Category Archives: Vegan Mofo 2014

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Okay I cheated a little and this didn’t get posted until Monday morning. I was a little distracted by football and cleaning yesterday. I am still keeping true to the new Vegan Mofo setup- at least 4 recipes, and at least 4 vegan articles. I think I even found 5 recipes this time! Actually there were more but I had to stop myself from posting them. So many yummy things are going on this month. 

I’ve been doing well with this Vegan Mofo challenge. Our front page is filled with vegan food posts and I am now starting to pile up ideas of recipes and articles to post. Which is a pretty good thing. But let’s go and check out those recipes and articles!

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Connoisseurus Veg: Vegan Pumpkin Muffins with Cashew Cream Cheese Frosting

I love pumpkin. I love pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin beers, and pumpkin baked goods. Only the pumpkin beers are usually vegan. The others I usually have to make on my own. These muffins look delicious and should be a great replacement for the muffins I use to eat at Starbucks. 

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The summer crops are dwindling.  The farmers recommend that we stock up on peppers as they won’t be around much longer. The tomatillos were a little dry and sparse. There are less tomato varieties from which to pick (slicing, cherry, peach, and plum). The clearest sign that fall crops upon us? Beets and various greens are making it back to the menu. 

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eggtom0

This recipe has been lurking for over a year now. I made a vegan eggplant and tomato soup over a year ago. It was amazing. So amazing I thought it would be something really nice to make my friends when they came down for my wedding. But I couldn’t find the recipe again. The soup was okay, but not quite the same as the first time. Alexa might remember this soup when I put alphabet noodles in it. Maybe not.

After a few trials I found the perfect amount to get the right consistency. This gives all the same vibes as the out of can tomato soup we all grew up with, but with a more adult twist. White wine, eggplant, and carrots give the soup a complex flavor that doesn’t take away from the tomatoes. I like to pair it was something rich and fatty. Like a vegan grilled cheese sandwich or bread with avocado spread on top.

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The only reason why it took me so long to post this recipe was the photos. I like to keep skins on when roasting and eating veggies. Needless to say red plus purple doesn’t make a pretty color. I eventually found time to peel the eggplant, giving a vibrant red soup. You don’t need to peel the eggplant, but if you like your food to be souper pretty, go for it (did you see what I did there?)

I wasn’t sure if I was going to even post this recipe on here since it was so simple. The flavor isn’t drastically different from normal tomato soup. The ingredients list is short. What does my soup have to offer?

Well, I am being a little selfish here. I am always loosing this recipe. So I am mainly getting it written down for my own records. So I don’t care what any of you guys think of this recipe. I am doing this for me. Side note, don’t forget the salt guys! The soup in the picture kind-of sucked since I forgot to add the salt and pepper. Ugh. Continue reading


asksnanswers

Alexa is working toward a vegetarian diet, and is loaded with questions. Jennifer’s got answers. We talk about anything as long as it is vegan. Are tattoos vegan? How do I politely not eat Thanksgiving dinner? How do I order without pissing off the waitress? We know you are dying to ask!

Hey Guys, I am starting to feel that people are starting to honestly read this blog. People are leaving comments that aren’t spam, and articles are being read. On top of that, I got my first SLR (Single Lens Reflective) camera, which means our photos are going to be much better. So I feel like the blog is working more towards where I imagined it to be. 

Which means we are adding new segments- Alexa Asks, Jen Answers. Here Alexa asks common questions and I puts my know-it-all-ness to action. Some questions might not actually be from Alexa, but commonly asked questions that I would commonly hear in the past. So let’s get started with question number one:

asksalexaWhat were the hardest foods to give up when going vegan?

There are two ways of looking at this question. One way is what is the hardest thing for other people to understand that you can’t eat. This is something that affects you at restaurants and family get togethers. The second way of looking at this question is what is personally the hardest thing for you to stop eating.

For the first question, dairy is the hardest thing for people to stop serving you at family functions. I think meat, fish, and eggs are pretty straight forward- they are or will be animals. Lard, honey, and gelatin are a little less obvious but not as commonly used in modern kitchens. But no matter how many times I say I don’t eat milk, I find cheese in my kale salad or butter melted on the veggies. Traditionally, European cuisine uses meat or cheeses as the focus points in meals. So many people are unsure what to put in the dinner to make it pop.

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mintling0

Can I first point out that I got a new camera? I am very excited. I majored in film and video in college so I love total control. I didn’t get that with an iPhone. There is so much joy in zooming in knowing the quality will be just the same, and being able to focus on whatever you want. The photos speak for themselves really.

I was so excited when I finally got the memory card for my camera that I started snapping away. This dinner wasn’t originally something I was planning on posting, but I think it turned out pretty good. I am hesitant to post some pasta recipes since they are so simple. But a lot of thought was put into which ingredients to use. So I ended up with something that was powerful in flavor.

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Every once in a while I find myself pining for the next season to start up. Since we are currently in Summer, even if it is winding down, I cannot wait for fall to start. The weather is crisp, the colors of everything are yellows, reds and oranges, and the fashion is fun. Not to mention all of the delicious foods that get brought back to the table. 

When it comes to break time during my work day it is usually the time of day when I need a pick-me-up, and that’s when I head over to Booskerdoo to grab a tea or coffee! While it has been warm I am definitely ready to celebrate the beginning of sweater weather and fall flavors, so I mixed the best of both worlds and got this delicious iced Apple Ginger Tea. 

This tea smells almost exactly like an apple pie! It brought on a huge wave of nostalgia for cooler weather and more apple/cinnamon flavored drinks. It also tastes just like an apple pie, only slightly more bitter without all the added sugar. I am sure if you try this tea with milk and sugar in it the taste would change slightly, but not in a bad way. Having it iced was great because it was the sweetness of the apple almost made it taste like a desert while still being cold. 

I also adored the color of this tea. The picture might not do it justice because the cup was beginning to get all fogged up from the heat and cold all at once. It was the perfect orangey red that just screams “FALL” (the season, not the action)! 

I am definitely excited to drink this when the weather cools down more, I might even do another review or at least post more pictures while talking about it. That’s how much I enjoyed it! Thanks again Booskerdoo!

Drink me! I'm delicious!

Drink me! I’m delicious!


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This is my first Sunday off in several weeks. It feels great to have two day in a row to get errands done and relax. And work ended just in time for Vegan Mofo- Vegan Month of Food. Basically it means I am going to try and blog at least 5 times a week all about vegan food. So get ready for lots of posts.

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To stay in the spirit I am doing the Sunday reading slightly differently. I am posting articles relating to veganism or animal rights. I am also trying to keep in touch with other blogs and post recipes on Vegan Mofo participating sites. So ready for some reads and food?

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Today is brutal. The weather is unbearably humid and fairly hot. I guess I shouldn’t complain since this summer has been pretty nice to everyone. It didn’t help that we had to park our car farther than usual and I had to carry a dirty wet 25 (and more) pound watermelon a quarter of a mile. My farm grew a record breaking (at least for them) 30 pound watermelon! Eek!

It is so hot that I actually plan on eating out tonight, even though I have more food than what I know what to do with. No way I’m turning an oven on in this small apartment.

welcome

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mushhot1

I have been plagued by this question- would Sailor Moon be a vegan? I feel like she would. So far I’ve only seen her eat mochi and toast, and that is in fact vegan. Actually, that’s not true. She is always eating generic bento boxes, which probably has some meats or fish packed in there. But I blame Usagi’s Mom, she is the one making the meals. I just picture Usagi sitting in her room eating lots of mochi and Earth Balance Mac and Cheese.

Realistically Sailor Mars would be the vegan since she is a shrine maiden. Shintoism has deep respect for animals, so Rei probably does as well (and her favorite food is vegetarian pizza, whatever that means). Or maybe Sailor Jupitar would be vegan? She is such a good cook that she looks for a challenge by cooking vegan food. She would save so much money! Although Sailor Neptune could be vegan since she is so smart.

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melon1

Can I make a confession? I kind-of hate watermelon. I know, that is totally un-American of me. It is actually a curse. I love the FLAVOR of watermelon, I just can’t stand the seeds. I am a chewer so I manage to crunch into each and every seed before I can spit it out. I know you are thinking “Well then just get seedless watermelon!” Yeah, I have tried farm fresh watermelon, and now seedless watermelon tastes like bland water pulp. So I am stuck craving watermelon but regretting the first bite.

This leaves me with a problem. Melons are doing really well at my farm. Just last week I took home THREE cantaloupe. Yup. That’s right three. I had to give one away since they were huge. This week I only got one small cantaloupe, and we got one watermelon. Then my mother in law pointed out that there was a huge watermelon that they were having a guessing contest for. Winner takes the watermelon. I never back down from a competition.

Low and behold the skills I picked up from working a restaurant kicked in. I thought “Wow this feels like a 25 lb bag of beets, only minus a pound.” So I guessed 24 lbs even, and I found myself taking a 24 pound watermelon home with my already huge pick from my share. I figured if I was going to get these watermelons gobbled up by the end of the week, I should probably drink them.

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