Vegan Cream Marshmallows

sweet vegan treats made by vegan baker Brittle Betty Candies

www.brittlebetty.com

 

Online Vegan Bake Sale for Peace to All Creatures Zine!

Dear VET friends,

Teamies Pippi and Jessi have been creating Peace to All Creatures zine for three years now. And today you can help support this labor of love by bidding on delicious baked goods! Check out this amazing online vegan bake sale / auction, happening today only!

Everybody loves CUPCAKES! Meet: Tea Loves Cake

Please welcome one of our newest team members, Leah of Tea Loves Cake and FenDove. While over at FenDove you'll find her artistic creations, at Tea Loves Cake you will find an abundance of CUPCAKES!

Snowball Cupcakes

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes

Special Vanilla Cupcakes

Fudgariffic!!

Everybody loves fudge. It's a scientifically proven fact. I developed this rocky road fudge recipe in homage to days gone past, spending holidays around tons of relatives who would bake up a storm. Those days are gone but the memories remain, and now this fudge has become part of my holiday tradition.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of chocolate, coarsely chopped then measured
• 2 cups (yes really, two cups) of powdered sugar (confectioners sugar)
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1/8 cup "milk" (I use Almond Breeze, but use whatever floats your boat - soy, rice, hemp, whatev)
• 1/8 cup rum
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 cup marshmallows, quartered then measured
• 1 and 1/2 cups walnuts, measured then roughly chopped

Steps:

• Melt your chocolate. You can use a double boiler for this, but I've actually found that it isn't necessary. It's much more helpful to have a nonstick pot! Stir constantly, and remove from heat as soon as you only have a few little lumps yet. You want to heat your chocolate as little as possible, because you have to let it return to room temperature before using it. How does it stay liquid when it started out solid? Magic.
• Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper. I swear, this is why parchment exists, and I love it.
• Chop your walnuts - how big or small depends on how you like it.
• Quarter your marshmallows. I've used Dandies for this, but I feel that Sweet and Sara's would be wonderful as well - just a little pricey maybe. Note: marshmallows are very sticky when you cut them open! I find it helpful to use some powdered sugar on the chopping board and on my hands to coat the newly exposed sides, so that the marshmallows don't stick to the board, each other, or me... (Of course, if you can get ahold of the mini Dandies, no chopping is necessary!)
  
• In a large bowl, whisk together coconut milk, other milk, rum, extract, and powdered sugar. (If your powdered sugar has little sugar rocks in it, run it through a sieve or sifter first.) Mix in your marshmallows and walnuts. (This is about when I switch from a whisk to a spatula. Walnuts + whisk = baagghhh.)
• Stir in your ROOM TEMPERATURE chocolate. Seriously people. It cannot be hot... unless of course you want to make fudge soup.
• Pour/scoop the mixture into your prepared pan, and use a spatula to spread it not quite to the edges.
• Refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours, until completely firm. Then break into chunks or cut up, display nicely on a plate, and watch your loved ones go wild.

Fudgy.

Some additional notes...

*I like to use three 1 oz. squares of semi-sweet and six of unsweetened - plenty of sugar is added later!
*If you have bought a normal size can of coconut milk, this recipe is only going to use about a third of it. You may want to think about creative ways to use the rest - coconut milk goes bad quickly once opened! Of course, you *could* always make a triple batch...
*The rum here is optional - you can up the milk to 1/4 cup and leave it out. But I like the tiny punch it gives, and I swear it doesn't leave the fudge tasting very rummy. Conversely, you can do a full quarter cup and leave the milk out entirely!
*Eternal thanks to Celine of Have Cake, Will Travel, whose whiskey peanut fudge recipe started me on all of my crazy fudgy journeys.

Oh fuuuudge...

Cooler weather also means it's time for fudge. It's fun and easy to make your own, and I'm going to share my favorite recipe with you... tomorrow! Today, feast your eyes on some of the best fudgilicious goodies the VET has to offer...

S'mores Fudge from Sweet V Confections!

Fudgy peanut butter brownies from Veganville!

Rocky Road Fudge from Panda with Cookie BAKES!

Vegan Baadusha Recipe

Baadusha is a deep fried South India dessert which is made on special occasions like festivals. We've been making these babies for Diwali in the recent years. One of the quickest desserts to make! The only 'work' involved is the deep frying and even that can be easy with a partner.



2 C maida/all purpose flour (I do intend to try these out with whole wheat flour at some point though)
1/2 C cold coconut oil + more for deep frying
2 C sugar
2 C water + more for the dough
A generous pinch of baking soda
Tiny pinch of salt
Chopped nuts - pista, almond, cashew

Fry the chopped nuts in a bit of coconut oil until lightly brown, strain and keep aside.

Pour this strained oil plus the remainder of the 1/2 C oil into the flour along with the salt and rub everything together until crumbs form.

Sprinkle the soda on top, add a little bit of water and knead into a soft dough.

Cover with a moist cloth and keep aside for about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare a slightly thick sugar syrup with the sugar and water by boiling them together.

While the syrup is still warm, heat the oil for deep frying.

Shape the dough into little balls, flatten them and press your thumb (or index or whichever finger you like) down in the middle to form a crater in each one.

In batches, deep fry them in the hot oil on a medium flame until golden brown and transfer them directly into the warm sugar syrup.

Let them soak for about 10 minutes.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer them onto a plate and place the nuts in the craters.

After they cool slightly, the sugar syrup will harden a bit and form a layer on top.

At this point the Baadushas are ready to munch on. :)

Perfect for fall: Vegan Carrot Cake!

Check out this awesome recipe for vegan carrot cake, AND a delicious vegan cream cheese frosting to boot, from VET member Rachel of Soapwalla. Perfect for Thanksgiving dessert? Mmm... yes!

Illustrations from My Zoetrope

Carrot Cake

Ingredients:

• 3 1/2 cups shredded carrot
• 2 cups flour (i generally use spelt)
• 1 cup raw vegan sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
• pinch salt
• 1/2 cup coconut milk or other nondairy milk (I generally squeeze in the juice of 1/2 a lemon in to make it a little brighter tasting)
• 3/4 cup sunflower, grapeseed or other light oil
• a big handful raisins
• a handful slivered almonds

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Grease 9 x 13 pan. Mix all dry ingredients thoroughly. Fold in carrots, making sure to coat carrots with flour mixture. Add oil and mix. Add milk and mix. Fold in raisins, almonds, and pour into cake pan. Even out the top (will be pretty thick), then cook 40-45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting (recipe below).

Cream Cheese frosting

Ingredients:

• 1 tub Tofutti cream cheese, softened
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) earth balance, softened
• 3/4 to 1 cup organic powdered sugar, to taste
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

Directions:

Whip cream cheese and earth balance until light and fully mixed. Add powdered sugar and mix. Taste, and add more sugar if necessary. Whip in lemon juice and zest, then place in fridge until you are ready to frost. Just before frosting, re-whip, then try not to eat the entire bowl before you get to the cake!

When the cake is fully frosted, I recommend placing in the freezer until you are ready to serve.

Feed Your Skin.

Rachel Winard, Soapwalla Chef

Caramelized Bananas

A dessert that's not only vegan and diabetic friendly, but also ridiculously simple to make - Caramelized Bananas. These bananas are scrumptious!



Sesame seeds - toasted well in a dry pan.
Ripe Bananas - cut in half lengthwise and horizontally.

Heat a pan (non-stick/Teflon makes things a lot easier). Place the bananas in a single layer in the pan. Gently flip the bananas once in a while as they cook. Once they reach a delicious looking golden color take them off the flame.

Serve sprinkled with the toasted sesame seeds.

I bet it takes you lesser time to make this dish than in took me to type it out for you. Enjoy! :)

P.S: I learnt (yep, that's the proper British spelling) this recipe at an awesome seminar by Dr. Neal Barnard and Dr. Nandita Shah (of SHARAN India).

We All Scream For Ice Cream!

Well, I do at least! With the weather finally warming up, my thoughts of course turn toward ice cream, delicious vegan ice cream. Celebrate the icy goodness with these cute picks from the Vegan Etsy Team:


Triple Scooper Ice Cream Magnet by Sick on Sin:





Giant Ice Cream Cone by Sierra Pelona Crochet:





Ms. Lickety Sweets Print by myzoetrope:





And from my shop, Vegancraftastic, the Ice Cream Social project bag:








-Kala (Vegancraftastic)

Member of the Week: Kristen of Sweet V Confections!

This week the Vegan Etsy Team features Kristen of Sweet V Confections as our VET Member of the Week! This is one of several team shops that keeps us up to our ears in delectable vegan sweet treats (such as her absolutely gorgeous dark chocolate peanut butter bunny). Today Kristen talks to us from behind the scenes of Sweet V.

When did you open your Etsy shop, and how did you choose its name?
I agonized over a shop name for several days. While I want everyone to know that my goodies are vegan, I also don't want to "scare" anyone off by having the word vegan in my shop name. So, I decided to just use the letter V, instead of the word vegan. I have been a member of Etsy since October of last year.

What kinds of items do you sell in your shop, and what inspired you to start creating them?
I sell vegan baked goods and chocolates. I absolutely love baking, especially for other people. Being vegan in a small Midwest town I wasn't able to get vegan baked goods very often, and when I did I found they were expensive. I decided to just start making my own. After my family and friends tried some of my goodies, they convinced me that I needed to start selling them.

What are some of your favorite things about Etsy?
I love seeing all the wonderful things other sellers have in their shops. I am always amazed by what people are able to create. I also love being part of the EtsyVeg team and Vegan Etsy Team. The members of these teams have been so helpful and supportive, especially when I was just starting out.

Have you been featured anywhere?
Sweet V has been featured on This Just In for my oatmeal cream pies, on the EtsyVeg blog, on the Daisy Wares blog, and previously here on the Vegan Etsy blog.

How long have you been vegan, and what made you go vegan?
I have been vegan since October of 2007. My main reason for being vegan is the animals. I saw the video 'Meet Your Meat,' and realized that I couldn't be the type of person I wanted to be if I were still eating animal products.

What are your favorite foods?
I love pretty much any dish that includes pasta. My favorite is probably the stuffed shells that I make. The vegan crab cakes at Whole Foods are probably my newest favorite food. It's a good thing we don't live closer to WF, or I'd be eating those almost every day. As far as my baked goods go, my favorites are scotcharoos and mocha stout cupcakes. I've been known to have the cupcakes for breakfast!

Do you have any favorite vegan things, like books, websites, stores, etc.?
My favorite vegan books are all cookbooks. I have way too many and don't use them as often as I should. As far as websites go, I am always on the Post Punk Kitchen.

What kinds of hobbies and interests do you have?
When I have time to, I love to read. I'm currently working my way through The China Study, Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer, and Portions From a Wine-Stained Notebook by Charles Bukowski.

Also, I lived in Illinois for most of my life, and am really excited about getting to explore the mountains in North Carolina with my fiance.

Do you have any animal companions?
Yes! We have two kitties. We got Elle about 6 years ago from a family friend. Her name was originally Nomar (as in Nomar Garciaparra), since we were told she was a boy when we got her. Luckily, after about a week, I realized she was really a she, and then we had to go through the naming process again. Chloe found us about 3 1/2 months ago. She was a stray who had been hanging around our apartment complex. I could hear her little cry from our balcony, and with the nights getting pretty chilly here I couldn't let her stay another night outside. It took us a little while to get her to come inside, but once she did, she loved it.

Do you have any future plans for your shop?
In the near future I plan on adding several new items. I'm going to be experimenting with agave nectar and fruit-sweetened goodies. A little further down the road, I'd really like to open a vegan bakery in the Charlotte, NC area.

Is there anything else you would like to add or share?
Thank you so much for choosing me to be member of the week! I am so proud to be a part of a team with such talented and wonderful members.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Cups
from Sweet V Confections

Red Bike Bake Shop - our newest team member!

Please take a moment to welcome the newest member of the Vegan Etsy Team, Red Bike Bake Shop! This shop is guaranteed to wow you with vegan *organic* baked deliciousness - so don't forget to click that heart!

Personally, I may be ordering these vegan chocolate macaroons awfully soon... YUM!

Did someone say cake?

Cake is awesome, and vegan cake is the most awesome of all! Check out these cute offerings from the sweeties on the Vegan Etsy Team!

Birthday Cutie Cake Card by my zoetrope:

Tiny Cake Stand by Vessels and Wares:

Peanut Butter Heaven Cupcakes by Sweet V Confections:

Vanilla Cupcake Pin Set from my shop, Vegancraftastic:

-Kala (Vegancraftastic)

Chocolate Revel Bars

The picture above was taken soon after they were done baking, so they were still all warm and gooey. These bars do firm up a bit but stay ultra fudgy. Don't let the large amount of oats in them fool you. These things are quite decadent!

Ingredients for the crust & topping:

3 cups oats (you can use quick cooking but regular work just fine)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 cup margarine
2 cups brown sugar, packed
2 egg replacers (Ener-G works great)
2 tsp. vanilla

Ingredients for the fudgy filling:

1 can condensed soymilk
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
2 Tbsp. margarine
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup walnuts
2 tsp. vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a 9 x 13 inch pan.

First, make the crust & topping. In a large bowl, beat together the cup of margarine and brown sugar until fluffy. Mix in the egg replacer and vanilla. In another bowl, combine the oats, flour, baking soda and salt, then stir into the margarine mixture. Put 2/3 of the mixture into the 9 x 13 pan and pat it down well. Set the rest aside.

Now it's time to make the fudgy filling. In a medium saucepan, put the condensed soymilk, chocolate chips and 2 Tbsp. of margarine. Heat it over low heat, stirring constantly, until it's smooth. Remove it from the heat and stir in the walnuts and vanilla. Spread it over the crust in the pan and break up the remaining oat mixture over the top of that.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes and let cool before serving.

Helloooooo Bakesalery!

Please welcome the Vegan Etsy Team's newest team member, Bakesalery! The baked goods and tasty treats in this shop look so amazing, I'm sure you won't skip a beat in clicking "add seller to favorites" - who could help it!

Vegan Cherry Jubilee Cups
from Bakesalery

Seven Layer Bars

I was so thrilled when I found some vegan condensed milk because that meant I could finally veganize a few bar recipes I've been dying to have. These are extremely easy to make and so good! All ingredients are vegan, of course-

1/2 cup margarine
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 can condensed soymilk
1 1/3 cups shredded coconut

Place the margarine in a 9 x 13 pan and put in the oven. Turn to 350 degrees and leave in the oven until melted (leave the oven on when done). Spread the graham cracker crumbs evenly on the bottomof the pan. Spread the chocolate chips next, followed the white chocolate chips and walnuts. Pour the condensed soymilk as evenly as possible over everything. Sprinkle the coconut on top.

Bake for about 25 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. Let cool completely before cutting. Eat!

The NYC Vegan Bake Sale for Haiti - One amazing day.

Was it the bake sale to end all bake sales? Possibly. (Though from what I've been hearing, these Vegan Bake Sales for Haiti have just been one rocking event after another.) At the crack of 10:45 am, a team of dedicated vegans arrived at the doors of Moo Shoes, the beloved vegan shoe store on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Immediately we sprung to action: cupcakes here! Raffle table there! You, grab that chalk and hit the sidewalk! And by 11:30 the store was a sight to behold - delights from wall to wall for sweet toothers and shoe lovers alike.

Throughout the day, more bakers and volunteers appeared; the number of people who showed up to help, eat, and party was pretty astonishing. For the first few hours, and then for several other stints during the day, it was a bit hard to walk through the store for the crowd! Any direction I looked, all I saw was happy people holding bakery boxes filled up with homemade vegan treats.

The day flew by, one giant blur of a cocktail-esque cookie dance party. I got to sample many extraordinary goodies, including homemade green tea red bean buns, pesto pinwheels, double dark chocolate truffles, buckeyes, donuts from Babycakes (thank you kind stranger!), mini tomato muffins, pizzelles, danishes!, twinkies!!, and probably a few other delicacies that I've forgotten in my post-bake-sale-sugar-crash delirium.

That list doesn't even compare, though, to what I missed out on: I don't even know how many kinds of gorgeous cupcakes including fauxstess!! and my own chocolate orange with princess frosting and maple with black walnut frosting - nope, never got to try my own cupcakes! - adorable heart-shaped peanut butter and jelly cookies, many other kinds of delectable truffles, oatmeal pies, pretzels, scones, fudge, rocky road brownies, chocolate dipped fresh and dried fruits, splendidly adorned sugar cookies, cheesecake... I think I have to stop thinking about it or I'll cry. Why, oh why, didn't I bring one hundred dollars and ten tupperware containers? Learn from my mistakes people. Let's just say this: if ever a bakery carried the array of vegan deliciousness that was displayed at the NYC bake sale, none of us would ever leave that bakery again. So when you go to the Vegan Bake Sale for Haiti in your area, stock up!

The whole day through, our tables of baked goods were a feast for the senses. We had a continual supply coming from the back with which we restocked the tables, and we just kept selling through! Not to mention the raffle table - at times we got so busy back there I could barely keep up; at one point there were three of us taking tickets, and it needed all three of us just to hold it down. And no wonder: local businesses and crafters were very generous in donating some truly awesome prizes.

And all of that leads to the really fabulous part - the point of the whole shebang. By the end of the day, we had raised nearly $46oo to donate to Doctors Without Borders, to support their current work in Haiti! And with the last few baked goods left over being sold at places of work the following Monday, plus a few other contributions that trickled in, we've actually now reached $5k. We'd love to find a sponsor to match us, so that we can send a full $10,000 - if you have any ideas for that please leave a comment. But either way, I'd say not too shabby for a lil' ol' bake sale, now is it.

Sadly, little can be done to alleviate the grief caused by the loss of so many lives. But work can and should be done to help heal the sick and wounded and begin to rebuild. Therefore those of us in a position to offer assistance must focus on these immediate and pressing needs. The organizers of the NYC bake sale feel that Doctors Without Borders is doing important work that is making a real impact in Haiti right now, literally at this moment, and we're excited to be able to send them a donation that will give tangible support to that work. There are of course other very worthwhile groups on the ground in Haiti doing work very much worth supporting, including Partners in Health, WSPA, and Mercy Corps.

I continue to be moved and inspired by the wave of vegan bake sales across the country and, in fact, throughout the world. At last count, we have collectively raised something in the neighborhood of $35,000 to support Haiti relief efforts through various organizations. There's a common misconception that vegans care more for animals than for people; anyone who believes that, please consider yourself corrected. The point of true compassion is that we don't draw a species line! I am so proud of the vegan community, but more importantly I am so thrilled that we've been able to come together to do something that will actually make a difference for the Haitian people.

And it doesn't end here! The coming weekend brings vegan bake sales in D.C., New Orleans, Little Rock, Falls Church, and likely others. If there aren't any set up in your area, well why not go ahead and organize one! Or if baking isn't your thing, get creative - teach a yoga class for Haiti. Sell ice cream sundaes for Haiti. Organize a five mile walk for Haiti where participants ask friends and family for sponsorship. Put out a donation jar at your office or place of business. Have a plant sale. Finally have that yard sale you've been thinking about and donate the proceeds - get the whole block in on it and place a small ad in the newspaper so that you draw a crowd. Throw a party with a $5 cover charge! There are so many things you can do to help people get involved, and generate a sizable contribution in the process. And if you don't have the time, of course there's nothing wrong with a plain old donation. :)

Disclaimer: The really awesome photos (top pic of cupcakes, pic of twinkies, pic of fauxstess, pic of cinnamon rolls) and the pic of me (immediately above) were *not* taken by me! The rest were. You can see a whole set of photos from the NYC Vegan Bake Sale for Haiti on our Flickr Pool.

Vegan White Chocolate Orange Almond Truffles

So this is where too much Vegan Blog hopping gets me!

A while ago, I came across these super yum looking White Chocolate Walnut Truffles on the VegSpinz blog and I was immediately overcome by the desire to stuff my face with them!

So I decided to create a variation of my own...

White Chocolate Orange Almond Truffles


All ingredients are in approximate values since I just throw stuff in without measuring. Feel free to modify the amounts to your liking.

1 C Vegan White Chocolate Chips
1/2 C Cashews
1/4 C Soymilk (use as required)
1/4 t Orange Essential Oil
1/4 C Almonds
1 C Vegan Dark Chocolate Chips

For the truffle mixture:

-Grind the cashews into a fine powder, add a dash of the soymilk and blend, add a little bit more soymilk if required and process into a very creamy paste.
-Melt the white chocolate chips (in a double boiler or in the microwave).
-Toast the almonds and crush them lightly into tiny pieces. If you have the patience you can chop them :oP
-Mix the cashew cream and orange essential oil with the white chocolate.
-Add in the almonds and mix well.
-Pop in the freezer for around 20 minutes or so, until it has hardened slightly.

How to proceed:

-Melt the dark chocolate chips.
-Make little balls of the truffle mixture and dip them in the melted chocolate.
-Drop them on parchment paper.
-Pop in the freezer to set again.

Note: I have used truffle molds for these. These can be used by coating the walls and bottom of the mold with the melted dark chocolate. Putting a bit of the truffle mixture in and covering the top with a layer of melted dark chocolate.

Enjoy! :)

A New Year, A New Tradition, A New Fudge!

When I was a kid, I had a huge gaggle of relatives on both sides of the family. Holidays were insane - we'd show up at some relative's house and twenty-five people would be trying to kiss me! But eventually I'd struggle my way through all of the cheek-pinchers to a table decked out with glorious treats. The standout among these has always and forever been my Great Aunt Julie's rocky road.

Just imagine it - huge mounds of melt-in-your-mouth chocolate, secreting chewy marshmallow and just the right amount of walnut. Are you dying of sugar overload yet? Well, Aunt Julie passed long ago, and with her went her holiday delights. Two decades later, though, not a winter passes when I don't think of that decadent treat.

This holiday season has been one where I've been trying to claim some traditions for my own household. After all, traditions have to start somewhere, don't they? And I realized that the time to bring back the joy of rocky road (vegan style!) was long past due. And so, here we have it: Melissa Bastian's Rocky Road Fudge!

Rocky Road Fudge

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of chocolate, coarsely chopped then measured
• 2 cups (yes really, two cups) of powdered sugar (confectioners sugar)
• 1/2 cup coconut milk
• 1/8 cup "milk" (I use Almond Breeze, but use whatever floats your boat - soy, rice, hemp, whatev)
• 1/8 cup rum
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 cup marshmallows, quartered then measured
• 1 and 1/2 cups walnuts, measured then roughly chopped

Steps:

• Melt your chocolate. You can use a double boiler for this, but I've actually found that it isn't necessary. It's much more helpful to have a nonstick pot! Stir constantly, and remove from heat as soon as you only have a few little lumps yet. You want to heat your chocolate as little as possible, because you have to let it return to room temperature before using it. How does it stay liquid when it started out solid? Magic.
• Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper. I swear, this is why parchment exists, and I love it.
• Chop your walnuts - how big or small depends on how you like it.
• Quarter your marshmallows. I've used Dandies for this, but I feel that Sweet and Sara's would be wonderful as well - just a little pricey maybe. Marshmallows are very sticky when you cut them open! I find it helpful to use some powdered sugar on the chopping board and on my hands to coat the newly exposed sides, so that the marshmallows don't stick to the board, each other, me... (Of course, if you can get ahold of the mini Dandies, no chopping is necessary!)
  
• In a large bowl, whisk together coconut milk, other milk, rum, extract, and powdered sugar. (If your powdered sugar has little sugar rocks in it, run it through a sieve or sifter first.) Mix in your marshmallows and walnuts. (This is about when I switch from a whisk to a spatula. Walnuts + whisk = baagghhh.)
• Stir in your ROOM TEMPERATURE chocolate. Seriously people. It cannot be hot... unless of course you want to make fudge soup.
• Pour/scoop the mixture into your prepared pan, and use a spatula to spread it not quite to the edges.
• Refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours, until completely firm. Then break into chunks or cut up, display nicely on a plate, and watch your loved ones go wild.

Fudgy.

Some additional notes...

*I like to use three 1 oz. squares of semi-sweet and six of unsweetened - plenty of sugar is added later!
*If you have bought a normal size can of coconut milk, this recipe is only going to use about a third of it. You may want to think about creative ways to use the rest - coconut milk goes bad quickly once opened! Of course, you *could* always make a triple batch...
*The rum here is optional - you can up the milk to 1/4 cup and leave it out. But I like the tiny punch it gives, and I swear it doesn't leave the fudge tasting very rummy. Conversely, you can do a full quarter cup and leave the milk out entirely!
*Eternal thanks to Celine of Have Cake, Will Travel, whose whiskey peanut fudge recipe started me on all of my crazy fudgy journeys.

Happy New Year everyone! May only your dessert be a rocky road!

Cookies!

Who doesn't love cookies? Cookies just might be the perfect dessert, easy to share and addictive! Check out these cookie-tastic items from the Vegan Etsy Team!

Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies from Sweet Fritsy (everything in her shop is delicious, one of my absolute favorite Etsy shops!)

Vegan Butterscotch Chocolate Chip Cookies by Sweet V Confections:





Vegan Chocolate Peanut Butter Whoopie Pies from nubbycakes:





Incredible Agave Macaroons by Sugarplum Vegan:





-Kala (Vegancraftastic)