Our colleague Hannah Kaminsky, of Bittersweet Blog, is a regular contributor to THE NIBBLE. She has written six cookbooks!

A long-time vegan, Hannah oriented her sweet tooth to creating vegan recipes for herself and others who want delicious cookies, cakes, pies and other sweets.

Her sixth cookbook, Sweet Vegan Treats (photo #1) has just been released.

It’s timely: November is World Vegan Month; November 1st is World Vegan Day.

The recipes are so good, that omnivores won’t even suspect they’re vegan. Every recipe was taste-tested and approved by both vegans and non-vegans.

Since the recipes are entirely plant-based—no eggs, dairy or other animal products—they may also be welcomed by kosher eaters and people with those specific allergies.

Here’s a sample of the 90 recipes:

 
There are also breakfast sweets, like Carrot Cake Quinoa Cereal, Figgy Graham Scones, Fruited Focaccia and Strawberry Love Muffins,

Equally as important, Hannah places vegan baking in its context: the ingredients, techniques, and troubleshooting.
 
 
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RECIPE: CRANBERRY RED VELVET CAKE

Since we’re heading into cranberry season, here’s a recipe from the book (photo #2).

You can turn it from a vegan recipe into a conventional one by substituting the vegan butter and cream cheese and the nondairy milk for conventional ingredients.
 
Ingredients For 10 to 14 Servings

 
For The Cream Cheese Frosting

[1] A terrific vegan desserts cookbook that also works for people who are kosher or have certain allergies (all photos © Hannah Kaminsky | Skyhorse Publishing).

[2] It’s cranberry season, so make a Red Velvet Cake with cranberries. They deepen the color and the flavor. The recipe is below. You can substitute conventional butter, cream cheese and milk.

[3] We can’t wait to bake this “Oreo” pound cake. The recipe, called Cookies & Creme Pound Cake, is made with the vegan version of the cream-filled sandwich cookie.*

[4] Green Tea (Matcha) Tiramisu.

1. PREHEAT the oven to 350°F and lightly grease and flour two 8-inch round cake pans.

2. COMBINE the cranberries, brown sugar and lemon juice in a medium saucepan over moderate heat. Stir periodically and allow the mixture to stew for 10 to 15 minutes, roughly mashing the cranberries against the side of the pan to help thicken the mixture.

Once it reaches a jammy consistency, thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, turn off the heat and let it cool for at least 15 minutes. In the meantime…

3. TOSS the cooked beet, oil, nondairy milk, beet juice, vanilla and vinegar into the blender and purée on high speed. Blend until completely smooth, pausing to scrape down the sides of the canister if needed.

4. WHISK together in a separate large bowl the flour, granulated sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Make sure that all the dry goods are equally distributed within the bowl before adding in all of the blended wet ingredients along with the stewed cranberries.

Stir with a large spatula to bring everything together into a smooth batter, being careful not to overmix. A few remaining lumps are just fine.

5. DISTRIBUTE the batter equally between the two cake pans and tent the pans loosely with foil to prevent the tops from browning. Bake for 28 to 32 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the centers pulls out cleanly. Let cool completely before frosting.

6. PREPARE the frosting: Combine the cream cheese and butter in the stand mixer with the whisk attachment installed. Beat the two together thoroughly until smooth and homogenous, before adding in half of the confectioners sugar with the vanilla and salt.

Start the mixer on a low speed to incorporate the sugar, pausing to scrape down the sides of the bowl with the spatula. Add in the remaining sugar in the same fashion, giving the mixer plenty of time to blend it in.

7. TURN the speed to high and whip the frosting for a full 5 to 10 minutes, until light and fluffy. Apply to the cake as desired (see photo #2). Because this frosting is fairly soft, it’s advisable to store the finished cake in the fridge just prior to serving, if you make it in advance.

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*While Oreos have no animal ingredients in the recipe, they are made on the same equipment as products that contain milk. Thus, people who are kosher or vegan choose a vegan alternative, to avoid the possibility of even tiny amounts of milk.

[1] Glass gem corn (photos #1 and #2 © Jan and Peggy | Creative Commons).

[2] Close-up on the husks.

[3] Close-up on the jewel-like kernels (photos #1 and #2 © Gnotalex | Creative Commons).

The harvesting and drying of certain corn varieties is a harbinger of the fall season: When you start seeing dried “Indian corn” for sale, it’s time to hang some on the front door and pull out your sweaters.

Growing up, we always had Indian corn on the door (and a pumpkin next to the door). The colors of the kernels were beautiful, but its place in the corn beauty pageant has been taken by Glass Gem Corn.

Glass Gem is a variety of conventional Indian corn whose kernels on the cob shine like beautifully-colored glass beads. They get darker when dried, and pop into white kernels like other flint corn (see the different forms of ground corn).

This versatile corn can be “dried for decoration, popped for popcorn, cooked into hominy, or ground to a beautiful cornmeal,” says Kate P., whose instructions for growing glass gem corn is an impetus for anyone who wants to try it.

Plan ahead:

The corn needs to be planted in the spring, in a sunny place protected from wind. You can buy the seeds here for just $5.00.

The seedlings will begin to appear in two weeks. Mark your 2020 calendar to order the seeds in March.

These particular seeds were bred from a number of native varieties by Carl “White Eagle” Barnes (1928-2016), the famous Cherokee corn collector who devoted his life to collecting, preserving and sharing many native corn varieties.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF GLASS GEM CORN

As a youth, Carl Barnes of Oklahoma began to seek out his Cherokee roots, the knowledge of his ancestors and Native American traditions.

His studies included the ceremonies surrounding the planting, harvest and honoring of the seeds.

In the course of growing some of the older corn varieties still being farmed at that time, Carl began to notice ancestral traits that began to reappear in his crops.
 
They resembled long-lost local Native American corn varieties.

As he isolated and studied the corn kernels, he found that many of them matched up with old corn varieties that had been lost to various Native American tribes, particularly those who had been forcibly relocated during the 1800s to what is now Oklahoma.

By breeding for these traits, Barnes developed a range of different heritage corns and was able to re-introduce specific corn types to the elders of those tribes.

Carl went on to acquire and exchange other ancestral corn seeds from people he had befriended around the country.

He met fellow corn revival enthusiast, Greg Schoen of New Mexico, who began to interbreed his own local Native American corns with Barnes’ rainbow corn varieties.

In 2008, Schoen dispersed the first Glass Gem corn seeds into the world. Beyond the U.S., they were sent to India, Israel, Kenya, Mexico, and to whomever was interested in growing them.

By 2012 a photo of Glass Gem corn went viral, and the market for Glass Gem corn seeds skyrocketed. Sold for a very modest price, this beautiful corn is now grown all over the world [source].
  

[1] Pumpkin Fettuccine Alfredo (photo © Pinch Of Yum | DeLallo).

[2] When a recipe calls for pumpkin purée, use canned pumpkin—not pumpkin pie filling, which contains spices (photo © Libby).

[3] DeLallo fettuccine. You can buy Delallo products online (photo © Delallo).

[4] Spicy Pumpkin Pappardelle (photo © DeLallo).

October 25th is World Pasta Day, which also falls during “pumpkin season.”

So we’ve got two pumpkin pasta recipes for you, which can be served on “pumpkin holidays”—Halloween and Thanksgiving—or any day throughout the fall and winter.
 
 
RECIPE #1: PUMPKIN FETTUCCINE ALFREDO

Fettuccine Alfredo is one of the richest pasta dishes. The cooked fettuccine is tossed with cream, butter and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. The ingredients melt together, creating a very creamy sauce.

This pumpkin adaptation, by A Pinch Of Yum, adds canned pumpkin and garlic.

We prefer garlic to be subtle rather than pronounced, so we used two cloves instead of five.

For best results, grate the parmesan by hand, or buy freshly-grated parmesan (or pecorino) from the cheese counter.
 
Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. COOK the fettuccine according to package directions. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water in case you want to thin out the sauce.

2. HEAT the butter over medium heat. Add the garlic; sauté until soft and fragrant. If using the sage or rosemary, add them with the garlic and remove them before you add the pumpkin and cream.

3. ADD the pumpkin and cream. Simmer until slightly thickened. Add the cheese and stir to combine.

4. TOSS the pasta in the sauce and thin as desired using the reserved cooking water. Top with additional parmesan and season to taste. Because the parmesan is salty, you may wish to allow individuals to salt and pepper their own pasta. The same can be done with the nutmeg.

5. SERVE immediately.

NOTE: As the pasta sits, the sauce thickens up and the pasta soaks it up. If it thickens to the point of paste, add a bit of the pasta water to keep the sauce creamy.
 

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*Although it’s not part of an Alfredo recipe, we enjoy a hint of nutmeg with very creamy sauces.
 
 
RECIPE #2: SPICY PAPPARDELLE WITH PUMPKIN

If you don’t want a spicy dish, use the mild Anaheim, banana or cubanelle chile peppers, cayenne or chile powder.

If you want just a bit of heat, use ancho or poblano chile.

Ingredients

1. PREHEAT the oven to 350˚F. On a parchment-lined baking sheet, arrange the bell and hot peppers, garlic and onion. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil.

2. ROAST for an hour, turning often. Remove from the heat and transfer to food processor. Add 2 more tablespoons of olive oil and pulse until a chunky pepper purée is achieved. Set aside.

3. SAUTÉ the pumpkin with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in a large saucepan. Cook for about 12 minutes, evenly browning each piece. In the meantime…

4. BRING a large pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta. Cook according to package instructions. Once al dente, drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta water in case the sauce needs thinning.

5. ADD the hot pasta to the saucepan with pumpkin. Toss with the spicy pepper purée and fresh parsley. Heat together for about 2 minutes to marry the flavors. Serve topped with parmesan.