Thanksgiving: check!

Thanksgiving Supper 2011

I loved these stand-up turkey napkins my mom bought for us to use. Not extremely absorbent but cute!

Stand up Christmas napkins, anyone?

Hopefully, no arsenic.

I worked so hard on this Cinnamon-Dusted Butternut Squash. Really, it's from Whole Foods deli.

I did, however, make Homemade Applesauce. And applesauce does not need sugar. Here is the recipe I used. I was able to use up the last of our 20 lb. box of organic apples, that were starting to get a little soft, from our Azure Standard order.

Thank you again, Whole Foods, for the Brussels Sprouts I did not have to wash, chop, and roast. I did, however add the pomegranate arils after seeing Bobby Flay or someone do that on the news that morning. I think I could add pomegranate seeds to anything and love it.

I worked hard on my homemade stuffing, but I'm not sure it was worth the effort. It was pretty good that night, but it was soggy as a leftover. (I probably messed the recipe up by subbing a couple of ingredients; my main substitution was so dumb, I'm not even going to say what it was).

I did love the idea of making homemade stuffing, and I loved the idea of chopped pears and chestnuts in it. (Although - the canned chestnuts are soft and totally grossed me out. I will use only dry nuts next time.) I also added some chopped Smoked Apple Sage Field Roast Sausages, which might have saved it. My friend's stuffing at Portions of Goodness looked much better. I'll do a better job with your recipe next time, Pam.

Roasted vegetables with our Field Roast and Tofurky Roast. Road's End Gravy (not pictured) on the side. We love the marinade we use for our veggies (potatoes, sweet potatoes, turnips, carrots, and onions) and roasts. It's a version of this Tofurky Baste Option 2, using orange juice, maple syrup, soy sauce, olive oil, and spices.

I had kind of hoped to make a homemade roast this year...but I didn't even go grocery shopping until late Wednesday evening. And they weren't out of Tofurky Roasts, like I'd feared. Maybe one like this for Christmas.

an assortment of rolls from Whole Foods

We LOVED this Cranberry Mandarin Orange Relish, also from the Whole Foods deli. Delicious! I paired it with some plain, cooked millet.

I also took Pam's suggestion for Spaghetti Squash & Chard Gratin from Kalyn's Kitchen. I subbed in tofu, Vegenaise, and Daiya for cottage cheese, egg, and parmesan.

I won't go so creamy and decadent next time and let the squash and chard have more of a voice, but I liked it.

After a whole day of cooking and very little sampling, I couldn't WAIT to sit down and enjoy my meal. And yet...I couldn't finish even half of my plate. What a disappointment. This was the problem of deciding to have Thanksgiving supper rather than lunch: I can't eat very much in the evening, even if I don't eat a lot early on. (I'm 8 months pregnant, for those of you just tuning in.) I covered my plate and stuck it in the fridge.

My 11 year old, on the other hand, was being exceptionally quiet, and we realized it was because he was just shoveling it in.

And although everyone else got to enjoy my pumpkin pie (recipe here)...

...and this girl came back for dessert seconds, in which she asked for "more pie and more Brussels sprouts"...

...my burgeoning belly had to wait until the next day for a piece of pie. I tried staying up late just so it would settle enough for one little piece of pie. But I finally brushed my teeth, telling Ryan I was going to be a big girl and just wait until the next day.

Those of you who like Soyatoo, have you tried the new extra creamy version? I think it's even better.

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And off to get ready for Christmas!

Appetite for Reduction Giveaway

I've enjoyed everything I've made so far from Isa's Appetite for Reduction. "125 Fast & Filling Low-Fat Vegan Recipes" Although I imagine a lot of you have it already, somehow we've ended up with an extra copy, which I'm giving away! With the holidays coming up, it's a great idea to make lower calories meals so we can enjoy all of the treats even more. Here are a few of the things I've tried, and if you have this book and are not entering the giveaway, tell me which recipe I must try next.

Mango BBQ Beans

over Mashed Yuca with Cilantro & Lime

*Loved these beans, and I will definitely add mango to my beans again. However, I will not add any red pepper flakes to this recipe next time because my mouth was on fire! The Mashed Yuca was interesting (in a good way)! I don't think I'd make it again because yuca takes a lot of work; it's really tough to cut through and all waxy, etc. However, if you've been curious to try yuca, this would be a fun recipe for you to make.

FRESH TOMATO SALSA DRESSING

*Always love fresh salsa.

BIG FAT TACO SALAD

with Fresh Tomato Salsa Dressing

and

GUACAMAME

*I'm a big taco/taco salad fan, so this couldn't have been a miss with me. The guacamame (avocado with edamame) is definitely not as flavorful/mouth-watering as regular guacamole, but I love that it cuts the calories and adds protein.

QUINOA, WHITE BEAN, & KALE STEW

with FRESH CORN & SCALLION CORN BREAD

*I was out of quinoa, so I subbed sprouted rice. I also subbed turnips for parsnips. I like that this stew pushed me into eating vegetables I don't get a lot of, like turnips and leeks. For the cornbread, I couldn't find scallions at the store, so I omitted those. Good, reliable stew and bread.

To enter the giveaway: If you leave a comment on this post, let me know you're entering the giveaway. I'll put anyone's name who is entering in a hat and draw. Open to anyone in the world.

For 4 additional chances, tell me whether you are a google friend connect follower, whether my blog is on your blog roll, and for two extra chances: blog or tweet about the giveaway. You just need to leave ONE COMMENT with all of your entries to make it easier on ya. Or if you blog about it or something later, feel free to leave an additional comment another time.

I'll pick a winner next Friday, October 28 at 10:00 p.m.

To read more about: Vegan Month of Food

Deceptively Delicious Part Two PLUS Chocolate Muffins!

Continuing on, trying out recipes from Jessica Seinfeld's Deceptively Delicious...

(You can read about my veganized Blueberry (Squash) Lemon Muffins and Bean (Squash, Carrot) Baked Tortillas in my last post.)

I made a version of her Spaghetti Pie one night. I used Whole Wheat Angel Hair. I mixed 2 cups of Marinara Sauce with 1 cup steamed carrot puree. My 5 year old loves raw carrots but won't normally eat cooked carrots. (That's where the "deceptive" part comes in.)

I poured it into two pie plates, topped it with Daiya and my own version of meatballs, then baked it at 350 until it seemed ready. It was "delicious" with 10 thumbs up!

Pardon me while I waste time play around on Picnik for awhile:

1)pureed broccoli and seitan, 2) rolled up into balls, and 3) after they had baked

We loved these Broccoli Seitan Meatballs I created, based on the meatball recipe from Deceptively Delicious. As usual, I'm sure the rest of you will have better ideas about how to spice these up.

I used:

1 1/2 cups slightly steamed pureed broccoli

1 package of seitan

enough bread crumbs to help form balls

and a sprinkling of garlic salt

I pureed the broccoli with the seitan and garlic, then stirred in the bread crumbs before forming the balls and baking until slightly firm & browned.

Although it wasn't quite "pie-like" the first night (because we ate it hot from the oven), it definitely was the next day for leftovers. It cut very nicely into slices.

In other news:

I tried out the Chocolate Fudge Muffin recipe from Little House of Veggies. You might have seen it on her blog. Or you may remember drooling over its sister recipe, Chocolate Nutty Brownies, on Shenandoah Vegan's blog every few days for a week...or four.

This picture doesn't really do them justice. (Morgan's picture with the recipe is super yummy-looking.) These are the changes I made: I eliminated the oil (It only calls for 1 teaspoon to begin with - one major reason to love this recipe.), and I cut the sugar in half. The chocolate chips are what make the recipe, anyway.

Unless you're only baking for one, don't even bother making these unless you're going to double the recipe. Otherwise, you'll just feel angry and bewildered that you're out of these decadent little creatures so soon. Seriously, all five of us were talking about how much we loved these the entire time we were sitting at the table, eating them. There was a lot of "mmm"ing involved.

Deceptively Delicious

Where have I been?

I think I had the flu (fever, chills, achey, head cold). Which was preceded by my children all having it. And although the kids were feeling better by the time I got sick, it hit my husband and me at the same time. We'd both be in bed while the kids fended for themselves. Occasionally, one of us would stagger out of bed to break up a fight or refill a sippy cup, then stagger back into bed as quickly as possible. It was one of those illnesses in which I was too weak to even fast forward through my dvr'ed show's commercials. I just endured the commercials rather than muster the energy to lift my hand.

Mix three weeks of someone being sick with a big birthday party, lots of out of town company, and the rigors (and fun) of everyday life - and that's where I've been.

Back to blogging!

I borrowed Jessica Seinfeld's Deceptively Delicious from the library awhile back and have been enjoying trying out recipes from it. Although it isn't a vegan book, there is plenty to easily veganize. For those of you not familiar with the book, the concept is simply finding ways to sneak pureed fruits and veggies into your food.

And although my kids eat healthy enough that "sneaking veggies in" isn't necessary, I still find it fun and a challenge to do so. Above, I made the Tortilla Cigars with several changes. This is sort of what our Tortillas consisted of:

1 can pinto beans

1/2 cup yellow squash puree

1/2 cup carrot puree

sprinkling of Daiya

Yum! I spread the vegetable/bean puree onto Ezekiel Sprouted Tortillas with a little Daiya and rolled them up as tight as I could. I baked them for a bit (10 minutes? not sure) until they were browning and starting to crisp up a little. We couldn't get enough of these. I feel like there's no reason NOT to add veggie puree to my refried beans from now on. I didn't think it changed the taste much when it was all wrapped up.

Next up were the Blueberry Lemon Muffins, which I adapted quite a bit from the original recipe, veganizing it and cutting out some of the sugar and oil.

This was another yellow squash puree recipe. I chose these two recipes mostly because squash happens to be one of the vegetables my youngest two aren't crazy about. I love that I have these ideas to get a little yellow squash into them. We devoured these in two sittings. I could never stretch my desserts out for a month, like Shen, even if I wanted to.

Blueberry Lemon Muffins

Preheat oven 350. I stirred together these ingredients:

1/4 cup turbinado

1 Tbs. Earth Balance

3 Tbs. applesauce

1 cup lemon soy yogurt

(which is a little more than one container)

Then I added these ingredients:

3/4 cup steamed yellow squash puree

egg replacer equivalent to one egg

1 teaspoon lemon flavor

1 cup all purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup ground flaxseeds

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

The original recipe says to not overmix. Last, I stirred in:

1 cup frozen blueberries

Divide batter among muffin cups. (For me, this was equivalent to one 12-cup baking tin plus 2 extra silicone cups. Bake until muffins are lightly browned, about 13-16 minutes.

Next up on my list to try: Mozzarella Sticks with cauliflower puree!

Eat to Live - sort of

I mentioned in my last blog post that I went on the Eat to Live diet for 2 weeks. And that I lost 4 pounds on it. I bought the book and was very determined. I'm not finished with the diet; I just got off track a little for various reasons. I think that it forced Ryan and me into some very great habits, though. We're saving money, too, which is an added bonus beyond our health.

I also checked out Joel Fuhrman's book Disease Proof Your Child from the library. I think I was hoping for some kind of diet recommendation that was new to me, and I was absolutely motivated to stick with it. However, it really was pretty close to how I feed the kids already. Great book, though, and I'm still poring through it.

I have been making a lot of homemade salsa lately. I was just sure that these ingredients would make the most beautiful salsa.

However, I kind of ended up with salsa soup. This was my first salsa-making attempt. (It tasted good, though, and I ate it all.)

I'm getting better at it.

I made these veggie burgers based on Fuhrman's recipe (but I used beans from scratch, not canned). Same ingredients (sunflower seeds, oats, beans, ketchup, and spices); I just didn't go through all the steps of baking them. It tastes delicious before you even cook it. We have went through a lot of these lately, which is good since I'm used to paying $4+ for a box of FOUR veggie burgers.

Our new obsession is roasted asparagus. I had some from the Whole Foods deli awhile back, and it was one of the BEST tasting foods I've ever put into my mouth. MY asparagus doesn't taste quite as good as that (I don't know how they did it - maybe it was drenched in oil?), but it's still great. I love squeezing lemon on it after I take it out of the oven. I spray oil on the kids' but leave it off Ryan's and mine.

I am a cereal addict; however, I mostly ate fruit (sometimes with a sprinkling of nuts) for breakfast. I also ate my steel cut oats, but I definitely used the oats as more of a condiment.

This soup is loosely based on the "Famous Anti-Cancer Soup" recipe in Fuhrman's book. (The only reason I don't follow it exactly: it's a little more time-consuming. You're supposed to juice celery and carrots for the base. One of these days, I'll get around to that.)

I basically just pour a container of low sodium vegetable broth into a pot and add water. Then I just throw in whatever odds and ends of vegetables I have lying around. (This particular batch I stuck with the original recipe: split peas, onions, zucchini, leeks, carrots, and celery. It also has cashews.) You don't even have to chop them. When the veggies are slightly soft, I puree it all in my BlendTec. (You also leave some of the split peas whole at the bottom of the pot, then pour the pureed mixture back into the pot.)

After my second batch of soup, I was getting a little tired...of soup. I added some extra split peas into this bowl to "liven things up" a bit.

This is what my typical meal looked like while I was following the diet.

I love salads like this so much that it wasn't a big change to have a salad as one meal a day. I always use my favorite recipe for dressing: Vegan Caesar. It doesn't contain oil (although it does use almonds).

This is why I said "Eat to Live - sort of" - I'm sure not every ingredient I used is technically part of the diet. I used Bragg's. I did put a very small amount of salt in my salsa. I sprinkled Kelp Granules on my soup. I'm just trying to cut way back on salt, and I have to find ways to live through this. After about a week, it did get easier.

This past month we've moved over to what I call the "Wal-Mart Diet" (which I'll explain another day). Basically, it's part of our money-saving venture. We were doing SO WELL with our budget. I thought we were going to end up spending A THIRD of what we normally spend on food a month. Then Wednesday night, I cracked, just a little over a week before the month's end. I went to Whole Foods and filled my cart. I didn't feel proud of myself so hopefully I've learned my lesson. However, I hadn't had sliced bread in WEEKS.

I just wanted a sandwich.

And it was so good. Funny that my carrot, chickpea, tomato, salsa, avocado, mustard, miso sandwich was so scandalous to me. It was just the price ($5.99 for a dinky loaf of hemp bread) that was scandalous to my Wal-Mart diet. It was the dozen biscuits I made and ate over a 24 hour period that made me realize I needed to go to Whole Foods and buy a few things to help curb my cravings.

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BTW, what happened to Stacy (Shorty Can Burn)? Did she announce she was shutting down her blog?

I finally added comments to your responses to my last posts. I'm trying to get better about that. And Ryan thinks the only reason anyone said he was "handsome" was the food. He says you would have thought that of any man with raw, vegan food in front of him. I said that he makes a good point. BUT that he is handsome, anyway. :)

And I really don't always eat an entire citrus fruit one juice pocket at a time. I just really like how they feel in my mouth. But I didn't want you to think I'm that much of a woman of leisure.

What I Ate Today - And I'm Having a Giveaway!

I'm having a giveaway, which starts tonight...but first...

I always enjoy reading the "What I Ate Today" posts...

so here is what I ate today.

oatmeal for breakfast

A Sunshine Burger (always my purchased burger of choice) with salad on the side. On top of my burger was a version of Heather's (from Where's the Beach?) Vegan Spinach and Sundried Tomato Dip.

I sadly didn't have any spinach so I substituted broccoli. I also didn't have any basil. So this is how mine turned out. I liked it! Definitely a fun topper for a veggie burger, besides being a yummy dip. I'm always up for a good artichoke recipe.

My lunch plate doesn't always look so pretty.

We're really not that fancy around here.

I had a brownie for a snack.

We made these using a Dr. Oetkers' Organic Chocolate Brownie mix.

At some point, I also had a few little bites of the kids' dried mango, but I didn't get a picture of that.

For supper I cooked the spaghetti squash that my parents picked up for me at the farmers' market. I added tomato sauce (365 brand Organic Pasta Sauce) and a can of Eden brand organic Aduki beans. And of course, a little Daiya. This isn't my plate. It's the main serving dish; just letting you know in case you were frightened by the size of my meal.

And now for the giveaway!

I am doing this on my own to celebrate my new blog and how much fun it has been already. (I have loved getting to know all of you better through your comments and your blogs!).

Up for grabs: a bag of Mrs. May's Cashew Crunch, a box of Nature's Path: Pumpkin Flax Plus Granola, a pack of Natural Desserts Strawberry Jel mix, a box of Natural Desserts Instant Vanilla Pudding mix, an 8 oz. bag of Nutiva Shelled Hempseeds, a pack of B-Fresh Bubble Gum, Barbara's Bakery Vanilla Snackimals Animal Cookies, Sea's Gift Roasted Seaweed Snack, earnest eats baked whole food bar, a trial size of Justin's Chocolate Peanut Butter Blend, and a bag of Bare Fruit organic dried mangos.

I just grabbed a few vegan snack foods & treats that I thought would be lightweight and easy to ship. Hopefully, there is something here that interests you.


Will I ship overseas? Yes, to some places. If you win and you are overseas, I'll check to see, depending on where you are located. If I have to, maybe I'll switch things up a bit, to make it fit in a smaller envelope. But I'll make sure you get something fun!


To enter, you just have to be a follower on Google Friend Connect. If you're not a follower, click on the Follow button on the right side of my blog. Leave a comment, something along the lines of "Enter me." (If your follower profile has a different name or no link, please make sure I know who you are - I hate it when I can't visit a new follower's blog because I can't tell who it is.)


Add another entry if vegan and so forth is on your blog list.


For TWO EXTRA entries, mention this giveaway on your blog or on Twitter and leave the link for me on two more separate comments.


I'll choose a random number Tuesday evening, July 27.


Will I ship overseas? Um...not sure yet. I'll let ya know that one tomorrow. I honestly have no earthly idea how much it costs to ship overseas. If it's an extra ten bucks, sure - an extra twenty or more, I can't. :( I'll edit this part tomorrow.

Thanks for playing along!

Eggplant Bacon

I first heard about Eggplant Bacon from the fabulous Sheri at Green and Crunchy. The recipe is in Matthew Kenney's book, everyday raw. She raved about it, which caught my attention. I thought, "Bummer; I wish I had the recipe." Then it dawned on me...I HAVE that cookbook. I'm a little slow at times.

Anyway, this whole dehydrating thing is a lot of work. I think maybe you just have to get used to it and get into a pattern. I also have to get used to the roar of the machine and waiting so long for my efforts to pay off. I'm always sneaking bites or cutting it off hours before it's recommended.

This recipe basically calls for slicing eggplant, marinading it with different ingredients, and dehydrating. I didn't use the chipotle chili that it called for because I was afraid it would make it too spicy for my kids. I also only let it marinade for 1 hour, rather than 2-3 hours, because I wanted to get it in the dehydrator before I went to bed.

I loved it so much, I'll definitely make it again soon. I'll play around with the spices more next time, too, and maybe buy the chipotle next time to go in it.

This got 8 thumbs up from my family. (Once again, my middle child didn't like it. I was really surprised because I thought he would be the one to eat it up. He generally likes crunchy foods.) My 10 year old snacked on it like crazy.

The best way to eat Eggplant Bacon is by itself so that it retains its crispiness. I put it on a sandwich, and it became rehydrated. It was still yummy, just not crispy. Next time I make it, I'll try it in a salad.

My sandwich: Food for Life brand Gluten-free English muffin, melted Daiya, hemp seeds, artichoke/onion mixture leftover from my Artichoke Pie preparation, mustard, and sliced tomatoes.

My review of these English muffins? The first time I bought them, I let them go bad before we finished the pack. They seemed hard and dry, and I was not impressed. However, I've bought them 2 or 3 times since; I guess they grew on me. Call me crazy; I just like dry, tough bread. Really soft bread loaded with additives and preservatives honestly seems so peculiar to me now. :) I'm the same way with tortilla shells. I always choose the Food for Life gluten-free tortilla shells for myself, as well, and they are also pretty dry.

served with split peas and broccoli

Kristen from Kristen's Raw is having a giveaway for a complete set of her ebooks!

I have one of her ebooks, which I love, so this is a great prize!!!