Baking Mojo Has Returned!

I really need to change the title of this blog to "Fat Vegan." This is the result of swearing off sugar this week. I mean, in all honesty, I was a crappy baker before giving up dairy. I think I started baking for the same reason I started listening to classical music: there were no bad memories attached, I didn't know the territory and, it was all so new.

So fast forward and here I am with a new plateful of sugar. I had to. I thought I lost my baking mojo. I've made these cherry almond cookies before to perfection. Well, note to self: do not cook without my glasses or contacts. Last week, I must have grabbed a 1/2 cup measure, rather than a 1/3 cup. Baking is such a delicate chemical reaction. Whoda thunk that a mere 1/6 c. could put one into baking hell.

And hell it was. I watched as the cookie splooged all over the sheet in the oven, rather than holding their majestic shapes. They were like little shapeshifters all going to liquid. There was nothing I could do to help them. I left them in a few more minutes than called for - hoping to over-bake them into submission. So what? They would be flat rather than high.

It got worse.

They each left a little oil slick on the parchment paper and my hands. I was crushed. I was about to throw them all out and they got a last minute reprieve: my husband ate them all. Not at one sitting, but I think he felt sorry for them and managed to polish them over over the course of a few days.

So today, after coming home from getting materials for our soon-to-be-built 3-bin composting station (there will be much, much more on that), I thought I'd bribe reward my husband for his future efforts with a new batch. While I was at it, I made some brownies, too.

Cookies and Philosophy

I managed to crank out a batch of some Cherry Almond Cookies from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar. Once again, thanks to Isa Chandra Moskowitz from Post Punk Kitchen.

These are a simple drop cookie made with flour, sugar, brown & white, a pinch of baking soda, some canola oil and 3/4 c of slivered almonds and dried unsweetened cherries, each. I prefer the unsweetened cherries, as the sweetened ones can be a bit much. They are, so far, the best of all. 

Today in the mail, I received a copy of Farm Sanctuary by Gene Baur, the founder. My copy has a pig on the cover, so after my own happy squeals of delight, I'm diving head first into it . I feel I have so much to make up for, karmically, that farm animal rescue is what is resonating most for me. The story of the founding of this organization is informative as it is touching. It is not a 'shock' piece, but rather approaches the issues with factory farming from a historical and legislative angle. It is interspersed with stories of rescued animals. 

I've done so much reading since this summer, I'm putting together a list to share - mostly on Buddhism (Vipassana for the most part), and veganism and compassionate eating. I don't think anything has moved me more than this new awakening. I didn't think that going from vegetarian to vegan would be so life changing. The practices of Buddhism are all tools to cultivate compassion. I was told that when the door to your heart opens, it can be very painful. That's what has happened since going vegan. I can find myself in tears thinking about the treatment of these precious beings. I didn't realize what I was in for. I found myself silently praying when I walked past the meat cases in Whole Foods.

I'm trying to not be too self-conscious about all this. I'm feeling a little 'fringe' lately. But what happens when what was fringe becomes one's norm? 

Anyway, I haven't found any situation that can't be remedied with a nice batch of cookies.