blog of matthew moore

Check it out, I just added a google calendar to track and share, with the world, my vegan menu of meal choices. You can find it at http://xybermatthew.com/my-vegan-menu/.

I hope this will help others see that being vegan doesn’t have to be boring or full of salad as well as help others to get started on meal planning for their new found vegan diet.

So last Sunday night I found myself needing to bake in the kitchen.

Not only did I end up baking some Kingman’s Vegan Zucchini Bread (adjusted for high altitude — I added two tablespoons vegetable oil) but I also made my very own Vanilla Hinted Fresh Strawberry Scones.

Now I have to warn you –these are prototypes and they still need some improvement. However, after many attempts I’ve declared that these are my first successful scones and I wanted to share my recipe for all so as to solicit your suggestions for improvements, especially for high altitude.

Nonetheless, here are my Vanilla Hinted Fresh Strawberry Scones…

Ingredients:

• 3 cups flour*
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup plus two tablespoons canola oil
• 1 cup plain soy milk, chilled
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup fresh strawberries, rinsed and quartered
• Turbinado sugar (sugar cane extract - A popular brand name is Sugar in the Raw) for sprinkling**

* I used an all-natural white whole wheat flour but next time I’ll try using a blend of oat flour and pastry flour or white flour and pastry flour or just plain white flour — the white whole wheat was just a bit to "wheaty" for me.

** Plain sugar is fine too — just make sure you’ve purchased a white sugar that is vegan verified.

Directions:

1. Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl with a whisk.
2. Mix wet ingredients in a small bowl with a whisk.
3. Stir in wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix until just combined - resist the urge to over-mix.
4. Gently fold in strawberries.
5. Divide dough into two parts and dump out each section onto a floured work surface, shape into 6 inch circles, cut into triangles using a pizza cuter, and place on a pizza stone or onto parchment paper on cookie sheet.
6. Sprinkle tops with a bit of turbinado sugar.
7. Let dough rest while oven preheats to 425 F.
8. Bake for 13-16 minuets until top is firm to the touch and the bottom is lightly golden.
9. Let cool for about 5 minutes before serving with a hot cup of coffee.

Yum, yum, yum! That’s all I heard from the family Saturday at lunch time.

I served up another quick salad to satisfy everyone’s hunger during a busy day. I made Robertson’s Mixed Baby Greens with Pears, Pecans, and Polenta Strips from her book Quick-Fix Vegetarian, here’s the recipe online.

• I’m at Denver, CO (Denver, CO, USA) - http://bkite.com/01KmS #

Last night I didn’t have much time so I opted to whip up a quick salad which turned out to be one of my new favorites dishes. It’s called Quinoa Pilaf with Spinach, Apples, and Walnuts taken from the Quick-Fix Vegetarian cookbook by Robin Robertson.

In my picture here (taken with my iPhone — hence the poor quality) you can see I added a side of watermelon and a bit of extra spinach, steamed; and if you would like to try it for yourself here is the recipe, found online at http://books.google.com/books?id=LiqdDc_5cc8C&pg=PA99&lpg=PA99.