Pretzel Buns

With the new school year ready to start in just over two weeks, it's time to get serious about baking for lunches. Of course, with two weeks of summer still left why not bake something that can also  help you get the most out of the waning BBQ season? These pretzel buns are perfect for a veggie burger, tofu salad, or my summertime favourite: tomato and cucumber. The dough recipe is more or less Peter Reinhart's but I have altered the method so the end product has that deep brown pretzel colour but it still soft enough to function as a bun.

INGREDIENTS

Makes 12 buns

Dough

- 31.5 oz (6 3/4 cups) white bread flour

- 16.5 g (generous 2 1/2 tsp) salt

- 5 g (1 1/2 tsp) instant yeast

- 18 fl. oz (2 1/4 cups) lukewarm water

- 1.5 oz (3 tbsp) oil

Poaching Liquid

- 16 fl. oz (2 cups) water

- 2 oz (8 tsp) baking soda

- aquafaba for brushing

- sesame seeds

METHOD

1. Combine the flour, salt, yeast, water, and oil in a bowl. Bring together into a rough ball and let sit for 5 minutes. Knead (either by hand or a machine) until dough is smooth but slightly tacky (about 5 mins).  Add water or flour as needed).

2. Shape dough into a ball and transfer to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover and let rise for an hour, or until doubled in size. Punch dough down, knead lightly for a minute, reshape into a ball and let rise in the covered bowl for another hour (or until doubled).

3. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly spray with oil.

4. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces and shapes into boules.

5. Roll each boule into a rope about 12 to 14 inches long. Shape into buns per the pictures below.

a) Grab the rope with your left hand about 1/3 of the way up, with your right hand at the opposing end.

b) Use your right hand to make a knot in the dough where your left hand is positioned. Use the fingers of your left hand to keep the knot open. 

c) Tuck the end in your right hand under and through the hole (at 4:00 if the bun was a clock).

d) Tuck the end in your left hand over and through the hole (at 7:00) to the back of the bun. Use the end that was formerly in your right hand to close the hole.

6. Mist the top of the buns with oil, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise for about 30 mins, until swelled but not doubled.

7. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

8. Prepare the poaching liquid: in a large pot bring the water to simmer. You want about 1.5 inches of water it the pot, so adjust the amount above as needed. Make sure to increase the baking soda the same amount. When water is simmering mix in the baking soda and stir to dissolve.

9. Poach the buns (working in batches as your pot will allow) for 30-60 seconds each side, placing the top side in first. Remove with a slotted spoon back to the prepared baking sheet.

10. Brush each bun lightly with aquafaba and top with sesame seeds.

11. Bake for 16-18 minutes, rotating the baking sheet at the halfway point.

12. Let fully cool on a wire rack.

Lemon Meringue Pie

I know I am late to the aquafaba/vegan meringue party, but better late than never I suppose. The issue was that I was never able to get the aquafaba to beat into stiff peaks and so I stopped experimenting months ago. Even after endless whisking on high in the KitchenAid, very soft peaks was the best I could get. And then I recently happened upon recipes that use xanthan gum. Problem solved! Perfect peaks every time (and I wonder if you could cut it down to 1/4 tsp for this recipe). Lemon Meringue Pie is one of Vegan Mom's favourites (and we have not eaten it for over 10 years) so I was happy to be able to take her down culinary memory lane. The filling is tangy and sweet, and firm without being rubbery. The meringue is some serious vegan magic.

The filling calls for both corn starch (white) and corn flour (yellow). This may cause some confusion because what the Brits call corn flour, Americans/Canadians call corn starch.

This recipe makes one big 10" pie or, as I found out tonight in preparing for a departmental party, 45 tarts.

INGREDIENTS
- 1 10" pre-baked pie crust

Filling
- 1/4 cup corn starch
- 1/4 cup corn flour
- generous 1/2 tsp agar powder
- 2 cups + 3 tbsp (17.5 oz) white sugar
- 1 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp (15 oz) water
- 2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
- zest of 2 lemons
- 1 cup soy milk

Meringue
- 3/4 cup salt free chickpea aquafaba
- 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 7.5 tbsp (5 oz) superfine white sugar

METHOD
Bake your shell per whatever recipe you are using. It is best if the crust is slightly underdone since you will be baking the assembled pie. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
1. Whisk the corn starch, corn flour, agar, and sugar together in a saucepan. Whisk in water, lemon juice, and zest, then whisk in soy milk.
2. Bring to bubbling over medium high, stirring constantly. When bubbling, reduce heat to med-lo and cook for two minutes, stirring constantly.
3. Immediately pour the filling into the prepared pie crust and set aside to start cooling. The filling will be a bit runny, but it will set in the fridge.
4. Make the meringue: whisk the xanthan gum into the aquafaba, then place in a stand mixer and whisk on high with a balloon whisk until stiff peak form.
5. Whisk in the 1 tbsp of lemon juice, then whisk in the sugar a bit at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl regularly.
6. When the sugar is incorporated and the meringue is no longer gritty, gently spread the meringue over the pie filling. The filling will be wobbly, so be gentle (or pipe the meringue on).
7. Bake at 375 for 8 to 12 minutes, until meringue is lightly browned (or browned to your liking). I like to use convection for this step.
8. Let the pie cool for an hour, then transfer to the fridge. When pie is cool, put in a container in the fridge and completely cool (about 4 hours or up to overnight). If you are in a rush, place the cooled pie on ice packs in the fridge.

Strawberry Tart

Full disclosure: I have posted this recipe, more or less, before. But this is the version without so much rat in it.

A friend surprised me today by dropping off a basket of freshly picked strawberries, and if a pie/tart is what you are after then I think this is the perfect way to enjoy strawberries in their prime. The only thing new this time around is the tart shell (I have posted a tart shell recipe before). I don't buy vegan cream cheese on a regular basis so I hope the use of aquafaba makes this recipe more accessible. I think it made for a better shell as well--crisp and durable, yet tender and so very delicious.

INGREDIENTS
Tart Shell (makes a 9" shell)
- 1 1/4 cup (200g) all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (60g) icing sugar
- pinch of salt (or 1/4 tsp is using salt-free margarine)
- 1/2 cup (125g) cold vegan butter (or margarine, or half margarine and half vegetable shortening)
- 2 tbsp aquafaba
- 1 tbsp light coconut milk

METHOD
1. Whisk together flour, icing sugar, and salt. Cut in fat with a pastry cutter.
2. Whisk together aquafaba and coconut milk, then add to flour mixture. Use a fork/your hands to bring together into ball.
3. Flatten into a disc and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for an hour.
4. Roll out dough on a floured surface into a circle large enough to overhang the sides of your tart pan. Trim any excess along the outside bottom of the pan, then fold the overhang to the inside the pan. Press the dough smoothly and evenly into the pan.
5. Place in the freezer for 30 mins. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
6. Blind bake the shell: line the shell with heavy duty aluminum foil. Fill with dried beans or baking weights. Bake for 15 mins (or until shell looks dry when you peel back the foil), then remove the beans and foil.
7. Reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake for another 8-10 mins, or until golden. Remove from oven and let cool.

Filling
- 6 cups fresh whole strawberries
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/2 cup water

METHOD
1. Mash enough of the berries to measure 1 cup. Place remaining berries in a large bowl.
2. In a medium saucepan, whisk together sugar and cornstarch, then gradually whisk in water and then crushed berries.
3. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture thickens and boils. Boil and stir 1 minute.
4. Cool for 10 mins, then pour over berries and gently turn to coat. Transfer to cooled tart shell and chill at least 3 hours or until set.

Terrible picture but great idea: a creamy topping is the perfect addition. This is rad whip from Vegan Pie in the Sky. 

Chocolate Chip and Walnut Cookies

Most of my forays into aquafaba have been failures, but these are a smashing success. I don't know why the magic bean juice acts just like an egg in this recipe and not in others, but it does. These are thin and crispy and yet still chewy--exactly like a chocolate chip cookie should be. The recipe is adapted from The Essentials of Baking.

INGREDIENTS
Makes 18-24 cookies
- 1 1/4 cups (200g) all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt (omit if using salted margarine/butter)
- 1/2 cup (125g) margarine or butter
- 1/2 cup (105g) packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp (90g) white sugar
- 3 tbsp chickpea aquafaba
- 1 tsp vanilla extract (or maple extract)
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 3/4 cup chopped walnuts

METHOD
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking pans with parchment paper. 
1. Whisk together dry ingredients in a medium bowl.
2. Cream together margarine/butter with sugars in a medium bowl. Mix in aquafaba and extract. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
3. Mix in chocolate chips and walnuts.
4. Drop heaping tablespoons of batter on to the prepared baking sheets. Flatten a bit with your fingers.
5. Bake in batches until golden. Smaller cookies will bake in 10-13 minutes, larger cookies in 12-15 minutes. I like to bake for 10 mins, then give the pan a quick rap in the counter to flatten the cookies, the return the pan to the oven to finish baking.
6. Let cool on the pan for 5 mins, then transfer to a wire rack until cool.

Eggless Pasta

This is the aquafaba version of my Fresh Flax Pasta. I'm not sure it's any better than the original, but it is durable yet tender and tasty. The trick here is to add flour as needed when you are rolling out the dough. The final product should be smooth and satiny, not tacky at all. This is most important if you are cutting the dough into thin noodles with a pasta cutter. It is a little less important if you are cutting the dough by hand into broad noodles. Give the noodles a good drying before you cook them.

Makes 1 lb 
INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/3 cup plain soy milk
- 1/8 tsp turmeric
- 1/4 cup chickpea aquafaba
- 1 tbsp oil

METHOD
1. Whisk together flour and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre.
2. Mix turmeric into the soy milk. Pour into the well in the flour. Add aquafaba and oil. Bring together into a dough (I do this with a dough hook in my stand mixer). Add more soy milk if absolutely needed.
3. Roll into a log and wrap in plastic. Let rest 20 mins.
4. Roll out, flouring as needed, and cut as desired. Let dry before cooking.

This pasta cooks very quickly--just a minute or two and it's done.

Fluffy Tapioca Pudding

Unless you have been hiding in a cave for the past little while, you know that aquafaba has taken the vegan world by storm. I have been experimenting with it for about two weeks and this was my first success. I used to make this pudding with eggs for my family when in my early teen years when I first caught the cooking and baking bug. This tastes exactly like I remember it--light and airy and not too sweet. I have used instant tapioca here to make the recipe as easy as possible, but I actually prefer small pearl tapioca for a little more texture. Use whatever tapioca you like making sure you soak it first as per the directions on the box.

Serves 8-10

INGREDIENTS
- 1/2 cup chickpea aquafaba
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 tbsp cornstarch (optional, see note below*)
- 4 cups almond milk
- 1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp instant tapioca
- 1 can light coconut milk
- 1/8 tsp turmeric
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract

METHOD
1. Put the aquafaba in a stand mixer fitted with a ballon whisk. Whisk on med-hi until frothy, then slowly stream in the sugar with mixer running. Whisk on high until peaks form (somewhere between soft and stiff peaks). Don't worry if the sugar has not completely dissolved.
2. In a medium saucepan, whisk the cornstarch (if using) into 1 cup of the almond milk. Whisk in the rest of the almond milk. Add the tapioca, coconut milk, and turmeric.
3. Heat the almond milk mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly, until bubbling. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Let cool for a few minutes.
4. Fold in the aquafaba mixture until incorporated.
5. Pour into a large bowl and refrigerate until fully cooled.

* the pudding will set in the fridge without the cornstarch, but it will be looser. With the cornstarch you can eat the pudding warm or at room temperature if that is your thing.