Valentine Button Pretzels

I've never been a big fan of Valentine's Day....but whatever, we are celebrating anyway!

I decided today that we wanted to bring something for Lily's teachers, so I needed something quick and easy...yet impressive... to make. Of course, I ran to Pinterest and I found just that!

These Valentine Pretzel Buttons might be the easiest thing I've ever "baked"! As I said earlier, I found them on Pinterest thanks to the blog G*Rated. Great site! Enjoy!

Valentine Pretzel Buttons

You'll need:
-square pretzels
-Hersey Hugs (regular Kisses would work, but I don't think they would be as cute!)
-M&Ms (disclaimer: if you are making them for your kid's class, best to grab peanut FREE)

First, pre-heat your oven to 200 degrees and place a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet. Then, line with your pretzels.

Next, top the pretzels with your Hugs.

Now, bake until the Hugs are a bit shiny and soft...which should only be 4-5 minutes. You want the Hugs to still have their shape. When you remove from the oven, carefully stick one of the M&Ms on tops of the Hugs. Barely push it into the Hug...you don't want to smash them all over the place!

Now, I'll admit...when I was patiently waiting the 4-5 minutes while they baked...and the M&Ms looked like this:

I snuck a few...shh, don't tell anyone!

Lastly, let them cool completely and then ENJOY!

Mine are currently chilling in the fridge overnight. And then tomorrow, I'll toss them in this cute little basket for Lily's classroom.

Can't wait! I'll share more pictures tomorrow!

Have a great Valentine's Day!

{Made with Love} Candied Orange Peels

One day, while randomly watching Food Network, Chris and I saw a piece highlighting candied citrus peels and we thought "we could do that". Well, Chris could do that, while I take pictures!  As part of our "made with love" Christmas gifts, we've added a little Homemade Candy...enjoy!

 Candied Orange Peels

6 thick-skinned Valencia or navel oranges
4 1/2 cups sugar, plus extra for rolling
1 1/2 cups water

Cut tops and bottoms off of the orange and score the orange into quarters, cutting down only into the peel and not into the fruit. Peel the skin and pith of the orange in large pieces, use the orange for another recipe. (or eat it while you cook, like we did!)

Cut the peel into strips about 1/4-inch wide.

Put the orange peel in a large saucepan with cold water to cover, bring to a boil over high heat. Then pour off the water. Repeat 1 or 2 more times depending on how assertive you want the orange peels to be. Remove the orange peels from the pan.

Whisk the sugar with 1 1/2 cups water. Bring to a simmer and cook for 8 to 9 minutes Add the peels and simmer gently, reducing heat to retain a simmer.

Cook until the peels get translucent, about 45 minutes. Resist the urge to stir the peels or you may introduce sugar crystals into the syrup. If necessary, swirl the pan to move the peels around.

Drain the peels then roll in sugar and dry on a rack, for 4 to 5 hours. Chris also sprinkled with extra sugar while drying.

To really take it to the next level of "candy", we dipped each in a little melted chocolate. Talk about yummy!

Vegan Cupcakes...YUM!

I'm not a baker so you know that if I can make these cupcakes from scratch, you can too! Both of these recipes are from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. I love these recipes because all of the ingredients are easily accessible and inexpensive! So yummy...you won't miss the dairy at all! Enjoy!

Golden Vanilla Cupcakes

1 cup soy milk

1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
¾ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt (increase salt to ½ teaspoon if you’re using oil instead of margarine)
½ cup non-hydrogenated margarine, softened, or ⅓ cup canola oil
¾ cup sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
¼ tsp. almond extract, caramel extract, or more vanilla extract


1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pan with cupcake liners.

2.Whisk the soy milk and vinegar in a measuring cup and set aside for a few minutes to get good and curdled.

3.If using margarine: Sift the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl and mix.

4.In a separate large bowl, use a handheld mixer at medium speed to cream the margarine and sugar for about 2 minutes until light and fluffy. (Don’t beat past 2 minutes.) Beat in the vanilla and other extract, if using, then alternate beating in the soy milk mixture and dry ingredients, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl a few times.

5.If using oil: Beat together the soy milk mixture, oil, sugar, vanilla, and other extracts, if using, in a large bowl. Sift in the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and mix until no large lumps remain.

6.Fill cupcake liners two-thirds of the way and bake for 20 to 22 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack, and let cool completely before frosting.
 

Vegan Fluffy Buttercream Frosting

½ cup nonhydrogenated shortening
½ cup nonhydrogenated margarine
3½ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1½ tsp. vanilla extract
¼ cup plain soy milk or soy creamer

1.Beat the shortening and margarine together until well-combined and fluffy. Add the sugar and beat for about 3 more minutes. Add the vanilla and soy milk and beat for another 5 to 7 minutes until fluffy.
 
 

I've made these twice and I LOVE THEM! They might not be the prettiest, but they are DANG good! Have a great Friday!

Sweet treats!

I just started a new ministry at my church where once a month I bring baked goodies for the college kiddos to enjoy while studying. Sounds easy, right? Well, I have never made vegan treats before...and I really stink at baking! Lucky for me, a friend of mine passed along this awesome box of cake mix...

So the easy-baking continued! All I needed to add was vegetable oil and water!

The rest was history...peanut free, egg free, nut free and dairy free history!

I was nervous about the taste...but after lickin' the spoon the sweet tasing batter convinced me otherwise!

Look how tasty the final product looks:

Ok..they look a little messy...completely my fault! They tasted amazing and I can't wait to try other mixes!

Enjoy!