Procedure1 In a bowl, add the shortening, vanilla and butter flavoring and 2 tablespoons of water. Cream until light and fluffy.

2 Add sugar one cup at a time and beat after each addition, until all the ingredients have been thoroughly mixed together.

3 Blend an additional minute or so, until creamy. This produces 3 cups of stiff consistency icing.

4 For medium consistency, add 1 teaspoon of water to each cup of stiff consistency icing. For thin consistency, add 2 teaspoons of water for each cup of stiff consistency icing.

Taste Even though the name of the icing is Buttercream, we don’t actually use butter. Instead we use solid white shortening. That gives the pure white color (so when you decide to mix colors you can get better shades) and also the correct structure for the designs. To keep the icing at it’s whitest we use the Wilton’s clear Vanilla Extract and no color Butter Flavoring. The usual vanilla extra is in dark brown color and when it’s added it will tint the shortening and the icing will not be in the purest white.

I saw a couple of recipes, where only butter is used or half butter and half shortening is used, but I have tried it only with shortening. As I have mentioned earlier I didn’t want to experiment too much at this initial stage of learning. I read quite a lot of reviews, that some people don’t like the greasy after taste that shortening gives and so they used butter instead. I felt that when the icing is consumed together with the cake you don’t feel the greasiness but you definitely feel it when you eat the icing alone. Also the vessels get very greasy and it’s messy to do the dishes in the sink. Better use the dishwasher. The taste is real good though, just like the bakery ones. I actually was experimenting with white cake recipes. So for the 3 cakes I baked during the course I tried 3 different recipes and felt that the icing really covers up even if the cake is not that good. Can you believe that this frosting is actually vegan?

My Notes1 You could use Butter Flavor All Vegetable Shortening. In that case you can omit the Wilton’s Butter Flavoring. I couldn’t find butter flavored shortening so I had to use the usual one and hence I added 1 teaspoon of butter flavoring. If using the extra teaspoon of butter flavoring, go slow while adding the water. Also look for trans fat free shortening. I was not able to find it and used the regular one and each serving has 0.3gm trans fat.

2 Icing consistency is key while decorating a cake. But don’t worry if you don’t get it right because fixing it is quite easy. If the icing is very thin add some icing sugar until yo get the required stiffness. If it’s too stiff add water (drop by drop) to dilute it.

3 Milk or water can be used while preparing the frosting but I read elsewhere that using water is better.

4 Icing keeps good for 2 weeks when stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

5 The Wilton cake decorating course book which was supplied to us during the class, has a lot of useful information, tips and tricks organized in a neat manner. You can also find this in their site. The information in the website is spread all over, so I’ll give some important links in the next section.

Other Information Explore Wilton’s website for a lot of information about cake decorating. It’s very extensive. To help beginners I’m putting out a list of useful links here.

1 Wilton Course Details

2 Local Wilton Classes

3 Wilton’s Cake Decorating 101

4 Cake Decorating Accessories

5 Golda’s Kitchen
(An excellent retail and on-line baking/cake decorating supplies store based in Canada. They ship overseas too.)

6 Bulk Barn (Another amazing store in Canada with tons of cake decorating supplies and some locations offer the Wilton Classes too. You can usually find this store in big malls.)

7 Baking 911(Has extensive details on decorating cakes, cookies and more, with lot of tips and tricks)

8 Michael’s 40% off coupon (If you live in Canada, check this out. You can print this coupon and take it to the store and get 40% off on any one item. It’s really a huge money saver when you are buying a big ticket item like a professional cake decorating tool set. I got a $200 dollar set for $100 because they had a 50% off special that week.

Procedure1 Preheat oven to 400F/200C. Grease a muffin tin or use paper liners.

2 In a large bowl combine together all the dry ingredients (from whole wheat flour to grated pear).

3 In a measuring mug, measure the buttermilk. Add 1/4 cup water, vinegar, vanilla extract and oil. Whisk together. Dissolve the brown sugar in this liquid mixture and blend it well with a fork.

4 Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, stirring just until moistened. Do not over mix.

5 Fill the batter in each muffin cup to the top. Sprinkle a teaspoon of oatmeal on each cup.

6 Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the muffin comes out clean. Mine was done in 16 minutes.

7 Leave it in the pan for 10-15 minutes. Then transfer it to a cooling rack.

Taste I couldn’t wait for more than an hour to taste the muffins. I was expecting some sort of raw taste/smell from the whole wheat pastry flour and the oat bran. Surprise! it didn’t taste weird at all. In fact the muffins had a very good texture. The only thing missing was sweetness. It was very mild. I used a pear which was not sweet by itself, maybe that was the reason. But we liked it because we generally don’t eat very sweet stuff and my husband told me that these were the best muffins I have ever baked. My son who has a sweet tooth enjoyed these oat bran muffins very much.

These muffins were very filling too. Unlike the empty calories-sugary muffins, I did not feel like reaching for another one. So these muffins don’t disappear fast and I stored it in the fridge. It becomes little hard if stored in the fridge. So heat it in the microwave oven for 30-35 seconds before eating it and it’s moist again like freshly baked.

My Notes1 Taste the fruit you are going to use, whether it is apple or pear. The pear I used was very bland, that’s why I wanted to use it up because no one wanted to eat it. I should have anticipated that the muffins will also not be sweet enough. So add another 1/4 cup of sugar if the fruit you are using is not sweet.

2 The original recipe used 1 cup of all purpose flour and 1 cup of whole wheat flour. So if you don’t have whole wheat pastry flour go with this blend.

3 If you are a cinnamon fan use 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon and omit the vanilla extract (as per the original recipe).

4 The recipe clearly asked to fill the batter to the top of the cup. I was not sure about this because usually muffin recipes mention 2/3rds full. I thought that it would overflow while baking and the muffins will get stuck to each other. Except for 4 muffins I did not fill it to the top. So I got 12 regular size muffins and had some batter left which was enough for 6 mini muffins. The 4 muffins which I had filled to the top rose beautifully and it did not stick to the other muffins. So if you fill the entire cup there should not be any batter left and the given measurement should yield exactly 12 regular size muffins.

If baking as mini muffins 8-10 minutes should be enough. I baked mine for 10 minutes and it was already very dark in the bottom.

Procedure1 Preheat oven to 350F/180C. Line the muffin tins with cupcake liners.

2 In a large bowl sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Stir in the sugar.

3 Add all the remaining ingredients and beat until you have a smooth, liquid batter.

4 Using a ladle, pour the batter 3/4ths full. Approximately 3 tablespoons of batter for large cupcakes and 1 and 1/2 tablespoon of batter for the mini cupcakes.

5 Bake until risen and firm to touch. Approximately 12-13 minutes for the mini cupcakes and 15-16 minutes for the large.

6 Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Frosting

Frosting is optional. I did not frost the entire batch. Made a very small batch of chocolate ganache using 1/4 cup mini chocolate chip cookies and 2 tablespoons milk. Heat the milk, don’t let it boil. Add the warm milk little by little until the chocolate chips melt and is very smooth. The chocolate chips did not melt enough. So I heated some water in a saucepan and place the bowl of chips on the saucepan and kept stirring it with a whisk and it melted from the heat in no time. If you add excess milk, keep the frosting in the fridge until you get the correct consistency to frost the cupcakes.

Taste

I was pleasantly surprised with the good taste of these vegan cupcakes. Earlier I have baked something similar and it was literally awful and I had to throw the cake. The other recipe used more oil, soy milk instead of water and white vinegar. The soy milk gave a sticky texture, the use of vinegar was very obvious. So I was relieved to see a recipe with just 2 tablespoons of oil and water. That’s why I went with apple cider vinegar this time. I wouldn’t say that these cupcakes taste exactly like the regular vanilla cupcakes, but it’s definitely very good for a low-fat, egg free and dairy free vegan cupcake. The next time I will probably reduce the quantity of sugar by at least 2 tablespoons, especially if I decide to frost it.

As for the texture, it is not light. At the same time it’s not dense or moist either. It’s somewhere between light and dense. It’s solid and not crumbly, so I should probably try this in a round/square cake pan to make a good layered cake with icing and stuff.

My Notes1 The original recipe mentions that the measurement yields 12 mini cupcakes, but I don’t know how I got so many. Also the time mentioned to bake the mini cupcakes is about 20 minutes, but mine was done in 14 minutes. Actually had I taken it out a minute earlier the cupcake’s texture would have been even better/lighter.

2 It was a little sweet for me even without the frosting.

3 I forgot to refrigerate the cupcakes on the first day, so I felt it was sort of sticky on the top on the second day. I think the sugar released out moisture and made it sort of sticky. The inside was good though.

4 To make vegan ganache, use vegan chocolate chips and any other non dairy milk.

Procedure1 Preheat oven to 350F (325F for dark color pans) for 15 minutes. While the oven is preheating toast the almonds (if using). It may take about 3-5 minutes to turn golden brown.

2 Empty brownie mix into bowl.

3 Measure 1/3 cup cold water in a liquid measuring mug. To the water add the yogurt and extracts and whisk it well with a fork.

4 Add the yogurt mix, oil and the fudge syrup (it comes with the mix) to the brownie mix.

5 Stir everything until well blended (about 40-50 strokes).

6 Generously grease the brownie pan. I used a non stick 8″x8″ pan. You could also line the pan with aluminum foil with enough sheet hanging around the edges so that the brownies can be lifted with the foil after baking. I did it like this and it was a no mess job and easy to cut also. Spray the foil with some non stick oil spray.

7 Spread the mixture in the pan and smooth it with a spatula and top with the toasted almonds.

8 Bake it anywhere between 30-38 minutes. (Check the instructions in the package for detailed baking time). I baked mine for 40 minutes. Just be sure that the brownie cools out completely before you can cut into squares.

My Notes1 Buying the brownie mix – If you are a vegetarian, be sure to check the ingredients, because some brands contain lard, tallow (animal fat). The brand I chose did not have animal fat.

2 The instructions in the pack mentions to add 1/3 cup of oil and I did the same and felt that it was way too much. So I have changed it to 3 tablespoons in the ingredients list (which I actually tested in these fudge brownies).

3 This time I followed Bee’s (Chocolate Almond Brownies) idea of lining the pan with aluminum foil and topped it with toasted almonds.

Procedure 1 Powder the cashews (without adding water) in a blender/food processor. Using broken pieces of cashews would make it easy. I used the 1 cup jar of my food processor and it took some time to powder.

2 In a pan add the sugar and water. Heat it and wait until you get a single string consistency. This may take 5-6 minutes. Single thread consistency is when you take a drop of the syrup between your thumb and index finger a single strand should form.

Update: I made it again and noted down the exact times. It took 5 minutes for the syrup to boil and another 3 minutes to get the single string consistency. But note that mine is an electric range and if you have a gas stove it should even quick.

3 Now stir in the powdered cashew in the sugar syrup. With a spatula (or preferably a big wooden fork) keep stirring; break any lumps, if any.

4 Add the rosemilk essence or food color if using and mix it thoroughly. Update: Mixing it just enough (two full stirs maybe) that the cashew powder absorbs the syrup should be fine.

5 Remove the pan from the stove and let it cool for at least 10-15 minutes. By then the mixture will thicken into a play dough (roti dough) like consistency. Update: Don’t cool it completely. Remove the mixture from the pan when it is warm enough to handle with bare hands, so that it won’t turn brittle and rolling would also be easy.

6 When the dough is cool enough to handle remove it from the pan and knead it, so that any small lumps of cashew can also be mashed. Roll the dough into a ball and flatten it.

7 I took two sheets of wax paper. Place the flattened cashew mixture in between the 2 papers and roll it with a rolling pin. Make a thin sheet and remove the wax paper from the top. If you don’t have wax paper, simply grease a clean surface with little ghee and then using a rolling pin stretch out the dough.

8 After an hour cut it into diamonds or squares.

My Notes 1 I will be reducing the quantity of sugar when I make it the next time. It was a bit too sweet for me. 1/2 cup is 8 tablespoons, so I think 6 tablespoons should be fine.

2 If you decide to add rosemilk essence, I would suggest using just 2-3 drops. I used at least 5-6 drops to get that pink color, so the downside is some may feel that the flavor from the essence is overpowering the actual taste of kaju katlis.

3 It is mentioned in the recipe source that if the kaju katli is not fully set, it can be placed in the fridge overnight. Also these bars are good for at least 4 weeks when stored in normal room temperature.

Procedure 1 Cook pasta according to the package directions. I didn’t have a tall saucepan to cook the spaghetti, so I broke it into half. I cooked it for 8 minutes and it had the perfect texture.

2 Saute peppers, onions and garlic in oil in large skillet for 2 to 3 minutes.

3 Add water; cook covered, over medium-high heat until soft, 2 to 3 minutes.

4 Stir in sugar; cook, uncovered, over medium-low heat until mixture is very soft and browned, about 20 minutes.

5 Season to taste with salt and pepper.

6 Toss with spaghetti; sprinkle with cheese if desired.

My Notes 1 I have cooked whole wheat penne pasta (Asparagus and Lemon Pepper Pasta) earlier and it clearly tasted different than it’s white counterpart. It took quite sometime to develop a liking for the whole wheat taste. So I was expecting the same with the spaghetti also, because I have not tasted whole grain spaghetti before. But I was totally surprised because it didn’t taste like anything I expected. It was really good. This pasta is made with 51% whole wheat and other whole grain flours, so you can enjoy the benefits of whole grains without compromising the taste. It’s an excellent source of fiber and protein.

2 Don’t be tempted to omit the sugar in this pasta recipe because it makes the vegetables and the onions to caramelize and that in turn gives a nice flavor to the dish. If you think that the dish is sweet, you can spice it up at the end by adding black pepper powder.

3 If you have some left over peppers, try these chili fries. Unlike other fritters which use all purpose flour or chick pea flour for the dipping batter, this recipe uses whole wheat flour. I also added some rice flour to make it crispier.

Strawberry Juice Ingredients:
Strawberries, fresh or frozen (no syrup or sugar added) – 2 and 1/2 cups
Water – 2 cups
Sugar – 1 tablespoon

Yield: 2 cups of Strawberry Juice

Procedure:
1. Boil the berries, water and sugar in a medium sauce pan.

2. Turn heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.

3. The book mentions to mash the strawberries with the back of a spoon. But I used an immersion blender to blend the mixture thoroughly.

4. Pour the mixture into a fine mesh strainer over a bowl and press the strawberry pulp with the back of the spoon until all the liquid is released. Save the pulp to add to smoothies.

5. Store in the refrigerator up to 3 days or freeze 1/4 cup portions.

My Notes:
1. Buy organic strawberries because it is one of the 12 items which is most contaminated with pesticide residues.

2. This strawberry juice can be used in so many ways. Few recipes listed in the book are, freezing it in ice pop molds for natural and low sugar popsicles, mix it with sparkling water, mix it with lemonade, make berry syrup for pancakes mixing it with maple syrup etc.

Blueberry Juice Ingredients:
Blueberries, fresh or frozen – 2 and 1/2 cups (no syrup or sugar added)
Water – 2 cups
Sugar – 1 tablespoon

Yield: 2 and 1/2 cups of Blueberry Juice

Procedure:
1 Boil together the berries, water and sugar.

2 Turn heat to low and simmer for another 10 minutes.

3 The original recipe instructs to mash the berries with the back of a spoon or a potato masher to release their juices. But I felt that this trick did not work for me. So I used an immersion blender to blend the berries at high speed until smooth.

4 Strain the mixture using a fine mesh strainer until all the liquid is released. Save the pulp for smoothies.

This juice can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days, or can be frozen in small portions in sealed plastic bags or containers.

My Notes 1 In the original recipe for Blueberry Milk, only milk and the juice were mixed. But when I tasted it was definitely not sweet enough to persuade my son to drink it. So I decided to add some maple syrup.

2 Using this blueberry juice, blueberry cola can be prepared by mixing equal portion of the juice and sparkling water. I made this too and it tasted awesome. We should definitely avoid giving carbonated drinks to children of all ages. But in this era of rigorous marketing and ads all around the place for Coke and Pepsi, it’s difficult to make the kids understand the effects of soda. So why not give them a cola which at least is not artificially flavored!

3 Cherry and Strawberry juice can also be prepared in the above method and similarly flavored milk and cola can be made using the juice. But try to buy organic cherries and strawberries, because these fruits are on the “dirty dozen” list (Apple, Cherry, Grapes, Nectarine, Peaches, Pear, Raspberry, Strawberry, Bell Pepper, Celery, Potato and Spinach) , produce most contaminated with pesticide residues.

These juices can be poured in ice pop molds and be frozen for a naturally flavored popsicle.

Procedure 1. Preheat oven to 350F/180C. Grease and flour a 9×5 inch loaf pan.

2. In a large bowl sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Also add the cranberries, sugar and nuts and combine it thoroughly. If using dried cranberries, add a tablespoon of flour to the dried berries and stir it well before adding it to the flour mixture. Otherwise all the berries will stick to
each other and settle at the bottom of the bread.

3. Whisk/blend together the flax seed meal and water until white and foamy. I used Magic Bullet to blend it.

4. In a small bowl, mix together the flax seed mixture, orange zest, orange juice, oil and applesauce (if using).

5. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just blended. I felt that the batter was thick, so I added another 2 tablespoons of orange juice. You can also dilute it with water or any type of milk. Do not over-mix. Few lumps should be fine, it would dissolve while baking.

6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. I checked mine for doneness around 48 minutes and the toothpick came out clean. I removed the pan out of the oven after 50 minutes.

7. Cool the loaf for 15 minutes before removing it from the pan.

8. Finish cooling the loaf on a wire rack.

My Notes 1. I’m not a patient person when it comes to tasting something I have baked. Also I did not notice the tip about slicing banana/zucchini and cranberry breads the day after baking it, so I sliced it anyway and it did crumble. So be patient because they slice and taste better the next day.

2. Everybody liked the taste of the bread, the sweetness was right but it did have a mild raw smell. I’m not sure whether the culprit was the whole wheat pastry flour or the baking time. Even though the time given in the original recipe was 60 minutes, the toothpick came out clean after 48 minutes itself. Maybe I should try using only all purpose flour the next time.

Step-by-Step Procedure 1. Preheat oven at 350F/180C. Prepare 2 large baking sheets either greasing it or lining it with parchment paper.

2. Cream the butter and sugar until smooth and creamy. I used a hand mixer.

3. In a blender, add flax seed powder and water and blend it until it’s foamy.

4. Add the flax seed mixture and vanilla extract to the creamed butter. Stir it well using a wooden spoon/spatula.

5. In a medium size bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.

6. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and combine it well using a spatula.

7. Now stir the oats and other optional ingredients you wish to include.

8. Drop the batter by tablespoonsfull 2 inches apart. I used an ice cream scoop.

9. Wet your hands and flatten the cookies so that they are about 1/2 an inch thick.

10. Bake it for 12-15 minutes or until the edges are golden brown and the centre is little wet.

11. Remove it from the oven and let it cool in the baking sheet itself for 5 minutes. Then transfer it to a wire rack to cool it completely.

My Notes 1. I baked the batch with aluminum baking sheet for 14 minutes and the one in dark color non stick baking sheet for 13 minutes. The cookies were chewy.

2. I wanted to try baking with vegan butter alternatives for long time now. So I bought Earth Balance Vegan Butter and tried this recipe with that, instead of regular dairy butter. I’m 100% sure that the cookies will come out good with regular butter also, because the original recipe uses the same.

3. I’m not a vegan, I just tried baking vegan cookies, so I have used dairy milk in the photo.