Rawr Vegan White Chocolate

The idea for this chocolate came as I was buying ingredients to make the superfood nut butter cups for a friend. Since I was buying cocoa butter, I figured it was only logical to make white chocolate with it.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that I can MAKE raw chocolate with a few simple ingredients. The ingredients were a little (ok a lot) pricey, but it is worth it since they are processed as minimally as possible. In other words, this is real white chocolate.
This recipe was followed almost exactly from Bittersweet Blog.

1/4 cup organic cocoa butter (make sure it is food grade!)
1 teaspoon vanilla paste or 1 vanilla bean, scraped
1/3 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 teaspoon maca powder (the author originally used powdered soy milk)
pinch salt

Melt the cocoa butter in a glass bowl over simmering water on low heat. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Pour into silicone molds and place into freezer to set. This made 4 heart shaped white chocolates!

Homemade Twix Bars

These are sneakily healthy snack bars. Brittany taste tested them and she expressed a wish that they were healthy. I surprised her when I said that they were vegan, gluten-free, and processed sugar free (well almost)! We then went on to eat the entire tray by ourselves. So healthy is a relative term. The recipe is from Oh She Glows, a great vegan food blog. The dates are an amazing substitute for caramel. No one that ate these could tell and they had such a great flavor.

Crust

• 2 cups crispy rice cereal
• 1/4 cup honey*
• 2 heaping tbsps peanut butter
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• pinch of fine grain sea salt

Date Caramel

• 1 1/4 cups pitted and halved soft Medjool dates
• 1 tbsp peanut butter
• 1 tbsp sunflower seed milk+ additional if needed
• 1 tbsp raw cane sugar
• pinch of fine grain sea salt

Chocolate Layer

• 1 cup dark chocolate chips
• 1 tsp coconut oil  

1. Grease an 8 by 8 inch pan and set aside. Mix together the honey, peanut butter, and vanilla. Add pinch of salt. Pour into a large bowl with rice crisp and stir well.

2. Scoop the rice crisp mixture into pan. Wet hands slightly and then spread the mixture evenly and press down firmly until smooth. I put this in the refrigerator while I went to yoga for about 1 hour.

3. Soak dates in water for 1 hour until soft (only if necessary) and drain. Place dates, peanut butter, milk, and salt in the food processor and process until almost smooth.

4. Spread caramel layer over top of the crust until it is smooth and even.

5. Melt the chocolate and coconut oil in a small pot over low heat or in the microwave. Spread chocolate on top of the caramel and place in the refrigerator.

6. If you want these to look like traditional Twix bars, slice while the chocolate is almost set. Brittany and I just left it in the pan and broke it into pieces when we wanted to eat some. Store in fridge.

*The author uses brown rice syrup instead of honey. Since I used honey, the rice cereal layer ended up being more chewy than crunchy but I didn't mind!

Oatmeal Bars

My friend, Lacey, introduced me to these delicious breakfast bars a couple years ago. I've been making them ever since. They are a winter breakfast favorite in our apartment, and it's simple to incorporate various toppings and fillings (nuts, fruit, chocolate, etc)!

2 cups rolled oats
1 heaping cup steel cut oats
1/4 cup flax seeds
2/3 cup dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil (I've seen some recipes online using bananas or applesauce instead)
1 cups vanilla almond milk

Mix the dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Then add the wet ingredients. Pour into greased baking dish (I use a ceramic one a little smaller than a 9x13 inch baking pan). Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes until golden brown on top and set.

I like to eat the bars heated up a bowl with some milk, so really it's like a quick way to make a bowl of oatmeal. These are great on the go too.

Beer Bread

This was inspired by Laura's soda bread. Her post actually reminded me that it was St. Patrick's day a couple weeks ago. The recipe is actually from Alton Brown who is one of my favorites from the Food Network. I used to watch that channel all the time back when I was in high school. I substituted some of the flour with some spelt flour which added some great texture. I served this bread with the simple tomato soup from 101 cookbooks. Perfect for a cold spring day!

2 cups white whole wheat flour

1 cup spelt flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons dried dill

1/2 cup Daiya shredded vegan pepperjack cheese 

12 ounces cold beer, ale or stout (I used Yuengling- yay local beers)

2 tablespoons sunflower seeds

Heat the oven to 375 degrees F. Coat the inside of a loaf pan with the nonstick spray and set aside.

Whisk together the all-purpose flour, wheat flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and dill in a large mixing bowl. Add in the cheese and stir in the beer just to combine. The mixture will be bubbly. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan. Sprinkle with the sunflower seeds, if using.

Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 45 to 55 minutes until the top is golden brown and the bread is set.

Remove from the oven and cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Let cool a little longer before serving.

Banana Upside Down Cake

Such a fun cake!!! I will definitely be making this again and again. I want to perfect my banana placing technique. Today's cake is for my grandma's birthday dinner. She'll be 88 years old!

We also had a salad with warm bacon-y mustard dressing, VERY GOOD maple mustard chicken, mashed potatoes and roasted asparagus.

BANANA UPSIDE DOWN CAKE

Slightly adapted from A Cozy Kitchen

2 cups all purpose flour (I did 1.5 all purpose, .5 whole wheat)

1 3/4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

4 oz (1 stick) butter, room temp

1/2 cup white sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

3/4 cup whole milk (I used 2%)

Banana Topping:

4 tbsp butter

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/4 tsp salt

3 tbsp bourbon, rum or whisky

2-3 medium bananas, sliced lengthwise

Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

This recipe is from Betty Rawker (hehe). Coconut milk ice cream is the best and you can't even tell there isn't any dairy in the mint chocolate chip ice cream. You also can't even taste the spinach but it creates a lovely green color.

2 cans full fat coconut milk
2 large handfuls fresh baby spinach

1 tablespoon peppermint extract (start with a little and then add more as needed)

1/3 cup maple syrup

1/3 cup raw cane sugar
1/2 to 1 cup chocolate chips (add at the very end)

Blend the coconut milk with the spinach until the spinach is very fine.

This took me about 2 minutes. Then add the rest of the ingredients minus the chocolate chips and blend again. Let the mixture chill for about 1-2 hours in the refrigerator, then place in an ice cream maker for 20 minutes. Add the chocolate chips into the ice cream maker right before turning it off. Then transfer the ice cream into an airtight container and freeze until you're ready to eat it.

Vegan Macncheese!

The idea for this particular macncheese came from a couple different sites, mainly Fat Free Vegan and Detoxinista. Since it is still freezing here, I've been focusing my energy towards the best macncheese ever. Well the recipe from Smitten Kitchen is still my favorite (with the ricotta cheese!), but this is my second favorite. The sauce is creamy and surprisingly cheesy from the tahini and nutritional yeast. Top it off with some hot sauce and it is perfection.

For the cheese sauce:
1 1/2 cups raw cashews
2 tbsp tahini
3 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
1 cup water
1 1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 head garlic (I love garlic)
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp. dried mustard
dash of cayenne pepper
plenty of black pepper

For the pasta
1 pound bag brown rice pasta
vegetables of choice (broccoli, radishes, squash)

Soak the cashews overnight. Then rinse them well and place into a blender with 1 cup of water. Blend until smooth. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend well. Cook the pasta until it is almost done but still a little crunchy. For the brown rice pasta, I boiled it for 1 minute, and then covered the pot and let it sit for 12 minutes. Pour the pasta into a 9x13 inch baking dish with the vegetables (I used radishes). Pour the cheese sauce over the pasta and mix to incorporate. I sprinkled the macncheese with dulse flakes and black pepper. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes until the top looks crispy.

Vegan Meyer Lemon Cheesecake

I came across this recipe while looking for ways to use the meyer lemons I had bought. It is a pretty simple and delicious cheesecake.

Ingredients

• 6 medjool dates, pitted and halved 
• 1/2 cup pecans
• 1/8 t salt
• 1 1/2 cups raw cashews, soaked overnight
• juice of 2 meyer lemons
• zest of 2 meyer lemons
• 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
• 1/3 cup liquid coconut oil
• 1/3 cup honey

Cooking Directions

1. In a food processor combine the dates, pecans, and salt. Blend until uniform and the pecans look like a very coarse meal.

2. Press the pecan/date mixture into a pie pan using your fingers. Set aside.
3. Strain the cashews of their soaking liquid and rinse them well. Place them in a blender with the remaining ingredients.
4. Blend on high until the mixture is very smooth. This took me a while to accomplish. I actually put in the entire vanilla bean since I had one that has been soaking in vodka to make vanilla extract. The blender blended most of the vanilla bean. Just keep scraping the sides and blending.
5. Pour the filling mixture onto the crust and smooth the surface. Cover with foil and place in the freezer until solid.
6. When ready to serve remove from the freezer 30 minutes prior to serving.

Seed and Nut Bread

Oh Pittsburgh, you have the worst winter weather. We're all waiting for the Spring to come, but all we're getting is more Winter! To make the best of the situation, I've been making a collection of winter foods. Think homemade hot chocolate, baked macaroni and cheese, and hearty soups. I think these foods will keep me going until the sunshine comes back.
The author of the blog, My New Roots, calls this life-changing bread. It basically is. It's pretty simple to make and delicous. Not to mention packed full of fiber and protein. A farmer friend recommended this blog to me, and I found that I love the nutritional facts and the delicious, healthful recipes.
The only note to add is that the author used a silicone pan, which meant that the bread was more easily removed. I used a ceramic one, which meant that the bread got kind of stuck. I just ate the pieces that were stuck to the pan and served kind of banged up looking bread. Still tasted good though! I got the psyllium seed husks from the East End Coop and it is used to bind the bread.

The Life-Changing Loaf of Bread

Ingredients:
1 cup sunflower seeds
½ cup flax seeds
½ cup whole almonds
1 ½ cups rolled oats
2 Tbsp. chia seeds
4 Tbsp. psyllium seed husks (3 Tbsp. if using psyllium husk powder)
1 tsp. fine grain sea salt
1 Tbsp. maple syrup
3 Tbsp. melted coconut oil
1 ½ cups water

Directions:
1. In a loaf pan combine all dry ingredients, stirring well.

2. Whisk maple syrup, oil and water together in a measuring cup. Add this to the dry ingredients and mix very well until everything is completely soaked and dough becomes very thick . Smooth out the top with wet fingers. Cover and let the bread sit out on the counter overnight to soak up the water.

3. Preheat oven to 350°F .

4. Place loaf pan in the oven on the middle rack, and bake for 20 minutes. Remove bread from loaf pan, place it upside down directly on the rack and bake for another 30-40 minutes. Bread is done when it sounds hollow when tapped. Let cool completely before slicing.

5. Store bread in a tightly sealed container for up to five days. Freezes well too – slice before freezing for quick and easy toast!

I ate some toast with some vegan cream cheese spread. Yum! I'm also planning on making some vegan and gluten free reubens (with vegan mayonaise, vegan pepperjack, and sauerkraut) with this bread. I'll post some pictures later.

Vegan Orange Cake

This was my contribution to the bridal shower. I made it with a coconut frosting because my sister, Tiffany, said that the cake was ugly just with the glaze. This recipe was found on The Kitchn while I was looking up recipes to use the blood orange jam I was about to give out as favors. The cake got rave reviews and it was gone before everyone got to even try it! It was really moist and sweet with just a hint of bitterness from the blood oranges. Also, it's vegan!!!

Sticky Layered Blood Orange Cake
makes two 9-inch round layers
Cake
3 cups white whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups raw cane sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3 oranges, zested (I used 1 blood orange and 2 oranges)
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/2 cup water or orange flavored tea
1/2 cup blood orange jam or marmalade
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Coconut Frosting (same one I used on the coconut cupcakes)
3 tablespoons coconut oil
2 cups powdered sugar
2-3 tablespoons coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup orange marmalade

Soda Bread with Raisins

I have a new St. Patrick's Day tradition, now in it's second year: I watch the "Irish" movies on TCM (mostly American movies with American-Irish stories) and make soda bread. 

This year we're stepping it up because my mom's making corned beef brisket with cabbage and carrots. After all, we must honor Twilly's Irish heritage.

one of his favorite napping spots

---

SODA BREAD WITH RAISINS
From AllRecipes.com

1/2 cup sugar

4 cups flour (I used 3 all-purpose, 1 wheat)

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp salt

2-3 cup raisins

1 tbsp caraway seeds (I used anise seeds)

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 1/4 cup buttermilk

1 cup sour cream

milk for "glazing"

Vegan Hash Brown Casserole

This recipe from Fat Free Vegan's blog got mixed reviews. I personally loved it and so did Nick (which was evident because we ate about half the dish by ourselves after eating an entire dinner). It definitely does not taste like hash brown casserole though it is similar in texture. Instead it has a lot more flavor from delicous spices like turmuric and mustard powder to make up for the lack of dairy.

Sauce

• 1 1/4 cups water
• 1 cup plain soy yogurt
• 3/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 2 tablespoons tahini
• 3 tablespoons potato flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 heaping teaspoon dry mustard
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• lots of black pepper to taste

Casserole

• 1 large purple onion, chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 3-4 pounds potatoes, diced with skins on
• 1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Oil a 9x13-inch baking dish.
2. Place sauce ingredients in blender and blend at high speed until smooth. The potato flour will thicken the sauce to a nice consistency.

3. Heat a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened, abiyt 7 minutes.
4. Mix the potatoes, garlic, and onions in the baking dish. Pour sauce evenly over the potato mixture into prepared baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Uncover and bake until casserole is set (no longer liquid in the middle), 25 minutes. Serve hot.

I served this with bread crumbs on top and some daiya cheese on top. My friend makes her hash brown casserole with cornflakes baked into a crispy crust on top. Sadly I didn't have any cereal, but next time for sure. Also, the chef from Fat Free Vegan uses this cheese mixture for Macaroni and cheese which would also be delicious.

Vegan Chocolate Ice Cream

I have an ice cream maker!!! (Well technically it is also Nick's) It was a gift from my cousin Theresa for my bridal shower. Of course, I screamed when I saw the package, but then I recovered and put it in the freezer so I could make the ice cream as soon as possible. Since the canister has to freeze for at least 24 hours, I had to wait a whole day! Tragedy. My blue ice cream maker:

As a note, I've been dreaming of ice cream sandwiches. There's a place called Cream in Berkeley, California that is just magical. You design your own ice cream sandwiches complete with warm cookies that come right out of the oven to create the ultimate ice cream sandwich. I didn't even get to the best part yet. They are only 2 dollas!!! My choice was a snickerdoodle and chocolate chip sandwich with salted caramel ice cream. Ahhh.

I used a basic recipe that I've seen on several vegan websites. Coconut milk ice cream is so wonderful and creamy.

1-14 ounce can full fat coconut milk
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla
1 pinch sea salt

Mix the ingredients together with a wire whisk. Then cover the bowl and let cool in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours. I have skipped this step before with good results. Then pour the mixture into the ice cream maker and let it mix for about 20 minutes until it gets to the texture you like.

I like a firmer ice cream. Then transfer the ice cream into a container and freeze until ready to eat. Before eating, you have to defrost it for about 15 minutes otherwise you will break your spoon.

On another note, Nick and I went to Fukuda in Bloomfield yesterday to get sushi and ramen (which was incredible). I actually wanted to start crying as I ate my pork ramen since it was so perfect. Anyways, we had their chocolate shiitake mushroom ice cream with a lavender powder. This is my new favorite ice cream, and it is now my life goal to veganize and recreate it.

Lavender Meyer Lemon Bars

I had a couple of Meyer lemons (sweeter than normal lemons) lying around from making jam, so I decided to make lemon bars. Laura actually texted me that she wanted to make lavender lemon bars recently, so this baked good is inspired by her! This healthy recipe comes from Tastebook, and I liked it since it calls for less sugar than the standard recipe. I made a good amount of adjustments, but I am certain that the original recipe is also delicous. The original recipe is gluten free. You can find the nutritional facts on the website too.

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup ground almond flour

2 tbsp whole wheat flour

4 tbsp coconut oil, solid (the original recipe calls for butter)

6 tbsp organic cane sugar, divided

4 small Meyer lemons, zested and juiced (about 2 tsp zest and 1/2 cup juice)

2 large eggs

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp lavender flowers

Pinch sea salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease an 8 inch square baking dish. 

In a food processor add the flour, almond flour, lavender, and 4 tbsp sugar to mix. Then add the cold coconut oil and pulse until the mixture looks like crumbly.

Press with fingers into the bottom of the baking pan. Bake for about 10 minutes until the edges start to brown. You can see the lavender flowers speckled in the crust! So pretty.

Zest the lemons and juice them. Add the eggs to the mixture along with the 2 tablespoons flour, 2 tablespoons sugar, baking powder, and salt. Whisk until the lemon mix is a pale yellow color and very thoroughly combined. Pour over the hot crust.

Then put back into the oven for an additional 10 minutes until the bars are set.

Make sure to let the bars cool completely before cutting into them. Since I used coconut oil, I actually had to let the pan sit in the refrigerator a bit for the crust to become, well, crusty.

Cast Iron Skillet BBQ 'Za

This is the way I will be making pizzas from now on! Probably for breakfast, lunch and dinner, everyday.

There are so many great things about this pizza: I can still use my normal pizza dough but it's a billion times better than the normal baking way, it's so light and fluffy but a little charred for good crusty flavor. It's FAST - about 3 minutes once it goes in the skillet. It'll be easy to make several personal pizzas in just a few minutes. I took the method from How Sweet It Is, where she did a brussel sprouts and bacon pizza that sounds really good!

---

CAST IRON SKILLET BBQ PIZZA

Makes 1 big pizza or 2 med, 4 small... 

1 pizza dough 

1/3 cup ricotta

2 tbsp ranch dressing

1 cup cooked shredded chicken

1/3 cup BBQ sauce

1/4 cup onion, diced

1/2 cup shredded cheese, like fontina or provolone

dried basil & oregano

Vegan Pumpkin Peanut Soup

The first time I made this soup, I was living on a reservation in Warm Springs, Oregon. I was living with my friend, Chris, who is a wonderful vegan cook. He taught me so much about vegan cooking and definitely inspired me to try to live more compassionately through the vegan lifestyle. This recipe is from his cookbook, Color Me Vegan by Colleen Patrick Goudreau, which is a gorgeous recipe source. The unique flavor combination is what really stood out to me about this soup.

3 stalks celery, chopped

3 carrots, chopped

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

3 yellow potatoes, diced (keep the skin on)

1 large can garbanzo beans

2 bay leaves

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried ground sage

1 tbsp curry powder (my personal touch)
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

1 3/4 heaping cups pumpkin puree

3/4 cup peanut butter

1 cup boiling water

fresh parsley and peanuts for garnish

Saute the celery, carrots, and onion until fragrant and translucent for about 10 minutes. Combine the boiling water with the peanut butter, whisk until smooth, and add to the vegetables. Add the potatoes, pumpkin, beans, and spices. Add about 3 cups of water depending on how thick you want the soup to be. Simmer for about 30 minutes until the potatoes are tender. Serve hot with the parsley and peanuts sprinkled on top.

Lavender Lemon Grilled Chicken

Following Michelle's lead (or joining her cult?), I bought some food-grade lavender at Roxanne's at the Strip, the dried flowers place. I will definitely be baking with it, but I was also looking at savory recipes and wasn't finding anything that I felt like cooking. So instead I went with the marinade from one of my favorite chicken recipes, Rosemary-Lemon Oven Fried Chicken, and subbed the lavender for the rosemary. And I grilled it instead of "frying" it in the oven - but that would also be good!

It's kind of spring-ish! At least until about an hour ago... So I'm calling this a spring recipe since it's grilled and you don't need any of the more summery veggies or herbs. Unless you want to use fresh lavender, which would be awesome.

This was on Sunday - the puppy and the plants enjoying the sun.

David's Pancakes

My family has made this for ages pretty much every time we've wanted a fast special breakfast. It comes from the huge The New York Times Heritage Cookbook (1972), which is split into regional recipes. 

The book says David's Pancakes are from Hawaii. Since we are so familiar with David's Pancakes, we call them Dave's Pancakes. We always have them with maple syrup and lemon juice and usually some fruit.

Linda gave him a spring haircut!

---

DAVID'S PANCAKES

From The New York Times Heritage Cookbook (1972) by Jean Hewitt

½ cup flour

½ cup milk

2 eggs, lightly beaten

pinch of nutmeg

4 Tablespoons butter

2 Tablespoons or more confectioner’s sugar

juice of half a lemon or orange

maple syrup, jelly, jam or marmalade

Some cookie (y)inspiration

Sister Rose Marie Tumicki, picture by Bob Batz Jr., Pgh Post-Gazette

This post is a little different. I actually didn't make anything... yet.

But just thought everyone should see this recipe list of cookies and sweets that some Sisters make at a Pittsburgh school. Can't get any more Pittsburgh than that. Recipe list here! The list includes ginger cookies, apricot empanadas and coconut macaroons. Yum!

And here's an article the Post-Gazette did about these ladies and their awesome cookies, here!

Oh yeah, one more rule. If anyone makes cookies on this list, you have to save some for me to try. :)

Nutella Swirled Banana Bread

This banana bread is special. It's really more like a cake. Actually, I might throw some cream cheese frosting on this and call it a birthday cake next month.

---

NUTELLA SWIRLED BANANA BREAD

From Sugar Plum Blog 

2 1/3 cups all purpose flour  
1 teaspoon baking powder 
1 teaspoon baking soda 
1/2 teaspoon salt 
1 1/4 cups mashed ripe banana 
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened 
1/2 cup granulated sugar 
1/2 cup packed brown sugar 
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
2 large eggs 
1/2 cup Nutella 

Tortellini Soup

This is one of my mom's go-to soups as it's really easy to make and delicious.  It's one of my fiance's favorites.  I'll definitely be adding some fresh vegetables to this in the summer.

What a photogenic soup! 

What you'll need:

• Mild Italian sausage (or spicy if you're into that kind of thing)
• 1 can beef broth
• 1 can water
• 2 cans Italian diced tomatoes 
• 1 can green beans (french or regular)
• Cheese tortellini 
• Oregano and basil 

Pudding Batter Cookies

These cookies ROCKED.  They are very simple, nothing fancy about them, but this is what I thought made them so great.  They are the perfect base cookie and I definitely plan on trying to do more with them soon.  They are soft and fluffy and buttery, which means I ate 20 of them in one sitting. Mmmmmm

What you'll need: 

• 1-1/2 sticks butter 
• 3/4 cups brown sugar
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 package instant vanilla pudding mix (3.4 oz)
• 3/4 dry yellow cake mix
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2-1/4 cups flour 
• 1/2 tsp salt 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Stir together flour, salt, and baking soda.  Separately cream butter and sugar.  Add the pudding/cake mix, eggs, and vanilla to the butter mixture. Slowly add the flour mixture.  Roll into 1" balls and place on a greased baking sheet.  Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.  

Adapted from Chef in Training