Raisin Bread for One

I don't know about you, but I love raisin bread. I don't need it to be ooey and gooey, just succulent and sweet with a bright swirl of cinnamon. Try this quick bread and see what you think!

1/2 cup whole wheat bread flour, plus a little more for shaping (you can also use all purpose)

1 teaspoon of sugar

Generous pinch of salt

1 teaspoon active dried yeast (Rapid Rise is best, but Bread-Machine Yeast works fine, too)

3 to 4 TBSP warm water (hot water from the tap is fine)

1 ½ TBLSP raisins

For the swirl:

1 teaspoon granulated sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Place a piece of parchment on a baking pan. If you don’t have parchment, grease the pan or a piece of aluminum foil heavily, as it will STICK.

1.      In a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt, and yeast. Stir in 3 TBSP of water. If the dough is SUPER dry, then add a little more water and mix again. Go easy. 

2.      Dump the contents of the bowl out onto a lightly floured work surface and sprinkle with flour. You may need to add more flour to make the dough kneadable if it’s too wet or sticky. 

3.      Knead gently until the dough comes together into a ball. It'll be very soft and a bit sticky. You only need to knead for 1 or 2 minutes.

4.      Add the raisins, and knead a tiny bit more to incorporate them.

5.      On a floured board, roll the dough out as flat as you can. The shape doesn’t matter much, as you’re going to be rolling the whole thing up. Just get it as flat as the raisins will let you.

6.      Combine the sugar and cinnamon to make the swirl and sprinkle evenly over the surface of the square. You’ll want a thick layer to make the swirl conspicuous.  

7.      Beginning at one end, roll up the dough, trapping the cinnamon-sugar inside. Flatten and shape the roll back into a squashed square or rectangle, or fold it and push it around until it makes a nice bread-slice shape.

8.      Place it on the parchment or heavily greased aluminum foil, and leave the dough in a nice warm place to rise while you preheat the oven to 425 degrees F for about 15 minutes.

9.      Bake for 20-25 minutes until darkly golden.

Let it cool a bit, and then slice lengthwise to see the pretty swirl of cinnamon and raisins (and so you can have two slices of toast).

Scrambled Tofu with Miso for One

2 TBLSP water

4 ounces (approximately) firm tofu, cubed

3 slices yellow onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 mushrooms, sliced

2 TBLSP olive oil

1 heaped teaspoon brown mustard

1 healthy TBLSP white miso

A couple of sprinkles of garam masala (you could use curry instead)

2 TBLSP cilantro, finely chopped

¼ teaspoon dried tarragon

Freshly ground black pepper

Salt

1.      Heat the water in a skillet or wok, add the tofu, onions, garlic, and mushrooms, then add the oil. Cook for 8-10 minutes over a medium heat, until onions and mushrooms are wilted.

2.      Mix the mustard and miso together in a small bowl and add to the tofu mixture in the pan.

3.      Stir in the garam masala, cilantro, and tarragon, and continue cooking for 3-4 minutes until most of the liquid in the pan has evaporated.

4.      Serve hot, with salt and pepper over the top.

Serves 1, or two if you have bread or other side dish. 

Scone for One

I don't know about you, but I love a good scone. I don't mean one of those bloated things you get in a chain coffee shop, but the delicate tang of a nice British scone. I thought I'd have to give them up when I became a vegan because of the buttermilk and the egg, but guess again! The first time I got this recipe right, it was so yummy, I made another right away!

½ TBLSP chia seeds

1 ½ TBLSP cold water

1/3 cup flour

¼ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon sugar

A pinch of salt

2/3 TBLSP vegan butter

1 TBLSP chopped dried fruit (raisins, cherries, apricots)

1 TBLSP almond milk

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

1.      Grind the chia seeds in a mortar and pestle or blender long enough to make a coarse meal (not a flour). (You can skip the grinding—the taste is a little less robust and nutty, but the seeds produce the same goop.) Place the ground seeds in a small container (or leave 'em in the mortar), add 1 ½ TBLSP of cold water (tap cold is fine) and stir briskly. Let sit for five minutes while you mix the rest of the ingredients. The goopy result is a substitute for half of an egg, so if you’re not a vegan, you can use half a beaten egg.

 

2.      Mix the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt) together in a small bowl. A cereal bowl is plenty big enough.

3.       Cut in the butter with a pastry knife or a fork until it’s the texture of cornmeal.

4.       Stir in the dried fruit.

5.      Add in the chia goop and the almond milk. Mix briefly and press into a flattened circle, about 3/4-inch thick on a baking dish or in a shallow cake pan. Score it into wedges (if you like) and brush the top with a little bit more milk.

6.       Bake for 15 minutes.