Vegan

  • Cooking note

    Yesterday Islay and I made sesame and kinako crackers. Well, the original recipe says ‘cracker’ but it’s more like biscuits. The original recipe is by ooLife who cooks organic food. http://oola.cocolog-nifty.com/blog/2008/05/post_08a4.html

    I doubled the amount of ingredients of the original recipe which claims it yields about 25 crackers, and yet I was only able to make about 30. Perhaps I should roll the dough thinner.

    There are more cracker recipes on the internet and I would like to try savoury ones at some point.

    Adjusted recipe (doubled amount)

    A… 100g all purpose flour
    A… 40g kinako powder
    A… 2 tbsp cane sugar
    A… 3 tbsp black sesame seeds
    2 tbsp olive oil
    3 tbsp water\

    Instructions

    1. Pre heat the oven at 150.
    2. Combine A.
    3. Using hands, combine A with olive oil. Add water little by little to make a dough.
    4. On the baking sheet, roll the dough to 2 mm thickness and cut it into squares. No need to separate them.
    5. Bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes.
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  • This week Islay and I made cranberry oatmeal bar (well, Islay was mainly picking at the bowl). It was super easy and delicious! It’s something Jon can eat, too. Just like the last time, I reduced the amount of sugar and I am glad I did that. I garnished some chocolate chips on top but maybe it’s better to mix them with the last layer. The original recipe is by Veggie Inspired (https://www.veggieinspired.com/cranberry-oatmeal-bars/).

    Adjusted recipe for the cranberry oatmeal bar

    A… 2 cups old fashioned oats (I used the porridge oats from Coop)
    A… 1 cup white all purpose flour
    A… ½ cup coconut sugar
    A… 1 tsp baking powder
    A… tsp ground cinnamon
    A… ½ tsp salt
    B… ½ cup coconut oil
    B… ¼ cup runny almond butter
    ¼ - ½ cup dairy free milk (I used semi oat milk)
    ½ cups cranberry sauce
    sprinkle of chocolate chips (optional)

    Tools

    I used two shallow baking pans -one for baking and one for pressing down. The original recipe recommends a parchment paper but it was totally fine without it.

    Instructions

    1. Pre heat the oven at 180.
    2. Combine A.
    3. Combine B (warm them up in the microwave if needed) and add it to A. Squeeze the mixture between fingers!
    4. Coat one baking pan with oil. Make a layer of the mixture, cranberry sauce and the mixture. Press the the layers well.
    5. Bake it for 30-40 (30 mins was good) and cool it for 20 mins before cutting.
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  • Yesterday I baked an apple cake modifying the recipe by Loving It Vegan (https://lovingitvegan.com/vegan-apple-cake/). The reason of the adjust is the amount of sugar in the original recipe. I often find the American/European baking recipes contain way too much sugar!

    The cake was tasty with strong flavour of brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. It goes really well with whipped cream or ice cream.

    It might be an good idea to make baking a Sunday thing for me to do. It provides me and Islay with snacks for the week! I shall use the cranberry sauce in the next baking.. maybe a bar?

    Adjusted recipe for the apple cake

    • 2 and 1/2 cups (312g) All Purpose Flour
    • 180g Brown Sugar (originally, 300g)
    • 1 and 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
    • 1/2 tsp Salt
    • 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
    • 1/4 tsp Nutmeg
    • 1 cup (240ml) Vegan Buttermilk (fresh lemon juice mixed with soy milk)
    • 1/3 cup (80ml) Extra Virgin Olive Oil
    • 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
    • 1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
    • 1 and 1/2 cups (188g) Chopped Apple (Peeled)

    For the Cinnamon Sugar Topping

    • 1/2 cup (100g) White Sugar
    • 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
    • 1 Tbsp Vegan Butter (Softened)

    Tools

    I used two pound cake tins.

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  • Reading note

    I’m currently reading How to Give Up Plastic by Will McCallum on Libby. Along with shocking statistics around plastic usage and waste, the book provides how to cut back on plastic in household and suggests eco-friendly (and often vegan friendly) brands. Here is a table from the chapter 5 and our progress to plastic-free bathroom/cosmetic items.

    ITEM PLASTIC-FREE PLAN
    Shampoo & conditioner Planning to move to bars. Ethiques and Lush look great and their products are available in Japan. Lush seems to be slightly cheaper.
    Body soap Currently using bars but they came in plastic packages. Move to Ethiques once we used up the current bars.
    Hand wash Currently using bottles with pumps. Move to bars.
    Shaving cream I don’t use any.
    Razor I have a safety razor and and one more blade (packaged in plastic). This should be enough for now but I may not be able to get new blades for this particular razor in Japan, so I may consider moving to plastic-free waxing (e.g. MOOM) once moved to Japan.
    Deodorant I don’t use it and don’t need it much here, but I may in Japan. There are deodorant bars available in markets.
    Sponge Recently changed to biodegradable sponges made in UK.
    Lipstick Using an Australian vegan brand Inika for about two years now. I love them but I believe their packages are plastic and are not refillable.
    Foundation Same as above. Since it seems difficult to buy Inika’s products in Japan, I may need to look into other options that use less plastic and refillable.
    Other make-up products I don’t intend to buy any make-up tools as I am happy with what I have now, but if I need to replace any of them, remember to do a little internet search before buying! It’s very unlikely that I can find any plastic-free ones in drug stores and 100-yen shops in Japan!
    Toothbrush Since my 6-7 year-old electric toothbrush is almost broken, recently ordered biodegradable ones from Georganics. Cannot wait to try them!
    Toothpaste Bought a plastic-free one from Georganics. I hope I will like it, thought their products may not be available in Japan.
    Lip balm Once used up the current ones, I shall move to plastic-free ones and they are easy to find.
    Make-up removal I don’t use it nowadays as I rarely wear make-ups, but I shall consider a plastic-free one as well as reusable cotton pads if I need them in future.
    Tampons Don’t use it all as I now use a menstrual cup, but I will probably need a reusable, plastic-free period pads for an extra safety..
    Toilet paper I have seen ads of toilet rolls that are wrapped in paper and posted to homes. I shall consider this option once we run out of the current massive stock.
    Toilet brush We have been using plastic ones and will continue to do so for now, but we shall buy plastic-free options in Japan.
    Other Change to plastic-free cotton buds (or even reusable ones) when purchasing next time. There are also contact lens solution, skin conditioner, massage oil..
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