Rice Salad with Avocado Dressing (Giant Food)

The new recipe I tried this week was the rice salad with avocado dressing that my aunt had clipped out for me (the recipe can be found online here). I was especially excited for the dressing, since I’ve been enjoying avocados recently, and this one was absolutely perfect when I cut it in half! 

I made some changes to the recipe, though: I was able to grill the zucchini on the panini press/grill but not the corn, so I boiled it instead. I left out the red onion because I’m not a fan of raw onion, and I used just a bit of dried cilantro as a garnish instead of fresh. The dish worked out with these modifications but it took me longer than the recipe’s estimate of 35 minutes, and the end product was just OK. I probably won’t make it again, but if I did, I’d leave out the red wine vinegar (it made the dressing taste a bit odd) and add more salt. 

Served with tortilla chips and salsa.

And here’s what I had for a quick and easy dinner tonight… 

Gardein fishless filets, golden wax beans, and tater tots with ketchup

Here’s the Sharpie sketch that I did yesterday of a cross-looking kitty… 

And the one I did today, of the mini automaton my D&D character is going to be working on building hehe… 

I went to a writers group last night, and I was a little nervous; while it was my third time attending, it was the first time that I’d submitted something to the group to critique. It was a 4,000-word excerpt from a story I wrote for National Novel Writing Month; the first person narration shifts between five characters. I knew I needed to do a better job making each character’s voice more distinct and unique, and this was reinforced in the feedback I got. (Especially since what I’d shared only included the perspective of the first two characters, and they both sounded a bit too similar to the people reading it, haha!) But yeah, everyone provided really helpful feedback, and they all seemed to have enjoyed reading it. I marked up my copy with all the comments, suggestions, and questions that came up, and three people gave me their copies with recommended edits and other notes. So that was pretty cool, and now I have lots of things to think about and rework!

Here is a cute little Leela… 

Peace. :)

Carrot Dogs (Protest Kitchen)

Hi everyone! This week I made the carrot dogs from Protest Kitchen; the marinade was really good, and the carrots were a fun substitute for hot dogs -- and yes, that’s a piece of bread for the bun; when I went out for groceries this week, the only hot dog buns in stock at the health food store had honey in them, so vegan white bread to the rescue, lol! I had the carrot dogs with Annie’s vegan mac and corn on the cob. 

For some bonus food, here’s a meal from earlier in the week that featured some of the wax beans I grew in my garden (plus the vegan chickenless tenders from Aldi and tater tots)...

And here’s Leela in her favorite summertime napping spot in the corner of the bathroom…

“Why do you disturb my slumber?”

*ignores you and goes back to sleep*

P.S. Bethlehem VegFest is tomorrow!

Peace. :)

Broccoli Corn Casserole (Long Island Vegan)

Hi everyone! This week I made the broccoli corn casserole from Long Island Vegan; it turned out great, and it’s definitely a recipe I’ll use again! 

I had some for dinner last night with a Boca chik’n patty and a hash brown; delicious! 

Leela says hello! 

Peace. :)

Bookmarked Recipe: Creamy Chickeny Spaghetti Bowl (Rosie’s vegan kitchen)

Hi everyone! Today I made another recipe from Vegan MoFo 2015 – the creamy chickeny spaghetti bowl from Rosie’s vegan kitchen; it was super simple and quite delicious! 

Here’s Leela… 

Peace. :)

Chester County Vegan Festival and More

Hi everyone! On the 25th, I went to the Chester County Vegan Festival with Zach and my sister Alena. We hadn’t been there for a few years, but decided to try it again. It used to be a picnic buffet, which was really cool – you got to pick what you wanted to eat and fill up your plate from the great variety of food – and it used to cost $10 (or $9 if you brought your own place setting). This year it was in a different park, catered by El Burrito, and more expensive ($15, or $13 if you brought your own place setting, which we all did). Unfortunately but unsurprisingly, you ended up with less food. At the start of the food line, you were asked to pick either a vegetable tamale or a mushroom tamale. Both sounded good but you could only get one, so I went with the vegetable and Zach got the mushroom and we ended up sharing them between us. I would have loved to be able to get both because they were amazing! The mango salsa was pretty good, too, but the corn was just OK (I’ve been spoiled by the corn I grew in my garden this year haha) and the salt didn’t stick to it (they rubbed lime over the corn before sprinkling the salt on). Additionally, the whole mango was a) a bit redundant since we’d already been given mango salsa and b) way too sweet to eat all of it. 

I felt bad that there was no compost nearby (or at least not one that I could find, maybe I missed it) for the corn husks (from the tamale), corn cob, and leftover mango; it felt like such a waste throwing all that out. As for the rest of the festival, which we explored after lunch, there weren’t as many vendors as in the past, and only two offered free samples (one had small pieces of Violife cheese and one had bread topped with a vegan cheese and also cups of potato salad, which were awesome). There was a food truck there (Self Love), and their menu seemed nice; I don’t know if I plan to go back to the Chester County Vegan Festival next year, but if I do, I think buying from the food truck makes more sense than paying for the catered lunch. All in all, though, it was still a nice day; we got to hang out and see cute dogs that people had brought with them, and we got some free snacks to bring home, too – these were pretty good… 

Some other fun things I’ve enjoyed this week include these ice cream popsicles…

And these veggie burgers from Aldi… 

Here are some of my sketches from this week…

bell pepper (original photo)

potato (original photo)

snow pea (original photo)

spinach (original photo)

And here’s Leela… 

See you all tomorrow for the start of Vegan MoFo!

Peace. :)

Squash Casserole, Tofu Scramble, Bagels, and More

Hi everyone! I tried two new recipes this week and lots of other good food as well. First up was the squash casserole from Vegan Crunk; I made it on the stovetop and mixed in crushed Ritz crackers instead of topping with breadcrumbs and baking it. It turned out really well – I used two big yellow crookneck squashes from my garden – and the leftovers were awesome, too. I had it with a vegan chickenless patty from Aldi, which was really good. 

On Tuesday, my sister Alena visited and we did a lot of cooking together, including the second new recipe, which was the herbivore’s tofu scramble from Eat Like You Give a Damn. It was super simple and quite tasty, paired with a hashbrown (also from Aldi). 

We also made nachos with Tostitos scoops and Daiya pepperjack shreds for a snack (not pictured), and then we dug out my bread machine to make bagels, which turned out quite nicely due to Alena’s bagel-forming skills! 

Dinner was a bagel with pasta.

Yesterday I threw together a random lunch because I’d harvested more corn and wanted to have some; it was great! 

Hashbrown, black bean burger, corn, and carrot sticks with Daiya ranch.

And I also tried these blackberry sorbet bars that Zach picked out; he said he had to get them because of the name…

Yum!

Here are a couple fruit sketches I did this week…

gooseberries (original photo)

ground cherry (original photo)

And here’s Leela with her toy mice in the background…

P.S. The themes & prompts have been announced for this year's Vegan Month of Food (Vegan MoFo), which will be taking place in September, and sign-ups are open until August 24. I haven't decided what specifically I'm going to do (I'm debating the idea of creating my own theme this year), but I know I'll be participating -- will you?

Peace. :)

Bethlehem VegFest, Vegan Treats, and More

Hi everyone! Bethlehem VegFest took place on July 14; I was totally out of the loop and only found out the night before. With such late notice and plans later that day, I figured I’d skip this year, but Zach made sure we got there on Saturday for a bit. For lunch, I had the buffalo chick’n mac & cheese from Freakin’ Vegan – there was a long line but it was definitely worth the wait – and Zach had a grilled cheese & pineapple guava lemonade. 

Then we picked up some desserts at Vegan Treats; I got the triple berry cheesecake and Zach chose the s’mores cheesecake. 

In other news, I harvested my first ears of corn on Sunday!

And then on Wednesday, after we made a delicious batch of lemon spinach pasta, my sister Alena gave me the grand tour of the new Aldi near her, so of course I grabbed some fun vegan stuff – hashbrowns, two types of meatballs, and chicken patties. 

I also sketched some more fruit…

nectarine (original photo)

pear (original photo)

And here's Cringer; she takes the most dramatic cat naps... 

Peace. :)

Poppy's Corn & Mac Bake

Hello everyone! Today's prompt is: How to make friends – What’s your go-to “impress me” meal? My grandfather's corn & mac bake was an impressive & yummy holiday dish when I was younger, so for dinner tonight, I decided to make my veganized version, which Zach enjoys as well. Prior to tonight, the last time I made this was for a potluck with Zach's soccer friends, several of whom have children. It was a hit with everyone, but especially the little kids, who upon seeing all the food laid out, immediately zeroed in on my contribution, yelling "MAC AND CHEESE!" 

Poppy's Corn & Mac Bake, veganized
 
Ingredients:

• 1 can corn kernels (don't drain)
• 1 can creamed corn
• 1 stick melted vegan butter/margarine (I use Earth Balance)
• 1 cup vegan cheddar, shredded (I use Daiya)
• 1 cup elbow macaroni (cooked)

Directions: Mix all ingredients in a baking dish and bake at 350°F until bubbly and set, stirring a few times in between.

So, to sum up, Poppy's corn & mac bake is an impressive meal because:

• it's a crowd-pleaser at holidays and potlucks, even with kids and nonvegans 
• it's super simple to make 
• it can stand alone or be part of a bigger meal 
• the leftovers are delicious 

Today's cute kitty is Leela, soaking up the sunshine.

Peace. :)