Chocolate Frosting (Vegan!)

1 cup semi-sweet vegan chocolate chips
1/4 cup almond or coconut milk
2 tbl. coconut oil

1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup powdered sugar

Place chocolate chips, milk, and coconut oil in a bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds. Whisk until the chips have completely melted. Add remaining ingredients, whisking until smooth. You can add a bit more powdered sugar or milk, if needed.

Spread on cake immediately. If your cake is still cooling and the frosting thickens up too much, just microwave it for a few seconds to make it more spreadable.

Note: This frosting is the perfect topping for Cockeyed Cake, which is also vegan.

Southwest Black Bean Vegan Burgers

2 cups cooked and drained black beans (save the juice)

3 fat spring onions, green part only

2 cups roasted sweet potatoes, carrots, and onions (I had some leftovers from the day before)

1 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen
1 cup edamame beans, cooked in the pod, pods removed (and given to the chickens)
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup cornmeal
2 tbl. salsa
1 tbl. nutritional yeast
2 tsp. red chile powder
2 cloves of garlic, minced, or a good sprinkle of garlic powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
Salt and pepper to taste

Using a food processor, chop up at least half of the black beans, adding reserved juice as needed. Put the chopped beans and the rest of the whole beans in a large mixing bowl.

Put the green onion tops through the processor, then add the roasted vegetables and chop to your liking. Add to the bean mixture.

Add all the other ingredients to the bowl, stirring well and adding reserved bean juice to make the mixture the right consistency to mold into patties. If it turns out too soupy, add some cornmeal or bread crumbs.

Form into patties (I made 12) and place on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for at least 40 minutes, turning the patties carefully halfway through. The baking time will vary, depending on the consistency of the mixture. I like to get the patties pretty crispy, so I bake them a little longer.

Remove from oven and serve hot, or cool the patties on the parchment paper. Patties can be frozen and reheated in the microwave or in a pan.

Note: These are delicious when crumbled on a salad in place of croutons.

Vegan Burgers with Pinto Beans, Sweet Potatoes, Roasted Corn, and Polenta

The inspiration for this burger came from the Whole Foods recipe for their Southwestern Veggie Burger. These take some time to put together; I cook a big batch of pinto beans the day before in the crockpot while steaming the sweet potatoes and roasting the corn. I used prepared polenta (comes in a roll at the store), but you could whip up some fresh.

Even though they are labor-intensive, you will end up with a lot of really delicious vegan lunches prepared and in the freezer.

Note: You will often see veggie burgers served on a whole wheat bun. That seems kind of redundant to me, so I leave out the bun. Your choice.



2 cups pinto beans, cooked, drained, and mashed (reserve cooking liquid)

2 cooked sweet potatoes, cooled and mashed

2/3 cup roasted corn (use fresh or frozen and thawed kernels, slowly roast over low heat in an iron frying pan, stirring frequently)

1 cup of polenta, mashed and smooth

1 tbl. chili powder

1 tsp. cumin

3 tbl. nutritional yeast

1/4 cup of salsa

salt and pepper to taste

Optional:
Add some or all of the following, finely chopped: Bell peppers, onions, carrots, celery, kale, tomatoes
I have also added leftover cauliflower puree; use up whatever you have!

Mix all together, adding some of the reserved bean juice if the mixture needs to be more moist. You can add in a few shakes of bread crumbs to help hold things together, if necessary. When all is thoroughly mixed, form into patties (my batch made 12 patties). Place on parchment-covered cookie sheets.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, turn over carefully, then continue baking for another 15 minutes. The goal is to get them crispy, so you may want to bake them longer.

Cool and freeze. Reheat in the microwave, or in a pan on the stove, or on a parchment lined cookie sheet in the oven at 300 for about 15 minutes.

Cockeyed Cake

1 ½ cups sifted flour
3 tbl. cocoa
1 tsp. baking soda
1 cup sugar
½ tsp. salt
5 tbl. vegetable oil
1 tbl. vinegar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup cold water

Sift dry ingredients right into a greased 9”x 9”x 2” baking pan. Make three holes in this dry mixture. Into one, pour the oil; in the next, the vinegar; into the next, the vanilla. Now pour the cold water over it all and mix together. Be sure you get it all mixed well or you will get an unpleasant foaming-of-the-mouth surprise caused by unmixed-in baking soda. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

This recipe comes from The I Hate to Cook Cookbook, by Peg Bracken, which was first published in 1960. I've been making it all these years for my family.

Note: This cake, served plain, makes a perfect vegan dessert, and is also delicious when spread with Chocolate Frosting (Vegan!).