Staff Taste Test from Peggy's Kitchen: "The Sensitive Palate"

Here are Mothering staffers’ opinions about the goodies we cooked up from “The Sensitive Palate,” by Ginger Park. Even though Park’s recipes replaced dairy products with those made from soy, none of our taste testers was the wiser—the judgments “Yum!” and “Delicious!” still reigned.

APPLESAUCE CAKE WITH “DREAM” CHEESE GLAZE/ICING

The cake has a cheeky spice profile, and the frosting is a lovely, rich hit of vanilla and “butter.”—Candace

Tastes a lot like carrot cake. After sampling all the chocolate, very moist and refreshing.—Sarah

Love the icing!—Laura

Delicious!—Lally

Yummy!—Peggy

You wouldn’t know you weren’t eating the real deal.—Ashisha

Sweet. Smooth. Tasty. The icing is yummy!—Simone


JUSTIN’S FIVE-STAR TRUFFLES

Creamy and fun. Can’t resist sprinkles. I appreciated the vanilla.—Sarah

Intense chocolatey flavor and melt-in-your-mouth texture. Decorating these could be endlessly fun!—Melyssa

OMG. That’s all there is to say.—Laura

Decadent, delicious—echo OMG!—Peggy

I am not fooled easily, and—I am fooled!—Ashisha

BROWN-BAG BROWNIES

Looks, tastes, and smells like a brownie. Who needs the butter?—Sarah

Has a compelling, flaky, airy texture, unexpected but delicious.—Candace

These were very hard not to devour before shooting the photo. The smell was amazing, right out of the oven.—Melyssa

These look, taste, and go down like the best brownies I’ve ever had.—Ashisha

Could have fooled me (and my kids). Yum!—Simone


“ROCK STAR!” ONION RINGS

They have great crunch and weren’t too greasy!—Sarah

I don’t think anyone would feel deprived [of dairy] eating these crispy wheels of onion. Yum-yum!—Candace

The onions are so sweet!—Laura

Great flavor. Good crunch.—Peggy

Good enough for a rock star!—Simone