#megan rascal

So my friend Townes Van Dogt is staying with me for the week and I decided to make her vegan pupsicles! She’s not vegan and I know a lot of other dogs aren’t either but that doesn’t mean they can’t have a vegan treat!

I was inspired by this awesome site I found, Doggy Dessert Chef. It has a ton of fun recipes for treats and pupsicles and you can even sort just to see the vegan ones! The site doesn’t have this exact combination of flavors that I know Townes likes so I just kind of jumbled it together loosely using some of the recipes as a reference. And the Doggy Dessert Chef had the brilliant idea to use bully sticks in place of a popsicle stick so I found these great vegan jerky sticks by Whimzees to use in mine! Worked like a charm! 

Also if you’re looking for a pop mold, I highly recommend this one from Zoku. You can pull each pop mold out individually to run under warm water when your pup is ready for one. 

Now, the instructions! This made 4 pops in that Zoku mold.

Ingredients:
water
¼ cup unsalted peanut butter* 
1 ripe banana
coconut oil** 

*preferably raw. And the internet says make sure it doesn’t have the artificial sweetener xylitol bc it’s extremely toxic to dogs. See more dog safety tips for pb here. 

**read about the many health benefits of coconut oil for dogs here! Also note that it says start slow when introducing coconut oil to your pup; Townes already eats a bit every day but if your pup doesn’t, you can just top your pops off with a little to start. The guide says to introduce it by starting at a ¼ teaspoon a day for small dogs or puppies, and 1 teaspoon for big dogs. So you could just top each pop off with the right amount based on your doggo’s size. 

Directions:
Take your peanut butter and mix in some water–between ½ cup and a cup (though I eyeballed it tbh). Just add a little at a time until it gets to a smooth soupy consistency. Distribute it evenly in your pop molds.

Next you take a sheet of tinfoil and place it over your molds, then stick a jerky stick into each mold. The tinfoil will keep them from falling over. I pierced a little hold over each mold to get the stick in. Freeze for ½ an hour.

Now mash your banana and mix it with about ¼ to ½ cup of water. You could also mix this in a blender but I had a nice ripe banana and just mashed it with a potato masher. 

Next, get your pop mold out and take the tinfoil off, the sticks should stand on their own now. Pour your banana mush in each mold over top of the peanut butter. Freeze for another ½ hour.

Finally you just top each off with some coconut oil! If your coconut oil is too solidified, I would microwave it for a little and then let it cool to room temp, it should still be liquid. Freeze for several hours; Doggy Dessert Chef says 8…I got impatient around 4…oopsies  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Here is Townes enjoying the final product!!!:

I am IN LOVE with the latest beauty box from Love Goodly! It’s got lots of full-size stuff like this bomb ass Everlasting lipstick from Kat Von D:

It’s SUCH a pretty color! I’m obsessed. The nail polish is a fun color. My most favorite item is probably the hair tie though lulz bc I lost all my hair ties and you KNOW I never wash my hair so I stay in ponytails ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

But the best thing about the June/July box? It benefits Farm Sanctuary!!!!

I was sent this box to try out for free but you can order it on their site now. The box cost $29.95 with a retail value of $89. 

Creeper eyeing my box. Not for you, Dolores!

You may be asking yourself, wtf is Crostini-a-Go-Go? Well it’s a recipe I invented when I was a wee pre-vegan lass. It’s crostini that you eat like nachos! I used to make it with brie so when I went vegan, I never made it again…until now! I haven’t found the perfect vegan “brie” yet but you know I love Punk Rawk Labs cheese so I decided to use that. It obvi doesn’t melt like brie…which is part of the point of Crostini-a-Go-Go…but the flavor was perf so I was pleased with the results. The recipe sounds kind of involved but it’s really not that difficult; there are a few diff parts but each is super easy to do. Here’s what it consists of (though there’s plenty of room to make your own variations!):

Crostini
Apple Compote
Berry Compote
Soft Vegan Nut Cheese
Pecans

So, let’s get to cooking!

Ok so it all starts with crostini:

Crostini:

1 baguette
olive oil
salt+pepper

Heat an oven to 350. Slice your baguette into thin rounds. Arrange them on a rimmed baking sheet, brush both sides with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 15-20 mins, turning the cookie sheet halfway through. 

Next! You make the apple compote (there’s a berry compote too but the apple takes longer to cook so do that first)!

Apple Compote:

3 or 4 apples (I like granny smith for this–not too sweet)
¼ cup sugar (roughly)
1 Tbs lemon juice (roughly)
pinch of cinnamon

Peel and chop your apples into 1 inch cubes. Or whatever it doesn’t much matter. Then put all your ingredients in a pot. Cover and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally until the apples are tender (looks like mush tbqh), about 30 mins. 

Next, you make a berry compote! I really prefer cranberries but I could not find any in this season! Not even frozen! So I did raspberries. They were yum. You can do whatever berry you like or heck, go crazy and make a mixed berry compote! It’s your world, squirrel! 

Raspberry Compote:

Bag of frozen raspberries (you can use fresh, just google any recipe)
½ cup sugar
3 Tbsp lemon juice

Put all of the ingredients in a pot and cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes. It’ll be like a sauce or syrup p much, not as thick as the apple compote. 

While all this is cooking, you can chop your pecans (almond slivers would be nice too tbqh).

And like I said, I used Punk Rawk Labs cheese but any soft nut cheese should be good. If you know of a yummy melty vegan brie, do tell! Because that would really seal the deal here. 

Once you have all the crostini accessories ready, it’s time to put it all together! Break out a baking dish (I just use a square cake dish–you want something with sides) and layer your crostini. Then spoon your apple compote over it. Then drizzle the berry compote layer. Next you dollop the cheese on top. And finally, your pecans! 

The final step: turn on your broiler and broil your Crostini-a-Go-Go for about 5 minutes. Maybe more, but keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn! You want it a bit toasty but since the cheese won’t melt anyway, you don’t have to wait for that. 

TA DA! Vegan Crostini-a-Go-Go! Now, gather your friends and dig in! You will be the hit of the party!

Hi friends! Long time no see. Moving along, Nature’s Charm sent me some free cans of their Banana Blossom (you can buy on Amazon usually but seems to be out at the moment…), Young Green Jackfruit, Jackfruit Confit, and Sriracha Green Jackfruit. The confit and sriracha jackfruit are delish and ready to go right outta the can. But for the banana blossom, I had big plans in mind!

That’s the can. And Dolores. 

So this is the first I heard of banana blossom. But it’s typically used in South Asian and Southeast Asian Cuisine. Here’s a little more info on the background and health benefits, and if you want to see the plant pre-can, Vegan Miam did a great post of that. 

I searched around for a banana blossom fish and chips recipe but really couldn’t find that many…and then like a week later! Carrots and Flowers did this perfect recipe in conjunction with Nature’s Charm. So I’ll tell you the hodgepodge recipes I used but you should probably just use theirs because it’s basically the same, just all in one place.

First I rinsed the banana blossoms. They look and feel kind of like a mix between artichoke hearts and jackfruit. And as far as I can tell, they don’t taste that much different than jackfruit–which basically means it has a very subtle flavor. It’s really all about the sauce. So next, I marinated it in seaweed flakes, lemon, and dill, using this recipe. 

After that, I made a beer batter using my girl Martha Stewart’s recipe, which is already vegan provided you have a vegan beer. Then you dip your marinated banana blossom in the batter, and fry it up in a pot of oil (you can follow Martha’s instructions–when I fry, since it’s not meat or anything, I just wait ‘til the oil is hot and test by putting a drop of batter in and seeing if it fizzles, that means you’re good to fry). 

There’s the fried bad bs. After I fried these, I cut up some potatoes and made the “chips” (lol). Um does anyone not know how to make fries? You just cut up potatoes…and fry them. 

I also made a vegan tartar sauce–I know, this has a lot of steps, but each step is actually p easy. Like I veganized Martha’s tartar sauce (sans hot sauce bc nancy) and it’s just mixing some stuff into vegan mayo. Super simple. But again, Carrots and Flowers has basically the same tartar sauce recipe in theirs so you can just follow that. 

Now, the last step, I ATE THEM!!!! Well, I garnished with parsley and lemon and took 1000 pics…but then I ATE THEM!!!!! My verdict: totally delicious! I mean it’s not the exact same texture as fish bc not like…tough or whatever meat is, but it was delish. Do recommend. 

If you follow the Discerning Brute on instagram, you may have seen his exciting announcement: a new vegan cheese company is ~fermenting~ in Brooklyn (I’m lol re: fermenting ). It’s called RIND, and it’s a joint effort between Joshua Katcher, the Discerning Brute himself and founder of Brave GentleMan, and Dina DiCenso, founder of the one and only Gristle Tattoo. 

As a vegan cheese devotee, I immediately emailed Joshua and bombarded him with a zillion questions (I’m as curious as I am demanding ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ) and he was kind enough to answer. Here’s the dirt!: 

Megan Rascal: What is the significance of the primodial process? Like, what difference does that make? Idk what it is

Joshua Katcher: Without giving away our trade-secrets, the “primordial process” is that we allow the microorganisms to create the rind and flavors over time, rather than trying to “flavor” something to taste like cheese using seasoning, these processes are very similar to how traditional European-style cheeses are made.

MR: I’m getting that there will be a legit rind like dairy cheeses have, then will it be creamy inside? 

JK: Yes! You’re correct.

MR: Is the cheese nut-based, soy-based or?

JK: There are both nuts and soy in it.

MR: I see the dark coloring on the rind in the pics, what’s that from?

JK: That is the formation of the natural rind. It grows on the cheese over time, releasing all sorts of luscious flavors.

MR: Is it mostly for cheese platters and eating straight or do you imagine it’ll be used for cooking and baking as well?

JK: I’d say that this is a cheese to appreciate on its own, or with good bread and fresh fruit - it’s the kind of cheese you’ll want to eat with a glass a wine, or alone with a fork (haha, kidding, but really, you can do that). But if someone wants to cook with it, go for it! There’s plenty of vegan cheese on the market intended for toppings and cooking, and that’s just not RIND.

MR: Which dairy cheese varieties are your cheeses reminiscent of?

JK: We’ve come up with a proprietary blend in order to appeal to anyone who traditionally would love brie, camembert, bleu and other mold-rind cheeses.

MR: WHEN WILL IT BE AVAILABLE?!?!?!

JK: We are working towards a b2b operation, so you’ll get to have it at some fine NYC restaurants this year.

MR: You’re accepting investors, how could a potential backer get involved?

JK: We want investors who have experience in the innovative-food space. We’re hoping to get an operation going to scale production in Brooklyn. Email us at [email protected] to set up an appointment to talk to us.

* * *

There you have it. I guess I’ll have to wait for a bit to try RIND. idk if you guys know this but I’m TERRIBLY IMPATIENT when it comes to vegan cheese. I will try to hold on though. 1 like = 1 prayer I make it. 

Now I know what you’re doing Sunday, but Philly people what are you doing Saturday? How about filling your face with vegan yums from Miss Rachel’s Pantry,Crust Vegan BakeryandFran Costigan, all in the name of helping the beautiful bbs of Woodstock Farm Sanctuary! 

Philly ♥s Woodstock is this Saturday, Feb 3rd, 7 to 10pm, in the lovely Rittenhouse Square neighborhood. It is going to be a party with a capital EXTRAVAGANZA! Veganlebrity guests include Erin Jaskiewicz of Philly Vegans, Ethan & Michael aka theVeganMos, Joshua Katcher of Brave Gentleman,Terry Hope Romero, Dustin Harder, the Vegan Roadie, Leanne Mai-ly Hilgart, founder of VAUTE, and Rachel Klein, chef owner of Miss Rachel’s Pantry. DANG! 

There will also be beer from SMART BEER, wine courtesy of Whitecliff Vineyard, and non-alcoholic beverages (WHO’S HE?). Get your tickets asap bc they are selling out fast! And share the FB event with all your Philly friends.