Do you have a favorite sweet?
Growing up, we were not a big sugar-eating family. We had amazing, traditional meals filled with friend chicken, cheese burgers, roast beef and lots of salad greens. Dessert was an after thought and usually consisted of a couple of scoops of Breyer’s ice cream or a slice of ice box cake, a family favorite.Both of my parents were good cooks but were focused on the healthier choices in a meal. We never had candy, so when I won 42 Milky Way Bars in an elementary school raffle, I was in orbit.
Baking and candy making weren’t part of my family history on any level, but as I got older, I grew more interested in home made sweets. After mastering the basic toll house cookie recipe, some quick breads and cakes, I bought a candy thermometer and moved on to the complexities of home made candies. Not wanting to amass a lot of extra weight during this phase, I restricted myself to candy making during the winter holidays when I could give most of it away in little candy boxes.
I made a fabulously rich dessert called Chocolate Indulgence that my kids still talk about even though it’s been years since we have slobbered over this delightful addictive fudge-like treasure. I also discovered an amazing carrot cake recipe, pumpkin cheesecake and a strawberry mouse that seldom lasted long enough to get to the right consistency. We just spooned it up in a rather runny state.
Now I am a vegan, which means no butter, no cream, no eggs and no cream cheese. So I bake without them and have been having a great time discovering new recipes and products that make cookies, cakes and candy as delicious as their more traditional cousins. Living alone, I am always looking for people to hand out my treats to, so if you are ever in my neighborhood, come on over for some goodies. Advance notice is seldom required.
Here is my new favorite recipe. I have made some adaptations by changing the type of sweetener and experimenting with the type of peanut butter, but I can honestly say that this recipe has been the most popular thing I have ever made. People always want this recipe and most of the people who demand it are not vegans themselves. This peanut butter cup recipe comes from Alicia Silverstone’s book, The Kind Diet. It is easy to make and will make you very popular at your next pot luck!
Do you have a favorite sweet?
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