Vegan chocolate bao

I was doing some of the usual Internet browsing on my phone and came across the Instagram page for a little shop called Bao Town (they're username is @bao_town) in Sydney which make a selection of sweet and savoury baos. Baos are called a few different things such as banh bao, if you're Vietnamese or baozi, humbow or pau if you're Chinese. Essentially what it is, is a steamed bun with some kid of delicious filling. 

I love a good bao! I do miss a good pork bun, but there are still vegan baos around so that will suffice. There are also delicious taro and red bean baos available at the Asian grocer. My mum comes home with every now and then, and I'm always the one to demolish them all. 

While I was looking at the Bao Town Instagram page, I saw that they did a chocolate bao. It was the traditional white bun with melted chocolate on the inside. Sounds delicious right?! Aside from the unfortunate fact that Bao Town is only in Sydney, their baos aren't vegan :(

Not to fear, because this got me thinking about my own vegan recipe for a chocolate bao. Luckily, the dough for the buns are usually vegan friendly anyways, so this made it an easy job to come up with a vegan version of Bao Town's chocolate bao. I did my research and tried to find a good recipe and decided to make a few changes to the recipe I found from an online article for the LA Times. The article was called The trick to making bao? Starting with the perfect dough. How could I not resist reading this!

For the chocolate filling, I could use either vegan dark chocolate (e.g. Lindt 70% or 85% dark chocolate) or the Sweet Williams dairy free chocolate. While I was searching the grocery store for chocolate, I also came across the Freedom Foods brand for a nut and dairy free chocolate spread. I've never tried this before so I thought I might use it. For all you non-vegans out there, you could use any brand of milk chocolate or even use Nutella. Yum!

The Freedom nut free chocolate spread doesn't taste like ordinary chocolate, but it was still pretty good. I much prefer the Lindt dark chocolate. So rich and chocolaty...mmmmmmm. 

These were such a wonderfully simple and tasty sweet treat. The bun was light and fluffy and the chocolate was oozy. They're best served warm...any time of the day or night :P

Vegan chocolate bao

Makes roughly 30 small baos (30 may seem like a lot, but they won't last a day ;P)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 teaspoons instant dry yeast
• 3/4 cup lukewarm water
• 2 tablespoons canola oil (I used vegan shortening)
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• Scant 3 cups (12 1/2 ounces) Hong Kong flour (from the Asian grocery store), bleached flour or white all purpose flour. I found that the Hong Kong flour produce a super white bun. 
• Vegan chocolate cut into small squares, or vegan choc chips

Directions

1. Put the yeast in a small bowl, add the water and set aside for 1 minute to soften. Whisk in the oil to blend and dissolve the yeast. Set aside.
2. To make the dough in a food processor: Combine the sugar, baking powder and flour in the bowl of the food processor. Pulse two or three times to combine. With the motor on, pour the yeast mixture through the feed tube in a steady stream and allow the machine to continue running until the dough starts coming together into a ball, about 20 seconds. (If this doesn't happen, add lukewarm water by the teaspoon.) Let the machine continue for 45 to 60 seconds to knead most of the dough into a large ball that cleans the sides of the bowl; expect some dangling bits. Press on the finished dough; it should feel medium-soft and tacky but should not stick to your finger.
3. Alternatively, to make the dough by hand: Combine the sugar, baking powder and flour in a large bowl. Make a well in the center and pour in the yeast mixture. Slowly stir with a wooden spoon, moving from the center toward the rim, to work in all the flour. (Add lukewarm water by the teaspoon if this doesn't happen with relative ease.) Keep stirring as a ragged, soft mass forms. Then use your fingers to gather and pat the dough together into a ball. Transfer to a work surface and knead for about 5 minutes, until smooth, fingertip-soft and slightly elastic. (You shouldn't need any additional flour on the work surface if the dough was properly made. Keep kneading, and after the first minute or two, the dough shouldn't stick to your fingers. If it does, work in a sprinkling of flour.) Press your finger into the dough; the dough should spring back, with a faint indentation remaining.
4. Lightly oil a clean bowl and add the dough. Cover with plastic wrap and put in a warm, draft-free place to rise until nearly doubled, 30 to 45 minutes (timing will vary depending on the temperature of the room). If not using immediately, cover and refrigerate the dough until needed.
5. Divide the dough into 30 equal balls, place on tray or plate, cover and leave to rise for another 10-15 minutes. You might want to use measuring scales to ensure that they're all the same size.
6. Using a rolling pin, roll out the balls of dough so that they're about 10cm (4inches) in diameter (but don't make them too thin). Place about 1 teaspoon of the vegan chocolate into the centre. 
7. Gather up the edges and pinch the bun closed at the top. Make sure there aren't any gaps at the top or else the chocolate will melt out. Place each bun on a small square of baking/parchment paper. 
8. Steam the buns over briskly boiling water for 10 minutes. Serve warm and enjoy!

Vegan chocolate and nut covered banana bites

my friend Ruth showed Nhi and I a photo of chocolate covered banana bites on Instagram. The photo was posted up by Fitspiration_24 and they looked super delicious. I think these are such a simple and guilt-free sweet treat. 

I was so impressed with these that I had to make my own vegan version. I pulled up a recipe for raw vegan chocolate from the website The Veggie Nook and used their Raw Chocolate Recipe #2. It is vegan, raw, gluten-free, and refined sugar-free! 

These banana bites are a perfect treat to hit those sugar cravings on the head. Just remember that all things should be in moderation and even though these are a healthy option, don't over do it. 

Vegan Chocolate and Nut Covered Banana Bites

Makes 10

Ingredients
For the vegan chocolate (from The Veggie Nook):

• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
• 2/3 cocoa powder
• 4 tablespoons maple syrup or agave nectar

• Roasted nuts (you can used any you like, or you could coat them in unsweetened dessicated coconut)
• Bananas cut into bite sized pieces (I used two small bananas)

Directions

1. Roast nuts in the oven or on a pan. Make sure you keep watch so that they don't burn. Once they have browned, then spread nuts out on a plate to let cool.
2. Combine all of the ingredients for the vegan chocolate in a bowl and mix. 
3. Once the nuts have cooled, grind them using a mortar and pestle or in the food processor.
4. Using about a tablespoon of the chocolate, cover each banana piece and roll into a smooth ball in the palms of your hand (yes your hands will get messy, but these are super yummy so it's worth it)
5. Roll the ball into the ground nuts and place on a tray lined with baking paper. 
6. Place tray into the refrigerator until the balls have hardened (at least 20 minutes). 

I ground up almonds, pecans, hazelnuts and cashews separately and rolled the banana bites in each. I then put the respective nut on top of the banana bite so I could tell them apart :P

Vegan chocolate peanut butter popcorn

I had a movie night with my little brother Peter today. We're keen to go and watch The Wolverine in cinemas, but we're both a bit behind and haven't seen some of the other X-men movies. And we call ourselves comic fans? For shame!

I figured that a movie snack was definitely needed and so I decided to pull out my popcorn maker. I just had a look through my blog archives and found my old post for spiced popcorn. I can't believe that it was all the way back in February. Wow, time flies!

I didn't want to just settle for plain popcorn tonight so I Googled some recipes for chocolate popcorn. A lot of the recipes needed melted chocolate (which I didn't have in my pantry) and butter; but that didn't stop me though. 

After being inspired by a vegan recipe for chocolate popcorn, I decided to put together my own recipe for chocolate and peanut butter popcorn. I like my chocolate bitter and my popcorn crunchy. This recipe definitely delivered.

Peter and I watched X-men Origins: Wolverine. I was actually surprised at how much I enjoyed the movie. Not sure if the popcorn had anything to do with that, but all in all I was not disappointed. I give it a 7/10.

Can't wait to watch The Wolverine!....maybe I can sneak a bag of my chocolate and peanut butter popcorn into the cinema. 

Vegan Chocolate and Peanut Butter Popcorn

Serves 4 

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup popcorn kernels
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil 
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder (or more if you like it extra chocolaty. I used dutch-processed cocoa powder because the flavour is much more intense)
• 1 tablespoon crunchy peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup or agave nectar

Directions

1. Pop the popcorn in a popcorn machine or place in a paper bag and pop in the microwave.
2. Melt the coconut oil and mix in the cocoa powder, peanut butter and maple syrup.
3. Pour chocolate mixture over popcorn and mix until evenly coated.
4. Serve while it's still warm. Any left overs can be put in the fridge and devoured later :)

Vegan chocolate cupcakes with chocolate ganache icing

Tomorrow is my last day on my mental health placement and we organised to bring in a plate of food. One of the patients on the ward is vegan, so I decided to make vegan chocolate cupcakes with chocolate ganache icing for everyone to share. 

I have to get up super early tomorrow morning so I haven't had a chance to ice them and photograph them, but I will post up pictures of the recipe that I got from the cookbook Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero.

These babies are soft like clouds I swear. If you are a bit freaked out by the sound of vegan food, start by making these. They're crazy fluffy and so chocolaty I could die :P

I will post up my pictures after my shift tomorrow :)

Vegan chocolate pudding cake

I've been having gum problems lately :( I've had receding gums for a long time and they're normally OK because I do my best to keep my teeth clean and my gums healthy, but lately my gums on the bottom teeth have been inflamed and incredibly painful. 

Sadly, lots of chewing makes it worse, so I decided to make myself soft foods today. I started dinner off with a super healthy soup made of lentils, zucchini, broccoli and spinach. I got the recipe from a cookbook called Vegan Meals For One or Two by Nancy Berkoff. It looked like green mess, but it tasted lovely and I felt super healthy slurping it down. 

I'm a person who likes a bit of balance, and since I had a healthy carb free dinner, I decided to whip up a vegan chocolate pudding cake for dessert. 

I came across a few recipes, but I picked the one from the website Foodie Fiasco because it was the healthiest option I could find. I made my own variations so that it would be even more guilt-free :)

I divided the batter up into 4 ramekins and shared one with my brother after they were done in the oven. The pudding was so yummy! When I asked my brother how it tasted he said "I give it a 4 and a half....out of 4 and a half". Cheeky boy had me a bit disappointed in my own cooking skills for a second there :P

This is a seriously great winter dessert. I like sharing my food, so the ramekins were perfect for that...but I honestly could have downed a whole one all to myself. They are just that delicious. 

Vegan Chocolate Pudding Cake

Serves 8

Ingredients

For cake:
• ½ cup agave nectar
• 1 cup whole wheat or almond flour (I used ½ plain flour and ½ wholemeal spelt flour)
• ¼ cup cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt
• ½ cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1/3 cup applesauce (I just pureed an apple in my food processor)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For sauce:
• 1/3 cup baking sweetener
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• ¼ cup cocoa powder
• 1 ¼ cups hot water

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). Spray an 8x8 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside (or use 4 big ramekins).
2. To make the cake, combine the agave nectar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and sea salt in a large bowl. Add in the almond milk, applesauce, and vanilla extract and stir until completely combined. Spread the mixture into the prepared baking dish or ramekins and smooth out the top with an offset spatula or a spoon. Set aside.
3. For the sauce, combine the sweetener, brown sugar and cocoa powder in a medium bowl. Sprinkle evenly over the batter. Pour the hot water over the batter. Do not stir the water in! I know it looks weird, but it’s okay. It’s all going to be okay.
4. Bake in the oven at 180°C (350°F) for about 25 minutes. It should resemble an undercooked brownie. Let cool for at least 15 minutes. When serving, spoon the sauce from the bottom of the pan over the cake.Good luck trying to share this!...I actually want another one right now.

Chocolate mousse popsicles #2

Today was an unexpectedly eventful and busy day. I looked at the clock at 2pm and realised that I had nothing planned for my 'something new'. I panicked a little bit because I knew that I had work later and so I would lose a few precious hours of the evening. 

Luckily for me, I found two recipes for chocolate mousse popsicles last month which I wanted to make and compare. The first batch I made was using a recipe from the website Whipped. It included avocado which gives the chocolate mousse that lovely creamy texture. I found the other recipe from the website Healthy in Candy Land (if that link doesn't work, try this one here).

The popsicles turned out nice, but they weren't as creamy as the avocado ones. I'm actually quite torn between which recipe I like better; but if I had to choose then I would go for the avocado recipe. 

BUT I'm going to experiment with my own chocolate mousse recipe, because I think a recipe including the best of both recipes (i.e. the creaminess of the avocado and the chocolaty goodness of the melted chocolate) would make for a super delicious chocolate mousse popsicle. 

I'll keep you posted. Til then, try the recipes and decide for yourself which you prefer :)

Vegan chocolate mousse popsicles

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 300g packet of silken tofu
• 1 cup semi-sweet vegan chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup vanilla soy milk

Instructions

In a blender, blend tofu and milk

Heat chocolate chips in microwave for 1 minute, stir, then heat one more minute and stir again until smooth.

Add melted chocolate to the tofu mixture and blend again until combined and smooth.

(To make mousse, at this point you would just chill in refrigerator and serve.)

For frozen pops, transfer to popsicle molds and freeze overnight or several hours until firm.

I didn't really have the time to take a nice picture either so my wonderful brother let me take this one :) Love that kid.

Vegan chocolate chip oatmeal scones

During this gap year of mine, I decided to do a mental health unit for my Masters of Nursing degree which I had started in 2012 before I got accepted into medicine. Today was orientation day at the community hospital that I was assigned to and during orientation, one of the nurses said two things that really resonated in me. 

Firstly, we were talking about how confronting some of the group sessions can be. Apparently a lot of the stories and often traumatic experiences that they share can make you quite emotional and even cry in some circumstances. The nurse then said to us that if we were cry, it wouldn't be a bad thing because it is a reminder that we are still human and by feeling emotional, it means we still see these clients as people rather than just labelling them by what condition they have. 

I hope that throughout my career in medicine I never forget that it is a person I am treating, and not just signs and symptoms. 

The second thing that the nurse said to the other nursing students and I was that we shouldn't get used to the idea of never studying again after we graduate. She said that by pursuing research or further postgraduate study it keeps you up-to-date with the new changes in the medical world and from this we will keep asking questions and finding new answers. It is through further study and research that new passions can be found or existing passions can be fuelled; and when you are passionate, you enjoy your career more. 

My undergrad friends and I used to joke a lot that once we gradated from uni, we'd be so happy to rid ourselves of study; but what the nurse said today has made we turn a new leaf. I know that medical training will be very long, but I'm not going to run this race with the idea that I can burn all my books at the finish line. No, I will happily embrace the fact that there will be more study and more research...probably all the way until retirement; because the world needs research and all it's findings, and I need something to be passionate about.

So now, let me get to my something new for today. While on prac today, the nurses brought out some scones for morning and afternoon tea and I felt the cravings start to kick in. I had come across a great vegan scone recipe last month from the site One Small Vegan. It was a recipe for blueberry oatmeal scones, and yes they were delicious. 

I'm a bit iffy about recipes that use coconut oil because it's very high in saturated fat (the bad kind) and I like to avoid using ingredients high in bad fats and sugars. I always find it better to use a healthier substitute. But in this particular case I decided to adopt the YOLO way of life and just use the coconut oil. 

Seeing as I liked the blueberry scones so much, I decided to make choc-chip scones this time round. All I did was swap the cup of blueberries for 1/2 cup of vegan chocolate chips and I left out the lemon zest (because I didn't have any lemons to be honest). Also, if you don't have applesauce, just puree some fresh apples :)

Chocolate mousse popsicles

Ever since getting my hands on some popsicle molds, I've enjoyed making different popsicle recipes. My dad has also enjoyed the frozen treats because it's a healthier option compared to the ice cream in the freezer. He's on a mission to lower his cholesterol, but he has a major sweet tooth just like me so my vegan popsicles are a good solution. 

After dinner yesterday my dad was digging around in the freezer and after seeing that there were no more popsicles left, he asked me to make some more. I decided to use this as a good opportunity to try another new popsicle recipe. 

I came across this recipe for vegan chocolate mousse pudding pops and because I've never had frozen chocolate mousse before, I knew that this had to be my 'something new' for today. 

This recipe calls for avocado; something that would put off a lot of people. It does sound a bit gross, but the avocado actually gives the mousse that great creamy texture. And if you put enough cocoa powder in the mix then you can't taste it at all. If you want this mousse to be extra rich, I suggest melting some dark chocolate and adding that to the mix. 

I also came across another chocolate mousse popsicle recipe which doesn't use avocado in the recipe. It uses silken tofu and melted dark chocolate instead of the cocoa powder. I didn't get time to try this one today, but I'll be sure to make it soon.

I made some changes to the recipe that I got from the Whipped food blog:

Vegan Chocolate Mousse Popsicles:

Yields 8 servings

Ingredients:

• 2 avocados (not under ripe but also not too overripe, just in the middle please!)
• 1 banana
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon agave nectar
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup unsweetened soy milk

Popsicle molds
Preparation:

1. Combine avocado, banana, cocoa powder, and agave in a food processor and pulse until smooth.
2. Add soy milk and process until smooth and creamy.
3. Divide mousse into 8 popsicle molds. Once full, tap the cups on the counter to get out all of the air bubbles (if you don’t do this you will end up with holes all over your mousse pops!).
4. Freeze for 4 hours or until firm.
5. To remove from cups- gently warm cups with hands or hot water and carefully tug the popsicle stick.