Snickerdoodle Cookie Dough Cake

It's finger lickin', cinnamon oozing, cookie crunchin', sugary deliciousness. 

Are you ready to be dazzled by my snickerdoodle cookie dough cake?

I thought you would say yes. :)

After realizing that my recipe for vegan cookie dough cupcakes was my most popular blog post, I decided to take that to heart and invent more cookie dough themed cakes. I'm hoping to make an eBook with a bunch of recipes, at some point! 

But until then, here is a recipe to keep you enticed.

The cake itself is vegan - I used THIS vanilla cake recipe and added my own flavorings. You can use that recipe or your own favorite vanilla cake recipe, your choice. 

However, the icing and filling are very, very far from being vegan. 

Feel free to veganize this and let me know what you think. It should be relatively easy to veganize - just sub Earth Balance for butter, and vegan cream cheese for the cream cheese. 

Presto change-o! You've got a vegan cake. 

Okay, let's get to the recipe!

Cinnamon Cake

3 cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 3/4 cups vanilla dairy-free milk

1 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup white or apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Snickerdoodle Cookie Dough Filling

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon

6 tablespoons milk

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Cinnamon Icing

1/2 cup brown sugar

8 cups powdered sugar

1 stick butter, softened

8 ounces cream cheese

4 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 tablespoons milk

You will also need some snickerdoodle cookies that have been baked and crumbled. I used soft-baked cookies from Trader Joe's, but I'd recommend using a crunchy snickerdoodle cookie for this recipe.

Directions

Cinnamon Cake: Combine all wet ingredients in a bowl. In a separate bowl, combine all dry ingredients. Slowly mix the wet and dry ingredients until combined (don't overmix!). Pour cake batter into two 9 inch cake pans and bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes. Allow to cool.

Cookie Dough Filling: In a bowl, cream butter and sugars together. Add dry ingredients and mix until combined, then add milk and stir. Let sit at room temperature until ready to assemble the cake (or you can refrigerate the filling and allow to soften when you are ready to use).

Cinnamon Icing: Cream together butter, brown sugar, cream cheese, and cinnamon until combined. Add vanilla and mix. Gradually add the powdered sugar and milk, alternating between the two until everything has been added. When all ingredients have been added, whip on high speed until the icing becomes light and fluffy.

Assembly

Place one cake on your surface. Spread the filling all over the top of cake, until you've used as much as you want. Place the second cake on top, and then cover with icing. Sprinkle crumbled snickerdoodle cookies on top for crunch and decor.

Then EAT IT!

Now... who's gonna make this cake?!

The 2013 Gift Guide For....[THE VEGAN]

Welcome to the SECOND edition of the Passing Daisies holiday gift guide! Last week, we talked about HIPSTERS.This week, we are focusing on the vegans in our life. Here are the other holiday gift guides you can look forward to!

[The MUSIC JUNKIE]

[The GEEK]

[The BOOK NERD]

[The VINTAGE]

[The TRAVELER]

[The DRINK SNOB]

[The DIY ENTHUSIAST]

[The BLOGGER]

I used to be vegan for a year, and now I will generally eat anything, but I eat dairy in moderation. I shop mostly vegan at the grocery store, and I eat normally when I'm out with friends. Everything is okay in small amounts! 

Still, I like to embrace my vegan roots, and I think I've got a pretty good grasp on what kind of gifts vegans would enjoy. I would love to get any of the gifts below. I hope these help you find the perfect gift for your vegan friend!

Better World Brownies

An all vegan and fair trade brownie mix, you can't possibly go wrong. This company also makes vegan hot chocolate mix, fruit & chocolate snack mixes, and other yummy treats. Everything is fair trade, too.

Crazy Sexy Kitchen

Kris Carr is a vegan celebrity - she beat cancer by switching to a mostly raw, plant-based diet, and has been a role model in the vegan world ever since. This is her new cook book!

Isa Does It

Another famous vegan chef, Isa Chandra Moskowitz, just released a brand new cookbook this month. Everything she makes is delicious, so I'm sure this cookbook won't disappoint.

Vegan White Chocolate Chips

Vegan white chocolate is crazy hard to find in stores, unless you make it yourself. These chips are delicious. Make sure you order a few bags! Wanna hear what I think? Click here!

Vegan Bowls [and other dishes]

This lady's vegan dishes and mugs are pretty famous. They are expensive, but homemade and high quality. They are also cute! If you don't want anything with the word "vegan" on them, she also makes some adorable cake stands, fruit bowls, and other dishware. There is also another etsy shop, Vegan Dish, that you can check out when the owner is back from vacation.

Vegan's Daily Companion

This book features 365 different articles to read, one for each year. It has recipes, health info, animal stories and pictures, and so much more! A great guide for any vegan.

Tofu Xpress

Any true vegan will press tofu at some point in their life. This is a great tool to have in your kitchen so you don't end up pressing your tofu with a stack of books, pots and pans, and cans of soup {in other words, anything heavy}. If you want to see my review of this product, click here.

Hail Merry Macaroons 

These are quite possibly the best macaroons I've ever had, and they are raw! You can find them at Whole Foods stores across the country. Apparently they just released a limited edition, seasonal flavor - Chocolate Chocolate Chip - so run to the stores and buy some now!

Justin's Chocolate Hazelnut Butter

This is just like Nutella, but it's vegan. They also make a line of peanut butter cups that are AMAZE-BALLS. For a limited time, you can buy their white chocolate peanut butter cups exclusively  at Whole Foods. 

Tea Forte

I have yet to find a flavor of tea by this brand that I dislike. They are crazy delicious, and their triangular shape makes them unique. 

Blackberry Maple Waffle Tea

This is a delicious flavor of tea, and it has real waffle pieces in the mix!

Libre Tea Glass

While we are on the topic of tea, this loose leaf tea "to-go" glass is GREAT for when you want loose leaf tea but are about to walk out the door. The tea stays in a separate compartment, and you just flip upside down to brew. When you are ready to drink, just turn the glass right side up. Check out my review of these glasses here.

Forks Over Knives

This is a great documentary about the way meat and dairy effect our health. Although it does talk about animal rights and welfare, the emphasis of this film is health, and that's why I enjoy it. If you want a documentary that talks more about animals, then check out Food, Inc.

Vegan Makeup

There are multiple great places you can get quality vegan makeup, including Juice Beauty, Tarte, and Urban Decay.

Yes To...

The "Yes To" brand has a TON of quality vegan beauty products, including facial cleansers, lip balm, shampoo & conditioner, and sunscreen, to name just a few. 

Well, I hope those items sparked some ideas for your vegan friend! Let me know if you found other great products you would recommend! 

WIAW #33: Whole Foods Edition

Hey WIAW friends! Wow, it's been ages since I've done a WIAW. 
All I can say is that it's great to be back! 
To be totally honest, I kind of forgot about the blog, and I was busy doing a million other things: job searching, volunteering at church, reading, hanging out with friends...blogging slipped my mind for a while. On top of that, my dad had an unexpected quadruple bypass surgery a couple weeks ago. Although that was kinda nuts, I'm definitely inspired now more than ever to live and eat healthfully. But now I'm back and ready to dive back into the blogging world! 

This week, I'm gonna share some of my favorite finds from Whole Foods today. I found a lot of really great stuff, and I'm highly impressed with Daiya & Earth Balance for all the new products they put out this year. I was overwhelmed and wanted to try everything!

Let's start with these: Hail Merry Miracle Tarts! They have the chocolate almond butter and Persian lime flavors. I've been wanting to try these for years, but my Whole Foods never carried them before. How AWESOME that they finally carry them and I get to taste them! I'll let you know my verdict when I actually dig in to this scrumptious looking thing. I'll probably love it, because I love anything lime flavored.

Cashew butter! One of my favorites. And I love that it's in a squeezable pack.

I LOVE JUSTIN'S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS. Their dark chocolate is my favorite, but this white chocolate variety is seasonal, so why not try it?! I can't wait.

So, I tried the So Delicious greek coconut milk yogurt a while ago and wasn't a huge fan, but now they have greek almond milk yogurt! I'm pumped to try it. Also, the strawberry banana yogurt was new to me!

I love Tofurkey. And it was WAY cheaper than regular chicken sausage, which is what I was originally looking to buy. It's healthier for you, too.

I think the new EB packaging is stellar! I love that they are all square containers now instead of circular tubs. I usually buy the whipped variety, but I thought I'd try to new Omega-3 variety this time around. 

Aren't these nifty? They are like fruit leather, but this is VEGETABLE leather! Never heard of it before, but I'm curious to see what they taste like.

I also bought some Earth Balance mayo and miscellaneous other groceries. I'm ready to get back to a largely vegan diet, minus some occasional dairy and meat. The healthier the better - I never want to go through the surgery that my dad went through! 

That's all for now, loves. Talk to you soon!

Blackberry Orange Pancakes

I was in the mood for pancakes the other morning. You know, the morning when I got zero sleep the previous night because my mind was racing. The morning where I spent all my time working on my blog's layout instead of sleeping. The morning I saw another's blogger's recipe for chocolate orange pancakes. 

Those pancakes inspired me. 

I had some blackberries in the fridge I wanted to use, so I decided to put them to good use and make pancakes with them. Who knew they were so low in calories, even with 2 tablespoons of melted butter in the batter?! These are practically vegan - just sub Earth Balance for butter and voila! Vegan pancakes. Let me know how much you love them!

Blackberry Orange Pancakes
Based on my Cinnamon Coconut Pancakes 
Makes 8 pancakes

1 c. unbleached all purpose flour
1 T. sugar
15 drops orange liquid stevia (you can omit this and use 3 T. of sugar instead if you wish)
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt
1 c. vanilla almond milk
1 t. vanilla
2 T. melted butter
1/4 cup blackberries
2 t. orange zest

1. In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt. 
2. In a smaller bowl, combine milk, vanilla, orange zest, melted butter, stevia, and blackberries. Mash the blackberries with the back of your spoon.
3. Combine the two mixtures and whisk until batter is smooth. 
4. Spray a nonstick pan with cooking spray and place over medium heat.
5. Using a 1/4 c. measure or a large ice cream scoop, pour batter into heated skillet, making only one pancake at a time.
6. Cook until you see bubbles forming on the top of the batter, then carefully flip pancake and cook until the other side is golden brown.

Nutritional Info

Servings: 8
Calories: 98

Carbs: 16g

Fat: 3g

Protein: 2g

What's you're favorite kind of pancake? 

Much love, 

Product Review & Giveaway: WayFare

Hey everyone! I have another product review for you today, but before we get into that, I have a site update that I'm really excited about. 

I'm starting to go through all of my recipes and include nutritional information, like calories, fat grams, protein, etc. Like I said, I'm really excited about this! I know a lot of my recipes are probably not the healthiest (except for the more recent ones), so I'm interested in knowing just how unhealthy (but yummy) they are for you. I'm starting at the top of my recipe list and working to the bottom. So far, I've done two of my banana bowl recipes - here and here, if you wanted to check them out. How cool is that?! Since I've been tracking my calories recently, I like finding blogs that tell you all this information before you make a recipe and then figure out how high the calorie levels are. I'll keep you updated as this progresses, but I can't wait until they all have nutritional information! 

Alright. Let's crack into this next product review from WayFare products. I've been waiting to do this review because of the lack of WayFare products in my area. I went to Jungle Jims, but they only had one product - the one I will be reviewing - and that's it. How depressing! The next place closest to me in an hour away, which would have to become a family weekend trip or something. This is really sad for me because I wanted to review their puddings. Oh well! 

Since I only used one of the seven coupons (wow!) they sent me, I'm going to be giving away the last six coupons! They expire August 31, so enter fast. Just make sure before you enter that you can find WayFare products in your area. Click here to do that! 

The one product I found was their Cheddar Spread. It's main ingredient is oatmeal, which is how I became interested in the company in the first place (when I was vegan). I'd never heard of oatmeal as a main ingredient before. 

WayFare offers a lot of different vegan products, including three types of pudding, a wide selection of cheese-like spreads, sour cream, and their new vegan bacon bits. 

I have to say, I was a little disappointed in this spread. I thought it would be better. It wasn't bad, it just... lacked flavor. It needed some spices or something to kick it up a notch. I wasn't a fan. 

Apparently this cheese melts, too - something I didn't realize until just now! Kinda makes me wish I had tried this on nachos or a baked potato. 

When I was in Washington DC with Daelia's Biscuits for Cheese for the Fancy Food Show, I got to try their new vegan bacon bits. 

These were really yummy! I loved them. They taste just like those bacon bits you buy in jars at the grocery store. These are definitely worth a try. It looks like you can only order them online right now, so head on over to the WayFare website and get ordering! 

GIVEAWAY TIME!

Now. Can you buy WayFare in your area? Do you want to try some of their products? Enter to win! Two lucky people will each win 3 coupons for a free WayFare product. Here's how to enter - just leave a separate comment for each entry. Giveaway ends TONIGHT AT 11:59PM. Entrants must be from the USA. Get entering!

1. Tell me anything at all. How was your day? What did you do? Did you recently find a new product you like? Do you have a favorite workout or book? Talk to me! :)

2. Subscribe by email (3 entries)

3. Follow me on GFC or Blogger

Good luck! 

Much love, 

July Foodie Pen Pals

Everyone! It's time for another month of foodie pen pals! This month, my pen pal was Carolynne from Chicago, IL. She didn't disappoint with her box. She even listened to what I said when she asked about things I love! 

I told her I was interested in flavored honeys recently, and she sent me a bottle of blueberry blossom honey. After trying it, I realized it was just honey harvested from blueberry plants - not blueberry flavored But still delicious! I used it on some banana chips I made a week ago and they were delicious. 

She sent:

 garlic sesame crackers

pecan caramel turtle

blueberry blossom honey

freeze dried tropical fruit

Qbel bar

Reed's Ginger Chews

Oatmeal Apple Currant cookie 

Something exciting was that the cookie was from a local vegan bakery! How cool is that? It was really moist and delicious. Full of flavor. I loved it. I already know I love those ginger chews, so that was exciting. The freeze dried fruit made a great snack while I was working on the school newspaper, and the pecan turtle was very chocolate-y and caramel-y. The crackers were crunchy and delicious. I still haven't tried to Qbel, but I can't wait. That is something that I have been wanting to try for a long time!

Not to mention, Carolynne has great handwriting. 

Thanks for the package, Carolynne! 

Wanna join the foodie pen pal fun? Here's the details - just email Lindsay to sign up!

-On the 5th of the month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to contact your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.

-You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. On the last day of the month, you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!

-The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!

-You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!)

-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers. If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you can choose to write a short guest post for your penpal to post on their blog about what you received. If two readers are paired together, neither needs to worry about writing a post for that month.

- Foodie Penpals is open to US, Canadian residents & UK residents.  Please note, Canadian Residents will be paired with other Canadians only. We’ve determined things might get too slow and backed up if we’re trying to send foods through customs across the border from US to Canada and vice versa. So, I’m going to keep two separate lists and match US w/ US and Canada w/ Canada!

***If you’re in the UK, please contact Carol Anne from This Is Rock Salt at rocksalt@thisisrocksalt.com to get involved! 

Much love, 

Product Review: Hail Merry Raw Snacks

Let me begin by saying that I absolutely adore this company. 

It's rare when I come out in a product review and say that just love a company. A product? Yeah, sometimes, but not usually a company. 

I think Hail Merry does such a great job at what they do - a lot of time, raw snacks can be a hit or miss - and in my experience, I've have a lot of misses. Not here. They know what they are doing.

I had tried both flavors of their raw macaroons before - cocoa and original - and loved them. Honestly, they are probably the best macaroons I've ever eaten. They have a strong maple flavor, are the perfect size, and are just overall delicious. Great coconut flavor. And of course, how can you go wrong with chocolate? (The answer: you can't). Both flavors are wonderful and I highly recommend that you run to your nearest Whole Foods and pick up a bag or two. Or three. 

The nuts that they sent for me to review were new for me, and I was excited to try them. I was expecting nothing but the best. 

These were the Vanilla Maple Almonds. Oh. My. Goodness. 

The maple was the first flavor to hit me - it was very strong, and very yummy. The vanilla was also a strong flavor, and it paired well with the maple. I devoured this package right after receiving the package of snacks. These lasted maybe 10 minutes - if that! So good.  I definitely recommend them. 

Hail Merry also offers a wide variety of other raw seasoned nuts, like Orange Rosemary Pecans, Lemon Thyme Pecans, Chimayo Chili Pecans, and Salt N Black Pepper Sunflower Seeds. They also offer something they call "Grawnola" - or raw granola! If only my Whole Foods sold those babies. 

They also offer chilled raw "Miracle Tarts," which I want to try, but my Whole Foods doesn't sell those either. Darn. That Lime Tart is totally calling my name.

There are a few reasons why I love this company. First, they have great packaging and I love their slogan, "Feed your body royally." Secondly, all of the products that I've tried have been great. Third, they use a lot of coconut oil, which is a healthy fat for your body. Learn more about coconut oil/butter here. And it's yummy. And no refined sugar! 

Overall, great products and great people. I highly recommend trying these products for yourself if you haven't already!

The Daisy Rating

5/5 daisies

I would also like to congratulate Hail Merry on receiving what I think may by the first perfect score I've given out on a product review! 

What is your favorite raw food snack?

Much love, 

Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats

Hey everyone! 

So, I've noticed there is currently an overnight oats craze going on in the health blogging world. I've always been intrigued and wanted to try them, and a few nights ago I realized I had everything I needed to make overnight oats in my dorm room. So what did I do? I tried them for the first time! 

Oats before thickening overnight

These were actually pretty good, although I think next time I'll experiment a bit more and use different flavors or yogurt and toppings. I would love to try making a key lime pie, banana cheesecake, or apple cinnamon variety!! Give this recipe a try for yourself and let me know what you think! 

Oats the next morning!

Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats
Based off of this recipe from Peanut Butter Fingers 
Makes 2 servings
1 6oz. container Whole Soy & Co. cherry yogurt
2 T. cacao nibs
2 T. chia seeds
2/3 c. oats
1/2 c. vanilla flax milk + 1/4 c. for morning add in
Honey for topping

Directions
1. Combine all ingredients (except honey and 1/4 c. flax milk) in a large container. Cover and place in fridge over night.
2. The next morning, stir in 1/4 c. flax milk. Drizzle top with honey and enjoy!

Calories per serving: 364 (without honey)


Happy eating!

What is your favorite kind of overnight oats?
Much love,

Product Review & Giveaway: Lucy's Gluten Free Cookies

I think it's time for another giveaway, don't you? :)

When I heard about Dr. Lucy's new line of gluten free/vegan cookies, I knew I had to try them. I had tried the chocolate chip cookies once from Starbucks and thought they were delicious, so I knew I was bound to love the new Maple Bliss, Chocolate, and Ginger Snap varieties! Lucy's was very generous, and sent me six boxes of the new flavors to review - 2 of each flavor! Isn't the packaging adorable?

Maple Bliss
This was my favorite flavor. Reminiscent of pancakes, the maple is strong but not overpowering, and the cookies (much like all of Lucy's flavors) are very crunchy and satisfying. Nice and sugary. It also reminds me of eating maple sugar candies, the maple sugar shaped like acorns? Does anyone know what I am talking about? Delicious. You would have no idea this cookie was gluten free!

Ginger Snap
I also have a soft spot for gingersnap cookies, so these were great. I loved that there were whole pieces of crystallized ginger in the cookies; they added an extra punch that I was not expecting. I loved the strong ginger flavor, and the added ginger pieces made these a better alternative to your typical gingersnap cookie.

Chocolate
How can you go wrong with chocolate? These cookies have a solid chocolate flavor and seemed to be the favorite among my friends. Not much more I can say about these. They were yummy!

Overall: The regular cookie connoisseur would have no idea these are gluten free. In fact, my friends couldn't tell; I took a box of each flavor to my staff meeting on Monday, and my team loved them! One RA even said "tell those people they get a 10/10, because these are really good!" They get a thumbs up from everyone here in Ohio :) They are very crunchy, and even though I'm a half-baked cookie kinda girl, I really liked these. I also like that you can eat three cookies for 120 calories - it makes me feel like less of a fatty when I eat multiple!

The wonderful people at Lucy's is offering YOU the chance to win one box of each of their new flavors! One lucky PD reader will win, and here is how you can enter (leave a comment for each entry!):

1. MANDATORY- Tell me what your favorite Lucy's cookie is, or which flavor you want to try the most! 

Want more ways to win? 

2. Follow Lucy's and Passing Daisies on Twitter 

3. Subscribe to Passing Daisies by email

4. Follow Passing Daisies on GFC/Blogger

5. Follow me on Pinterest & repin something from the board "Passing Daisies" 

6. Like Passing Daisies on Facebook

7. Like and stumble through Passing Daisies on StumbleUpon 

8. Tweet about this giveaway and tag @cityxlights13 as well as linking to the giveaway (can do this once per day for bonus entries)

9. Pin this post on Pinterest

There you go! Giveaway ends on SUNDAY, MARCH 18TH at 11:00PM and the winner will be announce the next day (Monday, March 19). Winner will have 48 hours to contact me or another winner will be chosen. Please leave a valid email address with your first entry. 

Thanks guys! Have a lovely day! 

Much love,