Rainbow Cupcakes

This is the sort of trouble I get into when school is not in session:


I used the Basic Vanilla Cupcake recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, then got fancy with food coloring. They are just so precious, I had to take a pic. Took a dozen to a friend's house for dinner and all but one got devoured, but only because I practiced restraint and only had one cake. Gotta get less fat, and all this baking is NOT HELPING!

It's time to cook!

Just like last summer, I am bored. And this boredom leads to lots of time in the kitchen making really good food that makes my booty not so awesome in white scrub pants. Today I made some delish Black Bean Burgers (they were great even though I completely left out one of the ingredients...oops!) and I also made these awesome cookies...

They are Mexican Chocolate Snickerdoodles! They have a nice chocolate flavor with a 'kick' of cayenne that comes in at the end and says "Howdy!". Sooo good! The cookies were from "Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar", and the burgers are from "Veganomicon." Two really awesome cookbooks.

If you are interested, the link to the recipe is here:
http://www.theppk.com/2009/09/mexican-hot-chocolate-snickerdoodles/

Other than that, I pretty much did nada. Summer is here.

Peanut Butter Cookies

I made the PB cookies from Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar. I used the wrong molasses, so they turned out kind of dark and I may have cooked them too long b/c they have a slightly burnt or toasty flavor that I'm sure was not intended. So, my verdict with these is they are so-so if you use the wrong molasses. I'll pick up some of the light molasses today and give them a do-over sometime.

Curried Carrot Dip

I just received what some call the Big Kahuna of vegan cookbooks...Veganomicon. Though I am not famous for following through on projects (note the aborted Callanetics experiment), I am going to try very very hard to cook everything in that book and post my reviews of the recipes here for my pals and anyone else who loves vegan cooking.

So, without further ado...today I made the Curried Carrot Dip. Normally, I would not choose a dip for my First Ever Veganomicon recipe, but I had a bunch of carrots to use up, so the recipe caught my eye. It was either that, or end up tossing them out. I am so glad I made the dip! I did, however, learn that I really need to invest in a food processor or a VitaMix b/c my blender suuuuuucks. I ended up mashing the remaining chunks with a fork, so I'm sure the texture would be much creamier with the proper equipment.

I would also probably use a bit more garlic than the recipe calls for...but I may be speaking too soon as I did not wait the suggested 30 mins before devouring the dip on a whole wheat pita. No worries...there is still a substantial portion left in the fridge, so I'll see how it tastes after the flavors have begun to meld.

All in all, it was an easy recipe to make and I could see using this spread to kick sandwiches up a notch...or simply enjoying on a pita is pretty yum, too. It's also a gorgeous color! Since my version is lumpier than what it should be, I didn't take a picture...but if I get a food processor, I'll make it again and post the photo...it's so pretty!

Black Bean, Mushroom and Quinoa-stuffed Peppers

I cooked again! These are some yummy peppers I made (again from the VwaV cookbook). These little lovelies chime in at just under 300 calories each and are very satisfying! They get a tomato sauce before baking, but I took the picture prior to that because I thought they were so pretty! Ok, you may disagree...but it's my camera, I swear! They are YUM!!!

In other news, still haven't been able to force myself to study, but I did print out some study materials that were emailed to us a few weeks ago AND I got my fingerprinting done yesterday AND my 3rd HepB today. So, I'm doing stuff...just not studying!

Bon Appetit!

Vegan Cooking Club

In the interest of celebrating health and vitality as I come to the tail-end of my 30s, I am starting a Vegan Cooking Club with a few friends (only few because I suspect some of the people I invited are teaming up and thinking of ways to avoid joining the club). Doesn't that sound totally fun?

Anyway, along those lines, I decided it would be a fun idea to cook my way through the Vegan with a Vengeance cookbook, otherwise I tend to prepare the same five recipes (kind of like when I go to Napa I go to the same ol' wineries every time...just call me Rut Girl). Anyway, I started this morning with recipe #1, Scrambled Tofu. It makes about 11 half-cup servings at 67 calories a serving...so even if you nosh out and go for a whole cup it's still a low-cal and high-protein, healthy-carb breakfast! Oh, did I mention the "no cholesterol" thing?

So, please bear in mind that I am not a professional photographer, but here is a picture of the completed scramble:


Next up: Asparagus and Sun-dried Tomato Frittata!!!!

My big fat ass

So my friend Pam came to visit for a few days and during that time she got suckered in to messing around with my husband's flight simulator computer game. Well, the experience "turned her ugly" (her words), and she proceeded to tell me to sit my "fat ass down and try it". The sad thing about this little ditty is that she's right...my ass is fat. I have been working on some weight loss strategies lately, but kinda goofing them up. Example: I read a few books about NOT dieting...using your "thintuition" and just eating when I was hungry and stopping the food fest when I was no longer hungery. The problem? I took this as a license to eat junk food and didn't eat much "real food". Not good.

So now that I am back to my "nearly vegan" ways, I am expecting the fat to just slide right off, provided I don't fall into the vegan junk food trap. One bonus I have noticed after 3 weeks of NO dairy and NO meat...LESS CELLULITE! Now, I haven't quantified it or anything, but my buns look decidedly less dimply (though, according to Pam..still fat). I will see if I can count them or something and report back.

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Good Kitty: Went to Wendy's for a quick lunch and got a baked potato (dry) and a side salad. NO FRIES!!!

Bad Kitty: Meant to workout this morning...opted to snuggle instead.

Short Term Goal: Increase my run/walk laps from 6 to 8 by June 4th, with one full running lap in there somewhere.

Nursing Goal Update: Enrolled in Microbiology and Sociology for next semester. The Biology class is going to take some creative scheduling with my work folks. Hmmmm...

Going back to my old ways...

Well, I am going back to my old ways ladies and gents...and no, that does not mean I'm practicing the wild and loose behavior of my college days. It means I am "going veg" baby! The reason I say I am "nearly vegan" is based on two things: 1) I am not perfect and occasionally take a bite of a luscious restaurant-created dessert that more than likely includes dairy; 2) Like many gals, I have a shoe and handbag fetish that I hope to cure someday. So rather than put myself out there as a full-on vegan, I am being completely honest with my "nearly vegan" lifestyle. The main challenge will be not freaking out my husband who, for some reason, gets all uptight when I talk about being a vegetarian. So, I'm just not going to mention it...it's already been 3 weeks and he hasn't even noticed (or at least he hasn't complained!).

I am also in the process of trying to lose some weight, which is one of the reasons I turned back to my nearly-vegan lifestyle. I was vegetarian for a couple of years (vegan for most of that time), but got hit with some major food boredom once I stopped spending any quality time in the kitchen...I hardened my heart, repressed everything I knew about animal suffering and health and embarked on a 3-year journey back to the average American diet. Not only have I gained about 20 pounds (ugh!), I never did feel quite right about it, but went along with the crowd and chose convenience over compassion.

Well those days are over...the more I read about the food industry and the intelligence and beauty of animals, the more I want to do my small part to help end animal suffering AND achieve optimal health. So...come along with me on this exciting journey as we explore the scrumptious world of vegan eatin'!