Caramel Biscuit Cheesecake (Vegan)

This recipe is the simplest vegan cheesecake I've seen, and my partner/baby daddy adored it, saying it was their favourite cheesecake (and they eat non-plant based desserts!). A rich buttery spiced biscuit base and smooth caramel topping, what's not to love?

For the base, you can use store-bought caramelized biscuits (Lotus biscuits in the UK), or make your own, which is what I did for this base. For the filling, I used the Lotus biscuit smooth spread - in the future, I may try making my own version of this as well, as now I have 3/4 jar of the most addictive spread in my house!!

This takes around an hour to prepare if you make the biscuits for the base. If not, you can prepare it in less than 20 minutes. It needs to set in the freezer for around an hour before it is ready to serve, and once it has set, you can leave it in the fridge for a few days (not that it will last that long). Beautifully caramel flavoured, and surprisingly, not too sweet, it's a firm favourite of our household.

Makes one 20cm cheesecake

Ingredients:

For the biscuits*:

• 150g plain flour
• 1 & 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp ground ginger
• 3/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 75g light soft brown sugar
• 1 & 1/2 tbsp dairy-free milk
• 110g margarine or butter (vegan)

* Instead of making the biscuits, you could use 200g of lotus biscuits

For the base:

• 200g home-made biscuits (see above) or Lotus biscuits
• 60g margarine or butter (vegan), melted

For the filling:

• 100g Lotus biscuit smooth spread
• 600g vegan cream cheese (I used Violife)
• 45g granulated sugar
• Pinch of salt

Method:

1. To prepare the biscuits, preheat the oven to 180c (160c fan)/gas mark 4. Stir together the flour, baking powder, spices, salt and sugar. Cut the vegan butter into cubes and use your hands to rub it into the dry mixture. Add the dairy-free milk and bring to a ball.

2. Roll the dough out onto a baking tray lined with baking parchment - as the biscuits are going to be crushed for the base, you can just spread this out without cutting it into shapes. You want the dough to be around 1cm thick, and you can use a rolling pin or your hands to achieve this.

3. Bake for 15-18 minutes until lightly browned. Leave to cool completely.

4. For the base of the cheesecake, preheat the oven to 180c (160c fan)/gas mark 4. Crush 200g biscuits (homemade or storebought) until they are a fine crumb, then pour over the melted butter/margarine. Stir until well combined.

5. Grease and line the base of a springform 20cm round cake tin with baking parchment, and pour in the biscuit mixture. Smooth down so it is level using the back of a spoon. Bake for around 10 minutes, until browning on the edges. Leave to cool completely.

6. For the filling, whisk together the biscuit spread, cream cheese and sugar until you have an even light brown colour. Pour onto the cheesecake base and smooth the top.

7. Cover with clingfilm and place in the freezer for around an hour to set. If you leave it longer, no worries - just bring it out to room temperature around an hour before you want to serve, and it will defrost nicely in that time. 

8. Enjoy!

Vegan Confetti Macarons

Here is another attempt at the vegan macaron (so dairy and egg-free, as well as gluten-free). Not 100% perfect I'll admit, but much closer to their non-vegan counterpart. These I kept really simple, flavouring with vanilla and brushing the top with vegan sprinkles prior to baking. I also coloured them a light purple. They turned out soft but crisp and were well received.

One thing I finally realised for this bake - using almond flour rather than ground almonds works very well, as there is less waste when sieving the almond/sugar mix. The almond flour is far finer, so I'd recommend using that if possible. I bought a big bag from amazon and paid a similar amount to ground almonds.

Makes around 20 macarons

Ingredients:

For the shells:

• 100g icing sugar
• 150g almond flour
• 100ml chickpea water (aquafaba) - this was one can's worth for me
• 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
• 125g caster sugar 
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Vegan sugar sprinkles
• Gel food colouring, optional

For the filling:

• 60 g vegan butter (I used Flora unsalted)
• 150g icing sugar, sifted
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Method:

1. Sift the almond flour and icing sugar into a large mixing bowl. Add half of the aquafaba and stir to a paste.

2. Tip the remaining chickpea water into the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment and add the cream of tartar. Start whisking on a low speed for a few minutes, then crank up to a medium speed until the mixture becomes white and holds stiff peaks when the whisk is lifted from the bowl.

3. Add the caster sugar, one tablespoon at a time, whisking for 30 seconds between each addition. Once all of the sugar has been added, you should have a lovely thick glossy meringue that holds stiff peaks. Whisk in the vanilla (or any other flavourings you'd like the shells to have), and food colouring, if wanted.

4. Place around 1/4 of the meringue into the bowl with the almond flour and sugar. Fold in using a spatula or metal spoon - you can be relatively rough at this stage as you're just loosening the mix.

5. Add the remaining meringue and fold in gently, trying to keep as much air in the mix as possible. It is ready when you lift the spatula and the mixture slowly falls off (like lava).

6. Line 4 baking trays with baking parchment and pipe vertically down onto the parchment until you have a 2-3cm circle (you could draw circles on the reverse side of the parchment prior to piping). Once the tray has been filled (leave a 2-3 cm gap between each macaron), firmly tap the base of the tray on your surface. This can be done by lifting the tray a few inches above and dropping it.

7. Scatter sprinkles on half of the shells.

8. Leave at room temperature for around 90 minutes, or until when you lightly press the shells, no mixture sticks to your finger.

9. Preheat your oven to 140c (120c fan)/285f/gas mark 1. Bake the shell for 10 minutes, then swap the trays over in the oven and bake for a further 5-10 minutes, or until they feel like you could peel them away from the parchment. Leave to cool completely before peeling.

10. Whilst cooling, make the buttercream by whisking together the butter, icing sugar and vanilla. You could add other flavourings/colours at this stage. Whisk until it is fluffy and holds its shape. Fill a piping bag with the buttercream and pipe onto the base of half the macarons. Very gently, press another shell on top.

11. Enjoy!

Keep in an airtight container and these will keep well for 2-3 days. You can also freeze the shells.

Vegan Chocolate Birthday Cake

 

Back after a hiatus! A lot has changed, but now I'm set in my vegan ways, I've finally started to love baking again :) 

This is the cake I made for my 30th birthday, the cake turned out really moist and the buttercream was to die for. I used Flora vegan butter, but any stick butter should work well.

Completely vegan, so dairy and egg-free. Also nut and soy-free for other allergy sufferers :) 

Ingredients:

For the cake:

• 250ml oat milk
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 250g plain flour
• 350g caster sugar
• 65g cocoa powder
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 110g vegetable oil
• 165g apple sauce
• 235g boiling water

For the buttercream:

• 50g cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 300g icing sugar
• 150g vegan butter, softened
• 3-4 tbsp oat milk
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180c (160c fan)/gas mark 4/350F. Grease and dust the base of two 20cm round cake tins with oil and flour. (Alternatively, grease the base and line with baking parchment).

2. Pour the oat milk into a bowl of a stand mixer (with the balloon whisk attachment). Add the vinegar. Stir and wait for 5 minutes.

3. Sift into the bowl the flour, cocoa and baking powder. Pour over the remaining cake ingredients and whisk until well combined (until you see no more flour/cocoa speckles).

4. Pour into the prepared cake tins and bake for around 40 minutes, until the top is springy to the touch and a skewer inserted into the centre of the cakes comes out clean.

5. Meanwhile, make the butter cream. Cut the butter into small chunks and place it in the bowl of a stand mixer with the balloon whisk attachment. Add the cinnamon, ginger, cocoa powder and half of the icing sugar. Pour over the milk and vanilla, and begin whisking. Once the icing sugar has been absorbed (it will be very loose at this stage), add the other half of the icing sugar and whisk for 5 minutes. If the buttercream is very stiff, add some more milk, if too loose, add a little more icing sugar. It will become very fluffy. Cover until ready to use.

6. Once the cake is fully cool, place one of the cakes onto your serving dish. If domed significantly, level the top of the cake. Cover with around a third of your buttercream. Top with the other cake layer.

7. Lightly spread a thin layer of buttercream around the top and sides of your cake using a palette knife if possible (if not, a butter knife will work, it will just be a bit messier). Once all of the cake has been lightly covered, place it in the fridge for 10 minutes to set slightly. This helps trap in the cake crumbs to give a cleaner result.

8. Spread another layer of buttercream over the top and sides of the cake. Leave 4-5 tablespoons of mixture to pipe on the top of the cake.

9. Fit a piping bag with the 1B flower tip (or the open star tip, anything that makes pretty spirals!). Pipe rosettes over the top of the cake as desired.

10. Enjoy!

This cake will keep in the fridge for up to a week.

Vegan Peanut Caramel Chocolate Mousse Tart

This recipe really got a thumbs up this weekend - sweet oaty coconut biscuit base, topped with a thin layer of peanut butter caramel and finished with a thick layer of dairy-free chocolate mousse. All vegan, all delicious!

Makes 1 20cm tart

Ingredients:

For the base:

• 60g ground almonds
• 20g plain flour
• 30g desiccated coconut
• 40g oats
• 45g soft light brown sugar
• pinch of salt
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 70g coconut oil
• 1/2 tbsp golden syrup

For the peanut butter caramel:

• 140g crunchy peanut butter (like Meridian)
• 95g golden syrup
• pinch of salt

For the chocolate mousse:

• 250ml coconut cream, fridge cold
• 20g cocoa powder
• 30ml maple syrup (or golden syrup)

Method:

1. Make the base. Preheat the oven to 180c (160c fan)/gas mark 4. Grease the base of a 20cm fluted cake tin (loose-bottomed ideally!), and dust lightly with flour.

2. Mix together the ground almonds, flour, coconut, oats, brown sugar, salt and baking powder.

3. Melt the coconut oil, then mix in the golden syrup. Pour over the dry ingredients and bring the mixture together until it starts to clump together. 

4. Pour into the prepared cake tin and gently press into the corners of the tin, trying to get the biscuit as smooth as possible. Using the back of a spoon to press on the biscuit helps to get a smooth base.

5. Bake for around 10 minutes, or until starting to golden. Leave to cool completely.

6. For the peanut butter caramel, simply beat together the peanut butter, golden syrup and salt. 

7. For the chocolate mousse, pour the coconut cream, cocoa and maple/golden syrup into the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment. Whisk on medium speed for a few minutes until it has thickened and become fluffy.

8. Assemble the tart by spreading the peanut butter caramel onto the base of the tart. Cover with the mousse.

9. Place in the fridge for 3-4 hours, or until set.

10. Enjoy!

Vegan Salted Chocolate Caramel Nutty Tart

I attempted this tart out last week, whilst recovering from the flu, and my partner ate half of the tart in a day - I took this as a good sign and have since made the tart again for my office :) Again, it was a big hit, so here's the recipe.
The first time I baked the tart I used a 23cm loose-bottomed tart tin, the second a 23cm square cake tin - both worked equally well (but the square tart was easier to slice for work!)

Makes one 23cm tart

Ingredients:

For the pastry:

• 250g plain flour
• 110g icing sugar
• 110g soy margarine
• Pinch of salt

For the filling:

• 160g coconut cream
• 200g light soft brown sugar
• 1 & 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 200g hazelnuts
• 100g pecans
• 100g vegan dark chocolate (Asda dark chocolate chips work very well)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Method:

1. To make the pastry, sift together the plain flour and icing sugar and add a pinch of salt. Rub the margarine into the flour/sugar until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs.

2. One tablespoon at a time, add cold water until the dough comes together into a ball. Wrap in cling film and chill for 30 minutes.

3. Grease a 23cm loose-bottomed tart or cake tin and line with baking parchment. Place a sheet of cling film on your surface, roughly 30cm long. Dust with a little flour, and then tip your dough onto the floured clingfilm.

4. If using a circular tin, roll the dough out until it is a rough 28cm circle. If using a square tin, roll the dough until it is a 28cm square. It should be 2-3cm thick.

5. Carefully transfer the pastry to the tin - this is easiest to do by picking up the clingfilm that is underneath the pastry, flipping this into the tin, and then removing the cling film. Patch up any holes with spare pastry and trim so that the sides are 1cm high.

6. Chill the pastry for 20 minutes.

7. Preheat your oven to 180c/gas mark 4. Prick the base of the dough all over with a fork, and then bake for 15 minutes or until the base has turned a light golden.

8. Whilst the pastry is baking, make the filling. Pour the coconut cream and brown sugar into a pan and place on a low heat. Bring to the boil and heat for around 5 minutes, or until the caramel has reduced and turned a deep brown.

9. Carefully pour in the salt, hazelnuts, pecans and dark chocolate, and stir until all of the chocolate has melted and all of the nuts are coated in the caramel. Add the vanilla and stir in.

10. Once the pastry is out of the oven, pour in the nutty caramel and bake for another 3 minutes. Leave to cool to room temperature, and then chill for an hour before slicing.

11. Enjoy!!

Vegan Makowiec swirls (Poppy seed swirls)

I love the classic Polish cake Makowiec -  a sweet bready cake, rolled like a swiss roll, with a poppy seed filling. It's a classic bake for me at Christmas, but this year I decided to vary things, and instead made a yeasted sweet dough (like in my recent cinnamon rolls post), and filled it with the poppy seed paste. After proving and baking, I drizzled over some icing, and they were done! They are lovely to have as a midday treat, and everyone really seemed to enjoy them.

Once these are cool, keep them in an airtight container and they should stay moist for 3-4 days.

Makes c. 12 big swirls

Ingredients:

For the dough:

• 475g strong white bread flour, plus an extra handful for dusting
• 25g cornflour
• 7g dried fast-action yeast
• 50g light soft brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 300ml soy milk
• 75g dairy-free (I used a soy-based) margarine

For the filling:

• 400g poppy seed paste
• 50g mixed dried fruit
• 25g glace cherries (Plus 20g for decoration, optional)
• 1 tbsp ground cinnamon

For the icing:

• 150g icing sugar
• 1-2 tbsp water

Method:

1. Tip the bread flour and cornflour into the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with a dough hook. To one side of the bowl add the yeast, and to the other side add the sugar, cardamom and salt.

2. Heat the soy milk in the microwave for 30 seconds - 1 minute, until warm but not hot to the touch. Pour over the flour and add the margarine.

3. Turn on the stand mixer and leave to knead for around 8 minutes, until it is very soft.

4. Cover the bowl with cling film and leave to rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, or until the dough has at least doubled in size.

5. Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface until it is about 20 x 30 cm. In a bowl, beat together the poppy seed paste, cinnamon and dried fruit, and then spread evenly over the dough.

6. Along the long edge, roll the dough into a tight spiral. Slice into 12 swirls.

7. Grease and line the base of two baking trays, and then place the spirals on the trays, with at least 3cm between each swirl. Cover and leave to prove for around 45 minutes.

8. Preheat your oven to 180c (160c fan)/355f/gas mark 4.

9. Bake the swirls for 25-30 minutes, or until golden and firm to the touch. Check after 20 minutes and if browning too much, cover with foil.

10. Leave to cool.

11. Beat together the sifted icing sugar and water until it is a thick but droppable consistency. Once the swirls have cooled, pipe or drizzle over. If wanted, halve the glace cherries and place on the icing to stick.

12. Enjoy!

Vegan Macarons

I was sceptical as to how to make a delicious macaron without egg whites, but this recipe worked really well. I think the trick was to chill the chickpea water (aquafaba) overnight, and I used fancy organic chickpeas (but I couldn't say for sure that made a big difference).
As these are vegan, they are obviously dairy- and egg-free, but they are also gluten-free!
I filled the macarons with a vegan orange buttercream (I know I made them pink...but for this first experiment, I thought I'd go crazy and mix up the standard colour/flavour combo), and after they had been left for a few hours, the end result was soft, almond, fluffy goodness with a hit of orange.
These were only my first attempt so I'm sure I can improve these even more, and I'll be sure to keep this blog updated if I do :)

Easily makes 40 shells (20 macarons)

Ingredients:

For the vegan macaron shells:

• 150g chilled aquafaba (I got this from one can of chickpeas, but you may need a bit over one can's worth)
• 200g icing sugar
• 200g ground almonds
• 200g golden caster sugar
• 50ml water
• Food colouring of your choice (I used a pink concentrated gel)

For the vegan buttercream frosting:

• 55g vegan margarine (I used Flora dairy-free)
• 1/2 tsp orange extract
• 175g icing sugar
• 2-3 tbsp dairy-free milk (I used hazelnut)
• Food colouring (optional)

Method:

1. Grease and line the base of four baking trays with baking parchment.

2. Divide your chilled aquafaba into two, and pour half into a bowl with the icing sugar and ground almonds. Beat until you have a thick paste and set aside.

3. Begin whisking the remaining half of aquafaba on a low speed in a stand mixer (with the balloon whisk attached). Place the caster sugar and water in a saucepan on a low heat and use a sugar thermometer to analyze the temperature (swirling the pan occasionally).

4. Once the mixture reaches 110c, increase the speed of the whisk to high. Continue heating the sugar mixture until it reaches 117c.

5. As soon as the temperature reaches 117c, turn the whisk speed down to about medium, and carefully pour in the VERY HOT syrup. Once all of the syrup has been added, turn the speed up to high and whisk for at least 5 minutes. The mixture will turn very white and glossy, but I didn't find it ever created stiff peaks (as egg white meringue would). Add your food colouring and whisk in.

6. Spoon a small amount of this mixture into the ground almond paste and beat to loosen the mixture. Fold in the remaining "meringue" until the mixture is a consistent colour and texture.

7. Pour into a piping bag and pipe 4-5cm onto baking trays lined with baking parchment, leaving at least 2cm between each piped circle. Once a tray has been filled, tap the base of the tray against the counter, and then set aside for one hour, or until the top of the macaron feels dry (and doesn't stick to your finger).

8. Preheat your oven to 120c/250f. Bake the macaron shells for 20-22 minutes, until they are firm to the touch. Leave them on the trays to cool completely.

9. Meanwhile, make the filling by placing the butter, icing sugar and orange extract into the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment. Add one tablespoon of dairy-free milk and begin whisking at a low speed. Gradually add more dairy-free milk until the buttercream pours slowly off a spoon (and so would hold it's shape when piped). Add food colouring if you like and whisk in.

10. When the macaron shells have cooled, flip half of them over and pipe a small amount (about a teaspoon's worth) of buttercream onto each flipped shell. Gently cover with an un-flipped shell and press together.

11. These are lovely straight away, but even better after being left for a few hours, which allows the macaron shells to soften and become the perfect afternoon tea treat.

12. Enjoy!

Vegan Bavarian Custard Slice

This is a really simple variation to the classic Bavarian Custard Slice (as requested by my partner after seeing in a bakery). This was relatively simple to make vegan - the custard sets really well and is beautifully creamy, and shop-bought puff pastry tends to be vegan (though check the packaging!). I spread a layer of cherry jam in between the pastry bottom and custard, which gives a nice zing to the dish.
As this is vegan, it's completely dairy-free and egg-free :)
This made around 12 decent sized slices.

Ingredients:

• 1 block (500g) puff pastry
• 100g raspberry jam
• 1-litre soy milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 200g caster sugar
• 200g cornflour
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 100g soy margarine
• Icing sugar, for dusting

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 180c/355f/gas mark 4, and grease and line the base of a 20 x 30cm baking tray with baking parchment.

2. Roll your puff pastry to an 18 x 15cm rectangle, then place in the baking tray. Bake for around 15 minutes, or until well risen and golden, and then leave to cool.

3. Make the custard filling by combining the soy milk, vanilla and sugar in a saucepan and bringing to a boil. Once simmering, slowly pour over the cornflour mixture, beating well to ensure there are no lumps.

4. Return to the saucepan and gently heat for around 5-8 minutes, or until it has thickened considerably. At this point, stir in the margarine and turmeric and beat until the custard is glossy. Set aside for a few minutes whilst you prepare the pastry.

5. Carefully slice the pastry horizontally (so that you have two thin layers of 18 x 15cm rectangles). Place the first, cut side up, on a tray (if you have a tray with 5cm tall sides, that would be best, but the custard is thick enough that this isn't essential.).

6. Spread the jam over the pastry, as evenly as possible. Spoon over the thick custard, and then top with the other half of the pastry. Set in the fridge for 2-3 hours, until fully set.

7. Dust with icing sugar and cut into slices.

8. Enjoy!

GBBO 2019 Week 3 - Bread - Tear & Share Cinnamon, Apricot and Apple Rolls (Vegan)

I know...I'm quite late with this post. My defence is that I attempted the first batch of cinnamon rolls, which were a bit of a disaster, and then episode 4 of GBBO was on, and I got very annoyed with the theme (Dairy week for a vegan is NOT much fun!).
However, I picked myself up yesterday and had another go at some vegan cinnamon rolls. To the filling I added, as weird as it sounds, a small jar of apricot and apple puree (like that found in the baby food aisle). This gave the rolls a wonderful fruity flavour. Before placing the rolls in the tray I also poured in a simple vegan caramel. After baking, this leaves a gorgeous caramel stickiness to the bottom of each bun.

This is the jar of apricot and apple puree (125g) I used. It has no weird ingredients in it, just 60% apricot and 40% apple, so seemed perfect for this bake.

The dough was really easy, lightly spiced with cardamom, and I kneaded the dough using the dough hook in a stand mixer - you could knead by hand, but the dough is a sticky one, so if you can, I'd recommend following my method.

Makes 9 cinnamon rolls

Ingredients:

For the dough:

• 475g strong white bread flour, plus an extra handful for dusting
• 25g cornflour
• 7g dried fast-action yeast
• 50g light soft brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 300ml soy milk
• 75g dairy-free (I used a soy-based) margarine

For the caramel:

• 45g golden syrup
• 45g light soft brown sugar
• 75g dairy-free margarine

For the filling:

• 2-3 tbsp ground cinnamon
• 30g light soft brown sugar
• 125g apricot and apple puree (you could blitz your own apricots and cooked down apples if needed)

Method:

1. Tip the bread flour and cornflour into the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with a dough hook. To one side of the bowl add the yeast, and to the other side add the sugar, cardamom and salt.

2. Heat the soy milk in the microwave for 30 seconds - 1 minute, until warm but not hot to the touch. Pour over the flour and add the margarine.

3. Turn on the stand mixer and leave to knead for around 8 minutes, until it is very soft.

4. Cover the bowl with cling film and leave to rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, or until the dough has at least doubled in size.

5. Meanwhile, make the caramel by pouring the syrup, sugar and margarine into a small saucepan and bring the mixture to a boil. Stir whilst boiling for around a minute, then take off the heat.

6. Grease and line a 20cm springform cake tin with baking parchment, then pour caramel into the base of this tin.

7. To make the filling, simply stir together the cinnamon, sugar and puree, and set aside.

8. Once the dough has at least doubled in size, tip out onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly to knock the air out. Roll to about 50 x 40 cm rectangle. Spread over the filling evenly. From a long end, roll the dough tightly.

9. Evenly slice into nine rolls, and then carefully place in the prepared tin, cut side facing up.

10. Cover the tin with clingfilm and then leave for around another 45 minutes, until well risen.

11. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 180c (160c fan)/355f/gas mark 4.

12. Bake the cinnamon rolls for 25-30 minutes, until golden on top and firm to the touch. Check after around 20 minutes, and if they are browning too much, cover with foil.

13. Enjoy warm or at room temperature!