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sunday : november 8 : 2009
(2 talkbacks | talkback) monday : november 9 : 2009
vegancooking
[ visual_therapy ]
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4.59 pm - [Interesting and Unique Recipes]
I can't imagine that I am the only one feeling like this but I have gotten really sick of the same old recipes lately. It seems like I eat the same food every week. I'm wondering if anyone has any recipes (cooking, not baking) that are different and/or use uncommon ingredients/veggies/milk alternatives, etc... And to complicate the matter more, I really don't like to eat anything processed that much. Milk alternatives and tofu/tempeh I'm alright with but other than that I would like to keep the food as pure as possible. I especially like earthy flavors. Can anyone help?
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(16 talkbacks | talkback)
vegancooking
[ megamuphen ]
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1.42 pm - [The Perfect Hummus Recipe?]
Hello, all!
My approach to hummus has always been somewhat... un-exact. I tend to take some random quantity of chickpeas, throw things at them (tahini, lemon juice, you know the drill) and blend. Sometimes I end up with great hummus. Sometimes the hummus is, you know, just hummus. Once it was awful (too much salt) but that's pretty rare. But I can never reproduce greatness, because I never measure!
In the past monthish I've been searching for The Perfect Hummus Recipe. Partly for myself, and partly so that when other people ask me how to make hummus I can be less vague... I haven't found it yet. I went through the tags here, and have tried several of the recipes I happened upon. Good! But not Perfect.
Does anyone out there have an amazing hummus recipe that they haven't posted (or that I might have missed)?
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(25 talkbacks | talkback)
brantastic
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8.22 am - [[a list. of stuff.]]
1. my favorite boss was away on and off for a few weeks, helping out at another center while their director was on maternity leave. one day, i decided to send her a fax. from herself. from the future. just like jim and dwight. she got the joke, but apparently only after five minutes of looking around, bewildered, and accusing other people over at the other center. :o)
2. yesterday i had a family photo shoot with my pal, chase, who is 4. he recently started pre-k at a catholic school, and i guess they are learning a bunch of religious songs. chase sang a couple of them for me, and it was so, so funny. my favorites? "when the sinks go marching in" and THE BEST, "our god is an awesome guy". hahahahaha. right on, god. oh, except that chase also told us that god makes it rain when people or animals are bad. wtf?
3. south-jersey/philly foods i ate while home for my brother's wedding:
* 2 cheeseburgers with everything & fries from jim's lunch in millville [i did this, like, IMMEDIATELY. might be my overall favorite food.].
* italian sub from wawa.
* gelati from rita's water ice [green apple/vanilla custard]. SO GOOD.
* amazing cheesesteaks. in fact, the morning of the wedding, we snacked on leftover cheesesteaks while waiting to get our hair done. because we are classy ladies.
* fresh-baked philly soft pretzels.
* tastykake peanut butter kandykakes.
GOOD JOB, SELF. ALSO, I MISS YOU, EAST COAST FOOD.
4. ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) heyrhiannon came to visit me a few weeks ago. it was our first meeting, after...like 8 years of being internet pals. it was a pretty perfect weekend, despite the rain. we saw the 3-d toy story double feature in the theatre. we shopped in lincoln park. we got facemasks from lush and glopped them on while watching thursday night tv. we spent an entire day watching 30rock while she taught me to knit. i took pictures for grammardog's new nephew while we were out on our adventures. we visited goebbert's farm, where we took a picture with a tiny white tiger cub [which i REALLY need to scan]. i mean, come on, you guys, does it get any better? nope, it doesn't.
i made and then took apart most of a hat:
also, at the farm, we met the fuzziest calf in the whole world, and we died with the cuteness:
5. i was a bridesmaid. i looked like this:
i am extra-fat right now, which is infuriating and depressing, but i feel like i looked presentable anyway. i had a funky, cute hairdo, at least. i should have taken a photo of the back.
mark and sarah's wedding was sweet and fun. i danced A LOT. i cried a little. i felt relieved to not be the photographer, though i did take a few pictures. one of my favorite parts, though, was seeing mom-mom, who is not my real mom-mom at all, but rather our next door neighbor who i've known since i was a wee babe. she used to watch mark and me after school. we would sit on the floor and watch tv, and she would bake us frozen french fries in the oven. mark would always steal mine, and i would cry. she recounted this story at the reception, by the way. she is 83 years old now, with no hair and giant glasses and a walker, and she is so effing cute. it hadn't occurred to me that she'd be someone i'd see at the wedding, so when i spotted her, i felt like bursting into tears, i was so happy. it was a sweet little surprise.
6. photo season has been super busy this year. which is good but i'm kind of tired of it already. that sounds ungrateful, probably, but it's not. i'm thrilled to be making money, it's just hard to have a full time job and also stay busy either taking or editing photos almost every weekend for the past month and a half. i keep falling asleep at the laptop. october was insane, between photoshoots, work, guests in town, and the trip home for the wedding. for a while, i was behind. like WAY behind. and that's when photography becomes a chore and i start to dread it. i spent last weekend catching up entirely, which is good. this weekend there were two shoots, so it's back to work again, but at least i got to start from zero.
7. next month, we will have Amazing Music Week in chicago. just like last year, there is one week in mid-december, when my short list of favorite musicians is scheduled to play all in a row. we have the flat five [featuring kelly hogan, nora o'connor, and their amazingly talented pals], who ONLY play this one time a year now, which is sad, but i'll take what i can get. then a few days later is the second city benefit with jeff tweedy, and then right after THAT is andrew bird at that fancy ornate church across from the hancock building. i am looking forward to all of these shows. the bird show is pretty expensive [about $45 with fees, yowza!], so i had decided to skip it this time around, but HEY, what good timing! his manager wants to use one of my photos again to promote the shows and offered me a pair of tickets in return. i like free stuff, so that'll be nice!
8. however, Amazing Music Week will just serve as a sad, sad, SAD reminder that lizbutt is not in town anymore. i mean, obviously i miss her all the time because after she left, i just stopped having a social life. not like it was hopping before or anything, and yes, i am extremely busy and have almost no time for hanging out anyway, but. i just don't really go out at all. and not only that, but i also get worried sometimes about something happening to me here and not having someone that i feel comfortable enough around to ask for help. like, who on earth could i call now if something was really wrong and i needed asap assistance? it's sad that i haven't made these sort of connections with other people, but i have always been the kind to sort of put all my eggs in one basket. i like having a go-to person. a bff. a person i like being around, when i don't feel like being around anybody. this weekend was sunny and 70--just gorgeous--and after my photoshoot at oz park, i had the sudden urge to call elisabeth and invite her to have lunch on the patio at rockwell's. but i could not, because montana is far. anyway, this especially will be sad without her. last year, we had a truly heartwarming Amazing Music Week. and just, christmastime in chicago is pretty and fun and joyous. i'm looking forward to it, regardless, and it will be a lot of fun, but i'm going to miss her a little extra that week. it's weird writing about someone who will read this...as if she won't read it? or something? and probably this is just depressing her, so i'll stop. uhhhhh, anyway, BOO ELISABETH COME BACK I MISS YOU. i mean, GO MONTANA, YOU'RE DOING GREAT, KEEP IT UP!!!!!
9. i have been sickish for like two and a half weeks now. i wish it would either go away entirely RIGHT NOW or turn into something real so that it can run its course and be done. also, my favorite co-worker left on friday to be the asst. director at a center downtown. both of these things are making me feel gross.
10. halloween at school this year was pretty adorable. one of my kids was cookie monster. his baby brother was a cookie. whiiiich is pretty amazing. however, my co-worker's son and nephew, both under a year old, dressed up like maverick and goose. they had tiny flight suits and aviator sunglasses. i was surprised she was able to find aviator glasses that tiny, but she informed me that, oh, she just went to build-a-bear. and bought TEDDY BEAR SUNGLASSES. haha. aw.
and with that, i bid you farewell.
mood:  sleepy
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(5 talkbacks | talkback) sunday : november 8 : 2009
vegancooking
[ hobochan ]
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8.58 pm - [desserts-cupcakes -allergies-gluten/wheat]
I attend a game every week with my friends and have ALWAYS brought goodies for everybody (totaling six people). I guess part of my love for it is the smug feeling of victory when they eat it and say it's too good, it couldn't possibly be vegan (HA!).
I've been thrown a curve-ball, though. One of the girls found out she's allergic to gluten. While I make something twice a year for my gluten intolerant aunt, I'm definitely not prepared for an every week goodie.
Do any of you have recipes for group treats that you've liked? Also, are there any flour mixtures that you use for a cupcake base - or is it a case-by-case basis? The more creative, the better! Thank you all, in advance.
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(11 talkbacks | talkback)
vegancooking
[ harvestl ]
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1.31 pm - [Holiday cooking]
My mom just got her Christmas Harry & David magazine, and I found some things that actually looked good. However, as they're from Harry & David, they're nowhere near vegan. So I wanted to check and see if you guys had some good recipes that I could use. And anyway, homemade is always better than bought-from-a-magazine.
The first was a pumpkin cheesecake that had a sour cream layer on top. It looked delicious.
The next was these fruit galettes - the description is "we bake these poist, delicate cookies very gently to prevent browning or crisping." And then they have different fruit fillings. Like little cookies fruit sandwiches. They also had some spiced creme shortbread cookies that were similar - creme fillings between two cookies.
And the third were cheesecake bites. Now, I'm not a very fancy baker, but they looked really good. And I'm getting decent at making those peppermint patties from vegweb in tiny little muffin tins with paper liners so they actually come out of the pan. But I have no idea how to make tiny little pieces of cheesecake encased in chocolate. And they had different cheesecake flavors - pumpkin, chocolate turtle, peppermint and gingerbread.
Any help would be wonderful!! I would love to wow all the ladies at work!
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(11 talkbacks | talkback)
(5 talkbacks | talkback) saturday : november 7 : 2009
vegancooking
[ unrulytrnslucnt ]
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9.51 pm - [Savory Comfort Stew]
Savory Comfort Stew
Ingredients:
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion chopped
as much garlic as you like
3 stalks of celery sliced
8 white mushrooms chopped
4 carrots sliced
2 large potatoes, cubed with skin intact
1 cup chopped green beans (i used frozen, use fresh if they are in season)
3 Tbsp flour
1 can of white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
6 cups vegetable broth
3 Tbsp soya sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp thyme
2 bay leaves
Directions:
1. In a large stock pot combine onions, garlic, celery, mushrooms and oil, saute on medium heat for 10 minutes or until onions are translucent
2. Add carrots, potatoes, and green beans.
3. Dust veggies with flour and combine well.
4. Add kidney beans, broth, soya sauce, pepper, salt, thyme and bay leaves. Bring to a boil.
5. Reduce heat and cover, cook for 20 minutes, serve hot with bread.
Soya sauce adds some browning colour to your stew but it also adds a much missed savory taste in combination with the mushrooms.
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(8 talkbacks | talkback)
vegancooking
[ childofpolitics ]
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6.44 am - [vegan cupcakes]
hello all,
i have a question about VEGAN CUPCAKES
i enjoy cooking, but i know NOTHING about baking. i've recently started making a dozen cupcakes a week, but with my last batch of chocolate cupcakes i noticed that the longer that sat around the more the oilier they seemed to get. as if the canola oil was seeping out of them or something. it didn't happen until they were a day or too old and we finally ate them all after about 4 days. they just got kind of gross b/c of it. i've never noticed this happening on dairy cupcakes. any vegan bakers out there know whats up with my cupcakes?
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(11 talkbacks | talkback)
vegancooking
[ juana_guysh ]
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4.14 pm - [Whole Grain Sandwich Bread]
I took some of the tips from this thread and modified a basic bread recipe from an old cookbook, and came up with this! The recipe makes one loaf in a 9x5 inch pan. It's much lighter than the other whole grain recipes I've tried and has just a tiny hint of sweetness. I'm going to try it again with different nuts and seeds mixed in!
( Recipe behind the cut )
(Edited because I had a typo in the ingredients)
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(talkback)
vegancooking
[ toodlepipsky ]
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12.25 pm - [Granola of yum]
Granola:
500gr untreated oatmeal
200gr sunflower seeds
200gr of sesame
200gr peeled, sliced almonds
200gr of various dry fruits of your choice
500gr of puffed wheat
1/2 cup of canola oil
1 cup of date/carob syrup
stir-fry the oatmeal for 5-10 minutes with the silan and oil until the juices are bubbling and all the oatmeal is fully coated in the mix. Spread the oatmeal onto a flat oven pan and place in the oven for 10-20 minutes in full heat while stirring every couple of minutes or so.
When the oatmeal starts to gain a brownish-golden color, remove from oven, add the rest of the ingredients and mix.
music: la roux - i'm not your toy
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(2 talkbacks | talkback) friday : november 6 : 2009
aprilstarchild
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6.04 pm
In retrospect, my birthday party should have been either at a house OR the Fez but not both. I have a feeling that half the people who show up won't go dancing, and/or the party will lose a lot of proverbial momentum being cut so short. Shawn has also pointed out that eight pm is really early for a party for many people, they won't want to even get to a party until ten.
C'est la vie, too late to worry about it now.
I have two hours left until the party starts (god only knows if anyone will be there then) and I'm trying to calm down a little.
According to facebook: fifteen people supposedly definitely coming and nineteen maybes. Five can't make it (out of town, sick, other plans) and fourteen people who never replied.
So I have no real earthly clue how many people are going to show up. I hope people bring stuff to eat and drink, although again, we'll only be here for two hours tops.
What I'm worried about: Either hardly anybody, or too many people, will show up. They will stand around awkwardly and hate the party. Nobody will come to the Fez except Shawn and the handful of people I'm meeting there. Shawn will hate it there.
But let's do a reality check here: Even if everyone hates the party, it is only two hours long, at which point I'll be leaving for the Fez. I'm going to the Fez with people I've known for ages, and Katrina is coming for the first time...dunno how much her and Marty will like the music, but they'll probably have fun. I have never had a bad time at the Fez. I will be fine.
Okay. I'll wait until seven to start changing and putting on makeup and whatnot.
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(9 talkbacks | talkback)
vegancooking
[ lorcas_novena ]
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4.50 pm - [Honeycomb]
Just made this (along with aforementioned hazlenut biscuits) for fireworks tonight, turned out much better than my previous attempt at cinder toffee.
4 tablespoons on golden syrup
100f caster sugar
2 teaspoons of bicarb
Heat the syrup and sugar over a medium heat (swirl the pan but don't stir in case it goes grainy), keep heating until it's bubbling and brown (but not burnt), then take of the heat and quickly stir in the bicarb which should make it bubblier. Turn it out onto a baking sheet on a baking tray and leave to set for 20 mins. You might need to set it in the fridge if it's humid. Once set it's best broken up with a rolling pin and is lovely by itself or dipped in chocolate. If you crush it it's also delicious in soya yoghurt with fruit or with chocolate sauce crumbled over Swedish Glace.
http://thecookbook.com.au/2009/01/16/nigellas-express-honeycomb-recipe/
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(17 talkbacks | talkback)
vegancooking
[ mikesedge ]
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7.41 am - [How to make delicious polenta!]
For a long time I was under the impression that polenta was somehow difficult to make... I finally tried it and was surprised by how easy it was and how good it came out! Now I make it all the time and it's a delicious base for meals. You can have it with vegetables or sauces, serve it with beans, as an appetizer, etc.
There are a few different variations on the recipe but this is the one I've found the easiest and best. Just thought I'd post this for anyone else who might have been intimidated. :-)
Easy Baked Polenta
(Note-ingredients can be increased by 1.5 or doubled to increase yield)
Ingredients
•One cup yellow or white finely ground cornmeal
•3 cups water
•1/4 cup oil or margarine (I usually use light olive oil)
•OPTIONAL: a few tablespoons nutritional yeast or cheese substitute
•Salt to taste
•Paprika (optional, but recommended)
Directions
1.Combine cornmeal and 1 cup of cold water.
2.Bring remaining 2 cups of water and salt to a boil in a sauce pan over medium-high heat.
3.Add cornmeal mixture slowly, stirring well.
4.Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring constantly until mixture is thick and begins to form large bubbles, about 3 to 5 minutes. Continue cooking another 1 to 2 minutes. (Word of advice: it's important to stir WELL in this step to prevent lumps--also, there is a chance it will spatter when it starts bubbling, so use a large enough pot and again keep stirring well throughout this step)
5.Remove from heat and stir in oil/margarine and NYF/cheese, blending well.
6.Pour into a baking dish and sprinkle with paprika.
7.Bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven until top is brown and crusty, about 35 to 40 minutes.
Serves about 4.
At this point you will have a delicious soft polenta, firm on top, warm and fluffy in the middle. If you cool it overnight in the fridge it will firm up.
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(2 talkbacks | talkback) thursday : november 5 : 2009
vegancooking
[ aprilstarchild ]
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8.01 pm - [Stuffed Cabbage Rolls]
Vegan and easily gluten-free! Someone posted the original recipe to another community I'm in--the "traditional" version has two pounds of meat in it, ew! I was thinking of using tempeh for stuffing instead, when a friend said she'd used potatoes and mushrooms before. I was intrigued and decided to try it myself, and the result was delicious! I'm the only vegan in a household of three people--and the other two have other food restrictions, including allergies and celiac disease. Finding something we can all eat is fun, and since we all have Polish ancestors, this was perfect.
( Gołąbki -Stuffed Cabbage Rolls )
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(8 talkbacks | talkback)
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