Vegan Oat and Raisin Biscuits with Barley Malt

This recipe had to be created because my toddler son loves biscuits. He would eat one every minute, so I had to figure out the least harmful composition of ingredients, paying a special attention to the sweetening ingredient. Barley malt syrup is one of the main sweeteners used in macrobiotic cooking, and it's good because it comes from grain.
So there's my version of classic oat & raisin biscuits.

Makes about 35 biscuits

Ingredients:
1 cup oat flakes
1 1/2 cup whole grain spelt flour
3/4 cup barley malt syrup
1/3 cup oil
2 Tbsp rice milk (or any dairy-free milk/water)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup raisins soaked and drained
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 180C and prepare a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper.
In a large bowl, mix togetrher oil, barley malt syrup and vanilla extract, add oats, flour, salt and baking powder. Look at the consistency and if you think it might do with some more moisture, add rice milk to it. Mix thoroughly until smooth. Incorporate raisins in the dough.
Then, and this is quite important - refrigerate your dough for 15 minutes, if you don't want your biscuits to spread too much. Cooling the baking tray will help too. Alternatively, you can form biscuits on the tray (taking a bit of the dough with a teaspoon and dropping on the baking sheetwith 1-2 inches between them), place the tray in the fridge, and after 15 minutes take it out and put straight into the oven.

If you like your biscuits big and flat, you can use unrefrigerated dough, but keep 3 inches between them. I have a small oven and use small trays, so I have to pack them a bit tighter together, so I prefer using refrigerated dough.

Bake for 12 minutes. They will be a bit soft but they will harden soon. Keep in the airtight container.

Macro gingerbread men

These are less spicy and more wholesome than traditional gingerbread biscuits. Decorated just with currants 'cause it's one of the natural alternatives to the conventional piped decorations, made of sugar and colourings.

These gingerbread men are better than just vegan. With agave syrup (you can use maple syrup if you want) and barley malt they're totally guilt-free. I make them for my little boy.

The ingredients list is very simple, and I don't use any leavening agents because I don't think there is a need for them.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup baking oil (sunflower, grapeseed)

1/4 cup agave syrup

1/2 cup barley malt

2 1/3 cup whole spelt flour

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp ground ginger

pinch of sea salt

Method:

1.In a mixing bowl, mix together oil, agave and barley syrup. Sift in the flour and spices, add salt.  Mix with a wooden spoon, then your hands until the dough start to stiffen. Make a ball and wrap it in a cling film and put it in the fridge for half an hour.

2. Preheat the oven to 180C and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

3. Roll a piece of the dough on a slightly floured surface, until smooth and not too thick. The thickness you'll need depends on the size of your biscuit cutter. Mine are huge (about 12 cm H) so I have to do them about 0,7 cm thick, otherwise it won't be possible to lift them off the surface. Cut the shapes out, lift them carefully with a spatula or wide knife and place them on the parchment paper 2 cm apart. Decorate with the currants or raisins. Bake for 8-10 mins (depending on the size again).

here's my little boy :)

Vegan Hazelnut Chocolate cupcake

Another cupcake recipe with the nut butter. It's very simple in decoration as well - just a drop of rice syrup or barley malt in the middle and some crushed roasted hazelnuts on top of it.

 
Makes 9 big hazelnut cupcakes (in regular muffin paper cases) or 16 small ones

Ingredients:
3/4cup soy milk
2 tsp cider vinegar
1/2 cup hazelnut butter, stirred
1/3 cup sunflower or grapeseed oil
1/2 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup barley malt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 cup wholemeal wheat or spelt flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
pinch of sea salt

Method:
Preheat oven to 170C, line a cupcake tray with paper liners.
In a small bowl, mix soy milk with the vinegar with the whisk and leave for a few minutes.
Meanwhile, in a larger bowl cream the hazelnut butter, oil, barley malt and extracts until smooth. Add the soy mixture and mix. Put a fine sieve on top of the bowl and sift in the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt, mix together, trying not to overmix.
Pour the mixture in the liners with the small ladle and place in the oven immediately.
Bake for about 28 min, checking with the toothpick put in the middle of one of the cupcakes, which should come out dry.

Vegan Peanut Butter cupcakes

I've just decided to search the web for polenta and poppy seed cake recipe and found lots of them. Lemon's present in most recipes too. How sad - I actually thought I've invented something lol. I just love poppy seed and try to put it anywhere it seems to fit. Well, I suppose, in terms of cooking nowadays there is nothing which hasn't been invented yet. Here is another classic cupcake.

Peanut butter cupcakes with chocolate ganache and roasted peanuts
Makes 9 big cupcakes (in regular muffin paper cases) or 16 small ones

Ingredients:
3/4cup soy milk
2 tsp cider vinegar
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/3 cup sunflower or grapeseed oil
1/2 cup agave syrup
1/4 cup barley malt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 cup wholemeal wheat or spelt flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
pinch of sea salt


Method:
Preheat oven to 170C, line a cupcake tray with paper liners.
In a small bowl, mix soy milk with the vinegar with the whisk and leave for a few minutes.
Meanwhile, in a larger bowl cream the peanut butter, oil, sweeteners and vanilla until smooth. Add the soy mixture and mix. Put a fine sieve on top of the bowl and sift in the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt, mix together, trying not to overmix.
Pour the mixture in the liners with the small ladle and place in the oven immediately.
Bake for about 28 min, checking with the toothpick put in the middle of one of the cupcakes, which should come out dry.

Decorate your cakes with vegan chocolate ganache from this post, piping it on top and letting it set afterwards. Top with some roasted unsalted peanuts.