Pecan Pie Truffles (Vegan)

Pecan Pie Truffles

This recipe* from the NY Times is quite fun to make and is absolutely delicious.  The truffle features the best part of a pecan pie but with a chocolate coating.  I'm not vegan, but this recipe is.  I loved it anyway.  No eggs, no milk, no butter. No cooking except for melting the chocolate.

My friend Virginia from Greensboro was here for a visit and we made these.  It's always fun to cook with a friend.  These will freeze nicely, so I have some stashed away in the freezer ready for the holidays.

Ingredients

• 2½cups pecans, toasted and finely chopped
• 1cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1cup dark brown sugar, packed
• ½teaspoon salt
• 2tablespoons maple syrup
• ¼cup bourbon
• 1teaspoon vanilla
• 7ounces dark chocolate

Preparation

• 1 In a medium bowl, stir together pecans, graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar and salt until well combined. Add maple syrup, bourbon and vanilla, stirring thoroughly. Use your hands to make sure the mixture becomes fully incorporated.
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• 2 Form mixture into walnut-sized balls, then place on a cookie sheet and freeze for 2 hours.
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• 3 In the top of a double boiler or in a medium stainless steel bowl set over a pot of gently simmering water, melt chocolate. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Dip the frozen balls into the melted chocolate, then place onto prepared baking sheet. Let sit for 15 minutes or until firm.

All ingredients mixed together.

Walnut-sized balls ready for the freezer.

Melt dark chocolate in double boiler. 

Chocolate coated and ready to eat or ready to freeze for the holidays. 

A bite out reveals the pecan pie center. 

I will serve these in a candy dish that was a wedding gift to Mama,  I remember it holding candy every Christmas. 

Yes, I think I will add this recipe to my holiday recipes book.  

*Check out this website.

Chickpea and Quinoa Salad with Beets and Peppers

Quinoa, Chickpea and Beet Salad.

Linda Watson one of my favorite food bloggers, Cook for Good, always has such different and interesting and healthful recipes and all are vegan. We're not vegan, but we do like to try new things.  When I saw this recipe I didn't actually know what Quinoa was. I didn't even know how to pronounce it. But I learned in Wikipedia that it is a species of Chenopodium and it is grown primarily for its edible seeds. It's grain-like but not a true grain since it is not a member of the grass family like true cereals.  Quinoa is closely related to species such as beets and spinach. And added benefit is that it is gluten free.

We like beets and we like chick peas so I tried the recipe.

Ingredients

2 cups cooked chickpeas (328 grams) 
1/2 cup chickpea broth (optional) 
1 cup quinoa (170 grams) 
1 1/3 cup water 
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 small beets 
1 cucumber (about 1 cup chopped) (I omitted the cucumber.) 
1 bell pepper (I used orange and green bell peppers.)

Method

1.  Put on an old or dark apron or shirt in case the beets splash and stain. Actually, do it because the beets WILL splash and stain. Scrub beets and pierce several times with a fork. Save any beet leaves for another recipe. Put beet bulbs in a covered, microwave-safe container and microwave on high for five minutes.

2. Turn beets over and microwave until they are fork-tender, about five more minutes. Uncover and let cool so you can peel them.

3.  Put quinoa, water, and salt in a medium pot, cover, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low so water barely boils and cook covered for 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and, without lifting the lid, let quinoa finish steaming for five minutes.

Cooked quinoa.

4.  Meanwhile, cut slices off both ends of the cucumber and taste, then peel if bitter. Cut cucumber and pepper into bite-sized pieces. Put vegetables into a non-absorbant serving or storage container as you go. For example, a glass bowl shows off the colors and won't stain.

5.  Cut off stem and root ends of beets and compost. Peel beets and cut into bite-sized pieces, saving beet juice.

Diced cooked beets.

6.  Fluff quinoa with a fork. Toss with chickpeas and vegetables, then drizzle with any beet juice and about half the chickpea broth to deepen the flavor and help the salad stick together a bit for easier eating.

Quinoa and chick peas.

7.  Toss again until the beets turn the quinoa pink, taste, and add salt or more chickpea broth if desired.Serve at room temperature or chilled. Keeps refrigerated for four or five days.

Dan and I liked this colorful salad, and it's nice to have a recipe that my vegan family and friends can enjoy.

Linda Watson's Strawberry Cashew Soup

Strawberry Cashew Soup.

I'm glad I'm on Linda Watson's email list.  In a recent email she had a recipe for this delicious strawberry cashew soup.  I served it the other night for dessert.  Here's the recipe.

1/3 cup raw cashews
1/4 cup water
1 pound strawberries
1 1/2 teaspoons honey (I used two tablespoons because I wanted it a bit sweeter.)
pinch salt

1. Put cashews and water in a food processor. Pulse eight to ten times until cashew pieces are about the size of coarse grains of sand. Let cashews soak at room temperature for an hour.
2. Set aside four pretty strawberries for garnish and hull the rest.
3. After the cashews have soaked, process them again until the mixture looks like heavy cream, about 30 seconds. Add strawberries, honey, and salt to food processor and process until smooth. Refrigerate until cold, about an hour.
4. Slice remaining strawberries. Taste soup and add more honey or salt as needed. (Chilling the soup brings out the flavor of the strawberries, so check the flavor after chilling and serve it cold.) Ladle soup into bowls and gently float strawberry slices on top. Soup keeps refrigerated for about four days.