Category Archives: Vegan

Oven Fries (that are worth eating)

I want to make it clear that I love frying things. I love it. Doughnuts, chicken, onion rings, fries—I want them all deep-fried to golden perfection. Not baked. Not. Baked. Because let’s be real, baked versions of things that are supposed to be fried are rarely worth eating. Like, if I want a doughnut, I don’t want what amounts to a muffin baked in a ring mold. And if I want fried chicken, I don’t want it “oven-fried.” Just give me the real deal, or don’t give it to me at all.

All that said, I had a little change of heart a few weeks ago while making dinner. I had an unallocated potato that needed using, and decided to try to make oven fries with the main goal of them not just being fry-shaped roasted potatoes. I wanted crisp, golden, fluffy-centered fries, but without the pot of hot oil. It seemed like an impossible goal at the time.

I am here to tell you that I achieved this goal. I achieved it in style. And now I feel so silly for being so adamantly opposed to Oven Fries for upwards of a decade. I’m just opposed to lousy oven fries, ya know? But these are anything but lousy. They’re crispy, salty, and bear little resemblance to any roasted potatoes I’ve come across (though that is fundamentally what they are, of course).

The secret to great Oven Fries is treating them as much like regular fries as possible. This means using classic, starchy russet potatoes and starting with a soak in cold water. I add some salt and baking soda to the water to help pull all the starches in the sliced potatoes to their surfaces. This leads to crispy outsides and fluffy insides every time.

After soaking, make sure to pat your fries as dry as you can so they sear more than they steam. Toss them with about a tablespoon of oil per potato and a hefty pinch of salt, then spread them out on a couple of sheet pans and roast them high and fast, flipping when they’re golden on one side. Heads up that if you’re using dark (coated) pans, your fries will brown faster than they will on the aluminum pans I use.

When your Oven Fries are done, make sure to hit them with another big pinch of salt for a little extra punch (and crunch!). You can also dust them with a favorite spice blend or scatter some crispy garlic over the top—however you like your fries. I’m a no-frills fry kind of human, so all I need is a little side of ketchup.

Y’all, these are so good. Crispy, with soft centers and an irresistible golden brown color—not a masquerading plain roasted potato in the bunch. These are Oven Fries good enough to change even the staunchest fried food defender. Dare I say, they’re Oven Fries worth eating. Oven Fries…to love?

I’ll see myself out.

Oven Fries
makes 2 large or 3-4 small servings

2 large russet potatoes
cold water
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Kosher or sea salt, to taste
2-3 tablespoons neutral oil (I used canola)
ketchup (or other dipping sauce), for serving

Scrub potatoes, and peel if desired. Transfer them to a cutting board. Use a large, sharp chef’s knife to slice potatoes into pieces approximately 1 centimeter thick.

Place all potato pieces in a medium mixing bowl, and add enough cold water to cover. For extra deep golden fries, add baking soda and 1/2 teaspoon salt to the water. Let potato pieces soak for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the oven racks in central positions. Turn the oven to 450F.

Once 30 minutes have passed, drain water from potatoes. Dry potato pieces well with a clean kitchen towel.

Divide potatoes between two dry rimmed baking sheets. Drizzle each pan with 1-1 1/2 tablespoons oil. Season well with salt. Use your hands to toss all pieces to coat. Arrange potato pieces in a single layer with none touching each other.

Bake fries for 15 minutes. At this point, they should all be turning golden on the underside; if they’re not, let them bake another 5 minutes and check again. Use a spatula to flip them all over, then rearrange them into an even layer with none touching. Rotate the pans top-to-bottom and back-to-front. Bake 15-20 more minutes, or until golden to your liking.

Remove the fries from the oven and salt again, if desired.

Serve immediately with ketchup or other dipping sauce, if desired.

Vegan, Gluten-Free Peachy Berry Crisp

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Our annual trip to Maine is coming up in just five weeks. In addition spending my days dreaming about what treasures I’m going to pick up at Iverstudio and tiptoeing into the ocean at Fine Sand Beach, I’m diving deep into menu planning.

I cook a primarily vegan, gluten-free menu up there to accommodate all of our various dietary needs. It works for us, and even the guests we’ve had who don’t regularly eat that way seem to enjoy it. We have a list of staple meals—vegan Everyday Cassoulet is always the #1 request—but I am constantly on the lookout for new things to add to our repertoire. Beyond three square meals a day (plus a lot of guacamole), I most look forward to making a vegan, gluten-free dessert for my friends and my blog.

Last year’s offering was an easy Vegan, Gluten-Free Apple Crisp. It was fall on the island, so going with apples made perfect sense. Now in the heat of summer, I’m giving that recipe a peachy berry spin!

I punched up the original recipe with loads of fresh peaches, brown sugar and lemon, and just a hint of spice—enough so you know it’s there, but not enough to overwhelm the fruit. Once the peaches are prepared and tossed with all that goodness, a cup of fresh blueberries are added to the mix. You could add any berry you like here and it would work, but keep in mind that some may leach color more easily than others.

The crisp topping is made primarily with almond flour, gluten-free rolled oats, brown sugar and vegan butter (or coconut oil). A thick layer is scattered over the filling, and then the whole thing is baked until golden, piping hot, and screaming for a scoop (or two or three) of your favorite vegan vanilla ice cream. I’m an oat milk vanilla girl myself.

Vegan, Gluten-Free Peachy Berry Crisp is super summery and wildly quick and simple to make. It’s perfect for cookouts and dinner parties, but if you can swing it, it’ll really hit the spot on vacation with two of your favorite people.

Vegan, Gluten-Free Peachy Berry Crisp
makes one 9-10 inch dish, about 6 servings

Filling:
5 cups sliced ripe peaches (about 7-8 medium peaches)
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 tablespoons cornstarch 
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon Kosher or sea salt
1 cup fresh blueberries

Crisp Topping:
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup almond flour
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
1/2 cup vegan butter (or refined coconut oil), melted

For serving:
dairy-free vanilla ice cream

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 9-inch casserole dish or cast iron pan with vegan butter (or refined coconut oil). Set aside.

Place peach slices in a medium mixing bowl and toss with lemon juice, brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, ginger, and salt. Add blueberries and gently fold together. Transfer to the prepared baking dish.

Make the topping. In a medium mixing bowl (I just wipe out the one I used for the fruit), whisk together oats, almond flour, sugar, and salt. Add melted butter (or coconut oil) and stir until everything is saturated. It may seem sandy; this is okay. Scatter topping onto the fruit.

Bake 28-30 minutes, until topping is browned and peaches are tender. Let cool 10 minutes before serving in bowls with dairy-free vanilla ice cream, if desired.

Cover and refrigerate any leftovers for up to 4 days. Reheat before serving.

Vegan, Gluten-Free Carrot Cake

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With Easter coming up next weekend, I’ve got carrot cake on my mind. To be more specific, I’ve got this moist, flavorful and incredibly simple Vegan, Gluten-Free Carrot Cake front and center in my brain. It’s everything I love about the classic cake—the texture, the spices, the frosting—just made a little more accessible. I totally love it!

To make this sweet little cake, I began with my go-to vegan, gluten-free cake formula and then slowly, but surely, figured it out. I toyed with all sorts of different ratios of pumpkin to grated carrots, and adjusted the spices until they were just right. Ten practice cakes and two scrapped photoshoots later, I think I’ve finally nailed it.

My Vegan, Gluten-Free Carrot Cake is tender, fragrant, and packed with carrots, raisins and walnuts, though you can leave out those last two ingredients if you’re not a nuts-and-fruit-in-your-cake kind of human. Paired with my go-to Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting, it’s so good, even the non-gluten-free, non-vegans (like me!) will go back for seconds.

This recipe is written for a single layer of cake and a corresponding amount of frosting. I kept it simple because making layer cakes has seemed exhausting lately and it’s no fun to make something that exhausts you. If you’d like to make this recipe into a layer cake, I’d double the batter for two 9-inch round cake pans and triple the frosting. You could even quadruple it—nobody worth knowing has ever been unhappy about extra cream cheese frosting, especially when piped into little carrots.

Vegan, Gluten-Free Carrot Cake
makes a single layer 9-inch round cake

1/3 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
1 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
~1 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk
2 tablespoons pure pumpkin purée or unsweetened applesauce
2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup light or dark brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup potato starch
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon Kosher or sea salt
1 1/2 cups blanched almond flour
1 cup grated carrots
1/3 cup raisins (optional)

If you would like a layer cake, double the recipe for two 9-inch pans. Triple the frosting recipe that follows.

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 9-inch round or square cake pan. Line the bottom with parchment and grease again. Set aside.

Place chopped nuts of choice (if using) on a dry rimmed sheet pan. Roast in the oven for 5-7 minutes or until fragrant. Remove and set aside to cool while you prepare the cake batter.

Pour apple cider vinegar into a liquid measuring cup. Add non-dairy milk until liquid reaches the 1 cup mark. Stir and let sit for 5-10 minutes, until curdled. Stir in pumpkin (or applesauce) and vanilla. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together brown sugar, granulated sugar, potato starch, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, almond flour, and salt. Stir in grated carrots, raisins and toasted nuts (if using).

Add liquid ingredients in two installments, stirring until combined. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl to ensure thorough mixing.

Transfer batter to prepared pan and smooth to the edges with a silicone spatula or wooden spoon. Tap pan on the counter 5 times to release any large air bubbles. Transfer to the oven and bake 32-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with only a few crumbs (not wet batter).

Let cake cool completely in its pan on a cooling rack. Run a thin knife along the edges of the pan before inverting to release.

Place cake on desired platter. Frost as desired with Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe below).

Frosted cake will keep at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Unfrosted cake may be triple-wrapped in plastic wrap and frozen for up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before frosting.

Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting
makes enough for the top of one sheet cake

2 ounces (1/4 cup) vegan butter, room temperature (I like Miyoko’s)
1 ounce (2 tablespoons) shortening, room temperature (I like Nutiva)
1 ounce (2 tablespoons, 1/8 of an 8 ounce tub) vegan cream cheese, slightly softened
3/4 cup confectioner’s sugar
pinch of Kosher or sea salt
1 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
green food coloring, for piped carrots (optional)
orange food coloring, for piped carrots (optional)

Frosting may get very soft at room temperature depending which vegan cream cheese you use. Plain Miyoko’s brand vegan cream cheese is my gold standard for flavor and holding up well at room temperature.

In a large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to beat vegan butter, shortening, and vegan cream cheese until light and fluffy. Mix in confectioners sugar in two installments, mixing until combined and fluffy. Mix in salt, followed by vanilla.

If piping carrots, dye 2 tablespoons of frosting green and 2 tablespoons orange.

Use plain frosting to frost the top of the cake as desired. If piping carrots, put colored frostings in separate piping bags, snip small corners and pipe as desired. I make carrots by following the method on this video.

Vegan, Gluten-Free Icing Thumbprints

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Have I made icing thumbprints on here before? Sure have! But I’ve never made them vegan and gluten-free, probably because I didn’t have a great vegan, gluten-free cookie base yet.

But, as you might have guessed, I do now. On my never-ending quest to feed all my various people, I spent a good chunk of the holiday season figuring out a dairy- and egg-free almond flour dough that works for a multitude of cookie applications. So far, I’ve made some stellar gingerbread and linzers that taste shockingly close to the real deal, and I’ve got all sorts of variations ready to be doled out as the need arises (as it has today).

While using this dough for a completely different cookie recipe last week, it occurred to me that I hadn’t checked to see if it would make good thumbprints. My traditional sugar cookie recipe thumbprints (using it as a verb) like a dream with a tiny adjustment, but would this one?

Well, yes. Yes, it would. It does! And with no adjustment at all, which is a dang delight. These cookies bake up somewhere between crisp and chewy and are sturdy enough to hold up against all that icing. What can I say? With a quality base recipe, I am unstoppable. Unstoppable and full of cookies.

As for the filling, don’t you love these little wells of colorful icing? Say what you want about food coloring, but you can’t deny its cheer factor. With Valentine’s Day around the corner, I went with a vibrant pink and red motif for these, but do whatever makes you happy! I imagine that a display of these in team colors would make for a very festive Super Bowl dessert.

That said, if you’re making these for any occasion, please invite me.

Vegan, Gluten-Free Icing Thumbprints
makes about 2.5 dozen cookies

Cookie Dough:
3 cups blanched almond flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon Kosher or sea salt
1/2 cup vegan butter, softened to room temperature
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup confectioner’s sugar
2 tablespoons maple syrup or light corn syrup
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Icing:
1 1/3 cups confectioner’s sugar, divided
pinch of salt
2 vegan gel or liquid food colorings of choice
2-3 tablespoons (6-9 teaspoons) unsweetened non-dairy milk, divided

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together almond flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In a separate medium-large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to beat vegan butter until fluffy (about 2 minutes). Add sugar and confectioner’s sugar and beat until fully combined (about 2 minutes). Beat in maple syrup and vanilla.

Add dry ingredients in two installments, mixing completely after each addition. Dough may look rubbly, but should hold together extremely well when pinched.

Divide dough in two. Form each half into a disk, then wrap with plastic wrap. Chill for 1 hour or up to 3 days.

Place oven racks in central positions. Preheat oven to 325F. Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment.

Remove dough from the refrigerator. Scoop dough by the tablespoon and roll each int a ball. Place dough balls at least 2 inches apart on prepared pans. Use the back of a very small spoon (like a 1/2 teaspoon measuring spoon) to slowly press a well into each dough ball. They may crack a bit—just smooth them with your fingers. If dough gets too warm and sticky, freeze for 10 minutes.

Bake cookies 13-14 minutes. Cookies are done when puffed and no longer wet-looking. When you remove the cookies from the oven, press the back of the small spoon (I use 1 teaspoon measuring spoon) into the centers again. Let cookies cool on the pans for 10 minutes before carefully removing to a rack to cool completely. Repeat rolling and baking process with all remaining dough, letting the cookie sheets come back to room temperature between batches.

Make the icing. Place 2/3 cup of confectioners sugar and tiny pinches of salt in each of two small bowls. Stir 1 tablespoon (3 teaspoons) of non-dairy milk into each bowl. Add desired food colorings to the separate bowls. Whisk each with a fork until combined. Add more milk by the 1/2 teaspoon until icings are very thick, but pourable.

Transfer icings to piping bags (or ziptop sandwich bags) twist them tight and snip off very small corners. Fill wells in cookies as desired.

You can serve the cookies almost immediately, but the icing won’t set to a non-drippy texture for a few hours. Cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days. Place parchment or wax paper between layers for easiest storage.

Olive Oil Crackers

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Listen, I am not going to try to convince you to always make your own homemade crackers because I am not insane. I buy so few things pre-made, but crackers are one that I do—even dedicated home bakers need a convenience food every now and then! You know, like when you get home at 10pm after working 14 hours straight and if you have to cook one more thing, you will throw a toddler-style tantrum of epic proportions right there on the kitchen floor.

Not that I’ve ever done anything like that. Ahem.

That said, sometimes it’s fun to DIY, especially when it’s both fancy and easy, and it doesn’t get much fancier or easier than homemade Olive Oil Crackers. The recipe is only five ingredients long, takes less than an hour start-to-finish, and makes the most delicious crispy, crunchy crackers I’ve ever had.

The recipe itself is a breeze—just mix together flour, salt, olive oil, and water, then roll, cut and bake ‘til crispy—but there are a couple of unusual things that I want to explain before I get to it.

First, you need to rest your dough before rolling it out. This isn’t a prolonged thing, just 15 minutes to let the gluten in the flour relax before you roll it out paper thin. If you skip this step, the dough will shrink back somewhat dramatically at the edges when you roll it—not the worst thing that’s ever happened, but not the best if you’re seeking wafer thin crackers, which I very much am.

The other thing is the way you roll, cut, and bake these crackers, which happens to be on the back of a sheet pan. I learned this technique from my favorite food writer, Julie Van Rosendaal, and it’s…well, it’s genius. This allows you to get the crackers extra thin with your rolling pin without running into those pesky pan edges and negates the need to transfer each individual cracker to the pan, which usually results in thicker, irregularly shaped results. No thanks! If you have coated pans or simply don’t want to use this method, roll your dough out on a large piece of parchment and transfer that to the pan.

These crackers bake up in about 15 minutes. You’ll know they’re perfect when the edges are dark and the center has browned in places. In my experience, it’s better to brown them a little too much than leave them pale—nobody wants chewy crackers. You may have to sacrifice some of the edge pieces, but honestly, I kind of dig the overdone parts.

Olive Oil Crackers are a great blank slate cracker because their primary flavors are—you guessed it—olive oil and salt. You can absolutely leave them plain, but I love dressing them up with whatever spices sound good. The batch pictured was seasoned with cracked pepper, Maldon salt, and dried rosemary, but I’ve included a bunch of suggestions in the recipe.

You can save this recipe for your next get-together or cozy night in with someone you like, or you can just make them for yourself, like I do. Because I like to eat Olive Oil Crackers and extra sharp cheddar for dinner after 14 hour workdays. And also because I’m a little bit fancy (but only a little bit).

Olive Oil Crackers
makes lots

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/3 cup olive oil
2/3 cup warm tap water
spices of choice

Spice suggestions: freshly cracked black pepper, flaky salt, dried rosemary, dried thyme, everything bagel seasoning, za’atar, sesame seeds, poppyseeds 

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Add oil and warm water and whisk just until combined. Divide dough in two. Wrap each portion in plastic wrap and let rest at room temperature for 15 minutes.

Place oven racks in central positions. Preheat oven to 400F. Lightly flour the backs of 2 sheet pans.

Roll out the crackers. Place one half of the dough on one of the floured pans. Use a rolling pin to roll it as thinly and evenly as possible (without being transparent) in all directions. The edges will shrink back slightly; if they are snapping back dramatically, cover the partially rolled dough with plastic wrap and let rest for another 15 minutes. Once rolled out, the dough should cover most of the pan and have irregular edges. Repeat with remaining dough and pan.

Sprinkle desired spices over the dough and lightly roll the rolling pin over the top to adhere.

Cut the crackers. Use a sharp chef’s knife, pizza cutter or bench scraper to cut dough into crackers. Mine are roughly 1 1/2 x 2 inches, but you may cut them as big or small as you like, keeping in mind that baking time may be affected. Prick each cracker with a toothpick or fork.

Bake crackers for 15-18 minutes, or until dark at the edges with some browning in the center. If they are pale, in the center, return them to the oven for a minute or two until they develop some darker spots.

Let crackers cool completely on their pans. Serve with cheese, cured meat and/or fruit.

Crackers will keep in an airtight container for at least a week.

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Category Archives: Vegan

Oven Fries (that are worth eating)

Vegan, Gluten-Free Peachy Berry Crisp

Vegan, Gluten-Free Carrot Cake

Vegan, Gluten-Free Icing Thumbprints

Olive Oil Crackers