Friday, February 1, 2008

cherry bombs!

So I haven't been cooking a lot this week, which is definitely a good thing. Sometimes I buy so much food it's ridiculous, and my freezer is about the size of a shoebox - fills up fast! So I've been eating leftovers and tomato soup, mostly (btw, adding dried onion/garlic, vegetables and leftover beans to tinned tomato soup has got to be the best most easiest cold-weather supper ever). Didn't stop me from making cookies, though! Officially my first batch of cookies from Vegan With a Vengeance, it's the chocolate thumbprints! SO incredibly good, like little brownie fudgebombs, zomg. The batter was insane gooey so I had to add more flour, but it's pretty wet around here and the end result turned out great anyway. I didn't have raspberry or apricot jam, but I did have sour cherry preserves that my mom canned while she lived in Kelowna and the combination is wonderful - a little tart button of juiciness in the centre, so perfect. I gave most of them away, but now I kind of want to make another batch for ME, haha.

And I've been waiting - just waiting - for the second I had french bread in the house to make the fronch toast. (okay, so it was actually panini-bread, but vutever, it works!). It was a little chewy the first time, I definitely overtoasted the bread, but it was still a total revolution to taste my FAVOURITE breakfast ever, after years of not having it. Whenever I went out for breakfast as a kid I would always get french toast - big fat icing-sugared slabs (usually more than I could handle), covered in strawberry sauce and whipped cream... so eating this is like being an eight-year-old in a hotel breakfast nook alllll over again. tres nostalgique!

It was so good in fact, that I had to make it again (this time without toasting the bread and letting it soak more in the milky batter). Beautifully crispy-tendersoft toast! I could eat this forever and ever and ever..... and can you believe I found pretty much a bucket of cherries for a dollar? So not in season or anything, but tasty nonetheless.

I also added a splash of vanilla and a dash of salt and cinnamon to the batter, and I'm already thinking of wackier versions (chocolate? herb & garlic? curried? hee hee). I mean, it's just battered toast, right? What more could you ask for in a meal-base? Mousse on top! :OOOO

Yeah, I'll have the weirdest hotel in the world someday. :D

(coming up: experiments with drying cherries in incredibly humid weather, ooh!)

17 comments:

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

oooh man, those chocolate thumbprint cookies look heavenly!! yum!!! and the toast!! for someone who hasn't been doing a lot of cooking lately (I can 100% relate!! schoolwork is taking up a lot of time!!) you sure have been making SUPERB treats.

I'm so elated to have found fresh cherries that look (and taste) delectable at the store - I love your idea of drying them!! can't wait to see your results!! :0)

Ruby Red said...

Yep, those chocolate thumbprints look like little bombs of heaven. Wow.

Yesss! Now we're Fronch toast sisters! Breakfast or dinner, it matters not - this is my new favorite French toast recipe. I wonder how it would taste with sandwich bread... I also love all the powdered sugar you added, yum.

Anonymous said...

Fronch toast!! It looks so yummy. I think the last time I ever had french toast was when I was baby. I don't even know what it tastes like anymore. But your picture is making me crae it like crazy!

Leigh said...

I love those thumbprint cookies so very much.

Lori- the Pleasantly Plump Vegan said...

the cookies are BEAUTIFUL! and how lucky to have used homemade preserves for them!
i haven't had good luck making vegan fronch toast. looks like i'll be eating these at yr house ; )

Rural Vegan said...

Fronch Toast not once but twice! Drool...
How fortunate you were to happen upon that bucket of cherries; they are usually so expensive, even when they're in season.

ChocolateCoveredVegan said...

Yum yum yum! Make more cherry bombs... and share with me :o)

Monika K said...

Cookies. Fronch. Toast. Drool...

Anonymous said...

I'm going to have to see if there are any cherries at the store tomorrow. :-)

Vegan_Noodle said...

I really shouldn't be reading this at breakfast time.... I have no frnch bread in sight and I need some of that fronch toast. Wish your hotel was open for business right now.

laura k said...

Ooh, I love your blog.... That French toast looks heavenly! Cherries--yum!

Hey, I was reading your profile, and I just have to tell you how cool it is that "Wizard People Dear Reader" is one of your favorite movies! HA!

Theresa said...

I have yet to try the fronch toast, though I've been meaning to since I got the book a few months ago. I've been waiting for the perfect bread. We sound like twinnies, french toast was the main thing I ordered when I went out for brekky, and I've really missed it since going vegan!

Steffi said...

stop making me all envious with your cherries!
those chocolate thumbprints look awesome.

sarchan said...

The sour cherry preserve substitution is inspired--little bites of Black Forest Cake. Mmmm.

aTxVegn said...

Those cookies look incredibly good! They are right now on my must bake list. I've made fronch toast for dessert a couple of times. Everybody loves it.

bazu said...

aw, your food looks so great! I'm in a bit of a cooking rut, but seeing photos like yours spurs me on. Thank you!

Ashasarala said...

I could never really get into cherries because they remind me of medicine. Oddly enough, I had had plenty of cough medicine before I ever tasted a cherry, so that ruined it for me.

But since becoming vegan, I've kinda pushed myself to like things I never did before. I do enjoy cherry ice cream and cherry yogurt, so maybe those thumbprints would be the perfect way to get me back into the swing of cherries. :)