Mother's Day Parfait

Mother's Day Parfait 

(or anytime, for that matter!)

Simply layer granola, fruit sauce, and vegan whipped cream in a tall glass. Top with a sprinkle of granola. For an extra special gourmet touch, slice a fresh strawberry from bottom to top, not cutting all the way through, then fan out the slices and place in the center of parfait.

Enjoy!! ^_^

Fruit Sauce

½ cup frozen white grape/raspberry juice concentrate (100% juice)
2 Tbs. cornstarch or arrowroot
1 12-oz. (or 16-oz.) bag of frozen strawberries or blueberries
½ cup water

Dissolve cornstarch in cold water, then thicken with juice in a saucepan, stirring constantly.
When thick, add frozen fruit. Simmer for 2 minutes; turn off heat.

Makes 3 cups.

Whipped Topping

1 cup water

2 Tbs. agar flakes (or 2 tsp. powder)*

½ cup raw cashew nuts

1/3 cup honey or ½ cup evap. cane juice

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

¼ teaspoon guar gum (optional)

1 can coconut milk (or 2 cups soy milk)   I use Thai brand coconut milk; it is thicker and has no added chemicals or preservatives.

1.  Stir together the agar and water, and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  Reduce heat and simmer for 1-2 minutes.

2.  Place remaining ingredients in blender (Vita-Mix is best) along with hot agar mixture.  Blend on high until smooth, adding water as needed to make 3½ - 4 cups total mixture (3½ cups total mixture for icing; 4 cups for whipped topping).  Pour into a quart container and chill in refrigerator several hours or overnight.  For quicker chilling, use a large shallow container. 

Hint:  Since this recipe needs blending twice, leave the blended mixture (step 2) in the blender and refrigerate overnight.  Then simply re-blend as in step 3, saving the work of washing the blender and containers twice!

3.  Before using, place chilled mixture (which will be quite firm--almost sliceable) in blender or food processor, and blend until creamy.  (If you have a lightweight blender, you should blend just half of the mix at a time.)  It should be the consistency of Cool Whip.  Try not to add more liquid.  The mixture will eventually go through the blades and become creamy if you carefully push it toward the blades with a rubber spatula. 

*The agar is a key ingredient in this recipe.  The mixture has to be re-blended only once.  Then it can be frozen and used without re-blending , but remains a nice creamy texture.  So make a double recipe and freeze in small containers to use as needed for icing, dessert topping, or pancakes.

Makes 6 cups.