Pair your grilled summer corn on the cob recipe with one of these vegan butters.

What’s corn on the cob without a rub of garlic, a touch of butter, and a dash of sea salt? For vegans, the butter part can get a bit iffy. However, the buttery taste is a crucial part of the experience and vegans shouldn’t miss out on it either. Luckily, they don’t have to. Here are 3 tried-and-true vegan butter brands and 3 deliciously animal-friendly butter recipes for you to slather on your cob without the afterthought.

3 Vegan Butter Brands

When it comes to making something as sensitive as butter, which demands a particular taste, texture, and appearance, I’d rather leave it to the pros. The following three brands are my favorite so far and pair perfectly with grilled corn on the cob!

1. Earth Balance

Earth Balance is the go-to vegan butter in the vegan world. It tastes just like butter and has the texture and aroma to match. For corn on the cob, I prefer the Original Buttery Spread version, which is made from a combination of expeller-pressed palm fruit, canola, soybean, flax, and olive oils.

2. Miyoko’s Kitchen

I love the packaging of this butter – so sophisticated! This company’s cultured vegan butter is the purest version of vegan butter I’ve seen yet. It’s made with organic coconut oil, organic cashews, organic safflower oil, organic sunflower oil, soy lecithin, sea salt, and cultures. It also melts, cooks, bakes, spreads, and tastes just like butter. Win-win in my book!

3. Nutiva

Nutiva is known for its superfood selection, but it also boasts a coconut oil with a buttery taste! It’s made from organic expeller-pressed coconut oil, organic vegan buttery flavor, and organic unrefined red palm oil. It spreads and melts a lot like regular butter.

3 Homemade Vegan Butter Recipes

If you are feeling more creative, try your hand at making a homemade version of vegan butter. The recipes are plain, but consider mixing in any of the following combinations for extra oomph and a more satisfying corn on the cob experience.

1. Go-To Vegan Butter Substitute

Fork & Bean’s makes an incredibly simple vegan butter recipe that is nut-free, soy-free, and looks and feels so much like regular butter. The recipe is based in coconut oil, non-dairy milk, canola oil, sea salt, and liquid lecithin. Simple as that!

2. Planet Pusherne’s Vegan Aquafaba Butter

Aqua…what? Aquafaba is the name given to bean juice. It is the thick substance you generally pour out when draining a can of beans. Aquafaba is a popular substitute for eggs in vegan dishes. Now, it can make butter too! This recipe from Planet Pusherne combines chickpea water with coconut oil, rapeseed oil, apple cider vinegar, and salt.

3. One Green Planet’s Vegan Butter (Nut-Based)

This vegan butter is based in raw cashews, apple cider vinegar, coconut oil, sunflower lecithin, canola oil, and guar gum. Because it is based in cashews, it has a markedly thicker feel than the other two homemade butters on this list. It spreads well and stores in the freezer for up to a year!

Compound Butter Ideas

Corn on the cob is delicious with just a pat of butter and a dash of salt, but it is elevated in status with the addition of spices and herbs. Butter acts as a great vessel for whatever herbs you’d like to add onto your cob. Simply mix them in your vegan butter and lather your corn up! The following 6 combinations are inspiration for your next compound vegan butter.

1. Shiitake + Tarragon
2. Fennel Pollen + Honey
3. Sweet Paprika + Chipotle
4. Sumac + Mint
5. Basil + Pest
6. Garlic + Lemon Zest

Related on EcoSalon
Sweet Corn Recipe with Miso Butter and Scallions
Sunday Recipe: Harvest Season Fruit Butter
20 Unusual Ways to Use Nutritional Yeast

Corn on the Cob with Shutterstock

The post The 3 Best Vegan Butters (Plus 3 Recipes!) for Your Next Grilled Corn on the Cob appeared first on EcoSalon.

Make this classic Black & White cake, and you’ll get rave reviews from vegans and non-vegans alike.

When bridal showers, birthdays and celebrations of all sorts roll around, there’s nothing that says “Let’s Celebrate (in style)” like Black & White cake. And, this regal dessert, as I discovered quite by accident, has many forms and flavors. The first version I created was white(ish) inside and black outside, compliments of a simple (accidental) ingredient omission—cocoa powder. So naturally, I had to try again. My second go at it, everything went smoothly (cocoa powder included) until, while putting the finishing touches on the frosting, the whole cake tumbled to the ground just minutes before it was due for serving at a party.

With crumbles left behind on the cake stand, I was able to resurrect some pieces, however, this time I lost the cake’s outer, gleaming white hue, as the (vegan) cream cheese frosting melded into the moist chocolate cake.With this mishap, I stumbled upon the creamiest, sweetest, moistest and unbelievably gluten free- and vegan– delight to date. While it tastes sinfully rich and creamy, each bite comes with a dose of vitamins A & E, magnesium, zinc, potassium and even fiber thanks to a secret (moistening) addition—pumpkin puree. So, if your sweet tooth craves chocolate and cake, you really can’t go wrong with this one. Forget an ingredient or send the cake flying in the air and you too might find a new spin on this classic cake.

The Original – Black & White Cake
from Clinton Street Baking Company

Ingredients

• 1½ sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, plus 1 yolk
• 1½ cups all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• ½ cup buttermilk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• ½ stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
• 4 cups confectioners’ sugar
• ½ cup whole milk
• ½ cup heavy cream
• 3 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• ½ cup semisweet chocolate chunks (52–62% cacao)

The Vegan Version – Black & White (or just Black) Cake
Generously serves 8

Ingredients

• 1½ sticks (12 tablespoons) vegan butter, softened (I used Earth Balance)
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• Egg substitute equivalent to 2 large eggs, plus 1 yolk (I mixed 3 tablespoons flaxseed meal with 7 tablespoons warm water)
• 1½ cups gluten free flour blend:
• (1/2 cup brown rice flour_
• (1/4 cup white rice flour)
• (1/4 cup sorghum flour)
• (1/4 cup potato starch flour)
• (1/4 cup minus 2 tablespoons tapioca flour)
• (2 tablespoons almond flour)
• (3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum)
• 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• ½ cup buttermilk (easily make your own by mixing ½ cup dairy free milk, like homemade cashew nut milk, with ½ tablespoon white distilled vinegar; let sit for 10 minutes)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Frosting
• 8 ounces vegan cream cheese, softened
• ½ stick (4 tablespoons) vegan butter, softened
• 4 cups confectioners sugar (sifted)
• ½ cup dairy free milk (Mine was thin enough that I omitted the milk all together)

Glaze
• ½ cup heavy cream (I used homemade cashew nut milk)
• 3 tablespoons light corn syrup (I used homemade cane juice by melting a few tablespoons of sugar in a pan on the stove top)
• 1 tablespoon vegan butter
• ½ cup semisweet, vegan chocolate chunks (52–62% cacao)

Directions

Make the Cake
1. Preheat the oven to 300°F. Lightly grease (with vegan butter) and flour two 8-inch round cake pans.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the vegan butter and sugars. Add the egg substitute mixture, and combine. Whisk the gluten free flour blend and remaining dry ingredients together, in a separate bowl.
3. Whisk the pumpkin puree together with the buttermilk and vanilla in another bowl. Alternate mixing dry ingredients with the pumpkin mixture into the egg mixture. Start with dry and end with wet.
4. Divide the batter between the prepared cake pans. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let the cakes cool and unmold.

Make the Frosting
In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the vegan cream cheese and butter together until soft. Add the sifted confectioners sugar, blending in 1 cup at a time. Add the dairy free milk slowly, as needed, and mix until the frosting is smooth and creamy.

Make the Glaze
Heat the “cream,” corn syrup (or cane juice), and vegan butter in a saucepan until boiling. Place the chocolate in a bowl. Pour the cream mixture over the chocolate until it is completely melted, mixing gently with a rubber spatula until the glaze is smooth.

Assemble the Cake
Place 1 of the 2 cakes on a cake plate. Ice the top with 3 to 4 tablespoons frosting, and place the other cake on top. Then use a cake spatula to mask the top and sides until the cake is evenly frosted. Set it in the fridge for 10 minutes. Then, remove the cake from the fridge and pour the chocolate glaze over the center of the cake until the top is covered and the glaze runs over the sides, still showing some frosting. Let the glaze set and serve.

Whatever happens, enjoy!

Images: Jennifer Barckley

The post Vegan This: Decadent Black & White Cake appeared first on EcoSalon.

No shame with this figure-friendly vegan cheese dip.

Dips and sauces are dangerous territory. Sure, they seem harmless in that they are technically only condiments, but they often contain too many fats and calories to warrant another tablespoon. One of the biggest party-time offenders is cheese dip. You know what I’m talking about. It’s the kind you squeeze, pump, or ladle onto popcorn, burgers and nachos. It has a tacky light orange color that you know can’t be natural, but despite it all, you’re addicted.

This recipe is a great way to enjoy a classic cheese dip without the hard-to-digest dairy and the overload of calories and fat concentrated in a small serving.  And with the simplicity and lightness of this recipe, you don’t have to feel guilty about being a cheese dip hog. Cauliflower is a great source of vitamin C and manganese, which help protect from free radical damage and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer. Cauliflower is also a rich source of the anti-inflammatory vitamin K as well as omega-3 fatty acids. It promotes brain and heart health, is packed with fiber, and is also a good source of thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, pyridoxine, folic acid, proteins, phosphorus and potassium.

Feel free to garnish the dip with chopped scallions, herbs, or spices. It’s a basic recipe that is open to experimentation. Have fun with it!

Vegan White Cheese Party Dip

Servings vary

Ingredients:

• 1 head of cauliflower
• 2 tablespoons vegan butter (Earth Balance)
• 2 teaspoons mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast

Directions:

Remove the florets and their stems from the cauliflower. Over medium heat, simmer them in water for about 15 minutes. Drain the cooked cauliflower and rinse under cold water. Combine it in a food processor with the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth.

Serve this dip aside tortilla chips or crudités or dollop a few tablespoons into a burrito or on top of nachos.

Bon Appetit!

Aylin Erman currently resides in Istanbul and is creator of plant-based recipe website GlowKitchen.

The post Recipe: Vegan White Cheese Party Dip appeared first on EcoSalon.