Category: holiday

Banana Black Pepper Muffins

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This experiment was inspired by aromas. I really love the smell of black pepper. I find it so complex and full of twists and turns. Bananas too have an intestong aroma that evolves wih the ripeness of the fruit. The best bananas for breads and muffins are the ones that almost squish out of the dark peel; a banana rarely eaten in the same way that a bright yellow banana is eaten. The result of my current curiosity sounds like something from a spell book. Grab the squishy brown bananas, and black pepper and take these charming muffins to a Halloween party. If you want to creep people out a little, up the amount of black pepper by a smidge.

Yields 12 standard size muffins. You’ll need a muffin tin and muffin cups if desired.

Banana Black Pepper Muffins

  • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 3/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 3/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
  • 3/4 c cane sugar
  • 2 T brown sugar
  • 3 ripe bananas, mashed
  • 1/3 cup oil
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • kosher salt and more cane sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. If not using muffins cups, spray muffin tin with cooking spray. Measure dry ingredients (flour-black pepper) into a medium bowl, and whisk to combine. In another bowl, combine sugars through vanilla and whisk together. Add banana mixture to the flour mixture and gently fold until combined. Scoop batter into muffin cups. Sprinkle a little kosher salt and cane sugar ontop of muffins, then bake. Check muffins after 20 minutes. When you can really smell the muffins and a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, remove them from the oven and allow to cool.

Vegan Peppermint Chocolate Mousse

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This is an easy, festive, dessert that even non vegans will love. The base is tofu but it’s so chocolatey and minty, you’d never guess.

individual dish of vegan peppermint chocolate mousse garnished with crushed candy cane

You will need a blender or food processor to make this recipe. The recipe below makes 4 dainty servings. You could easily double it to make more, but I would make it in two batches to prevent over filling a food processor or not blending evenly.

  • 2 candy canes
  • 1 block of silken tofu
  • 1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice (this takes away some of the tofu flavor)
  • 1/4 cup natural cane sugar
  • 1/4 cup + 2 T quality cocoa powder
  • 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips, melted
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/4 tsp peppermint extract
  • roughly 1/4 tsp kosher salt

Start by crushing the candy canes and setting aside. These will be used to garnish the final product. Next, drain the liquid from the block of tofu. Place the tofu, lemon juice, and sugar in a blender or food processor. Blend thoroughly, stoping to scrape down sides occasionally, until tofu is uniformly smooth. Next add cocoa-salt and blend more, scraping down sides to ensure even blending. This can be served right away, or placed in a container with a tight fitting lid and refrigerated until ready to use. Do not garnish with crushed candy canes until ready to serve.

eggnog ice cream

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All the holiday cheer, you hate to drink, frozen into a cool Christmas ice cream.

This recipe does require an ice cream maker, which I recommend getting. The container of the ice cream maker will need to be frozen before starting the base. It will take about 30 minutes to make the ice cream base, but that base mixture needs to be refrigerated over night before pouring into the ice cream maker. Plan on a two day process. Once in the ice cream maker it takes roughly 30-45 minutes but check your maker’s directions. This is an alcohol free recipe. I used Southern Comfort’s brand of eggnog which does not contain alcohol but tastes like there is some flavor in there. You could add booze to your base recipe but it will effect the freezing temp, so be aware of that. If you add to many gluggs, it might not freeze at all.

  • 2 cups eggnog
  • 1 cup of 2% milk
  • 1/2 cup natural cane sugar
  • 1/8 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 4 egg yolks

Separate egg yolks into a medium bowl. You do not need the whites so save them for breakfast. Add vanilla to yolks and set aside. In a small sauce pan, combine eggnog through nutmeg. Over medium-low heat warm milk, whisking to dissolve sugar. Be careful not to scorch milk mixture, watch the temperature of the stove and gently raise the temperature until warmed and sugar has dissolved. With whisk in hand, gently pour a small amount of milk into egg yolks, while whisking. Slowly add more milk, whisking, until you have added about 1/3 of the milk into the egg yolks. This is “tempering” the egg yolks. You are slowly warming them to prevent making scrambled eggs. Now pour the warmed yolks back into the pan, whisking. Using a rubber spatula, scrape any remaining yolk into the pan. Whisk the milk and egg mixture on the stove over medium heat. You want to warm the milk to about 160 degrees, and the mixture should coat the back of the spoon. Once this is achieved, remove pan from the heat and allow to cool. Once the mixture has cooled, place the mixture into a container and refrigerate over night. The next day, pour mixture into ice cream maker and mix until ice cream has formed. Eat right away or transfer into a container with a well fitting lid and freeze. Cheers! Happy Holidays!

Butternut Squash and Shaved Brussel Sprout Salad

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Another salad to lighten up the holiday table. Cheese can be left out to make this a vegan friendly dish to share and it’s also gluten free. Can be made a day before but not dressed and served at room temperature to optimize oven space; adding dressing and toppings just before serving.

Butternut Squash and Brussel Sprout Salad. Gluten free healthy side dish option for the holidays.
  • 1 # brussel sprouts (cooking spray)
  • 1 medium butternut squash
  • 3-4 stalks of celery, sliced
  • 1/3 pumpkin seeds
  • 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
  • 1/4 cup cider vinegar
  • 2 T olive oil
  • 1 1/2 T maple syrup
  • 1 tsp miso paste
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. With a sharp knife, remove the ends of the squash. Cut the squash in half where the round end starts to straighten out. Using the knife, carefully remove the outer skin of both halves. Cut the round end in half long ways, and remove seeds. Cut the squash into 1/2″ pieces and place in a bowl. Toss with a little oil and salt then spread onto a foil lined baking sheet. Roast squash for 15-20 minutes, checking and removing from the oven before it gets mushy. While squash is cooking, remove the tough ends of the brussel sprouts and slice thinly, placing in a bowl as you go. In batches, cook sliced brussels in cooking spray over medium heat, in a large non stick pan, just until tender. Set aside when finished. Wipe out the pan and place pumpkin seeds in a dry pan, toasting just until they begin to pop. Remove from pan and set aside. To make the dressing combine cider vinegar through salt in a bowl or blender and mix or blend until well combined. When all components are done. Place squash, brussel sprouts, and celery in a large bowl and toss with dressing. Once that is in it’s serving bowl. Top with pumpkin seeds and crumbled cheese. Salad can be served at room temperature but wait until just before serving to add dressing.