Heading into the weekend...

Those of you who know me well, know that I recently had a Baba Ram Dass-type episode that resulted in throwing out about 85% of everything I own. I then moved into a gorgeous new apartment that had space, and cabinets, and counters, and lovely floors, and...no furniture. I've finally started replacing the old ugly trash with new bookshelves and storage units. Now I have places for the other 15% of my stuff to reside. Well, almost. My clothes are still in a suitcase.

The reason I bring this up is to explain why I'm eating my standby, broke as hell, I-haven't-made-it-to-Whole-Foods-yet dinner. Stovetop goulash. Basically, it's cooked whole wheat pasta, some mixed frozen veggies, Newman's Own Sockarooni sauce, Morningstar Farms recipe crumbles, and paprika. Maybe I'll add sautéed onions and mushrooms if I'm feeling fancy. I would never serve it to a guest, but I'll sure as shit eat it and love it on a Friday night after putting a cheap Target bookshelf together. I don't feel like dicking around. Just throw it in a bowl and watch The Wire.


Mmmm...tasty.

So, don't worry. I'll be back tomorrow (after work, and a trip to the store) to cook up something that requires a measuring cup, and is definitely more pretty than it is comforting.

Potluck tomorrow, lazy tonight.

I signed up to make pita bread (my boss is bringing her delicious eggplant-chickpea salad), and cupcakes. No one seemed too jazzed about cupcakes (losers), so I figured I'd make cookies. Well, even though pita bread is pretty easy to make, it does take some time, what with the rising and rolling, and rising again. It's especially easy if you have a bread machine (which you know I love), because you don't have to do all that proofing and kneading nonsense. I only wish it could roll stuff out, even though I now have a gorgeous kitchen with COUNTERS and I can actually bust out my beautiful marble rolling pin and make stuff. I'll have to make a pie this month.


Anyway, here's the recipe:

Rosemary Whole Wheat Pita Bread
makes 12 loaves
1 1/4 cup water
2 T olive oil
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 c. bread flour
1 1/2 c. whole wheat bread flour
1 tbsp dried rosemary
1 tsp bread machine yeast or active dry yeast

Dough cycle. Tear up into 12 pieces, and roll into balls. Roll as flat as you can on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin. Place on baking sheets, cover and let rise for 30 minutes. Bake at 450° for 3 minutes, flip, then 4 minutes. Done.


So, now it's 11:00pm, and I am spent. I have to head into work at 8:30am, and I just don't have it in me to make anything else, so here's a picture of Mischka helping me pick out a cupcake recipe.

Happy MoFo!

I've been eagerly awaiting as well as dreading this month. Some things have recently come to light that may consume a lot of my time. BUT, I shall keep my promise and stick to it.

I am coming to you from my bedroom today, with an empty stomach and a freshly cleaned kitchen. I thought I would try something from a cookbook I haven't cracked open yet. Seeing as I built my cookbook collection while still working in the book biz, I have a lot. I could easily use a different cookbook every week, and make at least three things from each. I think that's a reasonable expectation.

My choice for the first week of MoFo is Tofu 1-2-3 by Maribeth Abrams.



I made the Pumpkin Pancakes, which is actually the first recipe in the book. I added walnuts and a little sugar to the batter, and they came out perfectly. I didn't have any maple syrup, so I made a weird Tofutti cream cheese-soygurt-powdered sugar-vanilla sauce,

and then topped the whole thing with berries. I have a ton of leftover batter, so I'll make up more cakes and freeze them. One thing I always forget about pancakes is that I am good for one, and then I am stuffed.

VeganMoFo

So, I must have signed up for this last year and dropped the ball, because I wound up with access to the super secret (not really) VeganMoFo forum. I need this, because my testing has fallen behind due to a pretty recent and intense move. I also just adopted a kitten, and she requires lots of attention or she meeeOOOWWWS.

Anyway, I will be blogging here every day in the month of October. Some ideas:

* Your first vegan/vegetarian restaurant memory
* Something you used to cook but don’t anymore
* Try to cook/bake something that intimidates you
* Write about your grandma’s holiday cooking
* your favorite dish to bring to a potluck
* your favorite meal to cook for people who are scared of vegan food
* your favorite meal to cook for your parents/in-laws
* use an grain you’ve never used before
* use a fruit or vegetable you’ve never used before
* veganize a recipe from your childhood
* cook dinner for a friend as a surprise and drop it off right after work
* cook an all-local ingredients meal
* Write about your favorite songs to cook to
* Keep a photo food journal for the entire day
* Veganize a recipe
* Tell the story of the first time you tried tofu
* Take a cookbook that you don’t use very often and make one new recipe out of it every day for a week
* Post pictures of yourself wearing nothing but Earth Balance and a smile

I think this is going to be hugely fun, expensive, and the motivation/inspiration I need. The perfect job for this blog. If you have any ideas for themes, post them in the comments!

On the move

I'm going to be absent for a couple of weeks while I pack up and move to a new place with a real kitchen. Then you better WATCH OUT.

Pizza

If you're going to make a vegan pizza with uncheese on it, it's going to look funny. I have yet to see one that actually looks like cheese. Or actually looks, well, appetizing. I made this one this afternoon with an organic premade crust from Whole Foods, some Gimme Lean sausage, green peppers, fresh oregano, fresh basil, and mozzarella cheez from the Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook. Easy, quick, and delicious. Just ugly.

Party food, tester style

More brunch testing deliciousness. I made the tempeh puffs this morning, along with another batch of bagels to bring to work. I tried to multi-task (difficult in a kitchen with zero counter space) as best I could, and wound up making the gravy and then taking a shower - forgetting that the bagels were still in the oven. At least one recipe (well, two if you count the gravy) came out right.

Tempeh Sausage Pastry Puffs with Navy Bean Gravy





Creamy Avocado Potato Salad



The first was a store bought puff pastry with a tempeh sausage crumble on top. The salad was a simple guacamole based potato salad. Of course, they had the Isa touch. You have to buy the book.