Gentle Reminder

Just a gentle reminder that my blog has moved to wordpress

http://cookingforaveganlover.wordpress.com

holiday wrap up link

http://cookingforaveganlover.wordpress.com/2009/01/03/holiday-wrap-up/

NEW AND IMPROVED BLOG

I have decided to start a new blog in 2009 and you can find it here- http://cookingforaveganlover.wordpress.com/

Holiday Dinner

DISCLAIMER: THERE WILL BE UPDATES TO THIS POST (i.e. PHOTOS AND MORE DETIALS)

We have been busy beyond belief and I have not had a chance to post much lately. However I am hopping that this holiday post will make up for the lack of recipe post this past month.

For the holiday we had my parents and grandmother down and we had a huge feast the featured the various items from our CSA.

For Breakfast:

Whole Wheat Applsauce Pancakes with Homemade Tempeh Bacon

For Appetizers:

Spinach Dip with Veggies
1-12oz container of Sour Supreme
½ C vegenaise
1pkg of vegetable soup mix (I used Lipton)
1 box frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and drained

Mix all ingredients and let sit overnight. Serve with veggies

Sausage Rolls with Assorted Mustards adapted from http://www.vegcooking.com/recipeshow.asp?RequestID=902&Search=sausage+rolls

1 packet puffed pastry dough
Dijon mustard, to taste
2/3 package of Gimme Lean “Sausage”

• Roll out a packet of puffed pastry dough (like JusRol) to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut into rectangles and spread each with Dijon mustard.
• Wrap the pastry rectangles around “sausage” and bake at 425°F/220°C/Gas Mark 7 for 10 minutes, then cut each into several pieces.


For Dinner:

Roasted Celeriac, Cipolini Onions and Carrots (all produce from CSA)
2 small bulbs of celeriac, peeled and chopped into large chucks
4 large cipolini onions, chopped into large chunks
10 large carrots, chopped into large chucks
3 huge cloves of garlic
Salt and pepper
Olive oil to coat

Toss the celeriac, onions, carrots and garlic with the salt, pepper and olive oil. Bake at 425F for 45 min.

Mushroom, Lentil, and Wild Rice Timbales adapted from- http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2008/11/mushroom-lentil-and-wild-rice-timbales.html

1 large onion, finely chopped
2 large slices bread
2 cups mushrooms, quartered (about 10 large)
1/2 cup light silken tofu
3 cloves garlic, quartered
1 tablespoon sherry2 tablespoons water
1 cup lentils, cooked
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
3 fresh sage leaves minced
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup wild rice, cooked
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Make ahead: 1 cup wild rice (about 1/2 cup before cooking)
Preheat oven to 350F.
Spray 6 ramekins with canola oil or cooking spray and have ready a large baking pan that will hold them (9x13-inch should work). Place one nice-looking mushroom slice in the bottom of each ramekin, if desired.

Saute the onion in a non-stick pan until it begins to brown. Set aside.

Place the bread in a food processor and pulse until it turns to crumbs. Add the mushrooms, tofu, garlic, sherry, and water and blend until fairly smooth. Add the lentils and process again until smooth. Add the tomato paste, herbs, cornstarch, and salt and process until well-blended. Add the onions to the processor and pulse to include them but do not over-process (you want them to retain some texture.)Scrape the contents of the food processor into a bowl and add the cooked wild rice. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.Divide the mixture among the oiled ramekins and smooth the tops with a spoon. Set the ramekins in the large baking dish and add hot water to the dish, taking care not to splash it into the ramekins.Bake, uncovered, until tops are brown and crusty and middles seem moderately firm when pressed with a finger--about 45-50 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Run a thin knife around the edges and invert the ramekins onto serving plates. Serve with your favorite mushroom gravy

Impromptu Mushroom Gravy adapted from- http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2008/11/mushroom-lentil-and-wild-rice-timbales.html

1/2 onion, minced
10 mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups vegetable broth
3 fresh sage leaves minced
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon sherry
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup plain soy creamer
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

In a medium-sized non-stick saucepan, saute the onion until light brown, about 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms and 1 tablespoon of water, and cook for another 3 minutes. Add the garlic, and cook, stirring, for another minute. Add the vegetable broth, herbs, nutritional yeast, sherry, and soy sauce. In a bowl, whisk the soy creamer and flour together until smooth. Add it to the saucepan and stir well. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.


Vegan Green Bean Casserole adapted from http://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2006/11/best-vegan-green-bean-casserole.html

Beans- I prefer to stick to what I had as a child, French style canned green beans however feel free to use fresh, frozen or regular canned green beans.

Sauce:
10 ounces mushrooms
3 cloves garlic, minced
generous pinch cayenne pepper
Salt to taste
Fresh pepper to taste
2 tablespoons flour
3/4 cup vegetable broth (I used Imagine's No-Chicken)
1 tablespoon dry sherry
3/4 cup soy creamer

Trim and discard the mushroom stems and chop the mushrooms into pieces. Spray a non-stick pan with canola oil and heat it. Add the mushrooms, garlic, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Cook until mushrooms are very soft and exude their juices. Whisk the flour into the vegetable broth and add to the mushrooms along with the sherry. Simmer, stirring, until mixture thickens. Add the soy creamer and simmer until thick, about 5 to 10 minutes. Adjust the seasonings and stir in the beans.

Topping- Again, I stick to traditional and use plain ol’ french fried onions which I mix some into the beans and sauce and use the remaining to top it.

To assemble:
Put the green beans into an oiled casserole dish, mix with ½ the French fried onions and top with the remaining French fried onions. Bake at 425 F for about 15 minutes.

Organic Spiced Cranberry Sauce- Recipe can be found at http://foodietots.com/2008/11/20/organic-spiced-cranberry-sauce/

Cranberries from our CSA

Ingredients:
1 12 ounce bag organic fresh cranberries, rinsed
1 cup apple cider
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
Instructions: Place all ingredients in a medium sized saucepan and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Berries will pop and burst. Don’t worry if it is still slightly runny, it will set up more as it cools. Remove from heat and cool; refrigerate until ready to serve. Makes the equivalent of one can, but tastes infinitely better! Enjoy!

Herb Pull Apart Rolls- adapted from http://www.cooksrecipes.com/bread/herb_pull_apart_rolls_recipe.html

1 (1/4-ounce) packet active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1/4 cup melted earth balance
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon oregano
1/4 teaspoon dill

In a mixer bowl add yeast, warm water and sugar until bubbles start to form around the edges.
To the bowl add salt, thyme, oregano and dill.

Attach the dough hook to the mixer and turn to speed 2 and mix for 1 minute or until everything is well blended.

Now continue at speed 2 and add flour in 1/2 cup increments and mix for about 2 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Place the dough in a bowl and cover it. Place the bowl in a warm place and let it rise for about an hour or until it doubles in size.

Now punch the dough down.

Make sure you flour your work surface and rolling pin, and roll the dough into a small disk.
Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces and divide each piece again into 6 equal pieces and roll those pieces into 36 small balls.

Put three balls into each greased muffin pan and cover and let it rise in a warm place for about 45 minutes or until it doubles in size.

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes and then cool on a wire rack.
Makes 12 rolls.

For Dessert:

Vegan Pumpkin Pie – Adapted from http://veganvisitor.wordpress.com/2007/11/19/good-gourd/

PUMPKIN “CUSTARD”
1 1/2 cups canned Pumpkin
1 1/2 cups Soy Milk
2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
1/3 cup Brown Sugar, packed
Pinch of Salt
1 1/2 teaspoons Ground Cinnamon
1/2 tsp. Ground Ginger
1/8 tsp. Ground Cloves
Pinch Freshly Ground Nutmeg

In a large bowl, whisk together soy milk and cornstarch until smooth.Add the pumpkin, sugar, salt and spices; mix well.

To make Vegan Pumpkin Pie:
1 Vegan Pie Crust

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.Roll out to a single crust, dock the pastry with a fork and blind bake for 10 - 15, or until light golden in color.Prepare the basic custard and pour into the crust.Bake at 350ºF for 50 minutes.Allow the pie to cool completely before slicing

Fruit Cake Muffins from VegNews
Gingerbread Cookies

Too much craziness and Too much snow

CSA this week-Orange Storage Carrots; Cippolini Onions; Celeriac; Mars Onions; Bunch Curly Parsley; Mixed Gold and Chioggia Beets; Bag Claytonia (Miner's Lettuce); Leeks; Red Norland Potatoes; Red Shallots; red kuri Squash; Tullochgorum Popcorn; Champlain Orchards Macintosh Apples; and Elmore Mountain Flax Seed Bread

I know I have been really bad at this lately but I am swamped at work and lately never home. I will be a better blogger and post my care package photo and explanation of items. I would like to note that I received some yummy Southern Pecan Coffee that I am sipping on. Now I must get back to work.

Post #100, Christmas came early part 2, and oh the fire we set

Yay! For our 100th post! It only took forever considering the long period of blogging nothingness there was for almost a year.

Anyways I would just like to briefly note that I have received my Vegan Care Package from Bianca and will be posting a photo and more details tonight or tomorrow.

I also will be posting some photos of the Almond Toffee and Smokey Cheeze Ball I made for my work pot luck holiday party tomorrow. By the way the toffee (my first attempt ever) was fun to make however surprisingly dangerous however considering I almost set the kitchen on fire not once, not twice, but three times as bits of sugar fell to my burner causing a small fire (scary). Luckily my wonderful husband was there to help me juggle the hot sugary mixture and put the fire out with only a small fatality (the toffee burned a little but not all of it.)

Christmas Has Come Early

As you all may remember, Lindsay organized a vegan care package swap through the blog not too long ago. Being a transplanted Canadian, I was lucky to be paired with Ricki from Vaughn (outside Toronto) in the great white north.

When I had arrived home from a long day of Christmas shopping I was excited to see what I had been anxiously awaiting, my care package from Ricki. I rushed inside to open my package. Inside was a great selection of vegan, Canadian produced products (all but one!).



Inside was:

• Organic wild rice pasta
• Hemp seed nuts
• rice snacks (love these!)
• roasted fava beans (these were really good)
• oatmeal goldies (these cookies were soooooo good, they were the first thing lindsay and i tried)
• Canadian glacial clay (love the pure clean smell it has)
  
• Chakra bar
• the simply bar (coffee/chocolate. one of my favourite combinations)
• How Sweet bar (with a kamut puffs, this was really good too!)
• White chocolate chips (excited to try these, Lindsay was actually going to order these off the vegan essentials website so I was really excited to get them!)
• Fruit to go (I love these, can't get this brand in Vermont and I used to get them all the time in NB)
• Theobroma (really interesting sounding chocolate with chunks of pineapple)
• Macadamia/Cashew nut butter (can't wait to try this!)
• a HUGE bar of President's Choice dark chocolate with almonds which I'm ashamed to admit has a pretty substantial chunk out of it already!
• cute reusable grocery bag from Planet Organic (an organic food grocery chain in canada)
  

Thanks so much Ricki for all of the great food and all of the thoughtful choices!

Neil

A photographic Update

Yay! We finally had snow which Neil has been hoping would come! (however it's mostly gone now)

Ariel has become very curious as to what is under the love seat

This was a yummy stir fry Neil made using Soy Curls...I can't quite remember what kind of sauce he made I think some sort of brown sauce

These are Fried Green Tomatoes over mixed greens with a Balsamic dressing

This is a super yummy hangover stirfry we had filled with tofu, mushrooms and kale made with a soy and vegetarian oyster sauce mixture

Pizza we made using our pizza dough, wild mushrooms and spinach from our CSA as well as some Mozza Teese topped with a balsamic drizzle
Ariel so excited for the holidays with her Christmas sweater that was too small (I had to cut it off her....I am sure she is glad no more sweater)
Roasted Delicata Squash rings, BBQ tofu puffs and Broccoli in a garlic sauce

Updated with photo

updated with photo

CSA

Sugarsnax Carrots; Chioggia and/or Red Beets; All Blue Potatoes; Brussels Sprouts; Sweet Salad Turnips; Yellow Storage Onions; Bright Lights and/or Ruby Red Chard; Mix of Claytonia and Spinach; ; Elmore Mountain Multigrain Bread.

Hen of the Wood Members look for your cranberries this week!

Holiday Dinner Menu

Menu

Appetizers

 “Sausage” Rolls w/ a selection of mustards
 Spinach Dip Bread Bowl w/ bread bites and veggies
 Poinsettia Cocktail (non-alcoholic for Grammy)

Dinner

 Winter Salad w/ Toasted Mustard Seed Vinaigrette
 Mushroom, Lentil & Wild Rice Timbale
o A timbale is a large thimble or cone shaped mold used for various sorts of food. The name is derived from 'thimble'. (However we will be using ramekins)
 Roasted Squash
 Mushroom Gravy
 Mashed Potatoes
 Holiday Wine

Dessert

 Assortment of Holiday Cookies
 Mini Fruit Cakes
 Coffee and Tea

Horrible Blogger

Photo of the roulade from a few days before Thanksgiving (trial run)

I have been a horrible blogger lately with minimal photos and recipes. Things have been crazy busy with the holidays coming up and end of year for work so hopefully once the new year comes I will have more time to spend on blogging. I did however want to sum up Thanksgiving dinner:

Seitan Roulade
adapted from Vegan Yum Yum's Recipe

2 Cups Vital Wheat Gluten
1/4 Cup Nutritional Yeast
1/2 tsp Salt2
1/3 Cups Warm Vegetable Broth
Mix gluten, yeast, and salt in a large bowl until well combined. Add the vegetable stock and gently mix with your hands until all of the dry mixture is moistened. You should have a soft, squishy, wet dough. Knead a few times, and agitate the dough by squeezing and pressing it.
Dump the dough out onto a large cutting board and use your fingers to press it out to a 12×18″ rectangle. If the dough is too springy, let rest for 15 minutes before rolling it out. Cut the dough into quarters.
Heat a large, non-stick skillet over high heat with some olive oil. Briefly pan-fry the seitan pieces until just barely golden brown on both sides. This gives color, flavor, and kick-starts the cooking process so your pieces will be easier to handle.
Set aside until you’re ready to roll up the roulades. Make the stuffing (I used a corn bread stuffing that I mixed with sauteed onions and red kuri squash)
Place stuffing on top of a piece of seitan, covering the whole surface. Roll up the seitan, stretching it to make as tight a roll as possible. Let the roll rest on the seam.
With kitchen twine or any cotton string you have, tie up the roulade so that it doesn’t unroll.
Repeat for the three other sheets of seitan. Place the tied roulades on a baking sheet covered in parchment paper. Lightly brush with olive oil. Bake at 350º for 30-40 minutes, turning half-way through, until golden brown. Let rest 5-10 minutes before slicing. Remove strings before serving!


For the side dishes we had:
Mashed Parsnips Topped with Caramelized Brussels Sprouts and Torpedo Onions
for the parsnips:

• 20 small parsnips, peeled and chopped
• 2 T earth balance
• 1/4 c soy creamer
• salt and pepper to taste

Boil the parsnips until soft. Drain. Add the earth balance and soy creamer to the pan and heat until earth balance is soft and melted. Return the parsnips to the pan and mash with a potato masher. Place in the bottom of a 9x9 casserole dish.

for the Brussels Sprouts and Torpedo Onions

• 2 stalks of Brussels Sprouts, shredded
• 3 torpedo onions (your standard red onion works fine as well)
• 2 T earth balance
• 1 T olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Saute the sprouts and onions over high heat for 2-3 minutes in the oil and margarine. Lower the heat to medium and cook until caramlized (15-20 min). Spoon evenly over the parsnips.

Heat oven to 400F. Cover with foil and place in over for 10 minutes prior to serving.

We also enjoyed Fat Free Vegan's Green Bean Casserole:

Beans

2 quarts water

1 tablespoon table salt (Alanna says it's essential)

1 1/2 pounds fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into bite-size pieces

Bring the water to boil in a large pot. While it's heating, cut up the beans. Add the salt and beans to the boiling water. Cover and cook for 6 minutes. Drain beans in a colander, and then spray for a minute with cold water to stop the cooking. Let them drain in the colander, shaking every now and then to get off all the water.

Sauce

10 ounces mushrooms

3 cloves garlic, minced

generous pinch cayenne pepper

Salt to taste

Fresh pepper to taste

2 tablespoons flour

3/4 cup vegetable broth

1 tablespoon dry sherry

3/4 cup soy creamer (or try full-fat unsweetened soymilk)

Trim and discard the mushroom stems and chop the mushrooms into pieces. Spray a non-stick pan with canola oil and heat it. Add the mushrooms, garlic, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Cook until mushrooms are very soft and exude their juices. Whisk the flour into the vegetable broth and add to the mushrooms along with the sherry. Simmer, stirring, until mixture thickens. Add the soy creamer and simmer until thick, about 5 to 10 minutes. Adjust the seasonings and stir in the beans.

Topping:

1 1/2 slices whole grain bread

1 tablespoon Earth Balance margarine

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/16 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 3-ounce can of French fried onions

Put the bread, margarine, salt, and pepper into a food processor and pulse until crumbly. Pour into a bowl and add the onions. Stir to combine.

To assemble:
Put the green beans into an oiled casserole dish and top with the onion mixture. Bake at 425 F for about 15 minutes. If you are not serving this right away, refrigerate the topping separately; bring to room temperature before sprinkling the topping on the casserole and baking for about 20 minutes or until hot throughout.

As well as Fat Free Vegan's Double-Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake


Lastly I roasted some Red Kuri Squash and topped with a drizzle of VT maple syrup

Carnival Squash and Black Bean Casserole

Tonight I am making (it's in the oven right now):

Carnival Squash and Black Bean Casserole
Adapted from Fat Free Vegan's Pumpkin and Black Bean Casserole


1 1/2 cups cooked black beans (or one can, rinsed and drained)
1/2 cup corn, fresh or frozen
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 bell pepper, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon ancho chili powder (or other mild chili powder)
1/8 - 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder (to taste)
15 ounces canned tomatoes, drained and liquid reserved*

1 pound pumpkin (about 1/2 one small pumpkin) or any winter squash (butternut, acorn, etc.)

3/4 cup soymilk or other non-dairy milk
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
1/2 teaspoon Spanish paprika
1 tablespoon tahini (optional)

In a large bowl, combine the black beans with the next 8 ingredients and set aside.

Cut the pumpkin in half. Set aside one half for another use and peel the other half. Cut it into very thin slices about 1/4-inch thick and 2 inches long.

Preheat oven to 425F. Spray a 2-quart casserole dish with canola oil. Lay one-third of the pumpkin slices in the bottom of the dish, and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Cover with half of the bean mixture. Repeat layers with another third of the pumpkin and the remainder of the beans. Finish with the final third of the pumpkin slices.

In a blender, combine the reserved *tomato liquid (about 1/2 cup) with the soymilk and remaining ingredients. Blend well and pour over the pumpkin. Cover tightly, and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the cover and bake for 20-30 minutes, until sauce is thick and bubbly and pumpkin is tender.

*If you prefer to use fresh tomatoes, use one cup of chopped tomatoes and substitute 1/2 cup of water for tomato juice in the sauce recipe.

CSA SHARE

This Week's Share Contains Yellow Potatoes (Some Russets and Other Mixed In); Bunch Kale (Maybe depends on the weather);Shallots; Mars and/or Torpedo Onions; Turnips -or- Rutabaga; Pie Pumpkin -or- Red Kuri; Parsnips; Brussels Sprouts; Bag of Greens (Probably Mix of Claytonia and Tatsoi); 2 Mini Decorative Pumpkins; Butterworks Farm Early Riser Cornmeal; Fresh Cranberries from Vermont Cranberry Company;Dozen of Deborah's Eggs; Organic Quebec Flaxseed


You may have noticed that there was no CSA share post last week that is because our partners took everything last week and we are taking everything this week because our CSA partners will be out of town this week. We will be giving the eggs to my parents as obviously we will not be eating them and our partners will not be around to take them.

Some plans we have to use these items are:

• Whipped Montreal Chicken Spiced Potatoes
• Mashed Turnip/Rutabega
• Fried parsnip rounds
• Roasted Brussels Sprouts
• Chickpea Pumpkin Tagine
• Apple Cranberry Salad with Fried Seitan and Almond Dijon Dressing (using the greens)
• We will be freezing the cranberries and using them for Christmas Dinner
• As for the other items only time will tell

BITE ME

The other night Neil and I decided to go to dinner and after discuss about a million places that we might go we decided on pizza. There is this new pizza joint off Howard Street downtown called Bite Me. It is a localvore and organic pizza place that is super small but has great pizza. Along with this they have specically vegan pizzas that is labled on the menu you can also create your own vegan pizza. We decided to get the vegan pizza which was called "The Vermont Intervale Ghosts- it had marinated tofu, roasted eggplant, baby spinach, squash, roasted red peppers, red beets, caramlized onions, yellow and red tomatoes and lemon oil drizzle for $20. The price might seem high but this pizza is huge and worth the costs.

Other vegan toppings include:
basil, thai basil, baby arugula, baby spinach, callions, cilantro, sprouts, sunflower seeds, apples, walnuts, pears, grapes, pineapple, okra, broccoli, crimini mushrooms, portobello mushrooms, tomaotes, onion, roasted red peppers, roasted garlic, squash, roasted fingerling potatoes, roasted eggplant, marinated tofu, carrots, artichoke hearts, sun dried tomatoes, red beets, olives, kim-chee, and shitake mushrooms with your choice of tomato sauce or spicy red sauce...they have a pesto but i am not sure if it is vegan and the richard's bbq sauce is not vegan there is worcestershire sauce in the bbq sauce.


i would definitly reccommed this place and can't wait to try their kimchi pizza

faux sausage and mac &cheeze

Last night I made faux sausage for the first time from Everyday Dish TV and they were great. I also tried Vegan Dad's Creamy mac and Cheeze which is soooo yummy.

Spicy Italian Vegetarian Sausages
Makes 8 links

2 1/4 cups vital wheat gluten
1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1/4 cup chickpea flour
2 tbsp Bills Best Chik’Nish Seasoning (if using another brand which is salty, or saltier than Bill’s Best, you’ll want to greatly reduce the amount you use)
2 tbsp granulated onion
1 to 2 tbsp fennel seed, optional
2 tsp coarsely ground pepper, preferably freshly ground
2 tsp ground paprika
1 tsp dried chili flakes, optional
1 tsp ground smoked paprika
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground allspice
2 1/4 cups cool water*
6 to 8 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp soy sauce

1. In a large bowl, mix together all of the dry ingredients. Whisk together the water, garlic, olive oil and soy sauce and using a fork, gently stir into the dry ingredients. Stir just until ingredients are mixed. If dough mixture is too dry, you can add another tablespoon of water or as needed.
2. Scoop 1/2 cup dough mixture at a time and shape into logs. Place logs on piece of aluminum foil and roll up, twisting ends. Place sausages in steamer and steam for 30 minutes. Once sausages have cooled, remove from foil and refrigerate until ready to eat. After cooling, the sausages may feel a bit dry on

New Ethic x 2

So I have to admit Neil and I loved New Ethic and not only did we go their Friday night we went Sunday for lunch as well. Friday night we met up with our friend Monica and we decided to each get something and share it since we were all curious as to what everything tasted like. Neil ordered the nachos, Monica the fried chicken sandwich, and I ordered the soul food plate, we also got a side of mac and cheeze to share.

Let me tell you this was amazing food. The nachos were perfect they were sooo fresh and good! The chicken sandwich yum yum yum, their mock chicken is the best I have ever had. The mac and cheese really good too (my hubby and I would have liked some ketchup for it or hot sauce but it was good anyways). Lastly the super star of this dinner was the soul food plate which consisted of fried chik'n with ranch dressing, mashed potatoes, green beans and corn bread; all of this was incredible the chik'n so good, the cornbread was sweet and yummy and the potatoes soo good the only thing that was meh where the green beans but that can easily be overlooked.

On sunday Neil got the Sweet chili burger with coconut bacon and i got the cobb salad. Both were really good. The coconut bacon which everyone was raving about was good however I felt that the coconut flavor was slightly over powering in my salad, it was great on the burger though.

Over all this restuarant is amazing and anyone who comes to Burlington....or VT in general should make a special trip here.

Tonight

I can't wait for tonight it is going to be great. Neil and I are meeting up with my good friend Monica and we are going to

Then Neil and I are going to see Murder by Death at Higher Ground!

What We've Been Up To

Finally things have slowed down for a minute and I can write a little bit. Unfortunately I am without recipes for you right now but will be getting back to it soon.

Although Neil and I have been a little under the weather we still have managed to make some yummy dishes which I will post photos of when I get home and upload them to my computer.

I made some roasted root vegetable soup which included kohlrabi, red kuri squash, butternut squash and carrots; this was great and helped us feel somewhat better.

On Saturday we took a morning stroll and stopped in at Coffee Corner and got this amazing (and huge) breakfast which consisted of home fries, bread, and marinated tofu scramble with roasted red peppers, mushrooms and spinach YUMMM!. That night we had some pizza using our dough from our CSA and topped it with sautéed wild mushrooms and teese and some greens tossed with a dijon balsamic dressing. Sunday for lunch we had some tofu with vegetarian oyster sauce (there was more than just that in it I adapted it form a thai recipe I found that was beef with oyster sauce) it was absolutely delicious.

Neil made me the best dinner I have had in awhile the other day it was with soy curls and mixed veggies in a veggie oyster sauce and soy sauce kind of sauce (how many times can I use sauce in this sentence) anyways it was just like take out Chinese and SO yummy.

Last night I used some Brussels sprouts, potatoes, onions and carrots from our CSA and made a yummy hash which we had with veggie burgers and green beans.

Well back to work, I will update the blog with photos and recipes ASAP!

Adopt/Sponsor a Turkey this Thanksgiving

Rather than eating a turkey this year lets save some and sponsor them through the Farm Santuary. Go here and sponsor a turkey for this holiday season and make it a new tradition.

CSA Week 4

This Week's Share Contains Red Kuri Squash; Russet Potatoes; Mixed Medium Beets; 2 Stalks Brussels Sprouts; Torpedo Onions; Bag Mixed Spinach and Claytonia; Green and/or Purple Pac Choi; Bunch Cilantro; Sweet Salad Turnips; Rolled Oats from Quebec; Butterworks Farm Whole-Wheat Pastry Flour; Red Hen Pain au Levain;
(and eggs for our omnivore share partners)