Still New to This Blog Thing...

I have been quite neglectful of this here blog for a while for two reasons: 1) i have still been feeling bad this week and 2) i am still new and keep forgetting to keep up with posting about all my yummy fooooods!

At work (Main Squeeze Natural Foods Cafe, where I am one of two chefs) this week, I made some DELICIOUS tofu salad filled with tons of veggies, garlic, sunflower seeds (the secret ingredient!) and made creamy with lots of vegenaise...of course :) Topped with lettuce, onions, tomato, and sprouts--this is one of my favorite lunchtime eats!

On Wednesday night, I made dinner for a bunch of friends and we dined on one of my favorite meals: breakfast for dinner!! Genius!

We made breakfast burrrrrrritooooos! Whole wheat tortillas filled with shredded FYH chedda cheeze, scrambled tofu (with onions, garlic, peppers, and spices), roasted potatoes (russet and sweet!!), avocado, spinach, and hot sauce...with a big helping of spicy Amy's salsa on the side.....these were the bomb! that's right, the bomb! Served with a side of steamed kale, because EVERY meal need sum greens!

Another dinner this week was vegan sloppy joes...even a meat-eater would flip for these! I use tempeh for the "meat" and simmer it with tomatoes, onions, peppers, spices, and molasses for a little sweetness. I top mine with some avocado, lettuce, onion, tomato, and more vegenaise ( i think vegenaise might be my blood type, by the way!)

Served with oven "fries" and steamed greens....home cookin' to cure what ails ya!

I made two desserts this week...one was perfection from the start and the other one became perfection...with a little more effort!
Dessert one: Vegan oatmeal "cream" pies!!! one of my favorite things i have ever made!

I used the chewy oatmeal raisin cookie recipe from Veganomicon and added lots of organic walnuts, then whipped up a basic vanilla buttercream with earth balance (Heaven sent!), organic powdered sugar, vanilla, and soymilk--it was thicker than your standard frosting, so it wouldn't squirt from the cookie sandwiches when bitten into!


These were so frickin' good...my friends and i have been talking about them for DAYS! I brought one to Anna at work (Clover's Natural Market) and she even teared up when she ate hers because they were so delish and satisfying....

This girl and I have identical taste buds, I swear!! Then I teared up because I was so happy to have brought her such joy...and of course, Steve caught it all on camera :)
Baking makes me quite emotional, I'm not gonna lie.....
Food should ALWAYS make people this HAPPY!!!

Dessert #2: Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Pudding from Veganomicon---that book rarely leaves my sight...
So, this started out a little more bumpy....I started out making a lemon poppyseed cake for a friends birthday, which, thanks to the trickiness of my oven temp got overdone--not burned, but most def overdone-- on the edges. After the fit I threw and Steve calming me down (does this ever happen to anyone else? or is this much concern for food perfection odd??) I knew what to do with this less-than-moist-but-still-tasty cake: BREAD PUDDING!! I had been craving this treat ever since my trip to the Chicago Diner, so this was perrrrrfect!

GOOD GOD this was rich and decadent, but not too much...and even more perfect when served WARM with some chocolate soy delicious ice "cream!!" What did I do to deserve such deliciousness?? Needless to say, everyone (including myself) was pleased with this lemons-to-lemonade creation!

Lesson of the day: If you bake something and it becomes "overdone" make bread pudding out of that shiznit and you will NOT be disappointed! TRUST!