BAKING, TACO NIGHT & NEW FRIENDS

Hey folks,

I know it's been another long gap in between posts, but what can I say! I'm here!

So, let's get right down to it! As I mentioned in the last post, JJ went off to NYC while I stayed back brooding in envy. He had a great time! He was able to hit up some of his old food posts while he was there. I can't wait to make a trip up to do the same! Anyway, while he was gone, my sister and nephew stayed the night with me on Saturday so that we could celebrate Mother's Day with my sister. To all you moms and moms-to-be, I hope you had a great one! Anyway, I made myself some pasta on Friday night that was enough to last me through the weekend. I was being a little lazy and easy on the wallet so it worked well enough for me! I have vowed to make an effort to make some sort of baked goods every weekend. I've been keeping up with the plan so far. So, on Mother's Day, I made some Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies.

I'm not going to bother posting the recipe for these because next time I make them, I want to use a different recipe and see what happens. Though they came out FANTASTIC, I want to make a few adjusments next time. They actually were very good, so I pat myself on the back for getting it right, but the dough was a little too crumbly and it was VERY hard to work with. I thought that I had messed it up, so I got rid of all the excess batter prematurely. I should have baked the first batch to see what came out before wasting so much. Anyway, my sister and nephew who are non-vegan LOVED them and wished I had not thrown it away either. I'll know better for next time! I saved a couple for JJ to try upon his return and he loved them as well!

Here they are in all their glory!

This past weekend was a combination of eating out and cooking. On Friday night we had hard shell tacos.

We bought the Garden of Eatin' taco kit that comes with the shells, taco seasoning and sauce. We have used this before and it's quite good. We just mixed together some black beans, onions and peppers. Shown here:

The taco shells warmed out of the oven:

And homemade guacamole:

I have found a WONDERFUL new writing partner! I'll call her AB (hear more about this on my raiseyourvoice blog). She and her husband have recently moved down here from Alaska, so after AB and I finished up with our Saturday morning meeting, her husband and JJ met us to go grab some lunch to all get acquainted. We had a BLAST! AB is a vegetarian, her husband isn't but is open to Veg fare, so we went to Cafe Sunflower. I've blogged about this before, so I won't get into too much detail. I will say that we didn't seem to get as much food as JJ and I remember from the last time. I still recommend the place, but I suggest you go if you're looking for more of a gourmet style vegan restaurant. AB and her husband didn't complain, but JJ and I made the above assessment later on. After lunch, we were having such a good time, it turned into making a day of it! We headed over to Little Five Points and Inman Park. They had their precious dog along for the trip, so she enjoyed playing in the park and the walk outside. It was great fun and we've found some great new hanging partners! JJ has also acquired a new running partner with AB's husband who I'll call TM. They are due for their first run this coming Saturday.

Here they are with JJ:

After parting ways with our new buds, we headed back over to my crib. On the way there I stopped at a new place that we found that does Jamaican/Vegetarian/Vegan cuisine. They have great vegan mac and cheese and fantastic collard greens! I have to get back with you on the name. I know, I've GOT to do better on this tip. I just searched high and low on the web and can't find it! I did however, make good on the promise to get you the name of the Indian Restaurant that JJ and I frequent by my house. They don't have a website, but here is their info:

Madras Sri Ganesh Ram Palace

1825 Rockbridge Rd.

Stone Mountain, GA 30087

770-413-1415

So, I'll get back to you on the other information asap!

On Sunday, I baked my first batch of Vegan brownies. I think they came out quite tasty! Click here to see the recipe I used. I got the thumbs up from a non-vegan co-worker who also bakes. I'm still waiting to hear the verdict from JJ, he hadn't tried them yet. I'll let you know next time.

Here they are:

Sunday dinner was late and uneventful. A veggie sandwich from Panera. So, there you have it! You're all caught up with the two V's.

This weekend brings a holiday, so I'm excited about that!! NO WORK ON MONDAY!!! YEAHH!!

JJ's parents and sister are coming in town from Chicago, so next week's posting should be fun!

Peace until next time!

C

LENTIL SOUP AND MUFFINS

Hey folks!!
I know it's been a little longer than usual. Did you miss us?! Well, we're back in full effect! My mom came in town the weekend before last so the two vegans didn't do it how we usually do, so that is why there was a week missed in posting our delectable delights!!

Well, on to this past weekend. I was off on Friday because I had some new furniture being delivered...YEAHHH!!!! Anyway, JJ had mentioned earlier in the week that he wanted some blueberry muffins and lentil soup over the weekend. The blueberry muffins would be my first foray into vegan baking. This is going to be a new venture for me and I'm very excited about it, but more on that in the posts to come. Anyway, on Friday night we did it simple and just stopped by Chipotle for our usual vegetarian burrito in a bowl.

On Saturday, we started the morning off right by getting in some exercise on the tennis courts.

We definitely did better this time and look forward to continuing to grow in the sport. After going back to the house to shower, we hit up the Dekalb Farmers Market to get some groceries. It's been a minute since we've gone there, but I LOVE this place. They have a HUGE selection and the prices are more than reasonable.

For lunch, we decided to hit up the Indian restaurant by my house for their delicious buffet. I walked right out AGAIN without getting a menu in order to give you the name and I'm not going to even try to go off of memory because the name is way too long and I don't want to jack it up. I promise to get that information to you shortly. By the time we were done eating, I was so full I could only think of letting my pants out and laying down somewhere. I know, it's a shame. Put the fork down and move away from the plate!!! Anyway, it was as delicious as ever!!

After going back to the crib and chillin' for a minute, I prepared the kitchen for my first experience with vegan baking. Once I got all the ingredients together, I got to baking. After getting all the ingredients in the bowl, it became PAINFULLY evident that I definitely need to invest in a hand mixer. I will over time be building up my arsenal of baking supplies. Well, I made it through the mini arm workout and got the mix into the muffin tins. I was a little worried that I hadn't mixed enough and they wouldn't come out right. I am more than happy to report that I was SO wrong!! They came out great!! I will however, next time spray the inside of the muffin papers to prevent sticking. I also think that I will be more generous with the batter to make the a little bigger on top. So, if I do these few modifications next time, I think all will be good in the hood! I used all organic ingredients and I made sure to use Organic sugar that was free from bone char (look under uses once you click on the link).

Here is the recipe I used:

• 2 cups flour


• 1/3 cup sugar


• 2 tsp baking powder


• 1/4 tsp salt


• 1 cup soy milk
• 1/4 cup Earth Balance (the vegan variety of course)
  
• Egg replacer for one egg


• 1 tsp lemon juice


• 1 cup frozen blueberries (you can of course use fresh as well)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and lightly grease a muffin pan. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the soy milk, earth balance, egg replacer and lemon juice and stir until mixed. Gently add blueberries. Spoon batter in to the muffin pan, filling each cup 2/3 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes until muffins are golden brown.

Check 'em out! Please note, that I had SO much batter that I ended up making some mini ones as well, those are the ones on top. They were very yummy and I got the thumbs up from JJ too!

On Sunday, we got an early start as well. We were headed into the city to spend the day and go to JJ's crib for the evening. The weather was warm and gorgeous!! We started off the day breaking a sweat again by going to the gym to work out first. After showering, we headed over to Cosmo's Vegan Shoppe. I found out about this place last week and couldn't wait to go! It was in a part of town that JJ and I hadn't been too yet and it was so nice. We loved this nice vegan find. It was a little smaller than I expected, but it was great nonetheless. They had Uncle Eddie's cookies and this is the first place I've been to down here that has them, so I had to bite the bullet and get some..YUM, YUM, YUM! I'm going to learn how to make and perfect my own, but in the meantime I had to indulge just a little bit. ESPECIALLY since I have vowed to make my sweet tooth wait until the weekends and concentrate on my fruits, veggies, beans and grains during the week.



So after running around the city and doing some errands, it was back to the house to get into making the homemade lentil soup. JJ said next to the veggie wraps I make, this is a very close second.

Here is the recipe we used. However, we used Extra Virgin Olive Oil instead of vegetable, we added two stalks of kale and we didn't use bay leaves or thyme. Instead we seasoned to taste using oregano, sea salt, pepper, cumin, season all, as well as one minced garlic clove. I think JJ may have added a few other items. He is the king of seasoning things just right. We also used two cups of lentils and added water to give the soup more liquid since we ran out of vegetable broth.

1 tsp vegetable oil
1 onion diced
1 carrot sliced
4 cups vegetable broth
1 cup dry lentils
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp dried thyme
2 bay leaves
dash salt
1 tbsp lemon juice

In a large pot, sautee the onions and carrot in oil for 3-5 minutes (We sauteed the onions and carrots along with the kale and did not add the other itmes until the carrots were a little less than fork tender). Add the vegetable broth, lentils, and other seasonings. Reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and cook until lentils are soft, about 45 minutes.

This soup was FANTASTIC!!! To go alongside we had garlic bread. We got a half of whole wheat baguette from Whole Foods. JJ cut the bread, added earth balance, garlic powder and oregano, threw it under the broiler for several minutes and it was SOOO good!!!

FEAST YOUR EYES! (This blurry picture doesn't do it justice, but trust me it was the BOMB!)

So, there you have it! JJ is off to the big apple this weekend while I will stay back pouting in envy! I originally was going to be tagging along on this trip but I had to spare my budget and save for the trip to L.A. we will be making in June or July!! Now, I am definitely looking forward to that, it's been three years since I moved from there and I'm overdue on the trip. I will be still trying to make a trip to NYC while it's warm, so we'll see!!! I'll be trying out some new recipes solo this weekend. I will be filling you in on that, and ask JJ to document some food experiences while he's gone as well!!

Until next time!!!

C