habanero peach cobbler

Two healthful basics - fruit and bread - are provided in each serving of this desert.

1/2c. sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
a dash of cayenne
4 cups (6 medium) sliced peaches
2-3 diced habaneros
1 teaspoon lemon juice



3 tablespoons vegetable shortening
1 cup all-purpose flour*
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup soymilk

* if using self-rising flour, omit baking powder & salt

 
directions: Heat oven to 400 degrees. mix 1/2c. sugar, cornstarch, cayenne and cinnamon into a 2-quart saucepan. stir in peaches, habaneros, and lemon juice. cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils. boil and stir 1 minute. pour into ungreased 2-quart casserole; keep peach mixture hot in oven.

cut shortening into flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, the baking powder and salt until mixture resembles fine crumbs. stir in milk. drop dough by 6 spoonfuls onto hot peach mixture.

bake until topping is golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. serve warm.

about the recipe: when i picked up a bucket of habaneros at the farmer's market for $5, i had no idea what i was going to do with them all. i looked up salsas and jams and all sorts of fun projects. then it hit me one night at work - peach cobbler. the dash of cayenne in with the cinnamon was my own addition. i believe i added a touch of cinnamon to bread mixture as well. i was worried that adding diced habaneros into the mixture would make the desert peachy until i got a bite of habanero, but i was wrong! the peaches absorbed in the heat of the habanero in a surprisingly pleasant way. my favorite part baking this was taking advice from my friend carlos and listening to It's Clobbering Time & the rest of Blood, Sweat, and No Tears. I mean seriously, who would want that in a clobbler?

from the book:
Betty Crocker's Cookbook
7th Printing, 1982
isbn 0-307-09800-1

what's more american than donuts?

directions: here!

about the recipe: when i saw this recipe on the Dainty Squid blog, i knew that i had to try baking once more! and what better time than as a celebration of our great nation. the most exciting part for me was that i used natural means for the food coloring! i used red cabbage for the blue & beets for the red, isn't that fun?

unfortunately, as you can tell... the beet-coloring was the only one to stick. the middle was supposed to be the blue (from cabbage).

directions for the food coloring: i used a bunch of beets (beet bunch) for coloring, but you can also use a can of beets. i cut up the stems, removing the leafy green, and cut up a few of the beets. i filled the pot with water until the beets were covered. then boiled them and waited for the water to become very red. after about a half hour i strained the juice into a cup and composted the remainder. i then added a tablespoon of vinegar as it's supposed to help the color set. oh that reminds me! ha: when making the donuts, i didn't add any vinegar as i was mixing the beet coloring in and didn't want extra vinegar in the recipe. they turned out great!

overall great. would bake again! next time i'm going to try to make a coconut glaze. oh the donuted possiblities!

chocochipcookiesss.

(makes two dozen two inch cookies.)

1/2 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. canola oil
1/4 c. nondairy milk
1 tablespoon tapioca flour
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 c. all purpose flower
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teapsoon salt
3/4 c. chocolate chips (i used carob chips)

directions: 

Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly grease two large light metal baking sheets.

Mix together sugars, oil, milk and tapioca flour in a mixing bowl. Use a strong fork and mix really well, for about 2 minutes, until it resembles smooth caramel. There is a chemical reaction when sugar and oil collide, so it’s important that you don’t get lazy about that step. Mix in the vanilla.
Add 1 cup of the flour, the baking soda and salt. Mix until well incorporated. Mix in the rest of the flour. Fold in the chocolate chips.

For 3 inch cookies, roll the dough into about ping pong ball size balls. Flatten them out in your hands to about 2 1/2 inches. They will spread just a bit. Place on a baking sheet and bake for about 13 minutes until they are just a little browned around the edges. I usually get 16 out of these so I do two rounds of eight cookies. Let cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack.

NOM THOSE FUCKERS.


fun fact: i'm horrible at baking. so when i found this recipe on tumblr my first thought was "hey i'm a horrible conventional baker, maybe i'll be a great vegan baker." turns out that this is only half true. i'm an alright vegan baker. the cookies were good, but a little greasy (i think next time i'll add more flour / less oil) and flat as pancakes. i don't blame the last part on the recipe, but on my absolute failure as a baker. this might be coming from cookie jealousy as my grandma makes the best most beautiful deliciously plump cookies on the planet. i was hoping that her skills would have skipped a generation, as my mom is no good at baking too, but alas i've seemed to have inherited my mothers bad baking genes instead. i think the next time i try these i'll either a) use an egg replacer combo vs. canola oil or b) change the oil/flour ratio and use self rising flour or my final option is to c) marry a baker.


p.s. anyone out there know a good cookie recipe? i'm open for suggestions.