PB & J Brownies with(out) Crackle Crust

I'm trying something a little different with my photographs - you like? This brownie recipe came to me when I got tired of just peanut butter sandwiches (I'm not really a big fan of PB & J anymore) and I had a huge bag of chocolate that just needed to be used. Add in my love for all things that are a little crazy, I also tried a somewhat successful crackle bread crust on top that broke enough to hold onto piece of jelly, but I think it needs to be adjusted before I post it. These brownies are moist, fudgey and super fun to make!

 

 



 

 

(PB & J Brownie Ingredients)

• 1 & 1/2 C. Cake Flour
• 3/4 tsp. Baking Powder
• 3/4 C. Cocoa Powder
• 1/4 C. Vegetable Oil
• 1/4 tsp. Salt
• 1/2 C. Melted Chocolate
• 1 C. Raw Sugar
• 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
• 1 C. of Non-Dairy Milk
• Peanut butter, powdered sugar and Jelly of your choice

(Directions)

• Combine your liquids and sift your dry ingredients (except the ones at the bottom and the melted chocolate) together.
• Fold them all together, then fold in your melted chocolate.
• Combine the powdered sugar and peanut butter together, then place them on top of the whole thing.
• Swirl in as much jelly as you think is necessary and bake for about 30-45 minutes at 350 degrees.

Enjoy!

Hungry? Why Not Zoidberg? Bento

Yes, this is "that" meme, I like doing bentos and foods on memes sometimes - they're fun for me. This was a really simple bento with gorgeous yellow pepper slices, crinkle-cut carrots and a strawberry and peanut butter sandwich surrounded by sushi grass. On top I have a nice tortilla which I colored and cut out for a simplified Zoidberg yesterday morning.

Do you mind memes? Or do you think they've just all become washed out once they've become common?

Zoidberg Bento Ingredients:

Corn Tortilla

Crinkle-Cut Carrots

Peanut Butter and Strawberry Jam

Whole Wheat Bread

Yellow Bell Pepper

Seasoned Nori

Enjoy!

Single-Serving Cupcakes (Strawberry Daquiri) for Cupcake Wars

My mum woke me up a few days ago and told me how "Cupcake Wars" on the Food Network was holding an all-vegan competition. It wasn't until I saw the exact commercial that I got especially excited - I mean, I've only seen one recipe labelled as vegan throughout the entire Food Network website so this was a total shocker. However, I also knew that they had hosted "The Veg Edge" on their sister channel, "The Cooking Channel" and had much hope for all of this. In celebration I decided to take a recipe from one of the many cupcake challenges and twist it up a bit.

(Three Single Serving Cupcakes Ingredients)

• 3/4 cup of All-Purpose (or White Whole Wheat) Flour
• 1/4 cup of White Whole Wheat Flour
• 2 tbl Stevia
• 1/2 tsp of Baking Powder
• 1/8 tsp Turmeric
• A few tbl of Non-Dairy Milk
• 1 tsp of Vanilla Extract
• 1/4 tsp Veggie Oil

(Strawberry Icing Ingredients)

• 1/4 cup of Coconut Cream(whipped until fluffy)
• 1/4 tsp of Coconut Oil (liquid)
• 2 Medium Strawberries (diced to a pulp)
• 1/2 tsp of Lime Juice
• 1 tbl of Stevia *

(Kiwi Curd/Filling Ingredients)

• 1/2 Pureed Kiwi
• 1/2 tbl Stevia *
• 1 tbl of Cornstarch
• 5 tbl of Water
• 1/4 cup of Water
• Lemon Zest

(Directions)

• For the cupcakes: Whisk your dry ingredients together, fold in your milk and vanilla extract then add in your oil.
• Place into your baking molds and tap them each lightly about 20 times onto the counter.
• Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes or until your toothpick comes clean from test-time.
• Let them cool and then prepare your fillings and "icing"


• For the Strawberry Icing: Mash your strawberries with the juice and stevia, then fold them into the coconut cream and oil.
• Place into a plastic or pastry bag and wait for your cupcakes to cool.


• For the Kiwi Curd - Combine everything except for the tablespoons of water and cornstarch, then heat on medium.
• Mix tablespoons of water and cornstarch, then add to kiwi. Cook until it has thickened. Let the curd cool, place into a pastry bag and wait until your cupcakes are cool.
• Then use a skewer to make a hole in the middle of the cupcake, add in your curd and top with your icing - then turn onto the Food Network around 7:30/8:00 and enjoy yourself!

Note* - You can use raw sugar or other sweeteners if you don't enjoy stevia.

Sugar-Free Chocolate Daifuku

Rushed perfection (aka - sorry for the blur)

Normally I'll only eat mochi if it has sauce with it (in the case of dango) but in my attempt at another Ghibli treat I discovered something absolutely delicious. It was a combination of chocolate, strawberry and marshmallow (flavor and texture). It only takes a few minutes to prepare and it's absolutely delicious!

Chocolate Daifuku Recipe:
1 and 1/2 Cups Mochiko
1/4 Cup Cocoa Powder
1/4-1/2 Cup Agave Nectar
1/4 Cup of Cold Water (plus more for boiling)
1/8 tsp Sea Salt

Mix the ingredients together with your hands until they become firm but still easily moldable. Wrap a piece onto one your cleaned strawberries and make sure that none of the fruit is poking out. Take a piece of cheesecloth and wrap it around the daifuku, making sure that it is in an upright purse position. Tye it with twine and begin to boil a small amount of water (enough to bobble in). Cook them for about 5 minutes on medium heat and then turn the heat up to high at the last 30 seconds or so. Remove them from the water and let them cool until you can touch the cloth, unwrap and then enjoy!

Signed,

<3 Bou Shin <3

A Day In The Garden Kyaraben

This was a simple bento full of fresh fruit that I ate for breakfast but it's perfect at any time! I used more lightlife sausage in this one and combined it with some cracked red pepper and agave nectar. I covered the cheeks with some sriracha and cut out some nori for the facial features. To top it off I made a sweet potato pancake hat and some chocolate potato hair. Tasty, right?

Pancake Recipe:
"It's Pancake Time" recipe + Mashed Sweet Potato (for the hat)
Pancake Recipe + Cocoa Powder


Prepare them the same way but make sure that they're like regular pancakes, flatten them a bit more if you can, cut in half and make one with an edge for the brim of the hat. Attach them to some a sausage ball of your choice (that had been coated with panko) with some raw soba or rice noodles. Cut out the nori and cheese and dot on the sauce.

Next, make your omelette (I used beet juice instead of soymilk) per the directions of the fatfree vegan recipe (not mine) located here.

Line the bottom of the box with some spinach and put in your favorite fruits and vegetables. If you like, you can attach a small strawberry or a slice of a banana to the pancake hat to make a cute little flower.

Enjoy!

Signed,

<3 Bou Shin <3

It's Pancake Time!

Inspired by Pendleton Ward's Adventure Time - but edible! None of the images that I took inspiration from are owned from me, they are owned by the people that I mention.  The pancakes are two different flavors, and one is sweet while the other has a savory taste.

(Basic Pancake Mix Ingredients)

• 2 and 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
• 2 and 1/2 cups Whole Wheat Flour
• 1/2 tsp Iodized Salt
• 1/4 cup Agave Nectar
• 1 tbl Ground Flax Seeds
• 1 tsp Baking Soda
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• Vegetable Oil (a few tbl per pancake)
• Water or Soy milk (to mix)

(Jake's Face Ingredients)

• Basic Pancake Mix
• Turmeric + Pineapple Juice
• Chocolate Sauce

(Finn's Face Ingredients)

• Basic Pancake Mix + Turmeric + Pineapple Juice
• Fresh Strawberry Juice + Water + 1/2 tsp Lemon Juice (face)
• Chocolate Sauce

(Directions)

• Mix the ingredients together
• Start off your pan onto the lowest heat with a little bit of oil and spoon (or squeeze with a bottle) the pancake mix in.
• If making Finn's face: make sure to keep it as oval as possible and do the strawberry pancake mix first. Add the hat after then use your spatula to shape everything).
• Once it has started to bubble up well, firmly shove your spatula under and carefully flip it.
• For Jake's face: you can just make the shape of his face
• Once done, let them rest on a paper towel to soak up any extra oil.
• Decorate with chocolate sauce.
• Enjoy!

If you want to make the Lumpy Space Princess, use blueberry + blackberry juice for the pancake mix, and for Princess Bubblegum you can just do the same thing as you did with Finn, except reversed.