprinkle as much nutritional yeast on top.  Salt/pepper to taste.

I love this recipe because it keeps me full forever and it makes me feel like I’m having a really indulgent brunch without any effort.  I put the nooch on top for added B vitamins (gotta have ‘em) and a little bit of a cheesy taste.  And because I’m a glutton for the stuff.  I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do!

Bunny Muffins in Echo Park

Hey dudes.  Do you know where you can get a stellar vegan muffin on the East side?  I’ll give you a hint.  NO.  Even better.  I’ll give you an answer.

STORIES.

They’re located at

1716 W Sunset Blvd

Los Angeles, CA 90026-3225

The people who run the place are rad, and the Time Travel Mart next door is magical.  Muffin flavors range from Blueberry Oat to Pumpkin Spice to Cran-Apple-Bran-O-Rama.  You never know what you’re going to get (but it’ll be delicious).

Get Directions

You can also get internets, coffees, books, and shared glances with attractive strangers!  Go up and talk to one of them!  Maybe they’ll buy you a muffin!  Maybe you’ll get married and have a dog named Constantine!  The world is your oyster!  Not it’s not!  Gross!  Eat a muffin!

Check out Bunny Muffin Bakery for more info.

Mushroom and Wine Tasting at Desert Rose

Oh, Citysearch.  How you thrill me.  How you bring me plate after plate of mushroom dishes.  How you keep refilling my glass with the greatest wine I’ve ever had (Torbreck Cuvee Juveniles if you must know).  How you ask nothing of me – not even a bill?  I’m not worthy.

I was so fortunate to receive an e-mail from the people at Veggie Thing inviting me to a Mushroom and Wine Tasting last night.  Not only do I have a deep yearning for all things mushroom, but the idea of free food is almost enough to make me weep.  Though no tears were shed, the beautiful set-up in Desert Rose’s outdoor courtyard was definitely swoonworthy.  I sat down at a table and attempted to make conversation – usually a feat for me, but I had the luck of sitting next to two lovely women who were great dinner companions.

The evening started out with a really great glass of wine – the Juveniles.  It was fruity but not too sweet and had a velvety finish with just a hint of sharpness.  Apparently you can find this fella for $20 in town, which is more than what I normally go for, but now I know what to bring to the wine heads for parties.  I tend to be of the Two Buck Chuck school.  Shh.

The first dishes brought out were the Baba Ghanouj and Stuffed Grape Leaves.  Not someone who normally likes grape leaves, I tasted with trepidation to be happily surprised.  These grape leaves lacked the bitterness I’m used to and the stuffing had more serious substance.  Maybe I’ve been eating at the wrong places my whole life?  The Baba Ghanouj was okay – maybe I’m just not a fan. These two dishes are normal Desert Rose fare whereas the rest of the menu was provided by Citysearch.

The next dish out was Maitake-Walnut-Daiya Cheese Stuffed Medjool Dates.  What a mouthful.  Literally.  I mean you could pop the whole thing in your mouth and have a party.  The Maitake mushrooms were a bit overpowered by the sweetness of the dates, but the whole thing would make a really nice dessert.  The crunchy walnuts and the salty Daiya offset the sweet nicely.

Next up was the Beech Mushroom Lentil Soup with Smoked Paprika Oil and Baby Spinach.  I have to say that I’m not a lentil soup fan, so I didn’t love it, but I did eat all the Beech Mushrooms.  Love!  Tiny little precious buttons of fungus.  Does that sound unappetizing?  I love eating fungus.  Deal.

Next were Maitake Mushroom Falafel with Tahini-Lemon Sauce.  Dense little falafel with hidden bits of Maitake and a smooth, tart sauce?  Yeah I’ll take 40.  And eat them all.  Now.  They were a little over-fried but I kind of liked the superdupercrunchy factor.

Out come the Beech Mushroom and Maitake Cabbage Rolls with Tomato Lemon Broth.  I was already stuffed to the gills by the time these guys arrived, but I managed a taste and they were delicious!  There were crunchy garbanzo beans garnishing the top – that might have been my favorite part.  All throughout the night my dinner date and I had been trying to figure out who the woman across from us worked for – she runs a blog under “Hollywood Assistant.”  It was a fun game that I’m sure drove her completely nuts – but added intrigue(!!) to the whole evening.  We may or may not have figured out who it was and it may or may not have been verrrry interesting.

Finally the dish that I had been waiting for all night arrived – the Harissa Glazed Roasted King Trumpet Mushroom Tajen.  I had food coming out my ears at this point, but I had been longing for this dish all night!  These mushroom are SO beautiful.  I’m mesmerized by Trumpet Mushrooms.

Thanks so much to everyone at Citysearch and Veggie Thing for hosting a fun and delicious evening!

Where in the world is “Could It Be … SEITAN!?”

Here’s a quick run-down of google searches that have led people to my blog.  Just in case you forget how to get here:

“so sexual it’s like lavender in my mouth”

“cookie shit cooling rack”

“purple oompa loompa pictures”

“4 year old playing in pool”

“lots of weed”

“new york city women”

“no fraid lil soft soft”

“cars old womens drive”

Bunny Muffin Bakery at Space 15 Twenty!

What a great day!  My vegan bakery, Bunny Muffin Bakery, was invited to come sell cupcakes at Space 15 Twenty .  I want to thank Anh and Tania and everyone there for inviting me to such a rad event.  You can read more about the day on their blog! Alexi over at imboycrazy.com was the host extraordinaire and she did a great job.

As you can see from this kid’s adorable hairstyle pensive stare, the Red Vevet Cupcakes were the winners of the day and the first to sell out!  He’s standing next to the Margarita Cupcakes which I had to shoo a few kiddies away from.  I should have known better than to put rainbow sprinkles on the alcoholic cupcakes!  These were surprisingly the last to go – I think people were freaked out by the concept of tequila in a cupcake.  Really it just tasted sweet and citrusy guys!

Here’s a great shot of my brand new sandwich-board sign made by Carrick Moore Gerety!

My personal favorite cupcake was the Chocolate Peanut Butter, pictured here with ol’ Cookies n’ Cream:

Here’s a psychadelic view of the whole shebang.

There were some excellent vendors out that day, but I didn’t have too much time to browse the goods. I was sitting across from this painting and I’m not sure I can live without it in my house:

Also, one of my favorite artists, Kime Buzelli, was selling clothes and you can see even more pictures from the event on her blog The Moldy Doily.

Special thanks to my buddies who stopped by, especially Dawn and Joy who practically cleared me out!  How cute are they!?

Thanks so much to everyone who came out and took my business card!  Bring on the e-mail orders!  Let me bake your life! (Check out Bunny Muffin Bakery or e-mail me at bunnymuffinbakery@gmail.com!)

Bunny Muffin Bakery at Space 15 Twenty on Sunday!

Hey guys!  Sorry I haven’t been updating recently – things have been very busy and this is one of the reasons!  I’ll be selling cupcakes this Sunday at Space 15 Twenty in Hollywood (right next to the Farmer’s Market).  The flavors will be Chocolate Peanut Butter, Cookies n Cream, Red Velvet, and Margarita.  I hope you can all make it!

Daring Bakers June: What A Tart!

Sorry this post is late!  I had a really crazy weekend baking for TWO bake sales!  Bake Me Up LA and Hunt & Gather!  I had a great time doing it, but there was no time for stringing together even half-assembled sentences.  OK.  Now I’m ready.

The June Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Jasmine of Confessions of a Cardamom Addict and Annemarie of Ambrosia and Nectar. They chose a Traditional (UK) Bakewell Tart… er… pudding that was inspired by a rich baking history dating back to the 1800’s in England.

The original recipe was chock full o’ eggs and cream so it was fun (fun?) to find vegan substitutions.  Luckily, it turned out really well!  Half of it was eaten at our bi-weekly “Twin Peaks” night.  A bunch of friends get together and watch two episodes of Twin Peaks and sigh over Kyle MacLachlan’s hair and the genius of David Lynch.  Instead of baking a cherry pie or donuts for this night, I chose to test my Blackwell Tart on the guests.  I think it went well because the people who originally refused a piece ended up eating two before the night was over.  Muahahaha.

I made a shortcrust pie crust using a recipe from Novel Eats.

Then added some homemade Strawberry Pan Jam.

And topped it off with an Almond Frangipane roughly based on a recipe from Tongue Ticklers.  I would have liked to have ground my almonds finer, but my little food processor was against that idea.  AND GEEZE what is the deal with almond flour costing $13 for a little bag?  I cannot handle that price tag.

The finished product!  It was delicious and not too sweet- even my sugar-phobic friends enjoyed it.  I think Agent Cooper would consider a piece of this tart one of his daily presents to himself.

Come hang out on Sunday!

Join us this Sunday for Hunt and Gather!

Hidden in the heart of Silverlake is a garden that has been transformed into a marketplace filled with one of a kind treasures for you to Hunt and Gather.

Local Silverlake peeps have come together to put their items on display. There’s gonna be music, $1 refreshments and the CUTEST KITCHEN BOUTIQUE selling HOMEMADE VEGAN BAKED TREATS and CANNED GOODS.

Other items you will find on your hunt: VINTAGE bags, shoes and clothing. ANTIQUES, HANDCRAFTED CLOTHING, RECORDS, BOOKS, HANDMADE TERRARIUMS, ORGANIC APOTHECARY PRODUCTS, ORIGINAL ART and so much more!

THIS IS NOT A GARAGE SALE! CASH ONLY.

Lemme See Yr Muffin Top

Oh you didn’t want me to put on my really tight pants?  Because I can do that too … oh.  Ok.

I made these Blueberry Oat Muffins last week for breakfast and LOST IT because they’re the best I’ve ever had.  I really wanted some muffin tops, which is a feat rarely achieved in vegan baking … why I do not know.  It seems like the baking powder and baking soda should aid in the leavening, but vegan muffins are (usually) reluctant to rise.  The magic secret (omg) is to overfill the cups.  Did I just blow your mind?  Whoa.

Check out the Recipe:

(Makes 12 normal sized muffins and 8 jumbo muffins with tops)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 Cup AP Flour
• 1/2 C Oats
• 1 tsp Baking Soda
• 2 tsp Baking Powder
• Pinch salt
• 1 Cup Sugar
• 1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
• 2 Flax Eggs (2 T ground Flax seed + 6 T water)
• 1 Cup Soy Yogurt
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1 C Blueberries (fresh or frozen)
• 1/2 C Chopped Walnuts

Directions

• Preheat your oven for 400 degrees and grease your muffin tin with vegetable oil or vegan margarine.
• In a small bowl, create your flax eggs by whisking together the ground flax seed and water.  Set aside.
• In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients.
• In a separate bowl, combine all the wet ingredients, including your flax eggs.
• Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and top with the blueberries and walnuts.  Stir only until everything is just incorporated – be sure not to over-mix!
• Scoop your batter evenly into the muffin tins, filling them all the way to the top.  Don’t be afraid!  These muffins don’t rise very much!
• Place the muffin tin on a middle rack in your oven and bake for 20 minutes, or until the edges just start to look caramel brown.
• Cool on a rack and enjoy!

All this talk of muffin tops and racks, I can only imagine what the search engines turn out this week.

Next Day Brownies

Ah, the eternal quest for good vegan brownies continues.  JUST KIDDING IT’S OVER THEY’RE RIGHT HERE.

I can’t understand why I didn’t make these before.  They’re Isa’s recipe from the Post Punk Kitchen, and clearly they are ace.  The perfect balance between fudgy and cakey brownies and a deep chocolate flavor make these epic.  The best part about them is that they get better the longer you let them sit!  Thus, I dub them “Next Day Brownies.”

(recipe courtesy of Isa)

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup flour
• 2/3 cup cold water
• 12 oz extra firm silken tofu (the vacuum packed kind, like Mori-Nu)

• 1 cup semi-sweet chocloate chips (I use Ghiradelli)

• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 cup oil

• 3/4 cup good quality unsweetened cocoa powder (I use Droste)
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 3/4 tsp. baking powder

Directions

• In a blender puree the tofu, flour and water until smooth. Pour it into a sauce pan, and wisk constantly over low heat until it thickens (it should not boil, if it starts to turn the heat down). This takes about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the chocolate chips, salt, vanilla and sugar. Stir occasionally until the chocolate is melted. Set the mixture aside to cool completely.

• Preheat your oven to 350.

• When mixture is cool enough mix in the oil. (It can take about 20-30 minutes to cool, give it a stir once in awhileand stick it in the fridge to make it cool faster).

• Sift the 1 1/2 cups of flour, the cocoa and the baking powder together. Fold in the tofu mixture until well combined and smooth.

• Spread evenly in a greased baking pan for 35-40 minutes, or until a knife comes out clean.

I had a party and people kind of picked at them as they cooled, but it was the breakfast brownie the next morning that made my eyes roll back in my head.  What’s the deal!?  Something about sitting in the fridge overnight allowed the chocolate chips I added to the batter to harden and the flavors to mingle together in bliss.   I added 1/4 C chocolate chips and 1/4 C walnuts to the recipe for my own preference.  I’m now imagining all the add-ins that could make these even more incredible!   These brownies are bomb.  That’s all I can say.