Some days or weeks are imprinted in my memory forever and this was certainly one for me. Wednesday evening I received a call from my editor. I assumed that the call was simply to talk over the logistics of my upcoming radio tour, but it was much more than that.
“Angela, we just found out that you made the NEW YORK TIMES Bestseller List!!!!”
She put me on speakerphone and the whole team was gathered in the room cheering about the exciting news. It was a moment I will never forget. I still can’t believe it!
After the call, I “casually” walked downstairs trying to keep my cool so I could surprise Eric with the news. I had a funny grin on my face (you know when you are half-smiling, but on the verge of bursting into tears?) and he knew something was up. I started to speak, but the tears just welled up in my eyes and my voice couldn’t get anything out. Typical pregnant lady, I am! Poor Eric was worried that something horrible just happened until I was finally able to tell him the news. Immediately after, I called my mom and she started to cry too which then made the pregnant lady tear up again! Oh boy. I guess the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree…
None of this would even be remotely possible without your support. Thank you for telling others about the cookbook, sharing pictures on social media, posting reviews, and believing that vegan recipes are something to be excited about! Many of you have told me that you gifted copies to family and friends and that couldn’t be more exciting to hear as an author. I feel so inspired to keep creating and I have so many fun ideas spinning in my mind for the future.
Anyway, the NYT list will appear in the Sunday April 6th paper. I’m going to try to locate a copy somewhere in the GTA!
I couldn’t think of a better time to indulge in a pregnancy craving! As if I needed an excuse. To be honest, I’ve been all about the savoury/salty cravings lately (such as my Lightened Up Crispy Baked Fries), but when I saw Cara‘s banana split recipe I made a mental note to make one as soon as possible. I think I even had a dream about it!
We each grabbed a spoon and devoured this heavenly treat in a flash. [Strangely enough, Eric has been getting “pregnancy cravings” too. I think they are contagious…you were warned.]
The Big Vegan Banana Split
Yield
serves 2
Soak time
30 minutes
Prep time
Cook time
0 minutes
Total time
This vegan banana split is a lovely special dessert for two. One dish, two spoons...what could be better? Feel free to change up the toppings as you see fit. I’ve included what I used below, but I didn’t bother putting specific amounts so just add as much as you’d like. The chocolate date sauce is not to be missed. Even if you just make one thing out of this recipe, make the chocolate sauce. It’s amazing on ice cream or just by the spoonful. I expect it would be great on top of brownies too. The banana split is inspired by Forks and Beans and the chocolate sauce is adapted from Southern In Law.
Ingredients
for the chocolate date sauce (adapted from Southern In Law):
- 1 (15-oz) can full-fat coconut milk
- 6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup tightly packed pitted Medjool dates (110 grams)
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- pinch of pink Himalayan sea salt or fine grain sea salt, to taste
for the banana split:
- 1 large Banana, sliced in half lengthwise
- 2 small scoops vegan ice cream (I used Coconut Bliss Cherry Amaretto)
- Chocolate date sauce (recipe above)
- Strawberry Chia Seed Jam (from The OSG cookbook)
- Toasted sliced almonds
- Non-dairy chocolate chips or raw cacao nibs
- Coconut whipped cream (link below)
- All-natural sprinkles
- All-natural maraschino cherries or fresh pitted cherries
- Ultimate Nutty Granola Clusters (from The OSG cookbook)
Directions
- Soak the pitted dates in a bowl of water for 30 minutes, or until super soft. Drain. You can probably skip this step if you have a Vitamix and are using soft dates to begin with (I did).
- Add all the sauce ingredients into a high speed blender (including the entire can of coconut milk). Blend on high until super smooth. Adjust to taste, if desired. If it's not sweet enough you can always add more pitted dates.
- Refrigerate until ready to use. It will firm up in the fridge a bit so you can melt it over low heat on the stove top if desired or just enjoy as is. Store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
- Prep all of your desired toppings in advance.
- Place the sliced banana in a large oblong bowl (or simply any old bowl will do!).
- Add a couple scoops of ice cream and a dollop of coconut whipped cream.
- Add the rest of your desired toppings and enjoy immediately!
Tip:
Notes:
For the Coconut Whipped Cream recipe, see this post.
For the Strawberry Chia Seed Jam recipe, see page 287 in The Oh She Glows Cookbook.
For the Ultimate Nutty Granola Clusters recipe, see page 31 in The Oh She Glows Cookbook.
The brand of all-natural maraschino cherries I used is Tillen Farms.
The brand of all-natural sprinkles I used is Let's Do Organic!
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
I have some new Oh She Glows Virtual Cookbook Tour posts to share:
Note: If you’ve posted a review be sure to tweet me the link and I will add it to my list!
Emily @ The Kitchn
Ellie @ Homemade Hearts
Ricki @ Rickiheller.com
Jayne @ Miss Jayne Becca
Last but not least, thank you for your comments on this week’s baby news post and for making a special time even more exciting for us! I was especially happy to read that many of you are also expecting a baby this year (and some close to my own due date). Congrats to all the mama-to-be’s!
THAT IS SO EXCITING! Congrats, you deserve it. And holy crap, this looks amazing!
Congratulations on EVERYTHING!!! You have been giving freely of yourself and now the universe is hugging you back. All the praise and success is well deserved.
Congratulations Angela! I can’t say I’m surprised though ;) Although I’m sad I haven’t been able to afford to treat myself to the book yet (I had totally planned to pre-order, but that couldn’t happen), I’m so excited about being able to gift it to myself as soon as I have a little more disposable income, and you can bet I’ll be buying multiple copies for friends and family, so your sales aren’t going to drop anytime soon! This recipe looks fabulous, I’m such a sucker for banana split!
Angela, CONGRATULATIONS on your pregnancy :) Eek!! I have been reading OSG for two years now, but took a vegan hiatus. I’m back again and ecstatic to hear your baby news :)
Congratulations! You are accomplishing so many great things!
This chocolate sauce is sinful! Thanks for sharing – my kids love it.
That’s bananas! Big vegan banana split bananas awesome.
Hello from Vancouver! Congrats on the baby, I’m very happy for you :) Do you know if its a boy or a girl ? Do you have any names in your mind ? So exciting!
I had no idea that you and Eric bought another house. Did you end up buying in GTA or somewhere else? I remember you two were questioning where to live. I’m really curious what you have decided.
Congratulations Angela! So happy for you :) And hubbaa hubbaa this banana split looks amazing!! :) Can’t wait to try!
The chocolate date sauce is to die for!! It will definitely be a new staple in my house. Thank you, and congrats on all of the book and baby excitement! I ordered your cookbook today!
Congratulations on your book being a best seller! I absolutely love your cookbook, it has quickly become my favorite. I can tell you put so much thought and intent behind every recipe and picture. It is everything I would want out of a cookbook, and it inspires me to eat more healthily. It is beautifully put together and what I have made so far is delicious. :) Your book deserves to be a best seller!
So proud of you!, but I am not surprise, your book is beautiful and the recipes are awesome! I have already tried a few recipes, cannot wait to make the rest of them!! Congratulations you well deserve it!
Congratulations Angela that is more amazing news, my oh my, what a wonderful year for you, !
Hi Angela
Congrats on the book and also I think you are having a boy: savoury cravings and you actually glow! You always look better when pregnant with a boy. Will you find out?
Oh my goodness! I think I am definitely going to have to give this recipe a try in the immediate future. My Mom made your enchiladas yesterday and I think we were both in heaven. It was absolutely delicious! Congratulations on all your success and on the baby news. I hope more good things come your way. :)
You inspired me to make this yesterday as a food-companion for a programming lab I was working on, and let me just exclaim, THE CHOCOLATE SAUCE. You might as well have just made a post only about the chocolate sauce, because it is THAT GOOD. I am eating it with a spoon straight from the fridge the next day for breakfast. I truly think it is the closest vegan Nutella copycat I have ever tasted, and it doesn’t even use hazelnuts (which I’m allergic to anyways!!!!) And I’m positive it’s a lot healthier than Nutella, too. Wow, I just want to rave about this sauce to everyone, everywhere. THANK YOU!
hahaha I’m glad I’m not the only one eating it with a spoon! Seriously!
Coconut Bliss is my FAVE brand of coconut milk ice-cream for sure. We buy it ever week (oops!). So, I foresee this b-split in my very near future (is it ok for me to have post-pregnancy cravings? Might be more justifiable than Eric’s haha)!!
Congratulations Angela, on both the baby and on making the New York Times list. That is awesome! I have never commented on a blog before, but I feel compelled to comment on yours. I’ve been reading for quite awhile now, and I love your recipes and your writing. You are an inspiration to vegans and non-vegans alike, and what I really love is that your recipes, as well as being delicious, always work exactly as described. My daughter just gifted me with your cookbook and I have already made 5 recipes from it, all wonderful ! I will be working my way through the book! And by the way, I am a senior who has been cooking for 60+ years, so that just proves that we can all be inspired by new and fresh and creative ideas! Keep on doing what you are doing, you deserve every bit of your success! (from a fellow Canadian!)
First off, Congratulations! I can’t wait to read the OSG cookbook! Currently sitting in my study abroad classroom–bored–I am now seriously craving this banana split. I will have to wait until i return to the states in 5 weeks, but this will definitely be one of my first indulgences!
I’ll wholeheartedly affirm spousal pregnancy cravings. I had to step up my workouts when my wife became pregnant with #2. For our first baby, I timed an intense 90 day workout (P90X2) to end shortly before our due date. It was awesome being in the best shape of my life prior to those challenging first few months. It really helped me be on top of things while I took care of her, the baby, and the house.
Angela – congrats! I checked your cookbook out of the library, and I have already made six recipes! Yours is a cookbook I definitely plan to buy!
Your recipes are so simple and easy to make. I can’t wait to make every recipe in the book!
Congrats on making the best sellers list! That is awesome, but not surprising….your recipes are amazing. Got my cookbook on Friday (3/28) and the copy I ordered my aunt for her birthday. It is fantastic, and I already made a few things from it. My fiance’ (who said, “Why did you buy a vegan cookbook, you’re not even vegan?”) was even drooling over the photo of the pudding cake I told him I was going to make. ;)
Incredible news! OMG! Wonderful vegan mainstreaming and so amazing. Congratulations!!
Congrats Angela! If you have any trouble getting a hold of a copy of the NYT, shoot me an email! I am not in the NYC area, but I know that I can get a hold of it in Boston and send it your way.
Congratulations! I’m new to your site and just made my first recipe from your cookbook – the Tex-Mex Casserole. That recipe alone was worth the price of the book! If any of the others even come close, yours will be my favorite cookbook. It’s so exciting to have all these fabulous recipes available. Thanks for your wonderful contribution to veganism and good heath!! Best wishes for a safe and easy pregnancy. Your little one will be eating well! ;-)
Congratulations! So well deserved! I’m so happy for you.
T :)
Congratulations! That’s big news, I’m happy for you :)
Something completely different: in the ingredientlist there’s vanilla extract. Please beware of the alc. content. During my first trimester I drank a lot of smoothing with vanilla extract in it. Only after weeks I thought about the alc. in the vanilla extract.
Congrats on the baby and the best seller list! I’m fairly new to your site, but it has been an inspiration to me already and is quickly becoming one of my favorites :) I have yet to purchase your book, but am looking forward to it in the near future.
Congratulations Angela! Well deserved! So much exciting news!! Hoping to see you at a book signing in Toronto someday! : )
Well, you’re full of sorts of fun & surprising news lately =D Congrats Angela! That is so exciting. Your cookbook is absolutely gorgeous =)
This sundae looks SO GOOD!!!
I know my congrats is coming a bit late, but I just wanted to congratulate you on a huge accomplishment. I just ordered your book and cannot wait to go through it!
Hi Angela! I absolutely love your recipes and your cookbook is a go-to for me, especially when my sweet-tooth is aching ;) I had an idea for a potentially simple but fun recipe post for you: a vegan and low-sugar ice cream float! You can use vanilla-bean coconut icecream and Zevia pop (they have a delicious Root Beer flavour!). I’m sure your creative mind could think of ways to spruce it up, too :) Maybe some coconut whipped cream on top?
All the best!
August 23, 2014
Hi Angela,
I made a decision one week ago to become vegan. The research by T.Colin Campbell, PhD convinced me that this was the way to go. He did the China Study on plant-based eating with other researchers over a twenty year period. I was thrilled to see your book in the store today. The recipes and photos are amazing. I am so looking forward to eating vegan and following your book. Thak you for writing it. It makes vegan look really accessible All the very best to you and your family.
Sinecerely,
Andrea
You are my idol. Enough said. This was amazing. I want to eat one everyday. No, I want to only eat that forever. That chocolate syrup… I MEAN WOW.
This looks incredible! I am making this for my birthday this week – the perfect treat:)