For a good while I had been wanting cinnamon rolls but not just any regular cinnamon rolls, I wanted the particular cinnamon rolls from one of my favorite vegan restaurants, Dulce Vegan Bakery and Cafe. Unfortunately, I was not able to make the trip so instead I picked up a box of Chebe's cinnamon roll dough as I was walking though a natural foods store.

The mix contains a tapioca flour and cinnamon mixture for the dough. After that, the filling and icing is up you. I used bananas (to replace egg), brown sugar, and cinnamon in accordance with instructions, baked in muffin pan for a few minutes, added my own icing and the result wasn't bad. The cinnamon rolls tasted great but they are not going to have the gooey, doughy texture of a bakery cinnamon roll. They were more firm, but still moist, sweet, and sugary.


For my icing I melted together:

• Raw turbinado sugar
• Sometimes brown sugar
• Almond/coconut milk
• [Small amount] Corn starch (for caramel result) or flour (for icing consistency)*

It's best to mix flour with water before adding it into the pan with the sugar to prevent clumps of flour in the icing. Powered sugar would be much easier and faster to melt/break down than raw sugar, which is why it is most commonly used for a light glaze or icing.


Considering the fact that the list of ingredients in the product are only tapioca, cinnamon, and salt, this product is definitely not worth the price when one could probably easily make the whole rolls from scratch much cheaper.

Vegan crumb cake. Blueberry muffin crumb cake.




INGREDIENTS

Muffin:

• 11/2 cups - flour
• 1/2 cup - raw turbinado/organic sugar 
• 1/2 - 1 teas - baking powder (sodium-free)*
• 1/8 teas. - a pinch pink sea salt 
• 1 cup - nondairy milk (I like coconut-almond milk)
• 1/4 cup - banana or coconut oil* 
• 1 cup - blueberries

* I use the full 1 cup of nondairy milk since bananas are used in place of oil
If you want to use oil, instead of banana you can do that-- the banana helps to keep the recipe lower in fat
**IF you are watching your sodium intake, try sodium-free baking powder.


Makes a dozen muffins.


Topping:

• 1/4 cup - Brown Sugar or Coconut Sugar***
• 1/8 cup (2TBS) Flour
• 1 TBS Melted Earth Balance (or oil of choice)
• 3/4 teas - Cinnamon**

This makes enough topping for half a dozen muffins
**The amount of brown sugar and cinnamon can be increased to add more to the topping and more flavor.
*** The last time I made these muffins (after publishing this post) I used coconut sugar instead of brown sugar for the topping and even halved the coconut sugar with raw sugar for the muffins, which turned out fine and well.




METHOD

The method is the same as my last blueberry muffin post:

Step 1: Mix the dry ingredients: flour, organic sugar, baking powder, pinch of sea salt.
 Step 2:  Add in wet ingredients: coconut-almond/non-dairy milk substitute and mashed banana/can blend the banana in blender with coconut water or nondairy milk.
  Step 3: Fold in blueberries
    Step 4: For the crumble topping, lightly mix in brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and melted earth balance.

Set oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for 25-35 minutes.
Just be sure to watch them as they're in the oven. I have a double burner toaster oven since I live in a suite-dorm that does not have a kitchen, so the cooking time takes longer for me and will greatly differ among different types of ovens/stove tops.

Also, I found the topping recipe from comparing google search results, which led to vegan websites and blogs that had similar ingredients for it. But I noticed the amounts are good for six muffins so if you are making a dozen, you might want to double the amounts for the topping.





This crumble recipe is so good, yet so easy. When I had the very sugary and slightly crumble-topping blueberry muffins at Harry's Farmers Market, I thought it must be difficult to make. But the more I assemble/make, the more I realize these dishes and desserts really are quite easy to create. The only hard part is acquiring all the necessary ingredients and equipment.

I'm not one to watch the CW network unless it syndicates older 90's sitcoms or comedies of the like, but I came across this interesting comedy with a 90's sitcom-style. The First Family is a 2012 series featuring an extended African American family in the White House.

The First Family. Creator Byron Allen. CW. Entertainment Studios. 2012.

At first glance, this family sitcom appears as though it was produced right out of the 1990s, when syndication actually began in 2012. The show gives screen-time to a great cast with very familiar actors such as Jackee Harry (Sister, Sister) and John Witherspoon (The Boondocks; Friday). Even the nonfamiliar or not-so familiar actresses and actors carry out their roles as they cater to a younger audience. Christopher Duncan and Kellita Smith may take on the roles as President and First Lady, but the show creates a nice balance for the several main characters represented in the show to have their own platform. 


Had it not been for my television not having a remote which led to me having to flip channels, I probably would have never come across this wholesome sitcom, something television viewers may not see very often these days with the slight decline in amount of wholesome, popular television in recent years. Either way, The First Family, with its canned laughter, slightly corny jokes, and comedic irony, is like a modern throwback to those popular, irreplaceable 90's comedies audiences love, remember, and never stop talking about.


The First Family airs on the CW channel Sunday nights at 8 P.M. (Eastern time zone).