Category: breakfast

Vegan Cinnamon Rolls

Vegan Cinnamon Rolls

Homemade cinnamon rolls have long been a holiday and special gathering favorite. It is a long process, but the wait and the work is worth it. Over the years I have discovered that you can make them ahead and freeze them before they are frosted. Then you just need to pop them in the oven until they are warmed, take them out and frost them. Still there is nothing like fresh warm homemade cinnamon rolls and a cup of coffee on a cold winter morning.

Traditionally my recipe called for eggs, real butter and real cream cheese. It wasn’t until I was told about pureed silken tofu as an egg substitute that I was able to “veganize” this recipe and have it turn out so close to the original no one could tell the difference.

I must admit that these do not fit in the category of plant based with all of the vegan butter, vegan cream cheese, vegan vanilla pudding, and sugar, these are simply vegan. Much like Oreo cookies are accidentally vegan and not the healthiest of snacks we realize the same about the beloved cinnamon rolls. This puts them in the category of a special treat, much like that favorite dessert.

This recipe does make a lot and the first few times I made these many years ago, I ended up with oodles and we went knocking on doors looking for neighbors who wanted to be test tasters. So if you end up with bunches, share with your neighbors. Enjoy!

Vegan Cinnamon Rolls

  • Servings: Makes about 24 rolls
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A family gathering breakfast favorite. Watch them disappear!


Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup lukewarm water 110F (45C)
  • 2 Tbsp dry yeast
  • 2 Tbsp sugar
  • 1 package Simply Delish vegan vanilla pudding mix
  • 1 1/4 c. plant based milk
  • 1/2 cup Earth Balance Vegan Butter – melted
  • 1/3 heaping cup pureed silken tofu
  • 1/4 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 5 cups flour

filling ingredients

  • 1 cup softened vegan butter
  • 2 cups brown sugar
  • 4 tsp. cinnamon

frosting ingredients

  • 8 ounces vegan cream cheese
  • 1/2 cup Earth Balance Vegan Butter – melted
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 3 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 Tbsp. plant based milk

Directions

  1. Dissolve yeast in warm water, add sugar and stir until dissolved, set aside.
  2. Prepare pudding mix according to directions using the 1 1/4 cup milk.
  3. Add 1/2 cup melted vegan butter, pureed tofu, baking powder and salt to pudding mix. Stir.
  4. Add yeast mixture to pudding mixture and mix well.
  5. Gradually add flour and knead until smooth.
  6. Place in a (vegan) buttered bowl, turning dough to butter the top.
  7. Cover dough with a warm damp towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled.
  8. Prepare 2 baking sheets with silicone mats.
  9. Punch down dough and let stand 10 minutes.
  10. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to aproximately 34″ x 21″
  11. Brush surface with softened vegan butter, sprinkle on brown sugar and cinnamon mixture.
  12. Roll dough tightly like a jelly roll and cut into 1″ slices
  13. Place on prepared baking sheets 2″ apart.
  14. Take heel of hand and lightly press down on each roll.
  15. Cover with warm damp towels and let rise until doubled.
  16. Bake at 350º for 15-20 minutes. Remove when they start to turn golden.
  17. Do not over bake.
  18. Prepare frosting: In a small bowl mix all ingredients.
  19. Frost warm rolls with cream cheese frosting.


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Tofu Breakfast Scramble

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Before going plant based I would make a lovely breakfast casserole for every holiday or basically anytime we had everyone home. I would assemble my ingredients the night before and then pop it in the oven the next morning while everyone was still sleeping. Waking up to the aroma of something wonderful baking is just a basic part of a family get together. So I knew I needed to come up with a suitable substitute. This is it! There is no evening before preparation and there are so many variations, the options are limited only by your palette. I use a 9×13 baking dish and just cover the whole bottom with tater tots, I have used both tots and crowns so either are fine. The best part is the veggies that get mixed with the tofu…they literally can be any veggies. This past Christmas we used leftover stuffing in place of the veggies and it was fabulous. We have also added in some leftover corn casserole and again it was tasty. I have to admit the dairy free cheese on the top isn’t my favorite but my kids love it. Kala Namak is a seasoning that gives the tofu its eggy flavor and a little goes a long way, you really only need a pinch. You can order it from Amazon. I have also found my local Indian grocery store carries it. Typically we make this or some variation every morning of the holidays. Enjoy! ❤️ur❤️

Tofu Breakfast Scramble

  • Servings: 6-8
  • Difficulty: easy
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A hearty warm breakfast for a cold winter morning.

Ingredients

  • frozen tater tots, I use rounds
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 red sweet peppers, chopped
  • 1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 cup spinach leaves, roughly chopped
  • 2 pound extra firm tofu, drained and pressed
  • 1 tsp. turmeric powder
  • 1 tsp. paprika
  • 4 Tbsp. nutritional yeast
  • 1 Tbsp. corn starch
  • A few pinches of kala namak
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • vegan cheese shreds to sprinkle on top
  • sliced tomatoes for the top

Directions

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. In a large skillet, sauce the onion, garlic and sweet pepper in a little water over medium heat.
  3. Once the onion is translucent, add the mushrooms and spinach.  Saute until the mushrooms are soft and the spinach is wilted.
  4. Crumble the tofu in a small bowl and stir in the turmeric powder, paprika, nutritional yeast, corn starch, kala namak, salt and pepper.
  5. Stir the vegetables and the tofu together until combined
  6. Arrange the tater rounds in a casserole dish. Spread the tofu and veggie mixture over the top. (Sprinkle with optional tempeh)
  7. Top with tomato slices and vegan cheese shreds.
  8. Bake for approximately 30 minutes

Optional tempeh instructions

  • 5 oz. tempeh
  • 1 Tbsp. barbecue-sauce
  • 1 tsp. paprika
  • 1 tsp. soy sauce
  • 1/2 tsp. liquid smoke

Cut the tempeh into small cubes, stir in the barbecue-sauce, paprika, soy sauce, and liquid smoke and cook over medium heat for approximately 5 min.

theheartie.kitchen

 

Sweet Potato Toast

 

As I scrolled through my Facebook the other day I came across this sweet potato toast recipe.  The post actually stated that sweet potato toast is the new avocado toast.  I’ve never had avocado toast, in fact until recently I’ve only eaten avocados in guacamole and occasionally had some chunked in my salad.  So being always on the lookout for new and interesting ways to eat healthy I checked it out.  This is the link in case you would like to check it out too, it comes with a video sweet potato toast.  I changed the recipe just a bit because we try and follow the Esselstyn diet as much as possible, so no oil and no dairy.

I started with a large sweet potato and had a rather difficult time slicing it
into 1/4-inch slices…note to self I need a new knife or a better way to cut sweet potatoes length wise.  I prepared my cookie sheet along with my non stick mat.  Instead of the 1 Tbsp of olive oil I  substituted 1 Tbsp of apple sauce.  This made the mixture that was to be brushed on the slices of sweet potato thicker than my liking.  I decided on 2 Tbsp of applesauce, I used gogo squeeze organic appleapple applesauce.  Since I was doubling the applesauce, I decided to double the paprika and cinnamon, leaving the sea salt at 1/4 tsp.   I don’t have a toaster oven but found that a 375 degree oven for 10 minutes does the same job.

For the topping I used Silk dairy free plain soy yogurt, along with walnut pieces and apple slices.

 

Sweet Potato Toast

  • Servings: 3
  • Difficulty: easy
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A quick, healthy, warm breakfast.

Ingredients

  • 1 sweet potato
  • 2 Tbsp. apple sauce
  • 1/2 tsp. paprika
  • 1 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp. sea salt (optional)

Topping Ingredients

  • Silk dairy free plain soy yogurt
  • walnut pieces
  • apple slices

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
  2. Slice the potato into 1/4″ slices, lengthwise.
  3. Mix the applesauce, paprika, cinnamon and optional sea salt.
  4. Brush the applesauce mixture on both sides of the sweet potato slices.
  5. Place slices on prepared baking sheet, and bake for 10 minutes, until they are just tender when poked with a fork.
  6. Garnish with silk yogurt, walnuts and apple slices.
  7. Enjoy!

theheartie.kitchen