The Life

Overlooked

2012-01-25T13:58:00.000-05:00

I have no idea how this dessert we made was overlooked in the blogging process but somehow, it was. When we had a small dinner at my house, we decided to make some ice cream. Despite being out of season, we went all in for the peaches. It was great.

Sadly, I am not sure why but the home made ice cream seems to melt incredibly quickly. I wonder if everyone has this issue...

Something Special

2012-01-24T02:00:00.001-05:00

Many years ago, I turned 5. I do not remember anything about that day which is unfortunate considering I am sure there was substantial effort put in by my family and friends. I am sure I got hyped up on sugar, played with new toys, and had a great time. At the age of 5, on your birthday, it is hard not to enjoy being the center of everyones attention.

Today, a great friend on mine, Kaleigh (Ashley's daughter) turned 5. I had the privileged to be invited to the small family gathering at a local pizza shop (with vegan options and some vegan cake that we brought). I contributed a couple of books and picture to the spoils. Most of the gifts were overlooked (temporarily) as she basked in her much deserved attention. It was great to see her so excited.

I will be the first to admit that I do not know much about children. However, by my estimation, Kaleigh is a great kid. She is one of the most patient people I know (even at 5) and she really thrives to soak up information. She shows compassion and reason in her choices and is generally a treat to be around. Knowing her has made me a better person. She has taught me so much.

Although I do not recall my 5th birthday and she may not recall hers, I will remember this day for a long time. It was great to be a part of this and celebrate the end of a year with her. Thank you for inviting me in.

Happy Birthday Kaleigh!

Kaleigh was using the camera when she caught me stealing the last bite of Ashley's cake!

Drumline Leftovers

2012-01-23T02:36:00.000-05:00

While not doing much of anything around the house a few days ago, there was an interesting sound that began to penetrate my house. At first I did not recognize it. I peered out of the window to see a local high school drum line practicing in the cul-de-sac. It was pretty cool. I took a couple of creeper pictures from my window so as not to disturb them and just enjoyed the sounds.

With some of the leftover seitan from the Day of Food and Fun, I made some pasta. It was a nice way to use up the last few pieces. It is amazing how well the seitan keeps. I really should make it more often.

A treat!

2012-01-19T14:43:00.000-05:00

After a great dinner of White Bean and Thyme Soup, we made a rare treat. Rice crispy treats! Recently, it seemed like most of the stores in Atlanta were not carrying vegan marshmallows. I requested them at a number of shops and it seems like they all have them now. I will take full credit for it. Atlanta marshmallow craving vegans; you are welcome.

Yum.

These did not last long. Not at all.

White Bean and Thyme Soup

2012-01-17T10:37:00.000-05:00

Winter is one of my favorite food seasons. With my heavy hand in the kitchen I feel like I have more space in the winter to use more fats and bolder flavors. It is also a great time for hot soups. Since I am still on a bean kick, I wanted to make a nice bean soup but wanted to it be a little different than what I have been making. I came up with this delicate combination and shared it with my friends:

White Bean and Thyme Soup

5 cloves of garlic (chopped)
1/2 yellow onion (chopped)
4 cups of cooked white beans
3 cups of vegetable broth
3/4 cup of fresh thyme leaves
2 tablespoons of oil
1 tablespoon of salt
3/4 tablespoon of pepper
1/2 tablespoon of paprika

Heat 1 tablespoon of oil, the garlic, onion, and 1/2 of the thyme on low heat until the onion is soft. Add 1 and 3/4 cups of the white beans and mix. Allow to "fry" for about 5-8 minutes so the flavors can meld. Add 1 cup of broth and mix again.

Add the mixture to a blender and puree until mostly smooth. Add more broth if needed.

Return to the pot on a low heat adding the remaining white beans, remaining oil, remaining broth, paprika, pepper, salt (if your broth has a high amount of salt, cut back on the salt added), and all but 1 teaspoon of the thyme leaves. Allow to cook for about 15 minutes stirring to avoid burning. Do not let it simmer. The longer the soup is allowed to cook the more together the soup will taste.

Serve hot and topped with the remaining thyme leaves for garnish.

Just a snack from the store.

2012-01-11T13:15:00.000-05:00

Rushing through my days recently, I have not been eating nearly as many good bedtime snacks. In fact, I have been eating too many store bought snacks. I wish I had more confidence in baking so that I could not rely to heavily on the grocers to provide me with treats in bed. Recently, I have been on a turnover topped with ice cream kick, none of which I actually make.

A day of food and fun

2012-01-09T01:21:00.000-05:00

I spent a day with Ashley and her daughter recently. They choose what we were going to do and I just mainly went along with it. The day started with them bringing me some breakfast biscuits! They got up early and made themselves breakfast and held a couple biscuits back to bring to my house. They were great.

Kaleigh and I cleaned the driveway off with the blower and they helped a bit with some yard work. We were going to have a late lunch / early dinner so that we could go to the museum and planetarium that evening. After some discussion, we decided on some seitan chickin nuggets, fries, steamed squash, and some peach ice cream for dessert.

We spent an hour of so at the museum and found a cool human kaleidoscope box. Then we went to see the planetarium show. It was actually awful. All of us were fidgeting and ready for it to be over. We did get to look through a massive telescope and see what they told us was Jupiter and 2 of its moons. They was pretty cool.

Over all it was a fun day and I am glad I got to share it with them. Nothing like skipping school to do fun things.

Beans bean, the musical fruit!

2012-01-04T14:01:00.000-05:00

As anyone who reads this blog knows, I have been making beans often in the last month or two. Beans are an incredible food for the winter months, warm, hearty, comforting and packed with protein without dipping into the soy. They also keep for quite awhile which makes it easier for me to save money and pack my work lunches.

I recently made another pot of black beans. I attempted to make a Cuban style but they did not quite hit the mark i was expecting. The good news was that they still make out fantastic. There was a slight hint of sweetness to them that went a long way against the acidic tomatoes. I have been eating these for some time now at work and shared them with several folks who all agreed, fantastic!

Lunch with a Friend

2012-01-02T15:44:00.000-05:00

Despite being busy over the holiday period, I was able to find an afternoon to see a good friend of mine. Shazia was back in Atlanta for her school break. We went to a local vegetarian Indian place that I really enjoy but do not frequent often enough. We split a great meal, told old stories and caught up on new happenings. It was a really nice afternoon and a wonderful break from the grind.

It is always a bonus to go out to eat with someone who is not vegan as we can order platters to save money but do not have to waste the dairy items.

Presently Presenting Presents

2011-12-31T01:11:00.001-05:00

I took a short hiatus, unintentionally. It was actually a combination of things, of course I have been working many hours, I have another large project I have been working diligently on that I will mention at another time, as well as not feeling wonderful. I am not full on sick but sort of teetering on the edge.

I have however, received some amazing things that I wanted to share.

First I received a package from my "unofficial" grandmother, Priscilla. We send a nice,we I am not actually sure what they are called. They are the items you set hot pans on to not damage your counter. She also sent a new gardening book. She was the one who really developed my interest in gardening and I always enjoy hearing her thought. Her book advice on gardening goes a long way as well.

Much of my ideas about food and earth were not developed by some internet propaganda but has been passed down from my grandparents, this was their greatest gift.

I also got a package a few days later from my mum. She sent a fun card and a check. She knows me well and wrote in the check that she wants me to do something fun with the money and enjoy it. It was not to pay a bill or save. I appreciate that and will do so. I have a few ideas and was something I needed as I am often too quick to tuck my money away.

Lastly, Ashley came over with a couple of gifts. First, was a book of mushroom identification. When she and I hike, I often mention that I wish I knew more about what mushrooms were safe to eat. It would be great fun to pick a wild mushroom from the woods and eat it for dinner over a campfire, now I can! She also has been trying her hand at wood carving. I was the receiver of the first product of that honing skill. She carved me a mushroom! It was an amazing gift.

It means a lot to me that I have people like these in my life. It was a good pick me up from the long days of the holiday work season.

Zucchini Oat Muffins

2011-12-21T13:00:00.000-05:00

I have been in need of a haircut for a few weeks now. Ashley is generally my at home barber. She agreed to stop by the other day and cut my hair in exchange for some of my zucchini bread. I ran out of time and had to think quickly. I came up with a great muffin recipe that worked perfectly.

Zucchini Oat Muffins

3 cups of flour

2 cups of zucchini
3/4 cup of oats
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of brown sugar
1/2 cup of oil
1/2 cup of warm water
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1/2 teaspoon of salt

Grate the zucchini. Pre-heat the oven to 325 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, both sugars, oats, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt until well mixed. Add the zucchini, vanilla, oil, and water. Mix gently but well. This should be fairly wet by now.

Fill a muffin pan with 1/2 of the mixture and bake for 30 minutes. Allow to cool in the pan for an additional 5 minutes. Set on cooling rack and set up for about another 45 minutes. This recipe should make about 24 muffins.

Not sure if this is even an update...

2011-12-19T16:56:00.000-05:00

There has not been much going on. Some behind the scenes stuff but nothing significant to talk about. I am gearing up for another long couple of weeks at the jobby job over the holiday weekend. It will be brutal but I will make it through.

I have made a few dishes recently. Nothing new though. I made some great french fries. Fries may be one of my favorite things to eat. Now that the basketball season is back on track, there should be more nights on the couch with a big plate of fries. That is something to look forward too.

Unseasonal Meal of Amazing Celebration!

2011-12-15T23:33:00.001-05:00

Ashley came over for a visit this afternoon. It was nice to see her. She has been busy getting all A's in her classes at school. She did a great job this semester. I can not imagine trying to work, raise a child, and go through a demanding school program all at the same time. I am super proud of her.

To celebrate, we did what any Atlanta vegan does, cake from Southern Sweets! She picked a chocolate cake. A classic and favorite. Before we devoured the dessert, we had to eat some lunch.

We stopped at the farmers market to get some avocado and mango. Completely out of season and it tasted like it was. We made do, and created some great burritos. Ashley and I ate burritos all the time over the summer but neither of us had eaten them recently. There are few things like a good burrito!

Congratulations Ashley, you are an inspiration! Keep going, you will get there soon!

Dinner at my place...

2011-12-12T00:35:00.001-05:00

Friday night I had company. Adrienne (from Crack the Plates) and Nate came over for dinner. Since I hosted, I choose the food. I made Channa Masala and Mulligatawny Soup. They are some of my favorites and are fun to make.

Since I consistently botch up desert to a point of shame, Adrienne was not going to give me the chance. She made some amazing cookies! We gobbled them up and I was even left 4 of them for my bedtime snacks.

We had a fun night talking about music, nihilism, art, and our growing up years. It is always a fun time with those crazy kids. Next time, Nate has said he will cook for Adrianne and I. Even if I have to wait all day to eat, I am looking forward to it.

I rarely have friends over but when I do, I feel more in touch with people. Sometimes living alone and being a misanthrope is a bad combination. It is nice to mix it up.

An afternoon out with a four year old

2011-12-08T20:58:00.000-05:00

Ashley has been sick and studying for finals. Not a great combination when you are also trying to raise your child. She has been gutting it out for a week or so now. I thought that I might be able to help if I snatched her daughter up from school and took her for the evening.

I picked her up at school and we went to the movies. It was a fun time and the movie was actually pretty decent. I am generally harsh on movies. Then we went to the heath food store and shopped for a bit. We found some cool red pears and some great mini-cupcake!

Next it was off to the sushi bar! As I walked in with a four year old in tow, quite a few heads turned. I boosted her into the seat at the bar so she could watch them make her first sushi roll. She was pretty nervous about the whole experience but once she loosened up, she had a lot of fun. She even tried to use the chopsticks!

The owner was so enthralled with her being there that he made her a special treat for dessert. He chopped and orange and added some strawberry syrup, it was actually pretty good. Then it was homeward bound for her, and myself shortly after.

It was a great afternoon and Ashley got a lot of work done.

Real Estate and Beans

2011-12-03T00:20:00.000-05:00

I finally got a couple of days off after a grueling week. Interestingly, I spent it mainly doing Real Estate business, playing catch up. I did not cook much nor do anything blog-worthy. Unless the blog world wants to hear about me riding around town looking at (mostly) vacant houses and the story of why one is now called the "naked guy house". Seems like poor blogging though and certainly not food related.

I did soak some black beans overnight. I made a variation of my Smokey Black Beans and Kale recipe. It really hit the spot. It felt good to have a nice home cooked meal. With all the time spent at the jobby job, I have been eating mostly quick one player foods.

Throughout my life, I have been called Even Steven often. These last few weeks has been full of stress and disappointment. I am looking forward to the upcoming weeks when it all wheels back around.

Feet, you better brace yourselves, we are going to need a smooth landing.

Long long days...

2011-11-30T12:27:00.000-05:00

It has been a crazy week and a half. With its ups and downs, it looks to end on a low note. Sometimes things just do not go your way. Frustration. One of the few highlights of the week was that a friend of mine brought my some nice vegan cake. I do always enjoy a treat!

That made two great bedtime snacks! They are made by a local natural foods store. There are only a few things that make me feel better after a long crummy day. A large slice of cake in bed is one of them.

Eye of the storm

2011-11-25T13:42:00.000-05:00

It has been a crazy work week. While everyone is busy with their families, I have been racking up the hours at the jobby job as well as working on the Real Estate business. I love logged about 55 hours in 5 days, busy days, this week. It has been rough but this is the middle point. I still have some long hours heading into the weekend. I should be back on track around the first of the week. This is the eye of the storm.

Needless to say, long work days leads to very little kitchen time. I did have a few stored up pictures from recent dishes that I thought I would share.

A holiday to remember?

2011-11-22T00:18:00.000-05:00

For me, the holiday season is a mess. I have no family close by so I offer to work the holidays at the jobby job so other can have them off (and I get my time and a half). This week I will be logging well over 55 hours (busy hours) as well as doing the needed Real Estate stuff.

This leaves very little time to cook, or do much of anything for that matter. The other side of that situation is that this is the time I need the best food. I need to keep my body going, lots of sleep and healthy food. Not blogging at midnight and eating popcorn.

Much of the next week food items look much like this cashew and kale stir fry. Not sure if I will have much time to write this week nor will I have much to say. Have fun over the holiday and make sure you are extra nice to people who spend it at work.

Smokey Black Beans and Kale

2011-11-18T14:16:00.000-05:00

I have been on a bean soaking kick recently. For convince, I have used pre-cooked beans for most of my life. I started the "from scratch" only recently but have quite a handle on it so far. I am shocked at how easy it is. As a younger dude, I tried to make some chicpeas from dry beans and ruined one of my mum's good pots by bot using enough water. Going to hang out with my friends while they were boiling on high did not seem to help either. Sorry mum.

Here we have no burned pots, just delicious black beans and kale. It was fairly low fat too, for what that is worth out there in the blog world.

Smokey Black Beans and Kale

8 cloves of garlic (chopped)
4 bay leaves
2 tomatoes (chopped)
1 onion (chopped)
1 bushel of kale (torn from the stem)
1/2 green pepper (chopped)
1/2 red pepper (chopped)
5 1/2 cups of vegetable broth
2 cups of black beans (soaked)

1/3 cup of cilantro (chopped)
1 tablespoon of cumin
1 tablespoon of jalapeno pepper (chopped)
1 tablespoon of oil
2 teaspoon of liquid smoke
1 teaspoon of black peppercorns
1 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of dried chipotle pepper

If you are using pre-cooked black beans, reduce the water to 1 cup.

In a large pot, bring the vegetable broth to a simmer and add the pre-soaked black beans. If you are using pre-cooked black beans, add the beans and vegetable broth at the same time. Add the liquid smoke, bay leaves, dried chipotle pepper, and cumin.

If you are using pre-soaked beans, this should simmer for about 1 hour and 45 minutes before moving to the next step. Pre-cooked beans can ignore this.

In a saute pan, add the oil, onion, garlic, black peppercorns, jalapeno pepper, red pepper, green pepper, and tomatoes. Cook on low heat until the tomatoes begin to break down (about 20 minutes).

After the beans have been simmering for about 15 minutes, add the kale, cover and reduce heat to low. When the kale has reduced, add the ingredients from the saute pan and salt. Mix well and allow to simmer for at least 30 minutes. The longer this simmers, the more the flavors meld.

About 5 minute prior to serving, remove the bay leaves and add the cilantro. This dish is best served with brown rice.

I was sick but now I am better.

2011-11-17T15:14:00.000-05:00

It was a week or two ago that I had to use a sick day for my jobby job. I am feeling better now, so no worries. However, I did find some pictures that reminded me of a nice treat.

Home sick on a Sunday evening, Ashley and her daughter come over to make me some dinner. We had some veggie dogs, broccoli and Ashley tried her hand at some fried mushrooms. She took some portobello mushrooms and soaked them in bbq sauce, breaded them and fried them up. Honestly, I am not exactly sure what she did to them but they were delicious! I will have to ask her what she did so that I can replicate it.

It was really nice of them to come make me some nice dinner when I was not feeling well. It felt good to have some folks come take care of me when I was in need. Some people are real nice.

Happy Birthday Mum!

2011-11-16T15:09:00.000-05:00

Today is my mum's birthday. Happy Birthday Mum! It is times like this that I feel guilty that I am 1200 miles away from my nearest family. I would loveto be able to see and spend time with my mum on her birthday. I suppose that it the price I pay for being in Atlanta when all the family is in New England.

500 posts and 4 years later...

2011-11-14T11:39:00.000-05:00

This is my 500th post on my blog. Not only that but it is right around the 4 year marker for writing here. It was interesting how I got started; at the time, I was taking some college classes, one of which was an English writing class. My professor said that I should look into getting a degree is English as she really enjoyed my writing. She said I have a "unique voice is writing", my step brother (also an English teacher) has said the same thing and I am not quite sure I even know what it means.

My professor said she would really like to see me write more. I wrote a few things for the school paper but nothing significant. One day, after class, she showed me her blog. It was the first time I ever read a blog. I was living with Jamie at the time and she had just started a blog to sell some of her artwork. From there, I made my first post.

I remember posting it and feeling like I would not be likely to ever post again. I felt like it would be unlikely that anyone would read it and that there was not much of a point. Even now, I am not sure what kept me posting but I did.

Writing has kept me focused over the years. I think it has certainly helped me eat better and motivated me to cook more often. It has occasionally felt like a chore but overall has been a real joy. Happy 500th post to me and my blog! No signs of stopping!

In honor of my milestone achievement, I made myself a layered strawberry cake! Another testament to my struggling to improve baking skills. It was a great bedtime snack though!

Raspberry Muffins and my Nana

2011-11-11T13:33:00.001-05:00

After breakfast for dinner, I had some raspberries left over. Raspberries are one of my favorite foods. I love to cook with them as well, they are so rarely used. This time I used my basic raspberry muffin recipe and churned out a dozen amazing muffins. I do enjoy a good muffin!

After about 11 years, my Nana's estate was finally closed. I received my inheritance check yesterday. It was nice to have closure, my sisters put in a lot of hard work to get us there. I miss my Nana.

Breakfast for Dinner!

2011-11-09T15:28:00.000-05:00

Breakfast for dinner often gets overlooked in my house. I am not sure why, I really enjoy a good breakfast. Maybe I will look at it as more of an option on the future.

On Monday, Ashley and her daughter, Kaleigh came over for breakfast for dinner. It was fun and Kaleigh was able to help in the cooking a lot. She basically did the pancakes herself. She cut the strawberries, mixed the batter, and flipped them. We had a lot of fun and I was surprised at how her attention span lasted the entire cooking process.

We ended up with some great food. We had pancakes (strawberry, chocolate chuck and raspberry), homefries, and tofu scrambler. It was great fun and i was sad to see them leave.

Smokey Artichoke Pasta

2011-11-08T10:02:00.000-05:00

With the few hours I had before heading to the jobby job on Saturday, I decided to make something that I could have for my lunches over the weekend. I wanted something a little new that I had not been eating all the time. I thought back to a recent post when I made a paprika pasta dish that was very good but I wanted to make a few changes prior to sharing it with the blog world.

I headed to the kitchen to get to work. It came out very well. I brought it to the jobby job where I offered it to a co-worker to try. I turned my back to take care of another issue and the whole dish was gone! Eat loved it, and ate it all. I was not upset (I had already eaten enough for myself for the day), it was nice to have someone tear into it like that.

When I got home, I wrote out the recipe and was going to post it here when I realized that I had forgotten to take a photograph. Then of course, it was gone! I set out to make it again for my long day on Tuesday, mostly to have a picture.

Smokey Artichoke Pasta

3 cloves of garlic
8 oz of pasta (bow-tie preferred)
3 cups of water
1 cup of artichoke hearts (cubed)
2/3 cup of green peas
1/3 cup of red onion (sliced)
2 tablespoons of vegan sour cream
1 tablespoon of oil
1 tablespoon of paprika
1 teaspoon of black pepper
1 teaspoon of salt

In a pot, boil the three cups of water with the bow-tie pasta until tender. About 25 minutes.

In a saute pan, heat the oil on low-med heat and add the garlic, onion and salt. Cook the onions until tender. Add the artichoke hearts, pasta, vegan sour cream and mix gently. Add the pepper, paprika, and peas and mix gently. When the sour cream is melted, remove from heat and let cool.

Salvaged Dinner for Three!

2011-11-07T13:06:00.000-05:00

Over the weekend I went to see my pals at crack the plates for dinner and conversations. We brainstormed some wild ideas about the Atlanta vegan community. I will share more on that at a later date. We ate a great salvaged meal. It was something that was a lunch or some sort and all leftovers to be thrown away. Nate grabbed them up, Adrienne made them edible, and I ate them.

It was a nice beans and rice meal with a side salad. Adrianne went out of her way to make some amazing cup cakes for dessert, despite feeling ill. It was a fun night of heated conversations and inspiring ideas. Horry for great people and great food!

Halloween and an Ocobter recap.

2011-11-03T19:20:00.002-04:00

October was a strange month. I had a long vacation, some major financial ventures, significant relationship alternations, and have been re-united with an old nemesis / friend. It has been odd and none of it had much to do with the kitchen.

The month ended with something that I have not done in years. Maybe even 20 years. I went trick-or-treating. Ashley, her sister, her sisters boyfriend and I took Ashley's daughter Kaleigh out. Kaleigh had a great dragon costume. Everyone seemed to think she was a boy, apparently dragons are gender specific. I never knew.

I had a little costume of my own. Inspired by some old punk rock song lyrics and my long hours spent at the jobby job.

Strange month.

Paprika Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

2011-11-01T00:01:00.001-04:00

I have been feeling under the weather recently. It has been a drag and even resulted in me using a sick day at the jobby job. I always feel guilty when I call out sick but I try and remember that I am given my sick days for a reason and I should be able to use them when I need. I am feeling better now and should be 100% again soon.

Ashley and her daughter. Kaleigh, brought over the pumpkin that we picked a few weeks ago, for the Halloween carving. As a child, I do not have many memories of pumpkin carving. It was either not something we did often or it did not seem as significant as some others. This time, we used a pattern. I have never done used a pattern for pumpkin carving. It came out nice but felt unimaginative. Kaleigh liked it so I suppose that is what counts.

The best part of the pumpkin carving was fishing out the seeds and roasting them. My mum roasted a few pumpkin seeds when I was a child but I have never done it.

Paprika Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

1 cup of pumpkin seeds
1 tablespoon of oil
3/4 tablespoon of smoked paprika
1/2 tablespoon of salt
1 teaspoon of garlic powder
1 teaspoon of pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 250 degrees.

Rise the seeds and separate from the pumpkin strings. There is no need to dry overnight. Simply rinse well and pat dry with a towel.

In a bowl, add all other ingredients and fold in the seeds. Pour the seeds on a baking sheet lined with foil. Bake for 1 hour. Every 20 minutes, take the seeds out and flip them to avoid sticking and burning.

Halloween Childhood

2011-10-31T01:30:00.000-04:00

As a kid, one of the special times of the year was Halloween. I attribute most of this to my father. He loves the holiday. As a child, I can recall elaborate Freddy Kruger costumes for myself and massive costume parties for he and his friends. It was always an exciting time of the year.

One year, he and I spent long hours making a creep haunted house in the crawl space of the old farm house we lived in. I had a party and invited my friends to come and they all loved it. Other times I can recall trick-or-treating near my nana's house farm house and getting candy apples and all sorts of other treats. It seems like Halloween has changed a lot since I was a child. I hope dad does something fun this year. He deserves it for all the years he made this time of the year special for me.

In Atlanta, the big event for me around Halloween is Netherworld. Netherworld is one of the top ranked haunted house in the country. They have amazing costumes and an elaborate maze of horror each year. It is one of the highlights of the year for me. I really enjoy it. This year, I even got jumped a few times!

A week of foods

2011-10-28T14:04:00.000-04:00

Ashley came over the other day. We watched a movie and she wanted to make burritos. I am not one to object to burritos so we tore it up. It was a nice time.

I also have been making hummus wraps for work. They have been a wonderful food to simply grab and go. It has been a stress filled week and it has been nice to have a simple and health meal for work each day.

Smoothies have still been a regular work event as well. My co-workers curiosity has peaked quite a bit around the smoothies. There is rarely a day that someone does not ask what kind I am having today or how I made it or if they can try it.

A tale of a cake gone whacky.

2011-10-26T15:07:00.000-04:00

Over the weekend, I realized I did not have a bedtime snack. After watching a movie with Ashley, where they were eating cake, I knew what I had to do. Pull out the bake ware and try my hand at another cake. Always a risk in my house.

I was whipping up the batter when I spotted some green food coloring I had laying around. Without a second thought I dumped a bit in and vigorously whipped it up. It was that nice obnoxious green. I tossed the cake in the oven and began to look for icing ideas. An old store acquired can of bright pink strawberry icing, tucked far back in the cabinet, caught my eye. Goldmine.

A couple hours later, I had frosted the green cake with pink icing and to be honest it looked like a carebear had exploded in my baking dish. It was interesting. The icing was suspect at best but who can complain about a bedtime snack this colorful?

Ratatouille and the Autumn

2011-10-24T13:03:00.000-04:00

In addition to my bucket of black beans, I have been eating some Ratatouille. I made a sizable batch to accompany me on my long week at work. It is a really great meal to prepare in advance because as it sits, the flavors meld even more. It has been a nice healthy and hearty meal for the jobby job.

Autumn is my favorite time of the year. The leaves are changing, it is getting cooler, there are all sorts of fun Halloween events, and the food is always heavy and roasted! There is nothing like the autumn.

I also want to give a huge shout out to my fellow Atlanta blogger, Czech Vegan. She has really helped to promote my blog and she does some amazing dishes of her own and runs her own business. She is an inspirational lady and I am not sure how she does it. Please go check her blog out!

Black Beans and Tato!

2011-10-23T12:25:00.000-04:00

It seems pretty standard for me that when I return to the jobby job from a vacation, I end up working a silly amount of hours. This time I was mildly pre-pared. I soaked some black beans and made a hue bucket of them to take to work for several days. It was something I rarely do. I am generally (as awful as it is) a quick, canned beans guy. I went all out and these were fantastic.

I have been keeping pretty busy over the last week back to work and I have even had one of my favorite house guests! Tato has been here since Monday! Despite him waking me up each morning with head-butts to the face at 8:30am, he is a great guest. Black beans and Tato, it has made an otherwise hectic week not so bad.

Liebster Award

2011-10-20T14:52:00.000-04:00

“Liebster” is German and means ‘dearest’ or ‘beloved’ but it can also mean ‘favorite’.
The idea behind this award is to bring attention to bloggers who have less than 200 followers and show your support during Vegan Mofo!

The rules of winning this award are as follows:

1. Show your thanks to those who gave you the award by linking back to them.

2. Reveal 5 of your top picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.

3. Post the award on your blog.

4. Enjoy the love and support of some wonderful people on the www!

I think these awards are a great way to get new followers and share followers with other great blogs. I encourage any blogger in the blog world to participate, they are great networking.

Drumroll, please...and the Liebster goes to:

Nuestra Cena-American & Latin Vegan Cuisine

Enjoy these great blogs as much as I have! Thank you so much too Vegan Fazool for giving me this wonderful award, make sure you check out her blog as well.

14 days and nearly nothing to show

2011-10-19T00:26:00.000-04:00

I spend my first day back at the jobby job after 14 days off. Suprisingly I was in a good mood, the first day back is generally brutal. Interestingly, I typically have some wild stories to share with my co-workers when I return but not this time. In fact, in my 14 days off, I did very little. It was truly a vacation, there were even a few days that the only time I left the house was to get the mail. It felt nice. Relaxing.

During my time off, I barely cooked any food (aside from the single night I had company) and I rarely ate. This was not my intention. I had some grandiose plans for my time off but opted to spend it just enjoying the time as it floated into the past.

A few things I ate, mainly quick foods:

popcorn no vacation is complete without it

soy chicken bbq sandwiches

mashed potatoes again, never too many

slumming with some frozen waffles

It was a great vacation.

Pumpkin Picking 2011

2011-10-17T10:57:00.000-04:00

Sunday, Ashley, her daughter Kaleigh, and I, took an afternoon trip to a farm and did some pumpkin picking. We attended this same place last year and it was a lot of fun. I know I am repeating myself from the apple picking trip but, it is amazing to see how much of a difference one year makes when you are only four. Kaleigh even lead us in two different corn mazes.

We found the perfect pumpkin at the end of the day. Kaleigh said she wanted one that was large enough to carve but one she could carry herself. We found it, but only after she and I ogled all the rotten pumpkins. It was a fun afternoon.

A night of campany

2011-10-14T13:52:00.000-04:00

I broke out of my anti-social shell a bit last night and had some guests over for dinner. Adrianne (of Crack the Plates fame) and Nate came over for dinner and conversations. I made Seitan Steaks, Mashed Potatoes, Roasted Brussel Sprouts, salad, and a failure of a Cheesecake. It was a nice meal and the conversation was certainly entertaining. I hope to do more dinners like this in the future. Adrianne is a great cook and I would be fun to share ideas!

Relaxing on vacation

2011-10-13T14:47:00.000-04:00

I have been keeping busy with my to-do list on my vacation. I am plugging along but am lazing about quite a bit. It is nice to just relax. I did however, make a nice cake for my bedtime snacks!

I have also been making more french fries since the weather has been cooler. They are so good. French fries are one of my favorite foods. Not much else can compare.

Weekend Vacation: Day Two

2011-10-11T13:49:00.001-04:00

Sunday was a much less exhausting day. Ashley and I only got in a single hike before we headed back to Atlanta. We went to Station Cove Falls. We hiked out in about 30 minutes, it was a great path with all sorts of mushrooms and wild flora that I had never seen before. When we got to the falls, it was impressive.

Shortly after we arrived at the falls, a group of four meandered up as well. Within minutes, on the the guys was on his knee proposing to his girlfriend. Ashley and I stood back, held out tongues and watched. It was entertaining. They also had some dogs that were running around but did not seem to want to pay Ashley or I any attention.

Ashley and I climbed up to the second tier of the falls and wandered around a bit. It was a really nice falls with lots of intricate water patterns. We spent about an hour at the falls and then headed back to Atlanta.

We stopped at Green Sprout for dinner and received an interesting fortune inside of our cookie. Sound advice, albeit a bit late.

Weekend Vacation: Day One

2011-10-10T12:59:00.000-04:00

Ashley and I opted to camp out at the Oconee State Park since the one trick pony town of Walhalla South Carolina had only the single motel and it looked quite sketchy. We sleathed our way into the park after dark and grabbed a site, put up the tent and crashed.

The next morning we went to the office, made a reservation for that night and headed to Walhalla for a bagel and water. Within an hour, we were headed out on Bee Cove Trail. This was an adventure to find as the trail head was not marked at all. In fact, the trail was not marked even once in the woods. The last leg of the trail was completely trailblazing. It was down the side of a fairly steep mountain to the Bee Cove Falls. We were using sticks and such to mark our way.

We had lunch sitting in front of the second tier of the falls. Ashley even fell asleep on the rocks. I wandered, photographed, and played. Then we headed back. Finding out way back was an adventure in itself. We did not really get lost but we were not of the route that we marked when we came it. Eventually, we made it out, back to the car, and headed to the next falls.

King Creek Falls was a much shorter hike and was very easy to follow. When we got there, a family with three great dogs we relaxing. We played with the dogs and enjoyed the falls. This time of the year, there is far less water coming over the falls than usual but it was gorgeous just the same.

After the falls, we headed back into Walhalla to see if we could do a little thrifting before heading back to the campsite. We found some fun shops, walked the town a bit, picked up some veggie dogs for a cook out and headed back to the camp.

Ashley quickly made a roaring fire and grilled out the veggie dogs. Concerned about the leftover meat residue on the metal grill of the fire pit, we took some small sticks and made our own grill on top of the metal one. Of course, the roaring flames caught the sticks on fire and we we soon eating our dogs a little crunch. The trials and tribulations of a vegan campground cookout in a meaty world. Our dogs were still great though and shortly after, we were fast asleep, breathing the open air once again.

Supplies!

2011-10-07T13:09:00.000-04:00

I am taking the time this afternoon to get some thing ready for a small hiking trip this weekend. I am hoping that Ashley and I will catch the beginnings of the foliage season but I fear we may be slightly early. It will still be a great time and we should see some amazing things.

I picked up some supplies for a few day trips. Very indulgent but still solid food for a day or tow in the woods. Maybe I will wrap up some burritos for the evenings. We should be able to pick up some fresh fruit while we are close to our location. Bananas in the woods are the best.

Vacationing!

2011-10-05T11:21:00.000-04:00

I am only going to offer a short post today. As of about midnight last night, I am officially on vacation. I have a little trip planned but nothing major. It was a use it or lose it vacation. I have a secret list of things I would like to get done during my time off but I am going to keep it to myself so that I am not actually obligated to do any of them.

When I woke up this today, I felt like I did not even want to get out of my PJs, so far I have not. I may not for the rest of the day. I think I need some relax time. It will be a nice break.

I set myself up for a nice end to the work week by bringing some fairly healthy food to the jobby job yesterday. I made some red lentils, with cumin seeds, steamed broccoli and corn. It felt good to eat. I also brought a nice peach smoothie. I hope to eat some nice foods on my vacation.

Apples and Ice Cream!

2011-10-04T09:29:00.000-04:00

Despite taking an apple to work each day, giving out several apples, making apple squares, and Ashley taking her share of the apples to her house, I still had a few apples left. Coincidentally, I also had no snack for bedtime. Problem solved.

I cooked the apples down in some cinnamon, walnuts, maple syrup and vanilla, until they were soft. Then I simple scooped them on a plate, dropped some almond ice cream on them and drizzled the remaining syrup over the top of the whole thing. It was like pie without the crust. It was fantastic. Due to a spill, it also ended up all over the sheet and comforter in my bed.

Ginger Soy Dressing

2011-10-03T11:35:00.000-04:00

As the summer spins away, my desire for leafy salads dwindles also. Actually, most of the time I have to force myself to eat salads. Once they are in front of my, I really enjoy them and I generally feel good after eating them. I just am constantly reluctant to assemble them.

Friday, I made a salad, simply to pound in the veggies I have been missing with a hectic pre-vacation work schedule. It was topped with a quick and simple ginger soy dressing.

Ginger Soy Dressing

2 cloves of garlic
1 inch chunk of fresh ginger
1/2 cup of water
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 tablespoon of oil

In a blender, puree all ingredients until smooth. There may be a layer of "foam" that forms on the top. Simply remove it with a spoon and discard. Chill the dressing for 30 minutes prior to serving.

Too early for this adventure.

2011-10-02T13:55:00.002-04:00

I had quite an adventure this morning. As I woke up, I grabbed a quick shower, thew on an undershirt and some shorts (no belt) and headed outside to drop an envelope into the outgoing mail for tomorrow. As soon as I shut the door behind me, I realized that I had locked myself out of my house. No belt, no shirt, no phone, and no key. To top it off, I had to be to work (again) in a matter of hours.

My neighbor was in his yard and I told him that I was locked out. He informed me that he always has a hidden key around his house. Since that advice was not really helping at the moment, he offered his phone so I could make a call. I looked at the phone and realized that cell phones have lead me to never know any phone numbers at all. I had no one to call. All the while, my pants are almost falling off.

As the neighbor and I wandered around the house looking for solutions (while I was holding my pants up), I noticed a window that the lock was not fully clasped on. He offered a credit card but it was to flimsy to push the lock. My garage was unlocked so I poked around in there. I spotted what I hoped would be the perfect tool.

The saw was flexible enough to get up into the window but hopefully solid enough to push the remaining lock open. After several minutes of working it over, I popped the lock open! Thanking the neighbor, I climbed in the window, falling face first on the floor on the other side, pants still on the sill. My first order of business? Hide a key. Lesson learned.

Time to eat and go to work.

Vegan MoFo Kick Off: Apple Sqaures!

2011-10-01T11:58:00.001-04:00

Here it is! Vegan MoFo is finally here! For those in the blog world that do not know what Vegan MoFo is, it is the Vegan Month of Food. It is where vegan bloggers throughout the world, blog as much as they can. Last year I was able to post everyday. I have high hopes for this year but I know I have a busy month ahead and may not meet that same goal.

As for today's post, I wanted to share something special. This is a recipe circa 1998 that I made often back then. I was going to save them for the cookbook but I have decided to share them today, to kick off a great month of MoFo.

These are slightly on the crumbly side and my plastic wrap skills leave something to be desired but they still make a wonderful snack for the road. I have taken them to work, school, and even traveling. They are the perfect pack and go food.

Apple Squares

2 medium tart apples (peeled, cored, sliced thin)
1 1/2 cups of flour
1 cup of packed brown sugar
1 cup of oats
1/4 cup of apple juice
1/4 cup of crushed walnuts (optional)
3 tablespoons of oil
2 tablespoons of cinnamon
1 tablespoon of molasses
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees and prep the apples.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, oats, baking powder, crushed walnuts, cinnamon, and salt. This should be relatively smooth. Add the oil and molasses and slowly add the apple juice, mixing with your hands until the mixture begins to clump slightly.

Then take 2 cups of the mixture and slightly pack in into a 9x9 glassware baking pan. This will be slightly more than half of the mixture. Use the apple slices to spread over the next layer. Lay them flat and stack them high. Use the remaining crumb mixture to sprinkle over the top of the apples. Pat very lightly and bake for 45 minutes or until the edges begin to brown.

Allow to cool for about an hour, then slice into 6 pieces. Tote and share.

Searching for the motivation...

2011-09-30T15:49:00.000-04:00

Only 1 more day until Vegan MoFo. I do not have much to share right now, I hope for some inspiration heading into MoFo. I have not been cooking much recently. I do have a vacation coming up that I hope to get a lot of housework and cooking completed. I just need to stay motivated.

I did however, make a massive plate of fries yesterday. I felt good and comforting. I ate to many and it made me feel a little less comfortable later but it was still worth it.

More than a Fair time,

2011-09-28T11:48:00.000-04:00

It is fair season here in Georgia. As a kid, it was something I really looked forward to each year. Now that I am older, it is till fun but for other reasons. As a people watcher, it is always interesting to go and see the unique characters that wander the fairgrounds. This year, Ashley and I took her daughter, Kaleigh. Kaleigh was sick so her energy level was low but we still had a lot of fun. It was her first real fair experience. We did t all, we rode rides, we eat fries, we pet animals, and we played games.

An unconventional Real Estate meeting

2011-09-26T13:07:00.001-04:00

Last Thursday evening, I had a meeting with Adrienne (who does Crack the Plates) and her partner, Nathaniel. We talked Real Estate and Adrienne made some amazing food. It was really refreshing to have a Real Estate meeting with folks that I seem to have so much in common with. It was a nice "outside of the box" experience.

Adrienne made some beans, rice, and a jerk seitan with peppers. It was delicious. In fact, it was so good I had to go back for seconds! The beans were by far my favorite. They were perfectly cooked and seasoned. It was a great meal coupled with great conversation. It is also nice to see other folks who collect the vintage cook and glassware.

Nathaniel even shared his first successful cookie making experience with me. I was warned that the cookie was made with whole wheat flour. I actually do not mind whole wheat in my pastries so I thought the cookie was fantastic.

It turned out to be a really fun night and I got to know so very nice people.

Burrito rice...soon.

2011-09-25T14:19:00.000-04:00

Lunches have been heavily on my mind over the last week or so. I have been enjoying the cooler weather and the invitation to use the oven again. However, I did make some summer standards, burritos! I made an extra to tote to work with me. There is not much like a good burrito. I am working on a rice recipe for inclusion in burritos and I think I am about done with it. It has been adding some great flavor and texture to the burrito.

I also made a nice light pasta salad. The recipe is worth sharing but I will wait for the upcoming Vegan MoFo. It is just around the corner! I do not think I will be able to commit to posting each day as I did last year.

I will be out of town for a few days in October. Vacation! In fact, I have a full 10 days off from the jobby job in October. I do not have much planned at this point. It was kind of a "use it or lose it" scenario. It will be nice to have the time to relax, take a weekend trip and get some house works done.

Thank you.

2011-09-23T14:24:00.000-04:00

I really appreciate the helpful comments I got about my blog and the ways to improve it. It is nice to have help, in fact, I took several of the recommendations. I think this will help me support other blogs I enjoy as well as help other support this blog. Thank you.

As for the kitty to live with me, I am doubtful. I am allergic and not home enough. I do enjoy the company but it does not currently suit my life. I will just have to hope that Jamie goes out of town again so that I can cat-sit!

Last week, I made some great thai food. It has been something I have been craving and Ashley was down to try. It came out really well but I want to continue to tweak the recipe before I share it. I am not sure it is very aesthetically pleasing. It came out very green. The taste was solid though. It is hard to go wrong with thai basil and thai chilies.

House guest!

2011-09-22T11:48:00.001-04:00

Over the Labor day weekend, I had a house guest! I was so excited and we had so much fun. Tato came for a visit! It has been a long time since he came for a visit and I was thrilled he was here.

When I lived with Jamie, and just began this blog, years ago, Tato had just flown in from Maine to live with us. He was just a little rug rat then and really was a hellion. Now, he is older and far more mellow. He still head-butted me awake each morning at 9:00am. That was a downer, but it was still sweet. He is a good guy and I was disappointed when I had to take him back to his home at Jamie's.

It is always hard when it is time for him to go home and I hope he come back to visit again soon.

All food and no action.

2011-09-20T09:35:00.000-04:00

I think my life is at a strange point when talking about the blog upkeep. There are so many things that I want to do with this blog but am not tech savvy enough to even know where to begin.

I would really like to add a blogroll on the side so that readers could see blogs I follow.
I would like to tie in a way to contact me for Real Estate purposes.
I would like to find a away to drum up more followers.
I am still thinking hard about changing the name of the blog.

It seems like I have take many food pictures to share but there has not been much going on in my day-to-day life so I do not blog. I feel like I am sharing picture of food I ate a week or more ago. I guess there is no harm in that.

I thought I would share a few picture with the blog world and attempt to "catch up". One is a nice summer salad. I had some leftover soy strips so I fried them yup and tossed them on.

I made a stir fry about a week ago. Stir fry is one of my favorite dishes. I really like to pack the veggies in!

I have also still been making smoothies nearly every day. In fact, I made one recently and poured it into my new mushroom cup! Jamie got it for me, they are super cool.

A confession...

2011-09-19T11:54:00.000-04:00

The other day I got a little motivation and wanted to hike Stone Mountain. I left the house with my camera in tow, ready to climb the mountain. I rode into the park only to get completely lost and unable to find the trail head for the mountain hike. I drove around for about 30 minutes before getting annoyed and driving back home, defeated. I did spot a few mid-day deer though.

Once home, I had to cheer myself up after such an event. Cake should do it! I used my chocolate cake recipe to make one of the best cakes I have whipped up. Nothing cheers me up like cake.

This weeks lunches were back to bakes pasta. I just had it a week or so ago but it was so easy and perfect that I had to go another round. It was so good and so gooey! Perfect for lunch at the jobby job.

Amicalola Falls

2011-09-16T15:01:00.000-04:00

After the apple orchard, we followed the tradition of last year and headed town the road to Amicalola State Park. After a short hike through a well beaten path, the trail takes a new turn. A staircase of 175 steps begins. It is quite a climb but well worth it once you see the falls at the top. Last year, Kaleigh was half asleep and was not old enough to walk the entire distance. This year, not only did she climb to the top on her own but she even had the energy to climb out on the rocks with me and play in the smaller falls.

It was a great end to the day. Ashley and I wore her out so much that Kaleigh slept the whole way back to Atlanta. It was a full day and resulted in a large sack of apples at my house, I have no idea what I will do with them all.

Apple Jubilee 2011

2011-09-15T16:41:00.001-04:00

As a child, one of the highlights of the late summer early autumn season was the afternoon my mum and I would go to the apple orchard. It made great memories for my mum and I. We road on hay wagons, ate apples we should have been picking and always left with a gallon of cider and maple candy.

The apple orchard in the south are a little different but have their own brand of greatness for a mother and child. I was lucky enough to accompany Ashley and Kaleigh to the orchard for the second straight year. It was a great day and Ashley and I were constantly amazed at how much she had grown in a year.

This year Kaliegh was even big enough this year to pick her own apples.

As a lunch, we split some ribbon french fries. These are always a treat at the orchard, as they also grow their own potatoes. I just wish they made some vegan pie for us!

Baked Shells for Work

2011-09-11T11:02:00.000-04:00

My work food has been much improved recently. I have been trying to break out of the sandwich mold to get some other items. Next month will be exactly 1 year since I went "out" on my lunch at work. I figure this has saved me hundreds of dollars. Maybe I will actually run the numbers for it sometime.

Last week was a hit. I had some let over mock meats from a burrito, as well as some vegan cheese, so I decided to make some baked shells! It was actually really good. The vegan cheese made it really creamy. It was certainly one of the best work meals I have had in awhile.

Forcing the issue

2011-09-09T10:23:00.000-04:00

I have to admit, I am forcing the issue of autumn here. It is still in the upper 80's and humid in Atlanta but I am over it. I want the autumn to come. Not only am I planning another foliage trip but I am eating the typical autumn foods.

Locally, I found a super sale! I got three large sweet potatoes for only one dollar. Thrilled, I snapped them up thinking it was another autumn food I have been craving. In my opinion, autumn is the best time of the year for foods. Heavy, roasted, laced with garlic and herbs. So good.

I took these discounted sweet potatoes and cubed them up like home fries. I wanted it simple, after all, it was still too hot to labor long in the kitchen. I doused them with some salt and cinnamon and tossed them in the oven. They were fantastic. I ate them for a couple of days and they made perfect work food. Good find.

For my bedtime snack it was some store acquired pie topped with some store acquired almond ice cream. Simple, yet yummy.

Brussel Sprouts!

2011-09-07T23:25:00.000-04:00

The grocery stores in Atlanta seems to be selling a lot of my favorite autumn vegetables. Brussel Sprouts are at the top of that list. Ashley and I spotted them on sale and grabbed a bag.

We first opted to just make a simple roast. I used my Roasted Brussel Sprout recipe that I have had for years. It is a simple idea but still one of my favorites.

A few days later, I made the obligatory "cook all the veggies before they go bad" dish. I tossed the remaining brussel sprouts, garlic, potatoes, zucchini, summer squash, and even a block of tofu.

A new bread and more burritos

2011-09-05T20:11:00.003-04:00

I have not been posting many recipies lately. I would like to say that I am saving them all up for veganmofo but it is not true. I have just been a little busy and trying to perfect dishes to share.

My most recent experiement is a new blueberry bread. It has some uniqinees thay I will drop on the blog world at a later date. (Maybe these cliff hangers will help my dwindling blog-hits?) I will however, share a quick photo.

I have also been making burritos often. I think that it is my autumn craving for hearty foods coupled with the heat of the lingering Atlanta summer. I really want something heavy but my body rejects not only the food but the time it takes to cook it. Burritos are the prefect solution. Hearty, quick, easy.

Mango has been finding its way into many of my burritos. It really adds a nice sweetness, much like corn, but jucier. It is a massive hit at my house and I would encourage anyone to try it.

The Mainers Whoopie

2011-09-02T18:52:00.002-04:00

In Maine, everything was a whoopie pie. It was rare to go into a local sandwich or coffee shop and not have some homemade whoopie pie available. There were stores dedicated solely to selling whoppie pies. They seemed to be popping up faster than wild blueberries.

I was fairly intrigued. It seemed that there was almost a lack of creativity to the phenomenon. All I never saw were the standard chocolate whoopies and the occasional vanilla or peanut butter whoopies. While I am sure there are specialty places that offer a wider variety, I did not see them. Maine has never really been know for its variety.

All of these whoopies got me thinking outside the box. I have already done chocolate chip whoppies, and red velvet whoopies, and a few other variations. I am determined to get back to my Maine roots and stir the pot a bit.

Introducing, Snickerdoodle Whoopie Pies:

(recipe to come soon)

The Spinach Pasta

2011-09-01T11:30:00.003-04:00

Ashley and I made a great dish with the spinach pasta that we picked up at the farmers market. We roasted some vegetables with tofu and I made a cheese sauce with cashew cream and nutritional yeast. It was kind of somewhere between a mac and cheese and a pasta salad. It came out fantastic.

The noodles were so flavorful and the dish as a whole was great. We made enough for each of us to take some to work the following day. I also had some left over hummus from Ashley's birthday celebration, and took it to work in a pita.

Mainely Vacation: Day Ten - Home for Ashley's Birthday!

2011-08-31T01:20:00.000-04:00

Day Ten was back in Atlanta. Sadly, I missed Ashley's birthday due to the wedding. There was little avoiding it and I tried to make the best of it on the day I returned. I felt awful.

We stopped and got a cake and headed back to my house. I tossed mt bags down, had a quick hummus pita lunch, and we went out to a movie. It was fun, I really should go to more movies.

We stopped at the farmers market to get some fresh vegetables. We also found some fresh made spinach pasta that was vegan so we picked it up. We were not going to use it today but we figured it would be a good thing to have in the future.

It was then back to the house to make dinner. Ashley wanted carne asada. We started in and diligently worked together and had a fantastic dinner.

I hope she had a great birthday and I hope that I will be around next year for the actual day.

Mainely Vacation: Day Nine - The Final Day

2011-08-29T22:56:00.000-04:00

Day nine was my last vacation day in Maine. I spent the afternoon with my mum. We went to Waterville and had lunch at the Grand Central Cafe. We had some bread and oil as an appetizer, we each had a personal pizza for our main dish. They had some vegan cheese so I was in business.

After lunch, we stopped at a consignment shop and headed back to the Augusta area. I dropped my mum off and I headed back out to my dad's house. We all hopped on the motorcycles and went for a scenic ride around the back roads in Maine. It was a great day for a ride and it had been years for me.

We stopped and had dinner and then headed back to my dad's house. I left shortly after, as I needed to return the rental car. After some TV with my mum, I headed to bed to get my early flight in the morning. Sadly, my time in Maine was coming to an end.

Mainely Vacation: Day Eight - Acadia National Park

2011-08-29T00:36:00.000-04:00

Day Eight was going to be a big day. I got together early with my long time friend Westie and we headed to Acadia National Park. I grew up less than two hours away from the park and think I may have only been there about twice. This makes the seventh National Park in 13 months and the eighth in 2 years. This was going to be a fun day.

We stopped at the visitors center to grab a map and headed toward Cadillac Mountain. We heard the hike up was only about 45 minutes. As we were driving down the road, we saw a bunch of folks climbing out of a trailhead. We asked them if it was the Cadillac Mountain trail and they confirmed that it was. We packed some water and a banana each and headed off for a short hike.

Nearly two hours went by before we reached the top of the Mountain. Apparently, we were on the wrong trail. It was a great hike all the same but it was going to limit our time to get other hikes in. We still really enjoyed the time and had some great conversations. As we climbed the rocky cliffs of the Mountain face, we got amazing looks of the bay, there was a bit of fog, topping all of the islands.

We did not pack enough to eat so we had to find wild Maine blueberries on the trail. By the time we got back to the car we are starving. A quick drive got us to Sand Point beach area, where we climbed up on some rocks to have a small dinner. Hummus and pitas go a long way on a hiking adventure.

When we were done eating, it was dusk and we still wanted to go visit Jonny. It would be my last chance to see him before I left. We decided to take a quick trip to Thunder Hole and see the sun set.

We really needed some dinner so we headed out of the park into the tourist town of Bar Harbor. We spotted this vegan restaurant called Eden Cafe. It was a bit pricey but we decided to splurge and it was well worth it. We shared two appetizers, cornbread battered oyster mushrooms with a creamy sauce, and tofu spring rolls. We also split an entree, soy seitan cutlets, they came with some potatoes also. We each for our own deserts. Westie had a peanut butter cup pudding, and I had a slice of blueberry cheesecake. It was a great meal and I think we added to the decor as it was fairly ritzy and we stunk like hikers.

We spent a few hours with Jonny and his new wife Leeann. Then we headed back to the mainland. It had been a long.

Mainely Vacation: Day Seven - The Beach!

2011-08-28T02:57:00.000-04:00

Day Seven had my mum and I go to the beach! It has been years since I have been to a beach. The Maine beaches are a littler different than a typical beach in the south. There is not nearly as much sand, the sand that is there is a more brown color and the water is as cold as ice.

As a child, my mum and I used to go to the beach often. It was cheap and close by. This time there seemed to be a lot more people than I recall as a child but it was still a fun time. We sat in some chairs we brought for a bit. We walked down the sandy beach and mused about the fact that children do not seem to be phased by the icy waters.

When we left the beach, we drove around the coast looking for food but were unsuccessful. We got all the way back to her house and invited my sister Cait her her daughter Jazaiah to dinner. I had a veggie wrap and some home cut fries.

I stayed with my mum that night. I felt like I had been going all the time since I started my vacation. It was good to have a night to sit and relax.

Mainely Vacation: Day Six - Bagels, Blueberries, and Basil

2011-08-26T21:45:00.000-04:00

Day Six was a little bit rainy. I met my mum for an early lunch at a local place called Bagel Mainea. They are very vegan friendly and even have some vegan cream cheese. I got a veggie garlic bagel, toasted with veggies, hummus and vegan cream cheese. It was very good.

From there we headed over to a local farmers market. We picked up some bread and there was a homemade ice cream truck. Luckily for me, they had a vegan blueberry ginger sorbet. Needless to say, I snatched up a couple of scoops before we left.

Later that afternoon, I took a drive to Starks Maine to see my good friend Elizabeth. I had not seen her in years. She has built her own house deep in the woods. We walked around her property for awhile and made some food, most of which came from her or neighbors gardens.

Elizabeth and I made a basil heavy stir fry with some noodles and pickles on the side. The night brought back many great memories.

Mainely Vacation: Day Five - Family Visit

2011-08-26T00:18:00.001-04:00

Day five was Monday. I got up and did a few things trying to help my mother load pictures from her memory card on her computer. Success.

I had a little lunch and headed to see my sister Nikki and her two kids. I have only seen her a few ties on the last several years but I wanted to make sure I made time on this trip. We chatted for a bit and my nice and I, Leann, shared some raspberries. My nephew, Jake, and I played some video games. I lost. Often.

After the visit with my sister, I headed to my dad's house. As I pulled in the driveway, I was shocked to see some amazing landscaping and gardening work. My dad had even made a metal lawn ornament that was pretty cool.

Apparently, my step-mother, Sue had dedicated much of her time to the yard. It looked great. As I walked around the back of the property, there was a large garden and even a row of hanging tomato plants. This placed looked great.

My dad, Sue, another sister of mine, Alisha, and I all went out to eat at a Chinese place. It was a fun night even if the weather was not great.

Mainely Vacation: Day Four - Pictures, Prscilla and Dinner

2011-08-25T01:59:00.000-04:00

Day Four had an early start. I had told Cait that we could take a walk into the local Vaughn's Woods. This is a serene place that runs through the towns of Farmingdale and Hallowell. Cait and I took her kids, Tayshaun and Jazaiah and went for a great morning walk.

After our walk in the woods, Cait went home for the kids nap time before a dinner at my mum's. I headed over to visit my unofficial grandmother, Priscilla. Each time I get to Maine, I always prioritize see her. She is a wonderful woman and we always have an amazing time. It is always one of the highlights of my trip.

Later that afternoon, I met my brother, Ben, at my mum's house and we headed to the store. We were dinner shopping. For the entire family. Ben and I got all sorts of foods. Dinner was great. I made a spinach smoothie with Tayshaun and Cait. We also made portabello mushrooms burgers on the grill, grilled pineapple, grilled mango, grilled zucchini, baked potato, corn on the cob, and Ben made and excellent salad. We had a great time.

Ben and I headed out to a local pub to see my friend Adam. Adam and I hung out until late and it was the end to a good day.

Mainely Vacation: Day Three - The Wedding

2011-08-24T00:55:00.000-04:00

Day Three was Jonny's wedding day. I was taking my mum as my date. Jonny and I have been really close since 1992 and he had a lot of face time with my mum as we grew up. My mum was excited to go and even more interested in seeing us in a tuxedos.

Prior to the afternoon wedding, my mum and I went to the Cumberland Craft Fair. We shopped for a bit and chatted in the warm afternoon. Then it was off to get read for the wedding. I was the only groomsman who knew how to tie a tie, so I had to help everyone. Then it was off to the church, which was strange on its own.

The wedding was long and hot but the pictures were brief. It was back to the reception and we had some food, a few more pictures, and I danced with my mum and some boy named Michael who I spent the prior day cooking with.

Then it was back to my mum's house for an early night. The food was great and the decor for the entire wedding was very vintage and unique.

Mainely Vacation: Day Two - Blueberry Cheesecake

2011-08-22T19:37:00.000-04:00

Day two was a busy day. I had to travel to Portland Maine to pick up my tuxedo. Then I headed to Cumberland Maine to help cook for Jonny's wedding. I was in charge of making vegan desserts. I made whoppie pies and a blueberry cheesecake. Jonny, and a few of his other friends were working on the rest. There were about 6 people who made all the food for the entire wedding.

The cooking (and reception) was taking place at his wife's parents house. They have some amazing gardens and even a few blueberry bushes. I picked all the blueberries for the cheesecake in their backyard.

Blueberry Cheesecake

5 vegan graham crackers
1 1/2 pint of blueberries
3 tubs of vegan cream cheese
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of powdered sugar
1/4 cup of maple syrup
3 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 tablespoon of vegetable shortening
1 tablespoon of brown sugar
2 teaspoon of vanilla
1 teaspoon of cinnamon

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a bowl, crush the graham crackers into a course powder. Fold in melted shortening, brown sugar and cinnamon. After a few minutes of folding, it will begin to form peas-sized balls. Pour the graham mixture into a pie pan and gently spread and push the graham to cover the bottom and edges. Bake in the oven for about 5-8 minutes or until the graham begins to brown.

Set aside 1 tablespoon of blueberries. Add remaining blueberries to a sauce pan with the powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon of vanilla. Use a masher to get the blueberry juice flowing. Heat on a low stetting and do not allow to simmer. Stir often.

In the meantime, in a food processor, add the vegan cream cheese, maple syrup, lemon juice, and vanilla and puree until smooth. This may require an occasional scraping of the sides. Once the cream cheese mixture is smooth, add the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time and puree until smooth. Once the blueberry mixture is complete, add 3/4 of a cup to the cheese cake mix puree for a few seconds until the mixture has gently combined with the blueberries.

At this point, there should be the cheese cake batter, some blueberry mixture, a graham cracker crust and a few whole blueberries on the side. Add the cheese cake batter to the graham cracker crust and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. The middle should be starting to firm up and the edges may be starting to pull away for crack.

Allow the cheesecake to cool for about 3 hours. Fold the remaining whole blueberries into the blueberry mixture and pour over the top of the cooled cheesecake. Chill for at least another hour before serving.

After completing my desserts, I helped cut potatoes for a potato salad (not vegan), I tied off corn for grilling (some vegan), taste testing for a vegan greek pasta salad, and helped with other odds and ends that needed to be completed. Then it was off to the wedding rehearsal. I was a groomsmen. This was only the fourth wedding I have been to and the first I was in the wedding party.

We all had some pasta after the rehearsal and I headed back to my mum's house shortly after.

Mainely Vacation: Day One - Savory Pemiquid

2011-08-21T11:33:00.000-04:00

Officially, day one of my vacation was spent in Atlanta, cleaning my house, packing, and getting ready to leave for Maine. My day one in Maine was more significant.

My mum and I got up and picked up my rental car. She went to work for a bit while I went to the grocery store. While I was there, in the small city of Augusta Maine, I ran into my sister Cait. In Atlanta running into people I know is far more uncommon. Luckily, it was someone I wanted to see! She shopped for a bit, bought our groceries and then we picked her up a blender as an early birthday present. It was a nice afternoon.

Shortly after eating a few veggie burgers back at the house, my mum arrived and we headed to Pemaquid Point. I have been there many times and each time I enjoy it more. Most people get all giddy about the lighthouse but I am not much for the human-made structures.

My enjoyment at Pemaquid, comes at the rush of waves cutting lines in the coastal rock. You can see how much the ocean has receded when you view the rocks. The spray from crashing waves is a constant in the air. Pemaquid is one of my favorite spots to visit in Maine and until this trip, it has been years. In fact, it had been year since I had seen the ocean. This was a great afternoon trip. Good company and good views.

For dinner, my mum and I drove through the small town of Damariscotta Maine. Damariscotta is a tourist town, buzzing in the summer months and a ghost town during the harsh Maine winters. We strolled through the town glancing at menus or a few minutes when we found a place called Savory Maine. This is a mostly organic restaurant that was very accommodating to my vegan diet. The server quickly got all the information I needed. It was a great meal. My mum got a fish dish, and I had a vegetable tofu soup,
tempeh loaf with marinara, potatoes, and a side of ratatouille. It was extremely good, we ate on the deck, overlooking the ocean.

The ride back to my mum's house was even a nice trip through the country in Maine. It is days like this that remind me why I stayed there for so long.

That evening, I went to see Jonny. Jonny's wedding was in two days and I had still not met his future wife. The three of us stayed up late, relaxing, and playing some games. For Jonny and I, it was jut like old times.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-10T00:13:00.000-04:00

As I was packing for my trip, I noticed there were several food dishes that i had not yet shared. I thought I would make my version of Wordless Wednesday. I have seen a few other blogs do it and thought it might be a fun way to get out some of the recent food items and make room for vacation pictures.

black beans and sweet potato

pinto beans, corn and mango

guacamole

avocado salad

mango peach smoothie

walnut mango salad

Whose recipe is this?

2011-08-08T18:48:00.000-04:00

Since I was out of snacks, and Ashley was bringing her daughter over for a couple hours for a visit, I thought it would be fun for the three of us to bake some cookie (and for them to leave the bulk of them here when they left). When they got here, we drove right in. Ashley was actually making some lunch while Kaleigh and I were mixing cookie batter. Then Ashley and Kaleigh spooned out the batter (I think I saw Kaleigh like the spoon!) and tossed them in the oven.

Since we were using my own recipe for the cookies, I figured that I would remember it. I was wrong. I completely forgot the brown sugar and had to add more white sugar. Then I noticed that I was out of vanilla so we used almond extract which game them a slightly cherry flavor. Then I got the time wrong and we overcooked them.

In the end, we had white colored, cherry tasting, very crunchy chocolate chip cookies. All in all, they were still cookies and they will all disappear as the nights grow long. I am not sure how exactly I failed to bake with my own recipe, but, lesson learned. Next time I will look it up.

It has been a hap-hazard week in the kitchen. I made some mediocre lasagna and failed with some cookies. It will not matter though, my belly will be full and my mouth happy.

Vacation will be here shortly and I am really looking forward to a break. It will be really nice to see the family, both biological and non.

Lunches aplenty

2011-08-08T00:27:00.000-04:00

Since my vacation is right around the corner, the jobby job is running me ragged. In fact, I spent my last day off making food to take with me for lunches. I will not be working many really long shifts but I will be logging in many shorter shifts.

Going back to a dish Ashley and I made a few weeks ago, I opted to re-create lasagna. This time around I used some mock meat and to be honest, I liked the non-mock meat version much better. However, it is a huge amount of food that will help me pull through the final days before my vacation. Next time I make some, I will make sure to share the recipe.

A walk in the park

2011-08-04T16:14:00.000-04:00

I was going back through my photo memory chips, cleaning them out for my upcoming trip to Maine, when I realized that there were several pictures that I have not shared. A few weeks ago, Ashley and I took a small hike through Stone Mountain. It was a short hike and very spontaneous but I got a few nice pictures none-the-less. I thought I would share.

Work food

2011-08-03T12:02:00.000-04:00

The last few days in the kitchen have been fairly uneventful. I have been working a lot to make up hours for a vacation I am about to take so I have not had much time. I made a little hummus for some wraps, that has been great food to take with me to work. I have also been making smoothies. Nothing new really, just the same old classics.

A few weeks ago I made another batch of sheppard's pie. Each time I have made this for work it has been perfect. It is hearty enough to get me through the day at the jobby job but has enough flavor that it feels better then some pre-packaged meal.

Another week and I will be taking a much needed vacation. It was cut back due to the lay-offs at the jobby job so I will be taking another in October. I am hoping the fall will move by faster than this summer. This heat is making me start to think about living somewhere other than Atlanta.

Banana Bread

2011-08-01T00:48:00.000-04:00

Months ago, I got my new blender. It has been doing work in my kitchen. I make smoothies for work nearly everyday. It has saved me money and allowed me to eat healthier. It has also forced me to get bananas every few days.

Recently, I got behind on the smoothie making and my bananas started to get too brown. That can only mean one thing, Banana Bread! It has been awhile since I have made some but after my recent cake disaster, I figured I should go for the sure fire thing. There is not much better than a thick slice of banana bread as an after dinner treat.

These came out perfect and I was even able to use my small loaf pans for several loaves. It has also been nice to share and even take some to work with me over the long weekend. It went over very well with the work friends, they were happy I shared.

The measurement of a chocolate success.

2011-07-28T15:51:00.000-04:00

How do I measure success? Well, I suppose, if it is simply for me or people close to me, as long as it tastes good, it is a success. If that is the measuring stick, then certainly, my recent cake attempt was a brilliant success. However, if the standard is an aesthetically pleasing and well constructed cake, I failed.

The cake was baking well but my failure as a baker shined through when it came out of the pans in pieces. Since I have a lot of experience piecing cakes back together I was able to place them in relative togetherness, enough to ice. The icing held the pieces together enough for a few pictures and some tasty slices of cake but no doubt about it, this cake was a train wreck. A tasty, sugar infested, chocolate train wreck.

Three Days Off!

2011-07-27T16:31:00.000-04:00

I have 3 days off! I am pumped. I hope I find the motivation to get some things done. If I do not end up doing anything, I think I will be fine with just a relaxing time off as well.

I took a look at some houses this morning and have a Real Estate things I will be taking care of over the next few days. When I got home this afternoon, I made some of my chicpea chicken salad. It is such a nice summer treat. Makes for a great lunch!

I think I will try to make a cake later. I could use the sugar. I am going to have a great few days off!

Roasted Corn and Peppers

2011-07-21T22:32:00.000-04:00

Thursday was a nice morning off. There was some thrifting involved and a nice lunch. Ashley had come over for the afternoon and we made some smoked pinto beans and a nice side dish. This corn side dish was such an excellent compliment to the pinto beans. It was light and sweet and really mellowed out the heavy beans. It was also gorgeous.

This will certainly be a steady addition to any of my Mexican dishes. It was really fresh and refined.

Roasted Corn and Peppers

1 red bell pepper (chopped)
1/2 onion (chopped)
2 cups of frozen corn
1 tablespoon of cumin seeds
1 tablespoon of oil
1 tablespoon of red onion (sliced)
1/4 teaspoon of salt

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a small baking pot, add the oil, onion (both types), and cumin and bake for 5 minutes or until onions are tender. Remove from the oven, add the corn, salt, and red pepper, stir well and return to the oven for about 20 minutes. The corn will slightly darken in color and begin to plump. Remove from the oven, stir and serve.

Th final plates made for a nice lunch. A little heavy for the harsh Atlanta summer weather but still great for sitting inside, enjoying the air conditioning.

Lasagna!

2011-07-20T12:44:00.000-04:00

I can not believe that I forgot to post the big event from last Friday's day off. Ashley taught me how to make lasagna!

As a kid, I was never a fan of cheese. On the rare occasion that my mother would make a lasagna, I would refuse to eat any. In fact, I do not think I ever even gave it a chance. I avoided it like canned vegan meats.

A few weeks ago, Ashley made me a lasagna to have for work. It was a great and perfect for my lunches. It got me thinking about making my own but I requested her help. I had never assembled one and she seemed to have it down.

We made a huge one and I ate it for the whole week at work. It had a special layer of portobello mushroom, fried with fresh thyme, oregano, and basil and pureed. It was a great added flavor that threw the whole meal over the top.

The "cheese" layers were packed with all kinds of fresh vegetables. It turned out great and satisfied the carb needs of being at work while providing some solid nutritional value from all the fresh veggies. This will certainly be on the menu for future lunches and might even get a recipe feature.

the veggies

the "cheese" sauce

the mushrooms herb sauce

the final product

Friday afternoon

2011-07-17T13:48:00.000-04:00

I have found that since becoming a homeowner, I really dislike painting, especially alone. In fact, I dislike it so much so that I have left raw drywall all over my house just to avoid painting.

Friday, Ashley recommended that we paint one of the bedrooms in my house. While not thrilled, I realize that it needed to get done so we headed out to get paint.

It turned out well, if uneventful. It is certainly good to have another room completed. Maybe now I will start looking for roommates.

After painting, we had some lunch. Always a staple, we had burritos topped with some vegan sour cream and guacamole. It was a nice lunch after a hard afternoon of painting.

Strawberry Ice Cream

2011-07-15T11:52:00.000-04:00

I had a single day off before what will be one of the busiest weekends at the jobby job. In fact, this may be one of the busiest weekends I have ever had at the jobby job.

I opted to spend the day off with Ashley and had a tentative plan to relax at the house and enjoy the A/C on this hot day. It turned into a day of business from start to finish. It actually felt good to get a lot done.

Ashley recently got into the running for acceptance for a competitive program at her school. We used that as an excuse to celebrate and get some great vegan cake! I also made some strawberry ice cream to go with the cake. If you have an ice cream maker, this is incredibly easy.

Strawberry Ice Cream

1 pound of strawberries
16 oz of coconut milk (high fat)
1 cup of sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla

Combine all ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth. Add the mixture to your ice cream maker and follow ice cream maker instructions.

Use the most high fat content coconut milk you can find. This will give the ice cream a deeper, richer flavor.

There is not much better way to celebrate than with cake an ice cream! We also got several other things done, painting, more cooking, etc.

It is too hot.

2011-07-11T23:01:00.000-04:00

The heat has been unpleasant recently. Not even a large portion of watermelon or the nearly 2 gallons of water a day that I drink seems to be able to keep me cool and hydrated. I really dislike the Atlanta summers, it is difficult to find the motivation to cook.

Fortunately for my belly, I push through the heat and cook. Daily. Not always healthy items but I always seem to eat. I have also been staying true to bringing food with me to work. In fact, recently I made a nice stir-fry that I was able to tote along with me to work as leftovers! Of course, I used my own stir-fry sauce recipe.

Watermelon Juice

2011-07-11T00:30:00.000-04:00

Watermelon has always been one of my favorite foods. I can remember it being a treat in the summer to sit on the back deck and eat slices while letting the juice run down my chin. My stepbrother and I would even have seed spitting contests. When I was living in Denver, watermelon became part of the bedtime routine for me. I think this was actually the birth of my bedtime snack. I would sit in bed and eat a massive bucket of watermelon.

Now, I eat it as often as I can and try to come up with creative ways to use it. Recently, I can up with a fun drink. It was refreshing and the flavor combination was nice.

Watermelon Juice

1 pound of watermelon (cubed)
4 fresh mint leaves
1 tablespoon of lemon juice

In a blender, puree all ingredients until smooth. This drink is much better if served very cold. Chill for at least 30 minutes

Cucumber Tarragon Dressing

2011-07-05T09:29:00.001-04:00

I may have finally got some inspiration back with regards to cooking. I have been involved in kitchen related activities more! I still wish I had more opportunity to cook for or with other people but I will take it where and when I can.

In another attempt to liven up the salad scene, I pulled together another fun dressing. This one is vinegar-free. Although it is hard to believe, there seem to be people out there that do like vinegar. If I can keep making creative and tasty dressings I will make it through the outrageously hot Atlanta summer.

Cucumber Tarragon Dressing

1 clove of garlic
1 cucumber (peeled)
1 cup of vegan mayonnaise
1/3 cup of fresh tarragon (no stems)
1 teaspoon of lemon juice
1 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of pepper
1/4 teaspoon of sugar

Puree all ingredients in a blender until smooth. Chill for 30 minute prior to serving. This makes enough for about 5 salads and should last several days.

Veganniversary

2011-07-04T03:33:00.000-04:00

I seem to always forget to make a post on the actual date but sometime in the middle of June was my vegan anniversary. I have been officially vegan for over 13 years now. Some people hear that and their eye just about pop out of their heads in surprise while others scoff and tell me about their 25+ years of veganism. Either way, it is something I am pleased with and I do can not see a reason to change.

Happy Veganniverary to me!

Roasted Red Pepper Dressing

2011-07-02T14:37:00.000-04:00

In the recent salad craze, I have been trying to come up with some nice summer dressings. I find salads to be a bore much of the time so I have been making every attempt to liven them up. Sometimes I go into the salad dressing section at high end grocery story just to get some ideas. This last one was fantastic, it was rich and creamy with a nice subtle flavor that did not over power the raw veggie salad.

Roasted Red Pepper Dressing

3 cloves of garlic
1 red pepper
1 tablespoon of vegan sour cream
1/2 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar
1/2 tablespoon of oil
1 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

Pre-heat the oven to broil.

On a baking sheet, add the red pepper and allow to broil for about 8 minutes. After 8 minutes, the top should be blackening. If so, rotate and broil again, repeating this process until all sides are beginning to blacken. Depending on the oven, this may take longer than 8 minutes so keep and eye on it.

Once the pepper is blackened, remove it from the oven and place it in a plastic bag for about 15 minutes. This will allow it to steam and the skin of the pepper will be loosened. Once the pepper has steamed, gently peel and discard the skin.

Cut the pepper in quarters and remove the seeds and ribs. Add the pepper pieces to the blender with the garlic cloves and oil. Blend on high until relatively smooth. Add the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. This may take several minutes. Chill for 30 minutes prior to serving.

It seems that after months of searching the thrift stores, I finally found a good container to use for salad dressing picture. Well, actually, if I am honest, Ashley found it and gave it to me. It was a nice gift.

Bedtime Snack Update

2011-06-29T12:55:00.000-04:00

My bedtime snacks this week have been great. Ashley is back on her cookie making kick, which I am the benefactor of most of the time. This time around she made peanut butter cookies and chocolate chip cookies. As always, they were fantastic.

Also, one afternoon, she was given a cupcake from one of her customers at her job, a vegan friend of hers. It was a chocolate cupcake with chai cream cheese icing. It was really good. The icing had a very unique flavor and was high on sugar, which is always a plus in icing!

Now I am running low on treats so I may have to break down and cook some myself. Pity.

Orange Vinaigrette

2011-06-27T23:18:00.001-04:00

Along with the storm and soup of Friday night, Ashley and I also had a nice salad. I made a very light and fat-free dressing that, frankly, rocked. We also tossed some avocados, walnuts and some fried Georgia peaches to the mix. It was quite a treat.

Orange Vinaigrette

3 cloves of garlic
3/4 cup of fresh squeezed orange juice
1/2 tablespoon of red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon of salt

In a blender, puree all ingredients. Chill for about 30 minutes prior to serving.

Overall, it as a great meal and a strange storming evening.

Weathering the Storm

2011-06-27T01:28:00.000-04:00

Friday night was a crazy night. Ashley and I had thought it would be nice to make a dinner when she got out of work. She got out a bit early and we did a few errands before beginning to make dinner. I wanted to try to keep it fairly healthy. We decided on soup and salad. Simple but I know it had been some time since I shared a recipe so I wanted to make this meal something special. This night turned out to be more special then either of us had anticipated.

I wanted to make a soup that was hearty but not heavy. Sometimes hearty salads can be too heavy. This soup hit the spot.

Potato Barley and Kale Soup

2 full stalks of kale
4 small red potatoes (cubed)
4 cloves of garlic (chopped)
2 cups of water
3 cups of vegetable broth
3/4 cup of pearled barley
1/2 cup of onion (chopped)
1 tablespoon of thyme
1 tablespoon of oregano
1/2 tablespoon of oil
1 teaspoon of ground pepper
1 teaspoon of salt

In a pot, bring the water to a boil and add the potatoes. Boil until potatoes are tender, should take about 15 minutes. Strain and set aside.

Meanwhile, in a saute pan, add the oil, pepper, garlic, onion, oregano, and thyme and fry on low heat until onion is tender.

In a pot, add 2 cups ofthe vegetable broth and barley. Bring to a simmer for about 20 minutes or until the barley is tender. This may need to be stirred occasionally to avoid the barley sticking to the bottom of the pot.

In the meantime, add one cup of the vegetable broth, onion and garlic mixture and 1 cup of the potatoes (cooked) to a blender. Puree until smooth. Pour the mixture into the barley pot and add the remaining potato chunks. Allow to simmer for about 10 minutes stirring regularly.

Add the kale (stems removed, torn into 4 inch pieces) to the pot, remove from heat and cover. Allow to sit for about 5 minutes or until the kale is soft and bright green.

This soup would be great served with chopped scallions.

As the soup was nearly done, the clouds rolled in. Dark, aggressive clouds. Seconds later the rain was pouring down and small branches were dropping on my roof, making a clatter. Within minutes, the power was flickering and eventually went out. With the soup still of the stove and no light, we had to act fast. Suddenly, a huge thud echoed throughout the kitchen from the roof. I ran out into the rain to spot a massive branch not laying on my house.

Several minutes later, the rain stopped and the power was back on. We plated our meal and decided to bring the meal to the front porch to watch the storm slither into the distance.

After dinner, I climbed up to the roof and tossed the branch off. Luckily, there seemed to be no damage. Close call.

A deep breath

2011-06-24T14:16:00.000-04:00

Keeping my job as allowed me to breathe a bit. I have not done much of anything. I have sat home onmy time off and relaxed. It has been nice but I know I need to get going again.

I have not even done much cooking. Since it is summer, I have been trying to make more salads and lighter foods. Recently I made some nice salad with some store acquired soy chickens. It turned out well and really hit the spot. Maybe some more dressing recipes in the future!

I feel like I have not been eating as well as I should over the last few months. I have been very stressed to sue the job situation and I just got lazy with it. I hope that I can re-discover my motivation.

As the Dust Settles

2011-06-22T13:50:00.000-04:00

As quietly as I have kept this information, my jobby job has been in jeopardy for months. The company I work for opted to enact some major lay-offs. It has been very stressful for myself and everyone involved. I have officially made it through with no changes to my job status. I will retain all benefits with no decrees in hours nor pay. While I am upset to see my long time work friends walk out the door for the final time, I am grateful that I still have my job. It has been a trying time and the weeks to come, adjusting to the new structure will be difficult.

On a side note, I have been trying to stay in the kitchen a little more recently. I made another batch of shepherds pie to take with me to work. It is becoming a simple and filling work time meal.

Ashley and I made some pizza recently as well. It was kind of like a vegan meat lovers. We used soy sausage, soy bacon, soy pepperonis and onions. It was a funny afternoon.

It is also watermelon season! Juicy watermelon is one of my favorite foods. Sitting down with a nice bowl of melon is a great feeling on a hot Atlanta summer day.

Another Vistor!

2011-06-20T20:06:00.000-04:00

It seems this is the year of the family. My mum came to visit me in April, my sister at the beginning of this month and then my brother came for a short visit this weekend!

Several years ago, my brother, Ben, came down and lived with me. He stayed in Atlanta about a year and then went back to Maine to continue his schooling. He now has his degree and a jobby job in Boston. He had some sort of training this week here in Atlanta so he flew in early and we spend the weekend together.

He got into town late friday night. Saturday, Ashley joined us for a day of hiking in Sweetwater Creek State Park and dinner at Green Sprout. We also stopped in and used our Fernbank Museum Imax tickets to see a tornado film. It was a fun day.

Sunday he and I looked at a few houses and then I went to the jobby job. We had a nice lunch of salad and watermelon with breaded mushrooms.

Monday, he and I went to the amusement park and hit up the roller coasters. The lines were short and we hit about 10 coasters in about 4 hours. That was a it much and we were dehydrated and hunger. Toward the end, we started to get small blackout spots while on the coasters. That was when we decided it might be time to leave.

Before I dropped him off at a hotel (where is conference was taking place) we had a nice sushi dinner. It was really nice to see him.

Weekend Getaway: Day 4

2011-06-17T19:49:00.000-04:00

Sadly, Sunday rolled in and it was time to head back to Atlanta. Not only head home but I had to work that evening. I was not looking forward to it and had a difficult time not allowing the dread effect what should have been a nice half of a vacation day.

The morning began well. During the weekend, we had picked up some popsicle. They became a pivotal part of the trip. Kaleigh and I bonded with them by eating lots of them, even when we were not supposed to. Sometimes getting a sugar rush just before bed.

We decided to send off the vacation by the three of us sitting on the deck, outside of the lodge in rocking chairs, sucking down the last few pops of the trip. It was a nice goodbye to our mini-vacation.

Weekend Getaway: Day 3 - the wedding

2011-06-16T18:22:00.000-04:00

Day three was the actual wedding day. I have been to very few weddings in my life. As an atheist and someone who is anti-state, I do not really see the purpose of getting married. I suppose, for financial purposes, it could make sense considering that our culture is set up to give larger breaks to married couples under a specific income threshold. Even in those circumstances, I still do not see the desire for a wedding.

Given all of this, I still went to Ashley's father's wedding. It was a nice break from the grind at home and an opportunity to get out in the woods. I have also been trying my hand at taking better pictures and I though this would be a good opportunity. Throughout the entire weekend, I took several thousand photos. I hope enjoy looking at them as much as I enjoyed taking them.

Prior to the wedding, Ashley took her daughter, Kaleigh, to do some tourist gem mining. It was a memory that Ashley had with her family as she was a child and wanted to share it with Kaleigh. I tagged along to document the event.

After gem mining, Kaleigh went with her aunts, Kristie and Rachael, to get her hair done for the wedding. Ashley and I headed back to the lodge and I cooked began to cook some lunch. The lodge had some super cool bowls that I got to use. I wanted to take them home with me!

Roasted Tomato Basil Soup

1 bunch of basil
4 tomatoes (cubed)
4 cloves of garlic (chopped)
1/2 onion (sliced)
1 1/2 cups of coconut milk
2 tablespoons of oil
2 teaspoons of salt
1 teaspoon of pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a baking pan, add the onion, garlic, tomato, oil, and basil. Bake for about 20 minutes or until the tomatoes release their liquid.

In a blender, add the coconut milk and roasted tomato mixture about 2 cups at a time. Blend until smooth and pour into a pot. Once all the ingredients are smooth, add the salt and pepper and heat on the stove top for about 15 minutes. Do not allow to get to a simmer.

This was a great lunch for us. I was able to use the purple basil that we got at the farmers market. It turned out great, it was hearty and rich. I added the mustard greens and we dipped the bread we also got at the market. It was an excellent lunch.

Then it was off to the wedding. It was actually a fun time to be around Ashley's family. They all seemed so happy to be there and it was great to see them enjoying themselves.

The food was great. There were simple salad options but the chef also made a pair of vegan meals just for Ashley and I. We had cracked wheat, with corn and greens. It was so thoughtful of her family to make sure there were options for us.

Dessert was an ice cream bar. Ashley and I brought our own soy ice cream and enjoyed sundaes with the rest of the wedding.

It was a nice evening, to my surprise. Everyone just seemed to be in such a good mood and enjoying themselves, even if I do not quite understand why.

After the wedding, I had to make a bedtime snack! Using some local rhubarb and strawberries I whipped up a little treat, topped with some toasted granola. Decent.

Weekend Getaway: Day 2

2011-06-15T13:25:00.000-04:00

Day two was an eventful day. Ashley, Kaleigh, and I went out early for a hike to Juney Whank Falls. It was a short walk but we did not know how much Kaleigh could do and my ankle was still sore from last weekends events with my sister and her family.

It was a nice hike and Kaleigh got to see a nice waterfall. On the walk out, we also got to see Deep Creek Falls. Ashley and I had hiked this same trail last autumn on our weekend to the Smokey Mountains.

Later in the afternoon, Ashley and I went to a local farmers market. We got there as it was ending so there was not much produce left. We were able to get some great items though. We got some fresh baked bread and homemade jam from one vendor. Another vendor had some purple basil, fresh mustard greens, and a stack of massive shiitake mushrooms. I have never seen shiitakes this large. I had to indulge, despite the price. I thought that these would be some fun ingredients to cook with in the lodge kitchen.

That afternoon, the three of us met up with her family for lunch at The Filling Station. It was a simple sandwich shop but was very vegan friendly. We were able to get two great wraps with a lot of vegetable options. We both thought that the sandwiches were incredibly good.

After lunch, Ashley's siblings met up with us for some tubing down Deep Creek. It was the first time that Kaleigh had been tubing on her own tube. She loved it, she was so light on the water that it was often hard for people to keep up with her. She had such a great time.

After the tubing, we all headed to a cookout. Ashley's family is very vegan friendly. One of her family friends actually made us a mini-vegan peach pie! It was amazing. We were even given half of the grill to make some veggie burgers, potatoes, corn, and I even tossed those mushrooms I bought at the farmers market on the grill. There were some vegan baked beans that were the best baked beans I have ever had. I even snuck in for seconds!

It was a full and exciting day. To my surprise, there was so much great food, it was shaping up to be a nice break from the Atlanta grind.

Weekend Getaway: Day 1

2011-06-13T16:31:00.000-04:00

Ashley's father was getting married in the mountains of North Carolina and I got invited! Ashley, her daughter (Kaleigh), and I made a weekend out of the event. IT was really nice to get out of town for the weekend and we had some fun things to do and good food to eat.

Day one was mainly driving three hours in the heat. We stopped in Franklyn North Carolina for a late lunch. It was a place called Hungry Bear and they were said to be the most veg friendly place in town. They had some solid options for vegans too, sadly, there bread was not vegan. I had a large white bean salad, Ashley had a bun-less burger and a side salad.

Shortly after lunch, we were at our lodge. It was a really nice place will a full kitchen and I was able to cook a meal on one of the days. That evening, we walked the 500 feet to the creek and looked around. Dinner was at a Mexican place that was not very vegan friendly.