We are very much in love. I know you are happy for me.
He's a tad moody at the moment because he is having to look at the camera, when he just wants to be feasting his eyes on me.
Haha, this picture is the result of both boredom and procrastination. 'Tis what happens when 3 days of school have passed and you don't really want to crack open a textbook yet. Even though you know your textbooks are really spiffy and interesting this year.
I hate receiving flowers. You have to be one freakishly special guy if you want me to smile when you hand over the floral bouquet. Not too long ago, a guy who knew, whom I had expressly and emphatically told, that I did not like getting flowers, gave me a vase of tulips. WHY?! Sigh. Are boys stupid?*
When I told Gena this story, she responded that I am unconventional. Boys don't know what to do with me because they cannot get away with treating me like any other girl. Just like Gena doesn't like a boyfriend to call her "cute," I similarly have preferences that are not the usual and live life along a different beat. Unfortunately, vegan goodies and whole foods aren't very conventional. The following items are the things that have recently invaded my unconventional tummy.
Roasted almonds. Dark chocolate. Gooey vegan marshmallows. What more could a girl ask for? Sweet & Sara's Rocky Road Bark tasted just as glorious as it looks. WOW. You can get these from Cosmo's Vegan Shoppe. This was so good I actually had to buy another one the next week.
[Pizza made with mozzarella Teese, Trader Joe's Whole Wheat Pizza Dough, balsamic-and-olive-oil-marinated tempeh, red onion, olives, and sun-dried tomatoes]
I have never made myself pizza before! What a fun culinary adventure! I guess it helps to have a pizza stone, which I don't, but my crust got really soggy and thin in the middle. Whilst I was chowing down, I got messy but it was super tasty! Now I really, really want to make a calzone with Teese!
I would eat another one of these in a heartbeat...
[CINNAMON BLISS premium organic ingredients: Almonds, cashews, pecans, agave nectar, orange juice and rind, spice.]
Titled Cinnamon Bliss, this raw vegan cinnamon roll by Journey to Bliss Raw Foods is heaven on earth. It's a big ole 6-ouncer though (not to mention its big ole price tag of $7.99), so portion control is a must. For perspective, a Larabar is 1.6 to 1.7 ounces. Yeah, this baby is big. It doesn't taste like a Larabar, though - it is a touch fancier! So wonderful! It comes with a warning, though: Tastes best refrigerated - and don't take that lightly!
Nora from Pride & Vegudice did a Weil Bar giveaway on her blog, and my winnings arrived in the mail earlier this week - check it out:
An entire box - 16 bars! - of Goji Moji Weil Bars, as well as three other flavors and two cookies baked by Nora herself (the chocolate PB fudge ones from the Simple Treats cookbook, which remind me of my favorite vegan packaged cookies). Woo - it feels good to be a winner! It has been five days since I received the package, so naturally I have devoured the cookies and have sampled all four bar flavors. My favorite bar? Glad you asked:
Deeelish! I shall be buying the Pistachi-Oh! flavor again! As for the Chia Razz...'twas too much on the fruity end of the spectrum (as opposed to nutty), so I wouldn't eat that one again, even if it was free. On the other hand, what I love about the Goji Mojis are the dates, figs, cashews, and goji berries, but these are among several other ingredients. These bars are fruitier more than nutty as well. I like them a lot but I think Dr. Weil should increase the cashew-ness; if he were remaking the bar just for me, it would still contain the dates, cashews, figs, and gojis, but omit the other extraneous ingredients (e.g., cranberries and possibly the citrus too). I love figs, Dr. Weil! The Banana Manna was great but tasted just like the banana-flavored Larabar.
Once upon a time, I was proclaimed the Breakfast Queen by my wonderful friend Chocolate Covered Katie, and I have been churning out new oatmeal combinations like mad. I had this bowl bright and not-too-early this morning:
[Rolled oats, quick-cooking steel-cut oats, sea salt, whipped bananas, Tempt Original Hempmilk, chia seeds, cinnamon, raw almonds, and a chunk of an Honest Foods Maple Almond Crunch Granola Plank]
For the preparation of these granola-crumble oats, I used my Oatmeal Risotto technique (which I explain in this post). I stirred in the chia seeds before heating up the last bit of hempmilk (which I cooked over low-medium heat because I feel like hemp is more delicate than soy), and I was so surprised at how fast the chias plumped up and gelled in the presence of heat! I let the oats cool and thicken longer than normal so I could taste the flavor of the chia better, and then I added the almond and granola toppings.
I am madly in love with these granola planks. They are so fresh, almond-buttery, and maple-y. I reserve them solely for oatmeal toppers. They are that special. Oatmeal is a sacred meal in my kitchen. I don't mess around with the oats.
Another winner, my first foray into oats-eaten-chilly-from-the-fridge:
[Rolled oats, vanilla soymilk (though I prefer hempmilk), sea salt, chia seeds, whipped bananas, shredded unsweetened coconut, raw cacao nibs, and hazelnuts]
[Rolled oats, vanilla soymilk (though I prefer hempmilk), sea salt, chia seeds, whipped bananas, agave-ginger cashews, shredded unsweetened coconut, and raw cacao nibs]
With the last two bowls pictured, I cooked the oats and a pinch sea salt in water, removed from the stove, whipped in some thinly sliced bananas, and then stirred in the chias and soymilk. After a few initial stirs and a 15-minute fling in the fridge, they were ready for adding fun toppings and eatin'! This differs from the method used for the granola-crumble oats because for these, the chia seeds gelled up in the chilly atmosphere of the fridge rather than directly in the stove pot.
In summary, the moral of my breakfast story is I love chia seeds in my oats! They have replaced flaxseed in my breakfast routine for now - at least, while my wallet can keep up. I wish ChiaSeedsDirect.com would ship their chias in smaller amounts than 4.5 pounds! I got mine from a natural foods co-op grocery - the brand is Love Raw Foods, and I got a half-pound for $6.50. Not bad!
I love sharing my new foodie loves with you - thanks for taking a peek! I start classes on Monday - this is my senior year of college! Woo.
*[Note: Just for clarification, I would rather have nothing than get flowers. I would prefer a lot of unpleasant things happen to me over getting flowers. I don't want to take care of them. I don't want to have to change the water. I don't want to have to watch them wilt and get ugly. I don't want to have to clean my counter every day because the petals etc. shed all over. I don't want to see them snatched out of the ground, from where those pretty flowers belong and are very happy and perky, and thrust into my ungrateful hands. And most of all, flowers from an anything-but-perfectly-ideal male source are just creepy and give me an icky feeling. Anyway, I told him I was a dark-chocolate-kinda girl. I don't even care if I don't get a gift at all - just. NO. flowers! Whew.]
I wanted to share some exciting things I have eaten in the past week. I don't share my fun eats very often, as I now only take food photos sporadically. So, to remedy this, and to document some of the delicacies on which I spend my money, I made a point of lugging out the camera a little more frequently than I usually do. I will admit that I spoil myself quite often. Need evidence?
I love Theo Chocolate. While this particular 91% cacao bar is not my all-time favorite Theo indulgence, I did rather enjoy it. Three cheers for extra-dark chocolate! Who's with me on this one?!
No clue on the cacao content of this baby...
...but Taza Chocolate disks are one of the most unique chocolate experiences I have ever had! I LOLOLOLOVE these things. Taza uses Mexican stone mills to grind their chocolate. How cool is that?! As a result, their chocolate tastes insanely incredible - you just have to try it! They also make awesome 85% cacao chocolate bars. Taza is based in Massachusetts, but I have been able to find their bars and disks in many of my local Whole Foods here down in the Southern US.
I really have to thank Vegetalion for introducing me. She sent me this bar back in February:
Read the label, read the label!
Isn't Taza the greatest?! It's funny how similar processing quality chocolate is to processing quality coffee... As well as the single-origin beans, the direct trade system, processing the beans in small batches... Oh, how I love coffee and chocolate!
Wait, did you just say coffee?
I think I did, in fact. So, since we're on the subject, here's my latest latte art:
And here's a meal I have made about 8 times in the past couple of weeks:
House Foods Atsu-Age tofu, buckwheat soba noodles, zucchini "noodles" (just thin slices shaved off with a veggie peeler!), raw yellow bell pepper, cilantro sprigs, and fresh Brown Turkey figs, all over a bed of raw kale massaged in lemon juice and sea salt and drizzled with olive oil and freshly ground pepper -- I love simple meals like this! It only took me 15 minutes to throw together because the tofu I buy is so delicious I can just eat it cold, as is. No prep required -- no freezing, pressing, draining, or marinating. That makes me smile. Anyway.
Can't forget the new Larabar flavors: Here's Peanut Butter & Jelly --
Simply dates, peanuts, dried cherries, and salt. Yuh-uh-um. And though I got this particular bar (and the other new flavors) as a prezzie from Larabar in the mail, I did see all 3 new flavors in one of my local Whole Foodses. Yes, they are finally heeeeere!
I cooked yucca for the first time... You must try this delicious recipe: Yucca with Red Onion. Even though yucca looks ugly and frankly unappetizing, I promise, it is quite addicting (seriously) and delicious! Really, you need to try it! It just might enrich your life in a wonderful way. Hahaha. And as long as you have a steady hand whilst cutting off the woody raw yucca skin (I do after more than a year of working in a cafe kitchen where I chopped veggies for hours on end), you can pull this dish off quite easily! Plus, yucca is so filling (says the girl who is never full...uh, meaning me).
Fun new snack discovery:
Stovetop popcorn! I've been making it nonstop! I bought some generic-brand white popcorn kernels at the grocery store, popped 'em in a huge-o pot in canola oil, and then I sprinkled this particular batch with sea salt and curry powder. I've heard sea salt is not ideal for sticking to popcorn, but that's all I have. I will admit I have to sprinkle a butt-ton on to even taste any saltiness. Oh well, I lovest sea salt! I have also tried nooch (or nutritional yeast for all ye who are not well-versed in vegan slang) as well as cinnamon + brown sugar as toppings. Warning (don't say I didn't warn you, now): this stovetop popcorn stuff is addicting. So. darned. good.
Oatmeal...
Chopped hazelnuts, shredded unsweetened coconut, banana, chopped squares of dark chocolate, soymilk, and cinnamon... (It's a pretty good combo but I have a new, even-more-delicious oat-y rendition to share with you very, very soon!)
A Vegetarian Times recipe:
Peach and Snap Pea Stir-Fry (link) --
It's basically homemade teriyaki sauce slathered over tempeh, sugar snap peas, fresh peach slices, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts, all atop a bed of buckwheat soba noodles. Yeah, I changed up the recipe a bit with ingredient substitutions, so that's why my description doesn't match up exactly with the recipe...if you were even wondering.
And finally, a delish lunch at a new find...a coop grocery store with plenty of raw foods bulk items (think cocoa butter, cacao nibs, raw cacao beans, lucuma powder, raw carob powder, and the like) a salad bar with lots of raw + living foods, and a vegan hot bar! I got the Living Broccoli Waldorf Salad, fresh mushrooms, cubes of a random tofu creation, sun-dried tomato hummus, living red cabbage slaw, Jamaican-style sweet potatoes, sprouted chickpeas, sprouted lentils, fresh greens, raw yellow bell pepper, shredded beets (I think raw? but I don't know...), and who-knows-what-else under there. Oh, and some ginger-cayenne-tahini salad dressing is in that yellow container in the top corner. And I got a slice of yummy vegan cheese pizza too (but the pic was uuugly - so sorry to deprive you of it)!
After this meal, life was complete.
This picture does lead into a topic I wanted to bring up...eating with family. I highly enjoyed what I ate at this cafe; however, this is not a meal I can eat with my immediately family members (mom, dad, and younger sis). My family does love eating out, but their idea of "eating out" is getting fast food at Jack in the Box, or Wendy's, or McDonald's, or Steak-n-Shake every couple o' nights. My dad enjoys finer dining like I do, and is willing to eat the veggiest of vegan meals with me, but my mom and my sister are quite a different story. They turn their noses up at vegetables, whole grains, almond butter, and tempeh.
While living at my parents' house this summer after my junior year at an out-of-state university, many frustrating dining experiences have come up. One of the greatest joys for me is the adventure of dining at new places...a pleasure which I cannot share with my immediate family members. It has gotten so bad that I will have to get a separate meal from the rest of the family, because they will either all want fast food or, if they are feeling more extravagant, a meal at Applebee's or some chain sit-down restaurant -- a choice which I know will be extremely environmentally un-friendly, non animal-conscious, unhealthy, and definitely slim-pickins for me. I just can't support these chain restaurants -- places I know that support factory farms and industries that are extremely cruel to animals (and they definitely don't use local or organic produce -- if produce items besides iceberg lettuce can even be found on their menus).
I know the cost of high-quality, nutritious food can deter many people, but my family can afford it. If we chose to spend our money more wisely -- cooking at home more often, avoiding fast food, and eating at great restaurants every once in a while -- we could definitely handle this financially, but my mom and sister are scared of trying new foods, especially anything non-American (read: ethnic cuisine) and health foods. How I would love to eat out at vegetarian restaurants serving local, organic produce once every week or two with my family. But this doesn't happen, so I brave these places without my family, and my love for nutritious, life-giving food goes unshared.
How do you guys deal with eating with family members? It's no fun eating separately from them -- they aren't willing to spend the extra dollars to eat healthy, or even just reallocate dollars to eat at better-quality restaurants or buy unprocessed groceries that don't come from a box. I would much rather eat out less frequently if I can have a more "fancy" dining experience rather than just getting fast food on-the-cheap multiple times a week. Eating out should be special! Often, the places I enjoy dining are far from the suburbs where we live, and I must trek their on my own if I want a culinary adventure. So sad. Anyway, I would like to hear any opinions/suggestions/whatever else on this issue, as well as any personal experiences you have had with dining frustrations, whether it be wanting to eat vegetarian, vegan, or even just something healthy! I'm curious! And I sure hope this topic doesn't make me sound like a spoiled brat, but hey, this is my blog and this issue has been on my mind.
Have a great week -- I hope you enjoyed the photos as well as my random rambles! Much love, my dear bloggies! <3
