Rhubarb Meringue Cupcakes

Another experiment with rhubarb! Yum!

 

Ingredients:

200 g rhubarb

200 g sugar

1 tsp vanilla

130 ml milk (I used rice milk)

1 tbsp lemon juice

200 g flour

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsp cinnamon, optional

1 egg

2 tbsp vegetable oil

 

Meringue

3 egg whites

120 g sugar

1 tsp vanilla

 

Instructions:

1. Wash the rhubarb and dice it into fairly small pieces. Mix it with the sugar and vanilla.

2. Mix the milk and lemon juice and set aside.

3. Stir together the flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, and cinnamon.

4. Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture and slowly add the egg, oil, and milk, stirring the whole time.

5. Add the rhubarb.

6. Pour the rhubarb mixture into cupcake/muffin cases until about half full. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until mostly cooked, but still slightly gooey in the middle.

7. Meanwhile, whisk the egg whites, sugar, and vanilla into meringue. Spoon meringue on top of the cupcakes and bake for another 4-6 minutes.

Rhubarb Muffins

If you frost them, they are rhubarb cupcakes. I made a simple vegan buttercream (butter, icing sugar, and vanilla, plus added chopped rhubarb), but M preferred them without the frosting. You can also make rhubarb curd first, then blend it into muffin batter.

 

Ingredients:

1½ cups flour

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup vegetable oil or coconut oil

1/3 cup milk (I used rice milk)

1 egg

1 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp salt

1 cup rhubarb

 

Instructions:

1. Mix all the ingredients for the muffins except the rhubarb. Once well mixed, chop and add in the rhubarb.

2. Place into muffin cases, filling each one about ¾ of the way up.

3.Bake for 20-25 minutes at 190 C.

Vegan Hot Fudge

I had an urge for hot fudge, so this is what I made one evening. It wasn’t as thick as fudge, but it worked on top of Booja Booja ice cream – delicious.

 

Ingredients:

 

1 cup coconut milk (you can also use almond milk, rice milk, etc)

½ cup cocoa

6 tbsp caster sugar

2 tsp vanilla

 

Instructions:

1. Mix the ingredients together and warm them over low heat until slightly thickened.

2. Serve as desired.

Rhubarb and Raspberry Flan Bars

These have a lovely custardy consistency.

 

Ingredients:

 

pastry

¾ cup vegetable oil

1 tsp vanilla

60 g icing sugar

250 g flour

 

filling

60 g flour

400 g sugar

1 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ginger

1 tsp vanilla

4 eggs

300 g rhubarb

100 g raspberries (or strawberries)

 

Instructions:

1. Mix the ingredients for the pastry together and press into the bottom and sides of an oven-safe dish. Fill with baking beans or rice and bake for 10-12 minutes at 180 C.

2. Mix the flour, sugar, salt, and spices together. Beat the eggs and add, mixing well.

3. Wash and dice the rhubarb. Wash the raspberries. Add them to the egg mixture.

4. Pour the fruit mixture over the pastry and bake for 25-30 minutes at 180 C.

Rhubarb Spice Cake

I love rhubarb in the springtime and I try to make lots of different dishes! This was wonderfully moist, and M loved it with a bit of Oatly cream.

 

Ingredients:

130 g vegetable oil, plus extra for the pan

130 g sugar (use dark sugar if you prefer)

200 ml water

4 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp mixed spice

2 tsp ginger

50 g honey

1 tbsp malt extract, if desired (molasses could work too, or you can leave it out)

4 tsp baking powder

300 g flour

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

2 eggsba

400 g rhubarb

 

Instructions:

1. Whisk the oil and sugar together.

2. Boil the water.

3. Add the spices, honey, malt extract, baking powder, and flour to the oil and whisk again.

4. Mix the bicarbonate of soda and water together and leave to fizz for a few moments.

5. Add it to the mixture.

6. Beat the eggs and mix them in. Make sure all is blended thoroughly.

7. Wash and chop the rhubarb into small pieces and stir into the mixture.

8. Pour into a lightly greased oven-safe dish.

9. Bake for about 30 minutes at 180 C, checking after 20.

Rhubarb and Ginger Compote

This can be served on its own or mixed with yogurt or even topped with meringue (2 egg whites whisked with 1 tsp vanilla and 70 g sugar) and then baked. I did the latter and I sprinkled some almond flakes on the meringue as well. Delicious.

 

Ingredients:

400 g rhubarb

2 tsp ginger

50 g sugar

1-2 tbsp liquid (I used rice milk, but water or ginger ale would be fine too)

1/3 cup ground almonds (if you like a looser texture, you can leave it out)

 

Instructions:

1. Wash and chop the rhubarb.

2. Mix it in a saucepan with the ginger, sugar, and liquid.

3. Cook over low heat for 6-12 minutes, stirring now and then.

4. Mix in the almonds, if using.

Vegan Carrot Cake

I love carrot cake, so I was eager to make it on a recent spring afternoon. There was a wonderful smell coming from the oven as M made her way home.

 

I have also tried grating in one or two stalks of rhubarb and adding ¼  cup rhubarb curd for some extra flavour.

 

Ingredients:

2½ cups carrot (about 2 big carrots)

2 cups flour

¼ cup ground almonds (you can leave this out if you want)

1 cup sugar

¼ cup brown sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

3 tsp cinnamon

¾ cup sunflower oil, plus extra for the pan

¼ cup rice milk (or other milk)

1 tsp lemon juice

½ cup raisins

½ cup flaked almonds (or, yes, if you prefer another nut, use that, but M is allergic)

 

Instructions:

1. Grate the carrots.

2. Mix all the dry ingredients together. Stir in the oil, milk, and lemon juice and mix well.

3. Stir in the carrots, raisins, and almonds.

4. Lightly oil an oven-safe baking dish and then pour in the batter.

5. Bake for 30-35 minutes at 180 C.

Vegan Rhubarb Cupcakes

M’s mum gave me a bunch of rhubarb from her garden, so I decided to do something with my rhubarb curd recipe. Sweet rhubarb cupcakes seemed liked a good idea, and they were perfect for a late spring afternoon.

 

For the curd, you can replace 1 tbsp flour with 1 egg, if you eat eggs.

 

Ingredients:

 

rhubarb curd

350 g rhubarb

zest and juice from 1 orange

30 g sugar

2 tbsp flour

 

cupcakes

¾ cup rice milk

1½ tsp lemon juice

¼ cup coconut oil

1 cup flour

½ cup sugar

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

½ tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

 

Instructions:

1. Wash and chop the rhubarb. Place it in an oven-safe dish.

2. Toss it with the zest and juice from 1 orange and 30 g sugar.

3. Bake it for 25-30 min at 190 C.

4. Blend it well, until smooth, and then mix with the flour and blend again.

5. Mix the rice milk and lemon juice together and set aside for 10 minutes to curdle.

6. Melt the coconut oil (if you have it in solid form).

7. Mix the dry ingredients together. Stir in the vanilla, coconut oil, and milk mixture.

8. Pour about 2-3 tbsp cupcake mixture into muffin cases and then place 1-2 tbsp rhubarb curd on top. Add another 1 tbsp cupcake mixture on top of the curd.

9. Bake for 10-20 minutes at 175 C.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

½ cup peanut butter (I use crunchy)

½ cup butter or margarine (I use Pure) (or about 1/3 cup oil)

½ cup brown sugar

½ cup sugar

1 egg

½ tsp salt (if there is no salt in the peanut butter)

1¼ cup flour

½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp vanilla

¾ cup chocolate chips

 

Instructions:

1. Cream the butters and sugars together.

2. Add everything else except the chocolate chips and mix well.

3. Add the chips and stir.

4. Drop by teaspoons or tablespoons onto a lined baking tray.

5. Bake for 10-15 minutes at 190 C.

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

You could also add nuts, if you like.

 

Ingredients:

½ cup butter or margarine

½ cup white sugar

½ cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1½ cups flour

2 tbsp cocoa powder

½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp salt

¾ cup chocolate chips

 

Instructions:

1. Cream the butter or margarine and sugars together.

2. Add the egg, then mix in everything else except the chocolate chips.

3. Once it is mixed well, add the chocolate chips.

4. Drop by teaspoons or tablespoons onto a lined baking tray.

5. Bake for 10-15 minutes at 180 C.

Pear, Apple, and Raspberry Crumble

Ingredients:

4 pears

1 apple

50 g rapeseed oil, plus extra

1 tsp lemon juice

55 g sugar, plus extra

1 tsp vanilla extract

5 tbsp oats

60 g flour

30 g almonds (ground or chopped)

30 g dark chocolate, optional

50-60 g raspberries (frozen is fine)

 

Instructions:

1. Wash, peel, and chop the pears and apple.

2. Lightly oil them and toss them with lemon juice and a little sugar. Bake at 190 C for 10-15 minutes, until softened.

3. Meanwhile, mix all the other ingredients together except the dark chocolate. Grate or chop the chocolate.

4. Top the fruit with the raspberries.

5. Dot the crumble topping over the fruit and sprinkle with chocolate (or mix the chocolate into the crumble topping first).

6. Bake at 190 C for 30-40 minutes.

Carrot Ginger Soup

Ingredients:

2 shallots or 1 onion

oil

2-3 tsp minced ginger (I use frozen, but fresh is great too)

1 vegetable stock cube

5-6 carrots

1 potato

water (about 4 cups)

black pepper, to taste

powdered ginger, to taste

yogurt or cream (we use Oatly)

 

Instructions:

1. Peel and dice the shallots or onion, then fry lightly in oil.

2. Add the ginger and stock cube and fry another minute or two.

3. Peel and chop the carrot and potato and add them to the pan.

4. Boil the water and add it to the pan.

5. Cook the vegetables for 15-20 minutes.

6. Puree the soup.

7. Season as desired, then top with a dollop of yogurt or cream.

Chocolate Cinnamon Pudding

I saw a recipe from Nigella Lawson for chilli-cinnamon chocolate pudding with rum and I thought it sounded intriguing, not least because it is what is known as “self-saucing”. I didn’t think M would like the chilli or rum so I left those out, along with the butter for greasing, and I used more white sugar and less brown sugar than Nigella. Still, the result was good, especially served with cream or Oatly.

 

I think this could easily be adapted so that other flavours are used instead of cinnamon (orange, nuts, etc), so that will be what I do next.

 

Ingredients:

150 g flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

200 g caster sugar

50 g cocoa powder

185 ml milk (I used rice milk)

4 tbsp rapeseed or corn oil plus extra to grease the pan

100 g sugar (I used about half dark brown soft sugar and half caster, but any combination would be fine)

175 ml boiling water

 

Instructions:

1. Grease the pan.

2. Mix the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon, vanilla, caster sugar, and 25 g of cocoa together.

3. Mix the milk and oil together and blend with the dry ingredients.

4. Pour into the pan.

5. Mix the other 25 g of cocoa and the sugar and spoon over the ingredients in the pan.

6. Pour the boiling water on top.

7. Bake for 25-30 minutes at 180 C.

Kladdkaka (Gooey Chocolate Cake)

This was my favourite chocolate cake when I lived in Sweden. It should be gooey, so don’t cook it too long, and ideally it ought to be served with cream and perhaps some strawberries or raspberries. You can also top it with frosting, as desired.

 

Ingredients:

1 vanilla pod (or 2 tsp vanilla extract)

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

½ cup flour

4 tbsp cocoa powder

1 tsp salt

½ cup vegetable oil (or melted butter)

 

Instructions:

1. Split the vanilla pod and scrape out the seeds. Whip the eggs, vanilla seeds (or extract), and sugar together until light and fluffy.

2. Sift the flour and cocoa powder together and mix with the salt and oil.

3. Blend everything together and pour into a lined cake tin.

4. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 165 C.

Vegan Vanilla Buttercream

This is great in macarons or on top of a cake or cupcakes. Go for a taste of luxury and use a vanilla pod.

 

Ingredients:

1 vanilla pod or 2 tsp vanilla extract

½ cup vegan margarine (such as Pure)

1½ cups icing sugar

1/8 cup vegan milk (I prefer rice milk)

 

Instructions:

1. Scrape out the seeds from the vanilla pod, if using, and then blend all the ingredients together until creamy.

Pear Crumble

I saw Nigel Slater’s recipe for pear crumble, but I changed it quite a bit, to suit our non-dairy diet and to make it even tastier (i.e. I added hazelnuts, but you can always use different nuts or just use more flour and oats instead).

 

Ingredients:

4 pears

50 g rapeseed oil, plus extra

1 tsp lemon juice

55 g sugar, plus extra

1 tsp vanilla extract

5 tbsp oats

60 g flour

30 g hazelnuts

30 g dark chocolate, optional

 

Instructions:

1. Wash, peel, and chop the pears.

2. Lightly oil them and toss them with lemon juice and a little sugar. Bake at 190 C for 10-15 minutes, until softened.

3. Meanwhile, mix all the other ingredients together except the dark chocolate. Grate or chop the chocolate.

4. Dot the crumble topping over the pears and sprinkle with chocolate (or mix the chocolate into the crumble topping first).

5. Bake at 190 C for 30-40 minutes.

Raw Chocolate Mousse

At the library, I randomly picked up The Raw Food Diet by Christine Bailey. I’ve done some raw cooking before, so I was intrigued.

 

The first recipe I tried was her chocolate-orange hazelnut mousse, but I adapted it quite a bit to suit what we had at home and our tastes.

 

Ingredients:

1 ripe avocado

1 orange

25 g cocoa powder (or 10 g cocoa powder plus 20 g dark chocolate)

1 tbsp agave

2 tsp icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla

30 g chopped hazelnuts

¼ cup water

 

Instructions:

1. Halve, pit, and chop the avocado. Put the flesh in a food processor.

2. Juice and zest the orange and add to the avocado.

3. Mix in all the other ingredients. Process well, until smooth.

4. Chill for 30 or more minutes, then serve.

Macarons

We’ve finally given in and made a trendy dessert. Yes, we made macarons. They seem fiddly but as long as you’ve got the proportions right, it’s not too hard. I looked at lots of recipes and it seems the egg to almond ratio should be about 120% and the egg to sugar (both types) about 50%.

 

To make chocolate macarons, replace 25 g of sugar with cocoa.

 

Make any buttercream or other filling you like. We used my chocolate ganache.

 

Ingredients:

140 g egg whites (about 4 medium eggs)

75 g granulated sugar

1 pinch salt

2 tsp vanilla extract

230 g icing sugar

115 g ground almonds (if they are not fine enough, mix in a food processor with the icing sugar)

 

Instructions:

1. Whisk the egg whites, granulated sugar, and salt until stiff. Add in the vanilla and whisk a little more.

2. Mix the icing sugar and almonds together and then add to the meringue. Stir well, until no longer stiff but not liquid either (25-35 strokes).

3. Pipe evenly onto parchment-lined baking trays. Knock the trays to get out any air.

4. Bake for 12-18 minutes at 150 C.

5. Let cool, then sandwich pairs of macarons together with filling.

Vegan Vanilla Coconut Ice Cream

This is a really simple, pleasant vegan ice cream. I like to serve it in the Scandinavian way, with jam (cloudberry jam is perfect).

 

Ingredients:

1 tin coconut milk

4-5 tbsp icing sugar, or more to taste

3 tsp vanilla

 

Instructions:

1. Blend all the ingredients together until smooth. Adjust amounts according to taste.

2. Freeze, then serve.

Apple Cake

This is based on a recipe from Cook’s Illustrated. I love the scientific nature of the magazine – I even enjoy reading the meat recipes just to get information on the science of cooking, even though I obviously do not cook or eat meat.

 

The premise of this recipe is that there are multiple layers to the cake. The bottom, biggest layer is a mix of fruit and custard. On top of that is a more cakey layer. You then sprinkle that with sugar for some crunch.

 

I adapted this recipe to simplify it, and to include spices, plus I added more fruit, because I like a cake with a lot of fruit. This is great with Oatly cream.

 

Ingredients:

750 kg apples (about 6-7 apples)

1 tsp lemon juice

2 tbsp apple juice (or, you can do as they suggested in the magazine and use Calvados or brandy)

1 cup plus 2 tbsp flour

1 cup plus 2 tbsp sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1-2 tsp mixed spice

2-3 tsp cinnamon

1 egg plus 2 yolks

1 cup vegetable oil, plus a little extra for the tin

1 cup milk (I used rice milk)

 

Instructions:

1. Peel, core, and thinly slice the apples. Then leave them to soak in the lemon and apple juices while you prepare the rest.

2. Mix 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, the vanilla, and all the other dry ingredients.

3. Mix 1 egg, the oil, and the milk together, then whisk into the dry ingredients until well combined.

4. Remove 1 cup of this mixture and mix with the other 2 tbsp of flour. Set aside.

5. Whisk in the other two yolks into the main mixture, then add the apples and stir well.

6. Oil and line the tin.

7. Pour the apple mixture in and spread well.

8. Top with the flour mixture (i.e. the cakey layer) and spread well.

9. Sprinkle evenly with the extra 2 tbsp of sugar.

10. Bake at 170 C for 60-80 minutes.