Happy Mother’s Day! Well, the last hour-ish of Mother’s Day. This blog is all about honouring our nurturers and female supporters, so every day is Mother’s Day. (cor-ny) Mother’s Day also marks a clear start of summer. Or it should. Today there was HAIL in Toronto. Plus, it was very very cold. It sure ‘aint fair for a girl to be ready with her sundresses and then all of a sudden she is back to dressing like a boy.

But, to keep my head in the sand about the weather, I’m going to put my head into a bowl of this strawberry shortcake. Technically, this is supposed to be full of whipped cream but I’ve never been a big fan. Weird, I know. So, I swapped it out for a big ol’ scoop of ice cream. Give it a go while you cook your veggie burgers on the stove top and pretend it is BBQ season by now.

1 c. soy milk

1 tbsp. white vinegar

2 1/4 c. flour

2 tbsp. sugar

2 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 c. cold Earth Balance butter substitute

10 strawberries

2 tbsp. sugar

1 pint of vanilla ice cream.

Preheat the oven to 425°F.

Mix together the vinegar and the soy milk. Set aside for 15 minutes to curdle. This will stand in for the buttermilk in the original recipe.

In a large bowl, stir together the dry ingredients. Using a pastry blender or 2 knives cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Add curdled soy milk all at once, stirring with a fork to make soft slightly sticky dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently 10 times. Pat the dough into a 3/4 inch thick round. Using 2 1/2 inch  cutter (or a juice glass like I did), cut out rounds. Place them onto an ungreased baking sheet. Gather up the scraps, press out again and cut out more circles until the dough is used up.

Bake for 12 – 15 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the strawberries by cutting off the leaves, slicing them and then chopping them in a small food processor along with the sugar. Only 4 or 5 pulses.

Split the biscuits in half through the middle. Lay the bottom half into the bottom of a bowl. Layer with a scoop of ice cream, the mashed strawberries, the top half of the biscuit and then a couple slices of fresh strawberries. Then, enjoy the summer!

Don’t forget you can follow The Antique Appetite on Twitter @antiqueappetite, friend me on Facebook AND subscribe to the blog by clicking the link on the right! Also I have a new Pinterest page with links to some of my other favourite vegan recipes.

So as you may have noticed, probably not, that I haven’t posted a recipe for a couple of weeks. I don’t want to make excuses but work has been nutso. I barely have had time to make anything more than a salad and buy some Chipotle. But, I managed to scrounge up a few minutes to make this delicious cannelloni like my mama used to make.

There is actually not much prep involved which is great. Although, I have memories of my mom complaining about having to stuff these damn things. Not to make her seem like a complainer. She is actually one of the most amiable people I have ever known. Give this a go when you have the time this weekend. I’m off to vegan paradise, Portland!

1 block firm tofu

1/3 c. nutritonal yeast

1 tbsp. garlic powder

1 c. baby spinach, shredded

1/4 c. soy milk

1/3 c. fresh basil, shredded

1 tsp. dried oregano

salt and pepper to taste

18 cannelloni tubes (or more)

1 jar pasta sauce

1 c. Daiya mozzarella shreds

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

In a large bowl, break apart the tofu into small crumbles with a potato masher or wire whisk.  Add in nutritional yeast, garlic powder, spinach, soy milk, basil, oregano, salt and pepper and mix until well combined. This is going to be your filling.

Fill the bottom of a lasagne size pan with a thin layer of jarred pasta sauce. Stuff each of the cannelloni tubes with the vegan filling. Lay them in the pan side by side, pretty close together. Spread more sauce over the pasta and then top with the mozzarella shreds.

Put the cannelloni in the oven for 45 minutes or until the pasta is soft and cooked through. Enjoy with a big ole side or Caesar salad.

Don’t forget you can follow The Antique Appetite on Twitter @antiqueappetite, friend me on Facebook AND subscribe to the blog by clicking the link on the right! Also I have a Pinterest page with links to some of my other favourite vegan recipes.

This month is the first time I participated in the Canadian vegan food swap and did I ever luck out. Basically you sign up to the swap and you get paired up with someone to receive a box you make and someone to make you a box. I totally scored by being matched up with Jill from Vegan Cuts. Yes, Vegan Cuts. The experts in vegan groceries. This box puts my box to shame. Seriously. Here is what I got:

Olomomo Cinnamon Cayenne Almonds

Hemp Hearts

Sherwood Valley Juice Co. Farmer’s Market Blend Green Super Shake

fruit. O portable fruit

Kelapo coconut oil

pur gum

bodylogix Vegan Protein chocolate mix

Butler Soy Curls!!!!!

CocoaWell Omega-3 chocolate

I already have devoured the almonds. What should I use next…?

I’m sure it is hard to believe that a meager side dish would be controversial. Let me explain. Bebby Joes are potatoes and carrots mashed together. They are delicious. But not everyone in my family thinks so. For example, my dad and my Uncle Paul. These are not people who don’t like potatoes. They just don’t like this obscure mix.

From what my mom knows, her grandmother came up with the idea (not claiming she was the only mother to do this, but she did make it up in the Masson line). My mom can’t figure out where the name came from but presumes that it was just what my Bumpa called them growing up.

To be honest, I can’t remember how much vegan butter I used when making but 1/4 cup sounds reasonable. Maybe it was more by the time I was done. I watched an episode of  Top Chef once where this one chef won the challenge by making mashed potatoes with an equal ratio of butter to potato. Now that is what I am talking about.

3 large white potatoes, peeled

1 c. baby carrots, roughly chopped

1/4 c. soy milk

1/4 c. vegan Earth Balance butter substitute

salt and pepper, to taste

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Chop the peeled potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes. Dump the potatoes and carrots into the pot of boiling water and cook until soft. Approximately 15 minutes.

Drain the vegetables and transfer back into the pot. Add the soy milk and margarine to the pot.  Mash until the potatoes and carrots are the texture you like. I enjoy them a bit chunky usually but these do better to be smooth.

Add the salt and pepper to your taste. Enjoy as a side with gravy, under a big spoonful of stew or on their own if you are like me.

Don’t forget you can follow The Antique Appetite on Twitter @antiqueappetite, friend me on Facebook AND subscribe to the blog by clicking the link on the right! Also I have a Pinterest page with links to some of my other favourite vegan recipes.

Okay so carrot cake isn’t technically an Easter food and I’m not technically a big celebrator of Easter but heck, why not. Carrots= bunnies = Easter. Right?

This may be the most delicious thing I have ever made. And the prettiest. Ain’t it damn pretty? Now I just need to watch some online tutorials on how to make sure your middle layer of icing is perfectly straight. My cake looks a little more rustic. But that is totally the popular aesthetic in food photography these days, isn’t it?

My mom hates carrot cake so this is less of an homage to her and more of a tribute to a food that I have loved for a long time. Okay, fact checked. My mom loves carrot cake and she is offended I would even ask. This is loaded with delicious and flavourful ingredients. It weighed about 6 pounds when I was done. Also, learning note for all of you vegan bakers out there. Vegan cream cheese does not make for a good cream cheese frosting substitute. It does not beat well. At all…

Cake:

6 eggs made with egg substitute, follow package directions

2 c. packed brown sugar

2 c. vegetable oil

2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

4 c. flour

1 lb. carrots

1 c. chopped pecans, toasted

1 c. dried cranberries

1/4 c. soy milk

zest of half a large orange

2 1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. baking powder

Icing:

1/2 c. Earth Balance shortening

1/2 c. vegan margarine

3 1/2 c. confectioners’ sugar, sifted

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 c. plain almond milk

1 c. pecans, chopped

2 tbsp. brown sugar

Preheat oven to 325°F.

Butter and flour two 9-inch-diameter cake pans. I only have one so that had to do. If you are using a conventional metal pan, line it with parchment paper and butter and flour again. If you are using a silicon pan, don’t bother.

Using an electric mixer, beat eggs made with egg substitute, sugar, and oil in large bowl until smooth, about 3 minutes. Beat in lemon juice, vanilla and then 2 cups of flour.

Add grated carrots, pecans, cranberries, orange zest and soy milk. Stir to blend.

Combine baking soda, salt, spices, and baking powder in a medium bowl. Add the remaining 2 cups of flour to the spice mixture and whisk to blend. Add flour mixture to cake batter and mix to combine. Divide batter equally between prepared pans. It is about 4 1/2 cups each.

Bake cake layers until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Cool the cakes in the pan for about 10 minutes. Turn out the cakes onto racks and cool completely before icing.

Turn up the oven to 425°F. Toast the second cup of pecans with 2 tbsp. of brown sugar for 10 minutes. Remove and let cool.

While the cake cools, prepare the icing. Beat the shortening and margarine together until well-combined and fluffy.

Add the sugar and beat for about 3 more minutes.

Add the vanilla and soy milk and beat for another 5 minutes until fluffy. This may not seem like enough to ice the whole cake but it is actually perfect.

To ice, put the bottom layer of cake on a plate of cake stand. Ice just the top of the cake with a medium thick layer. Place the second cake on top and continue to ice the top and along the sides to seal. Sprinkle the cooled candied pecans on top to prettify it. Cut out a big ol’ slice and eat it.

Don’t forget you can follow The Antique Appetite on Twitter @antiqueappetite, friend me on Facebook AND subscribe to the blog by clicking the link on the right! Also I have a Pinterest page with links to some of my other favourite vegan recipes.

This is one of the easiest and most delicious desserts ever. These bars are blondies mixed with peanut butter mixed with crack. Kinda. This was one of my favourite treats when I was a kid especially because the little girl in the picture with the recipe looked a lot like me. Well, what I imagined I looked like. Let me just say, I wish I had an ounce of the self-esteem now that I did as a kid. And I don’t mean that as a knock to my 25 year old self. I’m saying I was really certain in my adorableness when I was six. Like weirdly certain. Anyways, enjoy!

1 c. peanut butter

6 tbsp. softened Earth Balance buttery substitute

1 1/4 c. sugar

3 eggs made with egg substitute, follow package directions

1 tsp. vanilla

1 c. flour

1/4 tsp. salt

2 c. chocolate chips

Preheat the 350°F.

In a large mixer bowl, beat peanut butter and Earth Balance until smooth, about 1 minute.

Add sugar, eggs made with egg substitute and vanilla. Beat until creamy. Blend in flour and salt. Mix in 1 cup of the chocolate chips.

Spread in to ungreased 9×13″ baking pan. If you want to make your squares bigger use a 8×8″ pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the edges start to brown.

Immediately sprinkle remaining chocolate chips over cookie layer. Let stand for 5 minutes until chips become shiny and soft. Spread evenly over top. Cool completely. Cut into 1 1/2 inch bars.

Don’t forget you can follow The Antique Appetite on Twitter @antiqueappetite, friend me on Facebook AND subscribe to the blog by clicking the link on the right! Also I have a Pinterest page with links to some of my other favourite vegan recipes.

Basing my blog on old school recipes presents a bunch of challenges. One of them is the lack of colour. There just weren’t a lot of beautiful bright vegetables in classic recipes. Shepherd’s Pie may have had peas at most. Struggling to take pretty pictures of brown gloop (albeit delicious brown gloop) makes me want to switch my blog to just be about salads. Or colourful smoothies. Hence my lame attempt to throw a kale and tomato side salad into the picture above. Good effort.

Anyways, I don’t just call this “Not So Authentic Beef Stroganoff” because it is vegan. I was watching Top Chef the other day and one of the chefs made this super “from the homeland” style beef stroganoff that was nothing like what I grew up eating. This is more like a vegan version of the Campbell’s soup take on beef stroganoff. But don’t be deceived by the look. It is still quite delicious.

3/4 c. silken tofu

2 mushroom soup bouillon cubes, I used GoBio brand

1 bag Gardein beefless tips, thawed

1 medium onion, chopped

12 mushrooms, sliced

3/4 c. soy milk

1/2 tsp. paprika

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

4 cups pasta, cooked and drained

Mix the silken tofu and mushroom soup cubes in a blender. This will stand in for the condensed cream of mushroom soup in the original recipe.

Heat a splash of olive oil in a large frying pan. Brown the Gardein beef tips turning so the sides are crisp.  Remove the beef tips from the pan and place onto a paper towel lined plate.

Reduce the heat to medium. Add another splash of olive oil and cook the mushrooms and onions until softened.

Stir in the “soup” mix, soy milk, paprika, nutmeg and black pepper and heat to a boil. Add the beef tips back in for a few minutes just to heat through. Serve over a big scoop of pasta.

Don’t forget you can follow The Antique Appetite on Twitter @antiqueappetite, friend me on Facebook AND subscribe to the blog by clicking the link on the right! Also I have a Pinterest page with links to some of my other favourite vegan recipes.

Me and my roommates like to eat. So, we like to host parties with the central theme of eating. This weekend, my roomie and a few other friends came over for a vegan baking party. I highly recommend you do the same. I  set up a cupcake bar with vanilla and chocolate cupcakes, vanilla and chocolate icing and six different toppings. I think I ate five cupcakes that day and probably three since then… Err, bootcamp class anyone? Check out some of the pictures below.

Arial view of the cupcake layout.

The toppings bar. Clockwise from top left: Tori’s Bakeshop Ba”con”, sprinkles, Oreo crumbles, regular coconut, chocolate sauce, raspberry compote.

Chocolate frosting, vanilla frosting and a lemon pomegranate wine cocktail.

My first cupcake creation, double vanilla cupcake with Ba”con”.

A very gourmet looking cupcake made by my friend Carly. Chocolate cupcake with vanilla frosting, chocolate sauce and raspberry compote.

My friend Andrea counterbalancing the gluttonous feast with a plate of raw veggies.

I am pretty sure I came out loving Nanaimo bars. Actually, I probably came out loving the middle of Nanaimo bars. The other layers were an acquired taste. But now I love all of them.

Now, of course I don’t actually think these are better than the bars from the real Nanaimo in British Columbia. But, I have a distinct memory of being on a road trip with my family when I was young and having a hell of a time finding some actual bars. Seriously. Ask my parents. They will tell you. It took us several stops before we found any. I mean, you would think it would be on their “Now Entering” sign.

Anyways, turns out you don’t have to go to BC for Nanaimo bars. You can make them at home. I know, right? Who knew? Give this vegan recipe a go. I know you will love it.

Bottom

1/2 c. Earth Balance butter substitute

4 tbsp. cocoa powder

1 c. coconut

1 egg made with egg substitute, use package directions

1/4 c. brown sugar

2 c. vegan graham crumbs (I have a hard time finding these so I often just throw some animal crackers in a food processor)

1 tsp. vanilla

pinch of salt

Filling

1/2 c. Earth Balance butter substitute

1 tbsp. vanilla custard powder (Bird’s custard)

2 c. icing sugar

2 tbsp. soy milk

Icing

4 squares vegan semisweet chocolate

1 tbsp. Earth Balance butter substitute

Mix all of the ingredients for the bottom layer in a medium sized bowl and press it into the bottom of an 8×8 square pan.

For the middle layer, mix butter substitute, custard powder and sugar. Add the milk. Spread the custard over the bottom layer and let it chill for half an hour.

Melt 4 squares semi sweet chocolate with the 1 tbsp. Earth Balance butter substitute. Spread over filling and chill for another hour.

Once the top layer has hardened, cut into your perfect size and eat!

Don’t forget you can follow The Antique Appetite on Twitter @antiqueappetite, friend me on Facebook AND subscribe to the blog by clicking the link on the right! Also I have a Pinterest page with links to some of my other favourite vegan recipes.

I can’t recall if I have mentioned it before but my family used to live in Australia. I was in early elementary school at the time but there are still some things that stick out in my mind. The neighbours cat that we almost adopted as our own, PC (Pussy Cat). The one time someone broke into our house. My first kiss in line in kindergarten waiting to be let out for recess. My awesome accent. And, strangely enough, the pie shop at our local mall.

That pie shop had a delicious personal size beef bourguignon pie that I will never forget. Heck it has been almost 20 years since  last had one and it is inspiring this blog post.

This is an alteration to a recipe I already posted and may I say an improvement. Who wants beef bourguignon on rice when you can have it in a pie? Yeah b–ch!

Beef Bourguignon Filling:

1 bag of Gardein Beef Tips

2 tbsp. organic Earth Balance

1 c. chopped onion

12 mushrooms sliced

2 tbsp. tomato paste

3 tbsp. flour

1 c. veggie broth

1 tsp. thyme

1 tsp. marjoram

2 bay leaves

1/2 vegetarian beef bouillon cube

1c. red wine

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

Pie crust:

2 1/4 c. all purpose flour

1/4 c. sugar

1/4 tsp. fine sea salt

1 c. (2 sticks) chilled Earth Balance butter sticks, cut into 1/4-inch cubes

1/4 c. (or more) ice water

Preheat oven to 250°F.

Heat a splash of olive oil in a medium frying pan. Saute the onions and mushrooms until the mushrooms have softened slightly and the onions are browning.

Stir in the tomato paste, flour, marjoram, thyme and bay leaves.

Meanwhile, warm the vegetable broth in a saucepan. Dissolve the vegetarian beef bouillon cube in the broth.

Add the broth and 1/2 cup of the wine slowly to the frying pan with the mushroom mix. Season with salt and pepper and pour into a casserole dish.

Cover and cook for 2 hours, adding the other 1/2 cup of red wine gradually throughout.

With the mushrooms in the oven, melt the butter in a medium frying pan. Brown the Gardein Beef Tips in the butter, turning so that the sides are crisp.

While the mushrooms continue to cook, make the pie crust. Combine flour, sugar and sea salt in heavy-duty stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Blend on low speed. Add Earth Balance and mix on low speed until mixture is crumbly.

Sprinkle with 1/4 cup ice water and mix until the dough clings to paddle. Add more ice water by teaspoonfuls if the dough is dry. I needed about 1/4 + 1/8 cups.

Gather the dough together. Divide the dough in two and roll out each on a flour counter top, one at a time. Using the small tin pie plates  as a guide, cut out 3 small circles our of each, about 1/4 of an inch bigger than the plate. Cut out some little decorations for the top too if you are feeling so whimsical.

After the 2  hours are up, remove the mushrooms from the oven and add the beef tips to the casserole dish. Stir until they are mixed in.

Remove the bay leaves. Increase the oven temperature to 375°F.

Lay one layer of crust into a mini pie pan. Put the filling in the pie crust and lay another other pastry circle on top. Pinch the corners to close.

Cook for about 30-45 minutes, until you hear it bubbling inside and the pastry is brown. Enjoy!

Don’t forget you can follow The Antique Appetite on Twitter @antiqueappetite, friend me on Facebook AND subscribe to the blog by clicking the link on the right! Also I have a Pinterest page with links to some of my other favourite vegan recipes.