One thing about the holiday season is that the temptation is off the charts. Most of us break our diets and give in to our sweet tooth. Well, never fear, because I've found some delicious VEGAN treats that will make your mouth water. The best part is that all of these are vegan and gluten free, so you can have the treats without the guilt. Good for your waistline and the planet. I'm going to make these when I have the time.
Here are seven yummy vegan holiday recipes!
Eggnog ("Banananog")
A delicious twist on conventional eggnog...except with bananas!
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups unsweetened almond milk
2 medium pitted dates, soaked
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Pinch of ground cloves
Pinch of sea salt
2 medium-sized frozen ripe bananas
Throw everything into your blender on high for 30 to 60 seconds until smooth and creamy.
Red Velvet Cupcakes
Red velvet is my absolute favorite, and the cream cheese frosting adds a delicious burst of flavor.
Ingredients:
1 cup soy milk
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
⅓ cup canola oil
2 tablespoons vegetarian red food coloring
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
¼ teaspoons almond extract
1 teaspoon chocolate extract (I never have this! If you don't either, Isa recommends upping the vanilla extract to 2½ teaspoons and almond extract to ½ teaspoon)
Preheat oven to 350ºF and line muffin pans with cupcake liners. Mix together together soy milk and vinegar and set aside to curdle, about 5 - 10 minutes. Add the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into large bowl and mix. Pour in the oil, food coloring, chocolate extract, and almond extract to the curdled soy milk. Combine the ingredients. Gently fold wet ingredients into dry, mixing until large lumps disappear. Fill cupcake liners about two-thirds full (these cupcakes will rise fairly high). Place in preheated oven and bake 18 to 20 minutes, but be sure not to overbake. Use a toothpick inserted in the center to tell--the toothpick will be red, but there should not be any batter or gooey crumbs sticking. When done, let cool for a few minutes then transfer cupcakes to cooling rack to cool completely.
Make cream cheese frosting and put icing. Be sure to use vegan substitutes if desired.
Sugar Cookies
Sugar cookies are a must have when the holidays roll around.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup (1 stick) vegan butter, softened
1/2 cup organic cane sugar + more for topping
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup pumpkin puree (acts as egg substitute)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour + more for rolling into shapes
1/2 Tbsp cornstarch or arrowroot powder (for thickening/binding)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1-2 tsp non-dairy milk (Preferably unsweetened almond or soy milk)
Add slightly-melted butter to a large mixing bowl and cream with a mixer. Combine sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, pumpkin puree, and beat for 1 minute. Set your sifter over something that will catch fall out and add dry ingredients (flour, cornstarch, salt, baking soda and baking powder). Use a spoon to briefly stir, then sift over butter and sugar mixture. Mix until until incorporated, being careful not to over mix. Then add almond milk and mix until a soft dough is formed. Switch to a wooden spoon if it gets too thick. If it appears to wet, mix in a bit more flour. Cover and freeze dough for 15 minutes, or refrigerate for 30-45 minutes (up to overnight). Five minutes before baking, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and position a rack in the center of the oven. Scoop out heaping 1 Tbsp amounts of chilled dough and roll into balls. Alternatively, roll out between two pieces of wax paper, lightly flouring the bottom layer, remove top layer, and cut out shapes. (For shapes, to ensure they keep their form while baking, freeze them on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before baking.) Arrange cookies on a clean baking sheet 2 inches apart to allow for spreading. If you’ve rolled the dough into balls, dip a glass into cane sugar and gently smash down into a disc to help them cook more evenly. Bake on the center rack for 10-12 minutes for (8-10 for cutout shapes), or very slightly golden brown.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls
These look delicious, and the best part of all, the vegan aspect to them makes them not as fattening.
Ingredients:
1/4 cup dairy free butter, melted
1 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
2 cups organic powdered sugar
12 ounce semi-sweet chocolate
Mix the melted non dairy butter and the peanut butter together. Work in the powdered sugar. Roll into as many balls as the mixture yields. Refrigerate for about an hour. Put a piece of waxed paper on a baking sheet. Melt the chocolate over a hot water bath or in a double boiler. Take the peanut butter balls out of the fridge and work with about 6 at a time. Put the unused balls back in the fridge while you are working. Roll each ball in the chocolate and pick up with two forks. Swipe the bottom of the ball against the top rim of the bowl as you lift out so you don't get a blob of chocolate, under the ball on the wax paper. Lay on the wax paper on the cookie sheet. When all the balls are finished place the pan in the refrigerator (or freezer) to harden up. About an hour. You can place each ball in a mini paper cup for looks or just pile in a stack.
Peppermint Bark
Chocolate Peppermint Bark is made with deep rich chocolate that has hints of a minty flavor along with little bits of peppermint candy cane. To top that off it is extremely easy to make.
Ingredients:
2 pounds solid vegan chocolate of your choice. Semi-sweet chocolate is advise, as it is not too sweet.
1 1/4 cups crushed Candy Canes, reserve 1/4 cup for sprinkling on the top *See note below for preparation
1 teaspoon Peppermint Extract
That is it - just three ingredients that give a lot of pleasure. Melt the chocolate. Make sure you do not get one drop of water in the chocolate or it may become hard to work with.
Candy Cane prep - Since you can pulverize the candy cane into powder real quick. Do this by hand not in the food processor. Put the candy canes in a plastic bag and hammer (lightly) all over to get small chunks. You will still get some really tiny pieces but that is fine. Stir in 1 cup of crushed candy canes. Stir in the peppermint (or mint) extract. Turn out onto a large baking sheet. Spread it as evenly as you can all over the baking sheet. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 crushed candy canes all over the top.
Put in the refrigerator for about 1 hour so that it can harden. Take it out of the refrigerator and break into pieces.
Super Simple Hot Cocoa
Delicious vegan hot chocolate that is ridiculously simple to make.
Ingredients:
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1.5 Tbsp dairy-free semisweet chocolate (chips or bar, chopped)
Sweetener of choice (I prefer 1 Tbsp raw sugar or 1/2 packet powdered stevia)
1/8th tsp peppermint extract (optional)
Optional: Coconut whipped cream for topping
Add almond milk to a large mug and microwave for 1 minute. Alternatively, add to a saucepan over medium heat. Once milk is warm, add cocoa powder, chocolate and sweetener and whisk to combine. Put back in microwave or continue cooking on stove top until completely combined and has reached your preferred temperature. Taste and adjust sweetness as needed. Lastly, add in the peppermint extract if you desire. Stir, and top with coconut whipped cream.
Mexican Snickerdoodles
A deliciously chocolate snickerdoodle with a burst of cinnamon and cayenne pepper.
Ingredients:
1⅔ cup flour
¼ cup cocoa powder
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp red cayenne pepper
1 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 cup sugar
½ cup canola oil
¼ cup maple syrup
2 tsp vanilla
3 TBS almond milk
Dusting sugar:
⅓ cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl, shift together the flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon, red cayenne pepper, soda, and salt In another large bowl, add sugar, oil, maple syrup, vanilla, and almond milk. Mix together to combine. Slowly add your wet ingredients to your dry ingredients, mixing in between each add in. Mix until combined. Batter will be stiff. With your hands, scoop about 1 TBS of batter, roll into a ball, and then flatten into a disc. Dip disc into dusting sugar (cinnamon and sugar mixed together) and place sugar side up on the cookie sheet. Continue until all batter has been used. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.
Cookies will crack while cooling, store in an airtight container.
Will you make these? Which looks the most yummy to you?
Thanks for reading and look for a second part!
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