Book Review and Giveaway: Vegan à la Mode by Hannah Kaminsky

Yes, I work for a vegan ice cream company, and my freezer is filled with some of the most delectable dairy-free frozen desserts on Earth. But variety is the spice of life, after all, and a lingering desire for more exotic ice cream flavors compelled me to dust off my ice cream machine and dive into the recipes in Hannah's latest book, Vegan à la Mode.

If the drop-dead gorgeous cover photos (what I wouldn't give to spend a day in a photo studio with Hannah!) aren't enough to make you want to run out and buy a copy, then maybe the temptation of indulging in some of these exquisite flavors will: Turkish Coffee, White Russian, Blueberry Muffin, Toasted Marshmallow, Tiramisu, Chai Latte, and Birthday Cake. More venturesome frozen-dessert seekers can choose from Curried Peanut Butter, French Toast, Fresh Corn, and Rose Petal (my next adventure!) With more than 100 ice cream and sorbet recipes, there are enough sweet frozen dessert flavors to get you through the summer and beyond. There's even a frosty recipe for Pup-sicles (how cute is that?) for your canine companion!

Readers will appreciate the extensive ingredients glossary, "Kitchen Tools and Toys" (if you don't already own an ice cream maker, you'll find this very insightful!), and guide to essential techniques.  Most thoughtful of all, Hannah included the chapter, "Toppings, Accompaniments, and Components" that will take your frozen dessert creations to the moon and back! It goes way beyond whipped topping and hot fudge sauce (though these are included), with recipes for Brownie Cookies, Mini Mochi Bites (yum!), Tuile Ice Cream Cones (tuile is a thin, crisp sugary wafer), and even Rainbow Sprinkles!

The one ice cream flavor I've missed more than any other since becoming vegan is pistachio. It was my favorite flavor as a kid (even exceeding my exuberance for vanilla).

I was heartbroken the day I learned that the Almond-Pistachio flavor of the fabulous fruit-sweetened vegan frozen dessert, It's Soy Delicious was retired. So pistachio ice cream had once again become a distant fond memory, that is, until NOW! But before you continue, I just want to mention that the technicolor quality of the images that follow were not enhanced by any photo-editing tool. The truly vibrant colors are the result of using whole plant-food ingredients.

Thank you, Hannah, for nailing the pistachio flavor in your Pistachio Praline Ice Cream! As she points out in the introduction to this recipe, most pistachio ice cream suffers from an identity crisis (as she puts it.) While most are visually pistachio-hued, their predominant flavor actually comes from almond extract, not pistachio. (I never knew that!) But Hannah's interpretation of my favorite flavor doesn't make any such compromises. This delicious rendition starts with toasted and caramelized pistachios that are made into a praline paste, blended into a non-dairy milk and sugar base along with a couple of surprising ingredients which lend their luscious color.

Oh, and can you say, "pistachio milkshake"?  Easy-breezy recipe: 2 scoops Pistachio Praline ice cream, 1 cup So Delicious Coconut Milk, and 2 very ripe small bananas. Blend for 30 seconds, pour, and indulge!

Next up: Short-cut Spumoni, which takes no short-cuts
on flavor. It is far richer, more complex, and electrifyingly colorful than the three-layered ice cream with fruit and nuts between the layers that I remember eating at Italian restaurants as a child. This frosty delight is bursting with the vibrancy of fresh cherries that coalesce delectably with dark chocolate chips and roasted pistachios.

Blueberry-Balsamic Ice Cream was the third recipe I tried, and my favorite so far. The sweet fruitiness of the berries mingled sensuously with the balsamic and mint. I was fortunate to have an abundance of blueberries and spearmint growing in my garden at the time I prepared this recipe, their freshness further enhancing the complexity of flavors. And having high-quality balsamic on hand didn't hurt, either.

One thing I can say for sure about all of Hannah's recipes is that they are out-of-the-ballpark winners. Not only have I not tasted a mediocre recipe from any of her books, but every new recipe far exceeds my expectations. And while the recipes in this book are made with simple ingredients, each and every time you'll get knockout results.

The recipe for Blueberry Balsamic Ice Cream from Vegan à la Mode. is reprinted with the kind permission of the author and Skyhorse Publishing, New York. ©Hannah Kaminsky 2012. (Notes in italics are my own.) Enjoy!

Makes 1 quart.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen and thawed 
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar (I used Blueberry Balsamic from Olive Grand)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 cups plain non-dairy milk (I used So Delicious® Dairy Free Original Coconut Milk)
1 1/2 Tbsp arrowroot
1 Tbsp fresh mint leaves, finely minced

Directions:

This ice cream base begins much the same as the procedure for making freezer jam. Place the blueberries, vinegar, sugar, and maple syrup in a medium saucepan, and set over medium-low heat. Cook until the berries burst and stew happily in their own juices for ten to fifteen minutes.

Separately, vigorously beat the arrowroot and non-dairy milk into a loose slurry, double-checking that there are no remaining lumps of starch before pouring the mixture into the pot of stewed berries. Stir well to incorporate, and turn up the heat to medium. Stir periodically until the mixture comes up to a boil; then turn off the heat.

Stir in the fresh mint, cover the pot with the lid, and let sit undisturbed until it cools to room temperature, allowing the mint to infuse. Transfer the whole mixture to your blender and thoroughly purée. Pass through a strainer to ensure the smoothest texture and discard the solids.

Chill in the fridge for at least three hours before churning in your ice cream machine according to manufacturer's instructions. Scoop the soft ice cream into an airtight container, and let it further solidify in your freezer for at least three hours before serving.

If somehow, you've managed to get all the way through this post without clicking over to amazon.com to buy order your very own copy of Vegan à la Mode, then here's an opportunity to win one! Simply leave a comment below telling me your dream ice cream flavor, and one lucky winner (someone has to win, so why not you?) will be selected at random.* 

Update: Congratulations to Kelly of Kohlrabi and Quince! You're the very lucky winner of a copy of Vegan à la Mode! Please let me know where to send your book, and it will soon be on its way! Thanks to everyone for another terrific giveaway! There's lots more delicious fun to come!

To earn additional entries, you can do any or all of the following, and please leave a comment for each item you complete:

1. Join the group, My Sweet Vegan, Vegan Desserts, and Vegan à la Mode on Facebook.
2. Follow @BitterSweet__ (Hannah) on Twitter.
3. Follow this blog by clicking the "follow" link in the upper left-hand corner of this page, subscribing via email, or through Networked Blogs.
4. Follow @Vegiegail on Twitter.
5. Tweet the following message: Win a copy of @BitterSweet__'s new book Vegan à la Mode & make your vegan ice cream dreams come true! http://bit.ly/QSOHlh #recipe #giveaway

Please make sure I have a way to contact you if you're the lucky winner, (leave me your Twitter handle or email address or make sure it's linked to your blogger account.) Good luck!!!

*Sorry international friends. The giveaway is open to US residents only.

Vegan Desserts: Sumptuous Sweets for Every SeasonBook Review and Giveaway!

After having my sweet tooth so soothingly satisfied by all of the sumptuously sweet recipes in Hanna's first book,  My Sweet Vegan, I couldn't imagine that there could possibly be that many more sweet surprises up Hannah's skillful sleeve. But to my amazement and delight, her new book, Vegan Desserts holds within its 240 hardbound (yes—layflat!), gloriously full-color pages, more than 100 new recipes that will tantalize any dessert-lover's taste buds—vegan or not!

I am in awe of the imagination that guides Hannah to create such uniquely beautiful and toothsome recipes as Marzipan Tea Cake, Persimmon Blondies, Zesty Rhubarb Ripple Cake, Avocado Crème Pie, and Roasted Apricot Ice Cream with Almond Praline Ripple. As with Hannah's first book, every recipe is accompanied by Hannah's gloriously rich full-color photos, which will make your mouth water with each turn of the page.

Recipe sections are divided into the four seasons, but even before diving into the recipes, readers will find invaluable tips and insights in the book's front matter that includes an expansive ingredients glossary, fun list of kitchen essentials, and an extremely helpful trouble-shooting guide. Food-sensitive readers will appreciate the food-allergy index at the end of the book that makes searching for gluten-free, peanut-free, soy-free, and tree-nut-free recipes a breeze!

Hannah's Roasted Apple Cheesecake was a wonderful surprise! Apples and cheesecake? Who but Hannah would think of such a uniquely delectable pairing? The buttery-roasted apples, candied pecans, and gingersnap crust all conspired together to create an unforgettably delicious and creamy cheesecake.

I'm just mad about saffron. Saffron's mad about me. Spend the extra bucks and buy yourself a few pinches of the best saffron from Iran or Spain you can find, and make this Golden Saffron Pound Cake. I think it is one of the most exquisite little cakes I have ever eaten—certainly it's the best pound cake I've ever enjoyed. I actually had dreams about it after the last piece was just a memory. In my dream, I called it Mellow Yellow. It's sooooo good!

A funny thing happened on the way to the kitchen one day. I was all set to bake the recipe for Coffee Poppy Seed Cake. I assembled all the ingredients. (I was sure I had them all on hand!) Not so. There was only one missing—the instant coffee! What to do? I searched high and low for an alternative that would work in this recipe. (Truly, what can you substitute for instant coffee? You can't use anything that has to be brewed.) I eyed a bag of forgotten acai powder hiding at the back of a shelf. It was finely ground like instant coffee, it tasted kind of woodsy—not at all like coffee—but strong! What the heck? I went for it, and it worked beautifully in this cake. (I can only imagine how much more amazing the cake would have been made with coffee!) Everyone at the office remarked that it tasted delicious. Kudos, and a world of thanks to Hannah for creating truly no-fail recipes like this one!

I've made whipped cream by chilling a can of full-fat coconut milk and then trying to skim only the cream from the top with varying degrees of success. So I was super excited to find Hannah's recipe for Whipped Cream in Vegan Desserts. Not only does it not require that you remove the cream from the top of the can, but it tastes incredible, and unlike some other dairy-free toppings, this one holds together and doesn't melt, even after sitting out at room temperature. Which means you can not only dollop it by the spoonful atop your favorite pie or ice cream, but you can also pipe it through a pastry bag if you want to be fancy-schmancy. (Hannah's photo on page 234 will knock your socks off!) Here's my silky-smooth dollop of freshly made whipped cream atop of dish of chocolate almond milk ice cream! 

And here's the Whipped Cream recipe from Vegan Desserts, reprinted with the kind permission of the author and Skyhorse Publishing. ©2011 Hannah Kaminsky


Ingredients:


1 1/2 cups coconut milk
1/2 cup plain soy or coconut creamer (I used So Delicious Original Coconut Milk Creamer)
6 Tbsp granulated sugar
2 Tbsp agar-agar flakes or 2 tsp powder
1/2 tsp vanilla extract


Directions:


In a medium saucepan, whisk together the coconut milk, creamer, and sugar. Sprinkle the agar over the top and whisk vigorously to incorporate, being sure not to leave any lumps. Turn the stove up to medium heat and cook until the mixture comes to a full boil, stirring gently from time to time. Remove the pan from the heat and whick in the vanilla. Cool to room temperature before stashing it in the fridge. Thoroughly chill for at least 3 hours, until completely solid—you should be able to trun the entire pot upside down and nothing will fall out (but don't hold it like that for too long, just in case!) 


Scrape the disk of solidified whipped cream out of the pan and into your food processor or blender. Thoroughly purée, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl, until completely smooth. At first, it will seem dry and grainy, but just give the machine enough time to work out the lumps. Once silky and soft, dollop it onto desserts with a spoon or move it into a piping bag to give it a more "polished" look.  
Makes 2 cups.


Update: Congratulations to Jessica Caneal! You won a copy of Vegan Desserts! Please send me an email with your postal address, and we'll get your copy right out to you! Thank you everyone, for making this such a terrific giveaway! More to come!!


Want to win your very own copy of Vegan Desserts?* (You know you do!) Just leave a comment below telling me which one of the recipes mentioned above most tempts your taste buds. (Please make sure I have your email address so I can contact you when you win!) If you'd like to earn additional entries, please do any or all of the following, and leave a comment for each item you complete:

1. Follow this blog by clicking the "follow" link in the upper left-hand corner of this page, subscribing via email, or through NetworkedBlogs.
2. Tweet the following message: Win a copy of @BitterSweet__'s Vegan Desserts & satisfy your sweet tooth compassionately+deliciously! http://bit.ly/w764sd #vegan #giveaway

3. Join the group, My Sweet Vegan, Vegan Desserts and Vegan à la Mode on Facebook!

4. Make friends with Hannah Kaminsky on Facebook!

5. Follow @Vegiegail on Twitter!
6. Follow @BitterSweet__ on Twitter!

*Sorry international friends. Giveaway is only open to readers with a valid US postal address.

My Sweet Vegan by Hannah Kaminsky Book Review and Giveaway!

Desserts are an indulgence I allow myself more than occasionally, and they are my one true weakness. So when I finally became the proud owner of a copy of Hannah Kaminsky's My Sweet Vegan I couldn't wait to sink my teeth into the recipes contained within its spectacular, full-color pages.

And oh, what glorious recipes they are! The fact that each and every one of the more than 75 recipes in this book is accompanied by a mouthwateringly tantalizing, drop-dead-gorgeous color photo, only increased my already excited sensibilities. I had to dive in. There was no stopping me. And with a refrigerator filled with So Delicious Coconut Nog and Greek-style Coconut Milk Yogurt, (coming to stores soon!) I had to start with Hannah's recipe for Not-Nog Cupcakes.

The gooey-chewy, sweet caramel topping was the perfect companion to the lusciously moist nog cake. I don't know what these babies are like made with soy yogurt (which is all that was available at the time the book was published in 2008), but the thick, creamy coconut milk Greek yogurt gave these cupcakes incredible texture. 

When I got home with my copy of My Sweet Vegan I did what I always do with a new cookbook—now don't think this is weird—I read it from cover to cover. (I usually do this at bedtime, which explains why some mornings I wake up feeling famished.) When I landed on the page for Black and White Cookies, my heart skipped a beat. These were one of my most favorite childhood treats, and I have long dreamed of a vegan version. If you have never tasted a Black and White Cookie, you are missing out on one of life's luscious little luxuries. Perhaps you remember this scene in a bakery from an episode of Seinfeld:

This sums up how I feel about Black and White Cookies—chocolate and vanilla are delicious together, and if you could actually eat a whole one of these giant cookies with a bit of chocolate and a bit in vanilla in each bite, you'd be a magician, given that most of the black and most of the white are on opposite ends of the cookie! As a child vanilla-worshipper, I would eat all of the chocolate first and leave the vanilla half of the cookie for last. But for my first vegan Black and White Cookie, I ate all away around the outside of it, savoring a little chocolate, then a little vanilla, and round and round and round I happily ate my way around the whole cookie! All those years of dreaming about a Black and White Cookie. It was even better than I had remembered! Thank you, Hannah!

I experienced a minor disaster when I removed the cookies from the oven. When I opened the oven door, I heard a loud "bang!" and one side of the oven door broke. Hanging down a bit more on the left than the right now, it no longer closes properly, but with a tree full of plums, there was one more recipe in My Sweet Vegan I had to make before writing this post. And oh, how sweet it is! Plum-Good Crumb Cake doesn't begin to describe how good this cake is. I love a good crumb cake, and making crumbs is so much fun! Adding chopped plums made this cake even more memorable. Just look at the vibrant color!

I'm still trying to wrap my brain around the fact that all of the amazing recipes in this book were created and published by Hannah at the tender age of eighteen. I can only imagine the future accomplishments and extraordinary life this brilliant young woman has before her!

A further sampling of what you'll find in this gorgeous book are such yumminess as Green Tea Tiramisu, Coconut Custard Pie, Dried Fruit Focaccia, Golden Glazed Donuts, Orange-Hazelnut Biscotti, and Whoopie Pies. There's even a Canine Cake recipe you can make (and share with) your dog!

All of the lucky duckies who attended Vida Vegan Con walked away with a copy of My Sweet Vegan. But if you're like me, and somehow you went through the last few years without owning copy, wait no more. Click on the link above, and head on over to Amazon.com (or your favorite bookseller) and grab a copy for yourself and second copy for someone who thinks that vegan desserts are anything short of spectacular. They'll be pleasantly surprised at just how sweet vegan can be.

If you haven't visited Hannah's blog, Bittersweet Vegan, head on over for some eye-poppingly amazing photos, delicious recipes, and all kinds of great vegan inspiration. Oh, and Hannah's second book, the aptly titled, Vegan Desserts: Sumptuous Sweets for Every Season is filled with even more heavenly delights like: Roasted Apricot Ice Cream, No-Bake Pumpkin Crème Brulee, Chai Poached Pears, and Golden Saffron Pound Cake! It sounds like she's outdone herself in this book, which is at the top of my holiday wish list! (Hint, hint!)

Update: Congratulations to Andrea Gardner! She won a copy of My Sweet Vegan! Thank you to everyone who entered the giveaway and for all of your wonderful comments! Stay tuned for lots more fun giveaways to come!


One last thing—I promised you a giveaway, didn't I? OK then: One lucky reader will receive a copy of My Sweet Vegan. All you need to do to enter is leave me a comment below telling me what your favorite dessert is. That's it! One winner will be selected at random via the handy-dandy number generator at random.org. And if you want to earn additional entries, you can do any or all of the following, and leave me a comment for each one you do:

1. Follow @BitterSweet_on Twitter.
2. Follow @Vegiegail on Twitter.
3. Tweet the following message: Love desserts? Be inspired! Win a free copy of @BitterSweet_'s My Sweet Vegan via @Vegiegail! http://bit.ly/qvWpmg #vegan #giveaway #dessert
4. Follow this blog! (Click in the upper-left corner of this page if you are on google, subscribe via email, or follow via NetworkedBlogs on Facebook.)

Good luck!!

*Sorry international friends. Giveaway open to US residents only.