Cooking up a blizzard, maybe.

As a pre-Thanksgiving gift Chris surprised me with Veganomicon, the cookbook we've both been coveting. I've had it for less than a week and I've already tried out a bunch of recipes--all of them were major successes! For dinner on Friday I made a pasta with spicy tempeh and broccoli, and it was amazing. You mash up the tempeh after it's cooked, with all the spices (fennel seeds included!) it totally tastes like sauces (but without the gross meaty texture). It was so good I not only had it for dinner on Friday, but lunch AND dinner on Saturday. I think Chris may have pilfered some of it for his midnight snack on Friday, too. On Monday I made chickpea cutlets. They were so much easier than I thought they would be since this was my very first experience cooking with vital wheat gluten. They kind of mimic those Boca chick patties, but a) are cheaper b) have way less processing c) are better because they're homemade! To go along with that we roasted some little red potatoes, carrots and parsnips (I'd never tried parsnips before, but they're really good). Last night I made spicy cornmeal-crusted tofu po' boys complete with homemade slaw and a spicy aoli I sort of threw together myself. They were delicious, and really spicy. But mostly delicious. I also made scallion flat bread, which was lovely. I really need to start taking pictures of these creations.

Vegan Enchiladas Rock

Last night I discovered The Post Punk Kitchen--Chris heard them on NPR a while back. It's this vegan public access cooking show out of NYC, and it's awesome. The founders, Isa Moskowitz and Terry Romero, just came out with a new vegan cookbook called Veganomicon, and I definitely plan to get it. They have some recipes from the book posted on the website, and last night I made the Potato Kale Enchiladas with Roasted Chili Sauce. They were amazing. I think Chris had about six of them! Kale and potatoes seem like such a crazy filling for enchiladas, but it was so good we didn't even miss the meat or cheese. And I love that all the ingredients are totally normal and natural--no processed meat or cheese substitutes at all. The recipe looks a little daunting, but it turned out to be super easy--even the made-from-scratch sauce was a breeze. I used fire-roasted tomatoes from a can, which were really good, and for the peppers I just broiled them for a few minutes until the were black and bubbly, then removed the skin and seeds. Oh, and the photo above is from the website, my creation wasn't as pretty to look at, but it was sure tasty!

Almost Famous?

So, Friday night a few girls and I went to see a show at The Varsity with Ari Herstand, White Light Riot, The Alarmists & This World's Fair all performing in random order (they drew out of a hat before each set). It was a really good show, and despite a little trouble getting in (it was already sold out at 9:30 p.m.!!!) we all had fun. The girls left during the last set, so I went downstairs to hang out with the bands in their "backstage" area (Chris is The Alarmists' manager). The room was like two levels below the stage and totally cavelike with stone walls and creepy doors leading to what I imagine are ancient passageways. You enter the room and are immediately enveloped in a haze of cigarette smoke. A mishmash of vintage-y chairs circle the perimeter, and wine and beer bottles litter just about every stable surface. The room is full of band members and friends, and just about everyone is drunk, or on their way to being so. The acoustic guitars come out, and suddenly everyone is singing "Hey Jude," then "Come Together" followed by a dozen other songs that everyone knows the words to (but none that I can recall right now). There was something so surreal about that experience--the music, the people the atmosphere--it felt just like a scene from a movie, and it was really cool. It's the little moments like that that make me realize just how amazing life can be and how lucky I am to live in such a cool city with such awesome people.

Hot Fudge Sundae Cake

Yum! This is the perfect ooey, gooey treat to whip up when you're in desperate need of a chocolate fix.

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix in a 8"x8" square pan:

• 1 cup flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons cocoa
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Add:

• 1/2 cup milk (I use soy milk)
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix until smooth, then sprinkle batter with:

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup cocoa

Next, pour 1 3/4 cups hot tap water over the entire thing (don't stir), and bake in the oven for about 40 minutes. Once it's all bubbly and gooey, take it out and serve (with vanilla ice cream, if possible!)

Vegan Mac & Cheese

So last night during a short break in my painting fiasco (more on that later), I decided to whip up a comforting batch of my fabulous vegan macaroni and cheese. I pretty much change the recipe slightly each time I make it to accomodate what I have or don't have on hand at the time--luckily this is a very forgiving recipe and nothing needs to be too precise. I wouldn't say it tastes much like the Kraft Mac 'n' Cheese I grew up with, but it's totally hits the spot. I even tested it out on my teenage cousins and they had no idea it was a cheeseless dish--now that's success!

Ingredients

• 1 package elbow macaroni, shells or any other type of pasta you'd like, cooked (should make about six cups when cooked)
• 1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes (available in the bulk bins at most coops)
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1 cup vegetable broth
• 1 cup water
• 4-6 teaspoons dried herbs/seasoning (I use whatever I have on hand. Last night it was basil, oregano, marjoram and a pinch of chili powder.)
• Salt and pepper to your liking
• 1 8-oz. can tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce or Bragg

Preheat oven to 350. Mix yeast flakes and flour in a small saucepan over med-low heat until they start to smell nice and toasty (but don't let them burn!). Then slowly whisk in the vegetable broth and water to form a smooth sauce. Add the seasonings, tomato sauce and soy sauce, and mix until blended. Put cooked pasta in a 9"x13" pan/casserole dish, and add sauce. Stir until all the past is coated with the sauce, then stick it in the oven for about 30 minutes. Usually I just forget about it until the timer goes off and the top is a little crusty and chewy (fine by me!), but if you like all your noodles to be tender and coated in sauce, be sure to stir it a few times while it's baking. Let cool for a few minutes, season to taste and serve. Yum!

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This is my place to dish on baking, bitch about work, and share my musings on life, style, and anything else that's on my mind. Let the revolution begin ...