Cardamom Chocolate Chip Scones
Under 45 minutes. Makes approximately 15 scones.
INGREDIENTS
1 1/4 cups unsweetened almond milk
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup powdered jaggery or 1/3 cup brown sugar + optional 2 tablespoons for topping
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cardamom
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup coconut oil, room temperature (not melted)
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup chocolate chips
Optional blackberry jam topping—see recipe below.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Pour the unsweetened almond milk and apple cider vinegar into a small bowl, stir, and set aside for 10 minutes while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. The mixture will develop a tangy buttermilk-like flavor.
Mix the flour, sugar of choice, cardamom, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
Using your fingers or a pastry cutter, mix room-temperature or cold coconut oil into the flour mixture. It will not fully combine but will look lumpy.
Pour the almond milk mixture and canola oil into the bowl and fold until a lumpy dough is formed. Do not overmix or kneed.
Stir the chocolate chips into the mixture.
Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to scoop dough onto two baking trays lined with parchment paper. Depending on the shape of your scooper, you might want to press the scones down so they’re a bit flatter than tall. You’ll end up with approximately 15 scones.
Optional: dust the tops with sugar of choice before popping the trays into the oven.
Bake for 15 minutes, until the bottoms have lightly browned.
NOTES:
Jaggery is an unprocessed sugar, common in India, that you can find at Indian grocery stores or online. It’s a bit less sweet than other sugars, which is why the sugar substitution calls for a different amount.
If you freeze leftover scones, for best results reheat in an oven or toaster oven for approximately 5 minutes at 350 degrees F, not in a microwave.
Blackberry Jam
Twenty minutes—make it after you pop your scones into the oven!
INGREDIENTS
1 10-ounce bag of frozen blackberries
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1 tablespoon chia seeds
Stir all ingredients except for the chia seeds in a saucepan. Simmer on medium heat for 10 minutes. Stir in the chia seeds and cook for 5 more minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes to thicken.
Serve over scones (or oatmeal or pancakes).
Keep extra in a sealed glass jar in the fridge for up to a week.
Turmeric Pizza
Two hours from start to finish, but less than half of the time is hands-on. Makes one two-person pizza
SPICED DOUGH INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon instant yeast
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
Dash of black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup lukewarm water
1 tablespoon olive oil
JACKFRUIT PIZZA TOPPING INGREDIENTS
1 14-ounce can green jackfruit
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup tomato paste
1/2 cup water
Prepare the dough: In a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients, then add the water and olive oil. On a clean surface, knead the dough for 5 minutes (or you can use a bread mixer if you have one). Put the dough back in the bowl and let rest for at least one hour, until it has doubled in size.
Half an hour before you want to bake your pizza, preheat a pizza stone in an oven set to 475 degrees F and prepare your toppings.
Drain and rinse the jackfruit, then break it apart with your fingers so it’s in small bite-size pieces and set aside. Sauté the onion in the olive oil for 15 minutes until it begins to caramelize. Add the minced garlic, chili powder, and salt. After 30 seconds, stir in the tomato paste. After everything has come together, add the jackfruit and water. Simmer on medium-low for 15 minutes. When the water has mostly evaporated, the tasty topping is ready to be spread out on top of the pizza.
Once the dough has doubled in size, roll it out until it’s 1/4 inch thick. You can do this with a rolling pin or simply use your hands to pull it apart. Spread the topping evenly on top of the pizza dough.
Bake on the preheated pizza stone for 20 minutes.
Serves two people for a hearty dinner, or more as a side dish.
NOTES:
The jackfruit topping is flavorful enough on its own, but you can add mozzarella or any cheese of choice on top. See the recipes page of Gigi’s website for a homemade vegan mozzarella.
For ease of transferring the pizza into the oven, a pizza peel dusted with plenty of cornmeal works well, as does oven-safe parchment paper.
Want to serve four people instead of two? Double the recipe, but cut the dough in half to make two pizzas.