Anyone out there?

Hi friends and readers!
I've been working on this blog for a couple of years now, sharing some of my favorite non-dairy recipes, baking tips, and family stories. If there is anyone out there reading this, would you please leave me a comment, suggestion, complaint, or something. Pretty please!
Thanks,
Jessica

Carrot Souffle

Don't let the name scare you. Yes, carrots can be dessert with delicious results.

This recipe was my first attempt at making a souffle and as my fav foodie friend said, "I hit it out of the park!"

Ingredients
2 pounds carrots, chopped
1/2 c melted non-dairy butter
1 c brown sugar (note: I substituted 2 Tbs of maple syrup for some of the brown sugar for more flavor)
3 Tbs all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs, beaten
2 Tbs powdered sugar, divided

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add carrots and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and mash the carrots. (You can use a blender, mixer, potato masher, or ricer if you have one.)

Mix the carrot mash and the non-dairy butter, brown sugar, flour, baking powder, vanilla and eggs. Mix well and transfer to an ungreased 2-quart baking dish, or ramekins for individual servings. Sprinkle with 1 Tbs of powdered sugar.

Bake for 30 minutes. Dust with remaining powdered sugar before serving.

A big thank you to my mom's friend Lloyce who sent me this recipe!

Angeletti with Orange Frosting Cookie Bouquet

These cake-like cookies were a big hit at Valentine's Day! After a day or two, the cookies became a little crunchy on the outside, but they remained soft on the inside and were perfect for dunking.

Ingredients
1/2 cup dairy-free butter
3/4 cups sugar
1/4 cup dairy-free milk (I prefer almond milk)
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp almond extract
3 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder (NOTE: Tablespoon, not teaspoon)
1/4 tsp salt

2 cups confectioners' sugar (powdered sugar)
3-4 Tbsp fresh squeezed orange juice
1/2 Tbsp grated orange zest

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a large bowl, whisk butter, sugar, almond milk, vanilla and eggs. In a separate bowl mix flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir flour mixture into butter mixture until evenly blended.

Cover dough and let stand for 5 minutes.

With floured hands, shape dough into balls (or hearts, etc.) and place on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake cookies 7-8 minutes or until the cookies puff and turn light brown on the bottom. Let cookies cookies cool on a wire rack.

Mix the powdered sugar, orange juice and orange zest together to make a thick icing or glaze. You can add color to the icing at this time, if desired. Also, you can substitute lemon or other flavors for the orange.

Once the cookies are completely cool, gently spread a teaspoon of icing on each cookie and sprinkle with colored sugar. Allow iced cookies to dry on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper.

To make the cookie bouquet, place each cookie on a skewer. Place a piece of Styrofoam inside a tall vase (found in the floral decorating section at the arts and crafts store), then carefully place cookies on a stick in the Styrofoam. Fill in with tissue paper, ribbons, etc.

Oatmeal Pecan Lace Cookies w/ Chocolate

My aunt and uncle sent their favorite "personal cookie baker" a few cookie books for Christmas. This is one of the recipes, with a little chocolate added for good measure. Chocolate makes everything better!

This recipe is dairy-free, gluten-free, and it tastes good!

Ingredients
1-1/4 cups uncooked quick oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 finely chopped pecans
1/3 cup dairy-free butter, melted
1 egg, beaten
1/2 tsp vanilla (I prefer Mexican vanilla)
Dark chocolate melted

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Mix oats, sugar, baking powder and pecans together in a large bowl. Add butter, egg and vanilla to oatmeal mixture and mix well.

Drop teaspoonfuls of batter onto parchment paper-lined cookies sheets. Leave at least 2 inches between each cookie because cookies will spread while baking.

Bake 8-12 minutes until the edges turn golden. Let cookies rest on cookie sheet for a couple minutes before placing on a wire rack to cool. I turned the cookies upside down on the rack, so as they cooled I could carefully peel the parchment paper off of the bottom of the cookies.

Melt dark chocolate in a double boiler over medium-low heat. Drizzle across the top of cookies and let set. Cookies will remain soft, particularly if you put them in an air-tight container.

Candy Cane Ice Cream

Who says that you can't eat ice cream in the winter?!? For our Christmas dinner I made this homemade candy cane ice cream that was to die for!

Ingredients
6 egg yolks
1-1/4 cup canned coconut milk (unsweetened)
1-1/4 cup almond or soy milk
3/4 cup white sugar
1-1/2 tsp peppermint extract
4-5 candy canes, plastic removed and crushed

Directions
Beat the eggs, milks and sugar together. Then heat on medium heat, stirring frequently until nearly boiling. Remove from heat and let cool. Mix in peppermint extract and then strain into an ice cream maker. (Or you can freeze it in a shallow pan, mixing it at least once during the freezing process.)

Once the ice cream begins to thicken, add the crushed candy canes. Let the ice cream solidify in the freezer for a couple of hours before serving.

Apfelkuchen (Apple Cake)

This apple crumb cake is adapted from a recipe that my Oma makes. It is a delicious, not-too-sweet cake that you can serve for breakfast or with coffee or tea. Although, a friend made it for Thanksgiving dinner and it was a favorite at the party!


Cake (bottom layer)

1/4 cup non-dairy butter

1 egg

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 tsp almond extract

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/4 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1/4 cup water

Filling
5-6 medium apples, peeled, cored and sliced - any variety of baking apples will do
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar (more or less to taste)

Crumb Topping
1/4 cup non-dairy butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix the cake ingredients in a bowl. Then press into a greased spring-form pan, being sure to press the cake up the walls of the pan. Then mix the apples, cinnamon and sugar in a bowl. Line the cake with apples. If you use at least two different varieties of apples, you can layer them like in the photos. Using your fingers or two butter knives, coarsely mix the crumb topping, leaving large crumbs. Lightly sprinkle crumbs on top of the apples.

Bake the cake covered for 30 minutes. Then uncover and bake for another 45 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown. Let the cake cool before removing the sides of the spring-form pan.

Calling all Cookie Monsters!

We've been busy little elves making cookies and more cookies! We made 32 dozen cookies in one day, but we're not done yet. Every surface in my kitchen was covered in cookies - what a delicious sight!

One lady ordered 27 dozen cookies to be gift wrapped and shipped to family, then she said with a huge smile, "My Christmas shopping is done!"

We've also had orders for cookie trays for parties. Imagine all of the time you will save by letting us make your fresh, homemade cookies for your holiday parties. You can even claim that you made them yourself; we won't tell!

I also spent a morning at my CSA selling cookies to fellow members. It was a great success, especially for my first time. Once people tasted the cookies, they told me that they "had to buy some."

Once again, the Everything cookie was the favorite. One lady described it as "a different cookie in every bite!"