Veganized Tastespotting

So I am kind of obsessed with Tastespotting and today I went on a Tastespotting spree, trying out some recipes I found on there, veganized of course.

First I tried these Scallops with Garlic Chips and Arugula-Mint Cream. I used Worthington's Skallops and vegan soy parmesan and Alpro Soya Heavy Cream Substitute. Matt declared this recipe to be just ok. Keep in mind that Matt is a critic and pretty spoiled because more often than not the things we cook around here are "That was almost better than sex, amazing!" The recipe isn't going to disappoint if you give it a shot, but yes, we've had other things we've liked more. (Non-vegan readers may assume we ruined the recipe by making it vegan and while I suppose it's a possibility, I think Matt's grievance was that the pesto was slightly bland and adding cream or parmesan probably wouldn't have changed that. Maybe I should have added more pepper...)

We paired the Skallops with Shaved Asparagus Salad. The only substitution here was soy parmesan in place of the romano cheese. The salad had a light mild taste and it certainly looked pretty on our plates. Matt gave the salad higher marks than the Skallops. The hazelnuts were a really nice touch.

Lastly, I baked snickerdoodle muffins. These muffins were even more amazing than they sound -- light as air and fluffy and moist and sweet, like sweet cinnamon infused little clouds. I really wanted to eat every last one of them in one sitting. Just delicious! I replaced the 2 eggs with 1/4 cup of cornstarch and used Tofutti Sour Supreme in place of the sour cream. You should make these muffins immediately. Seriously, stop reading this blog now and get in the kitchen and make these, you will thank me later.