I've never been known for showing up late, or waiting until the last minute of a project deadline. I was once that girl who feared losing marks on a school project if I was late handing it in, or being sent to the principal's office if I tried to sneak into class after the bell.

Yet here I am, within hours of the midnight cut-off to the SOS Kitchen Challenge, presenting you with my final recipe. Highlighting the flavours of carob, kamut and sunflower seeds, these crispy squares are a quick and easy, no-bake summer treat. I made use of some kamut puffs cereal sitting in my cupboard as well as my homemade sunflower seed butter to create a spin-off of my sunbutter bites with a creamy carob frosting. Dare I say these ones taste better?


Crispy carob kamut squares
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1/4 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup sunbutter
1 tbsp warm water
1/4 cup carob powder
2 1/2 cups kamut puffs (I use Nature's Path)
2 tbsp sunflower seeds (optional)

1. In a large bowl, stir together the coconut oil, agave nectar, sunbutter, water and carob powder until well combined and smooth. Set aside.
2. Using a food processor, pulse the kamut puffs to a coarse meal. You want them to still have chunks, not completely powdered.
2. Add the kamut puffs and sunflower seeds to the carob mixture and mix until they are completely coated. Press the mixture into a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan (or small square pan) that is covered with parchment paper. Place the pan in the freezer while you make the frosting (recipe below).

Carob frosting
1/3 cup coconut butter, softened
3 tbsp agave nectar
1 1/2 tbsp carob powder
1 1/2 tbsp sunbutter

1. In a small bowl, stir together all ingredients until well combined and smooth.
2. Remove the pan from the freezer and spoon the frosting over the kamut base and smooth out with the back of a spoon.

Perhaps for some people, the answers to life's toughest questions seem so obvious. For me, stewing over the simplest decision often takes over my day. My saving grace is in knowing that I can go home to my kitchen, where I delve into the therapeutic process of whisking, mixing, kneading and rolling my worries away.

Finding a new recipe book that coincides with my love for baking always brings a smile to my face. When I discovered Sweet Vegan, a book that offers "a collection of all vegan, some gluten-free and a few raw desserts," I did a little happy dance. During a particularly difficult week, baking until dawn with a book like this was just what I needed—no difficult decisions or cranky co-workers required.


Author Emily Mainquist has already gained a loyal following through her Baltimore-based, 100% wind-powered, vegan bakery, Emily's Desserts. For a year and a half, she baked, refined and tweaked more than 60 recipes in anticipation of her first recipe book. The 25-year-old isn't formally trained, but her culinary interests were honed early in her grandmother's kitchen.

I flipped through the book as soon as it arrived on my doorstep and I was immediately swooned by the array of full-colour photos and tempting titles. The recipes open the door to decadent desserts for those who make culinary choices based on personal, health and ethical considerations, but who are eager to try new things. If you're a vegan who is intrigued by raw dessert-making or a baker who wants to try her hand at gluten-free baking, but you don't want to invest in an entire recipe book in order to experiment, this book is for you.


My journey began with the peanut butter brownies, a creation that is one of the hardest to master as a vegan baker—many attempts seem to come out too cakey or too fudgy. Yet the balance of ingredients in Emily's recipe yielded moist, rich and flavourful squares of chocolate goodness. Adding peanut butter and chocolate drizzle made for a decadent treat perfect for picnics or family gatherings.


Next, I browsed through the raw recipe options (of which, sadly, there are only three) and decided on the raw cinnamon raisin cookies. This very easy recipe calls for five ingredients and is super quick to make using a food processor. I loved how these formed into the perfect round cookie shape and are sweetened by raisins and topped with coconut.


Emily includes her one-of-a-kind, gluten-free flour mix recipe that is used as the base for the GF desserts in this book. Tempted by the photo of the gluten-free chocolate-chip zucchini bread squares, I immediately ran out to purchase the required ingredients. Within an hour came moist and delicious squares that had a deep brown sugar and cinnamon flavour, and without the gluey texture and chalky aftertaste that have been the results of more than a few GF recipes I've tried before. (By the way, you can find the recipe here.)

Other recipes include Black Bottoms, Triple Chocolate Cheesecake, Toffee Squares, Monkey Bread as well as a step-by-step approach to tempering chocolate and making chocolate cups (like the ones on the book cover). Plus, Emily is donating a percentage of the book's proceeds to Farm Sanctuary. To me, that's like the icing on the already fantastic vegan cake.

After dealing with a gruelling work week and an endless headache from all the rain, I was grateful for the long weekend to catch up on rest, reading and some much-needed yard work. My husband and I had big plans to revamp the yard and build a vegetable garden—complete with a raised box and chicken wire enclosure to keep the neighbourhood raccoons from eating my precious plants like they did last year.

Better still, I headed out on Saturday evening to spend time with my loveliest of lady friends. I'm convinced there's no better cure for stress than an evening with friends, food and wine—this particular combination always leaves me glowing with happiness (not just from the wine).


Strawberry apple tart
1. Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, combine the unbleached flour, whole wheat flour, pistachios, poppy seeds, baking soda and salt.
2. With the mixer running, add the oil, maple syrup and vanilla extract and continue to mix until combined. The dough should stick together when pressed between two fingers.
4. Roll out the dough in between 2 pieces of parchment paper, working from the middle out, until it is large enough to fit into an 8-inch tart pan with a removable bottom.
6. Make small indents in the bottom of the unfilled crust with a fork and prebake it on the bottom rack of the oven for 10 minutes at 400 degrees.
For the filling:
2 Granny Smith apples, cored and peeled
1 pound of strawberries, rinsed and dried
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

There was a time when I couldn't imagine being able to find a coffee shop that catered to my needs and wishes: a chai tea latte with a thick layer of foamy nondairy milk and a squirt of agave, and perhaps a sample of a vegan brownie calling my name from the display case.

But thanks to Toni and Elaine of Mylk Uncookies, my latte dreams have come true.


Located in Toronto's east end, not far from the first apartment I rented when I was in school, this bright and cheerful cafe is hard to miss among the brownstone buildings that surround it.


Inside, I immediately sensed a comfortable and homey vibe after I spotted a young girl accessing Wi-Fi on her laptop and a shelf of board games and magazines near the back counter. But I was there to meet Lisa and Ashley. We decided that yesterday's cold, rainy weather was a good excuse to meet for an afternoon chat about careers and cookbooks over a warm cup of joe.


Just as the name implies, Mylk Uncookies offers a variety of vegan treats, most of which are naturally gluten-free and raw, as well as coffee, tea and lattes made with co-owner Elaine's homemade almond milk. And while there are ample vegan options, the cafe is not exclusively vegan—dairy milk, honey and a few traditional dessert options are also available.


Lisa, Ashley and I were eager to gaze at the selection of drinks and treats, and we all settled on some version of a latte to take advantage of the available almond milk.


I was delighted when my chai tea latte came with a sprinkle of cinnamon and lots of foam.


The three of us also shared a raw cacao ginger macaroon that was dense and flavourful; a raw lucuma bite that was deliciously sweet and chewy; as well as a raw strawberry cheesecake that involved a punch of lemon and lime in its silky smooth filling and strawberry puree topping.


It was a perfect afternoon with two inspiring girls and some delicious treats. If I lived just a little closer to Mylk Uncookies, I could definitely see this becoming a regular gathering place.

As a new recipe contributor to One Green Planet, I'm ecstatic to announce my debut! This fantastic website is dedicated to spreading ideas and knowledge about the environment and vegan living. If you haven't already come across this site, I suggest you pay a visit. It has quite a long roster of excellent contributors, including Gene Baur of Farm Sanctuary; renowned author and activist Carol J. Adams; author and speaker Brenda Davis, RD; and many other experts, authors and bloggers (including me!), who are supporting the important cause.

My debut featured a recipe for a decadent chocolate torte: a thick layer of chocolate cake makes up the base, and the rest is the creamiest, richest and perhaps most intense little slice of pure chocolate sweetness I've ever created. You can find the recipe here. Enjoy!

For the last week and a half I've been home alone. My husband went on a golfing trip with his dad and brother, and to say I miss him would be an understatement. When you get used to living with someone and you look forward to seeing him after a long day at work, it's very disconcerting to come home to an empty house. There is this strange silence that seems to fill the space in an unfamiliar way.

The unusual part is my lack of interest in food or spending time in my favourite room in the house—the kitchen. I never realized how much my joy of cooking and baking revolved around not just feeding myself, but others as well. My husband is often my inspiration when I plan and prepare meals. It makes sense though, considering I never cooked when I was living on my own. My fridge was always empty, aside from a head of lettuce and a few apples. Pretty sad, eh?

These days, I look forward to creating full, nourishing meals, and satisfying my husband's sweet tooth with homemade goodies along with a hot cup of tea. I think he'll be happy to see these cute lemon tartlettes waiting for him when he returns tomorrow.


The lemon curd filling took a bit of researching and testing, but thanks to this recipe I had a base to work with in order to get it just right. Do you want to know the secret to the perfect raw lemon curd? It's lemon peel—the stuff you would normally throw away after juicing and zesting lemons. Hannah discovered that if you dehydrate it and then grind it into powder, it makes the perfect natural gelling agent. It's the peel's large amount of pectin, a substance typically used to set jams and jellies, that contains the jellifying properties. Unlike commercial brands of pectin, this version isn't heated at high temperatures, chemically treated or mixed with sugar. To me, this is yet another raw food miracle.


This tartlette recipe begins with tiny crusts (I found my 2-inch tartlette tins at a local dollar store) that are dehydrated for a few hours to keep them stable. Then, once you've got the dehydrated and ground lemon peel ready, the lemon curd filling comes together easily. A short time in the fridge to set and the outcome is a pretty summer treat that is fresh and tangy with a slight bitter edge. This recipe makes about 16 tartlettes. Enjoy!

Raw lemon curd tartlettes
Crust:
1/2 cup raw buckwheat groats
1/2 cup raw almonds
1 tbsp flax seeds
3/4 cup chopped dates, soaked until soft

1. Grind the buckwheat groats, almonds and flax into a fine flour using a spice grinder.
2. Put the flour mixture into a food processor and add the dates. Process until the mixture is well combined and forms into a wet dough ball. If it doesn't, add a tablespoon of water.
3. Cut out small pieces of plastic wrap and place them in the bottom of mini tart tins.
4. Form small balls with the dough mixture using your hands and flatten them into thin disks that are large enough to cover each tart tin. Press them into the bottom of each tart tin and cut off any excess around the edges. Place the tarts on a dehydrator tray and dehydrate at 110 degrees for 2 hours. Carefully remove the tart crusts from the tins and remove the plastic wrap. Put the crusts back on the dehydrator tray and dehydrate for another 2 hours. The crusts should be firm but still flexible.

Lemon filling:
(Adapted from Hannah's recipe)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
3 tbsp melted coconut butter
1 1/2 tbsp dehydrated and ground lemon peel*
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
pinch of salt

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together all ingredients and allow it to sit for about 15 minutes with the bowl sitting in a larger bowl of warm water.
2. Strain the mixture through a mesh strainer and discard the remnants.
3. Fill the crusts (recipe above) with the strained lemon mixture and refrigerate for about 2 hours to set. Store tarts uncovered in the fridge until ready to serve.

*Simply peel 1 lemon, cut the peel into pieces and dehydrate at 110 degrees overnight, or until crisp. Grind the peel into powder using a spice grinder. Store in a sealed container.

In case you missed the April in the Raw event over at Real Sustenance, I wanted to share the recipe I contributed on my closing-day guest post. For the event, Brittany gathered together an incredible number of enthusiastic bloggers to participate and they all contributed delicious, beautiful and very creative recipes—all of them based on raw foods—each day of the month. It was such a treat!

For my contribution, I created a recipe for raw ice cream sandwich cookies.

Today's Raw Cake Pop Challenge tasting party was a success! We have a winner, as well as two fantastic runner-ups, in what was a very close competition.


First, here's some background: on April 1, Lisa and I announced the Raw Cake Pop Challenge after seeing cake pops on websites and in coffee shops and books. By last Friday's deadline, we had received 12 entries, so we sat down to carefully review each one and select three finalists based on the challenge criteria. It was a tough job because each one was so unique, but we had to do it. Those three finalists moved on to the recipe-testing round and became the guests of honour at today's cake pop tasting party.


The three finalists were Bitt's Double Chocolate Mesquite Madness Cake Pops, Marlie's Mulberry Maven Cake Pops, and Bean's Strawberry Cheesecake Pops.  We spent our entire Saturday recreating these recipes, being careful to follow each one as written, and packaged them up in preparation for today's testing.


After so much anticipation, we devoured one of each of the flavours and began a long discussion to select the winner based on all the elements of the challenge criteria. Do you want to know who came out on top?


First Place: Mulberry Maven Cake Pops
Marlie's Mulberry Maven Cake Pops are so lovely and sweet. The addition of maple syrup along with the lucuma and dried mulberries gave them a nice molasses-like flavour—not nearly as fruity as we had expected. With a large crumb and chewy texture, the smooth simple cacao coating was all this cake pop needed to fulfill its purpose. Marlie made use of unique ingredient combinations: the ground mulberries, the blend of different sweeteners and the discreet lavender created a complex flavour profile. Yet the simple techniques used to pull it all together made for a quick and easy recipe. Her beautiful photos and detailed notes on the process and technique also makes it easy for readers to follow.

Third Place: Double Chocolate Mesquite Madness Cake Pops
Bitt's fabulous Double Chocolate Mesquite Madness Cake Pops had a deep, rich flavour with a bitter edge, much like very dark chocolate. In terms of texture, they're similar to a traditional cake crumb. I think the dehydration helped mimic the texture of a traditional cake, and the addition of Irish moss provided some of the fluffiness. Bitt used cacao butter in the outer coating, which gave them a firmer texture and was a perfect contrast to the smooth, cake-like centre. The recipe is quite creative. It is an excellent way to use up leftover almond pulp, and the deep cacao flavour is heightened by the addition of mesquite powder. These pops would definitely appeal to any chocolate fanatic.