Blueberry Season!!! Muffin, Anyone?

It's summer time!  Blueberries are beginning to come out in the markets.
"Hmmm...  blueberries?" you asked.  Yes, blueberries indeed.  Blueberries in vast of Germany in the summer are from local source (from Germany!), which makes it a great reason to eat them by the handful!

I have to admit that in this recipe, banana is not from local source, although they are organic.

Besides eating the nutritious blueberry goodies by the handful, you can also make delicious vegan muffins with them!  This recipe came from my blueberry-loving friend, "Soberry", who got ahold this recipe from, yet, another friend.

Baking muffins are cracking up (I wonder what they are laughing about...)

These conveniently sized muffins are great to bring with you on a picnic trip with friends, as bicycle ride snacks, comfort food, onto the U-Bahn and S-bahn to give away to the poor homeless people, to a party or a lakeside/river bank eat out!  The possibilities are endless!

Blueberry-Banana Muffin
Preparation time:  20 minutes
Baking time:  20 - 25 minutes
Yield:  about 1 dozen

Metrics Measurements	U.S. Measurements	Ingredients
475 mL (240g)	2 cups	all-purpose flour (wheat, of course, I used Typ 405, Typ 550 works fine also)
15 mL	1 tbsp	baking powder
2.5 mL (1.3g)	½ tsp	cinnamon
2.5 mL (1.3g)	½ tsp	ground ginger
2.5 mL (5 g)	½ tsp	salt
180 mL (150 g)	¾ cup	brown sugar
5 mL	1 tsp	vanilla extract or vanilla sugar
		1 large ripe banana
136.5 mL (121.5g)	½ cup	vegetable oil
30 mL (45g)	2 tbsp	golden syrup (or agave molasses, maple syrup, sugar beet syrup)
205 mL	¾ cup	soy milk
273 mL	1 cup	fresh or frozen blueberries (I prefer using frozen ones, they don't pop as easily while stirring and baking)

Direction:
1.  Preheat oven to 190°C (375°F).
2.  Lightly oil 12 muffin tin tray OR simply place the paper muffin liners in the muffin tin tray cups.
3.  In a bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ground ginger, salt, sugar and vanilla.
4.  Add the mushed banana, vegetable oil, syrup and soy milk into the bowl.  Stir the batter together well.
5.  When the batter is mixed well together, fold the blueberries (frozen work the best) into the batter.
6.  Carefully pour the batter into each muffin tin tray cup, to about 90% full.
7.  Bake for 20 - 25 minutes, when the top turns light brown.

A bitten blueberry-banana muffin.  You can see the muffin texture inside!

You might be interested in making golden cupcakes, too!

Curious about how to make soy milk yourself?

Gone Ice Creamin' and... CRAZILY VEGAN!

After getting inspired by Instructables: Home-Made Two-Ingredient Ice Cream, I decided to try making ice cream the vegan way.  HOME MADE and find ingredients locally in Berlin.

I was OVERJOYED to have found 300 ml packaged vanilla flavor soy whipping cream (sometimes called "heavy cream", German is sold with the label of whipped cream "Schlagsahne," but heavy cream itself is really called "Süße Sahne") for €1.85 in Gesundbrunnen Center's Vitalia Reformhaus (U8, S1, S2, S25, S41, S42 Gesundbrunnen station, on the lowest level, right outside of Media Markt).
(I think the organic market called "Erdkorn" near U9's Güntzelstraße station, Bundesalle 201-203, would also carry it, but I have yet to confirm this, I'll get back to you guys when I confirmed it.)

Soy whipping cream by granoVita, vanilla flavored "Soja-Saane", 300 ml for €1.85.

And I went to a Kaufland for the organic agave syrup ("Agaven Sirup") from Rinatura, because it was cheaper than Gut & Gerne's (250g / 180 ml for €2.99), it contains more amount, has thicker syrup...  AND it has volume marks on the side so I'd know how much I have squarted out!!

Organic agave syrup from Rinatura, 350g (250 ml) for €2.45.

Organic agave syrup from Gut & Gerne, 250g (180 ml) for €2.99.

From my experience of soy whipping cream, either from Southern California's "Whole Foods" or Germany, is that they come in a aseptic packaging (like "Tetra Pak" or "SIG combibloc"), but what inside looks like is a blob of shaped creamy stuff...  they are not fluid that flow around, it's more like a creamy block, so make sure when you cut the container, you have to cut all the way through on the top and use a spoon so scoop it out.

Block of soft and creamy stuff inside of the container.

Even when you whip it, this stiff creamy blob won't be whipped up like whipped cream.  Well, a bit whipped, but definitely can't be whipped to stiff whipped cream.

Let's see what came out!

The textures in close examination, you can see the ice-shaped structure on the right.

The ice cream came out pretty soft and puffy, compromised creamy, meaning when I bit into the ice cream, there is little ice pieces that feels like biting into shaved ice.  Just right amount of sweetness, plus the vanilla flavor that was already in the soy whipping cream, the taste is not bad at all.  Overall, for a 2-ingredient home-made vegan ice cream, I would say it turned out pretty well!

Soy Whipping Cream-Agave Vegan Ice Cream
Preparation time:  15 - 20 minutes
Freezing time:  at least 4 hours
Yield:  ¾ liter (about 25 flow oz)

300 ml soy whipping cream
75 g (100g) agave syrup

1.  Divide the volume of the soy whipping cream to 3/5 and 2/5 (that is 180 ml and 120 ml).
2.  Make a ice water bath by putting the container that you will be whipping the soy whipping cream in a bowl that has icy cold water.

3.  Place the 3/5 of the volume of soy whipping cream (180 ml) into the container in the ice bath and start whipping the cream for about a minute.  (it won't be whipped stiff, it's just like that even if you whip it longer)
4.  Place 2/5 of the volume of soy whipping cream (120 ml) and the agave into a pot and heat it over low heat.  Stir till they are blended.  DO NOT have the mixture heat up too much, just warming it is enough.
5.  Pour the agave-soy whipping cream mixture into the whipping container in the ice bath and whip for 3 to 5 minutes or until the cream is whipped stiff and fluffy.
6.  Pour the whipped soy-agave cream into a container (preferably plastic or waxed carton, NOT glass) and pop it into the freezer for at least 4 hours.

Whipping the 3/5 volume of soy whipping cream in an icy water bath

Warming up the agave syrup and 2/5 volume of the soy whipping cream

Whipped soy-agave cream

After freezing the whipped soy-agave cream

Tasting time!!