Cranberry Orange Pistachio (Vegan) Muffins #MuffinMonday

These Cranberry Orange Pistachio Vegan Muffins tick all the right boxes, tender flavorful crumb, sticky fruit, crunchy nuts. They are a wonderful treat for all the family, even the vegans among you since they are dairy-free and eggless.

The thing I love most about these muffins is that despite being vegan-friendly, they don’t have any weird ingredients like ground flax or chia seed, commercial egg replacer or silken tofu. Aside from the non-dairy yogurt, they are made with normal things that most people have on hand already.

I made these muffins as another thank you to one my neighbors for being awesome. The current recipient is a wonderful person who takes great care of her special needs rescue dogs as well as being kind and compassionate to the humans living near her. One neighbor said, “She lives on our block.  She is an angel. Cares about people almost as much as her pups - a wonderful person.” Three others called her their hero but this was my favorite accolade: “I've often thought that when I go to the "rainbow bridge" (hopefully) I wish to come back as one of her pups.”

Fortunately in the shower of compliments, someone also thought to mention that our honoree is vegan. I’d have felt terrible to find out later that she couldn’t eat what I’d baked for her!

Cranberry Orange Pistachio (Vegan) Muffins

Due to an Instacart order that went awry, I just happened to have a container of So Delicious dairy free coconut milk vanilla yogurt in my refrigerator. Use your favorite vanilla yogurt. You can also substitute plain non-dairy yogurt and add 2 teaspoons vanilla extract instead.  This recipe is adapted from one on A Virtual Vegan.

Ingredients
Zest 1 orange
1/2 cup or 120ml orange juice
1 cup or 120g dried cranberries, plus few more for decoration, if desired
1/2 cup or 70g roasted, unsalted pistachio nuts
2 cups or 250g all purpose unbleached flour
1/2 cup or 100g sugar
|2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup or 120ml canola or other light oil
1 cup or 240ml non-dairy vanilla yogurt

Method
Put the cranberries in a small bowl and cover with the orange juice. Leave to soak for at least 30 minutes but you can even do this step the day before. If you do, pop the bowl in the refrigerator overnight. I like to warm the orange juice for about 30 seconds in the microwave because it seems to soften the cranberries more.

When you are ready to continue, preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare your 12-cup muffin pan by lining it with paper muffin cups or silicone liners.

Chop the pistachios roughly and separate out a small handful for sprinkling on top of the muffins before baking.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and orange zest.

Drain any orange juice that hasn’t been absorbed by the cranberries into another mixing bowl. (I left mine to soak overnight so the cranberries had turned the orange juice a lovely shade of red.) Add in the oil and non-dairy vanilla yogurt and whisk well to combine.

Tip the drained cranberries into the flour bowl and stir well to coat them. Use a fork or your clean hands, if necessary, to separate them if they are clumping together.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold till almost combined. There should still be some flour showing.

Add in the bigger pile of chopped pistachios and fold to distribute them well throughout the batter.

Divide the batter between the cups in your prepared muffin pan. Top with a sprinkle of the reserved chopped pistachios and one more dried cranberry, if desired.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until well risen and golden. Remove from the oven and cool for a few minutes in the pan, then remove the muffins and place on a wire rack to cool

Enjoy!

Happy Muffin Monday! Check out all of the lovely muffins we've baked for you this month:

• Banana Mocha Chip Muffins from Jolene's Recipe Journal
• Cranberry Orange Pistachio (Vegan) Muffins from Food Lust People Love
• Creamed Corn Muffins from Palatable Pastime
• Lemonade Muffins from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Scotch Bonnet Cornbread Muffins from Passion Kneaded
• Simple Summery Squash Muffins from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Soft Blueberry Muffins from Making Miracles
• Sour Cream Rhubarb Muffins with Pecan Streusel from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Sweet Potato Mango Muffins from Zesty South Indian Kitchen

#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all of our lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday can be found on our home page.

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Charcoal Grilled Soy Ginger Salmon #FishFridayFoodies

This charcoal grilled soy ginger salmon is bursting with flavor from the sticky roasted marinade but what really makes the salmon divine is the smokiness from the hot charcoal.

I know a lot of people swear by their gas grills. I’m even related to some. Certainly, you can make grill marks with a gas grill and you can even throw in some wood chips as long as they are in a box or covered with foil. But in our humble opinion, you just aren’t going to match the taste of meat, seafood or even vegetables grilled over coal.

We feel so strongly about this that we actually own two Weber grills, a big one and a small one. Which one we use depends on how many people we are feeding. My husband hates to waste charcoal. He’s usually the one in charge of the grill and he has the whole process down to a fine art.

If you are a fan of seafood on the grill, you might also enjoy my piri-piri grilled whole baby grouper, my spicy Balinese grilled fish or my stuffed fresh sardines wrapped in parma ham then grilled.

Charcoal Grilled Soy Ginger Salmon

Depending on how widely spaced the bars on your grill are, you may need an additional grate to lay on top to keep your fish from falling through the gaps. I bought one on Amazon < affiliate link – which is non-stick and works wonderfully. You could also simply lay the fish on a piece of heavy-duty foil.

Ingredients (to serve 4)
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 thumb-sized piece fresh ginger, peeled (about 1 tablespoon grated)
1/4 cup or 60ml soy sauce
3 tablespoons sweet soy sauce
1 tablespoon good quality Shaoxing (Chinese rice wine)
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 1/4 lb or 567g wild salmon fillet, skin on

For garnish:
Chopped cilantro

Method
Grate the ginger and garlic into a small bowl.

Add in the rest of the marinade ingredients and stir well. Set aside.

Cut your salmon fillet into four portions but DO NOT cut through the skin below. We want what appears to be one whole piece so the skin will help hold it together as it cooks but we also want to be able to spoon marinade between the portions.

Place the fish in a shallow dish and spoon the marinade over it and between the pieces, reserving perhaps a third for basting when it’s grilling.

Cover with cling film and refrigerate until ready to cook but at least 30 minutes.

Light a good size pile of briquettes in your grill. They are ready for cooking when the outsides are mostly grey with a red core, about 20 minutes.

Spread the coals around evenly.  The goal is a medium-hot fire.

Put your grate on the grill, if needed, then lay the salmon on top, skin side down.

Put the lid on, with vents partially open, and cook for about 8-12 minutes until the salmon is just barely cooked through, according to the thickness of the fish or to your liking. Baste halfway through with the reserved marinade.

With wild salmon, the kind I normally cook, you want to err on the side of undercooked vs overcooked because it is lean and can dry out. Farm-raised salmon will take a bit longer.

The FDA recommends cooking salmon to an internal temperature of 145°F or 63°C. If you have an instant read thermometer, stick it in the thickest part of the fillet for the most accurate reading. Get it up just past 130°F or 54°C and it will reach optimum temperature while it rests in foil.

Remove from the grill and rest, wrapped loosely with foil for 10 minutes.

Garnish with some chopped cilantro, if desired, and serve.

Enjoy!


This month my Fish Friday Foodies friends are cooking seafood outdoors at the instigation of our host and group leader, Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm. Check out all the great recipes below:

• Cajun Boil on the Grill from Making Miracles
• Charcoal Grilled Soy Ginger Salmon by Food Lust People Love
• Crawdadding with Cousins Means Jambalaya by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Green Chilly Basil Pesto Grilled Prawns by Sneha's Recipe
• Grilled Garlic Shrimp with Yuzu Kosho by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Grilled Mahi-Mahi with Mojo Sauce from Veggies First Then Dessert
• Grilled Mahi Mahi with Blueberry Wild Rice Pilaf by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Grilled Shrimp Souvlaki on Pita from Palatable Pastime
• Spiced Shrimp on a Stick from Sid's Sea Palm Cooking

Are you a food blogger who would you like to join Fish Friday Foodies? We post and share new seafood/fish recipes on the third Friday of the month. To join our group please email Wendy at wendyklik1517 (at) gmail.com. Visit our Facebook page and Pinterest page for more wonderful fish and seafood recipe ideas.

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Sourdough Chocolate Bundt Cake #BundtBakers

The sourdough starter isn’t an obvious flavor in this sourdough chocolate Bundt cake but the moisture it adds makes this the most tender and light – yet so rich! – chocolate cake I’ve ever tasted.

A couple of years back when I was still living in Dubai, I succumbed to the lure of the sourdough starter. I had just gotten it up and running when a family emergency called me out of the country. I tried to revive it when I arrived back home but, frankly, I had lost the enthusiasm.

Like almost everyone else who has been in lockdown, I thought housebound pandemic mode would be the perfect time to try again, especially when I found instructions on the King Arthur Flour website on how to maintain a tiny starter with fewer discards.

That said, I am often still looking for uses for sourdough discard. Again the King Arthur Flour website came through. I can highly recommend their sourdough crumpets made entirely of discard, a little sugar, salt and baking soda, and their chocolate cake, which I’ve adapted from this recipe.

Sourdough Chocolate Bundt Cake

Sourdough in a cake was a revelation! As they say on the KA website, you don’t taste any sourness, just deep rich chocolate. I added a simple coffee glaze that was absolutely perfect poured on top and sprinkled on a few espresso granules for a lovely contrast in color.

Ingredients
For the cake batter:
1 cup or 227g sourdough starter, ripe (fed) or discard
1 cup or 240ml milk (Do not use skim milk!)
2 cups or 250g unbleached all-purpose flour, plus extra for the pan
1 tablespoon butter (for preparing the pan)
1 1/2 cups or 300g granulated sugar
1 cup or 240ml vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup or 60g Dutch process cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon instant espresso granules
2 large eggs

For the coffee glaze:
1 tablespoon hot water
2 teaspoons instant espresso granules
1 cup or 125g icing sugar
3-4 teaspoons heavy cream

Optional for decorating: instant espresso granules

Method
In a large bowl, mix together the sourdough starter, milk, and flour. Cover with cling film and leave to rest at room temperature for 2 to 3 hours. It will rise ever so slightly and maybe get a few bubbles.

Preheat the oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare a 12-cup Bundt pan by greasing it with the butter and flouring it thoroughly.

In a separate bowl, beat together the sugar, oil, vanilla, salt, baking soda, cocoa and espresso powder. I used my stand mixer for this but you could just use a whisk as well. The sugar won't dissolve so it's going to be grainy. All good.

Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula and add the eggs one at a time, beating well and scraping the bowl down again after each addition.

Pour the chocolate mixture into the mixing bowl with the starter mixture.

Use a rubber spatula to fold the chocolate into the starter mixture until well combined.

Pour the batter into your prepared pan.

Bake the cake for 45-50 minutes, until a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. If you are a instant read thermometer using person, (and I highly recommend you become one if you are not) the ideal internal temperature is 210°F or 99°C.

Remove the cake from the oven, and set it on a rack to cool for about 10 minutes, then use a toothpick to loosen the sides and middle and invert the Bundt onto the wire rack. Leave it to cool completely before glazing.

To make the coffee glaze, dissolve the espresso granules in the hot water then sift your icing sugar into the same bowl. Stir until completely smooth, adding the cream a teaspoon at a time till you are happy with the consistency. I like it quite thick but still pourable. Spoon the glaze over the top of the Bundt.

If desired, sprinkle on some of the espresso granules quickly so they will stick before the glaze surface dries.

Cut in slices to serve.

Enjoy!

This month my Bundt Bakers are feeling the freedom! Our host Sue of Palatable Pastime chose a very expansive theme: Bake whatever Bundt cake you want and I quote: "Any kind will  do - as long as you think it is delicious!" I am grateful for such an inclusive theme and Sue's behind the scenes work. Check out the wide variety of Bundt cakes we’ve baked for you, guaranteed to be delicious!

• Bundt Butter Tea Cake from Sneha's Recipe
• Buttery Pound Cake from Palatable Pastime
• Lemon Poppyseed Bundt Cake from Making Miracles
• Red Velvet Bundt Cake with Cherries Fruit Topping and Cream Cheese Icing from Pat Y Co. Candy Bar
• Sourdough Chocolate Bundt Cake from Food Lust People Love
• Strawberry Rhubarb Bundt Cake from A Day in the Life on the Farm

#BundtBakers is a group of Bundt loving bakers who get together once a month to bake Bundts with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all of our lovely Bundts by following our Pinterest board. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about BundtBakers can be found on our home page.

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Cheddar Herb Scones #BreadBakers

These fluffy cheddar herb scones have the most wonderful flavor, not just from the cheese and herbs but also from the yeast used as the rising agent.

Most scones, at least in my experience, are raised with baking powder and/or baking soda but this month our Bread Bakers host, Sue of Palatable Pastime challenged us to bake them (or their American counterpart, biscuits) with yeast instead.

I’m here to tell you that yeast can make a lovely light scone as well and almost as quickly, with just one 30-minute rise of the dough before baking. The cheese and herbs are subtle in these scones but that just makes them more versatile.

Cheddar Herb Scones

My recipe is adapted from one on Kitchen Stories. My family ate a few for breakfast but I also served them with pork and bacon patties as a sort of alternative burger for dinner. Delicious!

Ingredients
2 teaspoons dry active yeast
2 teaspoons sugar
1 cup or 240ml warm water
2 cups or 250g bread flour
2 cups or 250g all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
Black pepper
1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme
1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus a little extra for the bowl
3 1/2 oz or 100g extra sharp cheddar cheese, plus extra for topping, if desired
1 egg, lightly beaten

Method
Grate your cheese and set aside.

In a small bowl or measuring cup, mix the yeast and sugar into the warm water. It should get nice and bubbly if your yeast is healthy.

Sift the flours and salt into a large mixing bowl. Add in a few generous grinds of black pepper, the grated cheddar, and herbs and mix well.

Add the olive oil to the yeast mixture then add the wet mixture to the dry ingredient bowl.

Stir with a wooden spoon until it’s too stiff to stir. Tip the shaggy dough out onto a clean surface and knead until all the ingredients come together in a tidy ball.

Put a little olive oil in the bowl and turn the dough ball over to coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it proof for 30 minutes, in a warm dark place.

When your dough is almost through proofing, preheat the oven to 400°F or 200°C and prepare your baking pan by lining it with baking parchment or a silicone liner.

Turn out the dough onto a lightly dusted work surface lightly knead. Pat it into a disc that is about 1 in or 2.5 cm thick. Use a floured cookie or biscuit cutter to cut the dough into 3 inch or 7.6cm circles. Depending on the thickness of your dough, you should get seven or eight scones.

Transfer the dough circles to your lined baking pan. Brush with the beaten egg.

Sprinkle on a little cheddar, if desired.

Bake for 15-20 minutes in the preheated oven or until golden brown and well risen. Remove from the oven and serve with butter while still warm.

Enjoy!

If you are a fan of scones or biscuits, this is the Bread Baker recipe list for you! Many thanks to Sue from Palatable Pastime for hosting this month!

• Angel Biscuits from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Buttery Jeera Biscuits from Sneha's Recipe
• Cheddar Herb Scones from Food Lust People Love
• Cheddar and Chive Blossom Scones from Palatable Pastime
• Cheese and Herbs Scones from Ambrosia
• Chocolate Scones from Passion Kneaded
• Freeze and Bake Yeasted Mini Ginger Scones from A Messy Kitchen
• Laminated Biscuits from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Herbed Angel Biscuits from The Schizo Chef
• Sourdough Orange Biscuits from Zesty South Indian
• Sourdough Sandwich Biscuits from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Yeast-Raised Angel Biscuits from Making Miracles

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

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Shortbread Peach Jam Squares

Make Shortbread Peach Jam Squares by surrounding bright sweet peach jam with crumbly buttery shortbread and baking it all to golden perfection!

When sweet peaches are in season, I can’t help myself; I have to make peach jam. While we also eat plenty and I freeze some, jam seems like the best way to make sure we can enjoy the flavorful juicy peaches for months to come.

Is it just me or does anyone else get an inordinate amount of satisfaction from seeing rows of homemade jams, chutneys and preserves in the pantry?

I get a little giddy as my stock grows although I also like to give some away. I have one rule though, if possible, wash my jars and give them back once they are empty! You’ll be much more likely to be a future recipient if you do.

Shortbread Peach Jam Squares

This recipe is adapted from one on Tasty for blackberry jam squares. As long as it’s nice and thick, you can use your favorite jam. I popped one cup of my homemade peach jam on the scale and it weighed 290g. I’ve added the correct measure below, for those of you who weigh ingredients.

Ingredients
2/3 cup or 158g butter, plus extra for greasing pan
1/8 cup or 25g sugar
1/8 cup or 25g dark brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups or 312g plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups or 363g peach jam

Method
Preheat the oven to 350˚F or 180˚C and prepare an 9x9 in or 23x23cm pan by greasing it lightly and lining it with baking parchment.

Note: If you don’t mind cutting the squares in your pan, you can skip the baking parchment step but I find that I end up damaging my pan if I can’t remove the baked goods before cutting. The parchment makes lifting out easy.

Melt two tablespoons of the butter and set aside to cool.

In a bowl, beat together the rest of the butter and the two sugars until fluffy.

Add in the egg, melted butter, and vanilla extract and beat again.

Sift 2 cups or 250g of the flour, baking powder and salt into the bowl. Mix with a wooden spoon until combined.

 

Bring the mixture together using your clean hands to make a dough and divide it into two equal pieces.

Use your clean hands to spread out half of the dough in the baking pan. Prick the dough with a fork to prevent bubbles from forming while baking.

Spread the peach jam on top.

Mix in the remaining flour into the dough and use a fork to make a knobbly crumble.

Sprinkle the crumble on top of the jam.

Bake for 20 minutes, until golden brown on top.

Leave to cool completely then lift it out with the parchment paper. Cut into squares.

Enjoy!

This month my fellow Baking Bloggers are featuring peaches in all of our recipes, some savory, some sweet! Many thanks to our host, Sue of Palatable Pastime for all her behind-the-scenes work. Check out all the peachy deliciousness below:

• Uruguayan Peach Chaja Cake from Pandemonium Noshery
• Peach BBQ Chicken Legs from Making Miracles
• Mini Peach Cobblers from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Roasted Flank Steak with Fresh Peach Pico de Gallo from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Single Serving Baked Peach Crisp from Sneha's Recipe
• Shortbread Peach Jam Squares from Food Lust People Love
• Peach Clafoutis from Cookaholic Wife
• Fresh Peach Shortcake from Palatable Pastime
• Gluten Free Peach Crisp from Cook with Renu
• Peach Glazed Chicken Wings from A Day in the Life on the Farm

Baking Bloggers is a friendly group of food bloggers who vote on a shared theme and then post recipes to fit that theme one the second Monday of each month. If you are a food blogger interested in joining in, inquire at our Baking Bloggers Facebook group. We'd be honored if you would join us in our baking adventures.

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