We spoke to vegan blogger Ashlae Warner about the inspiration behind the delicious from-scratch recipes on her blog Oh, Ladycakes…
Known to give in to your sweet tooth on numerous occasions? Fear not, because Oh, Ladycakes, the brainchild of Denver-based vegan baker Ashlae Warner, could be the solution to guilt-free desserts (yes, there can be such a thing).
Ashlae developed her food blog to share her delicious from-scratch recipes, covering everything from almond milk caramel sauce and brownie cakes with chocolate coconut frosting to raw fig cheesecake and sweet potato waffles with cacao nibs.
We spoke to Ashlae to see what stimulates her to create her unique recipes and what she hopes to achieve with a vegan food blog…
What do you hope people will take away from your blog?
That vegan baking (or anything vegan, really) doesn't have to be synonymous with gross. I'll be the first to admit there are some funky imitation ingredients out there, but if you steer clear of those and make use of things that are naturally vegan - coconut oil, dark chocolate, etc. - it'll feel less like a weird science experiment and more like normal, everyday baking… just without the eggs and butter.
Which 5 things would we find in your fridge?
Let's see. There's always a drawer full of in-season produce, Grade B maple syrup, Justin's peanut butter cups, full fat coconut milk, and tamari.
What’s your personal food philosophy?
It's simple: eat more plants.
What’s your top cooking tip?
I can't stress this enough: prep ahead. That way if you come home exhausted and the last thing you want to do is think about what to make for dinner, you've got it right in front of you, ready to go. It's the difference between eating a bowl (or three) of cereal or teriyaki tofu with brown rice and steamed vegetables. And the latter isn't all that much more difficult, so long as you've got some of the components prepped ahead of time.
Where do you get your recipe ideas from?
If you asked me this six months ago I'd say other food blogs, cookbooks, etc., which is still the case at times, but lately I've been incredibly inspired by just walking into my kitchen and opening the cupboards. Often, they're on the sparse side, limiting my options - but it's the limitation that forces me to really get creative. I just finished working on a recipe for three-ingredient peanut butter fudge and, had I gone to the grocery store to get the ingredients I thought I needed, there would be no three-ingredient peanut butter fudge.