Monday Morning Breakfast II (or Tuesday Brunch?)

*sorry, I'm late!*

I decided to take Saturday and Sunday off because of a pretty stressful week and busy weekend; however, I full intend to post on future weekends, partly due to the fact that Saturday and Sunday are my favorite themed posts! Next week, look forward to a beautiful day at the Red Stick Farmer's Market, where I intend to shop for produce, local fruity wines (blackberry, muscadine, and orange!), and munch on my favorite pepita and cilantro hummus. On Sunday, I'll share something new - most likely a new vegan snack food or ingredient. Do you have any suggestions for new products you think I should try?

Today's theme focuses on breakfast foods! What better way to kick start a long day/week with a huge and hearty plate of waffles?

The is hands-down my favorite waffle recipe. If you don't own a copy of Isa Chandra Moskowitz's Vegan Brunch, then you need to rectify that asap! I've tried most of the recipes in this book, none of which have failed me (but that shouldn't surprise you, it's ISA!). I cooked up a batch of her Cornbread Waffles which are fluffy, gritty-in-a-good-way, and majorly delicious.

Topped with bananas, blackberries and a bit o' maple syrup, these waffles are tops. I managed to get 6 regular full-sized waffles (per the recipe) and 1 mini waffle from this recipe. 

First bite, yum!

Vegan MoFo - Day 21

Day 21 - Pie & Praise!

This year's Vegan MoFo has unleashed some pretty remarkable blogs, recipes, themes, photos/videos, etc. I've bookmarked and pinned untold amounts of vegan awesomeness, which I'll probably be going through well into the new year. Some favorites have included Fork & Beans Homemade Twix Bars, this Homemade Tofu tutuorial from Messy Vegetarian Cook, and basically the entirety of Meet the Wiko's mofo theme - street food! There are so many awesome contributions that my head is spinning, and we've still got another week of awesome.

With all this mofo marvelousness, I thought it'd be ok to take a break from my mofo theme to celebrate the arrival of one of the greatest things to ever (finally) exist.

Let's hear it for the pie! Oooh, let's give the pie a haa-aa-y-ayaannd!

Vegan Pie in the Sky completes the trilogy of dessert books by Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero. I've made two things from this book so far. First, the Pear Frangipane Tart (recipe found HERE), and second (only after receiving my physical copy), the Maple-Kissed Blueberry Pie! I had to use frozen blueberries because the only fresh ones available we out-of-season, mushy and ridiculously high-priced. This pie tasted great, but please heed Moskowitz&Romero's warnings and UP THE THICKENER when using frozen fruits. My filling was a little thin, but quickly firmed up after a night in the fridge. And by the way, that crust is 100% homemade...and it was pretty easy!

I'm so excited to bake my way through this book!!

Vegan MOFO - Day 2

Day 2 - Bartletts and Frangipane

Better late than never! I may be two hours away from the official start of the third day of MOFO, but I have my reasons. Firstly, my parents were visiting me from Florida this weekend, and since I haven't seen them in nearly a year, their arrival took precedence. Secondly, Louisiana experienced it's first taste of the upcoming autumn weather! Can you believe that it is currently 58 degrees F right now?! I couldn't get over such a drastic change in the outdoor air - I spent the majority of my day sitting outside in the sun, soaking in the not-so-skin-melting breeze. This is our first taste of fall, and I'm so excited to start using the oven to bake bread, roast vegetables, and cook with heat. In honor of this refreshing weather, I wanted to make something warm and comforting, and baking seemed like the perfect medium. Following my theme - Food Named after People - I choose to feed two birds out of one hand (a much better idiom, don't you think?).

 

Bit o' History: The Williams' bon chretien pear, commonly referred to as the Williams or Bartlett pear in the US/Canada is the most widely grown pear variety in most countries outside of Asia. The cultivar was acquired by a nurseryman named Williams in the 18th-century, brought to the US in 1799 and planted on an estate of Roxbury, Massachusetts. Enoch Bartlett acquired these grounds and, unaware of their pears' origin, he named them after himself! Eventually folks figured out that the Williams and Bartlett pears were the same cultivar and everything was dandy.

Pear Frangipane Tart - Vegan Pie in the Sky

My efforts to try and capture the cooling weather were a success, thanks to the fabulous duo - Isa & Terry! These ladies have just finished a trilogy of dessert cookbooks with Vegan Pie in the Sky, and several recipes are available for preview on The PPK blog. I chose to make the Pear Frangipane Tart.

Bit o' History: Frangipane is the term used to describe an almond pastry filling (and tart), named for the 16th-century Marque Muzio Frangipani of the Frangipane ("Breadbreakers") Family. Their name is said to have come from the fact that an ancestor was noted for distributing bread to the poor during times of famine. Throughout the Middle Ages, this family was ranked highly among the Roman patrician and were chief adversaries to high ranking political families.


Pear Frangipane Tart (unbaked) - Vegan Pie in the Sky

Like Isa & Terry preface, this tart is very fancy!  I made the suggested Almond Crust - one of the easiest pie crust recipes ever - and only needed 2 large Bartletts. The frangipane bakes into a soft and moist blanket, keeping those sweet pears warm on these cool autumn months. I forgot the brush the top with apricot preserves at first, but spooned some on just before serving. This tart was amazing and so simple! I would eat Frangipane from a bowl with a spoon - it was that good!



Pear Frangipane Tart - Vegan Pie in the Sky