Vegan Bagels

As I've gotten older I've come to understand the saying " the weeks go by slowly and the years go by quickly." (at least it goes something like that) When I think of the scope of what I try to accomplish in a week it is often times daunting but when I look back at a year and what has already been done, I'm sometimes quite amazed. I try not to get wrapped up in making New Year's Resolutions because I'm already a recovering list maker and I don't need any more self-pressuring as a self proclaimed type A. Isn't it enough that it's a NEW year? Can't we just enjoy the 'shine' of the 'new' for a while?  I read this quote on Instagram a few days ago:

You weren't born to just pay bills and die.

I think we've all felt this at one time or another. Despite living a life I always dreamed of, doing what I love everyday, it's still easy to get wrapped up in the cycle of things sometimes. Just remembering to BE present, to breathe, to smile and to laugh can make some of the not so fun, mundane chores more bearable. The Love of My Life, Matthew Dean, is a constant reminder for me of all the sweetness that life has to offer and he has been a spotlight on the present and a beacon for the future with endless smiles, laughter and love. Just when I thought life couldn't get any sweeter with him as a partner, he surprised me on Christmas morning by asking me to marry him. It was an overwhelming moment and weeks later I'm still walking on clouds.

So, just like that, my perspective on what 2016 would bring, shifted as I enter a new cycle in my personal life. Happiness breeds inspiration for me, and I'm anxious to spend as much time working in my studio as possible with a flood of new ideas and excitement to continue to create and sell handmade functional pottery. My food obsession has not waned and while I've shifted to a 90% gluten free diet in the past year or so, my love of bread is still in there and lately it's been fun making bagels!  So I've shared the bagel recipe below and I hope you'll let me know if you make them, or let me know any other recipes you'd like to see and I'll share in future posts. I can feel winter soup is where I'll be concentrating for a while.........so stay tuned.

Vegan Bagels

Ingredients:

2 1/4 teaspoons of active dry yeast (or one packet)

1 2/3 cups warm water

4 1/2 cups bread flour (I use Bob's Redmill Artisan Bread Flour)

1 Tbl sugar

1 Tbl barley malt syrup

2 teaspoons salt

approx 3 quarts water with 2 Tbl sugar added to it in a large pot for boiling

Toppings of choice: I used dried minced garlic and garlic powder, and a raw sugar and vietnamese cinnamon, but you can use any seeds etc as you like.

Instructions

Start by mixing the yeast and water and set aside.

In a large bowl mix flour, sugar, barley malt syrup and salt and add in your yeast mixture, mix well with a spoon until a dough forms and then if the bowl is large enough knead it for up to 15min until the dough comes together in a smooth stretchy ball or turn it out onto a lightly floured board for kneading. Set dough aside and cover to rest for up to 45 min.

Preheat your oven to 425 and get the sugar water mixture to a boil then simmer. Knead dough one last time for approx 2min and then cut into approx 12 pieces. Use your hands to gently shape into round balls, use your thumb to press a hole through the center of each ball and set it carefully into the hot water for 30 seconds, flip them over and remove after another 30 seconds. Place boiled bagels on a rack to drip dry and sprinkle with toppings of choice.

Once your bagels have been boiled and topped, place them on a nonstick baking pan and bake for 15min or until golden brown. Remove and cool before serving.

and then......try not to eat them all at once!

Candied Pecans

My craft not only connects me to the Earth, but also to my community. Nothing gives me more pleasure than seeing my pots in use in their forever homes. It's also a bonus to know that my own obsession with clay serves a functional purpose in the everyday lives of my customers.  I had several customers today and I was smiling ear to ear as they shared their thoughts about the pottery. One happy customer took home two tumblers and posted them in a photo to Facebook with the comment:

"Happiness is new coffee mugs!"

Another shopper took her time looking around the Gift Shop and picked out several tiny bowls and vases one of which she admitted to feeling compelled to carry around as she browsed because the shape felt so sweet to hold and the light blue glaze was her favorite. She also bought a lamp and proclaimed something to the effect of:

" I'm so happy to find this lamp in my favorite color. I'm going to put it on my bed side table and I'll love having it as part of my bedroom decor."

I've had the pleasure of exchanging a few clay cups with other potters via Instagram recently and they have posted photos of the tumblers I sent with the comments:

"A handmade tumbler. Good way to start a Thursday! Thanks Lyndsay, your work is gorgeous"

"Got a great trade from @TheVeganPotter this week! Love this tumbler!"

I was recently speaking to some friends who bought coffee mugs from me who were commenting on how special it is to drink out of a handmade cup every morning, how their coffee tasted better and how much they were enjoying the objects in their home. I take such pride in knowing that my work is out in the world being used and loved.

I'm so grateful for my loyal customers who share my love of handmade objects and who have supported my journey for nearly two decades. One of the most fun parts of being a potter is giving pots as gifts but what's even better is gifting handmade pottery filled with homemade food! So here's a quick and easy treat you can use to fill up a bowl, a mug or a canister to bring as a gift when you attend a holiday party this year.

If you've purchased pottery from me I'd love to hear what you bought and how you've put it to use in your home. Tag @TheVeganPotter and post a pic on Instagram .Thanks for supporting my obsession and providing forever homes for my work.

Lyndsay's Vegan Candied Pecans

Ingredients

1 Cup Pecan halves

1/4 cup genuine maple syrup

1/2 tsp Vietnamese Cinnamon

in a small frying pan or non stick sauce pan heat the pecans and maple syrup over medium heat. Sprinkle cinnamon and stir with a wooden spoon until the syrup begins to evaporate. Turn the burner down to low and continue to stir the pecans until all of the moisture has been absorbed. They will begin to stick together before they dry out and seperate. Be patient and continue stirring. Once the pecans appear mostly dry turn heat off and pour them onto a plate in a single layer so they can cool. Transfer to your container (if you haven't already eaten them all) and serve!

* This recipe works with most any nut, walnuts, raw cashews, peanuts and more. Feel free to add other spices like cloves or nutmeg as well.

Decadent Vegan Hot Chocolate

1 1/2 cups unsweetened almond milk

2 Tablespoons Cacao Powder

1 tablespoon Raw Cane Sugar or 2 TBL maple syrup

Dash vietnamese cinnamon

Dash almond extract

Pour the almond milk into a small saucepan and heat over medium heat stirring with a whisk. Mix cacao powder with a tablespoon of water until a liquid and then add to the warm almond milk. Stir. Add cinnamon and extract and continue to whisk over low heat until heated through. Pour into your favorite mug and enjoy! I like to adorn mine with almond milk foam and cinnamon or vegan marshmallows for an added treat!

Peanut Butter cups

I have had a terrible sweet tooth since childhood. I like to blame this weakness on the fact that I was raised on a healthy diet that did not include sugary foods, soda or candy. My Father however, suffers from the same affliction and so I suppose it could also be hereditary. My Mom typically could care less about sweets, so the ‘sugar gene’ surely comes from Dad. I have very vivid memories of staying with my grandparents for overnights (my mom’s parents that is……so here’s when the ‘sugar gene’ theory fails to explain….) and Grampi (yes, Grampi and Grammi) would let me sneak fluffernutter sandwiches by the pool. On a hot day I would raid the fridge for the individually wrapped American cheese slices (which we also never had at my house) and nibble at them like a rabid mouse. There was always a candy drawer at my grandparents house, filled with mini snickers bars….(I would sneak them and eat them under the dining room table) and peanut butter cups (I have a raw, vegan recipe for these below!) . It was a virtual Charlie and the Chocolate Factory experience when I stayed with my grandparents and I ate as much junk as I could before I went back to my house where ‘golden grahams' (I’m dating myself here, because not everyone will know this cereal…) were considered too sugary to have for breakfast, so they were a once in great while treat.

My secret sugar addiction did not let up in high school or college for that matter, I would look for the seasonal candies that were my favorite throughout the year, Red hots around Valentines Day, Candy Corn at Halloween and so on. The problem became my lack of consciousness while indulging and I could easily eat an entire bag of candy corn (yes there are some vegan versions!) I gave up store bought sugar and began to bake my own muffins, cakes, pies and other desserts figuring there were fewer chemicals; less sugar and they had to be healthier. As it turns out, it doesn’t matter if I buy it or make it myself, I still have a hard time not over-indulging. Moderation is the key to everything I think. I’ve experienced 20 and even 30 pounds of weight gain at times in my adult life and conventional dieting methods were never the answer for me. I would rather turn to the concept of calorie intake vs. caloric output and eating a variety of plant based foods, whole grains and keeping the sugar to a bare minimum has been a key component for maintaining my weight loss.

I’m much more likely to eat frivolously or when I’m not hungry at high stress times, or when I’ve not prepared my meals ahead. The past two weeks of working very long days teaching pottery and yoga to kids and adults has been a catalyst for a few backslides when I’ve not thought ahead enough for my own food intake. A lot of people ask me what a typical day’s food intake looks like for me and it varies seasonally but, on a good day,currently looks like this:

Morning: Fruit and protein powder smoothie

Snack: Apple with peanut butter or homemade granola bar

Lunch: Big salad (like one of the ones in earlier blog posts)

Dinner: Brown Rice and veggies, grilled, roasted or pan-fried

Snack: Popcorn with nutri-yeast and garlic salt or a homemade sweet treat

I could easily eat all day long, I’m a grazer and I love snacks. I do supplement my B12 intake and I do try to drink lots of water (although I’m never thirsty so I find that the hardest thing to do!) Even still, the battle over my sugar addiction continues. Since the detox in the spring (see post 1) I’ve eliminated refined sugars and when I do need a sweetener I stick to coconut sugar, maple syrup or brown rice syrup. So in support of my own habit I often concoct raw, vegan versions of my favorites. If you have a sugar addiction, try weaning off of harsh white refined sugar in favor of lesser evils as I mentioned above. Sometimes a craving can be as simple to conquer as just changing your perspective (get up if you’re sitting down etc.), or distract yourself by diving into an activity that requires your hands! (when my hands are covered in clay I can’t snack on crap!) Whatever your thoughts are on sugar, moderation is still the key, so don’t go making this recipe and eating the whole batch!

Raw Vegan Peanut Butter Cups

1 1/4 organic creamy peanut butter (I prefer to grind my own whenever possible at our local co-op)

2 cups shredded unsweetened coconut

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup raw cacao butter (I ordered mine from Amazon Prime)

½ cup raw cacao powder (Navitas is my favorite)

6-8 Tbl coconut sugar (this is to taste if you like your chocolate bitter or sweet)

Line a muffin tray with liners. Mix up the coconut, vanilla and peanut butter and press a few tablespoons into each muffin cup, place the tray in the freezer while you deal with the chocolate.

Grate or finely shave the cacao butter into a glass bowl or glass measuring cup and place into a pan with water, melt on low until completely liquid, then add your coconut sugar until it melts, take off the heat and add in cacao powder. Pour over frozen peanut butter cups and place back into the freezer to harden.

I prefer to keep these in the freezer in the summertime, as they are then a refreshing AND sweet treat!

Enjoy!