Month: October 2014

Caramel Popcorn Balls

 

Here is another in our series of holiday recipes. We’re not even pretending these are healthy so don’t eat too many!

Caramel Popcorn Balls

Ingredients:

1/4 cup vegan butter or coconut oil
1/3 cup maple syrup
1 cup vegan marshmallows, cut up, if they are the big ones
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 tablespoon corn syrup
5 quarts popped popcorn – that is a rounded half cup with our air popper

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat except the popcorn, and stir until all is melted, and it is just beginning to boil. Pour over popcorn and stir with a wooden spoon. Wait until the mixture is just cool enough to handle, and with greased hands form into balls.

Warning: the mixture will be hot and sticky so be careful!

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Cranberry Tart

cranberry tart
The third entry in our holiday recipe series is a jewel-toned tart made with cranberries.

It is easier to make than a more traditional pie, and we think it will earn you rave reviews at your Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Festivus
gathering.

– Linda Nelson

Cranberry Tart

Ingredients:
1/4 cup vegan butter
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 twelve ounce bag cranberries
zest of one orange or one lemon
One single pie crust

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a nonstick cake pan well.

Mix the vegan butter, brown sugar, and salt in a small sauce pan and stir until the butter has melted. Pour into the cake pan and place the cranberries on top evenly. Sprinkle the orange zest or lemon zest over the cranberries.

Roll out the pie crust and arrange it over the cranberries tucking the edges in around the pan rim. Cut into the crust to allow for venting. Bake for 40 minutes or until the crust is lightly golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for five minutes.

Run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the crust. Place a large plate over the tart and flip it over and out. Tap the cake pan before removing it to loosen any stuck bits. Make sure to flip while it is still warm.

This is adapted from Pies and Tarts with Heart by Dynise Balcavage.

Italian Warming Chowder

Today’s recipe is the first in a series of recipes that we think would be great to serve for the upcoming fall and winter holidays.

Not all of us are lucky enough to have extended families who are vegan or who are even tolerant of our compassionate way of living. We hope some of these recipes may help to keep the peace or even get cousin Tom or your sister to start thinking of making changes.

All recipes in this series have been omnivore tested and enjoyed by vegans, too.

– Linda Nelson

Italian Warming Chowder

Ingredients:

1 can diced tomatoes
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 pound zucchini, thinly sliced
2 onions, thinly sliced or chopped
1 1/2 cups white wine (check barnivore.com for vegan choices)
1/4 cup vegan butter
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
2 teaspoons minced garlic, or to taste
1 teaspoon dried basil
several grinds of black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 cup soy creamer or coconut milk

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Combine the ingredients from tomatoes to bay leaf in a 4 quart baking dish. Cover the dish tightly, and bake for 1 hour, stirring once or twice. Blend in the creamer or coconut milk, remove the bay leaf, and serve.

Add a green salad and some crusty bread for a simple Halloween meal, or include this on your Thanksliving table.

Grits Casserole

This is my go-to casserole for brunches and breakfasts. It is fast and easy to make, and the leftovers may be better than when it is hot from the oven.

– Linda Nelson

Grits Casserole

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cup soy milk or other non-dairy milk
1 3/4 cup vegetable broth
salt to taste (I leave it out since the sausage has enough salt for our taste)
1 cup quick cooking grits
1 cup vegan bacon or sausage (I always use Field Roast Italian sausage that I’ve browned in a wok before adding)
1 cup corn (I use the Trader Joe’s roasted corn, and I always add more!)
3 tablespoons vegan butter
1 cup vegan cheezy shreds (I use Daiya)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350, and grease a 9×13 baking pan.

Heat the non dairy milk and the vegetable broth together until they boil. Add the grits, and turn the heat down to low. Cook and stir until the grits begin to firm up, though don’t allow them to get stiff.

Stir in the vegan butter, vegan cheese shreds, and vegan sausage or bacon, and mix until all is incorporated.

Scrape all into baking pan and bake 45 minutes or until it is puffed and golden.

This is adapted from Robin Robertson’s 1,000 Vegan Recipes.

Free Chickens Soup

I’m posting this recipe for Free Chickens Soup in tribute to our Amandine, Clementine, Hikaru, Orion, Jason, Jewel, Joy, Phoenix, Phoebe, Beatrice, Coriander, Hypatia, Nutmeg, Harumi, Kotori, Tolstoy, Da vinci, Trudy, Annabel, Bibi, Autumn, and our never to be forgotten Guinevere, and to all chickens everywhere who suffer and die for someone’s cup of soup or omelet.

Chicken free soup is better for us and best for the chickens.

– Linda Nelson

Free Chickens Soup

Ingredients:

4 cups vegetable stock
2 cups thinly sliced, chicken-style seitan
2 stalks celery, sliced
1/2 cup diced carrots
1/4 cup diced onions
2 teaspoons ground sage
2 teaspoons dried thyme
2 bay leaves
1 cup linguine, broken into small pieces, or any other kind of pasta. I like to use small shells

Directions:

Combine the vegetable stock, seitan, celery, carrots, onions, sage, thyme, and bay leaves in a slow cooker on low for 6 to 8 hours. About 30 minutes (time depends on what kind of pasta you choose) before serving, add the linguine to the slow cooker and stir well. Turn the cooker on high and cook until the noodles are tender. Remove the bay leaves before serving.

Pumpkin Dip

This recipe for Pumpkin Dip is for those times when you crave Pumpkin Cheesecake or pie, but you just don’t want the mess or the time in the kitchen.

It is ready in minutes, and there are so many ways to enjoy it Try it with vegan graham crackers or cookies, apple slices, or on pumpkin pancakes. My favorite way to eat it is to stir a big dollop of it into my morning oatmeal with a few toasted pecans.

– Linda Nelson

Pumpkin Dip

Ingredients:

1 can pumpkin puree (do not use pumpkin pie mix.)
1 container vegan cream cheese
sweetener of your choice in the quantity of your choice (I’ve used brown sugar, powdered sugar, and maple syrup at different times. Please remember that if you use, a liquid sweetener, your dip will be considerably thinner. Start with 1/4 cup, taste, and go from there. I don’t like this very sweet, but you may want it sweeter. Taste as you go to find what you like best.)
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon cinnamon (feel free to add more or less of the spices)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Stir it all together, or whir it in a food processor until it is smooth. Chill, or not, and get your pumpkin fix!

Vegan Rosewater Shortbread

Wouldn’t it be nice to enjoy a cup of tea or coffee and a wedge of shortbread sometime soon?

This recipe is really quite easy and the variations are endless.

– Linda Nelson

Vegan Rosewater Shortbread

1 cup vegan butter (you can find our simplified version on our website)
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons rosewater (the original recipe called for 1
teaspoon vanilla extract and 1 1/2 teaspoons rosewater, but I thought that was too subtle)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cornstarch
sugar for sprinkling

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Lightly grease a 10 inch shallow tart pan with a removable bottom. I use my own shortbread pan.
2. In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer or use a stand mixer. Beat the mixture for about 5 minutes, scraping down the sides often. Stir in the extract and rosewater.
3. Sift the flour and cornstarch together. Add half of this to the beaten butter mixture. Initially, mix it in with a rubber spatula so the flour doesn’t fly out of the bowl. Use your mixer to beat it in until mostly combined, and then add the rest. Keep mixing until all of the flour mixture is incorporated and the dough is crumbly, soft, and moist.
4. Place the dough in the prepared pan and distribute evenly. I use my fingers to firmly press the dough down so that the dough holds together. Make sure to press the dough into the fluted edges of the tart pan, of using, and if you’re using a pan like mine, make sure to press hard so as to assure the pretty designs.
5. Use a fork to gently poke into the dough at even intervals, sinking tines in about halfway. Place the tart pan on a baking sheet in the center of the oven rack and bake 30 to 32 minutes until the shortbread is slightly puffed and the edges are starting to turn pale gold. Remove the pan from the oven and set it on a wooden cutting board. Sprinkle with sugar and let cool for 15 minutes.
6. Use a thin, sharp knife to slice the warm shortbread into twelve wedges. Place the entire pan on a wire rack and allow it to cool at least another 30 minutes before removing the wedges from the pan. Store completely cooled shortbread in an airtight container. If you have a pan like mine, the last steps of scoring with a fork, and cutting into wedges is unnecessary. The shortbread just pops out and the little rectangles can then be cut easily.

This shortbread is a great cookie for sending through the mail to friends and family.

Adapted from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar.

Marbled Hot Cocoa & Pumpkin Spice Scones

We can’t get enough of fall around here. And what better way to celebrate the season than by combining two of its most essential staples: hot cocoa and pumpkin pie? This spicy scone has just a hint of chocolate, so if you’re a real chocoholic, you might consider adding some extra chocolate chips, or replacing the brown sugar dusting with some chocolate shavings.

– Rosemary Van Kleeck

Marbled Hot Cocoa & Pumpkin Spice Scones
[Makes 8 scones.]

Ingredients:

1/2 cup soy milk
1 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
3 cups flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar for sprinkling
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
2 tablespoons maple syrup granules (optional; can also use maple extract, adding at the same time as vanilla)
1/2 cup coconut oil
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
6 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/4 cup hot water

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Lightly grease a scone pan or a baking sheet for drop scones. Measure out the soy milk in a large measuring cup and add the vinegar to it. Whisk and set aside to curdle. After the milk has curdled, add pumpkin and stir well.

Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, white sugar, spices, and maple granules. Add the coconut oil in small clumps, then use your fingers or a pastry cutter to cut it into the flour until the dough texture becomes pebble-like. Create a well in the center and add the soy milk mixture, oil, and vanilla. Mix with a wooden spoon until about half of the flour is incorporated. Mix again until all the ingredients are just moistened, taking care not to overmix. A couple of dry-looking spots are fine. Remove 1/3 of the batter and set aside.

Mix cocoa powder with hot water, stirring well until there are no clumps. Add to set-aside batter, stirring until fully mixed.

Add the hot cocoa batter back to the original batter. Swirl lightly with a knife to achieve marble pattern.

Distribute batter evenly in scone pan, or scoop ~1/4 cup portions onto a baking sheet for drop scones. Dust the tops of the scones lightly with brown sugar, then bake for 18-22 minutes, until the tops are lightly browned and firm. Transfer to a cooling rack and allow to cool for at least ten minutes before removing from pan.

Triangle Chance for All’s New Video!

Thanks to a generous grant from The Pollination Project, we recently completed a short video about Triangle Chance for All and our Microsanctuary! The shooting happened a few months ago, and we have been so busy since then that a number of things have developed, but the video provides an introduction to who we are and our efforts to help farmed animals while inspiring others to create microsanctuaries of their own.

Your support is crucial for the lifetime care of our microsanctuary residents. You can contribute to TCA, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, through resident sponsorships, general donations, and even donating wish list items. o to http://trianglechanceforall.org/support-tca to find out how you can help!

Watch the video and share to help spread the word!

Good Morning, Mott!

Mott--rescued from a shelter where he came in as a stray.

I went to let Mott outside after he spent his first night here at the Microsanctuary. Not surprisingly, he was up and waiting for me (though he crashed pretty hard last night and was sleeping soundly…and, we hope, peacefully).

As with human-human first meetings, the period of introductions and getting-to-know-you’s with new residents here is often a bit awkward, with shyness on both sides. Mott, who was described by the shelter as “shy,” is clearly uncertain about humans. We have no idea what his life was like before being picked up as a stray and staying at the shelter for days, so who knows why that is the case.

However (and this is often true as well), he is visibly interested in us; his tail wags frequently, and he frequently pauses to look up at us and take a few big sniffs of the air in our direction.

The promise of a new relationship, based entirely on respect and compassion, is always a wonderful perk to providing homes to rescued farmed animals here at the Microsanctuary.

Mott is enjoying his new surroundings so far, exploring the greenery he can nibble on and the many new smells. He is already very fond of the chickens–though they are not quite sure about him yet, though also curious. Meanwhile, we peer into his soulful, inquisitive eyes and ply him with treats, finding great peace in the knowledge that he has found sanctuary.

May all beings be happy. May all beings be free.

– Justin