Wednesday, 31 August 2016

Triple Chocolate Cookies | VEGAN BAKING


I have fallen in love with this triple chocolate cookie recipe. Soft on the inside with a slight crunch on the outside, cookies don't get much better than that! This vegan recipe is simple and very quick to make, with all the ingredients being available in your local supermarket. It's the perfect recipe for a rainy Sunday to make you feel better about Monday being right around the corner. 

These cookies remind me of the ones my family used to buy from the bakery section in the supermarket, except they are better! My sister said you would never be able to tell they were vegan (woo!). The best bit about vegan baking is that you can eat the cookie dough remains off the spoon without the fear of raw egg being in the mixture. Personally, I love making giant cookies but you can make smaller ones if you want...

This recipe makes 8 large cookies or 16 small cookies.
INGREDIENTS
  • 110g Vegan butter (I used the soya Pure butter)
  • 200g Light brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp Ground flaxseeds, mixed with 2tbsp water
  • 180g Plain Flour (this recipe works with gluten free flour too - I use Doves Farm)
  • 1 tsp Vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp Baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp Baking soda
  • 3 tbsp Cocoa powder
  • Pinch of salt
  • 130g Dairy free chocolate (I used a mix of milk, white and dark - all purchased from Tesco) chunks, I simply chopped up the chocolate bars

METHOD

  • Preheat the oven to 190 C (or 375 F). Cover a baking tray or two with baking paper. I also put a little bit of coconut oil on the baking paper to give it extra protection from sticking but this is optional.
  • First pre-make your flax "egg" by adding the ground flaxseeds and water into a small bowl. Leave for 5 minutes.
  • In a separate bowl, add the vegan butter, sugar and vanilla extract and cream until smooth and fluffy. Then add the flax "egg" and combine the mix together.
  • Next add the cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, flour and salt to the wet ingredients and combine until it forms a dough.
  • If you are using dairy free chocolate bars, chop them into chunks (make sure they aren't TOO big) and fold them into the mixture. 
  • At this point if your dough is too sticky, put in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour.
  • Shape the dough in your hands into balls (the size will depend on how many you want to make) and place on the baking tray (the cookies will expand A LOT so be careful to leave a good amount of space between them). If your mixture is too sticky still, have some flour to hand so you can add some more to the dough and you hands to prevent sticking. 
  • Slightly flatten the dough balls with your hands (they will grow in width themselves too).
  • If you are making 8 cookies bake for 18-20 minutes and if you are making 16 cookies bake for 10-12 minutes. 
  • Once you take them out of the oven leave them to cool and harden slightly. When they are no longer really soft, you can put them on a cooling rack to cool down further. 

These cookies are perfect to share with friends and family, or for making ice cream cookie sandwiches! I really hope that you enjoy this recipe!
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Wednesday, 10 August 2016

Tasty Vegan Breakfast Ideas!

If breakfast is your favourite meal of the day (like me), then you will love these delicious vegan breakfast ideas. You don't need to be vegan to enjoy these recipes. Personally, I think breakfast is the easiest meal to be made vegan! So why not make your breakfasts cruelty free?

A little side note. If you want a super simple, quick breakfast which you won't be tempted to have a 10 minute photo shoot for Instagram, grab yourself some Weetabix, dairy alternative milk (my go-to is soya or rice milk) and a banana. Breakfast complete! However, if you are like me and want to make your breakfast a little more special, try out these recipes below...


TROPICAL BERRY PANCAKES

These pancakes are a perfect summer breakfast. They are basically porridge in another form! With only 3 ingredients (plus toppings) they are really simple and can be on your plate in 10 minutes.

Recipe:
  • 1 cup of oats (blended into an oat flour)
  • 2/3 cup of plant milk (I used oat milk - which I recommend!)
  • 1 spotty banana


Blend all the ingredients together in a blender or food processor. Heat a frying pan on a medium heat and melt a bit of dairy free butter in a pan to make sure they don't stick! Then add the batter and cook the pancakes.


The toppings I used for these were mixed frozen berries, passion fruit and a banana. Agave nectar or any other syrup would also be a great addition!



CHOCOLATE BERRY PANCAKES


Still want your chocolate kick at breakfast? No problem. These pancakes are really satisfying and are actually really healthy!


Recipe:

  • 1 cup of oats (blended into an oat flour) 
  • 3/4 cup plant milk (I used rice milk) 
  • 1 spotty banana 
  • 1 tbsp of cocoa powder 


Make the pancakes the same as above!


The toppings I added were mixed frozen berries, flaked almonds, agave nectar and some Alpro almond yoghurt (not photographed).



ALMOND BERRY OATMEAL

If you are like me and still enjoy having oatmeal in the summer, then here is something you will love. Berries are my go-to fruit in the summer but the great thing about frozen fruit is you can have them all year round!

Recipe: 

  • 1 cup of oats
  • 1 tbsp of ground flaxseeds 
  • Mixed berries (I used frozen)
  • Flaked almonds 
  • Agave nectar

In a bowl mix the oats and flaxseeds together. Personally, I just add boiling water from the kettle to soak my oats (just enough to cover them) but you can easily make it in a pan or microwave with your favourite plant milk! I topped mine with mixed frozen berries, flaked almonds and agave nectar.

I also love to add some dairy free yoghurt to my oatmeal to make it more filling. A little tip: adding Alpro almond yoghurt with the flaked almonds and mixed berries reminds me of a bakewell tart! It's my favourite combo right now.



CHOCOLATE SMOOTHIE BOWL

This breakfast is easier to make than it looks and it is delicious! I love the combination of the rich chocolaty smoothie with zingy fruit and sweet dates.

Recipe:
  • 3 spotty bananas (having at least one frozen banana would work best, however I didn't use any frozen ones and it still worked well)
  • 1/2 cup of plant milk (I used rice milk)
  • 1/4 cup of oat bran or oats
  • 1 tbsp of cacao or cocoa powder

The method for the smoothie base is simple. Just put all of the ingredients above into your blender and BLEND.

Now for the toppings! (The best part). I added frozen raspberries, shredded coconut, chopped dates, passion fruit and cherries. Other tasty additions you may like include: chopped nuts, chia seeds, banana, strawberries or any other fruits you like, chopped up Nakd bars and vegan granola.
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