: vegan meal of the week : week 20 : dessert PLEASE! :

woo hoo!

so, i am learning that high levels of stress causes me to bake like crazy.
right now i have a lot on my [non-edible] plate. i am working hard. steady. two jobs. 60 hours a week. trying so hard to get my little business moving.
anyways, i am working hard. knocking things off. learning tons and tons.

i have noticed that after a really successful day, i choose to bake. [i have made 5 things in the past week!][and they are all desserts!!]
[dont worry : blake loves it ;)]

today : whole wheat vegan chocolate avocado cake [YES!]

VEGAN CHOCOLATE AVOCADO CAKE RECIPE

found here ; adapted from Joy the Baker

Makes 1 (8-inch) Double-Layer Cake

2¼ cups whole-wheat flour
½ cup barley flour
½ cup flaxseed meal (I used Bob’s Red Mill Organic Golden Flaxseed Meal)
6 tablespoons Dutch-process unsweetened cocoa powder
2½ teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 cup raw honey [I used agave]
½ cup soft avocado, mashed
2 cups water
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup vegan sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray two 8-inch cake pans with cooking spray. Line with parchment paper rounds and spray again. Set aside.

2. In a medium-sized bowl, sift together the dry ingredients, and set aside.

3. In a large bowl, combine the honey and avocado and stir to combine with a whisk. Add the water, vinegar, and vanilla and stir to combine. Add the sugar and stir to combine.

4. Add the dry ingredients all at once, and beat with a whisk by hand until smooth.

5. Pour the batter into the pans and smooth with a small offset spatula. Rap the pans on the counter to release any air bubbles.

6. Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center of the pan comes out clean. Halfway through baking, rotate the pans 180 degrees.

AVOCADO FROSTING RECIPE*

Makes enough for Two 8-inch cakes

8 ounces avocado meat, weight after removing brown spots
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1½ pounds confectioner’s sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Put the avocado in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.

2. Beat on high until creamy and smooth, about 3 minutes.

3. Add the lemon juice and beat on medium speed until combined.

4. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula and add the confectioner’s sugar and vanilla extract.

5. Beat on low speed until combined and then beat on high speed until creamy and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes.

6. Frost the cake.

*i did not use this frosting. we didnt have another avocado.

I used this frosting recipe : found here

Freakin' Easy Frosting

Ingredients:

    2 tablespoons vegan shortening
    2 tablespoons vegan butter
    about 2-6 cups powdered sugar
    splash vanilla
    soymilk, as needed

Directions:

This is my standard, easy frosting. It isn't idiot proof, since I don't measure, but there is an easy "method" to it. It is rich like "fattier" frostings, but without the gallons of solid fat going in.

Start by putting your shortening and butter spread in a large bowl. Let them sit for a bit to soften. Add a splash of vanilla (can use other flavors if you want) and about 2 cup of powdered sugar.  Mix, using a hand mixer, until the mix is pretty crumbly and the fats aren't big chunks anymore.

At this point, you want to smooth the frosting out. Be careful - it doesn't take a lot of liquid to do this! Soymilk is a good thing to use, but if you use liquid food colors or want to add more extract, you will want to start with these so that it doesn't get too runny.  Add more liquid, about 1 tablespoon or so (a generous splash) and continue mixing.  Scrap the bowl down, if needed. At this point you should have a creamy frosting.  If it is still too dry, add a touch more soymilk. If too wet, you added too much liquids, so just shake in some more powdered sugar.

If you want more frosting that what this makes, continue to add liquid/powdered sugar, in alternating batches, until you 

* i didnt use butter for the frosting, which is why mine is clearer and not thick*

thanks for reading!

: LIL BOW PANTZ! :

woooo hooo!

so, for the past couple months, i have been cutting, planning and sewing like a maniac to create my newest line.
there is still a lot of work to be done, but for right now, there are four BRAND NEW bow-pantz up in the shop.

what are lil bow pantz?
oh ill tell you.
they are cute little bowties for your cute little humans.
[love them!]

yesterday, i headed over to my friend nisas place and we used her little babe as a model.

also, here are the first [small] batch that are in the store.

[i am pretty proud of these!]

have a special order? or a different idea?
let me know!

thanks for reading everybody.
[i appreciate all of you!]

: two new bags in my shop :

hi.
so, its monday today.
i havent had the internet since thursday.
[honestly, i am okay with being a little disconnected..]

blake and i are dogsitting for a week and a half, and we dont have the internet password.
[i have like, 4 posts i want to get up before i leave work today]
[yes, i am blogging at work..]

two new bags in my shop!

and a favorite that i made that I AM GOING TO KEEP.

since i started sewing and knitting, there are a lot of things where i go 'wow, i'd love to keep that' - but then i dont.

but, i love this bag. its made from two pieces of bedding that i found while thrifting a few weeks ago.

 

annnnd, come back in a few days, because i will be giving away this bag. [seriously? this might be my second fave - i LOVE the olive straps.]

 

 

and can i please get a whoop whoop for spring?!?!

[wheeeeee!]

: big sale :

well, hello.
ever have those days when you knock a million things off your to-do list and then you look and think 'gosh, i didnt get anything done today'? totally my day. but i did get 7 more books at the library today... [how will i EVER read everything i have checked out?!?!]

anyways, for the rest of the month, all of my winter wear is 25+% off to make way for all the new items i have waiting to go up. if you are interested, go here. sure, its warming up NOW, but in a few months, somebody somewhere will need some cute winter wear. [you might as well buy it now when its on sale...][just saying]

a few of my faves...

seriously, the first two and the last are my faaaaaves. i love them.
[pssssst : you know youd look good wearing these a half year from now..]

: i am a crafting M-A-C-H-I-N-E! :

love it.
today was a 'craft-at-home-day'
i am slowly getting faster. [ha. that sounds silly]

all new things are going up in my shop after this post.
check it all here.

ohh.
i am happy with these.

timberwolves game tonight. we got 2 tickets for $2.50. cheap date night. i am excited.
[30 days of list post coming soon!]

: NEW PROJECT! :

oh, how exciting!
i have a lot of ideas flying through my brain.
and on paper. and in my dreams. 

i have two new lines that i want to produce.
1) babypantz : kid stuff. baby stuff. i have 2-4 ideas in the works. like, really in the works.
2) travelpantz : bags and pouches that will help you get to where you need to go.

i know that a lot of my friends/family read this blog [hey guys!]. i also know that i have been getting views from all over the country, from humans i dont personally know [hey!]. so a small 'about me' ...
i am from minnesota. i was born there [here.] i moved to iowa. and then back. and then iowa. and then back. and then i moved to germany. back to minnesota. and then vermont. and then portland, oregon. and now, as of 6 months ago, i am back living in minneapolis.
i have always considered minnesota 'home.' always. even when i didnt have an address in mn, it was always where i fit. coming back, and knowing that i will stay is a cool feeling. ive done a lot of moving. a lot of figuring out who i am. and where i should be. im pretty sure its here for now.

so, the first two :travelpantz: bags :::::: [i am so happy with these] [also, these are just iphone photos, i will take better ones when the sun is shining!

right now, i have fabric cut for a million more bags, but these are the two i have done today. [if youd like a bag with your state, let me know!][these will be in my shop in a few days!]

: vegan meal of the week : week 8 :

two posts.
dinner AND dessert [or breakfast bread, or both, really]

both recipes came from www.vegweb.com . i googled some ingredients and this site came up. now i find myself on it almost daily. even if you arent veg, go see. they have over 14,000 recipes. everything that we have tried so far, has been really great. all recipes come from readers/viewers and other readers can comment and rate recipes.

supper : found here.
blueberry and onion sweet and sour sauce
the recipe is JUST for the sauce, i decided to use japanese rice noodles. you can use whatever grain you have around the house. i am guessing that short-grain brown rice, or couscous or quinoa would be great for this. use what you have, and report back!

start preparing your rice/grain now. soak/boil/ect your grain based on the directions on the package.

melt 1 tablespoon vegan margarine in a large skillet over medium-high heat. add 2 small onions [chopped], 1/2 tp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper; cook until onions are golden, about 10 minutes.

add 1 tablespoon sugar.  cook until onions are caramelized, about 3 minutes.

add 1/4 cup grape or apple juice, 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, 1 cup frozen blueberries and 1 cup [chopped] cherry tomatoes.  heat to boil. remove from heat.



by now, your noodles should be rinsed and ready. place your noodles on a bowl/plate, put sauce on top.



i have got to say, this was really, really good. i dont love a lot of food combos, and was a bit nervous, but i really loved this. what we did different : put in a little less onion. added 2 huge cloves of garlic. used garlic salt instead of regular salt. used apple juice and apple cider vinegar [which is SUPER strong and run-off from my dads apple wine]. also, i used 1 1/2 cups of frozen mixed berries, not JUST blueberries [i like to think this really added to the flavor] and we also used tomato sauce. moral of the story : i didnt really follow the directions at all. haha.

dessert [or breakfast bread] : found here .
peanut butter, banana, chocolate chip bread

preheat oven to 350 degrees.
stir together 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour, 1/2 c white & 1/2 c brown sugars, 1 tablespoon baking powder and 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon.

in another bowl combine 2 mashed ripe bananas, 1 cup soy milk, 3/4 c peanut butter, 3 tablespoons oil, 1 tsp vanilla, and 1/3 c applesauce.  Add to flour, stir until combined.

stir in 1 c chocolate chips. mix well.

pour into two greased 8x4x2 loaf pans.  bake 50 to 55 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

i have made 3 loaves of this bread in the past week and a half. i have been eating it for breakfast with some fruit in the mornings. what i did different : running low on flour, i used 1 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour and 1 cup of barley flour [found at the co-op]. no brown sugar; i used 1/2 cup turbadino sugar and 1/2 cup applesauce. almond milk instead of soy. 1 tblsp oil, and 1/2 cup of applesauce. these turned out pretty soft in the middle, probably cuz of all the applesauce, but i like 'em like that.

: dear martha, i want to be your friend :

hi martha,
my name is diana and i want to hang out with you.
i want you to make me vegan cupcakes.
show me how to embroider.
and help me use my sewing machine.
cheers,
diana

so, i did not actually send this to martha.
but, i do go on her website most days.

i have a great pair of mittens that i bought when i lived in vermont.
ive worn them for years and they now have huge holes in them.

so, i found this
went to the thrift store and bought two sweaters.
and decided to make these!

[see, mom?!?
pretty cool, huh?]

they arent perfect.
but, its the first thing i have made with my sewing machine.
all by myself.
[that is very exciting!]

show me what you make!