Sweets

I found an interesting cookie recipe that calls for bread starter made of yeast naturally created by fruit.

This method (creating yeast from fruit) is quite popular in Japan, and Several months ago I finally made mine.

However, for some reason I misunderstood the recipe, and I used the original liquid instead of the starter.

I didn’t realize the mistake until the dough was ready to be sliced and baked.

So I decided to go ahead and bake it, but I was preparing for a major failure.

They actually turned out fine.

They looked like cookies and tasted like cookies.

These cookies did have a subtle but unique flavor that reminded me of the original liquid (which smells like sweet wine).

Interesting…

My husband made a plan to see his mother the other day when I was baking these.

She always offers things from her backyard, and this time she was going to bring us fresh tomatoes.

So I asked my husband to take some of these for her.

My mother-in-law called later and told me she liked them, and that made my day!

These madeleines are not only pretty but also the perfect size, especially for a gift.

Fall arrived quickly before I was ready to let summer go.

People moved on to pumpkin food.

And here I am.

Posting a peach galette.

But that’s okay.

I’ll eventually get to the pumpkin, but for now I enjoy my delicious peach galette and pretend that fall is not here yet…

I brushed a generous amount of peach whisky syrup on the peaches when the galette was right out of the oven.

So good.

The dark bits you see both in the crust and filling are date sugar.

I’ve been using date sugar for baking lately, and I’m really liking it.

I made black bean brownies https://sideb.culinarytribune.com/2020/09/03/black-bean-brownies-with-cocoa-cream-cheese-frosting%e9%bb%92%e8%b1%86%e3%83%96%e3%83%a9%e3%82%a6%e3%83%8b%e3%83%bc%e3%80%81%e3%82%b7%e3%83%a7%e3%82%b3%e3%83%a9%e3%82%af%e3%83%aa%e3%83%bc%e3%83%a0/ last week.

We loved it so much and quickly finished it.

Baking was not today’s plan, but I had craving for these brownies, and I happily added that to my to-do list.

Last time I used a date in place of brown sugar, and this time I used date sugar that I had recently bought, and it worked great as well.

My craving was not only for the brownies, but brownies “with peanut butter frosting.”

These turned out great, and I thoroughly enjoyed them with my afternoon cup of coffee.

Because the main ingredients are black beans, oats, and cocoa, it’s “gentle” on our body.

If you’ve been following me for a while (even the past few months), you’ve noticed that I like madeleines.

I think I’ve finally perfected my madeleines!

(After SEVERAL trials.)

My initial idea was to make “Matcha” madeleines, but when I found this beautiful organic lavender at a natural food store yesterday, my plan got quickly changed.

Lavender and Matcha together may sound strange, but this combination surprisingly works.

Well, better than just “works.”

It’s amazing!

The idea came from my favorite coffee shop, Cafe Astoria.

Their “Leah’s Happy Place” is a Matcha latte drink, with lavender!

As soon as I tried it for the first time, I fell in love.

This flavor combination is not only unique but also sophisticated.

One of the people I enjoy following on Instagram is https://zoebakes.com/ .

She creates amazing-looking cakes and other baked goods, and although they are usually not vegan, I still love just looking at her pictures.

When I found out she was one of the authors of my favorite bread-baking cookbook (“Artisan Bread in Five Minute A Day”) AND she lives in the same state, it made it even more fun to follow her.

(And there are so many things you find interesting on her site, as a lot of things, from her clothes, jewelry, mugs, to kitchen decor, reflect her great eye for beauty.)

So when I just recently saw that she posted this vegan brownie recipe on Instagram, I got so excited.

It’s actually vegan AND gluten-free.

I’ve made brownies using black beans in the past, so I was comfortable with this recipe.

This was very easy to make.

You basically put all the ingredients in a food processor and push the button!

I cut the recipe in half because I thought that would be enough for the two of us, and accordingly I used a smaller pan.

Other than that I didn’t make too many changes.

I used agave syrup, a Medjool date, olive oil, and old-fashioned oats in place of honey, brown sugar, grapeseed oil, and quick oats respectively, simply because I didn’t have them.

The brownies turned out great!

It’s perfectly moist but not dense.

She had frosting recipe posted as well, but I decided to make my own frosting.

I had homemade vegan cheese which tastes like a combination of feta, goat, and cream cheese, and I thought it would be fun to make cocoa frosting with it.

I just added cocoa powder, agave syrup, and pureed dates to the cheese.

I didn’t want to make it too sweet, and it was a right decision,

This frosting went so well with the brownie.

I sprinkled some cocoa powder and cacao nibs on top.

This was exactly what I wanted for Thursday afternoon snack to go with my coffee.

Yes, I continue to bake madeleines, trying to perfect my vegan version.

The last two times I used egg replacer in place of eggs, but this time I used apple sauce for one batch and flax seeds for another.

I really liked the apple sauce version.

The color and the texture was perfect, and it was delicious!

The only thing was that you do detect the taste of apple.

It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s not supposed to be an “apple” cake.

The flax seed version was okay.

It was still tasty and the texture was fine, too, but it was not as flavorful as the other versions.

I don’t make cookies in summer too often, but this one has a refreshing flavor, appropriate for the season.

Love the combination of lemon and Shiso (Japanese herb).

I’ve been kind of obsessed with madeleines.

This is my second time making vegan madeleines.

Both times they turned out fine, and I did like them,

But madeleine is such a simple cake, and this is probably an only cake my husband eats without any icing or frosting.

I really want to make the best vegan version.

So I will continue to try different things until I feel I got the best recipe.

Last time I only used flour, but this time I used almond flour and flour, 50/50.

Interestingly, I (or my husband) did not notice a big difference.

So I think I’ll go back to flour only (not almond flour) next time.

I think I’m getting there in terms of oven temperature.

Next time the big change I want to make is using a different substitute for eggs.

Weekend does not come fast enough!

There is a little cafe in our neighborhood, and they sell vegan cookies.

Their cookies are good, but their hours are irregular.

We never know when they are open.

Timings have been off lately.

When they were open, we were too full or we did not have money with us.

And when we really wanted a cookie (and had money with us), they were closed or out of cookies.

My husband has been craving for cookies the past few days, and I decided to make some for him.

These turned out perfect!

I added some Kinako (roasted soy bean powder) to the batter for an extra flavor.

I hope you can see the crispy edge from this picture.

These cookies are crispy outside (bottom) and moist/soft inside, just the way we like.

I know a lot of people like milk when they eat cookies, but I prefer black coffee with my chocolate chip cookies.