You don’t have to attend weekly yoga classes, hug trees and drive a Subaru in order to enjoy vegan food. Vegan chef Attila Hildmann, 33, transformed his eating habits when he learned about his high-cholesterol and when his father suffered a heart attack. As he made the transition to veganism, Hildmann found the vegan-cooking repertoire to be “lacking and unimaginative.” So Hildmann threw on his apron and got to work creating vegan desserts that are oh so good. Now a YouTube sensation and best-selling book author, his recipes are worthy of swooning.
Attila’s Cream Sandwich recipe
PREPARATION TIME: 15 minutes plus 8 minutes bake time and 15 minutes cooling time
Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Using an electric hand mixer, mix together all of the ingredients for the cookies into a smooth batter. Spread the batter with a spatula to a 1 8 inch (3 mm) thickness on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake in a hot oven approx. 8 minutes, and then let cool for about 15 minutes. For the cream filling, beat the soy whipping cream with cream stabilizer until stiff while slowly adding the sugar. Fold in the lemon juice. Cut the chocolate rectangle in half. Spread the cream filling evenly on one of the halves, place the other half on top, and then use a sharp knife to cut into about 10 rectangles that are about the same size.
Attila’s Crumble in the Jungle recipe
PREPARATION TIME: 15 minutes
Cut the vanilla bean pod open lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Beat the ice-cold soy whipping cream until stiff. Carefully fold in the soy yogurt, vanilla seeds, and 2 tablespoons agave syrup. Wash the berries and sort out any that are damaged. Remove the currants from the vines. Mix the berries with 6 tablespoons agave syrup and allow to marinate for 5 minutes. Put the vanilla sandwich cookies in a plastic bag, tie the bag off, and crumble the cookies using a rolling pin. In glasses, alternately layer the cookie crumbles, berries, and cream yogurt, ending with a layer of fruit. Garnish with mint leaves.
Attila’s Yogurt Mandarin Cake with Amaranth Crust
PREPARATION TIME: Approx. 30 minutes plus approx. 60 minutes cooling time
Finely grind the roasted almonds in a kitchen blender. Mix all of the ingredients for the crust with a fork. Line the bottom of a springform pan (Diameter 9 inches (23 cm)) with parchment paper, place the dough into the pan, and press out evenly.
For the filling, squeeze just over 3⁄4 cup (approx. 200 mL juice) of juice from the mandarins. Stir the mandarin juice, agar agar, and agave syrup quickly to avoid lumps from forming. Bring to a boil in a small saucepan, remove from the heat, and then quickly fold in the yogurt with a whisk. Spread the yogurt mixture on the crust and set in the freezer for approx. 30 minutes.
For the glaze, drain the canned mandarins and then arrange them in a circular pattern on top of the cake. Squeeze the juice from the fresh mandarins (makes about 2 3 cup or 150 mL), and mix with the agar agar in a small saucepan. Cook approx. 30 seconds while stirring with a whisk. Pour the juice on top of the cake that is still in the springform pan and then put it back in the freezer for 30 minutes or in the refrigerator for 40 minutes.
