Vegan Buttermilk Raspberry Scones

I still have two more stops on the New York City food tour to write about, but I thought I'd take a break today to share with you this recipe for Vegan Buttermilk Raspberry Scones.

I have a confession about these scones, but before I tell you, I want you to know they are delicious and I am not dead. With that said, my confession is I used expired hemp milk. Here's how that happened:

I really wanted to make scones, but we didn't have any soy milk. As I searched the kitchen high and low in my pajamas for any hiding soy milk, I started weighing my options of either giving up on the scones idea or getting dressed to go to the grocery store. It was then I saw the carton of hemp milk that had been given to me and my fiancé a long time ago. Sure enough, it had been expired for about a year, but it didn't smell bad, it didn't taste bad, and it still looked like a non-dairy milk. So since I was just making these for myself and using expired hemp milk was far more appealing than getting dressed, I decided to use it and if the scones ended up worse because of the decision, my dogs would just get a special treat.

Well, you already know the end of this story and as for now no one has food poisoning. My general rule of thumb of if it smells okay and it tastes edible, then it's fine came through once again. It may get me in trouble one day, but so far it hasn't failed me yet.

I can't be the only one who takes expiration dates as more of a suggestion than the rule, right?

A Slice of Happy

My favorite spot in the morning is my bedside table. It's sandwiched nicely between the most comfy, oversized chair imagineable (craigslisted for $15!) and my bed. When the light shines in on it from the above window, it's nothing but happiness.

Breakfast: green tea with pomegranate, whole wheat bread with Tofutti cream cheese and raspberries, and whole wheat bread with avocado and salt. 

Vegan Buttermilk Biscuit Brunch

I woke up Sunday morning in the mood to make biscuits, so I pulled out my Better Homes and Garden cookbook and flipped to the buttermilk biscuits. Apple cider vinegar mixed with soy milk works really well in cakes as a leavening agent when the vinegar reacts with the baking soda, so I hoped it would have the same effect in the biscuits. Lucky for me, it did! The biscuits were crisp on the outside, soft in the middle, and perfectly flaky. My fiance, who is pretty picky with his biscuits even approved.

We shared one Bocca Spicy Chik'N Patties, Lightlife Smart Bacon, and mustard sandwich and one Lightlife Gimme Lean Sausage, Smart Bacon, tomato, and mustard sandwich making for a delicious and filling Sunday brunch.

Update 6/12: I recently made a huge batch of these, put most of them in the freezer, and they still taste great. Plus they are perfect for a quick snack or sandwich. Just pull one out, microwave it for 30 seconds, and presto, perfectly flaky biscuit. Just make sure you are storing them in a good freezer-safe bag, or else you might get a perfectly flaky, freezer-burned, biscuit.

Birthday Breakfast: Vegan Crepes

These crepes are more of dessert crepes than just breakfast crepes. But it was a birthday breakfast, so it seemed acceptable to pile almond milk ice cream and chocolate syrup on top of the already sweetened crepes. Of course that decadence is optional and the crepes are equally as delicious simply wrapped around assorted fruits.

Granola Bars

I heard rumors that granola was not too difficult to make, but I just never got around to seeing if there was any validity to that claim. I think it was one of those things where everyone was saying how easy it was, but since it's so delicious, in my opinion, I didn't really believe it could be all that easy and was afraid I'd be the one person in the world that couldn't make it. But the price of granola in stores and the overwhelming amount of things that I had around the house that were just begging to be part of granola made me cave in. And what do you know?! It is easy to make! This is a huge breakthrough for me. I've thoroughly enjoyed having these granola bars to snack on all week as opposed to picking at the cookie dough that was sitting in the fridge. The downside is that I've eaten way to much of them way to fast. Guess it's time to make some more!

And now a note about this recipe. You may notice that there are two ingredient lists. No, this was not an accident. The first is the exact ingredient list for "Kitchen Sink Granola Bars." But I didn't have all the exact ingredients to make them, so I improvised here and there and I thought I'd share with you what I used so that you could make the same bars I did. I mean, that is, if you want to. But really, don't feel obligated to use what I used, or even what the original recipe instructs. There's a lot of freedom to be had. If you don't like nuts, don't put them in. If you don't have agave, use maple syrup. If you hate oats, well, you probably shouldn't be making granola bars...sorry. But go crazy, let your imagination run wild and please let me know if you come across a super winning combination.

Easy Poppy Seed Muffins

Like many of the recipes that are frequently used at my house, this was taken from a "normal" non-vegan cookbook (Better Homes is a staple) and tweaked until it was perfected without all the "normal" non-vegan products. This particular recipe I borrowed (stole) from my little sister's book of recipes. They're pretty sweet, kind of like mini cakes. So maybe these are more cupcakes? But they were called muffins in little E's recipe book and that's how they'll stay. Besides, this way you can eat them for breakfast without anyone judging you.

Banana Pancakes

I have never had banana pancakes before, so when my boyfriend asked about them, I figured why not give them a try. For me, I personally prefer strawberry pancakes over banana, but I can still see the appeal.

Hashbrowns

Is it just me, or do hashbrowns taste 800 times better when the potatoes are cut in cubes?

Pumpkin Pancakes

I had half a can of pumpkin puree left after making Chef Chloe's Creamy Pumpkin Pasta, so you know what that means...Pumpkin Pancakes for breakfast!