Vegan Cinnamon Pecan Rolls!

As promised, here's a variation recipe for Flaky Vegan Rolls that turn these scrumptious savory dinner rolls into sweet decadent dessert!

I've always loved cinnamon rolls, even though I've never been huge on sweets. There's just something about soft savory bread and a sweet buttery filling that gets the mouth salivating. But that's basically where I stop in decadency, I h8 (haaaate!) The icing on cinnamon rolls, or most desserts for that matter. I was the child who scraped off most the toppings on her cake and basically ate the fruit & naked cake. Frostings are generally too sweet for me, and don't get me wrong, I've had delicious frosting/ icing in my life; but if the bread and filling already satisfy my sweet craving, why add on another layer of sugar that doesn't provide flavor profile? Obviously I'll include a recipe for it, because I know a fully complete cinnamon roll (or sticky buns) needs its icing!!

VEGAN CINNAMON PECAN ROLLS

• Nonstick spray
• 8 Ounces warm non dairy milk (I used Almond- 100 Degrees F)
• 2 1/4 Ounces Sugar (About 1/3 Cup)
• 1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon Active Dry Yeast
• 16 Ounces All- purpose flours, plus more for Kneading (I always end up using about 2-1/2 to 2-3/4 cups of flour)
• 2 Tablespoons Energy Egg replacer plus 2 Tablespoons warm water
• 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 1/2 Ounces Coconut oil at room temperature (or 1/4 Cup)
• Extra Grape seed oil for brushing (Grape seed oil browns really well, for some reason.) 

• 1/2 C Coconut Oil (Softened)
• 4 tsp Cinnamon (Grounded)
• 1 C Brown sugar
• 3/4 C Chopped Pecans
• 
  
• 4 TBS Coconut Oil
• 2 C Powdered Sugar
• 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 3-6 TBS Hot Water

PROCEDURE

• Follow Flaky Vegan Rolls procedure until after the 1st rising and you're ready to roll out your dough!

From there...

• Roll the dough out to a 17x10 Triangle, and spread the coconut oil for the filling atop.
• Mix together the cinnamon, brown sugar, & pecans and sprinkle over the dough evenly.
• Begin to roll the dough long side in (Hot dog style!) and seal the ends.
• Grease a 9x13 Pan (or 2 bread pans like pictured, or 2 cake pans will work! Or you can always make these in muffin tins as well!)
• Cut log into 12-16 pieces and place them in pan with some room for rising, cover with damp towel and let rise until double in size, about 30 minutes to 1 hour. 
• Preheat the Oven to 375 Degrees
• Bake in oven (making sure to rotate pan) for about 20 minutes or golden brown.
• Mean while- mix the coconut oil, vanilla, and powdered sugar together and add hot water 1 TBS at a time until desired consistency is reached! 

Eat kind & Happy baking!

VEGAN CARMELITAS!

I love finding random recipes that are  easily converted vegan (Basically featuring as little egg as possible. Like this one here that came up I think while I was wasting time on Facebook featured on Classy Cutter. I clicked on the picture (As I do with any beautiful picture) And saw how few the ingredients and decided to veganize it! 

Carmelitas are a delicious oat cookie bar with chocolate chips and salted caramel in the middle, and by no way are these babies healthy- Except for the soul, on a stressful day and all you want to chomp on is some crunchy, oaty, chocolatey, caramely, salty, devilish goodness; And there's nothing wrong with that! I'm always reminded to not take my health too seriously, and indulge in yummy goodness when needed & not let myself feel bad about it! Especially considering my weakness is in them salty treats! ; p 

Note: Let me note ahead of time that I made-shift a quick caramel sauce that didn't turn out so great (I had to use it right away, as it crystalized in the fridge.) Therefore, I would advise you to either make your own awesome caramel sauce (using yours or someone else's recipe like this yummy almond milk caramel sauce from Oh, LadyCakes), or use a store bought/pre-made vegan version like this one. At least until I create a REALLY stable recipe myself. As for the chocolate chips, there are plenty of brands out there such as Enjoy Life, or SunSpire. But I always stick to Trader Joe's, as it is still the most accessible & the most affordable!

VEGAN CARMELITAS

1 1/2 C Melted coconut oil

1 1/2 C Packed brown sugar

2 C Quick-cooking Rolled Oats

2 C Flour

2 tsp Baking soda

1 (12oz) Bag semi-sweet dairy-free chocolate chips

3/4- 1 C Home Made or store bought caramel sauce

Preheat the oven to 350 Degrees and spray or grease a 9X13 Casserole dish. Mix the Coconut oil, brown sugar, oats, flour and baking soda together, until evenly mixed. Use half of the dough and press it down to the bottom to form the crust, and bake in heated oven for 10 minutes. Remove the Pan from the oven and sprinkle evenly with the chocolate chips and drizzle the caramel sauce over that. Crumble the rest of the cookie dough over top, then place it in the oven for another 15-20 minutes until the top is golden brown. Let it cool COMPLETELY (I really can't stress this enough) before cutting into it! If you're in a super hurry to eat these babies, pop em in the refrigerator to speed the process along. If you try cutting into it while it's still warm, you'll end up with a gooie mess. Trust! Anywho, have fun baking & living healthy eating kind!

Flaky Vegan Rolls!

I crave bread all the time; and apparently my client does too- because every week he has me make these delicious rolls that are based off an Alton Brown recipe and it’s delicious vegan or not! (Well technically he just asked for bread rolls but these flaky babies were too hard to resist. And he’s been enjoying them since- weekly. And though my pseudo allergy to wheat usually strays me away from these simply carbohydrates, I probably eat at least one (or 2) a week. Because they are delicious. Other times I pawn them off to my non wheat allergic boyfriend. I digress, here is a photo heavy recipe post on the process of making ‘FLAKY VEGAN ROLLS.’  I had a difficult time understanding the directions the first time I made these, since the original recipe came with no pictures. I figured I’d detail the making for you; hopefully assisting in your bread making experience. Stand mixers are really helpful for this recipe.

Note: This recipe is so versatile, it makes perfect cinnamon rolls!

FLAKY VEGAN ROLLS


Nonstick spray
8 Ounces warm non dairy milk (I used Almond- 100 Degrees F)
2 1/4 Ounces Sugar (About 1/3 Cup)
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon Active Dry Yeast
15 Ounces All- purpose flours, plus more for Kneading (I always end up using about 2-1/2 to 2-3/4 cups of flour)
2 Tablespoons Energy Egg replacer plus 2 Tablespoons warm water
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 1/2 Ounces Coconut oil at room temperature (or 1/4 Cup)
Extra Grape seed oil for brushing (Grape seed oil browns really well, for some reason.) 

Procedure:


Spray a 12 Cup muffin tin with nonstick spray
Mix egg replacer with water mix until foamy
Place milk, sugar, yeast, flour, egg replacer, and salt in bowl of stand mixer with paddle attachment, mix on low speed for 1 minute, change the paddle attachment to dough hook and rest dough for 10-15 minutes.

Add the coconut oil and mix on low speed. Increase speed to medium and mix until the dough pulls away from sides of the bowl (sometimes you may need to add a little flour if the mixture is too sticky, just turn down the speed and add a little flour until dough stars to form) Check by pulling the dough into a thin sheet that light can pass through, before it breaks (check for that stretchiness!) about 8 minutes. 

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and roll and shape to form a large ball. Return the dough to bowl, cover with plastic and set aside in warm dry place to rise to rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour. 

Remove the dough from the bowl and roll into a 12 by 12 inch square, about 1/2 inch think. BRUSH THE DOUGH with oil! (I always forget this part!) 








Use a pizza cutter (or dough cutter) Cut the tough into 12 (12 by 1inch) strips. Stach the strips into 2 stacks of 6 strips each. Lay the stacks on their sides and cut each stack into 6 (2-inch) wide pieces. Lay each piece on its side into a prepared muffin tin cup. brush the dough on top (for better color). Cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm dry place to rise until doubled in size, 30-40 minutes ( sometimes it can take up to an hour or longer, be patient)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Remove plastic wrap and bake until the rolls reach an internal temperature of 200 degrees F and golden brown, 8-10 minutes. Rotate the pan half way through baking for even cooking. 
remove the muffin tin to a cooling rack and cool for 2 to 3 minutes before serving.

And there you have it! I hope your rolls turn out to be delicious goodness, serve with jam or dip them in a delicious stew! Eat kind, and live happy!

Friendly FAQ

I've been cooking for a while now, and more so than my clients, my friends are always asking me about tricks and recipes. So, I figured it may be nice for everyone, to find a companionable place to ask questions, find answers, and socialize via comments!

Today's FAQ section includes one of my favorite people: Al; Who is also my hairstylist and a vintage collector aficionado. She solves all the puzzles when it comes to my stubborn Asian hair, and I try to feed her with my culinary knowledge! Alex messaged me about some questions that I think most people could benefit from!

FAQ

A:

Why is brown better for you than white?

SF:

In terms of flour or rice?

A: 

There's brown flour?

SF:

No, there's no "brown flour." It is technically referred to as whole wheat flour. So brown and white rice is as all purpose flour is the same as WW Flour: They both come from the same grain. White rice is brown rice with the bran and germ removed; Just like All purpose flour, where the bran and germ are also removed, leaving only the endosperm still intact to produce our modern white flour. Therefore, brown rice has more nutrients and vitamins than white since the nutrients are mostly stored in the bran and germ of grains; Making brown rice the healthier choice.

A: 

So far as calorie count does one have more than the other?  And is frozen rice bad?

SF:

Brown has perhaps 10 or so more calories per cup, but also packs more of the vitamins and nutrients (having the germ and bran still intact) Thus one could argue that it aids your body in digestion of other foods, making your body more efficient;  Therefore, burning more calories! 

Frozen rice is not something I've had a lot of experience with- I've froze cooked rice and have used it for thickening soups but that's about all I would do with it. Considering freezing cooked grains would probably make it super water-logged. 

A:

Do you use a rice cooker?

SF:

I do now, but only because my boyfriend bought me a really nice one- I went three years without one and I was fine! Rice cookers are nice however, since some of them have warming functions that keep your rice warm for days, for rice on hand all the time! Baking rice is another great option for evenly cooked rice, use boiling water plus the same amounts you would on stove top; cover (with plastic and aluminum foil) then place in oven @ 350 (depending on types of rice) for 40min-1hr or until finished. I do find my rice cooker makes my life easier, and could for you as well! Always check Costco for the best prices!

Thank you so much for reading, and please use the comment section or our email to ask your own questions in which we will answer here on the blog! Happy eating folks!

Sincerely,

Chef Yvonne

Happy Lunar New Year From SoundFoods!

Chef Yvonne here, 

Every Asian culture celebrates some aspect of the Lunar new year; and being that I'm from Taiwan, we follow Chinese traditions and celebrate 2 weeks of new year until lantern festival rounds up the festivities. Food and family as always, is a huge theme, usually tens of dishes are served on the table along side snacks and fruits. 

This year I had the pleasure of hosting New Year's eve dinner at my house (though a little cramped) we made some awesomely delicious vegan offerings and mom made her famous pork and Ben bought some really delicate fish (we're so happy that Santa Monica Seafood opened a shop down the street!). Next time I will convince everyone of an entirely vegan meal! As always, I veganized someof my favorite Chinese dishes and tried a few new ones- The favorite by far was the 3 cup mushroom dish or 三杯菇 traditionally made with fried frog legs and a ton of basil- We used fried shitake and king oyster mushrooms instead and the results were fantastic!

more yumminess& 3 Cup Mushroom recipe after the jump!

SoundFoods has a new blog!

It's about time someone got on another social media platform and got our name out there! Follow this blog to find Chef Yvonne & guests everyday meals, as well as tips/advice/daily ramblings! Look forward to picture posts soon! And for now, a little bio on Chef Yvonne and why she started SoundFoods:

" Hi, My name is Yvonne and I love to cook! After being vegan almost a decade, I realized the key to healthy living, is to eat a varied diet and to shop/cook for yourself. In order to better cook for myself and others, I moved to NY to study with the Natural Gourmet School for Health and Culinary Arts- and began my journey into cooking for restaurants, catering companies, and private families. After many years in the catering/ restaurant industry, I found that healthy cooking is best achieved when YOU have a say in the entire process: Shopping, prepping, and cooking.

Which is why I started SoundFoods; I wanted to cook amazing food that is properly sourced without the restraints of a restaurant or catering company. SoundFoods is now able to deliver food to individuals based on their need and shopping preferences: sourced, prepared, and cooked soundly. "





And here is a video Chef Yvonne did to promote for her pop-up booth at the 626 night market in 2013! Thanks for stopping by!