Scribbles and Scrambles...What a Weekend....Word (Free)

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Happy Friday

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ A Picture Paints a Whole Lot of Words.

Kansas City restaurant outside wall. Don't know what it's called but every time we've gone to Cafe Gratitude this little happy tot greets us. How can it not be great? She thinks it is. 

Sad Sushi. Ha Ha. My friend Lindsey snapped a picture of this guy before she snarfed him down. It shouldn't make me happy but it does. Sad Sushi. Ha Ha. 

Uhhhh. Not sure what this horrible contraption is. We saw it at an antique store and paused just long enough to take a picture. The string? Dental floss. "Hey kid, floss your teeth or I'll haunt your dreams!" Maybe the purpose was to tie the string on a loose tooth and throw the cast iron clown head over the railing thus removing the tooth. (Again, dream haunting for those who disobeyed.) The purpose can't be sweet, whimsical or happy. Right? Shudder.

Scraps and Snippets ~ "Tuna" Ring

Tuna Ring

1 can of young green Jackfruit in brine

1 TBSP of seaweed of choice

1 Cup of water

Dump these three things in a pan and simmer for 20 minutes. 

Remove the chunks of jackfruit into a bowl and shred/chop into tuna looking bits. (I removed the chunks of jackfruit and left the seaweed behind since I don't love super fishy taste and this was just the right amount of sea flavor since the jackfruit absorbed the taste while simmering.)

Add 1/2 of vegan cream cheese container. (4 oz)

1/2 TBSP dill pickle relish

1/2 TBSP sweet pickle relish (or 1 TBSP of whichever you have)

1 TBSP finely chopped onion

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 TBSP nutritional yeast

Mix all together very well

Crescent rolls (1 can, make sure it's vegan) You could also use your favorite pizza dough and make this a pocket or calzone. 

To make a crescent roll ring separate the 8 triangles of dough. Lay each of the  longest pointiest ends over the rim of a large pie plate or round baker. The shorter two point ends will over lap and there will be a hole in the center. It's going to look kind of like a stick drawing of a sun. Press the overlapped edges in the pan together. 

Scoop the "tuna" mixture onto the flat inner circle of dough. Then take each outside point and pull it over the mixture and tuck it slightly under the inner ring of dough. 

Bake at the temperature called for on the can (or in your pizza dough recipe) Bake approximately 6 minutes longer to make sure everything is cooked through. 

Serve.  

Scraps and Snippets ~ Salted Caramel Apple Fritter

Salted Caramel Apple Fritter

Makes 8

1 package of vegan crescent rolls

Preheat oven to 350 (or temperature on the package)

Lightly grease a muffin tin. 

Take each crescent roll triangle and place the triangle into the muffin tin. Press and stretch/break off tips as needed to make the entire muffin tin filled so it looks like a little pie. Bake these for 10 minutes (or until golden.)  Remove from oven. These won't be flat and pie shaped any more, but no worries. You could also do this with pie crust or phyllo dough. 

While the crusts cool make the Salted Caramel Apple Filling/topping.

2 Apples diced (I seeded them but did not peel them.) 

1/3 Cup sugar (or brown sugar)

1/4 Cup maple syrup

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 Cup chopped pecans (or walnuts or dried cranberries)

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 TBSP cornstarch (or arrowroot)

1 TBSP water

Toss diced apples into a saucepan, add syrup and sugar and begin simmering. Simmer about 10 minutes until apples begin to tenderize and release the juice and sugar melts. Add the salt and pecans and stir well. While simmering, in another cup or bowl mix the vanilla in the TBSP of water and add cornstarch, stirring until the cornstarch dissolves. Then pour the cornstarch mixture into the simmering apples. Stir well and simmer for an additional 7 or so minutes until the mixture thickens and reduces into a caramel. 

Scoop mixture into the crescent cups. 

Scraps and Snippets ~ Pink Piggy Cupcakes...

Strawberry Frosting. Yum. And cupcakes to place under it, with a fun little decoration idea. 

Coconut Vanilla Cup Cakes (makes 14)

1 egg substitute (1 TBSP ground chia or egg replacer)

1/2 TBSP baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 Cup almond or coconut milk

1/2 Cup of coconut oil

1 1/4 Cup sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 1/4 Cup flour

Put milk and egg replacer powder together in a bowl and set aside. Cream coconut oil and sugar together. Add salt and baking powder, mix until incorporated. Pour half the milk and the extracts in and mix. Pour in half the flour and mix well, add the rest of the milk, stir then the additional flour and mix for two more minutes. 

Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full. Bake at 350 for 17-19 minutes or until knife comes out clean.

Strawberry Frosting

3 TBSP strawberry jam

3 TBSP shortening. Earth Balance or coconut oil

1/2 tsp of vanilla

(if you are making the pigs, scrape the middles of 7 golden oreos into your frosting and set the cookies aside)

2 Cups powdered sugar 

If too thick add just a splash of coconut milk, if still too wet add a little more powdered sugar. 

When the cupcakes are cool frost each cupcake.  If you are making pigs you will need four chocolate chips for each cupcake and will need to save a little frosting for glue to put the chocolate chips on the cookies. (If you want to make ears you could use a triangle of fruit roll up type snacks. I tried extra chocolate chips and they didn't look right. An extra dollop of frosting would work.) Place a cookie round on the bottom 2/3 of the frosted cupcake. Place two chocolate chips for eyes right at the edge of the cookie. Then dip two chocolate chips in frosting and glue them right inside at 9 and 3 (where they would be on a clock) on the cookie.

Scraps and Snippets ~ BBQ Sauce and Vegan BBQ Beets and Franks...

Natural Grocers is a new chain grocery store in our area. It's small. Kinda like a cross between a Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, a local mom and pop store and a traditional hippie health food store. In the past few visits I've scored some great organic past-their-prime fruits and veggies for various and assorted uses. The bargain produce bin is really a great deal. Last week we made the discovery that the freezer and refrigerated section have clearance, too. 

I scored $.50 non-dairy yogurt and 1/2 price tempeh, vegan hot dogs, and seitan. 

Now I needed a use for vegan hot dogs that doesn't involve a bun, mustard and ketchup. 

Rob likes BBQ sauce and keeps asking me to make BBQ for him. I had a sweet potato to use and a golden beet. 

BBQ Beets and Franks for dinner.

I sautéed the chunked sweet potato with small dice onions and leeks and the beet. I chopped two vegan hot dogs into slices and added them to the sauté. 

BBQ Sauce

5 TBSP tomato paste (I used frozen TBSP chunks from a previous can I opened. This was a great idea I saw somewhere.)

5 TBSP water

1 1/2 TBSP vinegar (I used red wine)

1 1/2 TBSP soy sauce

1 1/2 TBSP agave, brown sugar or maple syrup

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon smoke seasoning (I used Trader Joe's smoke blend grinder)

two pinches salt

We dolloped BBQ sauce over the sauté and ate up. 

This is a hint of sweet, smoky, rich, garlicky BBQ sauce. It's thick and makes about 1/2 cup. Rob and I both liked the flavor. So I think I'll use it for various assorted BBQ needs in the future. Pulled Jack sandwiches, roasted BBQ cauliflower tenders.