Garlic Asparagus Crostini

 

Today hubby, my son and I just wanted to hang out around the house and get some errands done.  It seems like lately, we've booked up everyday with something to do and now there is a lot of catch up to do.  In one week, I'll be leaving for Croatia so this was my one opportunity to get some of those household chores done.  However, most of what I did was on the computer.  We did manage to get our barn cleaned, the tack room in our  barn cleaned and my porch cleaned. I baked my Sticky Toffee Pudding, finished the recipe Try it here and decided that oh boy, I needed a snack...a quick one at that too!  So I went to the pantry and found asparagus, a bulb of garlic and half of a loaf of bread left.  If you want a quick snack for you or even a beautifully tasty appetizer for a group...

this is it!

 

Enjoy this 4 ingredient appetizer...

 

Garlic Asparagus Crostini recipe~

 

1 bulb garlic

1 bunch asparagus

Crostini bread

Oil (I used Avocado oil which packs a gorgeous butter-like flavor!)

additional:

a sprinkling of salt

 

I lined a cookie sheet with tin foil. I wrapped a bulb of garlic with tin foil and put it on the cookie sheet. I added the asparagus uncovered to the cookie sheet and drizzled it with a bit of oil and salt and put it in the oven on broil. While it was broiling, I cut my loaf of bread. I poured a bit of Avocado oil on tin foil and dipped each side of the bread in it then placed it on a cookie sheet. I sprinkled each toast with just a touch of salt. I set it aside for a few minutes.  After about 5 minutes in the broiler, (the asparagus should start to look soft but beware, putting them too close to the broiler will char them too much) I flipped the asparagus over to cook for about 3 minutes.  I covered the asparagus with foil and put it and the garlic on a lower shelf.  I added the toasts to the top shelf and broiled until the edges started to brown. I removed the toasts and checked the garlic bulb for doneness.  The garlic should squeeze from each clove like a paste and should be spreadable.

To the broiled toasts, I squeezed out a clove of garlic and spread it onto a couple toasts. I topped it with asparagus and ate it. Then I repeated the process... until each one was gone...

The end.



Sticky Toffee Pudding

Let me share a little story with you, a small glimpse of my last few weeks.  This week was not the best week for me emotionally yet it turned out to be wonderful.  I spent the week waiting for a call from the doctor to let me know if I once again had cancer, this time in my Parotid Gland.  I knew that God would take care of it for me however the thought of having a surgery if it was cancer, and the possibility of chemo and radiation frightened me.  I'm a healthy eater with the exception of desserts here and there so I was devastated that my hard work at healthy wasn't working for my body.  So of course when the doctor called to let me know it wasn't cancer, I had reason to celebrate, to celebrate health, to celebrate healthy eating and to love life for each precious moment.

A few weeks ago, I took my sister to an amazing little tea house in Los Angeles. They had some delicious items.  My sister had the regular fare but I did not.  One thing this British Tea House served was their own English Sticky Toffee Pudding. First thing I planned on doing when I got home from the Tea House was to make my own version.  But with the medical issue that was looming, the joy of baking this delightful dish was kind of sucked right out of me. But now, with my great news, I was baking away like normal and boy was hubby and I happy I did.  This was a celebratory dish, super cake-like and moist with the sweetest toffee to balance it out. And even though one of these little cakes is enough for two, we had our own. Yes...we did! Try this recipe and you're sure to enjoy a little piece of Heaven (English Heaven) here on Earth!

Sticky Toffee Pudding recipe~

1 1/2 Cups chopped Dates
1 3/4 Cups boiling water
1 tsp baking soda

Put in bowl and let soak for an hour or two.

1/4 Cup or cube vegan butter
1 Cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp Vanilla bean paste

Cream in mixer until butter and sugar are fully incorporated and are fluffy.

2 vegan eggs

Add to creamed mixture and mix until incorporated.

2 Cups cake flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cornstarch

Add to creamed mixture slowly until mixed.  Add date mixture and mix for another minute.
Pour into greased 9x9 baking dish or 6 medium sized greased  8oz ramekins ( what I used) or 10 -12 4 oz ramekins for a large group. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 30 minutes (or 20 minutes for the 4 oz ramekins).

Make toffee sauce while cooking.

Toffee Sauce recipe~

 

4 Tbs Vegan Butter

2/3 C Brown Sugar

2/3 C Canned Coconut Milk, using the cream on top ( It's best to use a high quality with thick cream on top)

1/4 tsp Vanilla Bean Paste

Pinch Salt

In a microwave safe bowl, melt vegan butter. Add brown sugar, coconut milk cream and stir. Microwave for 2 minutes. Stir. Microwave for another 1- 1 1/2 minutes depending on your microwave.  Make sure to let the mixture cool slightly, at least two minutes,  before adding the vanilla and pinch salt, and stir. Let sit on the counter for about 5 minutes. Once it starts to cool, it will thicken.

 

Try my Lavender Toffee sauce too. Recipe here Lavender Toffee Sauce

 

 

Once Cakes are finished baking, remove and poke holes in the top and a few in the sides.  Drizzle with 2 tablespoons toffee sauce, slowly covering the whole top.  Put into Broiler and broil until bubbly, just a few minutes or less.

 

 Invert onto a plate or leave in Ramekin.

 

 

Serve with a bit more Toffee sauce drizzled over it and a nice dollop of Whipped Cream.

Try my recipe here for~ Whipped Cream

 

 

Watermelon, Feta And Vegan Shrimp Salad

 For all my fellow Americans, Happy 4th of July.  As we celebrate our Birthday, our Independence day and our day of Freedom, families and friends are getting together to eat, swim, BBQ and pray.  As I thought about the many different dishes that would arrive at our celebration, I'd probably see potato salads, coleslaw's and many other meat and dairy laden foods.  So I decided to make a delicious and fresh salad that would not only suffice as a salad, but as a meal also.  Enjoy this salad today and all summer long, celebrating also the fresh fruits and veggies of summer and the wee bit of vegan shrimp flavors of the ocean.
This salad is made for a crowd but feel free to scale it down to the perfect size for you or your friends and family.

Watermelon, Feta And Vegan Shrimp Salad

1 Whole Small Watermelon cut into cubes
7 ounces Vegan Feta (I used Heidi Ho...and wow is it good!)
1 Lime (zested and juiced)
1 bunch Green Onions, sliced (about 8-10)
1 Box Vegan Shrimp ( I used Vegetarian Plus)
4 Cups fancy lettuce
1 Cup sliced grape tomatoes
1 Cucumber, diced
Your favorite Vinaigrette

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl.  Toss gently with vinaigrette. Eat and Celebrate.

 

 

Here is my favorite Vinaigrette~

1/3 cup balsamic

2/3 cup olive oil (I mix my half and half with a citrus oil like Lime Oil or Blood Orange Oil)

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp mustard powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp citrus zest

1 tsp bee free Honee

 

 

Rhubarb Upside Down Cake

 

 

I had company on the way. My friends were bringing all their Brussels Griffon Puppies for a play date with my puppies. But before playtime, I wanted to treat my friends to lunch and  I was so excited to make a full vegan meal for my friends to try. I decided that my Pasta with Lemon Asparagus Sauce Pasta recipe here would be the ticket to tempt the tummy.  I love this pasta and knew they would too (and was I right!)  But for dessert, what would I make?  The day prior I had decided to make Lavender Toffee Sauce to accompany my nice tart green apples. I loved it so much that I knew that whatever dessert I made, it would be enrobbed in the sauce.  So I opened the fridge, found a stalk of rhubarb and decided these two would be perfect together, a marraige made in heaven!   Now that the lunch is over and dessert is gone and my puppies are resting after a wonderful playdate with incredibly precious friends,  I'm left dreaming of how perfect this day was, the company was and the meal was and I can't wait until next week to make it again....

 

I'm hooked!

 





 

 

 

 

Upside Down Cake Recipe~

1 C cake flour

7/8 C granulated sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

3 vegan eggs ( I use Ener-G, mixed ahead of time for a few minutes)

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

1 1/2 Tbsp water

1 stalk Rhubarb cut into 1/2 inch slices

1 Tbs sugar

1 Tbs vegan butter

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 8  ( 4 oz) Ramekins  or one 8-9 inch round cake pan with non-stick cooking spray.  In a hot pan over the stove, melt vegan butter and add rhubarb.  Cook for about 1-2 minutes on med-high heat. Add 1 Tbs sugar and stir for about another minute until rhubarb is just starting to get soft.  Remove from heat immediately and spoon into the bottom of Ramekins. You want the rhubarb laying flat and evenly on the bottom.  Set aside.

 

In a mixing bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Add Vegan eggs, vanilla, and water and mix until smooth.  Do not over mix. Spoon over rhubarb and bake about 15 minutes until slightly golden brown (check with a toothpick to test it's cooked on the inside.) While cooling, make Toffee Sauce. 

 

Toffee Sauce Recipe

4 Tbs Vegan Butter

2/3 C Brown Sugar

2/3 C Canned Coconut Milk, using the cream on top ( It's best to use a high quality with thick cream on top)

1/4 tsp Vanilla Bean Paste

Pinch Salt

 

In a microwave safe bowl, melt vegan butter. Add brown sugar, coconut milk cream and stir. Microwave for 2 minutes. Stir. Microwave for another 1- 1 1/2 minutes depending on your microwave. Add the vanilla and pinch salt, and stir. Let sit on the counter for about 5 minutes. Once it starts to cool, it will thicken.

 

Try this Caramel Lavender Toffee Sauce also...Lavender Toffee Sauce.

 

Drizzle 1/2 tsp of Toffee Sauce over each of the warm cakes and let sit for 2-3 minutes. Use a knife to loosen each cake from the Ramekin and invert onto plates.  Drizzle with remaining Toffee Sauce and serve.

Oh boy.  The moment we've all been waiting for.  Delicious, Creamy, smooth and silky. Have a nice tart bite of rhubarb with the sweetness of cake enrobed in a bath of silky caramel toffee. (Sounds heavenly!)  Enjoy with friends, family or enjoy all by yourself.  These perfect little bites are sheer indulgent.

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