Vegan with a Vengeance

dimension to chocolate things. Don’t be afraid to convert any of the baked goods in this book; I have made them all low fat at one point or another and I know that it will work.
    For prunes, if the recipe calls for ½ cup of oil or margarine, then fill a liquid measuring cup to about the ⅓ cup mark. I wouldn’t advise using any more than that because it may make the finished product too moist. Hold the prunes down with your hand so that they don’t float up, and add the apple juice or water or whatever liquid you might be using in the recipe (soy or rice milk, for instance). Then transfer to a blender and puree until very smooth. For applesauce, follow the same guideline. Use ⅓ cup of applesauce in place of ½ cup of oil or margarine. Expect the finished product to be cakier than usual. Whether I choose prunes or applesauce I always add 2 teaspoons of oil to the recipe at the point when the liquids are combined with the dry ingredients. It’s a small amount but goes a long way to improving the texture. I also remove 2 tablespoons of sugar for every ½ cup of prune puree used.
    Fiber is also an important factor in weight loss. White flour has very little fiber, and you lose a lot of the nutrients from the original grain. Regular whole wheat flour, however, will give things a grainy texture and too strong a wheaty taste. I like to use whole-wheat pastry flour instead; it’s all the bran and germ of whole wheat but
ground to a soft, fine flour; it will work wonderfully in all your sweet baked treats. Use it in place of all-purpose flour. I often use half whole-wheat pastry flour and half all-purpose flour.
    So go ahead and have that cookie, and if you are scared you will eat all of them in the middle of the night just send them my way.

Blueberry Coffee Cake
    Makes 16 squares
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    In my country, coffee cake doesn’t actually have any coffee in it, it’s just a cake that goes well with coffee. I had to quit coffee anyway, so I eat my cake with tea, although in my heart of hearts I know it’s a coffee cake. This is the perfect treat if you want to get warm fuzzies inside.
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    FOR THE TOPPING:
    Â¼ cup all-purpose flour
    3 tablespoons brown sugar
    Â¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
    1 tablespoon canola oil
    1 cup chopped walnuts
    FOR THE CAKE:
    4 cups all-purpose flour
    1 tablespoon baking powder
    1 teaspoon baking soda
    1½ teaspoons salt
    1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
    Â¼ teaspoon ground allspice
    Â¼ cup canola oil
    1 (6-ounce) container vanilla soy yogurt
    1 cup pure maple syrup
    1½ cups plain soy milk
    1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    2 cups fresh blueberries
    Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease or spray a 9 × 13-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.
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    Make the topping:
    Sift together the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Drizzle in the oil a little at a time and mix with your fingertips until crumbs form. Add the walnuts and mix.
    Make the cake:
    Sift together the dry ingredients into a large bowl. In a separate bowl, vigorously whisk together the wet ingredients until well combined. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix well. Fold in the blueberries.

    Spread the batter in the prepared pan and sprinkle the topping over it. Bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick or knife comes out clean. Tastes great still warm.
    PUNK POINTS
    You can substitute frozen blueberries for fresh but keep them in the freezer till the last possible moment to prevent thawing that might turn the batter purple.

    Interview with a Cupcake Lover
    T his is an interview I did for the cupcakelicious blog—Cupcakes Take the Cake ( www.cupcakestakethecake.blogspot.com/ )
    Name: Isa Chandra Moskowitz
    Age: 32
    Location: Prospect Heights, Brooklyn
    Occupation: Wage slave and Celebrity Chef of the People
    Web site: www.theppk.com
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    How often do you eat cupcakes? At least once a week
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    What’s the best thing about eating cupcakes? They say that the first thing you eat with is your eyes, and I really like to look at my cupcake first. I think most other people do, too. When you hand someone a slice of cake, sure, they’re happy, but hand them a cupcake and they are dazzled. They spin it around and look at it from every angle.
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    What’s your favorite type of cupcake? I’ve been on a citrus kick lately, but it’s just a phase. I like a devil’s food cupcake with ganache icing.
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    Favorite place to get cupcakes? Well veganism