Cookbook Recommendation: Babycakes NYC Cookbook!

First order of business: it' Vegan MoFo again! For you non blog nerds, that stands for the Vegan Month of Food, in which vegan bloggers get really jazzed on blogging and try to blog as much as they possibly can within the month of November. It technically started yesterday, but I was out of town (lame excuse, I know!) but I'm back and ready to blog!

For this year's MoFo, I am going to try to do a few cookbook recommendations per week since I love/collect/readthemliketheyareactualbooks vegan cookbooks. For the first selection, I want to talk about the Babycakes NYC Cookbook, written by Erin McKenna, the owner of the Babycakes NYC bakery. Last time I was in New York, I went there at least once a day for a whole week. This place is serious about vegan baked goods, and it is a huge blessing that Erin was kind enough to give us some of her secrets in this cute and fun-to-read cookbook. Babycakes is totally vegan, but that's not even the best part (well, it really is I guess)...they are extremely health-conscious, too! Babycakes is almost exclusively gluten-free, except a few recipes that use spelt flour; they also use mostly agave nectar to sweeten they're treats, with only a few desserts that have organic evaporated cane juice used; and...yes, there is more....they bake with coconut oil as their oil of choice, instead of refined oils. Could this get any better? Well, yes, they have frosting shots at the bakery...but we're talking about the book here! :)I have made a few of the recipes from the book so far, and they've all turned out great! The ingredients are more expensive, but oh so worth it when you taste the baked goods and when you think about how much better they are for you! And they people you share them with (yeah, right)!

Here's the Cornbread..... And the Spelt Biscuits (coconut oil makes them all buttery and stuff. mmm.)....

I have also made a modified version of the Pumpkin Muffins, turned into Pumpkin Bread, which I blogged about in my previous post.

All in all, I would say anyone who is vegan, health-conscious or gluten intolerant, or who loves to bake should get this book! Bonus, there is a picture and a little blurb about the adorable Jason Schwartzman in the book! He's vegan! And a hottie!

Vegan MoFo: No Tricks, Just Treats! Pumpkin Cupcakes!

So great to have Halloween as the last day of Vegan MoFo!! I could think of nothing better on a beautiful fall day than pumpkin. Specifically, the Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cupcakes from Isa and Terry's Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World!! These are so fantastic!! Everyone at the bonfire I attended loved them a lot, too! I even made my own liners out of parchment paper, to give them that candy-wrapper look on Halloween.For the frosting, I made my own Cinnamon Buttercream. Not really the same as the recipe in VCTOTW; similar, but more to my taste. Either way, you can't go wrong with cinnamon and buttercream!

Happy Halloween and happy end of Vegan MoFo! See you tomorrow on November 1st for World Vegan Day!! Do something special :)

Vegan MoFo: Local Apple Cuppie!

My Vegan MoFo Day 28 entry is a bit overdue! For last week's Iron Chef Vegan Challenge, the secret ingredients were apples and peanut butter....two of my absolute favorites!! The entry was due on Sunday, but I got wrapped up with the whole restaurant thing and totally forgot. woops!

So it's better late than never, right?! I made Local Apple Cuppies with a Peanut Butter Shortbread Crust. A little piece of heaven! A cuppie-- mini like a cupcake, but it's a mini pie--is something I kind of just made up one day, but I'm sure it's been done before. Either way, they're pretty cool and mess-free and tasty!
Aren't they adorable?!Gotta fill the insides super full of local cinnamony apples, of course!Slice it in half and share it with a friend...or just take a pretty picture and eat it all yourself!

Vegan MoFo: Fun Food Stuff

I am currently having issues with my camera. aka it's broken! so...here's some good clean food fun to satisfy all your Vegan MoFo needs in the meantime! Enjoy!

Favorite Food Movies:
Supersize Me
Food, Inc.
Soul Food
Ratatouille
Chocolat
--For more food-related movies, check out this site.

Favorite Food Songs:
Come On-A My House, by Rosemary Clooney
Peaches, by the Presidents of the United States of America
Free Cake, by Dadbot
Hey, Good Lookin', by Hank Williams, Sr.
Eat It, by Weird Al Yankovic
--For other good food songs, check out this site.

Favorite Food Holidays:
National Cupcake Day, October 18
National Blueberry Pancake Day, January 28
National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day, April 2
National Hot Fudge Sunday Day, July 25
National Sandwich Day, November 3
(Doesn't include World Vegetarian Day, of course!!)
-- For all the food-related holidays, seriously go here!

What are some of your favorites?? Lemme hear 'em!!

Vegan MoFo: Lemon Ginger Scones!

It's Vegan MoFo Day 15 and it's time for this week's Vegan Iron Chef Challenge! The ingredients this week were lemon and ginger. I just happen to love both of these things a lot!
As soon as I learned what the secret ingredients would be, I instantly knew what I would make: Lemon Ginger Scones! It just sounded delicious and I adore scone-making. I just winged the recipe and it turned out great! You should definitely try this one on a cloudy afternoon, and it will surely brighten your day. It did for me!

Vegan Lemon Ginger Scones (makes 8 big scones)

4 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 Tbs baking powder

2 Tbs sugar

1/4 tsp ginger powder

Zest of two lemons

1/4 cup non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening

3/4 cup non-hydrogenated margarine, such as Earth Balance or Spectrum Spread

1/2 cup soymilk

Juice of two big lemons--approx. 1/2 cup

1/2 cup crystallized ginger, diced small

Lightly grease a cookie sheet. In a mixing cup, whisk together the lemon juice and soymilk, and set aside to let curdle a bit.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, sugar, and ginger. Stir to mix well. Cut in the shortening and margarine, until they are in pea-sized pieces or the mixture looks crumbly. Slowly pour in the soymilk mixture and stir until just combined, being sure to not over-mix. Fold in the lemon zest and chopped ginger until fully incorporated.

Chill this mixture for 1 hour in the refrigerator.

While dough is chilling, preheat oven to 375 F. When dough is ready, turn out onto the baking sheet and form it into one large circle. Using a very sharp knife, cut the dough into 8 triangles, as if cutting a pie or pizza. Make sure each scone is separate from one another enough so they won't cook together completely. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven, slice along the already-made cuts, and place back in the oven for 15 more minutes. Scones will be ready when golden brown on top and firm to the touch. These are fairly dense, crunchy scones, so they will continue to firm up after baking. Allow to cool for 10 more minutes on the pan, then transfer to a cooling rack to finish cooling or serve immediately. These are really great slathered with Earth Balance and drizzled with agave nectar!! Even better with a nice cup of Earl Grey tea!

Vegan MoFo: Vegansexual?

For Day 14 of Vegan MoFo, it's time for another post about vegan lifestyle, not just food.
If you are vegan/vegetarian or even read the news a lot, you have probably heard the term "vegansexual" or "vegesexual." If you're not familiar, it refers to veg people who will only date/marry/procreate with other veg men or women. Nooo it does not refer to people who like to "be with" fruits or vegetables. Just veg person and veg person. Anyway. This can be kind of a conflicting issue. On one hand, there are a lot of wonderful, loving people in the world who are not vegan. On the other hand, it seems only logical that one would want to date someone who shares their beliefs, ideals, and lifestyle habits. And if you are planning on marrying or committing to that person and have children, that makes those lifestyle choices even more important when getting paired up with a mate. I have only dated vegan men most recently, but I am not sure where I stand on this. I can't imagine going out with a guy to dinner and he has a plate full of dead animal flesh and pus-filled dairy cheese. Gross! And to think of kissing him after eating that?! Don't think so. But I'm not sure if it's being "too picky" to expect a partner to be a strict vegan like myself, or if it would be alright to compromise if they were just a vegetarian or, heaven forbid, a omnivore who is a good guy. This is tough.
This wave of vegesexuals and dating based on dietary practices has been in the news quite a bit lately, and not just in vegan news sources. While there is this VegNews article and others like them on the issue, more mainstream news have even talked about it. Check out this article in the New York Times wrote about this dating practice! We're famous, guys!

So, lemme know what you think! Are you vegansexual? Or do you date vegetarians or omnis even if you're vegan? Leave a comment on your practices and opinions! And don't be shy!

Vegan MoFo: The Vegan's 100!

For Vegan MoFo Day 13, it's the Vegan's 100! This list is going around the blogosphere, kind of a "must eat" list for all the vegans out there, and I just wouldn't be a good foodie without filling one out! The bolded items are the ones I have tried...of course I want to try them all someday!

If you want to do this for your blog, copy and paste this list to the post, then highlight the things you've eaten or cross out things you would never eat. Feel free to comment, too!
Here it is!

1. Molasses--what a wonderful sweetener!
2. Cactus/Nopales
3. Scrambled Tofu--soooo much scrambled tofu...
4. Grilled Portobella Caps
5. Fresh Ground Horseradish
6. Sweet Potato Biscuits--this is a shame I haven't had these
7. Arepas
8. Vegan Coleslaw
9. Ginger Carrot Soup
10. Fiddlehead Ferns
11. Roasted Elephant Garlic--had other roasted garlic, but not elephant yet
12. Umeboshi--i'm in love.
13. Almond Butter Toast
14. Aloe Vera
15. H and H Bagel NYC
16. Slow Roasted Butternut Squash
17. White truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Freshly ground wasabi
20. Coconut Milk Ice Cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Orchard-fresh pressed apple cider
23. Organic California Mango (in season Sept-Oct only)
24. Quinoa
25. Papaya Smoothie
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet or Habañero pepper
27. Goji Berry Tea
28. Fennel
29. Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
30. Radishes and Vegan Buttery Spread
31. Starfruit
32. Oven fresh Sourdough bread--my favorite is from Uprise Bakery in Columbia, MO
33. Sangria made with premium fruit and juices
34. Sauerkraut
35. Acai Smoothie
36. Blue Foot Mushrooms
37. Vegan Cupcake from Babycakes nyc--i'm proud of this one! i've had about 4 or 5 kinds!
38. Sweet Potatoes and Tempeh combo
39. Falafel
40. Spelt Crust Pizza
41. Salt and Pepper Oyster Mushrooms--i guess this is a thing...who knew?
42. Jicama Slaw
43. Pumpkin Edamame Ginger Dumplings--these, too, must be specific to somewhere. never heard of them, but they sound delish!
44. Hemp Milk
45. Rose Champagne
46. Fuyu (aka persimmons)
47. Raw Avocado-Coconut Soup
48. Tofu Pesto Sandwich
49. Apple-Lemon-Ginger-Cayenne fresh-pressed juice--used to work at a juice bar, so...
50. Grilled Seitan
51. Prickly pear
52. Fresh Pressed Almond Milk
53. Concord Grapes off the vine
54. Ramps
55. Coconut Water fresh from a young coconut--had this in Hawaii forever ago....yum!!!
56. Organic Arugula
57. Vidalia Onion
58. Sampler of organic produce from Diamond Organics--don't know of this place. i guess i should.
59. Honeycrisp Apple
60. Poi
61. Vegan Campfire-toasted S'mores--always with Sweet and Sara's Marshmallows!
62. Grape seed Oil
63. Farm fresh-picked Peach
64. Freshly-made pita bread with freshly-made hummus
65. Chestnut Snack Packs--what? sounds good, i suppose! i've had lots of roasted chestnuts!
66. Fresh Guava
67. Mint Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies--had them sans oatmeal.
68. Raw Mallomar from One Lucky Duck, NYC
69. Fried plantains
70. Mache
71. Golden Beets
72. Barrel-Fresh Pickles--from one of my friends who makes his own pickles! i guess they were "jar" fresh! ha.
73. Liquid Smoke
74. Meyer Lemon
75. Veggie Paella
76. Vegan Lasagna
77. Kombucha
78. Homemade Soy Milk
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Lychee Bellini
81. Tempeh Bacon--TLT Sandwiches!
82. Sprouted Grain Bread
83. Lemon Pepper Tempeh
84. Vanilla Bean
85. Watercress
86. Carrot you pulled out of the ground yourself
87. Vegan In-Season Fruit Pie
88. Flowers
89. Corn Chowder
90. High Quality Vegan Raw Chocolate--never had the raw stuff. i like good vegan chocolate, though!!
91. Yellow fuzz-free Kiwi
92. White Flesh Grapefruit
93. Harissa
94. Coconut Oil
95. Jackfruit
96. Homemade Risotto
97. Spirulina
98. Seedless 'Pixie' Tangerine
99. Gourmet Sorbet, not store bought
100. Fresh Plucked English Peas

Well, I guess 62 out of 100 isn't so bad! I have a few new things to try, I guess!!

Vegan MoFo: Chili on a Chilly Day

It's Day 12 of Vegan MoFo! It has been cloudy, blustery, chilly for the past few days...perfect weather for a steaming bowl of chili. Since it was Sunday, I had my restaurant going at my house, chili just had to be on the menu! And, since I can't eat chili without cornbread, as it is a mortal sin, there was jalapeno cornbread, too! While I was at the farmers' market getting produce on Saturday, I came across what are probably some of the last squash blossoms of the season. I hadn't worked with squash blossoms yet, so I figured this was my last chance! So, they also came into play for my Sunday meal. It was fantastic! A big bowl of beany, seitan-y chili, topped with a fried squash blossom and served with a side of jalapeno cornbread

The chili: black, red, and pinto beans with local green peppers, onions, garlic, tomatoes, spices, and my ground homemade seitan....sooo delicious.
Whole grain cornbread, with locally-grown jalapenos

The beautiful squash blossoms, pre-stuffing

The squash blossoms are stuffed with a mixture of vegan cream cheese, toasted pecans, chopped kale, dried cranberries, paprika, sage, thyme, lemon juice, and agave. The batter was made of beer, soymilk, brown rice flour, garbanzo bean flour, and spices. These were an INSANE amount of good!! I'm pretty sure these were the peoples' favorite!

The stuffed blossoms, resting up for the big show!

The perfect place for a stuffed, fried squash blossom? Atop some kickin' chili, of course!

And the only dessert that goes with chili: Cinnamon Rolls! I made RRF's Cinnamon Rolls, available on the blog http://bjorkedoff.blogspot.com/. Some of the best cinnamon rolls I've ever had. period.Naked. Iced.

Served.

As the second leg of the KC Vegan Crawl, Dane made another awesome meal last night, too!! He has a fire pit, and this chilly weather was great for cooking over the open fire.

Kebabs, with my homemade seitan that Dane marinated, and all-local veggies!

Smore's roasting on the fire, getting all melty and gooooood. The marshmallows were Sweet and Sara's Vanilla Vegan Marshmallows, which are perfection!

Vegan MoFo: Okra Fritters with Horseradish Creme

It's Day 10 of Vegan MoFo...we're into the double digits! whoa! The Iron Chef Vegan Challenge this week was to pair okra and horseradish. This challenge is from the Post Punk Kitchen forums, fyi. Check out their website for some awesome recipes!

I was really excited about this challenge, because I love okra and I had just bought some at the farmers' market! It was meant to be. For my dish, I made Crispy Okra Fritters with Horseradish Creme. Ohmigosh these are good! I have been tweaking the recipe in my mind for a few days now, and I got it all figured out yesterday; so dinner tonight was a perfect opportunity to try 'em out!

I used fresh horseradish root, got it at Whole Foods...
The fritters are pan-fried and then baked to finish them off...mmmm. Make these soon, before all the good okra is gone!

Crispy Okra Fritters with Horseradish Creme (makes 10-12 fritters)

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

1/2 cup soymilk

1/2 cup beer (apple juice would work too; but add 1 Tbs vinegar if using)

2 Tbs sugar

1 tsp hot sauce or more to taste

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup cornmeal

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/4 tsp chili powder

2 tsp baking powder

1 pinch cayenne

2-3 cups sliced fresh okra

Canola or vegetable oil for frying

Preheat oven to 375 F. In a large bowl, whisk together the applesauce, soymilk, beer, sugar, and hot sauce until well mixed and smooth. Sift in the flour, cornmeal, spices, and baking powder. Stir until just combined. Fold in the sliced okra. Pour oil into a skillet, to 1" deep, and heat over medium-high heat. Oil is hot enough when a bit of batter or water poured into it sizzles.

Pour 1/2 cup of the batter into the heated oil and cook on 3-4 minutes per side, until browned. 3-4 fritters should fit in the pan, depending on its size. Repeat until all the batter is used. When removing each fritter from the pan, transfer to a sheet pan. When all of the fritters are fried and transferred, bake for 10-12 minutes, until firm, but not overcooked. Serve hot with horseradish creme on top or on the side for dipping.

Horseradish Creme ( makes 2 cups-ish)

12 oz. block of silken tofu

1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise

1/4 cup soymilk

1 Tbs lemon juice

1 Tbs red wine vinegar

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp dried dill or 2 Tbs fresh dill, chopped

1 tsp dried thyme

2 cloves garlic, sliced

1/2 cup horseradish root, peeled and diced

1 tsp olive oil

In a skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. When oil is hot, add the horseradish and saute for 5 minutes until golden. Add the sliced garlic and saute for 30 seconds, until lightly browned. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes. When cooled, combine all of the ingredients together in a blender or food processor and blend until completely smooth and creamy. Refrigerate until ready to use.

I served mine with some Hot Sauce Glazed Tempeh from Veganomicon and sauteed kale.

It was awesome!

Vegan MoFo: Vegan Pet Food

Hey! It's Vegan MoFo Day 9!! I want to take a break from talking about vegan people and their foods, and talk about vegan pet food. I really want this to be more of a feedback kind of thing, because I don't yet have a very strong opinion on the topic, but I haven't really done a lot of research on it either.

I currently do not buy vegan cat food for my kitty cats. From what I understand, cats and dogs are omnivores by nature. I am not sure if it would be right for me to "force" my cats to be vegan. But, then again, I guess I am "forcing" my cats to live indoors with me in my apartment. So, I guess I'm torn. On one hand, I don't want to support the factory farming industry and companies that have unethical, unsustainable practices. I currently buy a natural pet food that is made with no fillers or factory farm meat products. But I must admit, every time I buy the food for my cats, I feel guilty about buying animal products. I know I don't necessarily need to feel guilt, since cats are not vegan by nature, but I just can't help it!

There are lots of articles and forums, including the PPK, on the internet that discuss this issue, and both pro- and anti-vegan pet food sides make good points. Both this Huffington Post article
and this IVU article got me really thinking a lot about this issue. What better place to discuss it than on my blog during Vegan MoFo?

My kitty cat companion, Stewie.

So what do you all think: should companion animals/pets be given vegan pet food?

Do you feed your pets vegan pet food?

I wanna hear your opinions!

Vegan MoFo: Pumpkin Bread!

It's already Day 8 of Vegan MoFo...I can't believe it! With such an awesome, rainy fall day like today, it was perfect weather for baking, drinking tea, and cuddling up with a nice book. Here's my recipe for pumpkin bread; I love love love it and I think you will too! I used pumpkin from a local pumpkin I roasted and pureed, as well as local whole wheat flour, but you could use canned pumpkin or regular all-purpose flour as well. I'm sure it would be great any way you try it!
Pumpkin Bread (makes 1 loaf)
Egg replacer for 2 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tbs canola oil
1/2 cup soymilk + 2 Tbs apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree ( or 1 can of pumpkin)
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 pinch each: nutmeg, allspice, cloves
1 Tbs baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly oil a loaf pan and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together the egg replacer, sugar, applesauce, soymilk mixture, and canola oil. Whisk vigorously until well mixed. Fold in the pumpkin puree. Sift in the dry ingredients and stir until just combined, being careful to not overmix. Fold in 3/4 c of the chopped pecans.
Pour the batter into the loaf pan, then sprinkle 1/4 cup pecans over the top. Bake for 1 hour, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
Let rest in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out loaf onto a cooling rack to allow to cool completely.


So this pumpkin bread is super moist and flavorful and tasty. But it is even better when schmeared with this:PB and Co. Mighty Maple Peanut Butter!! It's like autumn in a nice little jar, ready to be eaten up! Of course, the PB is good on bananas, apples, toast, or a spoon, but believe me, these two are made for each other! Throw in a warm blanket and a mug of hot apple cider, and your fall dreams have come true!Not food-related, but here's a gratuitous shot of my kitties, Petey and Stewie! They're friends! Aren't they just soooo cute?!

The Best Of: Kansas City!

For Day 7 of Vegan MoFo, I want to talk about the best places for vegans to eat in Kansas City. I've had lots of experience, so trust me on these!!
I have to start by saying, I love Kansas City! Missouri, while in the middle of the country and often perceived as all farmers and cowboys, is actually home to a lot of great stuff: amazing produce, delicious veg-friendly restaurants, and cool vegans! Who doesn't love all that??

I wanted to do a "top ten list" but there are 12 that I really want to mention...so it's a top 12 list. Hope you don't mind :)

12. YJ's Snack Bar: YJ's is a little hole-in-the-wall diner in the Crossroads District. Open 24 hours, you can get really good food and coffee anytime you want! Awesome staff, cozy settings. They always have a vegan option, and it's always tasty! The menu changes daily, so you will always be surprised. They've even been featured on the Food Network show, "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives." Impressive!

11. The Record Bar This is a restaurant by day, music venue by night, and this place is great for both. They have several menu items that are or can be made vegan, and the staff is pretty knowledgeable about the ingredients. Awesome music-themed decorations and hardwood floors make The Record Bar have a true bar room feeling, but with great vegan food.

The Ian MacKaye Pizza

The Moby Sandwich (sans cheese) with Fries

10. McCoy's Pubhouse A surprising place to find vegan options, McCoy's is a KC local brewery that just happens to have great food, too! Their best vegan dish is the Sonoma Vegan Wrap, and they also have really yummy hummus and pita, and a Moroccan veggie stir fry. They have tons of vegan beers, too, if that's your thing.

9. Thai Place Thai cuisine is an obvious choice for vegans going out to eat, but Thai Place does it right. They have a really great vegetarian menu, and most things can be modified to be vegan. Perfect for anybody who likes spicy food and authentic Thai dishes!

8. Lulu's Thai Noodles and Satay Bar Lulu's has a fun atmosphere and extensive menu. You can get tofu in just about anything, and they fix it two different ways: fried or baked. Awesome peanut sauce, sriracha on everything and fresh veggies all over the place. And they have an awesome happy hour for super cheap food from 5-7 pm! Yes!

7. Blue Koi Noodles and Dumplings Blue Koi has aspects of Vietnamese and Chinese food, with great vegan options, including noodles, soups, dumplings, and spring rolls. The food feels very homemade and comforting, and the atmosphere is really lovely. They even have a few vegan dessert options! You cannot pass up this place.

6. Waldo Pizza The only local pizza place in Kansas City to have vegan cheese, Waldo Pizza is some of the best pizza in KC, vegan or not. A list of toppings a mile long...including pine nuts, kalamata olives, and roasted corn...a vegan is in heaven here. The staff is extremely helpful and knowledgeable about all the vegan and gluten-free menu items. Multiple crust and sauce options, a huge salad bar, and VEGAN CUPCAKES that are awwwweesome! The best non-homemade cupcakes I've had thus far. Seriously. Go here. They have Trivial Pursuit Cards on your table to play with while you wait! A really fun and tasty place for everyone!!

Pizza with Spicy Red Sauce, Vegan Mozzarella, Kalamata Olives, Pine Nuts, Artichoke Hearts, and Sweet Red Peppers, on Original Crust. Vegan Cappuccino Cupcake 5. Blue Nile Ethiopian Restaurant With about half of its menu being vegan and a beautiful outdoor seating area, Blue Nile is an easy choice when looking for something delicious and different. Amazing Ethiopian food all served with Injeera and usually some vegan dessert options, too! Everything there is just so flavorful, you won't believe it! The staff is great, too!

The Vegetarian Combination Platter, with extra Injeera

4. Blue Bird Bistro The best upper-scale place for vegans in Kansas City, Blue Bird's focus is on seasonal, local ingredients. The great staff and atmosphere are just extras when compared to the great vegan options, like Green Curry and Quinoa Cakes, or the Vegan Chocolate Orange Cake for dessert. Almost exclusively local and sustainable, you can feel good about eating at Blue Bird and supporting local farmers!

3. Jerusalem Cafe In my opinion, Jerusalem Cafe is the best Middle Eastern food in KC! The best falafel I've had to date and baba ghanouj that is making my mouth water just writing about it. It looks kinda like a dive, but the food will blow you away. The dinner sandwiches (on pitas) are a great deal, as they are HUGE and served with their savory yellow rice, Greek salad, and warm, housemade pita, all for under 8 bucks. Holy cow. I crave this pretty much weekly.

The Falafel and Hummus SandwichTabouli Salad

2. Succotash A hip, urban take on a greasy spoon diner, Succotash specializes in brunch favorites, with a funky and delicious twist. Not a ton of vegan menu items, but what they do have is aaaamaaazing!! If you call ahead, they will make you vegan stuff specially for when you come. Fancy! And they have great coffee. All you need, really.

The Grilled Veggie Wrap with Lemony Lima Bean Hummus, with a side of Homefries

The Veggie Quesadilla (with their Lima Bean Hummus subbed for cheese), topped with their housemade succotash and a side of Homefries1. Eden Alley Hands down the most vegan-friendly place in Kansas City, and probably all of the Midwest. With an awesome menu and a long list of daily specials based around seasonal, local produce, Eden Alley is a vegan food sanctuary. Every staff member is extremely knowledgeable about which items are vegan, or raw/soy free/gluten free. This place is all-vegetarian, too, so you will always be in pretty good company! Tons of vegan desserts, drinks, appetizers, and, on Saturdays, brunch! The owner/chef has published a vegan cookbook. That's how good she is! Located on the Plaza, this is a perfect place for a date or a night out with your friends. When it is nice outside, they have an adorable little patio for eating outdoors. I never want to leave!!

Sweet Potato Burrito

Carrot Cake with Cinnamon Icing and Candied Walnuts

** Good Coffee and Tea Places: Broadway Coffeehouse, Westport Coffeehouse, The Roasterie, Coffee Girls, and Teadrops. There are more, but these are my faves.**

These aren't the only great vegan-friendly places to eat/drink in Kansas City, but they're some of my favorites! If you live in Kansas City or travel here or just pass through, I hope you'll stop by some of these spots...you won't be sorry!!

Vegan MoFo Day 6: Tester Arepas!

It's Day 6 of Vegan MoFo, or the Vegan Month of Fooooooood! I want to talk about being a tester for Terry Hope Romero's upcoming cookbook, Vegan Latina. I was so honored and excited when I found out I was going to test for her next cookbook! With amazing cookbooks like Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World and Veganomicon under her belt, Terry lives up to her reputation with this collection of Latin-inspired recipes. From tamales and empanadas to horchata and dulce de leche, all the recipes in this collection are authentic yet innovative and are full of flavor. I have learned a ton of new techniques, such as tamale-making, while testing for this cookbook! And I love learning new things! When this comes out, do not hesitate to get it! This will be an essential to any good vegan's cookbook collection.

Tonight for dinner, I made a new test recipe: Venezuelan Oyster Mushroom and Pimento Arepas. Yes, it's as good as it sounds!! Arepas are similar to corn tortillas, but are smaller in diameter and much thicker, as they are used for stuffing full of good stuff. This arepa filling is a saute of onion, garlic, pimentos (the jarred red peppers), oyster mushrooms, and spices, then layered in the arepa pocket with fresh avocado slices. Yum!!

Salty, chewy, creamy, spicy, tangy, savory.....and most importantly, messy! These are like little sandwiches, except better. They make an awesome lunch or dinner and are really a stand-alone dish, which make prep and clean up easy! Bonus! I have made one other arepa tester recipe, which was filled with a tempeh-jicama-veganaise-avocado filling...I can't decide which one I like more...I guess I'll just have to eat both of them! A lot!!

Vegan MoFo Day 4: Survey!!

It's a Vegan MoFo tradition to complete these surveys (aka "memes") to let all the readers out there find out a little bit more about the bloggers they know and love!

This survey has been going around for the past couple days...you should fill it out, too! It's a goodie!

1. Favorite non-dairy milk? Living Harvest Hemp Milk, Original flavor. Thick, creamy, healthy, delicious. I actually buy Silk Organic Unsweetened most regularly, but that's a cost-saving measure.

2. What are the top 3 dishes/recipes you are planning to cook? Pumpkin Bread with some local pumpkin I bought and roasted; my Vegan Beer Brats with Homemade Sauerkraut; and a new recipe I am working on for Savory Granola. get ready.

3. Topping of choice for popcorn? Nooch and Cayenne Pepper. It's just magical.

4. Most disastrous recipe/meal failure? I tried to make a lemon-poppyseed cake for a friend's birthday and it was a total disaster. The inside didn't really cook through, it broke apart, and the outside was buuuuurned. I cried, actually.

5. Favorite pickled item? Sauerkraut. Hands down.

6. How do you organize your recipes?Loose recipes? I type them up and save them in a recipe file. It is on my hard drive and my USB stick. I am typing them up because I am working on compiling recipes for a cookbook (!) so I want to keep them nice an organized. For loose recipes, I hole punch them and have them in a biiiig binder.

7. Compost, trash, or garbage disposal? Mostly compost. I live in an apartment, so I take my scraps to my mom's house and compost them there. If my container gets too full, then either the trash or I toss some food scraps outside for the animals. Is this wrong??

8. If you were stranded on an island and could only bring 3 foods...what would they be (don't worry about how you'll cook them)? Avocados; Hummus; Cinnamon Rolls

9. Fondest food memory from your childhood? My grandmother owned a diner (totally greasy spoon awesomeness). I remember going to her diner as a little kid and ordering pancakes, and she would make them into shapes like snowmen or mickey mouse, and would use chocolate chips as eyes/noses/buttons/etc. It made me soooo happy!!!

10. Favorite vegan ice cream? It's a tie between Purely Decadent's Caramel Turtle Trails and Temptation's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. I truly can't decide!

11. Most loved kitchen appliance? My toaster oven! It can do ANYTHING!

12. Spice/herb you would die without? Cinnamon! I love it for most anything sweet or savory.

13. Cookbook you have owned for the longest time? Student's Go Vegan Cookbook. This pretty much was a lifesaver for my first year or two of veganism. It's so good!

14. Favorite flavor of jam/jelly? Raspberry! Homemade is the best, of course!

15. Favorite vegan recipe to serve to an omni friend? BBQ Seitan with Cornbread. They can never believe it's so good and so vegan!

16. Seitan, tofu, or tempeh? Seitan! I love making my own!

17. Favorite meal to cook (or time of day to cook)? Breakfast!

18. What is sitting on top of your refrigerator? My box of teas, paper towel holder, my tiffin and lunch box, and some extra silverware I use for my underground restaurant.

19. Name 3 items in your freezer without looking. Homemade Seitan Sausage Patties; Purely Decadent Vanilla Ice Cream; some local corn that I shucked and froze.

20. What's on your grocery list? organic powdered sugar, greens, lettuce, olive oil, applesauce, purple cabbage, extra firm tofu, oyster mushrooms, and bread

21. Favorite grocery store? Wild Oats because it is right by my house and the people who work there are AWESOME!

22. Name a recipe you'd love to veganize, but haven't yet. My grandma's creamy potato soup that kicks serious butt; basil ice cream; and haggis.

23. Food blog you read the most (besides Isa's because I know you check it everyday). Or maybe the top 3? Vegan Crunk; Get Sconed!; Bjorked Off

24. Favorite vegan candy/chocolate? Green and Black's Mint Chocolate Bar with the creamy filling, but I think they stopped making it vegan. Current favorite, then, would be Chocolove's Dark Chocolate with Crystallized Ginger

25. Most extravagant food item purchased lately? Coffee Beans from one of my favorite Kansas City coffee roasters, the Roasterie. Full Vengeance blend. This is some pretty pricey coffee, but totally worth it!!!

26. Ingredients you are scared to work with? Squash blossoms, because they are so delicate and I don't want to ruin them; spring roll wrappers, because they are so fragile and I know I would rip them and get super frustrated; and habanero peppers, because they are so hot and I'm afraid I would burn my hands/eyes/life.

27. Favorite food cart? There aren't really food carts where I live like there are in places like Portland. But, one of my favorite restaurants, Jerusalem Cafe, has a food cart that goes around sometimes. Aaaaand it is amazing! Falafel and Hummus Sandwich with Tahini Sauce?!?! yes!

I hope you know more about the woman behind the blog now...or at least about my food life! Copy and paste this survey and fill it out with your answers; you might just learn something about yourself!

Vegan MoFo Day 3: KC Farmers' Market!!

Welcome to day 3 of Vegan MoFo (month of food, basically a month-long foodie holiday for vegan bloggers. nerds.)!! This is only my second MoFo post, but the third day of the month...I was working and traveling yesterday, so posting was not really an option. boo! My goal for this month is to post 6 days a week, as I want to dedicate a lot of time to Vegan MoFo, but I don't want to put undue stress on myself. So, onto food!

It may surprise some of you to learn that Kansas City (yes, in Missouri) is an amazing place for localvores, foodies, and vegans of all kinds. I guess pretty much all omnis like it too, but whatever. One of the best parts of the Kansas City local food scene is, of course, the Kansas City Farmers' Market! Located in the historic River Market district, the farmers' market attracts local farmers from all over Missouri, Kansas, and even a few from Iowa and Nebraska! With such a central location in the heart of the Midwest, KC makes a perfect place for locally-grown produce, and the farmers who grow them, thrive rather well!
Tons of vegetables and fruit of enormous variety, jams, breads, pickled items, baked goods, and the other non-vegan usual suspects make the KC market a great place to pick up almost all of your cooking/food needs for the week! My friend, Dane, and I buy most of our food for the KC Vegan Crawl at the farmers' market every Saturday morning, bright and early. Is there honestly a better way to start the weekend?? Don't think so!! Since we always buy SO much and way more than we can carry...even though we are big strong vegans...Dane picked up a little red wagon for us to use for hauling our goods!! Genius!

As you can see by the coffee cup in the corner of the lil' red wagon, the market also has a coffee shop, City Market Coffee Company! Usually a much-needed energy boost for early mornings at the market when sleep was sparse. There are also lots of ethnic food markets and restaurants around the perimeter of the farmers' market, so you can pick up things like spices when you are down there. You can also stop to eat lunch at places like the Blue Nile Ethiopian Cafe, Bo Lings Chinese Restaurant, Minsky's Pizza, Habashi House Middle Eastern Cafe, or Succotash, all which have extremely vegan-friendly menus! There are even a few antique malls around there, so this could be an all-day super great fun time event! yay!

Right now, the market is brimming with early-autumn goodies! The bounty includes:
Apples, Pears, Green Beans, Potatoes, Sweet Potatoes...Squash of all kind, such as Pumpkins, Acorn Squash, and Butternut Squash...Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Onions, Garlic, Beets, Carrots, Turnips, Eggplant, Chestnuts, and...A few end-of-summer treats...some farmers are still bringing in watermelon, basil, bell peppers, hot peppers, sweet corn, tomatoes, and okra; all of which are still trickling in, since the summer wasn't super hot. I love it! There is also another farmers' market in Kansas City that takes place in the Brookside area. It is an all-organic market, so everything there has to be certified organic. There are a lot of wonderful vendors and great produce there, but it is significantly smaller and, I hate to say it, pricier. I love to support them whenever I can, however! Can't get too much good, local food, after all.

So, if you are living in the KC area or are just passing through on a lovely Saturday morning, be sure to hit up (at least one of) the Kansas City Farmers' Market! I promise it will make your day...and probably lots of farmers' days, too!