Darth Vader Double Chocolate Cake (Gluten Free, Vegan)

I want to share two things with you today.

The second thing is this cake:

Dr. "Bones" McCoy's Space Supplements (Gluten Free Vegan Fudge)

When I was growing up, there was only one Star Trek universe for me. Well, there was more than one, but Voyager didn't count. Deep Space Nine sometimes counted, but only when I was really desperate. No, Next Generation was the only version of Star Trek that I was interested in. And, now that I look back at it, it's amazing that teenaged-me would have liked a show like that. It was . . . intellectual. Seeing as I was also a fan of Saved By the Bell and Boy Meets World, it's weird that I would pick up a show like Next Gen. But I did. And I loved it.

Maybe it was my first foray into science fiction. I know my Dad would love watching it as well, so maybe it was our attempt at some daughter-father TV bonding time. Or maybe it was Wil Wheaton. Because, if you were a teenaged girl in the 90s, you had a crush on Crusher. End of story.

Morning Oatmeal Cookies (Vegan and GF)

My legs have decided to take on a mind of their own. They refuse to move under my command and would much rather lounge about while sucking mercilessly on a bottle of ibuprofen. They scream when I try to take a few steps. If I manage to retain  a sort of shambling walking speed, trying to slow down or turn seem to be impossible for them.

I wasn't in any accident or trama. I simple took part in one of the best experiences Vancouver has to offer.

Six hours. Over one hundred teams of two. Fifteen secret locations. And a whole lot of running.

Lemon Rosemary Zucchini Cake

Well then. It's been over a month.

Don't worry. I didn't keel over. Nor did Mr. C. Nor did our little sunflower plants. It was all in my head really.

You might have read about my brand new health problems that I mentioned in the last post. Afterwards, I received some emails from some baking buddies. They were worried. Actually far more worried then I was. And that was sweet. It made me feel loved. (You guys are such darlings).

But that got me thinking. Was I truly healthy?

Vegan Cheerio PB Banana Cookies

We've been a bit AWOL lately. If you've connected with our facebook and twitter, I've mentioned that I've been feeling a bit under the weather lately. And by "bit under the weather", I mean that a large percentage my blood went missing. Mysteriously.

Spelt Quick Bread

The Super Bowl mystifies me. It's constantly the most watched American television program in the world (which, I guess I understand, considering the other sort of television that's on the air). But why? Are there really that many football fans out there? I doubt it. I would bet good money that almost half of the people watching the game today hasn't even watched a regular season game this year. I bet you more than half couldn't name you more than five players on each team.

Vegan Gingerbread Cupcakes

I already posted a lovely gingerbread cupcake. But there's a million little cupcakes out there. In fact, there are a million little Christmas treats out there. The majority of which have quite a lot of butter and cream. When you think about it, most of what is traditionally served on Christmas is not exactly vegan/veggie friendly. You've got your turkeys and hams and lambs etc etc. Even the produce tends to have dairy and or meaty things on top. I mean, why ruin those yummy yams with a gob of marshmallows? Actually, could someone explain that one to me?

A Trio of Vegan Christmas Cookies

Movember took a lot out of us - I mean, we did have to consume quite a few intense cupcakes. Taking a break was a necessity (especially for Mr. C's waistline). I thought we could take the month to relax. And detox.

Of course, I forgot that December comes after November. December means Christmas. And that means Christmas cake, pies, bars, chocolate. Oh, and cookies. So. Many. Cookies.

Picture taken by Laura of The First Mess. 

I'm usually pretty good at avoiding all those holiday sweets - most of them are verboten anyways, just because of all that non-vegany buttery stuff they usually contain. (Don't worry, Mr. C usually takes one for the team and eats my share as well.)

This year, however, I signed up for The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap. I love baking for others, so I thought it was nifty to send a little box of C&C goodness across the country to brighten someone else's day. Unfortunately, I forgot about the other half of this little deal - I send out boxes of cookies, yes, but that means that I'll get a whole hell of a lot of cookies back. Oh. Dear. I don't know if my poor little bloated tummy could handle such things.

Old Fashioned Vegan Velvet Cupcakes

By now, you were probably expecting at least one Halloweenie post to come through the tubes around here. I know – it’s pretty strange for me to go this long without baking something with pumpkins or candy corn. This year, I’m sad to say, I’m pretty uninspired for whatever reason. My love of Devil’s Night is still there, but I don’t know if my heart is in it.

Vegan Brownies and PB & Banana Vegan Ice Cream

Well, hello there. I didn't expect to see you here. I'm glad you didn't give up on this little space of the blogoverse. Because I sure as hell almost did.


We had a lot going on over the summer, what with all the bakers markets, special orders, and the whole 'getting married' thing. I barely felt like I had a summer at all. Before I knew it, August 18th had blown in - I suddenly found myself locked in a small classroom with twenty-five tweens for eight hours a day. They weren't excited about the situation. And, to be frank, neither was I. Not only did struggle through the school day, but I found myself lesson planning, developing, and grading for hours every single night. The weekend just meant I could work even more.  No time for myself. No time for baking.

With the new school year crashing into me, I decided that maybe I should give up the blogging way of life. Forget about twitter, flickr, and foodbuzz. Forget about cookies and cupcakes. Then I could concentrate totally and completely on my rowdy little group of Grade 6s. I already give 110% to my teaching profession. Now I could give at least 43% more.

Vegan Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Ice Cream (and Cake!)

Ice cream and I? We're not exactly buddies. It's more of abusive relationship than anything: I consume and enjoy it, then it beats its way out of any orifice it can (as fast as it can). Gross. I know. I never considered I had a lactose intolerance until I started I started my journey into veganism. Without the extra cheese and cream, I felt the same way I did when I dropped meat from my diet - lighter, healthier, and happier. Except for the ice cream problem.

I love ice cream. I f-ing love ice cream. This was the little hiccup in my plan - whenever I sneaked that DQ or Ben & Jerry's, I not only felt a twinge of vegan guilt, but also I felt sick to my stomach. Literally and figuratively. There had to be a way I could enjoy my ultimate vice without all the vomiting and such.

Enter The Vegan Scoop.

Post-Election Vegan Stuffed Cookies

A note to our American friends: I'm sorry if, by the end of this, you are very confused. Your neighbour to the north has just been through a really tiring election and we're still trying to work through all our feelings. If you need help understanding, you can look here. Or, better yet, here. Though there is a lot of writing below (most of it pretty bitter), please remember that there is a supremely tasty vegan recipe at the bottom that involves chocolate chip cookies, homemade oreos, and homemade oreos stuffed inside of chocolate chip cookies. If you don't want to get involved in Canadian politics, scroll right down to the end.

Vegan Vanilla Sex Bob-Omb Cupcake (for Scott Pilgrim)

Sometime we overdo things. For instance, if someone mentions how disgusting it would be to put saurkraut into baked goods, I find myself compelled to create the impossible. Just to show that it can be done. As usual, however, this sort of thing backfires once and a while.

Take our newest creation. It evolved from the eternal challenge to make a vegan cupcake that is leagues better than the regular old butter and egg cake. I brought it upon myself to take on such a challenge. For a while, it became my own personal burden. I quickly started experimenting - one thing led to another and I was left with a light and fluffy vegan cupcake. It was pleasant enough - Mr. C didn't gag while eatting it (that's the important part) and, if you put it besides a regular vanilla cupcake, two out of three people probably couldn't tell the difference. One out of the three people actually prefured my vegan version to the original.

Vegan Lime in the Coconut Cupcakes

Since Bake for the Quake, we've been receiving a lot of requests for vegan cupcakes. At first, this was much to the chagrin of Mr. C - who believes that all baked goods should have at least a little butter in them. In rebuttal, I stuffed a couple of vegan treats in his mouth. His tune quickly changed after that.

The Dead Elvis Cupcake

Okay. Let's admit it. Halloween is totally just for kids. It's gives them a chance to dress up like their favourite superhero and/or princess and freak out after eating their body weight in sugar. Good for them. They need a holiday to cut up the long stretch to Christmas. Let's let them have it. I'm totally talking to you, Ms. Dress-up-as-a-slutty-nurse/police officer/ninja turtle. Just take your brewskies and walk away.

Halloween for us adults should be more refined. I know, it's hard to let go of your childhood. You can still dress up, if it makes you feel better. Just not as a sexy ninja turtle, please. Around here, we take our celebration inspiration from down south. Way down south.

Dias de los Muertos takes place shortly after Halloween. If you've never heard about it, you're totally missing a party, dude. It gives us a chance to honour those who have past on into the other realm - and to feast, drink, and make really wicked sugar skulls. What's not to love?

The Vegan RasMataz: Raspberry-Mocha Cupcakes with Raspberry Frosting

I always feel bad for people with dietary restrictions. It must be the bleeding heart vegetarian in me. If you have allergies, finding out your favourite food has crab/peanuts/eggs/wheat in it can be devastating. When I found out that shrimp paste (my gastric arch-enemy) appears in the majority of Thai cuisine, I grieved for months. I'm still sitting in the first stage of denial: I'm not really allergic to shellfish. I'm sure this pad thai will go down just fine. A couple minutes later bending over the toilet tells me otherwise. Denial sucks.

Vegans and vegetarians have it worse. When you ask for a corn on the cob without butter or for a soup without beef broth, sometimes you get a funny look. Sometimes you get a snide remark. It depends where you live and where you're eating (try getting a vegan salad in a Calgary steak house). Luckily, the Pacific Northwest is pretty friendly to the meatless. There are veggie-friendly shops and restaurants popping up all over. Bakeries are also picking up the slack. Gluten-free/lactose-free/vegan/vegetarian/organic cakes and cookies are the new hot item around the city. It really gives me that warm, fuzzy feeling inside.