Vegan Dumplings!

Anything that takes an entire evening to make is bound to taste better than a quick fix meal. There's something about having to really work for your food that brings out the foodie in all of us... and with that in mind, I bring you vegan dumplings!

It was still late afternoon when we decided to venture into the culinary abyss better known as homemade dumplings. The challenge of finding vegan dumpling wrappers (pre-made dough that folds easily into dumpling-like shapes) was a good one, and from what I've read online it's probably easier to just make them yourself. In terms of filling, you can really switch it up here. As long as you aren't using anything too watery, and as long as it fits in the dumpling wrapper, it's probably fair game. What I've listed below is what we used in ours, and I can definitely attest to its deliciousness.


DUMPLING FILLING:
-1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger root
-4 cloves garlic, minced
-2 tablespoons thinly sliced green onion
-2 tablespoons soy sauce
-1 tablespoons sesame oil
-1 cups finely shredded nappa cabbage
-1/2 cup shredded onion


DUMPLING SAUCE:
-4 tbsp soy sauce
-3 tbsp sesame oil
-pinch of white sugar
-pinch of chili flakes


1. Sautee filling ingredients, and mince until almost ground.
2. Keep dumpling wrappers under a wet cloth to prevent them from drying out. Take out only 10 at a time, and lay flat on clean countertop or cutting board.
3. Drop 1 tsp of mixture into centre of wrapper, wet edges of wrapper with a drop of water, and fold wrapper in half.
4. Make sure edges of wrapper are smoothly sealed, and pinch the edges until they are frilled. Flatten the bottom of the dumpling so that it can stand on its own.
5. Place filled and sealed dumplings into tupperware or a ziploc baggie until ready to cook. Repeat steps 2-4 until you've exhausted your collection of wrappers, or until you're simply too excited/hungry to not move to the next step.
6. Heat 1 tsp of cooking oil in a large nonstick pan (one which you have a fitted lid for!) at medium heat, and place as many dumplings as will fit (flat side down), and not touching.
7. Allow to fry for about 2-3 minutes, until the bottoms of the dumplings have browned.
8. When the bottoms of the dumplings are sufficiently golden, throw in a quarter cup of water, and place lid onto pan. Steam dumplings for 1 minute.
9. Remove the lid, and allow the remaining water to evaporate.
10. Throw together dumpling sauce, and nom nom nom! You have dumplings!

Though quite a bit of effort on the first round, round two and three proves much quicker and significantly less complicated. I recommend munching on cooked dumplings in between each round when you first start out --though, in all honesty, that's probably a given.

5-Step Banana Bread

Chocolate-Chip Banana Bread

Preheat over to 350 degrees


Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (3 small bananas or 2 big)
3/4 cups sugar
1 egg's worth of egg replacement (I suggest Ener-G!)
1/4 cup vegetable oil or olive oil
1/2 bag chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Grease and flour loaf pan
2. Stir flour, salt, baking soda, and chocolate chips in large bowl
3. Combine bananas, sugar,egg and oil, stir together in separate bowl
4. Pour banana mixture into dry ingredients and fold until moistened
5. Bake for 50-55 mins, or until toothpick comes out clean!

Enjoy!

Fall forever? Please?

Right around this time of year, two years ago, I started this blog.

It was fall, and I felt warm inside. I wanted my own little corner of the internet. A place I could colour in and edit, use as I like.

And here I am two years unwiser, a much better cook/baker, yet just as sappy and sentimental with my pros.

Hm. Fall.

How is it that I write about it every year, without fail, and never feel content with the way I've described it? It always seems to be one step ahead of me, this sneaky season. And yet I take so much comfort in aimlessly trailing behind it, trying to keep myself as close as possible to it before it runs away and I'm suddenly knee-deep in snow and missing sunshine. Winter makes me feel like a plant craving water: all bent over and lifeless, looking forward to the spring as though I'm not really sure if it'll make it back this year. But this year is going to be a little different: I get to spend December camping out under a shady coconut grove, yoga-ing, quite literally, from sunrise to sunset, and coming back to this city as a certified yoga teacher in the new year.

As my dear friend Devin said,

"Seriously Marls, you're gonna transform into a lotus bud or something after all of this".

Wouldn't that be a surprise?

So what have I been up to? Fall. It's the beginning of November, what else could you possibly expect...

A little plaid...

A little hybrid squash which may or may not have required a butcher knife to cut open...

And some curiously large apples...

But if you know me, and I'm assuming you do, you'll know that I can't say it's truly fall until I've made a vegan pumpkin pie. Or two. These were for my floor potluck at work:

Vegan Pumpkin Pie

-1 8-inch or 9-inch unbaked pie crust (homemade or storebought)
-2 cups pureed pumpkin (or one 15-oz can)
-1 cup plain nondairy milk (soy is best, though coconut creates a creamier texture if you don't mind a little coconut flavour seeping through)
-3/4 cup sugar
-2 1/2 – 3 Tbsp cornstarch
-1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
-1/2 tsp ginger
-1/2 tsp salt
-1/4 tsp ground cloves
-1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine pumpkin, non-dairy milk, sugar, cornstarch, salt, and spices in a large bowl, and mix very well.
3. Pour into unbaked pastry shell, and bake for about an hour. Don't worry -the pie will firm up as it cools. Let cool completely on a cooling rack and refrigerate under plastic wrap for several hours before serving.
4. Scarf down and digest fall with utmost happiness -preferably with someone who makes you feel warm and fuzzy (and appreciates your baking skills).

Happy Fall!