Chocolate Puddin' Cake~pg. 251

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

I'm glad I baked this on a cookie sheet or my oven would have been a mess! For the 2 Tbsp. cocoa powder I used 1 Tbsp. Dutch cocoa and 1 Tbsp. black cocoa powder. It gave it a rich, dark chocolate taste.

This cake is definitely a bowl and spoon eating cake. It tastes better warmed up in the microwave.
Finally, I finished all of March's recipes except for one which involved those darn allergy-producing raw bananas.

Cream of Tomato & Basil Soup~pg. 114

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

Mmmm! Grilled cheese and tomato soup! Pre-vegan days this was one of the staples for a quick supper in our house. Now I have an easy, delicious and much healthier vegan version. I love how easy this was to make. I broiled Sassy Sandwich Bread (pg. 271) topped with Earth Balance margarine, garlic powder, nutritional yeast and Daiya shredded mozzarella & cheddar.

Pinto Bean Casserole with Tortilla Chip Crust~pg. 156

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

This casserole tasted good but it was kind of mushy. It would be better rolled up in a flour tortilla and eaten like a bean burro. I used the new Daiya Pepperjack shreds on top. Another great flavor from Daiya. I wish we could get the new Daiya cubes around here. That would be easier to make slices for grilled cheese  sandwiches!

I served this with the Avocado Tomato Salsa (pg. 297); I love that stuff!

Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies~pg. 218

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

Cookies always make you feel better when you're sick and these definitely did the trick! Chewy, chocolatey, and coconuty. Very easy to whip up and very easy to eat!

5-Minute Roasted Red Pepper Pesto~pg. 177

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

Still trying to catch up on March recipes. I've been sick for about a week. Every year around this time that stupid bronchitis finds me. I almost thought I was going to get away from it this year; but no it caught me. Since I've cut out all the dairy products during this last year my symptoms are less severe and I'm getting over it quicker. Yeah!

So we were supposed to make Bear's Noodles on pg. 302 but mine turned into a goopy mess in my food processor. I wasn't going to waste any more ingredients so I gave up on that idea. Maybe I used too much tofu? Anyway, the Red Pepper Pesto is delicious with store-bought rotini! The sauce gets into all the little crevices of the pasta. This is a really quick, easy and yummy sauce to make. I served it with Sesame Roasted Asparagus (pg. 185) and toasted garlic bread sprinkled with nutritional yeast.

Eeny Meeny Chili Beany on Toast~pg. 42

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

I don't think I would want to eat this for breakfast! I used a can of mixed beans-garbanzo, pinto and kidney. Instead of toast I served it over halved, toasted Cumin Rice Flour Dinner Muffins (pg. 277) because I thought the cumin and chili powder went well together.

I've still got a few more March recipes to crank out-but I'm almost there; then on to April!

Fudge Pecan Pie~pg. 256; Crust to Love Basic Pie Crust~pg. 262

La Dolce Vegan! Challenge:

I've made this pie before so I knew it would be delicious! This time I added a heaping teaspoon of espresso powder to make it extra rich. I tried a different pie crust this time. This one was kind of hard to roll out; it kept falling apart even after I chilled it. I had to just mush it into the pie plate but it tasted better than the All-Purpose Crust I've used before.