Here’s another recipe from my recent vacay menu. We were the King & Queen of sweets for breakfast last week and this one was top notch.

Like the key lime pie, this one also comes from Isa Chandra, though this time it was from one of her books, Vegan Brunch, instead of her blog. Clearly, she rocks the house.

As you might expect, this would be an excellent addition to any breakfast or brunch menu. Enjoy!

Vegan Coffee Cake
Recipe Courtesy of Vegan Brunch

Ingredients

(Topping)
1 cup flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 cup canola oil, plus up to 2 tbs more, if needed

(Cake)
3/4 cup non-dairy milk
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Directions

• Preheat oven to 375°F and lightly grease an 8 in. round springform pan or 8 in. square pan. In a small bowl, add milk for the cake and the vinegar; set aside to curdle
• For the topping, mix together flour, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a small mixing bowl. Drizzle in canola oil by the tablespoon, using your fingers to swish around the mixture until crumbs form. Alternate drizzling and mixing until all the oil is used and large crumbs have formed
• For the cake, mix together the milk mixture, sugar, canola oil and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Sift in the flour, baking powder and salt and mix until smooth
• Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan. Evenly sprinkle on the topping and pat it down lightly
• Bake for 35 to 40 min. or until a knife inserted through the center comes out clean
• Let cool for at least an hour (or as long as you can stand) before slicing and serving

This is the other dish I made for Easter. I took this one to brunch with my family the day before. Like the roasted tomatoes I brought to Andy’s family’s brunch, I also tried this one out earlier in the week – as I’d had the recipe for quite some time but never made it before. I can’t lie: I have mixed feelings about this one. On one hand, it looks SO pretty and delicious, smells wonderful and everyone loved it. Everyone, that is, except me.

I think we’ve determined that my distaste for this is really just a distaste for cornbread in general, which I guess I’d never really had before (I know, right?!). Initially, I thought I’d just screwed up the recipe the first time around, but nope. Tasted the same on Easter.

My husband and my family insist that it really is as good as it looks (though this picture doesn’t do it justice), so I decided to go ahead and post this despite my personal opinion. If you decide to try this out (and why wouldn’t you with such a ringing endorsement?), please let me know what you think. I’d love to have an unbiased second opinion!

Vegan Tomato Cobbler With Cornmeal-Cheddar Biscuits
Recipe Inspired by FitnessMagazine.com

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup fine cornmeal
1 tbs sugar
1 1/2 tbs baking powder
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
3/4 tsp salt
5 tbs Earth Balance, cut into 1/2 in. cubes
1/3 cup soy milk, plus 1 tbs, as needed
1/2 cup Daiya shredded cheddar cheese
4 tbs sugar
1 tsp sherry vinegar
3 lbs. heirloom (or regular) tomatoes, diced large and seeded*
2 tbs chopped fresh thyme

*To seed tomatoes, cut in half from side to side, not top to bottom. I find it is easiest to scoop out the seeds using your finger. You can also use a spoon or small tool, if you prefer.

Directions

• In a food processor, pulse together the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, 3/4 tsp of black pepper and 1/2 tsp of salt. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture forms coarse crumbs
• Pour in the milk a little at a time and pulse just until dough comes together (if you need to add additional milk to form the dough, add it in 1 tbs increments). Pulse in 1/4 cup of the cheddar
• Place dough on floured surface and form into a 1/2 in. thick circle. (I found this wasn’t necessary, as the dough had already formed into a ball in the food processor, but if you need to work with it, use only enough flour to keep it from sticking to your surface) Wrap the disk tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate
• Preheat oven to 375°. Combine the sugar and 2 tbs of water in a skillet over medium heat, swirling gently (do not stir), 3 to 5 minutes or until sugar melts and turns amber. Add the vinegar and swirl
• Add the tomatoes, thyme and remaining salt and pepper to the pan; toss gently to coat tomatoes with the caramel mixture. Cook until juices have thickened slightly, about 5 min. Remove from heat
• Transfer tomato mixture to a pie pan. Cut biscuit dough into 8 equal-size wedges and arrange in a circle on top of the tomato mixture. Sprinkle biscuits with remaining cheddar
• Bake until the biscuits are golden, about 40 min.

Yield: Serves 6-8

I was asked to bring a “veggie” dish to my husband’s family’s Easter brunch tomorrow and after much searching and a few experiments in the kitchen, these are what I’ve settled on. I think this is a really great choice for a very traditional brunch (at which I am the only vegan). Not only do these tomatoes pair well with breakfast and lunch fare, they’re a dish that is certain not to scare anyone off. They’re also lick-the-bowl good.

I tested these out as a side dish at dinner earlier this week and couldn’t. stop. eating. them. No need for dessert with these on the table!

As an added bonus: these are super-duper simple to prepare. Always a good thing for a recipe that has to be prepared for a holiday meal fairly early in the day!

Roasted Tomatoes with Herbs
Recipe adapted from Ina Garten via YumSugar.com

Ingredients

3 tbs olive oil
2 tsp minced garlic
2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes
5 tbs chopped fresh herbs like basil, parsley, thyme and oregano
1 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Directions

• Preheat oven to 375°F
• In a roasting pan, toss all ingredients together
• Place in the oven and roast for 15 min or until tomatoes are bursting and juicy (I cooked mine just slightly too long, as you can see)
• Serve immediately or let cool and enjoy at room temperature

Yield: Serves 6-8