A Simple Food Day

Last night we decided we would go to an early show of "True Grit" today.  Yesterday I had made tofu scramble and home fries for breakfast, so today, I went the other direction and made Maple Pecan Waffles out of the book 1000 Vegan Recipes.  It was only my second time using the waffle iron I got on black Friday, and they turned out great.  I undercooked a couple to freeze and then toast later.  Hopefully that will work out.

We went to the movie around 1.  It was pretty good.  Not our favorite Coen brothers thing ever, but I think most of the time, their movies have to grow on me.  The only exceptions were "Blood Simple" and "Raising Arizona," both of which I loved immediately.  There was some good acting, especially Matt Damon, who I am liking more as he gets older.  I can't say I have been much of a fan up until this year.  

When we got home, we were both starving and I had a headache, so it was very important to make something quick and easy.  I bought some gigantic tortillas the other day, thinking of making big ol' burritos a la Moe's or Chipotle, and I noticed I also had some cheddar-style Daiya (for you non-vegans, Daiya is the new vegan wonder-cheeze; I'll post more about it another time).  So quesadillas seemed like a good idea.  I sauteed up some mushrooms & onions and included them so I could say I had some veggies today.

I served these up with some salsa and Tofutti Better Than Sour Cream.  They were great!  I think next time I probably would add a bell pepper and some extra heat from red pepper flakes or cayenne, but this was a great meal to eat in a pinch.

Hooray for finger food!

We spent the rest of the afternoon listening to some records we scored at Newbury Comics Norwood yesterday, using John's Christmas gift card.  We got 9 records for $9, most of which were in decent shape!  Some other stuff that was more expensive too, but it was worth it.  It's supposed to be a bit snowy tonight, so I am going to go make barbecue tofu and mashed potatoes, maybe with some spinach or broccoli so I will have eaten something green today, and then try to go to bed so I am rested for tomorrow.  Tomorrow at 10:06 AM CST, I will turn 33!  So we have some birthday plans in store, including a trip to New Hampshire to try a vegan restaurant we haven't been to yet.  Excited!

New Year's Day Beans & Greens

Today for dinner, I decided to make the traditional Southern New Year's dish of black-eyed peas and greens.  This dish is supposed to bring you luck and money in the coming year.  


Back home, the usual M.O. for cooking greens is to add in a hamhock or some bacon to give flavor.  Obviously, as a vegan, I have to find an alternative, but in this case, it's not too difficult.  The main components of the bacon flavor are smoke and salt, so I simmered my greens (I used turnip) in vegetable broth with a little bit of liquid smoke added.  


Simmered Turnip Greens


1 tbsp. canola oil
2 tsp. crushed garlic
1 large bunch turnip greens, stems removed, chopped
1 quart vegetable broth
1 tsp. liquid smoke
Red pepper flakes, optional
Salt, to taste (depending on how salty your broth is)


Heat oil over low heat and add garlic.  Saute for up to a minute, just to release flavor, but don't burn.  Add in remaining ingredients.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30-40 minutes until greens are soft.


Once your greens are done, layer brown rice, black-eyed peas (I just used a can with some pepper and garlic powder added), greens, more peas, and hot sauce, if desired.  I like Cholula because it is hot, but not deathly hot.  This made enough to feed 2 well, and with a whole grain, bean, and green combination, it's a hearty and healthy dinner.


Fun fact:  Leafy greens are a great source of calcium, and unlike dairy products, they are not so high in protein that they will leach as much calcium out of your body as they provide.  So eat your greens every day!

Welcome to my kitchen!

To me, the most important room of anyone's home is the kitchen.  I love kitchens.  I have moved into places just because of how the kitchen looks.  I will like any song that has the word kitchen in it.  This is the depth of my obsession with kitchens!  When I was a little girl and we would go to visit my grandmother, even though she had a perfectly wonderful living room, with plenty of seating even when the whole family was there, we would all crowd into the kitchen.  We would sit around the big table, or in one of the extra chairs in the corners, or crowd into a corner if we had to, but we all wanted to be in that room, where it was warm and something delicious was always cooking.  I spent quite a few years as a grown up cooking out of boxes, but becoming vegan changed that for me.  When I decided to change my diet, my own kitchen became the comforting and wonderful place to be in my own house, and now, after much urging from friends and my husband, I am starting this blog to share my interests, primarily in cooking, but also in the million other things that I love to talk about while sitting around in the kitchen.  So pull up a virtual chair.  Have a cookie and some tea.  And let's talk about what's for dinner!