Absolutely delicious pancakes topped with fresh berries and chocolate spread, no one will ever know that they are vegan. Make pancake day more fun by folding them into little pancake tacos.
Have fun with the topping options. In the past I would have gone for Nutella, but now I replace it with Mindful Bites Chocolate & Hazelnut spread, which is vegan and absolutely delicious. Another delicious topping is vegan ice cream with Golden Syrup or Maple Syrup. I hear lemon juice and sugar is a real classic.
Happy Pancake Day!
Ingredients
475ml plant milk (I used soy)
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons sugar
4 tablespoon oil
A pinch of salt
Vanilla extract
250g plain flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
Oil for cooking
Method
In a medium bowl whisk together the plant milk and lemon juice. Leave to sit for 5-10 minutes. This will be the ‘buttermilk’.
Stir in the sugar, oil, salt and vanilla extract. Sift in the flour and baking powder. Mix until incorporated, but avoid over mixing. Allow the batter to sit for 10 minutes.
Heat a pan over a medium heat and carefully wipe it with some oiled kitchen paper. When hot, cook your pancakes for 1 min on each side until golden
Enjoy the pancakes hot or cold, topped with your favourite toppings.
If you like the espresso martini cocktail you will love this dessert! I’ve been thinking of transforming one of my favourite cocktails into a dessert for a while; so I finally made this trifle for my actual birthday this year. This espresso martini trifle turned out better than I imagined and I thought the world needs this! Definitely a dessert for grown ups with rich chocolate, coffee, booze and some whipped cream to balance it all. Unlike my gin, lemon and raspberry trifle (which is to die for!), this one is fairly simple and easy to make. Also, this is an excellent dessert to make in advance, so you can enjoy your big day without spending time in the kitchen.
For what special occasion would you make this dessert? Remember to tag @apinchofzing on Instagram if you give it a try.
Trifle elements 1 x chocolate sponge layer 1 x Espresso martini cocktail (or two if you fancy a glass) 1 x chocolate ganache layer 1 x whipped cream layer Cocoa powder for dusting
Step 1. Make the chocolate sponge
Ingredients 1 teaspoon vegan spread and 1 teaspoon flour to coat the cake tin 3/4 cup soy milk 1 teaspoon cider vinegar or lemon juice 1 & 1/3 cups plain flour 1 tablespoon cocoa powder 1 teaspoons baking powder ¼ teaspoon baking soda 1/3 cup sugar a pinch of salt 1/4 cup rapeseed oil 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Method 1. Preheat the oven to 190C. Grease with vegan spread and coat in flour, a 20cm round cake tin. 2. In a medium bowl mix the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt). 3. Add in the wet ingredients (curdled milk, oil and vanilla) and mix together until combined. Don’t overmix. 4. Pour the batter in the cake tin and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave to sit in the cake tin for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, remove from the cake tin and leave to cool on a wire rack.
Method Mix all the ingredients in a glass or bowl.
Step 3. Make the chocolate ganache
Ingredients 200g dark chocolate 200ml coconut milk (from a can) 1 teaspoon instant coffee
Method 1.Use a microwave safe medium size bowl. Break the chocolate into chunks and add it to the bowl with the coconut milk and instant coffee. Heat in the microwave for 30 second intervals and mix with a spoon after every 30 seconds, until melted and combined. It took me about 3-4 30 second intervals. Do not over heat the mixture as the chocolate could burn and that will ruin the ganache. 2. Leave the resulting chocolate ganache to cool down completely and set. You could also place it in the fridge to speed up the process. 3. Use a hand/stand mixer to whip the chocolate ganache until it becomes fluffy and light (2-3 minutes). Store at room temperature, or else it will become too hard to work with it.
Method Add all the ingredients in a large bowl and whisk with an electric mixer on high speed until the cream thickens and forms stiff peaks. Cover and store in the fridge until ready to use.
Step 5. Layer the trifle
You are now ready to assemble the trifle.
1. Cut the chocolate sponge in small squares and layer like a puzzle on the bottom and sides of the trifle dish. 2. Pour the espresso martini cocktail over the sponge. 3. Put the chocolate ganache in a piping bag and pipe the ganache over the chocolate sponge. 4. Put the whipped cream in a piping bag and pipe over the chocolate ganache layer. 5. Cover and leave in the fridge overnight to set. 6. Dust with cocoa powder before serving. Enjoy 😊
Delicate lemon madeleines, dipped in white chocolate and sprinkled with earl grey tea. I’ve been dreaming of these little gems for a while and I am so pleased how they turned out. So much that I had to share the recipe 🙂 I added a pinch of spirulina powder in the white chocolate to give it a green tinge and to cut through the sweetness.
I hope you enjoy this sophisticated dessert. Remember to tag @apinchofzing on Instagram if you give it a try.
Ingredients 125ml soy milk 1 tsp lemon juice 45ml rapeseed oil 1/2 tsp lemon extract 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 140g flour 1tsp baking powder 75g sugar zest from one lemon a pinch of salt
Preheat the oven to 175 C. Lightly grease and coat with flour, a madeleine pan.
In a jug, mix the soy milk and lemon juice. Leave to curdle and move to the next step.
In a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and half of the lemon zest).
Add in the wet ingredients (curdled milk, oil, vanilla and lemon extract) and mix until combined. Do not overmix.
Use a piping bag to split the mixture between the madeleines.
Bake for 12-15 minutes until golden brown. Remove the madeleines from the mould and leave them to cool down completely before moving to the next step.
Break the white chocolate and add it to a small microwave safe bowl. Heat the chocolate in the microwave for 15 seconds intervals, mixing each time, until fully melted. Mix in the spirulina powder if using.
Dip the madeleines in the melted chocolate and sprinkle loose early grey tea and lemon zest. Enjoy with a nice cup of tea.
Pretty in pink! These cupcakes are just delightful; a joy to make and almost too pretty to eat! Don’t worry, I somehow managed to eat them 😀
The inspiration for these cupcakes was my birthday. Who says it has to be birthday cake? It’s my birthday and I’ll have cupcakes if I want to 😊 I was also pretty sure strawberries and cream would be a hit with my friends (of course they were!). The secret for packing in loads of flavour and for the pink colour is using freeze dried strawberries powder in the no-butter cream. A game changer.
So if you are planning a garden party, a tea party or just want a sweet treat, give them a go. Remember to tag @apinchofzing on Instagram if you make these beauties.
Cupcake ingredients 1 cup soy milk 1 teaspoon cider vinegar or lemon juice 2 cups plain flour 2 teaspoons baking powder ¼ teaspoon baking soda ½ cup sugar a pinch of salt 1 cup chopped strawberries ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons rapeseed oil 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Method 1. Preheat the oven to 190C. Line a cupcake baking tray with cupcake cases. 2. Heat up the soy milk for 30 seconds in the microwave and add the cider vinegar. Leave to curdle and move to the next step. 3. In a large bowl mix the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt). Mix in the chopped strawberries. 4. Add in the wet ingredients (curdled milk, oil and vanilla extract) and gently mix together, trying not to break the fruit. Don’t overmix. 5. Place a large tablespoon of the mixture to each cupcake case and split any excess left between them. 6. Bake for 20 minutes. Leave the cupcakes to cool down completely before decorating with no-butter cream. 7. To make the no-butter cream, use a stand mixer to cream the vegan spread with sifted icing sugar, sifted freeze dried strawberries powder and vanilla extract. Mix until pale and fluffy (about 5 minutes on high speed). Add more freeze dried strawberry powder if you like. 8. Pipe the strawberry cream on top of the cupcakes and enjoy.
The inspiration for this recipe comes from my mother-in-law, who makes the BEST trifle every year for Christmas. My version is a summer trifle; full of raspberries, zesty lemon and gin! Making a trifle takes a bit of time and planning, but it’s so worth it for a special occasion.
I can’t compete with my mother-in-law’s trifle, but I have learnt that planning is key for a good trifle. Therefore, I am including a timeline to help you achieve this wonderful dessert without any stress. I start making the trifle two days in advance of the big day. This way I spread the workload, give the trifle time to set and spend more time with my guests on the day.
The ingredients below will be enough to make a big trifle. My trifle bowl is a medium size (18cm wide and 12cm deep), so I always have left over ingredients. I end up mixing any left over ingredients in another small bowl to make a mini trifle 😊
I hope you enjoy this dessert. Remember to tag @apinchofzing on Instagram if you give it a try.
Trifle elements 2 x sponge layers (I made raspberry and lemon muffins) 150ml gin liqueur (I used grapefruit and elderflower gin liqueur) 1 portion of home made lemon curd about half a jar (160g) of raspberry jam 2 x custard layers (I used 525ml Alpro custard) Whipped cream (made with 270ml of Elmlea plant double cream) Fresh raspberries (about 225g)
Planning
Day 1 Start by making the muffins to use for the sponge layer; this gives them plenty of time to cool down. Also make the lemon curd on day 1, as this needs time to cool down and set. Day 2 This is when you can finish making the trifle, to give it enough time to set in the fridge overnight, in preparation for the big day. All you have left to do before assembling the trifle is to make the whipped cream and mix the elements to make the two custard layers. Worry not, I use shop bought Alpro custard at this stage. Day 3 Today is the big day. Time to enjoy this wonderful trifle 😊
Step 1. Make the raspberry and lemon muffins (makes 12 muffins)
Ingredients 1 cup soy milk 1 teaspoon cider vinegar or lemon juice 2 cups plain flour 2 teaspoons baking powder ¼ teaspoon baking soda ½ cup sugar a pinch of salt zest from one lemon 1 cup raspberries ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons rapeseed oil ½ teaspoon vanilla extract ½ teaspoon lemon extract
Method 1. Preheat the oven to 190C. Line a muffin baking tray with muffin cases. 2. Heat up the milk for 30 seconds in the microwave and add the cider vinegar. Leave to curdle and move to the next step. 3. In a large bowl mix the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt, lemon zest). Mix in the raspberries. 4. Add in the wet ingredients (curdled milk, oil, vanilla and lemon extract) and gently mix together, trying not to break the fruit. 5. Place a large tablespoon of the mixture to each muffin case and split any excess left between them. 6. Bake for 20 minutes and leave to cool down. The muffins stay fresh for a few days in an air tight container.
Step 2. Make the lemon curd
Ingredients ½ cup sugar 1 tablespoon corn flour 1/2 cup soy milk ¼ cup lemon juice (about 2 lemons) zest from one lemon a pinch of turmeric for colour
Method Use a small pot. Mix the sugar and corn flour; this will prevent any flour lumps from forming when cooking the curd. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook on low heat, while constantly whisking, until the curd thickens. Should take about 5 minutes for the curd to thicken. The curd will thicken more as it cools down. Store in a jar with a lid on.
Step 3. Make the whipped cream
Ingredients 270ml Elmlea plant double cream 3 tablespoons sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Method 1. Add all the ingredients in a large bowl and whisk with an electric mixer on high speed until the cream thickens and forms stiff peaks. Cover and store in the fridge until ready to use.
Step 4. Make the custard layers
Ingredients Alpro custard (525ml) half of the lemon curd made in Step 2 3 tablespoons whipped cream made at Step 3
Method Custard layer 1: Pour the Alpro custard in a medium size bowl and mix it with half of the lemon curd made at Step 2. Mix until combined. Custard layer 2: Pour half of the Custard layer 1 in another medium size bowl and mix with 3 tablespoons of the whipped cream made at Step 3. Mix until combined. This will end up looking like a light mousse.
Step 5. Layer the trifle You are now ready to assemble the trifle 😊 1. Cut the muffins in half horizontally. Layer enough muffin pieces to cover the bottom of your trifle bowl. Soak each muffin piece with about a tablespoon of gin liqueur. 2. Spread a thin layer of lemon curd and one of raspberry jam. 3. Spoon over a layer of the Custard number 2 and top with a handful of fresh raspberries. 4. Add another layer of muffin pieces soaked in gin liqueur. 5. Spread another thin layer of lemon curd and one of raspberry jam. 6. Spoon over a layer of the Custard number 1. 7. Pipe whipped cream on top and decorate with more fresh raspberries. 8. Cover and leave in the fridge overnight to set. Enjoy the next day!
This is what I think autumn tastes like: sweet pumpkin and Chai spices! With autumn here, I get a bit overwhelmed by the amount of pumpkin recipes popping up everywhere I look, making it hard for me to choose one to bake. Therefore, I started simple using inspiration from two reliable sources: Nora cooks vegan and Sally’s baking addiction. The result was delicious! So if you are looking for a pumpkin recipe to start with, go with this one. Embrace autumn! What other pumpkin baked goods have you made successfully and would recommend?
Ingredients
Pumpkin cake 1 tablespoon ground flax seed or chia seed 1 can pumpkin puree (425g) 1 and ¼ cup brown sugar ½ cup rapeseed oil ¼ cup soy milk 1 and ¾ cup plain flour 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda ½ teaspoon baking powder 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
Chai spice mix 2 and ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon 1 and ¼ teaspoon ground ginger 1 and ¼ teaspoon ground cardamon ½ teaspoon ground all spice
Method 1. Preheat the oven to 180 C. Line a 2 lb loaf tin with Flora and coat in flour. 2. In a small bowl, mix the ground flaxseed with 3 tablespoons of water and leave to set. 3. In a large bowl mix the pumpkin puree, sugar, oil, soy milk and flaxseed mix. 4. Add and mix in the four, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder and spices. Do not over mix. 5. Pour the batter in the loaf tin and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. You may have to cover the cake with aluminium foil after 30 minutes, to prevent it from burning on top. 6. Once baked, remove from the cake tin and leave to cool down. 7. Mix the Chai spice ingredients in small bowl or jar. 8. To make the no-butter cream, use a stand mixer to cream the Flora with sifted icing sugar, 1 teaspoon Chai spice mix and vanilla extract. Mix until pale and fluffy (about 5 minutes on high speed). 9. Pipe the Chai butter cream on top of the cold pumpkin cake and enjoy with a warm cup of coffee.
The taste of summer: lemon and blueberry scones.
Delicious, moist and bursting with flavour!
My go to scones are the traditional English scones, which are just amazing with clotted cream and strawberry jam.
However, this year’s beautiful summer inspired me to make the scones playful, with fresh blueberries and zesty lemon. I also went for a different shape, inspired by the American style scones.
Topped with blueberry and lemon glaze for extra zing!
Top tip for the blueberry glaze: if you don’t happen to have freeze dried blueberry powder laying around, crush some fresh blueberries and use the blueberry juice instead of the lemon juice. That will give the glaze the lovely purple colour.
Have fun making these scones and enjoy them with a nice cup of tea 🙂
Ingredients
Scones
175ml soy milk + a splash for glazing
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
350g self raising flour + a handful for rolling
1 teaspoon baking powder
a pinch of salt
1 lemon (zest)
85g Flora spread
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup blueberries
Lemon glaze 50 icing sugar (sifted)
4-5 teaspoons lemon juice
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 220C. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
2. Heat up the milk for 30 seconds in the microwave. Add the cider vinegar and vanilla extract. Leave to curdle and move to the next step.
3. In a large bowl mix the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the Flora spread with a teaspoon to break it down into smaller chunks. Rub in with your fingers until the mixture looks like fine crumbs. Stir in the sugar and lemon zest. Pour in the milk and mix with a knife until it all comes together. Yes, a mix with a knife, trust me.
4. Scatter flour on a work surface, tip the dough and fold in the blueberries. Fold 2-3 times until the dough comes together. Don’t overwork the dough. Roll the dough into a circle, about 4cm deep. Cut it like a pizza, in 8 triangles, using a knife dipped in flour.
5. Place the scones on the baking tray, brush the tops with soy milk and bake for 10 minutes.
6. To make the lemon and raspberry glaze, mix the ingredients in a small bowl. Drizzle over the cool scones and decorate with more blueberries and lemon zest. Enjoy with a cuppa!
The best carrot cake! Filled with sugar and spice, and all things nice.
You can tell this cake is special only by looking the ingredient list. It took some testing to get right, but it was worth it. The result is a surprisingly light and moist carrot cake. My inspiration came from my indecision; I couldn’t decide between hummingbird cake and carrot cake. Why compromise when you can have the best of both worlds?
This carrot cake packs a lot of flavour and is perfect with a cup of tea. The recipe makes two sponges, which you can stack together to make a big cake, or you can keep them as two separate cakes. I’ve included photos of both options.
Give this a go and let me know what you think. Have you ever had a better carrot cake?
Ingredients Carrot cake 250g carrots (finely grated) 2 pineapple rings (chopped) 70g walnuts (chopped) 1 orange (zest only) 2 tablespoons crystallised ginger (optional) 125ml oil 100g caster sugar 50g brown sugar 300ml plant milk 2 tsp vanilla essence 375g plain flour 2 tsp baking powder 1 ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda 2 tsp ground cinnamon 1 tsp ground nutmeg 1 tsp ground ginger 1 tsp all spice a pinch of salt
Preheat the oven to 180 C. Grease with Flora, and coat in flour, two 20cm round cake tins.
Prep work: peel and finely grate the carrots; chop the pineapple rings; chop the walnuts; zest an orange; soak the crystallised ginger in hot water.
In a large bowl mix the oil, caster sugar, brown sugar, plant milk and vanilla essence.
Sift in the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and spices. Mix until combined.
Stir in the grated carrot, chopped pineapple & walnuts, the zest from one orange, crystallised ginger and a pinch of salt.
Divide the batter between the two cake tins and bake for 25-30 minutes. Check with a toothpick, as every oven is different. Once baked, remove the sponges from the cake tins and leave to cool down completely.
To make the no-butter cream, use a stand mixer to cream the Flora with sifted icing sugar and vanilla extract. Mix until pale and fluffy (about 5 minutes on high speed).
To assemble the cake: pipe some no-butter cream on one sponge and place the second sponge on top. Decorate with more butter cream. Enjoy a big slice with a cup of tea!
Simplicity is perfection. Delicate oat biscuits with only the best peanut butter and raspberry jam. So simple, yet so satisfying. These crunchy biscuits are great with a cup of tea and can be enjoyed plain or with your favourite toppings. Peanut butter and jelly is a classic combo and I simply can’t get enough of the Whole Earth peanut butter. What is your favourite peanut butter? Made with only a few basic ingredients, these biscuits are far from basic. They remind me of the Nature Valley nut butter biscuits. Who doesn’t like a home made copycat biscuit? 🙂 Give them a go and let me know what you think.
Ingredients
75g wholemeal flour
75g oats
50g sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
75g Flora buttery
1 tablespoon Golden Syrup
2 tablespoons soy milk
Method 1. Line two baking trays with baking parchment and pre-heat the oven to 160C. 2. In a medium size bowl, mix the dry ingredients (wholemeal flour, oats, sugar and baking powder). 3. In a small microwave safe bowl, add the Flora buttery, Golden Syrup and soy milk. Microwave for 30 seconds intervals and mix after each 30 seconds, until Flora buttery is melted and turns into liquid. It took me two 30 seconds intervals. 4. Add the melted ingredients over the dry ingredients and mix until combined. I used a spoon to mix the ingredients. 5. Use a teaspoon of batter for each biscuit. Place on the baking tray and flatten (the biscuits will puff a bit during baking). Leave space between the biscuits as they will also spread during baking. 6. Bake for 12 minutes or until golden. Leave to cool down before trying to remove them from the tray. The biscuits will become solid as they cool down. Enjoy with a lovely cup of tea!
Pretty in pink and delicious! These muffins are incredibly fluffy and full of flavour, but also super easy to make.
I baked these muffins for a girls only garden party (socially distanced of course). None of my friends are vegan, but you can’t go wrong with raspberries and white chocolate. The pink colour is all natural, it comes from the freeze dried raspberry powder. The freeze dried raspberry powder does not only look pretty, but also adds a lot of flavour; therefore, I strongly recommend that you use it (I bought mine online).
This combination is a real hit, but the options are endless. I made another batch with raspberries and dark chocolate chunks; a real treat with coffee. The only downside is that once you start making these muffins you won’t be able to stop. I must warn you, it happened to me! I sometimes make a healthier version and replace part of the plain flour with wholemeal and add some flax seeds.
I hope you enjoy these beautiful muffins 😊 I’d love to see your creations, so remember to tag @apinchofzing on Instagram if you try them.
Ingredients
1 cup soy milk 1 teaspoon cider vinegar or lemon juice 2 cups plain flour 2 teaspoons baking powder ¼ teaspoon baking soda ½ cup sugar 1 cup raspberries ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons rapeseed oil 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 50g vegan white chocolate 1 tablespoon freeze dried raspberry powder
Method 1. Preheat the oven to 190C. Line a muffin baking tray with muffin liners. 2. Heat up the milk for 30 seconds in the microwave and add the cider vinegar. Leave to curdle and move to the next step. 3. In a large bowl mix the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar). Mix in the raspberries. 4. Add in the wet ingredients (curdled milk, oil and vanilla) and gently mix together, trying not to break the fruit. 5. Place a large tablespoon of the mixture to each muffin liner and split any excess left between them. 6. Bake for 20 minutes and leave to cool down completely, before moving to the next step. 7. Break the chocolate and add it to a small microwave safe bowl. Heat the chocolate in the microwave for 15 seconds intervals, mixing each time, until fully melted. Mix some of the freeze dried raspberry powder with the melted chocolate and drizzle over the muffins. Dust the muffins with the leftover freeze dried raspberry powder and enjoy the pink goodness!
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