Ch-ch-ch-changes....

Ok, so I like David Bowie. So sue me.

Before I get into the life altering change that I am currently experiencing, lemme share what I ate for dinner.

That, my friends, is my first homemade falafel. Or, as the tramp that a buddy of mine married would say, an "old fashioned" falafel. I was feeling blue today, and thought about falafel, and then realized I had everything to make it from scratch. What was stopping me?

Oh, yeah, so I forgot pita. But I made an awesome, spur of the moment tangy sauce to accompany. Behold, a recipe.

Tangy yum sauce.

6 oz silken tofu
2 tbsp lemon juice
small handful of cilantro
1 tsp tahini
salt and pepper to taste.

Blend into oblivion. I know, right? I'm the first one to think of it, I'm sure.

So, we're moving. I love my neighborhood hardcore, and it was really hard to realize that we can't afford to stay in our duplex. Our awesome 1920's duplex with hardwoods and a tempermental furnace. But we found an apartment in SW Portland, top story, surrounded by trees, close to my school. Oh, and it has a dishwasher, which will save my sanity. It'll be an adventure and a chance to discover a whole new neighborhood of Portland that I'm absolutely not aware of.

This weekend though, vegan bake sale for Haiti, Portland style!!!! I will be contributing my time, some cookie dough bites and awesomely delicious hazelnut cupcakes. Come out if you're in the neighborhood!!! Haiti still needs help, if not more than ever.

Beans!

Before I was vegan, I avoided beans. I didn't like the gas and a bout of food poisoning in my childhood from baked beans fueled my distaste. In my efforts to create more complete meals since turning vegan, I've found that if I don't have beans in the cupboard, I panic just a little. They've stolen my heart and made a home in my dishes. However, I still refuse to touch baked beans. The smell alone-ok, I'm getting nauseous just thinking about it.

Jeff and I decided to try out a chili the other night. Now, in recent years I've always skipped over chili recipes, uninterested in the beans and the heat. However, this particular night, a cold and depressing night, chili sounded awesome. I remembered a cookbook that was given to me by a very thoughtful coworker that had a whole chapter on chili. Come to find it's by Robin Robertson, author of Vegan Planet and other awesome books. My excitement was almost too much. I will admit to never cooking out of it and being naive to the author until the cookbook challenge on the PPK. What, you want the name of the cookbook? One Dish Vegetarian Meals (but all recipes have vegan alternatives...)

We chose the Louisiana Bayou Chili after debating for a long while. There will be more chilis in my future, dear readers, as the recipe was easy and the result was amazing. We devoured it along with quinoa and sweet potato fries. It made a ginormous amount, so I have plenty of freezer chili to go around which is PERFECT at this point in my life.

On another note, I can't believe I forgot to write about this already, but I finally made the New Farm Mac & Cheez, ala the lower fat version by Get Sconed! Husband gives it a million thumbs up, which is huge. I have had the mac made personally by Jess, but now I can make it at home. Bwa ha ha!

MAKE IT!

ETA bake sales for the Haiti disaster are going on right now. Please check the PPK blog and see if your city is included. I will be making something as I have a hell of a lot of time on my hands now.

A Brief History of Time

It is an understatement to say that I like books. This is only a small fraction of my collection. We only have two bookcases.

One of the traits I picked up from my late grandmother (who I've mentioned numerous times before) was a passion for books and reading. There are three large walls at my grandparents' home filled with books, all cataloged, alphabetized and filed according to genre. One wall alone is dedicated to historical nonfiction and bibliographies.

The kitchen isn't even safe. Three bookshelves are lined with books about any kind of cooking you can imagine, with the stark exception of veganism. Plenty of vegetarian books (that include recipes with fish) but no vegan. Then again, this is the lady that tried her hardest to get me to eat a steak once a week after I went vegetarian to make sure my iron levels stayed normal.

One of my favorite things to do when I visit my mom is to pick up more books for my collection. Some notables include the very first book my grandmother ever bought with her own money, an Irish and Scottish cookbook and a Duncan Hines baking book. Gigi usually made notes in recipes she enjoyed, so I thought I'd let you peek into the Duncan Hines book and my past...

My grandparents were on their 53rd anniversary when she passed in 2008

My grandfather's favorite. I hate pineapple, and she always "forgot" and made this for my birthday. I think it was really for Grandpa.

Sometimes she was brutally honest.

Another habit I picked up is collecting recipes and putting them everywhere.

She saved the very first cookie recipe I ever made :-) YEAH I KNOW IT'S NOT FROM SCRATCH.

The point to today's post is to highlight a bunch of books Gigi gave me when I first moved into my own apartment in 2004. She had been collecting these for years and each has it's own special inscription. "Happy graduation!" "Happy 18th birthday!" "Congrats on your first apartment!" The one turned around is the beef cookbook. Obviously I won't cook out of it, but I refuse to throw a piece of history away.


The other night I decided to cook from the Italian cookbook. I picked risotto and was pleasantly surprised to see the first non-vegan recipe that didn't call for parmesan cheese and only had five ingredients. The recipe gives different versions of risotto, and I chose the herbed variation where you basically throw dried herbs into the stock. Another plus - you don't have to stand and stir! Here is the recipe, shiny and easy and vegan for you.

Risotto, adapted from Better Homes & Gardens Italian Cookbook circa 1971

1/4 finely chopped onion
2 tbsp vegan butter
3 cups vegetable broth
1 cup arborio rice
1/2 salt
dash pepper

In a medium saucepan cook onion in butter until onion is tender. Stir in broth, rice, salt and pepper. Bring to a rolling boil; reduce heat to low. Cover with a tight fitting lid and cook for 15 minutes. DO NOT REMOVE LID. Remove from heat. Let stand, covered, for 5-8 minutes. Rice should be tender but still slightly firm and the mixture should be creamy. Serve immediately.

The risotto is no fuss and creamy as it should be. I served it with Italian baked tofu and roasted delicata squash and the leftovers made a delicious lunch.

I can see clearly....

....ok so not really. Yeah, that was a long absence, wasn't it? Well, I'm back friends.

Christmas came, Christmas passed. We went on a lovely (albeit expensive) trip to Vancouver BC and met some great people. I baked a LOT of cookies, and even some cupcakes. I also drank a lot of beer.

But pictures speak louder than words, right? These are all food pictures, I apologize if you're looking for action.

Caramelized Onion Dip from BitterSweet

Margarita cupcakes from VCTOTW

Our Christmas gifts - Lazy Samoas, Coconut bars & Mexican Hot Chocolate Snickerdoodles.

A Fauxtess cupcake, made by Isa herself.

Chocolate chickpea spread from BitterSweet

Red lentil dal from Happy Herbivore, a new house staple.Miso bulgur pilaf from BitterSweet, another new staple :-)

I truly plan on posting more, really. For awhile there I was working 3 part time jobs and now I'm going to school. But this week (and probably next) I'm implementing a mandatory pantry challenge. Yep, we're out of money. Awesome.

Cat in a Box

Thanksgiving has come and past. I have acquired multiple bumps, cuts and bruises from those whirlwind days of cleaning and cooking. But it was worth it.

My mother in law graciously subbed Earth Balance and rice milk in dishes she could veganize, and even tried them! She didn't try the dish I brought, but small steps here.

So without further ado, a pictorial of various foods consumed:

Pumpkin baked ziti with caramelized onions from V'Con, for my family's celebration

Green Bean Casserole from FatFreeVegan for ThanksveganA random stuffing recipe I sorta made up - carrots, celery, onions and local bread
Merc devours Tofurkey box (seriously, he wouldn't leave me alone after I opened it)

Badass Smlove Pie for fatty food's sake.

I had a lot of fun cooking up my own vegan Thanksgiving. I invited people that were open and interested in trying a vegan dinner and everything went over really well, Tofurkey included! I cooked two in the crockpot, basting them in the sauce recipe on the box, for 3 hours on high. They were moist and delicious. Next year, however, I'm making my own.

Christmas this year is gong to be a little...sparse. Our family is getting homemade cookies and apple butter and we've decided to donate money to people that need things more than we do. I'm also surprising Jeff with a surprise trip to Vancouver BC on New Years Day. I'm hoping the trip will ebb this travel bug we picked up in May and provide a much needed break from our normal, boring lives before I start school full time.

Next post I'll go over some of the foods I've been cooking up for the PPK Blog cooking challenge, including chocolate chickpea spread!

Furballs.

In preparation for the post I plan to make on my family's celebration and then my very own vegan Thanksgiving, I give just two reasons I am thankful.

Mercutio

Delilah

Growing up (yeah, a lot of my stories start with that!) we were a family of animal rescuers. My mother was notorious for bringing home strays. They were very loved and I hope that we made their lives full and happy.

Mercutio came to me in October of 2002. I was working in a pizza place and one of the video store employees next door came over with this tiny black kitten. He asked if I wanted a kitten and while I certainly did not need one, I couldn't say no. The kitten came at the nick of time. I split with my boyfriend at the time and having to take care of a cat helped me to take care of myself better. Merc LOVES Jeff, and as soon as Jeff sits down anywhere, Merc is in his lap. He also loves to sleep with us. That cat has helped me out in so many ways.

Delilah was a rescue kitty. My best friend works for a vet clinic. She went out to her car one day and noticed a suitcase next to a truck. Thinking that it belonged to the owner of the truck, she left it alone. Well, the truck left and the suitcase stayed. My friend went to investigate and found the suitcase was locked and the bottom was warm. After some maneuvering, the vets got it open and found a cat with 5 kittens. While I'm thankful that the suitcase was dropped in a vet clinic's parking lot, who the hell locks up a bunch of cats in a suitcase?!?! I was warned of calico traits before we adopted Delilah, and she has not let us down. She's rambunctious, crazy, hyper and nervous. She loves us, but if anyone else comes in the door she hides under the couch. But when she cuddles up to you, you forget the torn blinds and chipped paint.

Of course, these two furballs aren't the only things I'm thankful for. I'm thankful for my loving relationship, my family, my friends and a roof over my head. I'm thankful that I have the choice to be vegan and the ability to support my little family, however hard it may seem.

Have a lovely Thanksgiving.

COOOOOOKIES.

A truly wonderful thing happened on Friday night.

I finally got my copy of Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar.

Now, this isn't a good thing for my attempts to lose weight. Not at all. But c'mon, it's the holidays, and what better gifts than cookies? I just have to try them out first...

I asked Jeff to pick a recipe for me to make while he was at work. Well, he picked 4. Out of those 4 I chose 2. Peanut butter blondies and hazelnut fudge dreamies.


The hazelnut cookies hugging the fudgey center are light and rich and shortbread like. Eating a cookie like that makes me stick my pinky out and demand tea. The peanut butter blondies are buttery and delicious. And addicting. I highly recommend this book to vegans and non vegans alike. Proof that you really don't need eggs or cows milk to get the amazing cookies you desire.

Now on to something completely different. I mentioned in my last post that I would share my Thanksvegan menu. Here ya go:

Tofurkey Roast
Cornbread Stuffing with Pears & Pecans
Green Bean Casserole a la Fat Free Vegan
Mashed Sweet Potatoes
Roasted Root Vegetables (Jeff thinks squash would be better, we'll see)
Dinner rolls with regular and roasted garlic margarine

I have never, ever had a tofurkey roast. We thought we would try it before moving on to homemade roasts and if it doesn't taste good, well there's a ton more food for the eating. Last night I made a first runner up for the mashed sweet potaotes: Joanna Vaught's coconut mashed sweet potatoes from her new potluck zine. These were incredible! Jeff didn't like the curry and ginger, but I might play around with the spices 'cause I want these taters on my table! Here they share a plate with roasted brussel sprouts and chili lime tofu:


I finally got the hang of the manual settings on my camera. It's funny, I'm such a photo nerd and I've never played around with the light settings - I guess I assumed that night pictures would just be bad for all time!

Good eating!