Weekly Guest: Jesse Nattamai from Happy Go Lucky Vegan

Happy Guest Post Friday!

Each Friday I feature I different guest blogger. It's a fun way to get connected to other bloggers and gives me an opportunity to share even more veggie goodness with all of you! For a full list of past guests go here. And if you're interested in sharing a guest post of your own, feel free to email me at VegWhoHatesTofu (at) gmail (dot) com for more details!

This week I am featuring Jesse Nattamai from Happy Go Lucky Vegan.

Jesse lives, writes, gardens and feeds her ravenous appetite in Tucson, Arizona with her spicy-food loving husband and adorable dog. She taught middle school history for five years, and currently runs her own food blog at Happy Go Lucky Vegan while freelancing for other related websites. On the side, Jesse enjoys leading tours and workshops at Tucson Botanical Gardens, and writing short stories.

Happy Go Lucky Vegan has lots of amazing vegan recipes, plus a really cool feature called Style Sunday where Jesse posts about her super cute cruelty-free fashion finds (I'm seriously jealous of her wardrobe!).

Now I'll turn the floor over to Jesse:

Hi, I’m Jesse from Happy Go Lucky Vegan! I’ve been a vegan for almost 2 years now, and started my blog to document the journey. In the beginning, I knew my bucket of chicken and cheeseburger-loving lifestyle was going to be tough to transform. Therefore, I transitioned slowly from reducing meat and eventually adopted a vegetarian diet. When I was ready, I eliminated dairy and eggs, and started incorporating cruelty-free clothing and toiletry choices soon after. On this journey, there have been many ups and downs, hundreds of recipe experiments, and plenty of label-reading at the grocery and clothing stores . Yet the days seem a little brighter and kinder when I know I’m doing good things for my body, as well as mama Earth!

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner – I knew I wanted to make my favorite Orange-Scented Short Bread Cookies. I used brown rice syrup instead of sugar –because who wants a sugar crash after a romantic dinner with your valentine? So not sexy! Brown rice syrup is my favorite sugar alternative, as it has a lower glycemic index and is less processed than agave nectar and granulated sugar. These shortbread cookies are a real treat; with a slightly sweet, citrus flavor and a little crunch. I also have to ask, how cute are these mini-heart shapes?

Orange-Scented Short Bread Cookies

Makes 12-15 cookies

½ cup whole wheat flour

½ cup semolina flour

¼ teaspoon salt

2 ½ tablespoons arrowroot powder

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

large pinch cinnamon

1/3 cup olive oil

1/3 cup brown rice syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

grated zest of 1 orange

Orange Glaze

¼ cup powdered sugar

3 tablespoons orange juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, salt, arrowroot, nutmeg and cinnamon. In a medium-sized bowl, stir together the oil, brown rice syrup, vanilla extract and lemon zest. Pour the liquid into the flour mixture, and stir gently with a wooden spoon until a moist ball forms. Place the dough ball on parchment paper, and place another sheet of parchment paper on top. With a rolling pin, gently roll the dough until it’s about ¼ inch think. Remove the top sheet, and using a cookie cutter, cut-out shapes and place them on a slightly greased cookie sheet. (If you do not have a cookie cutter, slice the dough into 2 inch squares). Bake for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees F.

Meanwhile, make the orange glaze by creaming the powdered sugar and orange juice. When cookies are a golden color, remove them from the oven. Using a rubber spatula, spread the glaze on each cookie, and allow them to dry. Serve with a warm cup of coffee or tea.