The Vegan Chronicles: Betty Crocker Can’t Touch This

Though I have only recently made the decision to go from vegetarian to vegan, I have been baking vegan for quite some time. I find that my creations since throwing out eggs and milk are more unique and far more tasty.

This week for instance, I went on a baking spree. Tuesday night I Made about 3 1/2 dozen cookies including Oatmeal, Snickerdoodle and Cayenne-Chocolate Snickerdoodles - all vegan and all good. I love chocolate and I love spicy so I thought, “why not put ‘em together”. The result, in my opinion, was magical. You know you have added just the right amount of kick when it doesn’t hit you until you’ve swallowed and isn’t overpowering. I think I mastered it my first try, but that’s my opinion.

The other two I have made before and since I don’t like repetition I tend to try new things. Sometimes I am successful while other times I just tell myself “better next time”. My snickerdoodles went a ‘little soft’ on me, pun intended. I may have been a little too generous on the agave, but they still tasted pretty good. With my oatmeal I tried out a different kind of sugar and while I still love the taste of any oatmeal cookie (without raisins) they weren’t my favorite batch.

I am often overly critical of myself in the kitchen, which normally results in scraping the dough bowl with the spatula. I think deep down I wonder if that one extra bite may be different and change my mind on the outcome. Good thing about baking vegan: lick the bowl all you want. No chance of salmonella or any of the other yucky things possibly lurking in raw batter.

Many of my friends keep telling me to write a book, a cookbook or even start my own little business in the world of food. While it is my dream to someday do so I feel that I want to be able to commit 111% of my time to it. I want it to be my life, and at this point I still have so many things I want to do before I commit to anything.

While I mark the beginning of my journey to vegan life, I am still cooking meat for other people. It comes mostly at request, but I know eventually I will have to give that up as well. Just the other week I made a roast for my cousin and her family. When I asked her the next day how everything was she turned and said to me, “You know, I’m actually kind of pissed. I was telling someone at work that I always thought my roast was the best, but then to have a vegetarian make like the best I’ve ever tasted made me a little upset”.

I cook for friends and family as much as possible and they’ve been so cooperative of the lifestyle I’ve chosen for myself. It makes me happy that my friends and family are so honest and supportive. At least I know my place won’t be empty on opening day - or any day after. Got to love having so many fellow foodies in my life.