This May Be The Best Batch Yet

Before I get to the topic of today's post, I just want to thank all of you for your understanding and continued support - especially regarding the issues discussed in my previous video post.

The blogging world is full of such wonderful people, and I am pleased to be a part of it - so thank you again :-)


And now to really thank you, I am about to reveal perhaps the best batch yet of my all-time favorite treat. What's that again, you may be wondering??

Blondies, of course!!

While reading the latest (February 2009) issue of Vegetarian Times magazine, I stumbled upon a recipe for White Chocolate Blondie Bites - I immediately thought to myself, "How perfectly tantalizing do those sound??" and proceeded to bookmark the recipe.

Since the original recipe is neither vegan nor gluten-free (gee thanks, Vegetarian Times, haha), I checked to make sure that I had my "usual substitution" ingredients on-hand; and I also wanted to make sure that I had the "add-in" ingredients listed in the original recipe as well.

Let's see... white chocolate chips (a vegan version, of course)?? Check. Sliced almonds?? Check. Shredded Coconut?? Ch...

Wait, no check. I was extremely unpleased to discover that I did not have shredded coconut on-hand (grr!!) - what was I to do about this??

After much thought, I finally came up with a fun, slightly-daring substitute for the shredded coconut: I used a Coconut Cream Pie flavor Larabar instead!! Oh yes, I really did.

Once I gathered all of the necessary ingredients, I set off to my kitchen in order to veganize and "gluten-free-ize" the original recipe.

By the end of my baking adventure, I had created a batch of...



...White Chocolate-Coconut-Almond Blondies. These chewy, luscious, dense blondies were bursting with flavor - especially from the rich white chocolate chips, tender almond slices, and chunks of the Coconut Cream Pie Larabar. Pure bliss in an 8"x8" pan, if you ask me.


And now for the "taste-tester" reviews:

My parents simply declared that these blondies "must be made again - they are by far the best batch yet!!"; and here is what The Co-Worker thought:



**Here is The Co-Worker's official review of the White Chocolate-Coconut-Almond Blondies**:


"It’s a coffee cake… it’s a bar… it’s a snack…

No it’s dessert! It’s the white chocolate-coconut-almond blondie!

It tastes like all of the prior mentioned “blondie treats.” It doesn’t weigh you down with too much sweetness.

It’s a light, fluffy treat… that you could enjoy with morning coffee, as dessert after a fine meal, or as an afternoon pick me up.

I loved the coconut which really was the exclamation point to a wonderful treat!"




Since these blondies were obviously quite favorable among my "taste-testers" and myself, I feel that the recipe is "share-worthy" - so here you go!! Please let me know what you think/if you try it!!:




VeggieGirl's White Chocolate-Coconut-Almond Blondies

(**Adapted from the White Chocolate Blondie Bites recipe from the February 2009 issue of Vegetarian Times magazine**)




• 6 ounces (1 single-serving sized container) plain or vanilla vegan "yogurt" (I used So Delicious Coconut Milk Yogurt - it's soy-free!!)

• 1/4 cup canola oil

• 1 cup sugar (I used organic turbinado sugar)

• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

• 2 teaspoons molasses (I used the Plantation brand of blackstrap molasses)

• 1.25 cups flour (I used Bob's Red Mill GF All Purpose Baking Flour)

• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda

• 1.5 cups vegan white chocolate chips (I used the VeganSweets brand of vegan white chocolate chips)

• 1 cup almonds, finely-sliced/slivered

• 1 Coconut Cream Pie Larabar, chopped into small chunks**

• Nondairy "milk" of choice, added to the batter as needed (I used Living Harvest hempmilk)




Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Lightly coat an 8"x8" baking pan with nonstick cooki ng spray.

In a large bowl, add in the "yogurt," canola oil, turbinado sugar, vanilla extract, and molasses. Mix well.

In the same bowl, add in the flour, baking soda, white chocolate chips, sliced/slivered almonds, and Larabar chunks. As the mixture starts to thicken up/combine, add as much nondairy "milk" as you need (but not too much) so that the batter is mixable.

Pour mixture into the 8"x8" baking pan (coated generously with nonstick cooking spray).

Bake for about 32-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the blondies comes out clean.


Makes 16 blondies.


**Note: If you happen to have shredded coconut on-hand, then feel free to substitute that for the Coconut Cream Pie Larabar.



Considering how much I adore blondies, I really must continue to emphasize just how significant it is that this batch was labeled as "the best one yet."

I look forward to baking more batches of these goodies very soon - perhaps in my ample free time...


HA!! I can only hope ;-)

Episode 3 on VeggieGirl TV

That's right!! Yet another episode featuring yours truly, VeggieGirl, from my own kitchen :-)


Here are the topics that are featured and discussed:


- End of Week 2 update (with school)

- So what's happening with the dancing??

- Next baking project, and its association with a blogger's fundraiser



Are you ready for the premiere of episode 3?? If so, then please sit back, relax, grab a snack, and enjoy the show.

(**Duration of episode: just 3 minutes and 30 seconds in length!!**)

No More Delays... Here's The Recipe!!

Well, I am relieved to report that I physically survived my first week of classes... but emotionally?? Barely.

While I am quite excited about the content of each class and enjoy my professors, I am quite nervous and extremely stressed out about the workload.

Yes, I realize that none of this is shocking, since I did anticipate a massive workload; but not to the degree that I am actually in for during this semester, in each class. This weekend, I already have several papers to write, presentations to prepare for, quizzes to study for, and interviews to conduct. Welcome back to school, I guess.

But enough about all of this - my next post will be a video post, so maybe I will discuss a little bit more about this topic then (if anyone is actually interested, haha).

Today's post is supposed to be fun, positive, and (most importantly) delicious - so let's get on with it, shall we??


In my previous post, I mentioned that I baked a second treat (other than the cookies) and would be sharing the recipe for it. Well, I always keep my promises; but I am going to share a little more about the treat before actually doing so (I know, I am always teasing, haha).

Treat #2 features a wholesome mix of bananas, figs, and pistachios in a "usually wholesome" form...


(**Photo courtesy of Kath, since she was one of my taste-testers - and I forgot to photograph the muffins myself, haha**)



A batch of Banana-Fig-Pistachio Muffins. Considering how much I love all three of these ingredients, you would think that I would be able to come up with this combination sooner - but oh well, better late than never, right?? ;-)

Even though Treat #1 was presented to you sans recipe, never fear!! Treat #2 is about to be "fully revealed":


(**Once again, photo courtesy of Kath**)



VeggieGirl's Banana-Fig-Pistachio Muffins

(**Adapted from the Banana-Date-Walnut Muffins recipe from the Fatfree Vegan Kitchen blog**)



• 1.75 cups flour (I used Bob's Red Mill GF All Purpose Baking Flour)

• 1 tablespoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

• 1/2 cup sugar (I used organic turbinado sugar)

• 3 overripe bananas, mashed

• 1/2 cup nondairy "milk" of choice, with more added to the batter as needed (**Note: I used Living Harvest hempmilk)

• 1/3 cup applesauce

• 1/2 cup shelled raw pistachios, finely chopped

• Fig spread, for center of muffins (I used the Dalmatia brand of fig spread)




Preheat oven to 400°F (240°C). Lightly coat a 12-cup muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray.

In a large bowl, add in the bananas, nondairy "milk," turbinado sugar, and applesauce. Mix well.

In the same bowl, add in the flour, baking powder, and chopped pistachios. As the mixture starts to thicken up/combine, add as much additional nondairy "milk" as you need (but not too much) so that the batter is mixable.

Pour mixture into the 12-cup muffin tin (coated generously with nonstick cooking spray), filling each cup a little less than half-way.

Drop a dollop of fig spread into each muffin cup, and then proceed to top that with the remaining batter.

Bake for about 16-18 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffins comes out clean.


Makes 12 muffins.




The "taste-testers" for these muffins were...

...my parents (who loved the "gooey fig center and hearty pistachios"), Kath (whose fabulous review can be found via this link), and... The Co-Worker!! Yes, he is back and with yet another one of his famous reviews:



**Here is The Co-Worker's official review of the Banana-Fig-Pistachio Muffins**:


"LET ME START OFF BY SAYING THIS REVIEW COULD BE TAINTED…WHY?? WELL, I’VE BEEN TRYING TO EAT HEALTHIER SINCE THE NEW YEAR CAME… AND IN BETWEEN CARROTS, ORANGES, APPLES AND PRETZELS ALL MEASURED OUT TO HEALTHY PROPORTIONS… THE BANANA FIG PISTACHIO MUFFIN TASTED WONDERUL.

I HAD IT LATE IN THE DAY AND IT SEEMED TO HAVE GIVEN ME AN ENERGY BOOST… NO KIDDING. IT WAS MOIST WITHOUT BEING MESSY… IT WAS SWEET WITHOUT BEING TOO MUCH…. NONE OF THE INGREDIENTS OVERPOWER THE OTHERS, BUT RATHER WORK IN PERFECT HARMONY TO CREATE A GREAT MUFFIN….

TRY ONE, YOU’LL LIKE IT!"




(**And again, photo courtesy of Kath**)


One treat. Many reviews. All fabulous. Hooray!! :-) I hope that you enjoyed this "recipe reveal," as well as the upcoming long weekend.



I will "see" you in my next post, on VeggieGirl TV (since it will be a video post).

Baking Before It's "Back-To-School" Time

Ahh, the weekend - normally I would be incredibly psyched for such an occasion; however, this particular weekend has made me feel a little anxious, nervous, and yet excited as well.

Why, you may be wondering?? Well, this is the weekend before second-semester classes begin - back to the studying, paper-writing, researching... oh, the life of a journalism major, haha ;-)

While I do wish that my winter break (or even just this weekend) was longer, I am looking forward to continuing my education and taking the classes that I chose for this semester. In case you are wondering, I am enrolled in the following classes: Introduction to Communication Research, Argumentation & Debate, Oral Interpretation Literature, and Convergent Broadcast Journalism.

These classes will undoubtedly pose great challenges and involve a massive amount of work, but I am feeling (almost) confident and ready to take on all of the assignments and new learning experiences.

Since I anticipate a lack of proper baking time during the upcoming semester, I took what time I had lately to bake up some goodies. First, we have a sumptuous, "reminiscent-of-autumn" treat:



A batch of Pumpkin-Oatmeal-Raisin Cookies. Since I closely followed the recipe from the Vegan with a Vengeance cookbook (aside from making my "usual substitutions" - gluten-free flour, hempmilk, etcetera), I am afraid that I cannot post the recipe for these cookies - sorry!! But I promise you that VwaV is a worthy cookbook, so why not check it out?? :-)

The "taste-testers" for these cookies were...

...my parents (who thought that the cookies were "a great mix of chewy and slightly-crunchy; and the raisins were nice and sweet"), my grandfather (who loved that the cookies were "thick, tasty, and great with either soymilk, coffee, or tea), and Miss Gliding Calm, who provided the following "official review" of these cookies:


"VeggieGirl's Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies were such an exciting treat to receive in the mail! As I opened her beautifully packaged tin, I found the plump-est, heart-iest cookies. One bite, and I was very pleased.

Normally I'm not a big fan of raisins in my cookies, but these were so moist and PLUMP. The cookies were packed full of oats, and not overpoweringly sweet. They were very filling and DENSE, and tasted most like a breakfast bar or cookie.

Though these were pretty darn fabulous when eaten plain, my favorite way to eat them became toasting them up and topping them with some Smart Balance. This was HEAVEN. Crispy on the outside, ooey gooey soft raisins on the inside, and a warm crumbling texture th at tasted so guilty!

I was so pleased to get the opportunity to taste test for VeggieGirl, and after this (and trying her AMAZING banana bread), I would be happy to lend my services again. (Who wouldn't want to?) *Wink. Wink.* Thanks VeggieGirl for great training fuel for skating!"





I am quite elated that these cookies were so well-received by my "taste-testers"; and I personally was in favor of the sweet, plump raisins and the pronounced pumpkin flavor - divine!! Or should I say, "holy yum!!"



And where is the other treat that I baked up recently, you may be wondering?? Well, I am afraid that you must stay tuned until my next post (which will feature the treat, its recipe, and more reviews), to find out more ;-)





**On another note...

It's Giveaway Time!! And what does that mean?? FREE STUFF!! :-)

This month, ZestyCook has the pleasure of giving away 2 free books. He is giving away a how-to book for today's photographers, Fundamentals of Photography by renowned author, Tom Ang.

Novice or Advanced, Film or Digital, this book is your guide to everything photography related today.

Be sure to head over to ZestyCook's (on this linked post!!) and sign up by leaving a comment. And don't forget to subscribe for an additional entry!!

Oh, Bring Us a Figgy... Blondie??

Yes, you read that blog post title correctly - instead of baking a traditional Figgy Pudding dessert (as featured in the well-known Christmas carol, "We Wish You A Merry Christmas") during the holiday season, I opted to bake a fig-containing dessert that would appeal to my "taste-testers" and especially to me: a batch of Fig-Almond Blondies.



(**The above photo was featured in my previous post; but I am featuring it again, as a visual reminder**)



As I mentioned in my previous post, each of the desserts that I made for my annual Christmas Eve celebration were completely devoured by everyone in my family, by the end of the night - and the plate of Fig-Almond Blondies was the first to be completely wiped clean ;-)

Although the response among my family members regarding the blondies was mutual (and highly-favorable), I thought that my dad's response was particularly noteworthy:


"I ate four of the Fig-Almond Blondies over the course of the day - does that tell you how delicious these are?? The large chunks of almonds and juicy figs blend perfectly together in this sensational treat for a mouthwatering delight. Highly recommended. More, please!!"



I must admit that, out of all the blondie varieties that I have featured on this blog (and there have been many!!), this batch/blondie-variety is (dare I say it??) my top-favorite so far. So, as promised, here is the recipe:



(**The plate underneath the blondies was one of the Secret Santa gifts that I received from Miss Eating Bender - she has wonderful taste!!**)




VeggieGirl's Fig-Almond Blondies

(**Adapted from the Raspberry-Almond Blondies recipe from Martha Stewart's cooking website**)




• 6 ounces (1 single-serving sized container) plain or vanilla vegan "yogurt" (I used So Delicious Coconut Milk Yogurt - it's soy-free!!)

• 1/4 cup canola oil

• 1 cup sugar (I used organic turbinado sugar)

• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

• 2 teaspoons molasses (I used the Plantation brand of blackstrap molasses)

• 1.25 cups flour (I used Bob's Red Mill GF All Purpose Baking Flour)

• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda

• 1 cup almonds, finely-sliced/slivered

• 10 dried black mission figs, finely chopped

• Nondairy "milk" of choice, added to the batter as needed (**Note: I used Living Harvest hempmilk)




Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Lightly coat an 8"x8" baking pan with nonstick cooki ng spray.

In a large bowl, add in the "yogurt," canola oil, turbinado sugar, vanilla extract, and molasses. Mix well.

In the same bowl, add in the flour, baking soda, sliced/slivered almonds, and chopped dried figs. As the mixture starts to thicken up/combine, add as much nondairy "milk" as you need (but not too much) so that the batter is mixable.

Pour mixture into the 8"x8" baking pan (coated generously with nonstick cooking spray).

Bake for about 32-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the blondies comes out clean.


Makes 16 blondies.



Although there is obviously no obligation for you to try this (or any) recipe, I do hope that you will consider doing so - you just may find yourself rethinking that whole "figgy pudding" thing around the holidays next year ;-)




And even though I am a day late, I want to wish all of you a happy & healthy new year!!