Vegan Yum Yum (38 page)
step 4
Unfold the puff pastry and roll out to 11 x 14 inches.
Ingredients
1 puff pastry sheet, defrosted
3 tablespoons sugar
1½ tablespoons all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 pinch nutmeg
1 pinch allspice
1 pinch salt
2 to 3 apples, peeled and sliced thinly
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons Earth Balance margarine, melted
Sugar, for sanding
step 5
Place the apples in a line down the middle.
step 6
Fold the dough over and tuck in the ends.
step 7
Brush the strudel with melted margarine and sand generously with sugar.
step 8
Using a serrated knife, make several diagonal slashes in the strudel.
step 9
Bake for 35 minutes until golden and puffy. Let it cool for an additional 20 to 30 minutes before slicing, then serve.
Banana Bread Made with Spelt
T
here are a million banana bread recipes out there, but it's hard to find a decent recipe for spelt banana bread. Spelt is an early form of wheat, so while it still has gluten in it, many people find it easier to digest. I find it tastier than plain ol' wheat and often reach for it to make up part or all of my baked goods. Due to spelt's delicate gluten structure, your bread won't rise as high as wheat, but it'll make up for its smaller stature in taste!
You can substitute regular wheat for this recipe, of course, but you may need to add a touch more liquid to compensate for the change. Add a splash of water or your favorite nondairy milk if you need to. Also, experiment with all-purpose and spelt blends. A ratio of 50:50 gives you the benefits of both flours.
Banana Bread made with Spelt
Makes 1 loaf
step 1
Preheat the oven to 350 ºF.
step 2
Mash the bananas very well in a bowl. Add sugar, oil, vanilla, and molasses.
step 3
In another bowl, mix together the flour (both kinds), salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and baking powder. Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet. If you used all-purpose flour, you may need to add a splash of liquid.
step 4
Bake in a greased 9-x-5 loaf pan for 60 to 70 minutes. Let cool before removing from the pan.
Ingredients
3 very ripe bananas, mashed
1 cup sugar
½ cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons molasses
2 cups spelt flour
(or all-purpose flour)
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 pinches nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking powder
Blueberry Grunts
Y
eah, I'd never heard of a blueberry grunt, eitherâuntil I became friends with Sandy. Ever since we became friends, I couldn't use the word “blueberry” without her saying “Mmmm, blueberry grunt . . .” with her eyes half closed and smiling. I knew it was one of her favorite desserts, but I couldn't bring myself to make something called a gruntâuntil, that is, I had four cups of freshly picked blueberries.
A grunt is in the cobbler family, and it's a traditional East Coast maritime dessert. It's perfect for people who might want something like a pie but are too lazy to make an actual pie. So that means it's perfect for me! Blueberry is a popular flavor for grunts, but you can use pretty much any berry or fruit. It's a great way to use up bountifulâ but fleetingâsummer fruit.
The most common way to make a grunt is to boil berries with water, sugar, and lemon juice, then add biscuit dough on the top, cover with a tight lid, and steam. It's a one-pan, stove-top operation. I chose to bake mine because I had these ridiculously cute gratin dishes that I'd been dying to use for a blog post, but I've also given directions for cooking it on the stove. Recipes for grunts are all pretty standard; I adapted and veganized this simple recipe.
Blueberry Grunts
Makes 4 individual grunts or 1 large
step 1
Put the blueberries, sugar, lemon juice, water, and cinnamon and nutmeg (if using) into a large skillet (with a tight-fitting lid if you're going to be making one large grunt and steaming the biscuits; if you're going to be baking the grunt, make sure you're using an oven-safe skillet). If you're baking the grunt, preheat the oven to 400 ºF.
step 2
Boil the berries for 10 to 15 minutes until the mixture has thickened a little.
