Smooch Panda's Sweet Creations

2013-03-03T06:18:00.001-06:00

This blog has been moved to: http://smoochpandablog.blogspot.com

The new blog will mainly focus on my craft life and motherhood with a little bit of veg(an) info in between, though not so much about food. I hope to see you there! Thanks :)

2012-02-20T14:54:00.000-06:00

Hi everybody. As much as I enjoy blogging, I'm going to have to take a break for a while. With big changes ahead of us, there won't be much time left for me to keep writing. This blog will mainly be a place for me to post vegan baking recipes now and then, but not so regularly :(

For more frequent updates, please follow me on twitter @smoochpanda, or add me to your circle on etsy, or google+ (for personal & vegan related matters). I also have a google+ page to keep you updated on my etsy shop happenings and treasuries I make. You can also check out my pinterest boards if you like to see what inspires me.

Please feel free to follow those accounts. I will usually follow you back! (unless the account is a spam or used solely for marketing purposes)

Also, Mochi's blog will continue to be updated weekly or fortnightly so check it out :)

Thank you so much for reading my blog. I hope to see you in one of the above places or will see you next time I come up with a scrumptious vegan baking recipe (which hopefully won't be long!). Until then, have lovely days :)

wordless wednesday #15: Tofu Meatballs and Thai Sushi

2012-02-08T15:40:00.000-06:00

spaghetti tofu meatballs

not that I made tons of vegan meatballs before but this was the best I've ever made :)
I loved that the walnuts added extra heartiness to the meatballs.
the vegan meatball recipe is from healthier steps

gorgeous fusion of Thai food and Japanese food. yum!

pleasant surprise

2012-02-03T18:13:00.000-06:00

We're having a really mild winter here (and I suppose other parts of the US as well?). Last couple of days we could even go out without coats on and open the window to get some much needed fresh air in the house.

Then I saw these pretty faces in the ground.

I believe these are crocuses. Aren't they pretty? It's really nice to find something cheerful in our otherwise brown yard. I didn't even know we have crocuses in our yard.

What pleasant surprise did you find today?

I made these brownies for my MIL's birthday.

these are raspberry truffle brownies from the ppk. It was a bit difficult to take good photos of brownies but I hope you can see that the pink raspberry color peeking from the dark chocolate brown is really pretty! In fact this inspired me to make Chocolate and Raspberry treasury I made a couple of days ago.

They were very tasty but I wish I baked a little longer. well, the recipe mentioned that this was supposed to be soft and gooey but mine was still way too soft after the suggested baking time. I baked for a few more minutes. Putting them in the refrigerator set the brownies for most parts but the middle was still sticky. Everybody did enjoy them though :)

etsy treasuries: bekind blitz!

2012-02-02T12:47:00.000-06:00

yesterday was a fun day at the bekind team on etsy. we as a team made as many treasuries as possible in one day. It was a lot of fun to create treasuries featuring great products that I admire. Viewing beautiful and inspiring treasuries other team members made was great fun too. I was so inspired to make more treasuries, new items and just generally more handmade items.

I'd love to share all of my favorite treasuries but that would be a bit lengthy (because there are so many!). so here's the link to all the treasuries the team members made yesterday. All the items featured here are animal-friendly :) please have a look and indulge in fun and beautiful collections.

here are the four treasuries I made during this fun event. enjoy!

(note: the treasury will not show on some RSS readers. please go to my blog page. thanks!)

etsy treasury: I Just Called To Say I Love You

2012-01-27T11:40:00.000-06:00

My first Valentine themed treasury this year is inspired by a Stevie Wonder's song "I Just Called To Say I Love You".

I feel fortunate to have a partner to spend this day with but I certainly remember the days I was more inclined to celebrate an anti-valentine spirit. One Valentine's day, though, I decided to invite my good friends over and had a wonderful girls' night. It's not too much of a stretch to think exchanging love can mean love between friends, right? (^^)/

However you celebrate your Valentine's day, I hope you'll have a wonderful one!

etsy treasuries: year of the animals and lacy

2012-01-21T16:14:00.000-06:00

recently I had an opportunity to join this wonderful treasury making team called quintessential etsy. this gave me even more incentives to make treasuries and I've been having fun doing so.

Here are the two I made this week.

I've made a special treasury to honor this year's animal, dragon, but I thought it wouldn't be fair for other animals :) So I gathered all the 12 animals in this cute treasury. they showed up in the order of animal years starting from the rat.

the second one is all about lace. I love this classic beauty.

(note: the treasury will not show on some RSS readers. please go to my blog page. thanks!)

wordless wednesday #14: recently baked

2012-01-18T13:34:00.000-06:00

carrot cake with toasted coconut flakes on top, frosted with vegan lemon buttercream

leftover sweet black beans turned into

chocolate chip version

yes I overbaked them because the timer didn't go off :(

and

this braided bread is fromVegan Baking Classics

~~ps. the "stop SOPA/PIPA" ribbons are from iBlognet.Thank you for your understanding.~~

wordless wednesday #13: Stitching and Winter Harvest

2012-01-11T21:23:00.000-06:00

I've finished "the life is sweet" project

this was a stamped kit but I changed the colors.
I know I like cross stitching but I found I loved back stitches and satin stitches also.

I made this for my nephews as their Christmas gift

I stitched their birthdays in the stars and names in the pennant

this was actually to celebrate my 2nd nephew's birth in April but alas time flies :(

the last two photos were taken a while ago

winter's harvest

hello broccoli!

etsy treasury: come sit near the fire

2012-01-10T21:28:00.000-06:00

Although this winter has seen many rather warm days until recently, it finally started to get cold. All I crave for is a cozy warm place with a nice company.

And maybe a drink or two. Or perhaps a nice cup of tea.

(note: the treasury will not show on some RSS readers. please go to my blog page. thanks!)

etsy treasury: winter blue sky

2012-01-06T16:02:00.000-06:00

the weather has been exceptionally nice this winter.
I love winter's fine blue sky.
I used to look up the pale icy blue sky and felt something good was going to happen when I was in school.

I still do.

(note: the treasury will not show on some RSS readers. please go to my blog page. thanks!)

New Year's Celebratory Meals

2012-01-04T17:59:00.002-06:00

I hope you're having a wonderful first week of 2012 :)

We usually spend New Year's days with lots of influence from Japanese traditions and customs, and this year was no exception,

starting the celebration with toshikoshi soba - soba (buckwheat) noodles eaten on New Year's Eve was given a special name.

It's a Japanese tradition to eat soba on this day to reflect the passing year and wish for a happy new year. The long noodles are said to represent a long and healthy life.

Mine included woodear mushrooms, enoki mushrooms and spinach.
I've also made some wontons.

New Year's meals are called Osechi meals consisting of several dishes. They are usually served in jubako, sort of like special fancy bento boxes. It has three tiers, each tier containing specific dishes.

I wish I had those boxes too :(

Here's my veganized Osechi meals.

veganized Osechi meals!

Although some of the dishes are already vegan, it tends to be heavy on fish and seafood, and I had to be a little creative to veganize those dishes.
Also this year I had only limited access to Asian grocers, which unfortunately made this year's Osechi a little less authentic.
But I think I made a pretty good one under these restrictions, if I say so myself :)

Each dish represents different wishes and luck. For example

kuro-mame (black beans) and kinton (mashed sweet potato)

(Left) Kuro-mame (sweetly cooked black beans) = health, earnestness
(Right) Kinton (mashed sweet potato, usually decorated with chestnuts) = finance, wealth

these are already vegan (yay!). I couldn't get chestnuts so I had to go without.
The original kinton is cooked with kuchinashi (common gardenia) and has a beautiful golden hue (hence represents wealth).

namasu (pickled carrots and daikon radish)

another already vegan dish is this namasu pickled shredded carrots and daikon radish (I used turnip, however). The combination of red and white is usually considered festive in Japan.

The rest are veganized version of the traditional Osechi dishes.

The bottom mimics kazunoko, which is some fish egg. For this vegan version I used amaranth and sliced bamboo shoot and marinated in a mix of soy sauce, dashi (seaweed broth) and mirin. The texture of the amaranth was pretty close to the fish egg and I'm happy with the results.

Or actually without the fishiness I prefer this version :)

Kazunoko represents fertility and family prosperity.

Top middle, I sliced radishes, half unpeeld, half peeled. Again the combination of red and white is celebratory. This is supposed to substitute kamaboko, sliced fish cake. I could've come up with something better than just sliced radishes given time and ingredients. But that's ok :)

another fish dish in the traditional Osechi is tazukuri, candied dried Japanese anchovy, representing good harvest, abundance.

vegan tazukuri using walnuts

I candied walnuts instead with sprinkles of kelp flakes to add a little bit of "fishy" flavor. I really loved this. It can be a great snack throughout a year. I didn't really like the traditional tazukuri because it's way too fishy to my taste, but the walnut version is pretty good.

vegan datemaki (sweet rolled omelet)

Datemaki is sort of like a thick omelet that is rolled and sweet. A little Internet research suggested that I could make a similar dish using mashed kabocha squash (I used acorn squash), tofu, and kuzu (I used agar). Mine totally fell apart though :(

I'll try better next year. But I can say this was a good start!

Datemaki represents knowledge, cultural prosperity from its scroll like shape.

Last but not least, Osechi usually includes something grilled, usually lobster or sea bream. For this I made teriyaki tofu and roasted cauliflower.

teriyaki tofu (left) and roasted cauliflower (right)

Osechi also includes slow cooked root vegetables but I couldn't get most of what I wanted to use, so I had to skip this year :(

Thank you for reading this rather long post! I hope you've enjoyed getting a glimpse of Japanese festive foods :) If there's any dish you'd like to get a recipe for, please let me know. I'll fine-tune my recipes and will share with you.

End of the Year Wishes and Etsy Treasury: Year of the Dragon

2011-12-31T12:33:00.001-06:00

wow. it's the last day of 2011!
(And already 2012 in some parts of the world, right?!)

this year has gone so fast.
but at the same time so many things happened both globally and personally
and I don't feel like all the things happened within a year.

Next year is the year of the dragon according to Chinese zodiac, which Japanese people including myself fondly follow.
As a dragon myself, I'm very excited about 2012 (although I can't believe another dragon year has come already!).

I hope the new year will bring you lots of joy, peace, health, love and success in your chosen field.
May 2012 be a year filled with optimism, integrity and compassion towards all beings.

Here's the treasury I curated to celebrate the year of the dragon :)

(note: the treasury will not show on some RSS readers. please go to my blog page. thanks!)

born in 1904, 1916, 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000 (and newborns in 2012!), dragon people are said to be passionate, brave, intelligent and imaginative :) wishing everybody a happy wonderful new dragon year!

(not very) wordless wednesday #12: Christmas Recap

2011-12-28T15:17:00.000-06:00

Our Christmas tree this year was a bit unconventional :)

Mochi loved her first ever Christmas gift

Christmas dinner consisted of:

my walnut cranberry rolls (recipe here)

vegan pot pie via the kitchen

the pie crust on the other pot pie broke, haha.

but it was yummy!

And the dessert:

I made my first stollen based on Cara's this post (think. care. act. and her new English blog the vegan German Inn).

I had to adjust her recipe to accommodate what was available to me and the amount I wanted to make so mine was probably not as authentic as hers.

but it was still pretty darn tasty :)

incidentally, the previous owner of our house was a German lady. I'm sure she would've been happy to see a little bit of a German influence on our table for our first Christmas in this house :)

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas too!

ps. here's what I used to make this stollen, adapted from the stollen recipe introduced above
made 2
4 Cups all-purpose flour
1/4 Cup non-dairy milk
1/3 Cup vegan sugar
2/3 Cup earth balance
1/4 Cup applesauce
2 1/4tsp active dry yeast
1/4 Cup warm water to proof yeast
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp allspice
1 tsp nutmeg
a pinch salt
candied orange & lemon peels from one each

Happy Holidays!

2011-12-24T17:23:00.000-06:00

Happy Holidays :)

whatever holidays you celebrate

may your days be filled with laughter, warmth and love

and don't forget to relax, too :)

thank you so much for reading my blog

and connecting with me via comments and twitter

jun & mochi

wordless wednesday #11

2011-12-21T11:09:00.000-06:00

beautiful lemon sea salt focaccia (via the kitchen)

I sprinkled himalayan pink salt

mushroom hot pot (via the post punk kitchen)

I substituted a few ingredients but it was still amazingly wonderful.
(e.g. omitted lemongrass, used 1/2tsp anise seeds + a pinch of allspice, used dried enoki mushrooms because I couldn't get the ingredients called for, and threw in some blocks of tofu)

Christmas cookies

I didn't want to use chemical colorings so doodled with chocolate glaze

Mochi's got a package!

etsy treasury: Holiday Jazz

2011-12-15T19:46:00.000-06:00

I've been listening to Holiday Jazz radio on the Internet like all day non-stop lately. I'm getting tired of usual pop Christmas songs after all these years of listening to them but Jazzy ones are still great. It's not too obtrusive but adds a nice touch of Christmas-ness in our house.

well, actually my husband is not a fan of Christmas songs altogether so I'm blasting the music only when he's at work. hehe.

This week's treasury is inspired by jazzy Christmas music I've been listening to lately. Whatever kind of Christmas songs you like (or whether you like it at all) music theme does add a nice feeling to Christmas, doesn't it?
(note: the treasury will not show on some RSS readers. please go to my blog page. thanks!)

wordless wednesday #10 Sweet Moments

2011-12-14T19:05:00.000-06:00

"Life is Sweet"

the recipe for the chocolate chip cookies is in

etsy treasury: for the man in your life

2011-12-08T16:17:00.001-06:00

I'm having so much fun making treasuries on etsy :)
It's as if I went on a shopping spree without being asked if I needed a help hundreds of times while shopping (I'm not a fan of being asked for a help until I'm ready) lol

This week I've made a gift guide for the man in your life featuring veggie sellers on etsy. Support handmade or vintage items by veggie sellers!
(note: the treasury will not show on some RSS readers. please go to my blog page. thanks!)

click the title to see the treasury on etsy & click the photo to see the item!

wordless wednesday #9

2011-12-07T10:49:00.001-06:00

coconut crusted tofu from vegan mofo 2011 - smells incredible :)

marbled banana bread

pumpkin mac'n cheese (veganized)

vietnamese claypot rice from vegan mofo 2011 (used a regular pot)

soft pretzels from my beloved the joy of vegan baking

had our first snow this season - happy winter!

Treasury and Crafty Update

2011-12-01T14:25:00.001-06:00

It's been a long time, due partly to the excitement of vegan mofo and the resting time afterwards, since I wrote something other than baking and vegan food but I'm back to a crafty mood. I've yet again revamped my etsy shop (well, life entails a constant improvement, right?), which now carries vintage and used knit, crochet, and cross stitch patterns. Please have a look if you like vintage patterns:)

At the same time, I've finally decided to join the fabulous BeKind Team on etsy, who help promoting animal-friendly handmade items and sellers. Each team member creates a treasury (a mini gallery curated by a team member) featuring animal-friendly items. The members of this team have got a great taste and just looking at their treasuries is so inspiring. If you're looking for compassionate gifts, it's definitely worth checking out. Use "bekind team" tag on etsy treasury page (or click here) to see all the wonderful animal-friendly items:)

Since I joined the team, I've made two treasuries on my own. I thought it'd be fun to share them on this blog also. Enjoy!

Recipe: Walnuts Cranberry Pull-Apart Rolls

2011-11-30T11:18:00.001-06:00

I made these for Mr. J's pre-Thanksgiving lunch at his work. They are loaded with crunchy walnuts and sweet dried cranberries. The contrasts between soft bread and crunchy walnuts, and between salty bread and sweet cranberries are just so good. To my relief his co-workers loved these rolls and none came back!

OK. I was actually expecting to have a leftover roll for myself, but that's ok. It's important that the rolls were perceived delicious :)

Speaking of Thanksgiving, I hope you had a wonderful one! Mine was pretty good despite the fact that I was the only vegan in the party. My mother-in-law kindly chose to make a vegan shepherd's pie so I could have a main dish also. Isn't she sweet?

This version of shepherd's pie had vegan mayo and cream cheese in the mashed potato and tasted very rich. I usually prefer a simpler taste but I enjoyed the pie very much. I do wish one day I could have a Thanksgiving dinner without looking at the bird on the table but I appreciate what I had for this year's Thanksgiving dinner and the company who I dined with.

Walnut Cranberry Pull-Apart Rolls

makes about 16 rolls

1/4 Cup warm water, not exceeding 100F

1 pk active dry yeast

1.5 Tablespoons vegan sugar divided

4 Cups bread flour

2 teaspoons salt

1 Tablespoon nutritional yeast*

2 Tablespoons ground flaxseed

1 1/4 Cup non-dairy milk at room temperature and extra for brushing

2 Tablespoons canola oil

1/2 Cup walnut pieces

1/2 Cup dried cranberries

* You could substitute 1 teaspoon salt for the nutritional yeast. In this case the total amount of salt in the recipe becomes 3 teaspoons (= 1 Tablespoon)

Proof yeast by placing the yeast in the warm water and add 1/2 Tablespoon of the sugar. Rest for about 10 minutes. The yeast mixture should become foamy if the yeast is active. If not, use another package and try this process again.

In your stand mixer (or in a big bowl if not using the mixer), add 3 3/4 Cups of the flour, salt, the rest of the sugar, nutritional yeast, and ground flaxseed and combine.

Stir in the non-dairy milk and canola oil into the flour mixture.

Add the yeast mixture.

Finally add the walnuts and cranberries and combine.

Using a dough hook, knead for about 3 minutes in the mixer (longer by hand). If the dough looks sticky, add the rest of the flour tablespoon by tablespoon.

Knead 2 more minutes. The dough will become smooth and shiny, and no longer sticky.

1st Rise

Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and let the dough rise until it doubles in volume. About 2-3 hours. You can also test whether the dough has risen enough by poking the dough with your finger. If the hole doesn't spring back, the dough is ready.

In chilly days, I put the bowl in a non-heated oven with a cup of boiled water. The steam from the water creates a warm humid environment that yeast likes :)

Punch Down & Rest

When the dough has risen enough, take it out of the bowl and place it on a floured (or non-stick) surface. Punch it down. Make it into a big ball, cover it with a damp cloth and rest for about 20 minutes.

Shaping and 2nd Rise

Divide the dough into 16 small pieces. Ideally each piece should be an equal size (weigh them if you like) but as you can see from the photo above, mines are not so perfectly divided. I kind of like their randomness ^^;

Make each piece into a 2" ball. I used this tutorial to make a round shape. Place them in your lined baking pan so each ball touches each other.

waiting for 2nd rise

Cover with a damp cloth and let them rise until they double in size. It should take about 1-1.5 hours (or half the time it took for the first rise). (Because the oven will be preheated during the 2nd rise, do not use the oven method mentioned above for the 2nd rise)

During the 2nd rise, start preheating your oven to 375F **

2nd rise done! nice and puffy

Brush the rolls with non-dairy milk and bake them for about 20-25 minutes, until the rolls become nicely browned and the internal temperature reaches 190F.

yum!

** Alternatively, you can bake them in 400F for a crunchier outside

wordless wednesday #8

2011-11-16T11:31:00.001-06:00

mochi was mischief and didn't want to come out :( (more here)

raw apple pie (recipe via tasty vegan ways)

lentil shepherd's pie (via vegtastic)

more pull-aparts

work-in-progress (can you guess what it will be?)

wordless wednesday #7

2011-11-09T10:20:00.000-06:00

plain pull-apart rolls

pumpkin pull-apart rolls (recipe via VeganDad)

autumn picnic at lake

mochi exploring autumn leaves (more photos on Mochi's blog)

Jack O'lantern melonpan

2011-10-31T12:49:00.000-05:00

Happy Halloween!

Today's sweets: Melonpan Jack O'lantern version :)

wow. what a month! I can't believe 2011 vegan mofo has come to an end so quickly.
It has been an exciting and inspiring month for me, and I believe for you too.

Thank you so much for reading, making encouraging comments, and connecting with me. It was these lovely feedback that kept me going this month.

Thank you also for making and writing about mouthwatering meals and sweets and telling inspiring stories for the whole month.

Vegans are awesome :)
I hope we can hang around even after this year's vegan mofo.

To celebrate today's Halloween, I made a special version of melonpan ("melon bread" I talked about yesterday) - Jack O'lantern melonpan!
Remember I made a chocolate melonpan too? I cut out eyes, a nose and a mouth from that dough and placed them on a plain melonpan just before I popped them in the oven.

This not only had a fun appearance but also had a great mix of taste. The chocolate taste here and there was a fun way to incorporate chocolate into this bread.

Are you making any special Halloween treats?

Thank you again everyone for reading my vegan mofo posts. Now I'm off to read other vegan mofo posts I haven't been able to read yet!