Go sucanat

I want a sucanat inspired recipe that is sure to wow, and I think I've found it!

Hearty Vegan Meals for Monster Appetites has come to my rescue once again with: Pina Colada French Toast with Candied Macadamia Nuts. The intro for this recipe reads: "If you top this already crazy good brunch item with vegan whipping cream, you will get marriage proposals. (We apologize in advance if you aren't actually looking to get hitched.)"

Well I guess I'm not marriage material because I tried to make coconut milk whipping cream and I failed. :( Still an extremely delicious dish even without the whipping cream.

Pina Colada French Toast with Candied Macadamia Nuts

Rum Syrup:
1 cup sucanat
1/4 cup dark rum or nondairy milk
1/2 rum extract if using nondairy milk
1/3 cup water
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower the hear, and cook until the sucanat dissolves. Set aside. Let cool completely. Extra may be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Candied Macadamia Nuts:
1/4 cup sucanat
2 tbsp water
1 cup macadamia nuts
Pinch of sea salt

Place the sucanat, water, nuts, and salt in a saucepan. Heat over medium-high, bring to a low boil, and cook for about 4 minutes. Stir constantly, lowering the heat to medium, until the nuts get some colour to them. Remove from the heat. Set aside.

For the French Toast:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 tbsp sucanat
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
Pinch of fine sea salt
1 cup coconut milk
Stale French bread cut into 1-inch slices
Nondairy butter for frying

In a shallow dish, combine the flour, sucanat, cinnamon, and salt. Whisk in the milk until mostly smooth. Let stand for a few minutes.

Heat a pan over medium-high heat. Dip the bread, 1 slice at a time, into the batter. You just want a thin layer of the batter on the bread.

Melt a pat of butter in the pan. Cook the toast until golden and crispy, about 2 minutes on each side. Repeat with the remaining slices.

Serve the French toast topped with fresh pineapple slices, a drizzle of rum syrup, and a sprinkle of candied nuts. If you have whipped cream... you know what to do.


For those of you who don't know what sucanat is:

 

Sucanat sugar is dried sugar cane juice that is much healthier to use when baking versus white, refined and processed sugar. Sucanat has a smaller proportion of sucrose, fewer calories and is loaded with vitamins and minerals.  

You can read more about sucanat at http://www.livinghealthymom.com/sucanat-benefits/

Donuts on a Diet

I thought it was kind of ridiculous that I curled up with my 21 - Day Kick Start book along with a plate of donuts, but whatever. I haven't officially kick started yet, and I'm just reading up on the things that will need to change. Since I've been reading the book I've already started loosing weight again, so I thought I deserved a little treat.

The 21-Day Kick Start book is kind of geared towards meat eaters that are looking to get healthy. It suggests going vegan and explains the many benefits of doing so. It goes into why the vegan diet is better, completely based on health reasons and not guilt tripping about animal rights. It talks about how this is really how we should be eating for the rest of our lives, but focuses on just getting started and then working from there.

The basic guidelines are surprisingly simple: "You'll want to emphasize whole grains, vegetables, fruits, and legumes, and all the wonderful foods made from them, and to skip animal products, oily foods, and high-glycemic-index foods (sugar, white/whole wheat bread, white potatoes and most cold cereals)"

I thought a couple of the things I read today were really interesting, and will also help me with some of the questions that I get.

Number one question: Aren't you going to be lacking nutrients (protein, calcium, iron)?

Protein: Plant proteins are not only free of animal fat and cholesterol they are also free of two problems cause by animal proteins.
1. Animal protein is linked to osteoporosis because it causes the kidneys to lose calcium in the urine.
2. Animal protein is linked to gradual loss of kidney function.

If you have a normal variety of grains, legumes, vegetables and fruits, you'll easily get all the protein you need. If you are looking for a more protein dense diet, make sure you get lots of beans and bean products such as tofu, tempeh, soy milk, and vegan deli slices.

Calcium: The most healthful sources of calcium are green leafy vegetables and legumes. Broccoli, brussels sprouts, kale, collards, and other greens are loaded with calcium, and their absorption fraction is higher than that of milk. There is also plenty of calcium in beans, as well as in fortified juices and soy milk. Cows milk tends to skew nutrition in the wrong direction. If you get your calcium from milk, you miss the beta-carotene, iron and fiber that vegetables would bring you. and you would get fat, cholesterol, and animal protein, none of which the body needs.

Iron: Plants carry iron in a special form, called non-hem iron, it is more absorbable when your body is low in iron and less absorbable when your body has plenty of iron already. That allows your body to regulate how much iron it takes in. Meats carry iron in a different form, called heme iron, which tends to be highly absorbed whether you need it or not. That's not good, because iron can be harmful, if you get too much of it.

Also interesting tidbit mentioned about eggs: Did you know that one Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese has 155 milligrams of cholesterol? Guess how much one large egg has: 212!!! And I know I would eat 2 or 3 eggs. Shocking.

If you want to check out the book, you can find more information here: www.21daykickstart.org

Anyways. On to Donuts!!
I really wanted to make a recipe for Bacon Maple Glazed Donuts, but the recipe called for the donuts to be deep-fried so I opted for the healthier recipe:

Baked Cinnamon Sugar Doughnut Holes

Wet ingredients:
1/2 cup non-dairy milk
3/4 cup vanilla flavored soy yogurt (I didn't have any so I added 1 tsp of vanilla and a smidge extra sugar.)
1/4 cup non-dairy butter
1/4 cup sugar
Heat in saucepan till the sugar is dissolve. Make sure mixture is only lukewarm before adding to the dry ingredients or you'll kill your yeast.

Dry ingredients:
2 1/2 cups  flour
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
In a large bowl combine the dry ingredients. When wet mixture has cooled to a lukewarm temperature you can add and mix. Need the dough lightly till combined and form into a ball. Let stand in a warm room for 1 hour.

Cinnamon Sugar:
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp ground cinnamon

In a muffin tin coat the cups with cooking spray. Sprinkle 1 tsp of the cinnamon sugar mixture into the bottom of each cup and shake the pan to coat the sides. Divide the dough into the twelve cups and then cover the tops with 1 tsp of cinnamon sugar mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for another 40 minutes.

Pre-heat oven to 375. Bake for 20 min. (If using those cute little doughnut pans (Thanks Jackie), only bake for 10-15 minutes.)