Easter Eats, Thanks to Bianca!

Since it is Easter and all, I figured I had a good excuse to cook up a storm and make some dishes that took a little more time and effort! Isn't that the best part of holidays?! Bianca, of Vegan Crunk, put this new tester recipe for her cookbook up this week and I knew instantly that it was the perfect thing to serve for my Easter lunch: Dijon-Pecan Seitan with Maple Butter Glaze. Yeah, it is as good as it sounds!! The seitan has an amazing crust on the outside that is both salty and sweet, which is enhanced even more by the salty-sweet glaze. My taste buds were smiling! These little nutty medalions were paired perfectly with Garlic-Roasted Asparagus and Lemon-Herb Whipped Parsnips...I was feeling kind of fancy this morning.

And, what would a holiday be without dessert? I made some wonderful Butterscotch Pecan Blondies, as they felt spring-y to me, and put in some butterscotch chips that the great Bianca sent me from Memphis....the Food Lion stores down South carry vegan butterscotch chips! whoa! (in my Joey Lawrence voice)

These are loosely based off of the blondies (with carob chips) served at Main Squeeze in Columbia, but I have been working on my own version for a bit, and of course I had to put my own spin on them! You MUST try these if you can get your hands on some vegan b.s. chips!

Butterscotch Pecan Blondies (serves 12 BIG portions, maybe 16 normal-sized)
Wet Ingredients:
2 T ground flaxseeds
2 c turbinado (or other natural) sugar
2 T vanilla extract
1 c unsweetened applesauce
1-12 oz.box silken tofu
1 1/2 c soy or rice milk

Dry Ingredients:
4 c whole wheat pastry flour
2 T baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp sea salt
1 1/4 cup vegan butterscotch chips
1 1/4 cup pecans, chopped

Blend wet ingredients until well mixed. Sift dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Fold in 1 cup each of butterscotch chips and pecans. Pour wet ingredients into a well in the dry ingredients and stir just until combined. Pour into a lightly greased 9x13 pan. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup each extra butterscotch chips and pecans. Bake at 350F for 45 to 50 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean. Cool before cutting, and serve.