champagne cakelets with orange saffron glaze

{First off, a note about the photos in this post.

...They're dreadful. Apologies. My camera was dead, my phone was dead, and my unwieldy iPad was all I had for documentation. Next time I'll do a quick cave painting, which is guaranteed to come out clearer than these have. Anyway!}

I'd like to take a minute to talk to you about something very near and dear to my heart: 

Champagne. I am not one of those people for whom champagne is reserved for special occasions. Unless if by "special" you mean a Wednesday when I remember to take the garbage out (even now I'm not positive it isn't meant to be Tuesday...or Thursday). Or a day when my purse happens to actually match my outfit. Or, really, any meal out. 

The thing is, champagne is simply too delicious and too easy and inexpensive a way to give yourself a little treat to save it for weddings and New Year's Eve alone. But it IS the holidays, and you've got to do something special. So I decided to add more champagne. Seemed pretty surefire. Thus was born: champagne cakelets!

These little guys are nice and light, with an orange saffron glaze that compliments the champagne in the cake, rather than overpowering it. I made 3x3 inch square cakes and it made 18 plus a bit extra, so my guess is you'd get about two dozen regular cupcakes. It's a lovely treat to have in the winter, when citrus is in season, plus you should get enough juice and zest from one orange, possibly the one from the bottom of your Christmas stocking!

Here's the recipe:

Cake:

2 tbsp Ener-G egg replacer

1/2 cup warm water

2.5 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp baking powder

1 cup vegetable oil

1 cup sparkling wine (champers, prosecco, cava, etc)

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Whisk together the warm water and Ener-G til lumps are gone and the mixture is a bit frothy.

Line 2 cupcake pans. 

In a separate bowl sift together flour, salt and baking powder.

Beat Ener-G til a bit frothy and gradually add sugar, til completely combined and starting to thicken. Add vanilla and beat til blended. Gradually add oil til blended and consistency is even thicker. Alternating between the two, add the wine and flour to the bowl, 1/3 at a time. One completely blended, mix on medium speed for 1 minute. Pour into cupcake tins and bake for about 25 minutes, and if baking on two different shelves, swapping the two tins' places halfway through. They won't brown at all but they'll be firm in the middle. Let them cool completely before glazing.

Glaze:

2 cups confectioners' sugar

1/4 cup fresh squeezed, strained orange juice

1/4 tsp saffron

orange zest for garnish

SIft the powdered sugar then sprinkle the saffron in, grinding it between your fingers into small and powdery pieces. Add the orange juice and whisk til consistency is smooth. Cloak each cake in glaze, garnishing immediately with orange zest. Let glaze harden before packing away.

And that's all there is to it!

Hope everyone has a marvelous New Year's Eve, with an appropriate amount of champagne. That's roughly a bottle a head, in my estimate.

Happy celebrating!

"cream" of broccoli soup

In the colder months I gravitate toward thick, creamy soups to keep myself warm. Despite a low calorie and fat content, this eats like a rich, fattening cream-based soup. 

Recipe:

2 tsp olive oil
3/4 cup chopped onion
3 stalks celery, chopped
5 cups broccoli, stems peeled (if necessary. If they aren't tough, don't bother) and chopped
3 cups vegetable stock
1 package soft silken tofu
3 oz raw spinach
1 cup almond milk
salt, pepper and coriander to taste

      Heat oil in a heavy pot and saute onions and celery. Reduce the heat, cover and let sweat for five minutes. Add broccoli, broth and spinach and bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes or until broccoli is tender. Add tofu and using either an immersion or upright blender (though I'd suggest an immersion), puree til smooth. Stir in milk and season to taste with salt, pepper and coriander.

C'est tout, c'est ca! Couldn't be simpler, and on chilly nights it's heaven with a cup of tea and a bit of fried bread.

Happy eating!

new year, new blog

Hello, again, internet. I'm back!

For several years, I blogged a bit at littlepigeonpress.com, intermittently posting and unsure what exactly it was I wanted to say. I liked the idea of posting free printables every week, but had no time to do all that designing. I loved the idea of  writing about travel, and while I do take trips at every available opportunity, I don't get to do it frequently enough to sustain a blog.

So, with neither a clear aim nor subject matter, I just stopped posting and only occasionally missed having an outlet for a new recipe or project.

But almost two years ago I made the decision to go vegan. It's a decision I've gone back and forth on, including some months last year when I went back to eating everything. But ultimately I came back to veganism and what started as something of a silly experiment has become quite important to me.

So there's my subject matter; there's my aim. I love finding and creating new recipes, trying new foods and restaurants, and exploring and talking about veganism with other people who find it fascinating, too.

Plus, I'm sure there will be the odd DIY project and travel photo to put up as well : )

Glad to be back in the world of blogging, and thankful to have an outlet for my interests.

Happy eating, and lovely Sunday!


PS- For anyone who's curious about why I became a vegan and my general thoughts on the matter, check out this page.