Vegan journey

Decided to pickup lunch instead of cook today! Currently...

Thu, 15 Nov 2012 15:45:47 -0500

Decided to pickup lunch instead of cook today! Currently enjoying this AMAZING sweet potato and avocado panini with herbed baked steak fries from Plum Cafe. THANK YOU, Plum Cafe! So delicious. By the way, I recommend baked yams topped with fresh avocado or guac as a side or main dish this Thanksgiving! Wonderful plant-based seasonal dish that even the omni’s will love. I’m thankful for vegan restaurants in Sacramento!

stringcheesetastesgoodmelted: My pooch, my best little...

Fri, 12 Oct 2012 17:48:30 -0400

stringcheesetastesgoodmelted:

My pooch, my best little friend.

My dog, my inspiration for vegan eating.

stringcheesetastesgoodmelted: Rising Moon Organics artichoke...

Fri, 12 Oct 2012 17:46:00 -0400

stringcheesetastesgoodmelted:

Rising Moon Organics artichoke and olive ravioli (with vegan ricotta!) tossed in salt, pepper and olive oil and sprinkled with homemade vegan parmesan. Awesome lunch for a cold, grey day! Not pictured is fresh sourdough garlic bread and a tiny green salad. The second picture is the last harvest from my besties organic garden. Can’t wait till next summer for her artichokes, they were small but they were the best I ate all season. How cute are the japanese eggplants? Love the color. Ah, veggies! I love organic vegan food!

Hello. I was looking through the "kale" tag and I saw your green drink. Question how did you get the kale to be smooth. I used it for the first time yesterday and I hated it. Not the taste but the texture, it was veiny-ish. I hope I'm explaining this correctly.

Fri, 12 Oct 2012 17:36:11 -0400

It sounds like you used a blender perhaps. I used a juicer, that way all the plant pulp gets strained out and all thats left is potent, smooth juice! Hope this hleps!

JUICED!! Kale, spinach, oranges, an apple and half a lemon. All...

Thu, 11 Oct 2012 15:18:47 -0400

JUICED!! Kale, spinach, oranges, an apple and half a lemon. All organic. This juice was so good, I shared it with the waiter and chef at work and they loved it. Later, the waiter told me he recently went grocery shopping and said he was thinking about my juice and went straight to the produce section because he was craving fresh fruit. I considered it a personal victory. Go veggies! <3

Burritos!!! This delicious filling is made up of organic white...

Thu, 11 Oct 2012 15:14:35 -0400

Burritos!!! This delicious filling is made up of organic white onion and red pepper with Field Roast Mexican Chipotle vegan sausage. DELISH.

animals-animals-animals: Darwin Red-legs Fiddler Crab (by Ofer...

Wed, 10 Oct 2012 18:04:58 -0400

animals-animals-animals:

Darwin Red-legs Fiddler Crab (by Ofer Levy)

I have been COOKING today! A lot of these are from my organic...

Sun, 30 Sep 2012 23:33:00 -0400

I have been COOKING today! A lot of these are from my organic produce box I recently got. (www.itsorganicdelivery.com) By the end of today I will have:

baked 2 sweet potatoes

baked delicata squash rings

mashed a purple majesty potato

roasted white carrot, white onion and french fingerling potatoes with garlic and rosemary

baked vegan artichoke dip

prepared a garden salad (did you see the cute whole baby carrot I served in the salad bowl? so stylish!)

Sauteed Field Roast Italian vegan sausage with onion and orange bell pepper

Whew! I had a BLAST. I had a little mishap with the purple potato - I should have peeled it before boiling it and I didn’t. It exploded but it was salvageable. I plan on making mashed potatoes for two with it for lunch tomorrow. :) What’s interesting was the drained boiled water was blue! It was awesome, wish I had got a picture of that, too. The delicata squash was a lot heartier than the summer squashes I’ve been cooking all summer and I sort of overcooked it thinking it was heartier than it actually was. The rings turned out delicious, they kind of tasted like sweet potato fries but with a better rind and a rich, buttery mealy center. All I did was spray olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper then baked at 400 for 25 mins. I would recommend getting em’ out of there in 20 or less. Also, turn once halfway through. The roasted mixed vegetables were all organic and GREAT and there was enough to refrigerate and save for the next day. It was made up of french fingerling potatoes, white carrots, white onion, garlic and rosemary with a cup of vegetable broth. 400 degrees for an hour. I learned from browsing online that it’s good to cook covered with tin foil first for 20 minutes then uncovered for 30. We’ll try that next time. As an appetizer I threw together a hot vegan artichoke dip using a recipe I found at www.cestlavegan.com/2010/02/hot-artichoke-dip . PRETTY GOOD! Too bad we can’t yet photograph smell. Nom. Guilt free no fat version - amazing. The garden salad has become an everyday meal accompaniment I’m very happy to say. Now that Pat and I live together, ‘extravagan’t 3-4 course meals are more feasible and fun to prepare. This version includes cherry heirloom tomatoes and baby carrots from the organic produce box and is topped with tri-color tortilla strips and Annie’s goddess dressing. (So good.) For protein and deliciousness, our main course consisted of two Field Roast Italian ‘wheat meat’ sausages sauteed with organic olive oil peppers and onions. The flavors are so strong and so satisfying I am convinced any meat-eater would eat it happily and find it a fine cruelty-free alternative to a meat sausage.

Cooking today was so fun. I am inspired by my ongoing vegan diet, the food they serve at the restaurant I work at and the cooks who work there, and the items that arrive in my produce box. It’s my 3rd one and I am just loving it. Also, I recently picked up and fell in love with the book “Chez Panisse Cooking” by Paul Bertolli with Alice Waters. In case you’re unfamiliar, Chez Panisse is a restaurant in Berkeley that opened in the 70’s and whose menu is one that focuses on locally and organically cultivated ingredients and changes with the seasons. I read the entire section on vegetables, pasta and risotto, bread, and the preface, forward and acknowledgments and look forward to delving into the sections of desserts, pickles and preserves, fresh and pure ingredients and basics. So much of what I’m reading about vegetable sides doesn’t even need to be ‘veganized’ as it is so pure and simple it is vegan-ness is inherent. The Preface and Forword were almost religious to me when I read them. I clutch the book to my chest and sigh and keep reminding myself to send yet another thank you card to the lovely woman who gifted me this cookbook, Bernie, who lives in Texas and loves Jesus very much. I look forward to buying/downloading the first and original Chez Panisse book “Chez Panisse Menu Cookbook” as well as getting my hands on a copy of something called “La scienza en cucina e l’arte di mangiar bene” by Pellegrino Artusi which is apparently theee book on Italian cooking and was written in 1891 by an amateur.

So much inspiration, so much fine healthy food. I am happy, hungry and surrounded by love. Can’t ask for much more right now. <3

onehappyvegan: Red lentils mixed with kale, garlic, and hot...

Fri, 28 Sep 2012 17:09:27 -0400

onehappyvegan:

Red lentils mixed with kale, garlic, and hot sauce. Side of broiled potatoes.

YUMMO. major want.

jennisnotahomesteader: Post #happyhour dinner from golden lotus...

Fri, 28 Sep 2012 17:01:53 -0400

jennisnotahomesteader:

Post #happyhour dinner from golden lotus #vegan restaurant (Taken with Instagram)

HELKS YES.

vegansaurus!: The New York Times asks, Can vegans and carnivores get along? "Duh, of course," says Moby

Fri, 28 Sep 2012 16:54:43 -0400

vegansaurus!: The New York Times asks, Can vegans and carnivores get along? "Duh, of course," says Moby:

vegansaurus:

Seems like the New York Times is opening its innocent baby eyes to the realities of vegan life, i.e., it’s ridiculously great to be vegan these days, and also, we can get along with omnivores just fine.

Who agrees? Moby, our elfin mascot for do-gooding white guys.

If we go back 25…

Fave ingredients lately: Chipotle ground Tofurky, Alexia...

Fri, 28 Sep 2012 16:50:09 -0400

Fave ingredients lately: Chipotle ground Tofurky, Alexia roasemary, olive oil and garlic fries. <3

Also, in case I haven’t said it lately: I LOVE BEING VEGAN. It’s been 8 months and 3 days.<3

wtfdoyoueatvegan: wednesday dinner- morningstar riblets with...

Thu, 06 Sep 2012 15:23:15 -0400

wtfdoyoueatvegan:

wednesday dinner- morningstar riblets with mashed potatoes and peas

Nice.

MAJOR WANT - Vegan Grasshopper Pie

Wed, 05 Sep 2012 23:20:50 -0400

MAJOR WANT - Vegan Grasshopper Pie

SUCH GOOD SOUP! I veganized this Polish sausage soup recipe...

Wed, 05 Sep 2012 22:58:00 -0400

SUCH GOOD SOUP! I veganized this Polish sausage soup recipe using Field Roast sausage, and used vegetable broth instead of water: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Polish-Sausage-Soup/Detail.aspx and the squash was petit green pattypan squash I had gotten in my last organic produce box and I veganized this recipe (omitting the rosemary) to get the final result which was DELICIOUS. Melt in your mouth squashies. Nice healthy soft foods perfect for dental procedure recovery. It’ll be nice to eat something crunchy again but this is doing just fine and dandy for now. XO!

Photo

Wed, 05 Sep 2012 18:39:45 -0400

PASTA! I have a dental procedure scheduled in the morning and I...

Wed, 05 Sep 2012 02:17:21 -0400

PASTA! I have a dental procedure scheduled in the morning and I thought since runners carbo-load before a race, a big bowl of pasta before a root canal seemed like a good idea. Here I have so many ingredients to be proud of (which has happened a lot lately, I’m blessed to say, this summer has been amazing for veggies and fruit for me) starting with my beloved Field Roast wheat gluten sausage from the co-op, organic white onion and beech mushrooms my co-worker gave me as a gift from her last trip to the farmers market all sauteed up in organic olive oil. The sauce is super special, it’s a homemade sauce made from my neighbors garden tomatoes, onions and squash made by yet another neighbor (I <3 midtown). I mixed it together with some whole wheat spaghetti and paired it with half a ‘buttered’ toasted onion bun. DELISH

Vegan online shopping - Vegan Essentials

Thu, 30 Aug 2012 01:39:00 -0400

Vegan online shopping - Vegan Essentials:

I haven’t made a purchase here yet, and I don’t really know why! I’m gonna save all my pennies and get some stuff soon. Posts to follow.

vegansaurus: SF Vegan Drinks is tomorrow night! It’s your...

Wed, 29 Aug 2012 17:29:23 -0400

vegansaurus:

SF Vegan Drinks is tomorrow night! It’s your monthly chance to meet your fellow Bay Area vegans in the (cruelty-free) flesh. Check out that menu! Are fried beets any good? I mean, duh, what fried food isn’t good, but still! Beets!

SF Vegan Drinks happens from 6 to 8 p.m. at Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, 2323 Mission (at 19th Street) in S.F. Check out Facebook for more info! Be there, or be sober and poorly fed!

And, of course, the original Vegan Drinks takes place tomorrow as well at Fontana’s Bar on the Lower East Side in New York. For more info (and there is a lot of info), visit the website.

Woah, momma! That was a delicious sandwich, chick’n patty...

Wed, 29 Aug 2012 17:18:44 -0400

Woah, momma! That was a delicious sandwich, chick’n patty with a roasted red pepper, garlic and eggplant spread and Tofutti vegan cream cheese with mixed greens on an onion bun. That spread is from Trader Joe’s and it is AMAZING!