Crimson Cupcakes

I just realized that every one of the recipes is lemony (the muffins have lemons in the background), so I figured I needed to post something lemon free. Well, Nobody had a chance to go to the store before hand so the pantry was still pretty much empty, making it extremely hard to do anything. I decided I reallly wanted to try a red velvet recipe so I started getting everything together, but it turns out I only had about a half cup of flour and a tablespoon of cocoa, didn't have any chocolate extract, and I barely had any soy milk left. I still really wanted to make them though. I freaking broke down the whole recipe haha. I ended up using all-purpose AND self-rising flour, omitted the salt, baking powder, and soda, upped the vanilla and added some almond extract instead of cocoa, and halved the whole recipe so everything would work. Then, when I totally finished baking them and thought everything was going great, I realized I'd totally forgotten about the frosting. God really did not want me to make these cupcakes. It all worked out though, because my mom was on her way home and was able to stop by the store to get the stuff I needed. They turned out reallly well, I actually liked them better than my regular recipe:]. I even found a good cream "cheese"! :D It only made six, but hey, I'm not complaining. I'm lucky I even came up with one. Hopefully you have better luck than me:]

Serves: 6
Cupcakes:
1/2 cup soy milk
1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 cup self-rising flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cocoa
1/6 cup oil
1 tablespoon red food coloring
1 + 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract

Cream "Cheese" Frosting:
1/4 cup softened margarine (smart balance light or earthbalance work well)
1/4 cup vegan cream cheese (I used Tofutti Better than Cream Cheese, it was amazing[:)
2 cups confectioner's sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line muffin tins with cupcake liners.
Whisk together the soy milk and vinegar and set aside to curdle. Sift the flours, sugar, and cocoa into a medium-sized boal and mix. Add the oil, food coloring, vanilla and almond extracts to the curdled soy milk and whisk until well combined. Fold wet ingredients into dry, and mix until large lumps disappear.
Fill cupcake liners about 3/4 of the way and bake for 18-20 minutes (be sure not to over-bake!). After a few minutes transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Cream together margarine and cream "cheese" until well combined. Using a handheld mixer (or standard is fine), whip the mixture while adding the confectioner's sugar in 1/2 cup batches. whip until smooth and creamy, then mix in the vanilla.

**Refrigerate or chill frosting in the freezer for a few minutes to firm it up before you frost your cupcakes.**

**It would probably be a whole lot more convenient (not to mention the measurements would be prettier) if you doubled the recipe**

**Red sugar sprinkles look really good on top[: **

"Simply Blueberry" Muffins

Our pantry pretty much has nothing in it but flour, sugar, and canned vegetables right now, so of course this would be the time that I'm craving sweets like crazy. Luckily you don't need much to make muffins. Haha. I love how simple these are! They're tasty, too, so win win[: I think next time I'll try 'em with cherries.

Serves: 10
Muffins:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 cup soy milk ( I use Silk Plain light)
1/4 cup oil
1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)

Preheat oven to 400F.
Place baking cups in a muffin pan. Sift the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder together in a mixing bowl. Stir in the soy milk and oil and mix until well combined.
Fold in the blueberries. Pour the batter into baking cups (3/4 of the way) and bake for 25-30 minutes.

Pure and simple. [:

**These would be good with really any kind of berry. Be creative, try all kinds of different fruits. [:**

Tofu Scramble

I made this a couple of days ago and just now got the picture uploaded:]. It's a simple, modified version of the scrambled tofu recipe in Vegan With A Vengeance<3 (in my opinion, all of you should own a copy of this book). I never ever eat breakfast -it usually makes me sick- but I'd never had scrambled tofu before so I decided to try it. It was really good! My whole family ate it, even my sister and her vegiphobe fiance (although, I'm not sure he knew that he wasn't actually eating eggs, haha). So I was so excited about it that I felt like I needed to share this recipe with all of you, whoever you are [:

Serves: 5-6
Scramble:
1 tablespoon canola oil (it calls for olive oil, but I'm allergic:[ )
1 medium sized yellow onion, chopped into 1/2 inch chunks
2 cups thinly sliced baby bella mushrooms
2-3 cloves minced garlic
1 pound extra-firm tofu, drained
juice of 1/2 lemon
chives(optional)

Spice blend:
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed with fingers (I didn't have any so I used marjoram)
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 + 1/2 teaspoons salt

Salsa

Heat the oil in a skillet on medium heat. saute the onions until softened and golden (about 3 minutes); add the mushrooms and saute them for about 5 minutes; add the garlic and saute for 2 minutes. Mix in the spice blend for about 15 seconds, or until well combined.
Crumble in the tofu with your fingers (make sure not to crush it! you want it chunky). Cook for about 15 minutes stirring occasionally, scraping the bottom of the skillet to prevent sticking (if it does start to stick, you can add splashes of water or lower the heat a little). Mix in the lemon juice and chives. Take off of the heat.
Serve with salsa.

**This would also taste good served with guacamole**
**If you like the salsa with it, you could add one cup of salsa at the end and cook for a minute extra**

Lemon Cheescake

This isn't vegan!!The recipe originally was, actually, but I really didn't like the taste of the veg cream "cheese" that I had. Sooo, I just substituted everything and gave it to my family:]. It's really easy to convert back to the original though; I used the same measurements and everything just switched out veg "cheese" for the real thing, egg-replacer for eggs.. you catch my drift. Anyway, I'm guessing it was pretty good because the whole thing was gone in just a few hours haha.

Serves: 10-12
Crust:
(you can use a store bought crust for this to save time, I made one)
1 + 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
5 tablespoons of melted butter
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

Filling:
3 eggs
6 tablespoons of water
24 ounces cream cheese
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon lemon zest (remember, only the yellow part!)

Topping:
fresh, sliced strawberries (long-ways)
sliced lemon

Lightly oil a 9 in. springform pan.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Mix together the graham cracker crumbs and melted butter, sugar, and cinnamon (if using) until moist. Firmly press the mixture evenly throughout the bottom of the pan. Bake until it is lightly browned and firm (about 10-15 min.).
Keep your oven on 350 degrees[:
Using a hand mixer (or if you don't have one you can use a standard mixer), beat the cream cheese and the eggs together for about 30 seconds until creamy. Mix in the sugar, vanilla, lemon juice, and lemon zest.
Scrape the batter onto the crust, making sure the top is smooth. Bake for about 50 - 55 minutes, just until the center barely jiggles when you tap it (It's okay if it puffs up or turns a golden brown). Let it cool in the pan for at least an hour so that it stays intact when you unmold it(you could even refrigerate it to make sure it's completely cooled).
Line the edges with the strawberries and garnish with a couple of lemon slices, then cover and refrigerate it for at least two hours before serving.

**tip: Try not to over-beat the batter or else the cheescake will crack.**

This was my first time EVER using a spring form pan. I love them now[:
Also, my dad just recently got a hand mixer! I don't know how I ever got by without one<3 I think one of these days I'm going to get myself a light green one, they're just too cute. Besides, I'm not sure my parents would appreciate me stealing theirs when I move out..

Time-Warp Lemon Squares

I have tried sooo many recipes for these (really, it's ridiculous), but thankfully I've finally found one:]. I was so worried after the first couple of tries with different recipes that it was going to be impossible to veganize these, but they're amazing. Like baked lemonade on a yummy crust. :o Seriously, I would sit and eat a whole batch of them if I could. And, to top everything off, they're pretty easy to make! Here's the recipe:

Serves: 16
Crust:
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons margarine (I use Smart Balance light, but Earthbalance works just fine)
1/2 cup granulated sugar

Filling:
2 + 1/4 cups granulated sugar
9 tablespoons all purpose flour ( or 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon)
3 teaspoon vanilla
1 + 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/8 teaspoon salt
zest and juice of six fresh lemons (you can use the pre-bottled juice if necessary)
Yellow food coloring (optional)

Topping:
powdered sugar (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Blend the margarine and sugar together until creamy. Add the flour and mix until you get a slightly crumbly consistency. Firmly press into an 8 x 8 inch pan. Bake for 15 min.
While the crust is baking, sift together the sugar, flour, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest (make sure to only zest the yellow of the lemon, don't get too much of the white or they will have a slightly bitter taste). Add the vanilla and lemon juice and incorporate well. Stir in a few drops of food coloring if using. Pour mixture over the crust, and bake 20 minutes more, or until set.
After you take them out, let them cool completely before cutting them (you can even chill them in the fridge).
Sprinkle powdered sugar on top just before serving[:

**Tip: These taste even better after letting them sit overnight!**