chocolate coconut donuts (soy and dairy free)

i was going to wait a bit before posting these donuts, but i decided there are much worse things in the world then back to back donut posts. and for those of you tired of fried things, don't despair, homemade seitan's coming up next!

donut ingredients:

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1 cup cake flour (unbleached if possible)

1/4 cup unsweetened dutch processed cocoa powder

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 large egg

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup of coconut milk

1 tablespoon soy free earth balance, melted*

1 tsp vanilla extract

canola oil for frying

glaze ingredients:

1 tablespoon water

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/3 cup coconut milk

4 tablespoons soy free earth balance*

4 oz dark chocolate, finely chopped (i used theo's because it didn't contain dairy or soy lecithin)

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

for the donuts: in a large bowl, beat together the egg and 1/2 cup of sugar until pale and creamy. add the coconut milk, melted earth balance, and vanilla and mix well. sift the flours, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt directly into the wet mixture and mix until just combined. cover and refrigerate for as least half an hour, but no longer than an hour.

in the meantime, prepare a deep fryer (or heavy saute pan) with canola oil set to 360 F, arrange a floured work space for rolling out the dough, and line a cookie sheet with paper towels to absorb excess oil from the fried donuts. 

once the donut dough is ready to roll out, roll it 1/2 an inch thick and cut out donuts and holes with a 3 inch diameter cutter or circles. fry in batches of 2-5 (depending on how large the surface area of your oil is) for 1 1/2 minutes, then flip and fry for an additional minute. allow the oil to return to 360 F between batches to prevent soggy donuts. 

while the donuts are frying (or immediately after they've finished) begin the glaze by combining the tablespoon of water and 2 tablespoons of sugar in a small sauce pan over medium-high heat. when the sugar has completely dissolved, but not yet begun to boil, add the coconut milk and earth balance. when the mixture is hot, but not boiling, remove it from the heat and add the finely chopped chocolate. allow the chocolate 30 seconds or so to heat up before stirring the mixture. once all the chocolate is incorporated, add the vanilla. allow the glaze to thicken for about 20 minutes before dipping the donuts. 

this is a good time to toast the coconut. i used a toaster oven because it's such a small amount of coconut and it's easier to monitor. if using an oven, set it to 325 F and allow the coconut to toast in a single even layer for about 7 minutes or until lightly golden.

when the glaze has thickened, dip the donuts on their flatter sides and sprinkle with toasted coconut flakes. serve immediately : )

*butter or regular earth balance can be substituted

roasted acorn squash quiche with spinach and peas

photo by mike. thanks mike : )

my nephew is most likely lactose intolerant which means that my sister has to avoid dairy while nursing. while this isn't exactly life altering, it has been pretty difficult and as a result, i've been experimenting with dairy-free recipes. when i saw a similar recipe for a pumpkin quiche, i thought it would just be cruel to make something so exciting and not be able to share the product, and so dairy-free quiche filled our hearts and bellies.

ingredients (for 2 quiche):

1 medium to large acorn squash, seeded and sliced, but not peeled (the peel will come off easily after roasting)
1 medium yellow onion, sliced
5-7 cloves garlic, peeled
2 tablespoons olive oil
9 eggs
1 8 oz package tofutti
1 cup unsweetened soy milk
1 tablespoon stone-ground mustard
2 tablespoons fresh chives, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
1-2 cups frozen spinach, thawed to a point where it is easily handleable
apx 1 cup frozen peas, same as spinach
1/3-1/2 cup earth balance, melted
12-16 sheets filo dough
bread crumbs for dusting (less that 1/4 cup)
salt and pepper to taste

preheat oven to 375 F.

dress the squash, onion, and garlic with the olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. roast for apx 40 minutes, until squash is tender and slightly brown.

while the veggies are roasting, you can prepare the egg mixture and filo crust. for a more textured filling, you can simply mix the eggs, tofutti, soy milk, chives, cilantro, thyme, mustard, salt and pepper together. for a smoother filling, you can first mix the tofutti and soy milk together to eliminate all of the tofutti chunks, then add the rest of the ingredients.
for the crust, begin by brushing a pie or tart tin with melted butter and layering sheet of filo dough upon the base. brush the layer with butter, sprinkle with bread crumbs (to prevent the next layer from sticking if it is accidentally mis-laid), and repeat with 5-7 additional layers, bunching the dough along the edges to prevent the eggy filling from spilling outwards. make sure to brush the final layer with butter, but at this point, the bread crumbs are no longer necessary.

when the roasted veggies have cooled enough to handle, you can easily peel the squash and arrange chunks within the prepared crusts, along with onions and garlic. upon the roasted veggies, you can sprinkle a layer of peas and another of spinach. to finish the quiche, you can ladle the egg mixture evenly between the two crusts and smooth over the tops. bake for 35-40 minutes or until the filling has set, and broil the tops if necessary.

this quiche is much lighter than a typical quiche because of the lack of cream and cheese, but it is still complemented nicely by a fresh salad.

enjoy : )