Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Really great tofu cookies

I know I just scared you by writing the words tofu and cookies in the same sentence. But seriously, these cookies were so delicious, you would never know there was any tofu in them!
I mixed them up with my little girl today to warm us up, it is freeeeezing outside.

Hope you will give these a try!

Tofu Peanut Butter Cookies
12 and 1/3 oz package of firm silken tofu (aseptic Morinu works best)
1/3 cup natural peanut butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup white flour
1/2 cup wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 and 1/2 cups regular oats
1/4 cup vegan chocolate chips, you can use any chips you like
Preaheat oven to 350
In a large bowl cream the tofu, the PB, the vanilla and the brown sugar.
Add in the flours, bak powder, and oats to the mixture. Stir thoroughly till well combined. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by spoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet. These cookies do not spread out at all, so you do not need to leave space in between. Bake 20-25 minutes till golden brown. Makes about 30 cookies.
Enjoy!

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

December Craziness

Could December get any crazier?? Seriously??
We have had so much craziness going on I have not had much time to cook.
We celebrated Diane's birthday Monday and then rush rush rush everyday since then.

Today was one of those days where if it could go wrong, it went wrong!
I got a groupon deal for a new local carpet cleaning place. $50 for a regularly $150 cleaning. They promised to clean 5 rooms and a hallway for that price. We set up for them to come between 8 and 10 am. I told them to call my cell phone since I would be at the dentist with 5 kids at 730am and they should let me know exactly what time they would show up. Well of course that did not work. They called my home phone while we were at the dentist and said, well, we will come after you call us back!!!! UGH!
So I called them as soon as we got home at 945 and they said they would be there by 1030.
Can you believe they showed up at 12 noon? OMG
So the guy comes and my friend was sitting at the house waiting since 8am. The guy tells her that our rooms are too big and he would have to charge us for 9 rooms, not for 5. Ok, um, there were no measurements in the deal as listed, and our rooms are not very big!!
So I call the manager of VClean and tell him how unhappy I am so far, the tech was 4 hours late, they called the wrong phone numbers. etc...
So the manager tells me to clean the whole house and get out some stains in 3 rooms, it will be an extra $170, but since he is being nice, it will only be $130.
Plus, he needs me to FAX him my actual credit card so he can charge my card immediately. While I am having this 30 minute conversation with the manager, the tech cannot start any work because they have not charged my card yet!! I go to fax them my credit card(have you ever heard of doing this before?) and I try 4 times and call back. Oh yeah, the fax machine was not on. So the tech was working for the past 4 hours and he is still not done and does not think he can get some of the stains out.
Can today get any longer? I don't think so!
I will leave you with a great easy and totally not healthy recipe but it is fun for my kids to make themselves in December. Enjoy!!
Peppermint Oreo Truffles
1 pkg (8oz) of Philly cream cheese, softened, I have used 1/2 the fat kind and it came out fine
1 pkg (1lb) Oreo cookies, the peppermint ones are really yummy, or use plain ones too, finely crushed
2 pkg(16 squares) of Ghirardelli semi sweet chocolate, melted
Mix cream cheese and 3 cups of cookie crumbs until well blended. Kids love to smoosh this part with a spoon.
Shape this mixture into 48 small balls, about 1 inch each. Dip each ball into the Ghirardelli chocolate that you have melted. Let cool on waxed paper covered baking sheet. Roll in remaining oreo crumbs or crushed peppermint candies. Refrigerate 1 hour till firm. Store in tightly covered container in the fridge.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

My Baby Girl is 3~

I cannot believe my baby girl is Three! Yesterday we celebrated her birthday and all day long, she kept asking me, "When will it be my birthday Mom?" I kept saying, it is your birthday honey. "No!" she kept arguing. Finally, I asked her, "What will make today your birthday?" and she told me what she was waiting for, her cake!!!

So we made her cake, a delicious chocolate vegan cake with chocolate glaze. This cake is so yummy but more importantly so easy to make. You put all the ingredients right into the pan that you then bake it in! Could that be any easier? The glaze is so easy and makes the cake look pretty and taste great too. I highly recommend this cake when your kids want a chocolatey dessert that is good for them too.

Best Chocolate Cake Ever
1 and 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup hot water
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup oil (I used canola)
1 tsp white or apple cider vinegar
Chocolate Glaze
1/2 cup sugar
4 TB vegan margarine
2 TB any non dairy milk
2 TB cocoa powder
2 tsp vanilla
Preheat oven to 350. In an 8x8 pan mix together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt with a fork. Make sure it is well blended. Add in the water, vinegar, vanilla and oil. Mix together again till well blended. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides if needed. Bake for 30 minutes till a knife in the center comes out clean.  Coll for 2 hours.
When it is cool, make the glaze.  In a small saucepan bring sugar, margarine, milk and cocoa to a boil.  Stir frequently. Reduce the heat to a simmer and keep stirring for 2 more minutes. Take off the flame and stir for another 5 minutes, it will be starting to thicken a little. Stir in the vanilla.  After 5 minutes of stirring, pour the delicious glaze over the cake immediately.  Glaze dries really quickly, so spread it immediately and add any sprinkles NOW! Let the cake cool and set, it takes about an hour. ENJOY!
As you can see my little girl loved it.