Vegan Biscuits & White Pepper Gravy
"The Superfun Times Vegan Holiday Cookbook" byIsa Chandra Moskowitz

Biscuits
2 Teaspoons Apple Cider Vinegar
1 Cup Unsweetened Vegan Milk
2 1/2 Cups All Purpose Four
4 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1 Tablespoon Sugar
1 Teaspoon Salt
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 Cup unrefined Coconut Oil, room temperature

Gravy
1/2 Cup Cashews, soaked in water at least 2 hours and drained
2 Cups Vegetable Broth
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
3 Tablespoons All Purpose Flour
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
1/4 Teaspoon White Pepper
Chopped Fresh Parsley, for garnish

​Make the biscuits.  Preheat oven to 425.

In a small bowl mix together the apple cider vinegar and milk, set aside.

Mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, sugar into a large mixing bowl making a well in the center.  Cut the coconut oil into the dough with a pastry cutter until it resembles coarse crumbs.  Pour in the milk mixture and blend with a fork, being careful not to overmix. 

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and roll into a 1" thick disc.  Use a 2" round cookie cutter or drinking glass to cut out biscuits, adding them to a baking sheet.

Bake until puffy and golden brown, about 15 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool.

Make the gravy.  Combine the cashews and broth in a blender.  Puree until completely smooth.  

Preheat a sauce pot on medium.  Add oil, then sprinkle in the flour, stirring until smooth and brown, about 5 minutes.  Add blended mixture, lowering heat.  Cook while stirring, about 3 minutes until thickened.  Add salt and pepper, cook for 2 more minutes.

Serve the biscuits with the gravy, garnishing with parsley.
​

After my second fall in the South I realized I don't see as many cranberries as I'm used to in my past life as a Northerner.  I'm not talking about the sweetened dried variety, I'm talking a good plump tart cranberry in a salad or dessert.  I know I see the sauce, but I want the berries!  Since I don't live near any bogs I found the next best thing at my local Lowe's Foods freezer section, Cape Cod Select Cranberries! They are the beautiful plump berries I've been missing.  They are great straight from the bag to keep a punch bowl festive and cold.  Thawed, they are a perfect replacement for the fresh natural berry I'm used to in salads or desserts.  Lately I was looking for something different so I put them in this favorite recipe of mine for gluten free breakfast bars.  Inspired by a blueberry version at a co-op up north the cranberries are a natural here with a hint of orange to brighten them up.   I used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free flour here, Oats and Baking Soda here to share with my gluten intolerant friends.

5. Spread cranberry mixture evenly over cooked crust and press remaining oat mixture onto the cranberries, being careful as the cranberries are hot.

6. Bake bars 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool on wire rack.  To cut bars, lift the parchment sling out of the pan and cut into desired sized bars.  The bars will keep a few days in the fridge.

Blueberry Breakfast Bars
Outpost Co-Op, Milwaukee WI

1 3/4 cups rolled oats
1 1/2 cups gluten free flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 cup almonds, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, melted
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons corn starch
2 tablespoons lemon juice

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Line the bottom of a 10x10" baking pan with parchment paper, making sure it comes up all sides of the pan.

2. In a large bowl, combine oats, flour, baking soda, brown sugar, almonds and salt.  Add melted butter and mix well.  The mix should be soft and crumble.  Set aside 1 cup of the mixture and press the remaining mixture firmly in the bottom of the prepared pan.  Bake for 8-10 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, put blueberries, sugar and 2 tablespoons of water in medium saucepan.  Bring to a boil and simmer for about two minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. In a small bowl, combine remaining water, cornstarch and lemon juice.  Stir into blueberry mixture until thick, for about a minute, then remove from heat.

5. Spread blueberry mixture evenly over cooked crust and press remaining oat mixture onto the blueberries, being careful as the blueberries are hot.

6. Bake bars 18-20 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool on wire rack.  To cut bars, lift the entire block out of the pan using the parchment paper, peel paper away from sides and cut into desired sized bars.  The bars will keep a few days in the fridge - if they last that long!

We go in food phases in our house, one day we love oatmeal but the next day I'm finding expired packets that need to be tossed.  One of those throwing out days I wondered if there's a better way to get great tasting instant oatmeal...  after much experimentation there is!

There's tons of recipes out there, this is a good basic that works for us.  I mix a batch up and portion out into half pint jelly jars, labeling the lid with a dry erase marker.  At first my husband laughed skeptically at these rows of jars but after a few days he was asking what exactly is in these and bringing friends in to see his wife's crazy good oatmeal collection!  Now it's a staple in our house. 

Home Made Instant Oatmeal

2 1/2 cups Quick Oats or Regular Oats
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 cup Brown Sugar

Blend 3/4 cup of the oatmeal in a blender or food processor (I use Vitamix with grain mill blender container but not needed; just a few pulses to it up to a heavy powder).  Mix ground oatmeal with other ingredients, adding to a container with sealed lid (or ziplock bag).  Shake up really good to combine.  This is the instant oatmeal base that will make 9 servings.  Sometimes I mix a few and leave the base which my husband likes because some days he adds a little more plain to his bowl or he feels like going outside my jars and mixing his own!

To package for individual servings add the following to a half pint jelly jar:

1/3 cup of the oatmeal base along with flavoring mix-ins such as:  1 tsp seeds (chia, flax) + 2 tsp grain, nuts or dried fruit (oat bran, wheat germ, any ground nut, choppied dried fruit) +1-3 tsp sweetner (stevia, coconut sugar, vanilla sugar, or more brown sugar) + 1/8 tsp spice (cinnamon, apple pie spice, grains of paradise) + pinch salt

Or use your imagination and follow the above proportions (aprox 3 tsp flavorings + 1-3 tsp sweetner +1/8 tsp spice) along with the 1/3 oatmeal base.  Some of our favorites include:  coconut, hot cocoa mix, chocolate chips, and PB2 dried peanut butter.

To cook the oatmeal:

For regular oats: add about 3/4 cup liquid to a bowl along with contents of the jar.  Cover and microwave about 2-3 minutes depending on the microwave.  Our favorite liquids to use are soy milk, almond milk, hemp milk, hazelnut milk.  Chocolate versions of any of those are obviously really good!

For instant oats:  add boiling water directly to jar, about 1/2" from the top.  Cover and let sit about 5 minutes. You can also add 2 tsp powdered milk for creamy consistency with the water.  I love this option for the office since it's so easy.  

I've also done overnight oats with this method:  add desired liquid (any milk works great or water for lower calories) to jar, about 3/4" from top.  Regular oats will still be runny in the morning and I'm not a fan of cold oats so I do heat up in the jar, covered, watching very closely heating in 30 second increments because it will overflow very quickly! 


We have become more creative with our mix-ins and came up with snappy concoctions such as:  Almond Joy (almonds, coconut, chocolate chunks, coconut sugar), Cherry Pie (dried cherries, graham cracker crumbs, vanilla sugar), Peanut Butter Cup (chocolate chunks, PB2 dried peanut butter), Pina Colada (dried pineapples, coconut sugar, coconut)...  the possibilities are endless!  Let me know if you come up with any options we must try!

I read that quote on the cover of one of my favorite cookbooks, "a mother and daughter diary of raw food recipes for beginners" and laughed.  Really?  Make my own cereal?  Sure, I"ll try that someday...  well I finally decided after using this book for over 6 months to give it a try and I swear it's life changing!  I know I sound crazy, but I'm not really a breakfast person but am aware of how important breakfast is so I try.  I switch from yogurt to Ezekial English muffins to oatmeal never really thrilled about breakfast.  Now that I found this cereal, I eat it every morning mixing it up by eating it with almond milk or yogurt or hemp milk.  It's amazing and you can mix it up as to not get bored by changing the nuts or fruit.  I also add Chia Seeds since I've got a bag of that in the house.  And my husband loves it too!  He prefers it dry, that's a little too messy for me.  Give it a try, it's so simple.  We keep a giant container of it with a scoop in and I remix as it gets low.  So simple!...