Vegan bake sale

It's not often you walk into an art gallery to buy cookies and cupcakes, but lots of folks did just that today as the Mordam Art Gallery in Livingston hosted the Worldwide Vegan Bake Sale.

Gallery owner Bonnie Goodman (right) with friend Ellie Howell made many of the vegan goodies. They also do a swell job putting together the area's monthly vegan potluck. These lovely ladies are never without a smile.

Bonnie said the first bake sale was four years ago during "Earth Day, Every Day" at the Emerson Cultural Center in Bozeman. Actually, they gave away goodies that day. They started selling the following year at Mordam Art. Bonnie said she had won a TV and decided to give it away as a raffle item. Before they opened the doors, eager people were lined up.

Each year friends and family make piles of delicious and fanciful goodies, but Bonnie admits she does a lot of the baking for the event.

"It's fun to share vegan cream cheese frosting with people who've never tried it before," Bonnie said. "People just can't believe it's vegan!"

Bonnie takes the opportunity to educate people about vegan eating, by displaying cookbooks and sharing recipes. She said, "We can't all afford a Prius, but all of us can eat more plants."

This year's sale raised $935. That money goes toward putting on the monthly potluck.

If you weren't sure how vegan baked goods taste, Bonnie offered samples of her locally famous -- and craved -- gluten-free red velvet mini cupcakes. With vegan cream cheese frosting, naturally.

Or you could try a bit of the homemade popcorn topper.

Bonnie set up a display to show the simple ingredients that go into vegan baking. See? It's not so strange after all.

And if you avoid wheat flour, there were some gluten-free options, which also turn up regularly at the potlucks.

I arrived just before lunchtime and was happy to see warm and savory mini-macs, which are an excellent alternative to mac'n'cheese. Thanks to MiChelle Franzen for contributing these!

And of course there were cupcakes galore.

Funny ones . . .

Pretty ones . . .

Ones that came from outer space . . .

But the best were the ones that were eaten. I hope you found your favorite.

I didn't get a pic, but I was told the gingersnaps I made (from Isa's Vegan with a Vengeance) were quite popular. Glad I could help!

Watch for more vegan baking adventures in Livingston.

For information, check out the Vegans Rock Montana website at veganmontana.com and join the Live and Let Livingston group on Facebook.

Or come see Bonnie's imaginative and fun art -- and pick up a vegan recipe or two -- at the gallery.

Mordam Art Gallery

109 S. Main Street

Livingston, Montana 59047

tel. 406-222-0321

Good-bye to winter

What do brownies, garlic, and heart-shaped dog biscuits have in common?

They were all found at the last-of-the-season Bozeman Winter Farmers Market today.

Wrapped in the invigorating aroma of fresh-roasted coffee from Little Red Wagon and surrounded by live music from a solo guitarist, about 20 vendors displayed wares that included bright spring greens, goat cheese, jams and jellies, hand-knit socks, soap, and, well, a whole lot more.

I didn't go as an investigative reporter, I just wanted to meet everyone and see what the last market of winter looked like.

As usual, I found people excited about their products and already planning for summer markets.

Many of the vendors will be at the Gallatin Valley Farmers Market and/or the Bogert market. Others are going to Big Sky, Belgrade, Livingston, or Manhattan.

I was excited to learn about a new market open for the first time last year in Three Forks. Watch for a report this summer!

I am also making plans to improve this blog and my website at yummymontana.com. I will be introducing you to vendors and showing you around some of the farms and ranches. Every one of the vendors I meet has an amazing story to tell. Any of them who want to share that story will be heard here.

Check the list of Montana farmers markets as I update it and make plans to shop local this summer, or at least look for made-in-Montana products -- there are a lot of them!

Pancakes: two ingredients

This recipe has been making the rounds of the Internet, enjoyed by those who are gluten-free, paleo, and/or interested in trying unusual things.

It's one of the easiest things you'll ever make from scratch. All you need are 2 bananas and 4 eggs. If you feel you want to add a little poof to the final product, throw in 1/4 teaspoon baking powder.

I could stop right there, but I'll add a few tips to save you having to figure it out yourself.

First, it's best to have very ripe bananas, the brown ones that you might use for banana bread. I've used kinda green ones, but the riper they are the less lumps you'll have. Not that the lumps cause any problem at all -- indeed, they disappear during cooking -- but they can turn brown while waiting to be cooked.

Speaking of lumps, a hand-held mixer or even a blender is the best tool for these. The bananas are slimy, the eggs are slimy, and believe me, an electric appliance will easily blend these to perfection.

The batter will be thin, but don't worry. Magic happens in the pan.

I used a 1/4-cup scoop to measure each pancake, placing the batter in a nonstick skillet. I also used a bit of oil to crisp up the edges. I like crisp edges to my pancakes.

Don't wait for bubbles to appear as you do with regular pancakes. These will simply sit there looking frothy. I learned to wait for the edges to get not only crispy but dark brown before turning. The pancake in the photo is ready to turn.

These are very delicate pancakes, which is why I recommend a nonstick surface. Before turning, I carefully scoot the spatula around the edges to make sure the pancake is sliding on the surface and not sticking. Then I scoop it up and turn. This might take practise, but even the wrecks are tasty.

Now the difference between using baking powder and leaving it out is somewhat significant. Either way you'll get a very delicious treat.

Without baking powder, the pancakes are dense. If you've made Polish pancakes -- these go by several names, but are basically 1 cup flour, 1 cup milk, and 1 egg -- you'll have a good idea of the texture. I'd call it eggy. In this case, the banana flavor comes through strongly, and they'll be quite sweet. No syrup needed.

With baking powder, the pancakes rise up (see top photo). They have the texture of regular pancakes and even taste like them. You can kind of distinguish the banana if you concentrate, but the chemical transformation is truly amazing. I call these fluffy.

One warning: since bananas do turn brown, after about 15 minutes the banana bits in the batter will start darkening. Of course this only looks bad before you cook the batter since the pancakes will be an appetizing color when they leave the pan.

This is truly a remarkable recipe, one that is good to know when it is -20 (as it was here in south-central Montana for a week recently) and you just don't want to go to the store for flour.

To sum up:

Two-ingredient Pancakes

2 ripe bananas

4 eggs

1/4 teaspoon baking powder (optional)

Mix all ingredients together until well blended. Pour into nonstick skillet (1/4-cup scoop recommended). Cook till brown on both sides.

Top with butter, honey, or syrup, or eat as is.

Makes about 10 4-inch pancakes.