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AMAZING COOKIES!!! Chocolate, Toasted Walnut & Fig

3/16/2021

These are the perfect cookie, vegan or otherwise. Elevate your chocolate chip cookie game with this recipe friends!!! Vegan chocolate chips, toasted walnuts and dried figs are a delicious combination and make for an irresistible cookie treat. I made a batch on my weekend and brought them to work. It was definitely good because I would have eaten all of them in a very short time. Really though, sharing with my coworkers is fun, and I enjoy getting feedback from them. (All of whom are omnivores by the way, except for two younger part time employees, sisters, who are actually vegan. If you could understand the small town I live in, that's impressive.) Anyway, everyone LOVED these cookies so I am confident you will too. You don't want to miss this recipe!!! Feel free to mix up the chocolate, fruit & nut combinations. Keep it all chocolate if you prefer....you do you. How about white chocolate macadamia nut???? I want that.

RECIPE: VEGAN CHOCOLATE CHIP, TOASTED WALNUT & FIG COOKIES

Recipe Yield: about 20 delicious cookies

Ingredients:

1/2 cup vegan butter
3/4 cup brown sugar (I use wholesome organic brown & white sugar)
1/2 cup white sugar
2 flax eggs (2 tbsp ground flax seed mixed with 6 tbsp water. let sit 10 minutes)
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup toasted chopped walnuts
1 cup vegan chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped dried figs
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda

Method:

In a large bowl, cream together vegan butter and sugars until light and fluffy.
Mix in flax eggs and vanilla
In a small bowl combine figs and flour, mix around to coat figs.
Add fig/flour mixture to bowl along with salt & baking soda.
Mix wet and dry until just combined
Use an ice cream scoop to portion balls of dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Flatten cookies down with palm of your hand.
Bake in a 350° F oven for about 12 minutes, or until edges are golden. (you want crisp cookie exterior, soft interior)

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Vegan Mushroom Soup with Tarragon Cream & Cheesy Toasts

3/5/2021

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This mushroom soup turned out beautifully. A variety of mushrooms blended with mirepoix, garlic, a bit of potato, veg stock, wine, fresh tarragon and vegan cream. I garnished it with a drizzle of good truffle oil & a sprinkle of parsley. The cheesy toasts on the side are non negotiable for me. It's the combination of the two that makes the meal sing. I found a vegan swiss cheese product that will be my go to specifically for this recipe. It had a bit of tang, and was melty and flavourful. Feel free to just make a straight up grilled cheese instead of open face toasts. I also chose to sauté a few extra mushrooms to garnish the soup, really just for the photo. This is optional but definitely tasty. I don't recommend the enoki mushrooms so much. Straight up button or cremini is perfectly great here. I honestly just picked up enoki mushrooms because I thought it would make for prettier image, then realized after the fact I would just leave them out. Bottom line, I'm pumped to have this mushroom soup recipe in my repetoire. Earthy, slightly creamy and just a hint of tarragon. A total treat.

Serves 8

Ingredients

40 g dried mushrooms soaked in 2 cups boiling water (I used a combination of porcini and mixed mushrooms I had)
1/4 cup vegan butter
2 sweet onions
2 carrots
2 celery stalks
1 head garlic
8 cups veg stock
2 -3 small potatoes, diced (375g)
2 lbs mushrooms, sliced. (I used 75% cremini and 25% oyster mushrooms) It's nice to have a combination. Shiitake would be great too.
1 cup white wine
500 ml oat cream (or to taste...if you were using dairy cream you'd need a lot less)
- (or you could try using Tofutti vegan sour cream if you can't find oat cream. It's thicker but has an awesome creamy richness I actually might try that next time. Don't use dairy sour cream it is completely different)
juice from 1 lemon
2 tbsp chopped tarragon
salt and pepper

Method:

Soak your dried mushrooms first then start the rest of the recipe.
In a large soup pot heat 1/4 cup vegan butter.
Add mirepoix (onion, carrot & celery) cook for a few minutes stirring around then add chopped garlic. Cook everything until softened. season with salt and pepper
While the mirepoix is sautéing, heat a large fry pan on another burner and add a bit of veg oil. When pan is hot add 2 lbs sliced mushrooms. (It's easier to get colour/caramelization on mushrooms in a separate hot pan vs adding right to the soup pot....this means better flavour)
When mushrooms are cooked downed and preferably golden, deglaze the pan with 1 cup of white wine, scraping up any bits that are stuck to the pan.
Now you can dump the mushroom/wine into the soup pot and continue from there.
Add 8 cups of veg stock, the dried soaked mushrooms with their liquid & potatoes. Bring to a boil & reduce to a simmer.
When potatoes are soft puree with an immersion blender until completely smooth. season with more salt and pepper & juice from 1 lemon. Let simmer to let flavours blend. I never time this part. I'd like to say at least 45 minutes. My rule is longer the soup hangs out on low the better...you just have to pay attention to how much it is reducing, and make sure to give it an occasional stir. I always prefer to serve soup the next day for best flavour.
Stir in oat cream and tarragon. Heat through. Taste & adjust seasonings. (salt, pepper, lemon, tarragon)
To serve, ladle soup into bowls, garnish with additional sautéed mushrooms if desired, a drizzle of good quality truffle oil & a sprinkle of fresh parsley or chives.
Definitely serve with vegan grilled cheese or cheesy toasts. Really enhances the whole experience in my opinion. If you want to make cheesy toasts just slice some baguette, drizzle with veg oil and pop in 425F oven until brown on bottom side. Flip over, top with slices of cheese and back into oven until melty. Vegan grilled cheese is delicious. I think people assume you need butter for grilled cheese, but trust me you can use veg oil and achieve perfect results.

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AMAZING COOKIES!!! Chocolate, Toasted Walnut & Fig

Vegan Mushroom Soup with Tarragon Cream & Cheesy Toasts

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