Robin Robertson

Nectarine Cobbler with Cinnamon-Swirl Topping

I’m excited to participate in the virtual potluck for Robin Asbell’s new cookbook: Sweet & Easy Vegan: Treats Made with Whole Grains and Natural Sweeteners. For this “potluck” I was able to choose from among several luscious-looking desserts from the book, and I was immediately drawn to the Nectarine Cobbler with Cinnamon-Swirl Topping.

In my house, we’re fans of cobblers, crisps, and other such fruit desserts, but what especially intrigued me about this particular cobbler was the topping that looks like miniature cinnamon buns perched atop the fruit.  How cute is that? I also like the addition of cornmeal to the topping, giving it an extra dimension of flavor that complements the cinnamon and the fruit.

I wish I had made this cobbler in August when nectarines were ripe and plentiful.  Instead, I had to substitute frozen sliced peaches to make this in October.  The good news is that the cobbler was still delicious, even when made with the frozen fruit, so I can only imagine it being even better with fresh nectarines!

Right now, I have my eye on a few autumn desserts that would be especially wonderful this time of year, such as the Pear and Maple Upside-Down Cake, Pumpkin-Cornmeal Scones, and the Miniature Caramel-Apple Tarts.  In addition to loads of dessert recipes, the book also has recipes for breakfast treats, quick-breads, and muffins.

COOKBOOK GIVEAWAY:  If you’d like a chance to win a copy of Sweet and Easy Vegan, simply leave a comment at the end of this post naming your favorite dessert.  That’s it!  A winner will be chosen at random on Sunday 10/28 at midnight and announced on this blog on Monday 10/29.  Enter now!

In the meantime, here’s the recipe for that yummy cobbler:

Nectarine Cobbler with Cinnamon-Swirl Topping
Serves 8

Cobbler is usually a swath of fruit baked with a buttery biscuit topping, but this one has a twist. Instead of freeform biscuits, little cinnamon rolls float on the sweet sea of nectarines, making it like two desserts in one! Just about any juicy fruit makes a good cobbler, so feel free to experiment. Just note that you may have to increase the baking time if you use apples. This recipe is from Sweet & Easy Vegan by Robin Asbell.

3 lb/1.4 kg nectarines, pitted and sliced
3/4 cup/180 g maple syrup
2 tbsp arrowroot starch or cornstarch
2 tbsp water
2 tsp vanilla extract
Topping
1 cup/130 g whole-wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup/60 g unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup/80 g cornmeal
6 tbsp/75 g granular palm sugar, palm sugar paste, or Sucanat
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup/60 ml canola oil or light olive oil
1/2 cup/120 ml nondairy milk
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 425°F/220°C/gas 7.
In large saucepan, combine the nectarines and maple syrup. In a cup or small bowl, whisk the arrowroot starch, water, and vanilla together to form a slurry. Stir into the nectarine mixture. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, then cook, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes, until it begins to thicken. Transfer to an ungreased 12-by-8-in/30.5-by-20-cm glass or ceramic baking dish.
To make the topping: In a large bowl, combine the flours, cornmeal, 2 tbsp of the sugar, and the baking powder, baking soda, and salt and whisk until well mixed. In a cup or small bowl, whisk the oil and nondairy milk together. Pour into the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Press the mixture together to make a firm dough.
In a small bowl, stir the remaining 4 tbsp/50 g of sugar and the cinnamon together until well mixed.
Transfer the dough to a floured work surface. Shape it into a 10-by-6-in/25-by-15-cm rectangle, gently patting it to an even thickness. Sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar evenly over the dough. Starting at a long edge, roll up the dough to form a long cylinder. Pinch the seam to seal. Place the roll seam-side down and cut it crosswise into 4 even portions, then cut each portion into in 4 slices to make 16 rolls.
Arrange the rolls on top of the nectarine mixture. Bake for 25 minutes, until the rolls are golden brown and cooked through and the juices are bubbling up around them.
Transfer to a wire rack to cool for at least 10 minutes. Serve warm. Stored in the refrigerator, tightly covered, the cobbler will keep for about 1 week.

So….what’s YOUR favorite dessert?

Thanks to the miracle known as the true random number generator over at Random.org, we have a winner!  The number randomly chosen to win a copy of World Vegan Feast by Bryanna Clark Grogan is lucky number 74 — Jennifer Manriquez, whose favorite comfort food is hot fresh French fries.

Jennifer, please send me an e-mail with your mailing address and I’ll get a copy of World Vegan Feast in the mail to you. Congrats! I know you’ll love this book as much as I do.

For everyone else, here are a just a few more drool-worthy reasons why you should own World Vegan Feast: Vegan Souffle Omelet, Greek-Style Lasagna, Vegan Sponge Cake, and other creative and delicious recipes such as:

No-Knead Crusty Artisanal Bread from World Vegan Feast

or this….

Thai Pineapple Fried Rice from World Vegan Feast

or desserts like this one:

Triple Gigner Cake with Espresso Frosting from World Vegan Feast

I hope everyone has a great weekend.  Be sure to come back on Monday when I will be participating in Robin Asbell’s virtual potluck for her new dessert book (and I’ll also be giving away a copy of her book!).

As a rule, I don’t keep desserts in the house except for company or other special occasions. Even when testing recipes for cookbooks, I try to freeze most of whatever I make until we can share it with others.

For those times when we want just a little something that’s just a little sweet, I often gather a few ingredients from the pantry and toss them in a food processor.  A few minutes later, we’re enjoying tasty little bites like these Autumnal Fig Balls.

Made with just four ingredients, they can be adapted to suit your needs by swapping in your choice of maple syrup, brandy, or apple juice, depending on how sweet (or boozy) you want them.  The proportion of the ingredients may vary, depending on how moist your figs are (mine were very moist).  You can also sub in a different dried fruit if you like, but I found these treats made with figs to be the perfect choice for a crisp autumn day.

Autumnal Fig Balls

1 cup old-fashioned oats
1 cup dried (but moist) figs, stemmed
1/4 cup sunflower seed butter (or your favorite nut butter)
2 to 3 tablespoons of your choice of 1) maple syrup (to make them sweet); 2) brandy or Frangelico (to make them boozy); or 3) apple juice or applesauce; or any combination of the three

Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and process until finely ground and well combined.  Pinch off a small piece of the mixture and squeeze between your fingers to see if it holds together.  If it’s too dry, add a little more sunflower seed butter or liquid; if it’s too wet, add more oats (or your favorite cereal flakes).
To shape, pinch off a small amount of the mixture to make a 1-inch ball and roll between your palms to shape into a ball.  Place the ball on a plate and repeat with the remaining mixture until it is all used up.  Enjoy right away, or set aside to enjoy later.
To store, cover with plastic wrap (or transfer to an airtight container) and refrigerate until needed.

I received a sample jar of Golden Millstone Sesame Butter a week or so ago and it’s been sitting on my kitchen counter ever since, waiting for me to be inspired to make something with it.  I’m pleased to announced that inspiration struck in the form of a creamy and delicious sauce based on an extremely basic (but yummy) sauce from my old macrobiotic days.

I’ve been in the mood for simple baked tofu for awhile, so the sauce seemed like an ideal match. I also roasted lots of veggies to go with it, shown in the photo only as parenthetical green beans, so called, as you’ve probably guessed, because they are arranged like three sets of parentheses.

The sauce is made with about 3 to 4 tablespoons of sesame butter (or tahini), blended with about 3 tablespoons of tamari, 1 to 2 teaspoons of hoisin, and about 4 tablespoons of almond milk, all stirred together until well blended and creamy.  Taste it to see if you want to add a little more of anything, but this is how we enjoyed it.  The sesame butter, by the way, has a really good flavor.

I didn’t even heat up the sauce, although you certainly may.  I just spooned it over the tofu and sprinkled it with some black sesame seeds.  It was also delicious over the roasted vegetables, especially the (((green beans))).

During the last several weeks, there’s been at least one kind of soup in my kitchen.  As soon as one kind is nearly finished, I get a different soup cooking in the slow cooker.  It seems like there’s always something simmering!  Soups are one of the easiest things to make because you can add, increase, or eliminate various ingredients to suit your taste.

One of my favorite soups in Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker is the Crockpot Callaloo Soup (photo by Lori Maffei).  This colorful and flavorful soup, with its subtle heat and light coconut broth, is a delicious change from the usual vegetable soup. Because this recipe uses spinach instead of actual callaloo, it’s more correct to say that it’s a callaloo-inspired soup. The traditional Jamaican recipe uses callaloo leaves (aka taro leaves), which taste like a cross between spinach and cabbage, but they’re not available to most people. If you can find actual callaloo leaves at an Asian market, then by all means use them instead of the spinach for a more authentic soup. Also, chard can be used instead of spinach, if you prefer.

Crockpot Callaloo Soup
If you use medium-sized vegetables, the soup ingredients will fit in a 4-quart slow cooker. If you increase the vegetable sizes to large, you will need a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker. This recipe is from Fresh from the Vegan Slow Cooker (c) 2012, by Robin Robertson.
Slow Cooker Size: 4- to 6-quart
Cook Time: 6 hours on Low
{gluten-free}
{soy-free}

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and diced (2 cups)
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
1 to 2 jalapenos or other hot chiles, seeded and minced
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained
1 1/2 cups cooked dark red kidney beans or other red beans or 1 (15-ounce) can, rinsed and drained
4 cups vegetable broth
1/2 teaspoon fresh or dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 ounces baby spinach
1 (13.5-ounce) can unsweetened coconut milk

1. For the best flavor, heat the oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute longer. Alternatively, combine the oil, onion, and garlic in a microwave-safe bowl, cover, and microwave for 4 minutes.
2. Transfer the onion mixture to the slow cooker set. Add the sweet potatoes, bell pepper, chile, tomatoes, and beans. Stir in the broth, thyme, and allspice, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook on Low for 6 hours, or until the vegetables are tender.
About 30 minutes before ready to serve, stir in the spinach and coconut milk, stirring to wilt the spinach. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Cover and cook for 30 minutes longer, or until the spinach is wilted. Serve hot.

Serves 4

REMINDER:  Be sure to enter the giveaway in my previous post to win a copy of World Vegan Feast by Bryanna Clark Grogan.  Contest closes on Friday morning!