Apple Brown Betty Crisps; Second Vegan MoFo Post

Yesterday it was peaches and now its apples, it seems to be a fruity start for my Vegan MoFo posts but this is just the beginning. I want to take something homey and comfortable and just transform them in terms of texture, shape or overall asthetics to make it different. For me, food is about comfort and a way of expression - and this super simple caramel sauce with cooked apples is superb. This requires absolutely no leaveners and just a few minutes of baking time depending on how you like it. Sweet, salty and buttery due to margarine served on both soft and crispy "crackers", I can really appreciate this and I know you will as well.

(Apple Brown Betty Crisps Dough Ingredients)

• 2 and 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 1/2 cup Raw Sugar
• 1/2 stick Vegan Margarine
• A Generous Pinch of Cinnamon
• Enough Rice Milk to mix

(Directions)

• Cream your margarine and sugar together with a whisk.
• Sift in your salt and flour, then fold until it starts to become crumbly.
• Add enough rice milk to make it a nice, sticky dough and then fold in half of the chopped apples.
• Refrigerate as you work on your apples in caramel sauce.
• Bake for about 25 minutes after adding apple topping or until done. Serve warm.

(Apples in Caramel Sauce Ingredients)

• 1/2 Medium-Sized Chopped Apple
• 1/2 stick of Margarine, Cubed
• 1/2 cup Raw Sugar
• 3 tbl Soy or Rice Milk
• A Generous Pinch of Cinnamon and Salt

(Directions)

• Melt half of your margarine and then toss in your apples, sugar and a bit of salt, slowly add more margarine as you like.
• Wait until the sugar and fat have cooked together, bubbled and darkened to a nice caramel
• Add in your milk and cook for another minute or two, then allow to cool before topping onto your almost-frozen dough and bake.
• Enjoy!

Banana & Vanilla Lofthouse Cookies (Low-Fat, Soy-Free)

Isn't this just the cutest!? I especially love this new chocolate mold that I got from JList - there's a side with rabbits and hearts while the other is bears and stars. The way the milk ends up in the eyes at the bottom of the chocolate straw I've made is really out of this world. I've also use the mold to shape some cute bunny cookies that I've coated with sugar, and with the leftover dough I've made sugar-coated bunny ears and an adorable turtle! These were served with Chinese Hose Tea but still ended up looking quite white.

(B&V Lofthouse Cookies Ingredients)

• 2 cups of Cake Flour
• 1/4 tsp of Baking Powder
• 1 Dry packet of Vanilla Pudding
• 1 Semi-Ripe Banana
• 2 tbl Vegan Margarine
• 1/2 tsp Organic Banana Extract
• 1/4 Cup Almond Milk

(Directions)

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Sift together your flour and baking powder.
• Using an electric mixer mix the vanilla powder, margarine and banana, while pouring in the extract.
• Slowly add a small amount of almond milk about a tablespoon at a time, alternating with the flour mixture until no longer sticky but still slightly wet.
• Pack together by hand and wrap into a log. Refrigerate for about 1-2 hours, slice and either coat with sugar or leave as you like.
• Bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes or until lightly browned on the bottoms, then place into a cookie jar or container with a top and place them in while still hot.
• Repeat with the rest of the batch until the whole jar is cooled and frost the un-sugared cookies, sprinkles are best for the "lofthouse" effect.