Sunday Brunch: Tahô

This is a version of porridge from the Philippines. It does not look the most appetizing, but tastes fantastic. 











INGREDIENTS:
1 package Soft Tofu (I used silken almond tofu)
4 1/2 cups Water
1/2 cup Tapioca Pearls (uncooked)
1 1/4 cups Brown Sugar
1 tbsp Vanilla Extract

Bring 4 cups of water to a boil and add tapioca pearls, cook over medium for 40 minutes or so until pearls soften and absorb much of the water. Add 1/4 cup brown sugar, mix and remove from heat, allowing to cool to room temperature. Combine remaining 1/2 cup water with 1 cup brown sugar and vanilla, simmer until it becomes a syrup.

Put tofu in chunks into a bowl, microwave for about a minute to heat up. Top with the tapioca pearls and syrup and consume.

Sunday Brunch: Pisang Goreng

These are a version of Indonesian Banana Fritters.












INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup, plus 4 tbsp Flour
1 tbsp Sugar
1/4 cup Vanilla Soy Milk
1 squirt Vanilla Extract (app. 1/4 tsp)
1 Egg Replacer
1 heaping tbsp Vegan Margarine, melted
2 Ripe Bananas, sliced
1 tsp Rum/Rum Flavouring (optional)
dash Cinnamon
oil for frying

In a bowl, mix flour and sugar and create a well. Pout in soy milk, egg replacer, vanilla, melted margarine and rum (if using); mix to a batter. Slice bananas into mixture and fold in.

Pour enough oil to coat bottom of a large base pan (1/4 cm depth or so) and heat over medium or a touch higher. When oil is hot, drop tablespoons of banana mixture into pan and fry each side until lightly brown, drain on a paper towel.

Sunday Brunch: Crumpets

I have been wanting to do this for a while, since I loved crumpets as a child, but I just never got around to it.











INGREDIENTS:
3 cups Flour
2 tsp Active Dry Yeast
2 3/4 cups Warm Water (a little less might be better...scoop out a tbsp or so)
1 1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Sugar
2 tbsp Powdered Soy Milk
1 Egg Replacer (Ener-G or other powdered/add water mix)

Take 1 cup warm water and mix with yeast and sugar in a bowl. Set aside, covered, until it foams up (if it doesn't, yeast is not good). In a separate bowl, mix flour, powdered soy milk and salt. Create a well in the flour mix and pour the yeast mixture and the remaining water into the well. Mix until lumps are gone and set aside, covered, until bubbles form on the top (about 45 minutes or an hour). After that time, mix together the egg replacer according to the box directions and add to the mix and let sit another 10 or 15 minutes.

Heat a pan (if you have pastry rings or crumpet rings) with spray oil, or muffin tins (which I used) over low heat. Put crumpet batter into the tins or pan and cook until the edges stiffen and the top is bubbly. If using a pan, remove rings and flip for 2-3 minutes to cook the top. If using a muffin tin, broil for 2-3 minutes to finish off the tops.