Six Weeks to Go!

Six weeks to go! That is, six more weeks until this semester is over, I find out the admissions decision from Hunter College, and I begin my 10 day vacation in London! I've been super busy lately with school and work, so I haven't had much time to read up on food/nutrition or cook. I've been making big one-pot meals that will last me a few days, so that I have more time to study. Last week I tried cooking soba noodles for the first time in VegWeb's recipe for "Sesame Noodles with Tofu & Veggies." I made a few changes using the ingredients I had on hnad, replacing the bok choy with nori seaweed, swapping peanut butter with tahini. using dried shitakes, and replacing the fresh cilantro with cilantro chutney from an Indian market. The overall taste was strange, probably because I made too many weird substitutions. It was too vinegary and I didn't like the raw tofu. I did love the chewy texture of the soba noodles and the creamy quality from the nut butter sauce. On Tuesday, I went to an acupuncturist (for the first time!...I'll let you know how it goes) that was near Live Island Cafe. I got a raw sampler platter for dinner that came with soup and dessert. Like my first experience, the meal was tasty, but raw food definitely takes some getting used to. I also thought I'd pass along a vegan recipe that Danny baked up in his kitchen at work this week. He made VegWeb's recipe for "The BEST REAL Peanut Butter Cookies," and they got rave reviews from his coworkers.

One other thing on my never-ending to-do list is to grow an organic vegetable garden with my dad this summer. We really need to start this weekend, because I was hoping to start transplants indoors and get some cold-weather seeds in the ground (I had really aimed to get this done last month)! My dad grew up on a farm in Sicily, and as much as he probably hated farm chores as a child, he has kept a garden ever since he moved to New York. This is the first year that we want to try for an all-organic garden. We hope to grow: tomato, cucumber, bell pepper, carrot, string beans, zucchini/cucuzzi, butternut squash, delicata squash, beets, sugar snap peas, lettuce, augula, radish, kale, swiss chard, tatsoi, garlic, basil, rosemary, parsley, sage, chives, and mint. My dad also has fig, persimmon, and chestnut trees (although only the fig is mature enough to bear fruit). It seems like a ridiculous amount of stuff to grow, but this year is just a trial! Last summer I interned on an organic CSA farm, so I guess I'm trying to recreate the experience on a smaller scale in my own backyard. I joined another organic CSA on Long Island this summer called Golden Earthworm (which is a much larger operation than Sophia Garden, where I interned).  If you're not familiar with the term, CSA means "community-supported agriculture," and it is a really economical and sustainable way to eat organic. Members buy seasonal shares (subscriptions), and in return they each get a big box of fruits, veggies, herbs, flowers, or whatever Mother Nature chooses to grow each week. Every CSA is unique in size, crop variety, harvest season, membership cost, etc. Some require that you volunteer a small number of hours each week on the farm. Sophia Garden required members to pick up their shares at the farm, whereas Golden Earthworm will drop off my box at a location near my house. For more information and to search for CSA's, farmers' markets, or co-ops near you, go to http://www.localharvest.org/csa/.

A Very Vegan Birthday

                           

My birthday was this past weekend. I didn't plan on doing anything special, but some of my coworkers from Starbucks surprised me during my shift Friday night. Katie brought me some amazing oatmeal-banana-walnut-chocolate chip cookies from Sal's Meat Market (who knew an Italian deli could make such delicious vegan cookies?) Mary came for a visit and sneakily placed some of her famous cupcakes in the fridge. They were chocolate with green frosting, topped with yellow frosting piped Oreos that looked like sunflowers. And of course they were as delicious as they looked! Tabitha and Dan got me a Calico Dragon bag that boldly states "Vegan for Life" on one side and has cute cartoon animals labeled "Not for Human Consumption" on the other. I checked out the website and a portion of all proceeds go to animal charities, and the bags are made by a woman in China who is able to support herself and her son through her business. On Saturday morning, my mom and I set out to use up my big box of Hodgson's Mill Buckwheat  Pancake Mix to make a few batches of vegan waffles. In my house we probably make pancakes or waffles only once a year, so we had to dig deep in the garage to find the dusty waffle maker. For the most part, I followed the recipe on the box to a tee (replacing the dairy milk with coconut milk and the egg with 1/2 of a mashed banana). I don't like plain pancakes or waffles though, so I had to throw in some frozen blueberries, chopped walnuts, and a dash of cinnamon. The batter wasn't runny like I remember Bisquick batter to be, so we literally had to spread it on the oiled waffle maker with a spoon. The first set of waffles was so thick that they split when we opened the waffle maker, and we could have stuffed them to make a waffle sandwich. The next few came out a bit lighter and crispier. In the end, they were tasty and we topped them with Earth Balance, organic Vermont maple syrup, almond butter, and raw cinnamon honey. Yesterday was my real birthday, so my mom, Danny, and I went to 3 Brothers Pizza Cafe for dinner. Danny and I have been going there nearly once a week recently, and we wanted my mom to try it for the first time. We started with eggplant rollantini, which was stuffed with tofu-cashew ricotta and topped with Daiya mozzarella cheese and nut parmesan. The dish was so fresh and delicious, and my mom was really impressed with the resemblance to real cheese. We then shared our favorite custom pie: whole wheat crust, tomato sauce, tofu-cashew ricotta, broccoli rabe, grilled portobello, and grilled eggplant. We even brought a few slices home for my dad to try and he had no idea he was eating vegan ricotta cheese. Last night, my aunt, uncle, and cousins came over for birthday cake. I baked a Mocha Fudge Pudding Cake from Jae Steele's Get it Ripe cookbook. Danny and I baked it the day before: it was a really quick and easy recipe, but its ability to hold its shape was questionable. The cake batter consisted of spelt flour, cocoa powder, ground espresso, agave nectar, coconut oil, soy milk, and vanilla extract. Once the batter is transferred to a baking dish, you pour 2 cups of hot coffee over the batter. The batter was pure liquid, and even after baking for an hour the cake came out bubbling like molten lava. Once I refrigerated it overnight, the cake settled and formed a nice thick pudding on the bottom. I served it over vanilla soy ice cream, and it was a big hit.

                                  

Confessions of a [Food] Shopaholic

I love to shop. And I don't mean clothes shopping, I mean grocery shopping. I only make 2-3 trips to the grocery store a month, but I really stock up each time I go. I never really buy anything unnecessary though; I stick to the staple foods on my shopping list. Lately I've been trying to see how long I can go with just the staples in my pantry, fridge, and freezer. That means I have to search my cookbooks and recipe databases online to find recipes that will utilize what I have on hand. Last night I made an "Ethiopian-Inspired Red Lentil Soup" from Fat Free Vegan. It wasn't as flavorful as I expected, and the tiny red lentils nearly disintegrated into the stew. I also substituted peas for the string beans and added some bulgur wheat. I'm not a huge fan of potatoes or peas, so I think those ingredients turned me off. It definitely wasn't bad, but next time I would prefer it spicier and with some injeera bread to dip in the stew. I also had some fresh basil in the fridge, so I made the pesto recipe from Vegan With a Vengeance, replacing the nutritional yeast with hemp seeds. I made the pesto a little too salty and garlicky, but it was delicious nonetheless. Just when I thought I was done cooking, I had an urge to bake. Since I had work at 5am the next morning, I decided to make a quick and easy recipe. The recipe for"Vegan Sugar-Free Peanut Butter Cookies" was printed in my local newspaper recently, and despite the misleading title, it does not contain any artificial sweeteners! By "sugar-free" it just means without refined sugars. Instead, this recipe uses only 2 tbs. of pure maple syrup and bananas to naturally sweeten the cookie. I found the exact recipe online here, but don't be fooled by the horrible reviews! This cookie is chewy and moist, with just the perfect amount of sweetness. I added carob chips to some of them to give a chocolately flavor. I'm sure they are really versatile too--just maintain the same ratio of wet-to-dry ingredients. You could probably use almond butter, coconut flakes, dried fruit, nuts, etc.