Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Pie

No need to check again, you read that right the first time. Chocolate. Peanut Butter. Pretzel. PIE. It's creamy. It's smooth. It's crunchy. It's decadent and rich. It's VEGAN. Believe it, folks.

Whoa Nelly! This is the kind of pie that sneaks up on you. You start with one teeny tiny slice. Which quickly turns into two slices. And before you know it, you've got your fork in the dish picking at the sides. Soon after, you throw all caution to the wind, and you end up with your finger in the pie. These things happen.

If you're lucky, you've got a good friend there to share in the indulgence, and to help rein each other in when faces start getting dangerously close to the pie.

Seriously, this thing should come with a warning: DO NOT EAT ALONE. But, y'know, if you do happen to go it alone and get half-way through the pie before you know what happened, I won't judge you. Pinky swear.

Of course there's some things I'd try differently next time: lightening up the peanut butter filling, making a harder ganache, tweaking the crust. But the recipe got eaten up pretty quickly as is, so no complaints here.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Pie
adapted from Vegan Nom Noms

Crust-
1 cup of finely ground pretzels
5 tbsp of Earth Balance vegan butter
3 tbsp of sugar

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. In a small saucepan, melt butter slowly over medium heat. Mix together pretzel crumbs and sugar in a small bowl. Once butter is melted, add to pretzel crumbs and mix until completely moistened. Press crumbs into 9 inch pie pan and up the sides. Bake for 10 minutes, or until crust is set. Allow to cool completely.

Peanut Butter filling-
1 12 oz container of Extra-firm silken tofu (I like Mori-Nu brand in the aseptic packs. You can find them in the asian aisle, or at the asian market.)
1 cup smooth peanut butter
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1/4 - 1/3 cup maple syrup (you can also use agave or brown rice syrup in its place)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Drain tofu and remove excess water. Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. (Since I used natural peanut butter, I used 1/3 cup of syrup. If you're using PB that's already sweetened, use less syrup to keep it from getting too sweet. ) Pour filling into prepared crust, and keep in fridge while you make the ganache.

Chocolate Ganache-
1/4 cup almond milk (or your non-dairy milk of choice)
3/4 cup of vegan chocolate chips
2 tbsp maple syrup (or agave, etc)

In a small sauce pan, heat milk on medium heat until it comes to gentle boil. As soon as it boils, remove from heat and add chocolate and syrup and mix until well-combined and smooth. Allow to sit for 10-15 minutes while it begins to solidify. You may drizzle the ganache on top of the peanut butter filling or cover it completely like I did. I also crushed up some pretzels with my hand and sprinkled it over the top of the ganache while it was still wet. Allow the ganache to set for at least one hour before serving.

Makes 1-12 servings depending on who's watching and if you're sharing.

The Best Pizza Pie in Philadelphia

I've spent most of my time in the bedroom these last few days. Quit giving me the sassy eye, that's not what I'm talking 'bout. It's the only room in the house with an air conditioner. In case you haven't heard, there's a heat wave in Philadelphia. 

104 °F outside feels something like 9,941 °F in a South Philly row home. Accordingly, I've been treating the rest of my apartment like the surface of the sun and venturing out only for necessities like water refills and multiple showers. 

Baking? HA. Haha. Ha. Ha. Ha. What is that? I'm fairly certain if I turned on my oven it would spontaneously combust at this point. So while I'm in the kitchen, I'll just grab this pint of coconut sorbet and this bag of fresh cherries and head back to my crisp bedroom climate, thankyouverymuch. 

I've got a fridge full of just-picked garden-fresh veggies and herbs. But they're just gonna have to wait. Now is the time for going out to eat and grabbing take-out. And, oh yeah: Pizza. 

You probably already know about my love for pizza. It's a pure, deep and wholesome love. After a couple of terrible experiences with pizza joints around Philadelphia, I swore off pizza from the city entirely. Until I tried the vegan pizza at Whole Foods on South Street. 

I'm usually unimpressed with Whole Foods' pre-made vegan dishes, especially anything that comes out of their bakery. But this pizza is the best pizza I've had in Philadelphia. Seriously. It reminds me a lot of pizza from Scranton. Like if Calabria's and Maroni's got together and made delicious pizza pie babies. 

I have to confess, I found out about their pizza months ago. I get a slice every week on my Whole Food's shopping trip. But I've never held on to one long enough to document it. Usually, a slice doesn't make it out of the parking lot. What you're seeing here is the first slice to have a life-span longer than 15 minutes. Historical. 

So what's so great about it? The crust on WF's pizza is thin and crispy, but with flavor (they often use a multi-grain crust). The sauce is a little sweet, and tastes like it's freshly made. And the cheese, THE CHEESE. They use Daiya, which is a new vegan cheese product that actually melts and stretches. It's amazing. It's completely changing what it means to be vegan (or lactose intolerant)! Whole Foods' uses a combination of the mozzarella and cheddar flavor, and when those two powers combine the result is miraculous. The cheese actually gets gooey and melty in the best way possible. NOM NOM NOM

I cannot vouch for the quality at any other Whole Foods, but if you can make it to the one on South Street in Philadelphia, I highly recommend this snack. They usually have two vegan options, one with a chef's choice of toppings. Get a slice of each and thank me later. You can find me sprawled out on my bed along with Gracie in a very unlady-like manner trying to stay cool. Knock first, please. 

I Survived Muffinpalooza!

Happy Independence Day to all! And welcome, scooter rally peeps! Let's talk muffins.

Ok, so I've been talking about these damn muffins for weeks now. I'm sure you're sick of it. But fear not gentle reader, because today was the big day!

A couple of months ago a friend of a friend contacted me about making muffins for the Hostile City Scooter Club's Philadelphia Independence Day Scooter Rally. She was responsible for breakfast, and thought my blackberry corn muffins looked tasty. I believe my response was something to the effect of "OMG Hell yes! and Thankyouverymuch!"

12 dozen muffins, 4 different varieties, all to be dropped off the morning of the 4th of July. Slightly daunting, but mostly exciting! My first big order! Exclamation points!

The varieties?

Strawberry Rhubarb, also dubbed the Summer Love Muffins. Share one with your sweetie in the morning. (wink, wink.)

Blueberry, which I'm calling the Midnight Murder Muffins. Seriously, the way those berries burst, they look like they didn't make it out of an 80's slasher flick.

Banana Nut, also known as the Nutty Monkey Muffins. Too cute? Probably. Deal with it.

And last but not least, a savory corn muffin with sundried tomatoes and chives. I didn't come up with a cute name for it. Feel free to suggest one.

Scooter enthusiasts, I hope you liked them. I hope you loved them. I hope you NOM NOM NOM'd them all and didn't leave a crumb. Feel free to leave some comments below and let me know just what you thought. Inquiring minds want to know. Also, don't hesitate to follow me on the Facebook or the Twitter. Social Media, ho!

And of course I need to give a big shout out to Ms. Poliana who set it all up. Girl, you rock my face off! Thanks again!

Pies in July!

"I'm gonna make a pie today!" That's what I said when I woke up Thursday morning. I said this out loud. The only one around to hear was my kitty Gracie, and she seemed unimpressed. I didn't let it deter me though. 

Why pie? My decision had more to do with the cool breeze running through the apartment than anything else, but the fruit stands over-flowing with summer's bounty might have planted the seed as well. An unseasonally cool day in July when berries abound is a gift that must not be squandered. And so pie was made. 

Pies must be in the collective unconscious this week. Deb at Smitten Kitchen's been making lots of pies lately, and Joy the Baker just whipped up a berry pie the other day. And we all know I'm on team pie.

Pies are truly wonderful. Anyone can throw together a cupcake, but if someone bakes you a pie, that's real love. 

With all this in mind, I've decided July will be pie month. If the heat wave comes back I can't promise anyone I'll actually be making pies, but I will (finally!) be giving that pie crust tutorial I've been talking about, and discussing tools, and giving some recipes. I hope you're all as excited about pies as I am!

Pies are pretty great for impressing boys, even if they don't have a sweet tooth. Trust me on this one. It also works really well on friends, bosses, and parents. Come to think of it, a homemade pie impresses just about any one. This is why you must do it. 

This pie in particular is what made my boyfriend fall in love with me. I can't guarantee you'll have the same success. On a related note, be careful who you share it with. 

I meant to tell you about this pie yesterday so that you'd have time to make it for your weekend barbecues. But I got distracted by all those muffins I have to bake. If you don't have enough time to make it before your Independence Day party, don't let it stop you from making it later this week. This pie is just as good for parties as it is for Wednesday morning breakfast. But please, make it while the berries are still plentiful, plump and DELICIOUS. 

I promise promise, PINKY SWEAR that I've got a pie crust tutorial in the works. Until then, for this recipe, I'm going to assume that you've got either A) got a crust recipe that you swear by or B) buy your crusts pre-made. Either way, I'm not judging you. Whatever you do, you'll need to completely pre-bake your crust before you make the filling. 

The Best Blueberry Pie You'll Ever Try

(I've been making this so long and adapted it so much, I don't know where it came from originally)

4 cups fresh blueberries, rinsed and dried

1/2 cup of water

1/2 cup sugar

2 tbsp of cornstarch + 2 tbsp of water

1 tsp lemon juice

pinch of salt

1 9inch pie crust, pre-baked

Pre-bake your pie crust, and allow to cool before you start making the filling. 

Rinse blueberries and lay them out to dry. Place one cup of berries in a medium sauce pan with 1/2 cup of water. Cover, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat and let simmer for about 3 minutes, or until berries burst. 

Meanwhile, whisk together cornstarch and water, set aside. Once berries have burst, add cornstarch mixture, lemon juice, sugar and salt, and stir. Continue to cook for several minutes until syrup becomes thick and translucent. Remove from heat, add remaining berries, and stir gently to coat with syrup. 

Pour mixture into pre-baked pie crust. Allow to firm up for at least 2 hours at room temperature before moving to fridge. I've never seen this pie last longer than 2 days, and cannot account for freshness after that point. 

*Note*- The reason this pie knocks people out and makes boys fall in love with you is because you don't smother the berries in sugar and bake them to death. Instead, it's mostly whole, plump berries slightly sweetened and held together with homemade jam. Because of this, the pie will only be as good as your blueberries, and frozen berries are not recommended unless you froze them yourself. 

Fail Whales

I don't want to fool you guys into thinking that everything I make is delicious and pretty and picture perfect. There's been a lot of FAILS and EPIC FAILS going on around here lately. I'm gonna blame a tank top I've been wearing that's covered in whales. Or, as my friend Sean pointed out, maybe they're fail whales. 

There was the Pate Brisee/Pocket Pie FAIL two weeks ago for which I still haven't completely redeemed myself.

There was my first attempt at a lime cake with a mango curd. Probably the grossest FAIL yet.

There were those Strawberry Rhubarb muffins that just didn't live up to their expectations. (Don't worry, I've perfected the recipe since then!)

There was that time I tried to melt chocolate in a glass bowl that was not heat-safe. Ruined the ganache and lost a bowl. EPIC FAIL.

Two weeks ago there was the Great Vegan Marshmallow Disaster of 2010. And while I was home in Scranton this past weekend I made some bland-as-can-be corn muffins, and flat cupcakes with soupy buttercream. Big frazzled FAIL. And I can't even show you pictures of those because the biggest fail of all was leaving my camera at a friend's house last week and not getting it back yet. [Insert huge, full-body sigh here.]

No camera means I also can't show you any of the ups: the whoopie pies or the grapefruit shortbread cookies or the BEST VEGAN CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES IN THE WORLD. Sorry to get all shouty about them, but really, they're that good. You'll hear about them soon. Until then, I've got all those muffins to make for Sunday. So go have some blueberries and coconut sorbet, maybe take a little nap, and I'll meet you back here in a few days. Take a lesson from this little lady; she knows how to spend her time wisely. 

Always Sunny is IN South Philly!

Guys, I'm a little distracted. There's baking to tell you about, and zany vegan marshmallow mis-adventures. But I can't stay focused, because It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is filming 2 blocks from my apartment. That's not an exaggeration, 2 BLOCKS. 

So I've been stalking watching Danny Devito and Rob McElhenney and Charlie Day and Glenn Howerton do their thing (otherwise known as Frank, Mac, Charlie and Dennis). And Jason Sudeikis is on set too (from Saturday Night Live), making a guest appearance. And so forgive me if I'm not thinking of baking today because my favorite show is filming in my hood. I'll be back to baking and blogging about it soon. 

Danny and Charlie came over to say hi, and sign some autographs for the kids. They're pretty rad. It's also totally clear to me now why Danny Devito is so saucy with the ladies- He's totally at eye level with most chick's boobs. Srsly. 

Strawberry Love Muffins

My last entry was long, silly, scattered, and probably a little too "crazy cat lady" for most of you (or, more honestly, everyone except Nicole and Sarah). So I'll keep this short and simple.

It's a muffin-palooza around here these days. Remember how I mentioned I'm making 12 dozen (!) muffins for that scooter rally in Philly? Well, the 4th of July is approaching quickly, and I'm fine-tuning recipes and freezer-testing, and generally trying to make sure I don't drive myself last-minute crazy like I always do. How responsible and completely atypical of me. I like it!

One of the muffins on the list is Strawberry Rhubarb. My last attempt at a Strawberry Rhubarb muffin yielded lukewarm results, and I've been hunting for the perfect recipe ever since. Because, seriously, I just can't get enough of that S&R combination. And just when I thought I had figured out the perfect recipe... I couldn't find any rhubarb. Not at the supermarket, not at the farmer's market. Not Awesome. 

Thankfully, strawberries are very in season, and every farmer's market stand in the city is overflowing with bright, juicy, sweet berries of the not-freakishly large (read: normal-sized) variety. If you can stop yourself from eating the whole container, pickup some berries at the market this weekend, and make these muffins for brunch. Thank me later.

Strawberry Love Muffins
adapted from Bittersweet

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup ricemilk (or your favorite non-dairy milk)
1/3 cup canola oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup fresh berries, chopped (if you use frozen, make sure they're thawed. But why would you use frozen strawberries in June???)

Preheat oven to 375 F and grease or line 12 muffin tins.

Whisk dry ingredients together (sugar is considered a dry ingredient for this recipe). In a seperate bowl whisk together non-milk, oil and vanilla, then add your wet ingredients to the dry. Fold gently with a wooden spoon until just mixed; a few lumps are totally OK. Remember, when it comes to mixing vegan muffins, LESS is always more! Gently fold in strawberries. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full, and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out dry. Let cool in pans for about 10 minutes before removing and placing on wire rack to cool completely. These muffins are just as good same-day and slightly warm as they are at room temp the next day. Store in an air-tight container. DO NOT refrigerate.

*Note: I like my fruit muffins on the sweet side, so I added more sugar than called for in the original recipe. I still thought they needed a little something extra, and next time will probably add some lemon juice or zest, and some sanding sugar or a simple glaze on top. Or RHUBARB if I could find the gosh-darn things! If you spice these up, let me hear about it!