Valentine Peppermint Truffles

These are surprisingly similar to those famous "York Peppermint Patties", except they're entirely vegan. My kids and I love making them together because they're messy, sugar-y and covered with chocolate - what kid wouldn't like to make something like THAT!?

And if you're looking for a perfect use for last year's red, foil heart-shaped candy-box, try filling it with these babies.

Since it's close to Valentine's, I've been toying with making heart-shaped candy, but haven't actually done so. Yet. Stay tuned. These are SO easy, and really tend to impress the vegan-skeptics out there: another one of those "WHAT!?!?!? THIS is vegan?" type-recipes.

Peppermint Patties

• 1/2 medium baked potato or one small
  (out of the peel of course, mashed up, no butter or salt or pepper added, you need about 2.5 Tablespoons of mashed-up baked potato)
• 2 cups powdered sugar
  (more, if needed, and I usually do. You could use quite a bit depending on factors in your kitchen. Vegan powdered sugar is available at most Whole Foods, Trader Joe's and health food stores, though I admit I'm not one of those overly sugar-concerned vegans. I usually just try to avoid cane sugar which is more likely to be bone-char processed. Beet sugar is not bone-char-processed, and is what most store-brand sugar is actually derived from. Your call. )
• 1 1/2 tsps peppermint extract
  (make sure this is real PEPPERMINT extract, not the nasty-tasting "mint-flavoring" or mint extract that is usually part spearmint and a bit on the bitter side)
• 2 tbsp soymilk powder
  (if you can find it, it makes the finished product drier, smoother and easier to work with - but isn't absolutely essential)

Line a cookie sheet with foil.
Make sure your baked potato is mashed up very smooth, with no small lumps or anything.
Add all ingredients together and mix well until a stiff candy filling (fondant) forms. Add additional powdered sugar until it becomes mold-able like playdough. The sugar amount can vary a bit. When the fondant is holding shape, take about a tablespoon of the mixture at a time and form into balls. Place them on the cookie sheet and press them down into a patty shape. When all are formed, place in the freezer for a few minutes until firm.

Chocolate coating

2 cups chocolate chips, or finely chopped dark chocolate of your choice
2 tbsp. Earth Balance

Melt the chocolate with the margarine in a double boiler or a small pan balanced in a large pan of boiling water. Don't let ANY water get in the chocolate.

Remove patties from the freezer. Dip the patties in the chocolate and place back on the wax paper. (For the dipping, I take a wooden skewer, poke the candy onto the end of it and then dip and remove with a flick of the finger. You have to figure out what method works for you. It is the only difficult part and MUCH easier to actually DO than to explain).
When all are coated, place in the refridgerator until chocolate is set. Keep stored in the fridge.

Vegan Peppermint Patties for Valentine's

I ran into this recipe for Vegan Peppermint Patties over at Vegan-Licious' blog last month. It looked so interesting and since my middle Sprout is insanely addicted to the things, we decided to give them a try for a family Valentine's Day cooking adventure...

(Oh, and in case you're wondering, Peppermint Patties at the regular ol' grocery store usually have those wretched dairy products in them.)

So we got all the (very few, really) ingredients and my 13-year-old vegan-cooking-star-to-be whipped these things up ALL BY HERSELF! I was so impressed!

OH MY GOSH! {{faints}} They were amazing!

Now, by the time I got new batteries in my camera, the "good" looking ones had been EATEN; and they are sorta hard to photograph and not end up looking like little brown chocolate blobs...

But trust me ...wow....

They turned out so incredibly good. And they were so so so so EASY!

I have nothing more to say.

Except TRY THESE THINGS!