VeganSandra: 2016

My 2016 - the good, the bad. Photos and recipes.

Our wintery forest cabin

My 2016 was really colorful to say the least. There was good and there was bad. What were the things that brought me the most joy?

This gingerbread cake is BEYOND delicious and ridiculously easy. I'm a bit afraid to make it again, because I couldn't stop eating it. I have a huge love for soft gingerbreads. I used to buy these heart-shaped soft gingerbread cookies glazed with chocolate. The softness and the sweet spices together is just addictive. A few days ago I started thinking about Christmas desserts. I was wondering about making a regular cookie cake but with gingerbread cookies. Verdict - delicious!

I have the best Christmas dessert recipe (seriously, the best!) coming to you on Saturday, but first let's eat some salad! To be honest, I have a little vegan beef with the word "rutabaga". "Turnip" sounds much cuter, but it's not the vegetable I used in this salad. They are both similar yet different. So rutabaga salad it is.

Me and my mom discussed our Christmas menu on the phone the other day. She was happy to say that she had discovered a great gingerbread dough that happened to be vegan. I got excited too and instantly wanted to try it out! Last year I also made a vegan gingerbread icing and didn't post a recipe. Not this year! The recipe is here. It's ridiculously easy, foolproof and delicious. You only need two ingredients - powdered sugar and lemon juice.

Red foods are the best! I could never say no to this big bowl of luscious pasta. This time I made the vegan Bolognese sauce with almonds. I just crushed the almonds and mixed them into a juicy and garlicky tomato sauce. It came out so delicious! Crushed almonds make the tomato sauce pleasantly mild and filling. They also give a nice and slightly grainy texture. I mixed in some gluten-free tagliatelle and a fabulous dinner was born! The tagliatelle, by the way, was almost identical to a regular wheat pasta. I will tell you more in a bit!

My mom sent me a beautiful homegrown pumpkin. It had such a delicate and sweet flesh, that first I ate it raw. Then I roasted it with other veggies and made a delightful pumpkin soup. And now it's time for a sweet treat. So if you are in need for a quick and light yet satisfying Thanksgiving dessert, this is it. It has a little hint of lemon and cinnamon and the mixture is perfectly fluffy. Super easy to make too, I promise! I would really like to know what kind of delicious vegan meals you have planned for this Thanksgiving!

How's your November so far? Here in South-Estonia, we have endless snow coming down. There's little daylight, so if I want to take photos of my recipes, I have to be done before 2pm. But there's also many good things about this time of the year. Cozy indoor activities for example.

Since I'm going to Nepal in March, I've been reading a couple of good books about this gorgeous country. In addition to the books, I've been playing Civilization 6 (it's beautiful and great, but I still like the previous Civ more). We've also watched some really good shows like The Last Man on Earth (love the sick humor), Narcos (based on the almost unbelievable true events about Pablo Escobar) and also some old classics like The Walking Dead, Family Guy and so on. I also watched a couple of episodes of Sarah Jessica Parker's Divorce, but this kind of dry humor isn't for me. Maybe I'll give it a second chance.

I've wanted to make this post for a very long time. Especially since many of my readers have asked me what kind of blender do I use and what's the difference between a blender and a food processor. The following is based completely on my own experiences and I hope that it has some useful tips for some of you.

If you are familiar with my recipes, I'm sure you know my love for creamy dishes. I often have a couple of packs of vegan cooking cream at home. Usually it's made of soy or oats. But since I live in the country side, it's not always available for me. And after reading your many comments, I know it's not that available for you too. So I decided it was about time to write down a simple homemade vegan cream recipe.

You only need some cashews or sunflower seeds and some water. You can use this delightfully silky and healthy cream where you would normally use regular light or heavy cream. So different delicious pastas and curries are now even easier to make. I know that some of my dear readers from the US have been craving to make this luscious lemony mushroom pasta, but only proper vegan cream was missing. There you go! No need to crave anymore, just roll up your sleeves and cook away. If you are allergic to nuts or just want a cheaper option, then sunflower seeds are the answer. But I must say that cream made with cashews is a bit better and smoother.

Give falafels a break and try these amazing vegan meatballs made of lentils. Here's five reasons why they are superb:

1) They are super delicious and have a perfect texture. Not too mushy, not too firm. And they don't contain any unnecessary ingredients. Only lentils, seasonings, onion, garlic and oat flour.
2) You only need 6 ingredients (if you count salt) to make them. There's a high possibility you don't need an extra trip to the grocery store and you have everything at hand already.
3) They are gluten-free! So people who avoid gluten can enjoy them too.
4) They are very universal. You can serve them with my tasty marinara sauce and spaghetti or enjoy them with white sauce and mashed potatoes. They are also great as a snack when cold and perfect on a sandwich or in a hot-dog or pita bread.
5) They are seriously easy to make. That makes them a great option for weeknight dinner, too!

There's also a reason why these little magic balls aren't that great. It's because as soon as you make them, you'll start to regret that you didn't make a double batch.

I know, this photo may seem creepy for some of you, but I promise I haven't gone into the dark side. This bacon is 100% vegan. I do product reviews very rarely, but when Veggie-Shop24 offered me to try a wide variety of their products, I couldn't say no.

They are an European online shop offering only vegan products and shipping all over Europe. In addition to food, they also have vegan cosmetics, pet food and household items. It was so much fun to pick out my products and experiment with them. The results are here.

Lately I've been creating Mediterranean inspired dishes like this homemade pasta and "Four seasons" pizza. But somehow I started craving old retro classics. Maybe our family favorite potato salad started this? In Estonia, breaded and marinated fish and meat are old and loved classics at the parties. When I was a meat eater, I never really liked these dishes. They were OK, but for me, they seemed like this food that only grown-ups can appreciate. I was more interested in boiled potatoes and gravy. I really don't know when the idea struck me to veganize this recipe. Maybe when I received a new batch of gluten flour? Or am I really grown up? Please, no! I hope I can blame my weird cravings on the colder weather instead.

Since I live in Estonia, I've eaten so many different potato salads in my life. The good ones, the bad ones and the interesting ones. With mayo or without (German-style). Over the years, I've discovered that I still like our family's version the best. Maybe it's because I've grew up with it. It's pretty usual that in Estonia, the salad contains sausage. But even when I was a meat eater, I don't remember our version having sausage in it. Thanks to our potato salad standard, I'm pretty finicky about other versions.

We are huge pasta fans and I've been using this recipe for many years now. It all happened one day when my boyfriend proposed to make our very own pasta from scratch. I loved the idea and we gave it a try. It turned out amazing! We didn't have a pasta machine, so a good old rolling pin had to do. You just have to roll it good, so the dough will be thin like a thicker paper. But if you have a pasta machine at home, then why not to put it into a good use.

When I was a little kid, my family used to buy this pizza from time to time. It was frozen and it had a fancy name - "Four seasons". The pizza had four sections and each section had its own topping. They all represented different seasons. I remember that our pizza had mushrooms, ham and broccoli. I can't remember the last section. Maybe it was tuna? But even then, I was a huge fan of broccoli. It was my most favorite part of the thing. All the pizzas usually had ham, sausage or minced meat on them, so I just loved the idea that a pizza can be topped with juicy green broccoli.

For some reason, this pizza came to my mind again. And I am thankful for that! The memory inspired me so much, that I created my very own version of this old favorite. The outcome was really special and unbelievably tasty. And you wouldn't believe how FUN it was to decorate it and bake it. And even more fun to pick my favorite slices and eat them. So if you want to uplift your mood and get your belly full and happy in the process, this is the recipe for you.

The first day of August. It's been pouring rain like crazy, but we've enjoyed the life indoors. All of the family is together and me and my love have an anniversary today! Twelve years already. When we woke up, my mom had made crispy pancakes with freshly made apple jam. For lunch, I made some curry and we enjoyed it with fluffy basmati rice. Then we heated up our rooms with firewood and soon we will watch some Star Wars. August has been great so far!

But now lets get to today's new recipe. Liquid gold. This is how I call chanterelle sauce. I will never ever get enough of this. Chanterelles just have this extra unique taste and texture. And knowing I can't get them really often, makes eating this sauce even more special.

You know these people who don't have much appetite when the weather is hot and they say they could live on watermelon and berries? Every time they talk about it, I can only think about devouring my next veggie burger. Very often, my cravings are out of sync with the seasons. When it's winter, I'm munching on fresh tomatoes (bland and expensive!) and in summer, I often want something hearty. The bonus of vegan dishes is that even after a really big meal, I usually feel pretty light. This grilled seitan burger is a perfect summer treat. Only some preparations inside and then you can take the party to the outside, where you can heat up a grill. Or if you are not feeling it, then pan-fried seitan steaks are good on their own.

Summer is in full swing and one of the best things about this warm season is to heat up a smoky grill and enjoy outdoor cooking. I have experimented with many different marinades over the years. But these two are definitely the best ones so far. They just work and all the tastes are balanced. They are not too sour, too sweet or too bland. Instead, you will have a sweet and sour and super flavorful marinade. And a good marinade has to be full of taste.

I always have some coconut milk at home. I love to make different dishes with it and I like the subtle coconut taste. But I have a thing with unrefined coconut oil and the taste and smell of it. I just can't stand it. About a month ago I bought a vegan tropical ice-cream that had that taste and for the first time in my life I threw it away! But I love regular coconut milk. Weird, I know! Note to self - try refined coconut oil.

I usually buy coconut milks in bulk when they are on sale. They tend to be pretty expensive or full of unpleasant ingredients. But lately I have discovered the ones that only contain coconut and water. Perfect!

Yesterday I had a wonderful summer day with my parents. They picked me up and we took a long trip around South-Estonia. And my dear mom also brought me a lot of beautiful produce she grew herself. Just look at this gorgeousness! When they dropped me off at home, I couldn't wait a second longer to boil some young potatoes and make a creamy chanterelle sauce. These things truly are the gold of summer! Me and my boyfriend enjoyed every bite. Since the package also contained zucchinis, there was no doubt what I was gonna make us for lunch today. A new delicious summery recipe was born!

One week vegan menu nr.5 + grocery shopping list (Summer edition!)

A lovely blog reader of mine mentioned that my free vegan menus have been really helpful. Actually, her comment really made my day, so I'm just gonna post it here:

"Such a fan. I've done week 1 and week 2, you've made it so easy to make lots of delicious quick meals! I love fall food, I'll eat it all year, but I hope you'll do a spring/summer seasonal week too sometime. I really feel spoiled by these, you've done all the hard work now I get to do the fun easy part thank you!! Whenever I hear someone say I could never go vegan it's not convenient or I don't know what to make, they are getting this link. Boom."

Watch how I cook vegetable and dumpling soup

This is the last video of the series we filmed this Spring. Vegetable and dumpling soup - a huge favorite of mine and I know you guys love it too. Super simple to make and hits the spot every time. It will fill you up and make you feel good. Enjoy!

Watch how I make carrot and peanut butter brownies

I believe that some of my readers are already familiar with these luscious carrot and peanut butter brownies. Now I'm happy to announce that we've also made a video for this recipe. Enjoy!

Creamy rice noodle salad with pan-fried mushrooms

Things have gone so far, that I've made this salad almost every day for the past month. I'm not kidding. Another day passes and I find myself chopping the cabbage and boiling the rice noodles. I just love how universal this salad is. Sometimes I add chickpeas or some curry powder or a dash of Tabasco or nutritional yeast or cucumbers. It's fabulous every time! This is the base recipe that you can modify to your own needs. But even the original is so good. Creamy, super juicy, crunchy and filling.

How to be sure your child will end up being a food blogger in the future? When she's under 10 and asks her aunt about how to prepare wild garlic. My aunt lives in the north of Estonia and wild garlic has always been more common there. As a South Estonian kid, it always seemed so exotic for me.

This recipe is from my brand new Estonian vegan cookbook, which is already my fourth cookbook! It's only in Estonian, but don't be sad. I have plans for a new English cookbook! :) But in the meantime, you can order and review my "Vegan Dinner Party" on Amazon.

My new book has a whole section of curries. I just love them so much! I could live off of curries and rice noodles. Curries are also really frequent dinners in our forest cabin. And when it's summer, you can throw different fresh veggies and herbs into them.

Here it is. My long awaited brand new Estonian vegan cookbook. This time it's all about delicious weeknight (and weekend) vegan dinners. I can't believe it's already my fourth cookbook. My very first cookbook was published on 2012 and it's been sold out for a really long time now. So it was about time for a new one. One Estonian book store even ships it internationally. Check it out HERE!
I definitely have plans for a new English cookbook, too! But in the meantime, you can order my "Vegan Dinner Party" on Amazon.

Before I share some lovely photos of our vegan barbecue, I have an announcement:

MY BRAND NEW ESTONIAN COOKBOOK WILL BE OUT TOMORROW, 4th OF MAY!

EDIT: It will be out in the beginning of next week.

But now let's get to the photos I promised.

Let me guess, you have been super hard on yourself again this week. Sweating at work or taking care of your family or working out too much or worrying about all the things. Or if you've had a more relaxing week, you've been worrying that you haven't done enough.

But now it's time to hit the pause button on everything. It's time grab the yeast and the cinnamon and make some sweet dough. Because these cinnamon rolls are to die for. They are fluffier than your softest pillow. Sweet, divine and cinnamony. A complete classic but veganized. I have discovered some tips to make the most perfect cinnamon rolls:

These days I just want to eat, sleep and read about the French renaissance and revolution. That kind of phase. Also, watching Vinyl. What a great show! The quality of the shows these days is just phenomenal. What have you been up to? I would love to read about your rituals and habits this Spring.

My habit is also devouring rice noodles. It has almost become a full time job. I can't get enough of them. Ever. These are my top 3 rice noodles recipes in no particular order:

Springy rice noodle salad with pea cream
Rice noodles with broccoli and chickpeas a.k.a my go to lunch
Sweet potato and rice noodle soup

And now I'm in love with these cauliflower rice noodles. I just grated some cauliflower, cooked it on a pan with sesame seeds, added a bit of tomato sauce and cream and noodles and voila! Delicious quick lunch was born. I used soy cream but you can absolutely use coconut milk for example. You can eat these noodles as a main dish or serve them with THIS! Super simple and satisfying.

It's moist and it's perfect and it's been in heavy rotation for a very long time. I don't usually publish recipes from my cookbooks to my blog, but for this one, I have to make an exception. I created this recipe for my Estonian vegan dessert cookbook a couple of years ago and since then, it has served me well. This banana bread is also the favorite dessert at my cooking workshops. We usually serve it with banana ice-cream or vanilla ice-cream. Every time it hits the spot and ends the feast with a really fabulous sweet note.

Since this recipe is such a classic for me, I also decided to bake it on my cooking show and make a video of it. If you skip the chocolate chips, this banana bread will be sugar free. The batter is sweetened with dates. But as I'm saying in the video, I would think twice about skipping the chocolate :)

If you keep the bread in the fridge, it will be delicious even after a couple of days. So you can make it ahead and enjoy it every now and then with a hot cup of tea or coffee. I really hope you will love it as much as I do!

I have this favorite Asian restaurant in Tartu, one of my favorite cities (and I'm not even a fan of the cities). But Tartu is great and I have many great memories there. Since my grandparents lived near Tartu, me and my family often visited them and we also stopped in the city to grab some delicious stuff to bring with us. And when I was a teenager, Tartu was my number one city to hang with the metal music scene and to go to concerts. Right now, I mostly visit my friends there or eat some delicious food. Until now, there wasn't many great places for vegans. But it has changed. There's Aparaat, my huge favorite and there's Hot Pot, that Asian restaurant I mentioned.

I usually always eat the same stuff at Hot Pot, but one time I was a rebel and ordered something I haven't tasted yet. It was the Hong Kong eggplant. And it was delicious! I was so impressed that I couldn't wait to try to make something similar at home. I fell in love with my version and it turned out really amazing. That's why I am so excited to share this recipe with you. If you are craving some really spicy and satisfying Chinese food with a rich taste, this is the real deal. The best part - it is not complicated at all. Happy cooking and let me know how you liked it!

When I first discovered homemade sushi, it was on our menu really often. Large trays of sushi on a regular Tuesday night? No problem. It was THE thing to make. But when the first amazement passed, my sushi rolling mat was sadly sitting in the corner and eventually I even lost it somewhere. But lets bring sushi back! And in a new and exciting way.

I bought a new rolling mat and a fresh packet of roasted nori sheets. My boyfriend was really excited for this, since he loves sushi and the taste of nori. He is actually not a huge fan of millet, but in this sushi, he devoured it like no tomorrow.

This millet sushi with roasted root veggies and broccoli cream is really something different. Millet has a very similar texture to rice, but it's more light and fluffy. Roasted veggies are baked to perfection and taste mildly sweet. I also added some delicious light broccoli and sunflower cream. All of this together make a fabulous healthy and filling snack!

Watch how I cook spicy vegan Tex-Mex burgers!

Here it is! A brand new episode of a whole new season of "Sandra Vungi Cooks Vegan". This time I am making delicious and spicy vegan Tex-Mex burgers with a tangy homemade burger sauce. Served with ripe avocado...YUM! Push "Play" and dig in :)

Moist savory muffins with sun-dried tomatoes and olives

A long weekend and Easter are ahead and it's the perfect time to cook these delicious and moist vegan savory muffins. This recipe is long overdue! When I was offering catering services, these muffins were definitely one of the hits along with lentil pie and jelly cake. I also made these for my guests recently and they all loved it. Even the ones who don't like olives! I'm guessing it's the moist texture, tangy sun-dried tomatoes, salty olives and herby golden brown pan-fried onions. What a lovely appetizer!

I'm so glad I can finally share this recipe with you. These muffins have been perfect every time I've made them. They get fluffy and super moist. The outcome really depends on the quality and taste of the olives you are using, so try to use your favorite ones. The muffins are also good the day after when you keep them in an airtight container. I can't wait to hear how you like them! Have a fun and tasty weekend!

The baked apples alone...they are the tastiest baked apples I've ever eaten! But when sugary and cinnamony apples are mixed into creamy coconut whip and topped with walnuts? And it's all on a gluten free cake that doesn't need any special and expensive ingredients? I don't know about you, but it sounds pretty fabulous. And it is!

This cake is so decadent, creamy and fruity but yet so easy to make. It just needs some time to set in the fridge, so it's best to make it an evening before. Just imagine a Sunday brunch with this luscious dessert. Or any breakfast, lunch or dinner of the week. It will be perfect all year round. I also think it would be great as an Easter dessert. Happy baking and let me know how you liked it!

When me and my sisters were kids, we sure loved our spaghetti. Ketchup, of course, was our number one choice of sauce. We couldn't get enough of it. What kid doesn't love pasta with some tomato-ish stuff? I have also written about my big love for my grandma's macaroni, which were made with pan-fried onions and ketchup. I know, Italians would roll their eyes at the ketchup part, but we loved it.

But these days, when I'm making spaghetti, I serve it with this super easy homemade marinara sauce. It's sweet and sour and has a tiny bit of heat from the chili flakes. And of course, it contains lots of fresh garlic, dried herbs and pan-fried golden brown onions. To make it extra luscious, I added some cashew mozzarella. I adapted the recipe from the Vedged Out blog. I use this genius nut cheese almost everywhere. Pizzas, lasagnas, bruschettas, nachos and what not! The tapioca starch is the key here to make this cheese stretchy. I used tapioca granules, since the flour didn't work for me. I don't know why, but the granules made the cheese stretchy, while the flour just made it thick. Maybe you have different results!

Anyway, if you are searching for a quick and delicious family-pleasing pasta dinner, search no further. This recipe is definitely a crowd-pleaser and it's ready in 20 minutes!

March. It's almost Spring, but at the same time, it so isn't. The days are a bit longer and lighter and that makes me truly thankful. How I've missed the daylight! But there's still a lot of snow and cold here in Estonia. For example, we didn't go to the grocery store for eight days. The road was a real mess because of the snow and it was just not worth it. Fortunately I'm always stocked with extra food. It's a habit that comes with living in the countryside.

So on day eight, I pan-fried our last potatoes and made pea and cabbage cutlets for lunch. It was a really nice meal actually. After that, we heard the snowplow outside. Hello all the fresh food! We sat into our old Volvo and took a trip to the store. I stocked up on everything and grabbed loads of fresh veggies and fruits. I wanted to eat something really colorful.

Hello! How has your February been? The first half of this month was pretty hectic for me. I was wrapping up the manuscript of my fourth cookbook (it will be in Estonian this time) and I also had a big cooking workshop, which went great! After that, we flew to Monaco to visit my mother-in-law and to enjoy the beautiful Mediterranean. Monaco is a wonderful place. It's a city-state with yacht-lined harbor and endless gorgeous gardens. Everything is so polished and safe. It's like a huge atrium of a luxury mall but with fresh air. We also went to France and Italy and celebrated my birthday with a delicious picnic on the mountains of south of France. These ten days were really incredible and it was a much needed vacation with really lovely people. As a Scandinavian, I just couldn't get enough of the sunny and warm days. When we landed in Estonia, it was 2 degrees and snow. Still some time left until the Spring hits us too!

How has your January been? I don't know why, but for me, the first month of the year tends to be rather hard. There are always some things to tackle with and I really have to work on my mental and physical state to stay sane. But there are also some breathtakingly beautiful moments. Like one night at our cabin, when I went outside and my jaw literally dropped. It was a really crispy winter night. There was a humongous full moon and the sky was super starry. Thick white smoke came out of our chimney and I stared at all these beautiful long spruces that are surrounding our handbuilt cabin. Nature. Wow! And lounging on our warm rocket stove and reading some good books. Or watching really old episodes of our favorite series. Or doing yoga on my mat just to stretch after many hours of work behind my computer and really enjoying it. Many beautiful things.

Every time when I make a really good burger patty recipe, I think that this is it. It cannot get any better than that! Like with these bean and zucchini cutlets and jumbo beet and pickle burgers. They are absolute staples in our house. And according to the good comments and statistics, you love them too! And now I welcome a brand new shiny member into my kitchen favorites: this Tex-Mex burger! What an absolute perfection. This was something really special indeed.

I don't know an Estonian, who doesn't like solyanka. Usually it's a thick Russian meat soup, but we also make it with mushrooms. My mom even makes preserved mushroom solyanka. So in the winter time, you just need to add some water, boil it and voila - you have a hearty homemade soup in minutes. What's not to love about this kind of soup? It's just thick enough, a little bit sour and really comforting. If you are not a fan of the mushrooms, leave them out. Or you can replace them with different vegan meats and sausage chunks. I always add some olives and some lemon slices too.

Happy 2016! How was your New Years? I hope it was filled with tons of delicious food and the most lovely people. Just like mine. We, of course, heated up the sauna(s), ate like there's no tomorrow, jammed, played Cards Against Humanity and had too much fun with it. I even got a break from cooking when the guests cooked buckwheat and avocado salad with orange and homemade khinkali. I am so thankful for my incredible family and friends.

Lehed