Strawberry Recipes (Muffins, Salad, & Sangria!)

One of the first things I think of when it starts to get hot outside is all of the fresh produce that's about to be in season! For most vegans, this has to be one of our favorite things :) A vegan diet is the most environmentally responsible type of eating, and this is even better when you are eating locally.

I recently discovered the website www.pickyourown.org, that lists the farms in your area along with when different fruits and veggies are in season. This is great because many fruits, like berries, have a short window when they are in season, and this varies by location. Generally, strawberries are in late May / early June, raspberries are in mid June / early July, and blackberries are in early August.

Anyways, today I went berry picking and picked 12 lbs of strawberries! It didn't look like that many in the bucket until we came home and spread them all over the counter! I spent this afternoon in the kitchen, creating two recipes to use our crop. I also took my mom's strawberry muffin recipe that was my favorite growing up and veganized it! Hope you enjoy :)

Mom's Strawberry Muffins (makes 18)

Ingredients:

Muffins:

• 1/2 cup vegan butter, softened

• 2/3 cup sugar

• 2 flax eggs

• 1 tsp vanilla

• 3/4 cup soy milk

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 1 1/2 chopped strawberries

Streusel topping:

• 1/4 cup vegan butter

• 1/2 cup brown sugar

• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

• pinch of salt

• 2/3 cup all-purpose flower

Directions: Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line muffin tins with paper cups, and spray with evoo spray so they don't stick. Cream together butter and sugar. Add your flax eggs, vanilla and soy milk and mix. To make one flax egg, combine 1 tbsp ground flax seed with 3 tbsp water and let sit in the refrigerator for 15 minutes. So for this recipe, use 2 tbsp flax and 6 tbsp water.

In another bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt. Add to the liquid ingredients and stir just until you can't tell two mixtures apart. Stir in strawberries. Use a spoon to scoop the batter into the muffin tins.

Next, make the streusel. Cream together butter and brown sugar, then add cinnamon and salt. Last, add flour and mix with your fingers until crumbly. Top the muffins with the streusel, then put them in the oven.

Bake until a fork comes out clean (about 33 minutes, but start checking at 25 minutes). I accidentally took mine out too soon and the center collapsed... but they still tasted awesome!

Strawberry Sangria

Ingredients:

• 1 bottle of your favorite vegan white wine (I recommend kung fu girl riesling)*

• 4 cups of sparkling water or lemon-lime soda

• 1/2 cup sliced strawberries

• 1 chopped apple

• 2 sliced lemons

• 2 sliced limes

• splash of rum or your favorite liquor

*If you're not sure if your wine is vegan, check http://www.barnivore.com/wine

Directions:

Mix together in a pitcher. Refrigerate for 3 hours. Enjoy! (preferably on a beach in Barcelona but we can't have it all right?)

Strawberry Superfood Salad

Ingredients:

Salad:

• strawberries, sliced

• mixed greens

• toasted almonds

• avocado slices

• lentils, cooked and seasoned with lime juice and pepper, chilled

Dressing:

• 2.5 tbsp balsamic vinegar

• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

• 2 tsp EVOO

• 1 tsp dijon mustard

• 1/4 tsp sea salt

• ground black pepper

• 1/2 minced clove of garlic

• secret ingredient: fresh squeezed juice (i used mango and orange today, about 1 tbsp total)

Directions:

Combine all salad ingredients in a large bowl. Combine all dressing ingredients in a smaller bowl and whisk together.