Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Dessert: Amazing (Raw) Vegan Whipped Cream

There are many recipes for vegan whipped cream, but this is the one I have played with and found works best for me!

Amazing (Raw) Vegan Whipped Cream
1/2 cup soaked raw cashews
1 can coconut milk
2 Tbs (or to taste) agave nectar or maple syrup (or other sweetener)
1/4 cup coconut oil (you could probably get away with less, perhaps 2 Tbs)

Blend all together in blender until smooth. I use a magical Vitamix, so this works really fast and easily for me. Some blenders won't get the smooth consistency, especially if the cashews aren't very soft from soaking.
Refrigeration will cause mixture to firm up nicely, sometimes I add more coconut milk and blend again just before I use it to thin it out.
If you are unfamiliar with working with coconut oil, it can be a little tricky when blending because it is a solid when under 24 degrees Celsius, but blending can warm it and make it a liquid, causing the cream to be runny. Refrigeration solves this of course, and even if it is runny it is still delicious! In any case, I usually make this a day or two in advance to ensure it is thick and creamy.
This stuff is always a hit and is even better than real whipped cream! Serve on chocolate anything with fruit.
I plan to play around with this too... I'm thinking a couple tablespoons of cacao powder to make chocolate whip? The possibilities are endless.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Blog about ART SHOW

Ok fellas and ladies.  The past several months have been crazy busy for me in life.  I had a baby and such. And a two year old. Financially things are tight so I have kept myself busy at home, cooking a lot, making stuff... Artistically I could have let things go, but NO! I am very fortunate to have a friend (who owns a wonderful local business known as the Mud Oven) who is allowing me to showcase my works, and I have filled my time since my last show (at Venus Envy in the fall) with making ALL NEW stuff! It's all very different from what I have been doing since I finished school. It has been so fun and exhilarating to keep the juices flowing.
So what's the deal, you ask? Where and when is this wonderful show so I can attend and bring all my friends???
Please do come if you can!
Here is the facebook event:
Lastly, please go to Facebook and "Like" my page to be kept up to date on my work!
Thank you!!

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Completed two more Instagram challenges, yes!

Ok so I haven't been blogging much this month but I have been keeping up with (more or less) two Instagram challenges. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Instagram, it is a iPhone app that you use to upload photos to a stream, and you can follow people and people can follow you. For us visual people it is quite interesting! I would love to spend more time reading (and writing) blogs but honestly it is just hard to find the time. These challenges keep me on a bit of a schedule so I keep working and don't get caught in time warps...
So, here are my completed projects!

Breakfast: Biscuits and gravy!

My husband is American and loves biscuits with sausage gravy. It's not something I have traditionally eaten, but I aim to please. This is the second time we've had it... I think it was the best. I made a double batch of biscuits from "Vegan Diner" and navy bean gravy (made with white beans instead) from "Vegan with a Vengeance". We also had leftover sausage cutlets from dinner, also from "Vegan Diner".
I am so happy with this hearty, healthier version of traditional biscuits with sausage gravy.
Oh yes, "Creamsicle" smoothies to get a dose of peaches, oranges and soy milk (and a secret serving of Omega 3 with chia seed). Mmm!