Back in the day, I used to do everything in my power not to cook.
Bagged iceburg lettuce with dried out carrot shreds? I can learn to love it.
Microwave dinners with rubber chicken? A bit time consuming (4-5 mins!), but doable.
Skillet Sensations? Gourmet, romantic meal for two (Eric would make these for me in university! swoon)
Grilled cheese? Eric’s fav. ‘meal’ that I made. I’m not sure what this means.
There was a lot of love in those meals, but not much…quality. I feared the unknown with cooking, so I never really ventured out of my comfort zone.
Plus, I had crap to do. Always crap to do. Books to read. Classes to skip. MSN to chat on. Bars to hop. Heels to break in. Thanks to my sweet tooth I always enjoyed baking, but cooking never called out to me like the Betty Crocker Cake Mix in the pantry.
I was the girl who used to mix cake mix with milk and eat the raw batter straight up out of a mug. I wouldn’t make this stuff up. It was awesome.
It’s funny though, when I’m really challenged, a fire is lit inside me! Eating a vegan diet forced me to learn how to cook, enjoy the process (not just end result), and use my creativity whenever possible. When I first stopped eating animal products I lived off fake meat like veggie dogs, but that got old quickly and left me yearning for unprocessed meals made from scratch. Vegan cuisine opened my eyes to many different types of foods and ingredients and ignited a passion for cooking, dare I say, as much as baking.
If I can go from eating Lean Cuisines and bagged salad to cooking meals made from scratch, I think there is hope for every fearful cook out there! The more I cook, the less intimidated I feel; especially when it comes to cooking for others.
Which brings me to our family gathering on Sunday celebrating Eric’s birthday!
Mary (left) and Brendon are visiting us from Ireland. Brendon is my mother-in-law Margaret’s brother (one of her 10 brothers!)
Every time Brendon curses he says, “Pardon my Irish”
Love this crazy man. heheh.
Let’s see, I made…Vegan Cheeze Burgers.
I made a spin-off of Our Perfect Veggie Burger using Daiya cheese.
Changes I made to the original recipe:
- I used one entire 15-oz can black beans instead of 1 cup of beans
- I used 1.5 cups Daiya cheese instead of 1 cup grated carrot
- I used 1/4 cup chopped almonds instead of 1/3 cup
The Vegan Cheeze Burgers turned out just how I was hoping! Cheezy and delish.
I pre-baked the burgers for about 20 minutes in the oven and when Eric BBQ’d the meat, he added the veggie burgers on for the last 5-10 minutes of grilling.
I also sautéed some Crimini mushrooms to go with the burgers…my all-time fav burger topping! With a sprinkle of Herbamare of course.
Next, I made an old favourite- Pumpkin Spiced Doughnuts! Oh yes, I broke out a can of pumpkin. I can’t be tamed.
Do any of you remember when I went through a vegan doughnut baking phase back in 2009? I was obsessed with making these things!
I fell off the wagon for a couple years, but it was fun to make them again and use those doughnut pans that have been collecting dust. The mini and regular pans are from Golda’s Kitchen.
A pumpkin doughnut isn’t a pumpkin doughnut until you cover it in melted Earth Balance and cinnamon sugar! True fact.
I tested them again with icing sugar glaze, but the Earth Balance and cinnamon sugar mixture was by far the best! The Earth Balance added a bit of a savoury, buttery quality which was a nice contrast with the sugar.
Drooling inevitable. Eating inevitable. Breakfast? Obviously.
Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Spiced Doughnuts
Yield
24 mini or 12 regular-sized doughnuts
Prep time
Rest time
15 minutes
Cook time
Total time
Adapted from Maple Glazed Pumpkin Spiced Glonuts and Cuisine at Home via Pastry Brush.
Ingredients
For the pumpkin doughnuts:
- 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar (white vinegar may work)
- 6 tbsp non-dairy milk
- 1/2 cup fresh or canned pureed pumpkin
- 1/4 cup organic cane sugar (or white)
- 3 tbsp unsweetened applesauce
- 2 tbsp lightly packed brown sugar
- 2 tbsp Earth Balance (or other non-dairy butter substitute), melted
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp cinnamon + 1/2 tsp ginger, + 1/4 tsp nutmeg (or 1.75 tsp pumpkin pie spice)
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
For the cinnamon sugar
- 1/4 cup Earth Balance (or other butter sub), melted (approx estimate only)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
Directions
- Pumpkin Doughnuts: Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease two mini doughnut pans or two regular sized doughnut pans with Earth Balance (or other butter substitute).
- In a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, milk, pumpkin, sugar, applesauce, brown sugar (sift if clumpy), and melted Earth Balance (or other butter sub).
- Sift in in the dry ingredients (baking powder, baking soda, spices, salt, and flours). Mix until just combined. I didn’t sift as I was lazy.
- Using a ‘zip-lock’ baggie or pastry bag, spoon the batter into the bag and then secure it with the zip lock or rubber band. Twist the bag slightly and then cut off a hole at the corner to ‘pipe’ out the batter. Pipe the dough around the circle and gently flatten down with slightly wet fingers to smooth. Repeat.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes at 350°F or until they gently spring back when touched. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before carefully using a butter knife to remove. Place on cooling rack for another 10-15 minutes.
- Cinnamon Sugar: Melt Earth Balance in a small bowl and dip the cooled doughnuts into butter one at a time. Transfer the dipped doughnut into a bag with the cinnamon sugar and shake until coated thoroughly. Doughnuts keep for 2-3 days.
These doughnuts were a hit at the party! Everyone seemed to love them.
Of course, you can leave the cinnamon sugar off, but I highly recommend it. ;)
This is the post that never ends…
Next up, my all-time favourite vegan chocolate cupcake recipe made another appearance! Everyone always requests these when we have a family get together. I added a little POM juice and almond extract instead of almond milk and vanilla to give the frosting a bit of fruity flavour. It was decent, but I definitely prefer my Spiced Buttercream over this one.
Then I made my go-to Pico de Gallo and Guacamole. Went fast!
Appetizers (with a cheese plate from Ewa and Dave)
Finally, I made baked potato CHIPS!
Rosemary, Olive oil, and sea salt flavour. I was going to make my favourite Salt and Vinegar chips, but I wasn’t sure if everyone else enjoyed S&V, so I opted for the safe flavour. If I was making them for just myself, I would have made the salt & vinegar by a landslide! They really do taste like salt & vinegar chips.
The rosemary-olive oil-sea salt chips were the biggest hit of the night and there was not a chip to be found after we made our round.
Rosemary Olive Oil Sea Salt Chips
Ingredients:
- 10 medium potatoes (estimate only)
- 4-5 tbsp minced rosemary
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Sea salt (I used Herbamare) and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1. Preheat oven to 400F and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Slice potatoes into thin 1/8-1/4 inch rounds (I did not peel first).
3. In a large bowl, coat sliced potatoes in 2 tbsp olive oil, 4-5 tbsp minced fresh rosemary, and salt & pepper.
4. Bake for 30 minutes at 400F. After 30 minutes, flip, and bake for another 10-20 minutes (watch closely) until crispy and golden. Season to taste (they were better with even more Herbamare, don’t be shy!).
For my Salt and Vinegar chips, see this post.
My mother-in-law made her famous chicken pasta (with a vegan one for me), Dave & Ewa brought appetizers, and Mary and Gerry brought a salad. We had so much great food.
My plate: Vegan Cheeze burger with tomato, cuke, avocado, rosemary chips, sautéed mushrooms, salad, and I went back for some vegan pasta after I cleared my plate.
For dessert, I had a doughnut, half a cupcake, and lots of fresh cherries.
Our niece Gabriela helped with Eric’s birthday candles. :)
After gifts, we Skyped with some family in Ireland!
And then Brendon broke out the shots! and more shots. and more shots. ;) I could not partake as the Baby Guinness shots weren’t vegan. I was a bit bummed about that because I love doing shots (I’m weird)…so I drank my wine like a champ instead.
Eric and I currently have an invitation to go to Ireland and stay with Mary and Brendon for as long as we want. They even said they’d give us a key to their house!
(I doubled checked this statement Monday morning after the alcohol wore off and it still stands.) Whew.
Ireland, here we come?
I just made the pumpkin doughnuts, and my first thought was “you can’t imagine how good these are!” I thought I had prepared myself, but these doughnuts are a direct slice of pumpkin/cinnamon heaven
The pumpkin donuts were ridiculously good. Awesome recipe.
These are AMAZING!! I made them yesterday and gave them away at work. Everyone said “Just quit, this needs to be your career!”. Thanks for providing amazing vegan recipes, I’ve loved all of them!
These look yummy. My husband and I recently started a whole-food, plant-based lifestyle and I’m so happy to have found your site. I thought my foodie days were over, but your story and web-site is like a ray of hope. I’ve already made two batches of your chocolate chip cookies and tried your vegan mac and cheese and love them both. Can’t wait to try some doughnuts.
Aw thank you so much! Enjoy the recipes :)
Made the doughnuts today – so so good! I tried them both sugared, and with a caramel glaze. Amazing both ways!
My littleone & I just made the pumpkin donuts….THEY ARE PERFECT!!!! So easy & yummy! They are great with powdered sugar and cinnamon too. Thanks for the great recipe… love them all!
Oh my… I’m not really a donut fan but these donuts are AMAZING!!! I just made them this morning for halloween and now I’m addicted, it turned out to be the best vegan recipe I have ever tried. No one in my family could even tell they were vegan and everyone loved them! Thank you so much, definitely a keep. By the way I didn’t use the cinnamon sugar because they were already really sweet and delicious :)
Hi Angela!
Just found your awesome blog while I was looking for a vegan donut recipes. I tried the pumpkin and the plain vanilla ones dipped in sugar and they both turned out great! Cant wait to try the rest of your recipes:)
I also want to say that I really admire you for sharing your story and creating this blog. I can sincerely relate to everything that you have discussed. Diagnosed with anorexia and obsessive exercise when I was 19 yrs old and it has been a constant battle ever since. Learning to cook healthy foods and becoming a vegetarian has gotten me through the never ending struggle and brought me to a more peaceful and healthy state of mind. Keep up the great work!! I will be reading!!!!!
Thank you Katie, that means a lot to me! All the best to you.
I am making 150 of the pumpkin donuts using mini muffin pans for a friend’s wedding! What is the best way to store them without them getting soggy, losing shape, losing cinnamon sugar? Refrigerator?
Hey Joanna, Wow that sounds like quite the baking endeavor! Good for you. I am not sure how these store. Our batch didn’t last long as we had a bunch of family over to enjoy them. I think the longer the cinnamon sugar sits, the more it melts into the doughnut so Im not sure how you would prepare it in advance? Maybe bake the doughnuts and then coat in cinnamon sugar just before serving?
Made these today and they disappeared fast! Brought some over for my in-laws and they loved them, too. I’ve been making vegan baked goods every weekend for a few months now, and everyone is surprised and amazed at how delicious this way of baking can be. :)
This awesome recipe is a family staple. Today I replaced all the flours w/ oat flour (just oats blended in my food processor) and it turned out beautifully. Everyone gobbled them up w/o glaze or powdered sugar.
Hello! I am a new follower to your blog and love it already! I’ve tried a couple of your recipes and they have turned out great..they were even non-veg husband approved. :) I really want to try the doughnut recipe but I don’t have a donut pan. Do you think they could be made into balls and put into the oven? Or is there another way to try them? I’m hoping to make them for Easter!
Hey Cortney, Thank you so much for your kind words. :) I would suggest using a muffin tin – they will bake into mini muffins :) goodluck!
I just made your vegan/gluten free choc chip cookies, they were AMAZING!! Seriously, I ate 15 at once.
Do you have a gluten free option for these??? Please say yes!!
Sorry, I meant do you have a gluten free option for the mini doughnuts??
I’m sorry I don’t have one yet Paulee!
I just made the mini donuts but modified the recipe to be gluten free. So yummy!
The modifications were to replace the regular flour with 1/3 cup coconut flour, 2/3 cup oat flour and 1/3 cup of all purpose gluten free flour. Wonderful texture and flavor!
i made the donuts and they were like the most perfect thing ever!! subbed earth balance for coconut oil & reduced the sugar bc i was rolling it in sugar anyways! posted a pic on my instagram @oatmealobsessed in case you were wondering(;
How did you store the donuts? We tried an air right container and they next day they were a bit soggy. Should I have done something different? They were amazing though! Yum!
Hi, This is the funniest food post I have ever read :)) I can’t tell how much I enjoyed it. Such good writing, such good food! And such fun to have with family! Keep up the good work :))) I just might get a doughnut pan to make these pumkin doughnuts too!
This donut recipe was so good! My kids loved them… I didn’t have a donut pan so I rolled up little balls out of aluminum foil and placed them in the center of each donut. Donuts came out just as nice. Wish I could post a pic
I tried the cinnamon sugar pumpkin-spiced donuts. I think they’ taste great, but I would recommend adding more pumpkin to the mix as they really don’t taste like pumpkin at all. Thanks for the recipe!
Best doughnuts ever! My friend and I made them and when my daughter (9) tasted them, she said “best doughnuts ever.” We are going to make them as an activity during her 10th birthday party later this week!
I love your blog!! So many awesome recipes! About the donuts, I was wondering if I could sub something for the pastry flour. I’m gluten free (and basically everything free: dairy, eggs, soy, corn…ugh), and I haven’t come across GF pastry flour. Any suggestions? Thank you!