Easy Vegan Fudge!!!!!!

'Tis the season for sweets! For baking, and sharing, and consuming waaaaay too much sugar. This is one of the standby recipes I turn to when I want to bring a holiday hostess gift, a treat for a gathering, or just to have on hand in case someone stops by. It also holds up quite well when mailed, so feel free to spread the love. It's easy, and delicious! The perfect combination of smooth and sweet chocolatey decadence.

One note. The double boiler is important (you can use two saucepans, one smaller than the other)! If you don't use one, you risk ending up with something more like a brick than a supple pan of fudge - I've done it, and it is very sad. While this fudge is amazing on it's own, I like the juxtaposition of textures added by nuts (roasted or raw), toasted coconut, or even chopped dried fruit. You can fold them into the fudge right before you pour it into the pan, but I like to sprinkle them right on top. I think it makes for a much more impressive looking final product.

 

Easy Vegan Fudge

Ingredients:

• 1 cup vegan margarine
• 7 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted (you may need more to reach your desired consistency)
• 1 cup sifted cocoa powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 TBS - ¼ cup almond milk
• 1/2 cup chopped nuts or unsweetened coconut flakes (optional, but delicious!)

Directions:

Lightly grease an 8x8 square baking dish using a little of the margarine, or non-stick spray. Place the margarine in a heat proof bowl or the upper part of a double boiler (I use a small pot in a large pot of water).

 Place the bowl or pan over simmering water until melted.

 Add the vanilla, cocoa powder, and almond milk, and stir over the simmering water until smooth (or relatively so). Begin adding the powdered sugar, about ¾ cup at a time, mixing until smooth - you want a thick shiny mixture. This part may take a few minutes, but you really want as few lumps as possible.

 Pour the mixture quickly into the prepared pan, and sprinkle with desired additions. 

I chose to use roughly chopped toasted almonds this time :)

  
Gently press nuts or shredded coconut into the fudge. 
















Let sit at room temperature until thoroughly cooled, and cut into squares. Makes about 2 dozen squares.

 

Sweet Fall, Sweet Potatoes

Maple Cinnamon Scalloped Sweet Potatoes 

with Nutmeg and Fresh Ginger

So not long ago, I had a sudden urge to try my hand at healthy vegan scalloped potatoes. I traded out heavy cream and cheese for cashew cream and nutritional yeast, and the results surpassed my wildest dreams. Creamy, comforting and delicious. At the time, I thought to myself, "I wonder how this would work with sweet potatoes?" - The answer, I have discovered, is very well indeed. I swapped the savory roasted garlic and nutritional yeast for cinnamon, maple syrup, fresh ginger and nutmeg, and ended up with a lovely dish at once sweet and subtle, with the added spices enhancing but in no way covering the beautiful natural sweetness of the sweet potato itself. It's not the prettiest dish in the world, but you probably won't have much time to look at it before it's disappeared into hungry mouths. However, if you like, you could sprinkle some chopped pecans on top in the last five minutes or so of cooking for a nice bit of crunch, and a more festive look. That actually sounds like a really good idea...

I plan on making this for my Thanksgiving table in lieu of my normal mashed sweet potatoes. Some of my other favorite Thanksgiving recipes? This wonderful Stuffed Seitan Roast recipe from FatFreeVegan.com, VeganDad's Pull Apart Pumpkin Rolls with some of my compound vegan "honey butter", Mashed Caulipots, and The Sweet Life's Almost Raw Pumpkin Cheesecake, just to name a few. Holidays are wonderful, joyous times when we use food as a way to bring our families together and as a medium with which to share our love. And what better way to show that love than by making that meal a delicious, healthy and cruelty free one? One, I might add, that even my omnivore father happily devours each year.

Maple Cinnamon Scalloped Sweet Potatoes

Gluten Free

Serves 6

• 2 lbs sweet potatoes, about 2 large ones, peeled and sliced into roughly 1/8" rounds

• 1 recipe cashew cream
• 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 2 TBS pure maple syrup (the real stuff!)
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp fresh ginger, roughly chopped (about 1/2" off the knob)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cornstarch (Non-GMO!)

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly oil the bottom of an 8x8 dish, or baking vessel of your choice.

In a blender, combine all ingredients, except of course for the sweet potatoes. Blend until everything is incorporated and you've thoroughly liquified your chopped ginger.

Pour about 3 TBS of your cream sauce into the bottom of your pan, and tip it about so that the cream coats the bottom.

Now, begin your layering. Anyway you like, so long as the potatoes end up even. After each layer of potatoes I pour about 1/4 of the remaining cream sauce over them before repeating the next layer (if this doesn't work for you, just reach in there and mix the potatoes with your hands to coat them in the cream sauce - just make sure you spread them back out evenly once you're done).

 When you run out of potatoes, top with the remaining cream sauce, cover with tin foil and bake for about 25 minutes. Remove the foil, and bake uncovered for another 15-20 minutes until the potatoes are super soft and the cream sauce is bubbly.

Allow to cool for a few minutes before serving. I served these with some garlic roasted asparagus and my Almond Crusted Tofu Cutlets.