I was given a free copy of Blissful Bites by the publisher to review and first of all, I think it’s important to note how colorful and gorgeous this book is at first glance. The sections are color-coded by season, there are photos on most pages, and the design and layout is fresh and light and vibrant. Which, it turns out, is a lot like the foods inside.

There is a concise, but informative introductory section going over veganism/macrobiotics/organics, and basic kitchen tools and techniques. Most of the recipes are macrobiotic-influenced, as well as low-fat and low-salt. Additionally, none of the recipes contain onions or garlic, which I’ve come across in some other cookbooks; as an avid garlic- and onion-lover, this is a bit of new territory for me, but most of the time I didn’t miss it.

While I certainly haven’t made all the recipes I want to from Blissful Bites, I think I have a pretty good base to draw from. The first recipe I made was the Coconut Bliss Granola and Key Lime Soy Yogurt Parfait (p 35). Despite realizing upon further inspection that I’d actually forgotten to add oats to the granola (a user error, entirely), there was enough other fun stuff like puffed rice, coconut flakes, and nuts and seeds to make me entirely forget that. The granola was dominated by the flavors of the dry ingredients, rather than by sweetness or oiliness or spices, which I rather liked. It went really well with the flavor of the lime soy yogurt, although I always find a trace of grittiness after blending silken tofu with strong citrus juice, so I’d probably stick to a non-soy-based yogurt in the future.

Ahh when the days were warmer…we enjoyed an outdoor breakfast a couple of months ago featuring Christy’s Tempeh Bacon, alongside some sauteed kale and wild rice-spelt pancakes topped with Peanut Butter-Like Mousse (except that I made mine with almond butter instead of soynut butter). The tempeh was pretty salty, despite cutting back on the amount of tamari, but since it was mostly a side I didn’t mind so much, though if I were to make it again I would probably cut it with more vinegar or water. The mousse, however, was divine! I braved my fear/dislike of silken tofu yet again to make this, and the other flavors and the texture of the almond butter I used made me forget there was silken tofu in there. We ate these with pancakes, as dessert at a summer picnic, and by the sneaky spoonful from the fridge. Rich and filling, it lasted us a really long time.

I made the Nectarine Cobbler Smoothie by subbing some of the aforementioned key lime soygurt for the storebought kind. It was simple and tasty, and a good way to use up the soygurt; but since I don’t buy vegan yogurt very often I would probably wing a simple “creamy” smoothie in the future. Also in the breakfast department but not pictured, are the Maple Almond-Pecan Scones. These were dense and crumbly (in a good way), and the flavor was out of this world – cinnamon-y and maple-y complex! I have tweaked these since to include some more fat, which is how I roll, but they really are delicious.

The first savory item (beyond the bacon) I tried was the Macro “Mac and Cheeze.” This is the only recipe where I felt the oil-free, macrobiotic direction of the book and my own culinary experiences and preferences really diverged; I ate a few small servings but had to toss the rest. Granted, I’m rather picky when it comes to vegan mac n cheese and have never successfully made a from-scratch version yet, but I would have liked more fat (both for flavor and to keep it from drying out so quickly) and maybe an additional spice or flavor element like garlic/onions or cayenne.

The Mac N’ Kale Salad, on the other hand, was delicious! I’ve made this salad several times. The fan of kale that I am, it would be pretty hard to mess up, but I really enjoyed the combination of avocado, sun-dried tomatoes, and nutritional yeast with my favorite leafy green. Serious yumtown!

Last, but not least, I got to try a new vegetable (burdock) by making the Burdock, Squash, and Brussels Stir-fry. I discovered I really like burdock root; it reminds me a bit of a cross between jicama and rutabaga, and I like that you can eat it raw or cooked. Despite the incredibly short list of ingredients (besides the vegetables, only sesame oil and salt are included), this was a really delicious and lovely dish. I think my appetite is bigger than the recipe would indicate (I could eat almost the whole recipe in one sitting), but more veggies is never a bad thing in my opinion.

Some other things I’d really like to try are: Daikon Canape with Sweet Miso Sauce, Pineapple-Cucumber Gazpacho, Fried Lotus Chips, Kale Salad with Curry-Coconut Sauce, Not-So-Forbidden Rice Salad, and Blueberry-Hemp Drops. In summary, I like to start with the cons and move to the pros with books that I like as a whole:

Cons: Though soy-free recipes are indicated by an icon, it seemed like a majority of the recipes I was drawn to include soy (that might otherwise seem soy-free); I don’t eat a lot of it generally, so if you don’t or can’t either, you might need to make substitutions (sometimes I use coconut aminos or blended cashews in place of silken tofu). I also have to take a bit of a leap of faith with the low- or no-fat recipes; sometimes they surprise and delight me, and other times I really miss the fat, especially living in a northern, mostly cold climate where dietary fat is a large part of my staying hydrated from the inside out. I think I’m a decent gauge of when I will want more than a recipe calls for, but it’s still something to consider when considering making a new dish for both myself and my partner, who is drawn to more “traditional” comfort foods. This same consideration goes into effect with the lack of onion and garlic in recipes; I’m more willing to try recipes without these ingredients, but my partner would surely miss these ingredients in certain dishes.

Pros: Blissful Bites is beautiful and inspiring, and based primarily on whole, unprocessed foods, most of which are easy to find at a natural foods store and somewhat easy to find at a regular grocery store. I enjoy the simplicity of the recipes which lets the natural foods’ flavors come through (and makes for a simple grocery list, too). There are plenty of raw recipes, which I really like as well. The tone of the book is encouraging and persuasive without being judgmental, and despite being geared a bit towards the “beginner” chef, I learned a few new things about technique, equipment, and food. (I ended up buying a pressure cooker, largely after reading Christy’s promise of amazingly prepared brown rice – it is no lie!) I still want to try many more recipes from the book, which I think says a lot about Blissful Bites and its ability to be a lasting fixture in my cookbook collection.

This is the kind of cookbook I’m drawn to: healthy, unprocessed, whole foods cooking, and would make a great addition to anyone’s collection who enjoys the same.

In other news, I think that I will no longer be updating swell after that. I feel like there have been many shifts and changes in my life, and I no longer have the passion for blogging that I once did. Part of that is feeling a little burnt out on cooking and baking (because it’s what I do for work), part of it is feeling like I don’t have the time and energy to dedicate to make this blog what I wanted it to be, and part of it is feeling like I’ve slowly pigeon-holed myself into a recipe blog that feels pretty constraining and creatively oppressive. I don’t think, either, that I have the energy to try and reformat and reorganize this blog to change that. It seems like every post lately has begun with an apology about not blogging for so long (which is both embarrassing and annoying for me), and it finally seems like time to bite the bullet and let go.

“Goodbye posts” are kind of bittersweet, but I’d rather have someone come out and say they’re leaving, rather than just disappearing and wondering if they’re okay. I am okay, really. And I still read other people’s blogs daily, even if I don’t comment!

So look for a cookbook review coming up (it’s a good one), and know that I’m still around in other ways if you need to contact me or hear about my little bursts of gastronomic delight (still pretty Twitter-y on occasion; you can follow @swellveganblog).

Roasted Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Kale Salad

3 cups sliced or cubed sweet potatoes (about 2 medium)
1/2 onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp agave nectar
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground paprika
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp, or to taste, cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup pepitas

1/2 bunch dinosaur kale, stemmed and thinly sliced
1 lime, juiced

1 3/4 cups prepared black beans (1 15-oz. can)

Preheat the oven to 400F.  Toss the sweet potatoes with the onions, garlic, olive oil, agave nectar, and spices and place on a rimmed baking sheet or wide, shallow baking dish.  Roast for about 30 minutes, or until sweet potatoes are soft and beginning to brown, stirring halfway through.  Let cool.

Meanwhile, toast the pepitas in a dry skillet over a medium flame until fragrant.  Set aside to cool.

Massage the kale with the lime juice until softened.  Toss the sweet potato mixture and pepitas with the kale and black beans and serve or refrigerate until later.  Eat within 3-4 days.

It’s the kind of delight that doesn’t need a formal recipe.  Last night I sliced three watermelon (aka beauty heart) radishes thinly on my mandoline slicer, put them in a single layer on a baking sheet and drizzled them with olive oil.  Some chopped garlic, a light sprinkling of salt and fresh cracked pepper, and a good roasting at 400F for about 15 minutes.  Or until they get brown on the edges and shrivel up a bit.

I DO highly recommend using a larger kind of radish, rather than the smaller red ones most people think of, because it will be less work and they will greatly reduce in size.  You can also simply saute them on the stove, if you’d rather be more hands-on with your cooking.

We ate them with some baked black eyed peas and the Mac N Kale Salad from Blissful Bites (yum! full review coming soon).

Anyhoo, last night I participated in a craft fair to raise money for the Barebones Halloween show thingy that happens every year here in Minneapolis but that I’ve (gasp!) never made it to.  I work with someone who’s fairly involved in the process, so I believe that will change this year.  Since I’m not much of a crafter, I brought my zines along and baked up some treats.

Actually, I spent most of my day off baking.  I ended up not bringing two things along, because I’m not a very good planner and just sort of threw most of the recipes together (save one from a cookbook) and two of them were not bake sale-worthy.  But one was my tummy-worthy, so it wasn’t a total loss!

I made gluten-free chocolate chip cookies from Christy Morgan’s Blissful Bites, and from my own brain some cardamom-orange-pistachio cookies, banana tahini bread, and za’atar-spiced chickpea cracker sticks.  The middle two recipes I am going to put in the next zine (someday!), and the chickpea cracker sticks I need to make a couple more times and share, because they are so tasty and easy and gluten-free!  (Speaking of gluten-free baking, I haven’t forgotten about the gf version of the coconut milk scones, I just haven’t had a good day to bake them up.)

I sold some zines, sold some baked goods, and had fun times with friends who stopped by to see me.  I’ve got a lot of recipe making to do in preparation for a review of Blissful Bites, but I hope I can squeeze in some other fun things before this crazy month is over!

Kefir grains look a bit like misshapen tapioca pearls, you can reuse them over and over again, and they’ll last indefinitely in your fridge so long as you remember to culture them from time to time.  As you continue to make kefir, the grains will actually grow, and you can start sharing them with friends!

The basic process for making water kefir involves dissolving sugar or sweetener in water in a glass container, adding the grains (and perhaps some ginger, lemon, and a piece of dried fruit), then covering the jar with a piece of cloth.  You wait 1-3 days until small bubbles begin to appear in the liquid, then strain out the grains and fruit.  While you can drink it at this point, I like to do a second fermentation by adding some juice and/or coconut water, which has become extra fun and easy since I got myself a dozen swing-top bottles!  This time around I made some orange-coconut water kefir and it’s probably the best batch I’ve made yet!  (The last time I made apple-ginger water kefir which, while delicious, I let ferment too long and it exploded out of the bottles when I opened them.  The remaining kefir also made me feel a little tipsy.  Oops!)  The color is rather dark here because I used coconut sugar; next time I will probably use some evaporated cane juice to lighten it up a bit.

I got my current (second) batch of kefir grains from an etsy shop called Grow Indie…they have been really resilient to my periods of neglect, unlike the first batch of grains I ordered from a different seller.  Although, unfortunately, it appears they are no longer selling anything through their page (sadface!).

Have you ever made or tried water kefir?

So simple, really; I added the chia seeds for extra thickness as well as some omegas and zinc, but they’re not necessary otherwise.  When the weather gets cooler and the air gets drier, I find myself needing more healthy fats to stay moisturized from the inside out – hence the coconut oil – but it also adds a nice flavor to the smoothie.  As a nod to a similar duo of beverages at my former workplace (Ecopolitan), I can also assure you that this would be GREAT with a handful or two of spinach in it.

Orange Creamsicle Smoothie
makes one large smoothie

2 frozen bananas
3/4 cup orange juice
1/2 cup of your favorite plain or vanilla milk (I used Brazil nut)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (if your milk doesn’t already have vanilla in it)
1 tablespoon chia seeds
1 tablespoon coconut oil

Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth, then enjoy!

Before work this morning I settled down to a hot cup of gotu kola-alfalfa-tulsi tea alongside a bowl of Ani Phyo’s Super Chia Seed Cereal from her Raw Food Essentials book.  It’s chia seeds, pumpkin seeds, raisins, goji berries and dried mango rehydrated with nutmilk (in this case, vanilla Brazil nut milk!).  I took some liberties with the ingredients and it was a bit sweeter than I like in a cereal, but tasty and filling nonetheless!  I think I might try adding some spices to it tomorrow to contrast all the dried fruit I added.

My ladyfriend has rediscovered her love of home state sports teams recently.  I don’t really hate most sports, but it’s not anything I seek out either.  Since I’m often…persuaded…to listen to or watch games with her, and she requested “healthy game snacks,” I put my thinking cap on.  ”Snacks” in our house usually amounts to naughty treats like potato chips and/or a container-ful of olives.  Basically, bring-on-the-salt time.  We’re trying to cut down on that these days.

Instead, I opted for fresh veggies with an herby little dressing, plus a heap of roasted chickpeas on the side.  I wouldn’t call my concoction Ranch dressing, because the ingredients are somewhat dissimilar and I never really liked Ranch in my pregan days, but I definitely used that as an inspiration.  Into the Vita-Mix went: fresh dill, fresh parsley, fresh basil, dried oregano, the juice of one lemon, agave nectar, a clove of garlic, soaked cashews, olive oil, half an avocado, apple cider vinegar, salt, flower pepper, and a bit of water to thin it out.  Out came a delightfully pale green sauce flecked with pepper and bursting with fresh herb goodness that went perfectly with red peppers, carrots, and pear tomatoes.  Yum!  Lucky for both of us, I overproduced as usual, and for a few days will have a tasty salad dressing if I thin it out further, or a thick dipping sauce for any manner of treats: veggies, chips, roasted sweet potatoes….yuca! maybe.

Excitement for this week includes trying some Ani Phyo-inspired savory raw breakfast crepes!  Can you say jalapeno cheeze sauce?!  And sauteed radishes (have you tried them yet?)!

You would think that subbing vegan margarine (or coconut oil if you can afford it) for butter and non-dairy milk for cream would work out pretty well for making a vegan version of a traditionally non-vegan item.  I disagree, at least in the way it has been done at my work.  It was easy (almost inevitable) for the dough to get overworked, it was sticky before baking while ending up dry afterward, and the flavor was really lacking.  Plus I like to avoid using margarine (in this case Earth Balance) because it’s fairly processed and contains soy.  Enter the dairy scone we make, which actually contains no butter…just heavy cream.  My wheels got turning, and I thought how it might work to base the vegan scone recipe upon this one, replacing the cream with the delightfully vegan magic wonder of cooking and baking: coconut milk!

That’s right, my friends.  A vegan scone that is tender, crumbly, light, and contains no margarine or oils!  And to top it all off, it contains no refined flours and can be made without granulated/cane sugar, should you desire it.  I generally only keep maple syrup, agave, brown rice syrup, coconut nectar and some seldom-used stevia around the house, but I did make this with turbinado and Sucanat on two separate occasions…I have to say the granulated sugar really helped with the texture.  But you can certainly create a delightful scone using some liquid sweetener, or coconut sugar if that really floats your boat in the less processed sugar department.

Speaking of texture, the other secret to a nice crumb here is some brown rice flour.  It adds a delicate grainy mouthfeel, and I mean that in a really good way.  Brown rice flour is my baked goods homie.  For reals.

The other important ingredient is regular, full-fat coconut milk.  The fat content is important since you won’t be using any other sources here.

This recipe is really versatile.  I’m offering up a basic lemony-currant scone for the written recipe, but as you can see I opted for a blueberry-raspberry variety myself today.  You can add spices, nuts, different extracts, or other fruits both dry and fresh/frozen.  It really is pretty hard to mess up, so don’t be afraid to experiment.  Invite someone over for tea, or make these for breakfast.  It’ll be fun, I promise.  Well, the scones will be, anyhow, I can’t vouch for your personal social interactions.

And fear not, my xgfx friends!  I will also share a gluten-free version once I’ve eaten my way through these.  Actually, they freeze pretty well too, so I might just freeze them so I can get on that.

Whole-Grain Coconut Milk Scones
(can be made wheat-free)

100g brown rice flour (about 3/4 c)
300g whole wheat pastry flour (about 2 3/4 c) or whole spelt flour*
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/12 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup turbinado, Sucanat, or coconut sugar**
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon zest

1 3/4 cup coconut milk
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup currants or fruit

additional sugar or nectar/syrup to glaze

Preheat oven to 400F.

Sift together dry ingredients.  Whisk together wet, then add to the dry, folding just until combined.  The dough will seem fairly wet, but it will firm up more as it absorbs more liquid.  Fold in currants/fruit and turn out onto a floured surface, sprinkling additional flour on top as needed to help prevent stickiness.  Shape into an 8-inch round, cut into 8 equal wedges and sprinkle the tops with sugar or brush with syrup.  Bake at 400F for about 20 minutes, until the edges are golden and the scones are firm.

Notes:

*If you’re using spelt flour, you will likely need to add a little bit more flour as it behaves differently than regular wheat flour.  Add a couple tablespoons at a time until the flour is able to be shaped into a round disk.

**If you’re using liquid sweetener in place of the granulated, you will need to adjust the amount of flour to compensate for the extra liquid.  Add a couple tablespoons at a time until the flour is able to be shaped into a round disk.