Creamy Roasted Garlic Mashers

Creamy Roasted Garlic Mashers
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

Raise your hand if you spent at least part of today doing prep work or pre-cooking for the big day tomorrow.

Yeah, me too. So far, I've got the Maple Cranberry Sauce made and I just finished my famous (at least amongst my family and friends) Creamy Roasted Garlic Mashers. They are amazing. I don't use a recipe when I make them, but today I measured everything as I threw them together just so I could create a recipe to share with you, dear readers. I can feel the love, can't you?

I'm serving the mashers tomorrow beneath a healthy slathering of Mighty Miso Gravy from How it all Vegan, which makes them even more heavenly. The mashers are definitely delish enough to be nommed without gravy, but it's Thanksgiving and in the American tradition of excess and indulgence, we're gonna go big or go home. Hence, gravy.

Everyone's got their own method for making mashed potatoes. Here's mine:

Creamy Roasted Garlic Mashers
makes about 8 1-cup servings

• 3 medium heads of garlic, roasted with the cloves removed - yes you read that right, 3 heads, we likes us some garlic preciousssss
• 4 medium russet potatoes, peeled
• 4 medium red potatoes, cleaned but not peeled
• 1 stick or 1/2 cup vegan margarine (Earth Balance)
• 1/4 cup vegan sour cream (Tofutti)
• 1/4 cup vegan cream cheese (Tofutti)
• 1/4 teaspoon (or more) freshly ground nutmeg
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Cut potatoes into equal sizes. I usually quarter the red potatoes and then cut the russets into pieces that are about the same size. You want to do it this way so they cook in the same amount of time.
2. Boil all the potatoes in salted water until easily penetrated with a fork. The time varies here but start checking them at around 15 minutes boil time. Don't let them stay in the boiling water too long or they'll become water-logged and yicky. Yeah, that's a technical term: yicky. Yuck + Ick = Yicky. Mkay? Moving on.
3. When they are done, carefully retrieve the potatoes from the water and transfer them into a colander to drain. The tool that I've found works best for this is a spider skimmer but use what you've got. If you must resort to dumping the potatoes along with the water into a colander, just be gentle.
4. After they are drained, carefully transfer the potatoes into a large bowl. Slice the stick (yup, the whole stick) of vegan margarine into pats and artfully place them all over the surface of the potatoes. Okay, you don't have to get too artistic here because we're about to mix it all up anyway, but I just can't seem to help myself sometimes.
5. Using a masher, smash the potatoes by hand, mixing the vegan margarine in as you go. They must be mashed by hand. Do not, under any circumstances, take a mixer to your potatoes. You'll be breaking a major cooking Thou Shalt Not and you'll end up with a sticky, gluey mess. It'll be beyond yicky. I'm not even going to use the appropriate word here because my mom reads my blog now. Just take a deep breath, get out your masher and do it by hand.
6. When they are about half-way mashed, add your vegan sour cream and vegan cream cheese. Continue mashing and mixing keeping in mind that Though Shalt Not Over-Mash Potatoes.
7. When your potatoes are nearly at your desired consistency (I prefer a chunk here and there for textural interest over perfectly smooth potatoes), add the nutmeg, salt and pepper and give them one last mixing mash.
8. Taste and adjust the seasonings as necessary. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to nosh.

This recipe can absolutely be tinkered with to suit your personal tastes. If you want "cheesy" tasting mashers, try adding 1/4-1/2 cup of nutritional yeast. Or, if you want to really wow yourself and your diners, substitute a portion or all of your vegan margarine with vegan pesto and eliminate the nutmeg. Pesto Mashers rock the Casbah and are best enjoyed topped with some toasted pine nuts.

I like to use a combination of both russets and red potatoes for my mashers because it makes them creamier. It also allows the inclusion of the skin from the red potatoes, which we totally dig. But, if it's not your thing, peel those along with your russets.

One of the best things about using this recipe for entertaining is that it can be made ahead of time and stowed in your fridge. When you're ready, simply warm it up in an oven-safe dish or in your microwave. It's delicious and so decadently creamy thanks to the combination of potatoes, egregious amount of vegan margarine, and addition of vegan sour cream and cream cheese. If you're watching fat and calories, make adjustments accordingly.

The nutritional breakdown per 1-cup serving, assuming you used about 3 tablespoons of olive oil when you roasted the garlic and the brands of margarine, sour cream, and cream cheese I recommended, is as follows: 348 calories; 19g fat; 6g saturated fat; 0mg cholesterol; 1272mg sodium; 41g carbohydrates; 4g fiber; 2g sugars; 5g protein; 0% Vitamin A; 32% Vitamin C; 4% calcium; 7% iron

NOTE: The final four percentages are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

DIY Gardening: Upcycling Broken Clay Pots

Broken Clay Pot Used as Drainage
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

Container gardening is certainly my preferred method of growing things. Now that The Boy is back in school, I've found myself spending more time outside tending to my poor, neglected container garden. Earlier this week, I pulled some dead plants and tossed them into the yard composting bin only to notice that a couple of my clay pots had developed cavernous cracks that will not last another planting season.

As everyone who gardens in containers knows, along with proper watering, drainage is an issue of utmost importance. I usually use rocks at the bottom of my pots to facilitate easy drainage. But, I was inspired by poor broken pots and ... well, let's face it, I'm a bit hormonal right now ... so I took a hammer to them and used the broken shards of ceramic in place of rock. Upcycling or repurposing something destined for the land fill rocks pretty hard but let's face it, breaking shit with a hammer rocks even harder.

Celosia
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

This particular pot ended up home to our wee garden gnome, Aingeru, and three new Celosia which is an annual that produces striking flowers in outrageous colors. Most importantly, because we're in the midst of a level two drought right now and it's been hot as Hades here, Celosia is quite heat-tolerant to boot. Score!

Canning Cantaloupe Jam

Cantaloupe Jam
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

The Husband and I have been eating a lot of fruit lately. Partly because it's so damned hot here and we tend to eat as simply as possible when the mercury rises as high as it's been. And partly because we're still both working on losing weight (update on that very soon, I promise). But mostly because the fruit is so incredibly good right now!

One of our current favorites is cantaloupe - particularly the "Tuscan Cantaloupes." Holy magnificent melons batman, those babies are fruit of the gods if ever there were such a thing. The melons we've been getting are so sweet and juicy, it's ridiculous. Neither of us can remember cantaloupes being this good for a long time.

So the other day, as we sat at our dining room table with melon juice down to our elbows, we were singing the praises of the 'Loupe and I said I wished there were a way we could get melon this good year-round (while abiding by our pledge to eat in-season produce, most of which is locally grown, of course).

Perhaps the heat had gotten to my brain, but it really did take me a while to remember that I already know all sorts of ways of preserve the harvest! Freezing, dehydrating, liqueurs, syrups, canning ... I can do it all. So I pulled out one of my favorite canning books, Blue Ribbon Preserves by Linda J. Amendt, and much to my sticky-fingered delight, found a recipe for cantaloupe jam. Neither of us had ever heard of melon jam before, and since I had yet to start canning this year, I decided this recipe would be my first of the season.

I just pulled 7 half-pint jars of the most delicious jam I've ever made from my canner and practically danced around my kitchen as I heard each of them ping (a sign they've made a proper seal and all is well).

So I'm happy to report that we've got some seriously kick-ass jam to carry us through the cold winter. Um, and by "cold" I mean less than 70 degrees ... this is San Diego, after all. I'm even happier to report that I still have plenty of melons left over so I can put up a whole other batch (or three) of jam if I want. Actually, that's probably a good idea because the likelihood of these seven jars remaining untouched 'til winter arrives is nil. And finally, I'm happiest to report that canning season has officially begun! I've got all sorts of wicked canning fun planned. In fact, just yesterday I scored some killer green tomatoes so I can put up some Green Tomato Mincemeat Pie Filling, which not only tastes awesome but I think will make for great holiday gifts.

That it's for now. I think I need an afternoon snack. Perhaps toast with ... oh, I don't know ... jam?

The Boy's New Tooth Zombie Pillow

Tooth Zombie Pillow
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

The Boy lost his first tooth last month. It caught us completely by surprise since it happened about 2 weeks after his 5th birthday. For you non-breeders, that's a bit young to start losing teeth. Most kids are about 6 when their choppers start wiggling loose.

The day his tooth came out I realized The Husband and I hadn't discussed what sort of Tooth Fairy-ish lore we were going to pass on nor had we even thought about how we were going to handle liberated teeth and their exchange for gifts or cash. When I asked The Husband about it, I got the stock response, "Whatever you want to do, baby."

Since I already knew I wanted to make The Boy's tooth receptacle (DIY or die!), I began googling for tooth fairy pillow patterns and inspiration. I came across a tutorial for an adorable Ballerina Tooth Fairy Pillow and decided I'd start there and alter it to suit our family aesthetic.

As I sat and read the instructions for the Ballerina Fairy, I realized the pocket in which the discarded teeth were to be placed was inside the fairy's mouth. Which begged the question ... "What kind of fairy eats teeth?"

Tooth Zombie Pillow - scratch
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

The tooth fairies from Hellboy II crawled through my brain for a moment and I briefly indulged the idea of trying to recreate one of those before I came to my senses and remembered how terrifying they were. Evoking terror in my 5-yr-old wasn't my goal, but I was on the right track with regard to a lovely twist on the traditional lore.

Then it hit me: Zombies eat people. Surely they eat teeth as well. I mean really, have you ever seen a discerning zombie picking out icky bits before sinking teeth into dinner? Nope. Me neither. And it's no secret that I love zombies.

I printed the pattern for the Ballerina Fairy so I could use the overall shape but pretty much changed everything after that. I gave my zombie a gaping maw and embroidered around it to reinforce the mouth pocket and underscore his zombie-ish-ness with pale blue lips.

Tooth Zombie Pillow - bite
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

I also gave him goofy teeth and a scratch that he probably earned wrangling a meal. I decided he'd also lost an eye at some point, and embroidered an "x" where it should have been. I selected a blue button for the other eye to match The Boy's blue eyes.

And, of-course, no zombie would be complete without a large wound. This zombie was turned when someone went after his brains and left a large chomp out of his head. I used glittery red felt to represent glistening brain matter.

On the back I embroidered the words "Tooth Zombie", the date The Boy lost his first tooth, and his name (though I've edited that out).

Tooth Zombie Pillow - back
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

I was going for campy-cute and I think I achieved it. More importantly, I had a blast designing and creating this little Tooth Zombie and The Boy absolutely loves it.

He now knows, every time he looses a tooth, he needs to feed it to his Tooth Zombie. In exchange, the Zombie (whom we have yet to name) will leave a small gift for The Boy. This time, it was a new set of 3D reels for his View-Master - The Animals of North America.

Just thought I'd share my latest project and remind you all to watch out for those Tooth Zombies!

School Lunches

The Boy has been in preschool all this past year. Last week was the final day of the standard school year and today marked the beginning of summer school. The summer school hours are a bit longer than standard school hours and I neglected to read the fine print that announced each child will be provided a free lunch if they don't bring their own. 

I already send him to school every day with juice and 3 snacks, but nothing substantial enough to be considered lunch. So today, when his teacher pulled out his lunch bag and saw there were only snacks inside, she assumed he would be one of the children receiving a free lunch.

Well, today's free lunch was chicken nuggets. Ack!

Thankfully, she remembered that we are vegan, and didn't allow The Boy to eat any chicken. It was an issue, though. He saw all the other kids eating chicken nuggets and wanted to eat some, too. He thinks he eats them at home, but it isn't real chicken, of-course. Unfortunately, because he's a special needs kid, I can't really explain the difference in a way he'll understand. At least not yet. So now I need to come up with some creative lunches to pack for him. Perhaps, when the school lunch menu becomes available, ones that mirror what the other kids will be eating so he doesn't feel left out.

When he's home, I cook for him and he eats a hot lunch. Sometimes he'll eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but most of the time he gets a freshly cooked meal. But, they don't have access to a microwave there and, beyond PB&J sammies, I'm at a loss as to what sorts of things I can send him to school with. If anyone has any experience sending your veg kids to school with packed lunches, I'd love to hear what sorts of things worked best for you.

In the interim, I ordered the following two books:

Better Than Peanut Butter and Jelly: Quick Vegetarian Meals Your Kids Will Love by Wendy Muldawer and Vegan Lunch Box: 150 Amazing, Animal-Free Lunches Kids and Grown-Ups Will Love! by Jennifer McCann. I'm hoping I'll get some groovy ideas from these babies that'll help me come up with things The Boy will eat and enjoy. As we experiment, I'll report back on what works and what doesn't. This should be interesting and hopefully, fun. 

So, expect to see a couple book reviews and some lunch box food porn here in the near future and wish me luck. I have a feeling I'll need it.

Winner Winner Chickpea Dinner ... er ... Brunch

If you've been following along this week over at Cafe VegNews you know they've been running a contest. Each day, they've given away a signed copy of Isa Chandra Moskowitz's new cookbook, Vegan Brunch. Yesterday, I decided to have a crack at their question of the day, which was:

"What's your favorite restaurant to go to for brunch?"

My answer:

"My fav restaurant for brunch is WaterCourse Foods. Everything on their menu is available vegan. They offer up mouth-watering tofu scrambles, a blue plate special, pancakes, french toast ... but not "normal" french toast, whoa no. *Banana Bread french toast.* Yes. Let's just take a moment to savor that thought.

...

Mewkay.

Also for the having, an Amsterdam Hash that's just as good as the name implies, and ... the nummers to end all nummers ... biscuits and gravy. Uh! So good, makes you want to smack yer mama. Metaphorically speaking, of-course.

And I'm not even mentioning the giant cinnamon rolls. Nope. This is me. Not mentioning them.

Did I say they're in Denver, CO yet? Thank goodness I live in San Diego, CA or I'd be working off a never-ending tab washing dishes or something. But every time I'm in Denver, I can be seen fogging up the glass in the wee hours of the morning, waiting for them to open and creeping out the wait staff."

Turns out they liked my answer, so they announced in today's post that I won! Le squee!

I'm so looking forward to diving into Vegan Brunch. I've heard great things about it and The Husband and I do love a hearty brunch on Sunday mornings. 

Have I mentioned lately how much I LOVE ZOMBIES?!?!?!

Woody Harrelson and zombies?! I'm so there! Le squee!

  
nomnomnomnomnom

New DIY Zine

I'll admit it - I'm a total sucker for magazines. There's just something about them that makes me weak in the knees. I love their seasonality, the articles and pretty pictures, plus they make great art and collage fodder.

So earlier today imagine my squee-ish delight when I spotted a zine I'd never seen before with the tag line, "Easy Ideas for Hands-On People." I practically started drooling. I grabbed it off the stand and immediately began thumbing my way through it. Inside I saw...

• an article on 13 smart ways to snazz up your kitchen
• building plans for a DIY kitchen serving cart
• an article about throw pillows complete with DIY instructions
• a piece on how to use color to create specific moods in various rooms
• plans for building your own outdoor dining table and benches
• decorating ideas
• tips on hanging art
• an article with instructions on 3 different ways to refinish an old table
• plans for an outdoor potting bench
• tips for DIY bouquets
• clever garage storage ideas
• plans for outdoor movable planter boxes
• plans for a kick-ass arbor
• a list of kitchen-scraps that make for great garden fertilizers
• plans for making and instructions for flying your own kites (both diamond and box-styles)
• tips on saving energy
• info on cooking, product reviews, and more

All that just in the one issue! Plus, each of the projects has a DIY versus purchase cost comparison along with a difficulty rating and estimated time requirement. Needless to day, the zine took up residence in my shopping cart and I've had my nose in it ever since I got home. The name of this new gift from the pantheon of DIY deities is "Fresh Home" and, at least for now, I think I'm in love. There's only one thing about it I don't like at this point, and that's it's decidedly yuppie feel. I'm used to consuming my DIY literature smothered in punk rock/alternative sauce. But I'm willing to look past the pastels and sweaters tied 'round the shoulders as long as they keep coughing up great ideas, projects and plans. If you're a hardcore DIY'er like me, check it out for yourself. Because it's brand new, you can subscribe for only $10 (half off the cover price).

Score!

Memorial Day Barbeque

BBQ'd Tofu, Veggies, and Slaw
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

Last Monday we had another tasty barbeque over at my parents' home. We grilled veggie kebabs again, this time without sauce and just seasoned with a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper. On our kebabs were giant mushrooms, fingerling potatoes that I had parboiled that morning, and beautiful tomatoes.

We also grilled tofu slathered in homemade barbeque sauce. I used the recipe in Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites and it was delish. It had the taste of a traditional barbeque sauce, but with a kick from the pepper and a distinctly homemade texture. You just don't realize how much nicer it is to have homemade versions of sauces and condiments you typically buy until you make 'em yourself. Above and beyond anything you can get off the shelf of your local market, for sure. Plus, it was easy to make and virtually fat-free. I should have pressed the tofu, though. Next time, I'll remember to do so.

I threw together a slaw with red cabbage, jicama, raw pumpkin seeds, and seedless cucumber dressed with a little lemon juice, olive oil, parsley and some other stuff, but it wasn't nearly as good as the slaw I made for our last barbeque.

Grilled Pineapple
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

For dessert, we enjoyed grilled pineapple. Yum! We ate a lot of grilled pineapple last summer and I'm so happy grilling weather is back. We love this tasty, healthy, simple, and delicious dessert. If you've never had grilled pineapple, you owe it to yourself to give it a try. The heat from the grill caramelizes the sugars in the pineapple and adds some nummy crispy bits, too. Fabu!

Apple-Rosemary Oat Bars

Apple-Rosemary Oat Bars
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

Nancy Krcek Allen's article in the May/June 2009 issue of Vegetarian Times, entitled "Herbal Essences," caught my attention right away. I absolutely love cooking with herbs, experimenting with different combinations, and discovering new pairings. There's just nothin' like cooking with fresh herbs. That's part of the reason I maintain an herb garden. That and herbs are hella easy to grow.

Since The Husband and I are on the wane, I selected the recipe that delivered the lowest amount of fat per serving (4g): Apple-Rosemary Oat Bars. Oh man, are these little babies delicious!

First, they are not too sweet. I love that. So they can easily be eaten with a cup of coffee or tea for breakfast, as a snack any time of the day, or as a light dessert. Whenever you want, really. Second, the lemon zest and juice really balance out what little sweet there is in the bars, adding a fun little zing to every bite. Third, the rosemary. How I love rosemary! Paired with apple, it's just fantastic. Fourth, the consistency is just perfect. Nice little crunchy bits on the outside and a soft, moist center. 

The only change I made to the recipe was I substituted spelt whole grain flour for the all-purpose flour. No problem there. The recipe offers several options with regard to nut butters - I used almond butter. Yum!

I'm looking forward to working our way through this batch of bars and I think this recipe could serve as a fantastic template to play with and create new herby, fruity bars. The possibilities are vast.

Winner!

Make Vegan Shoes Challenge on Bravo's The Fashion Show Tonight

I'm off to set up my DVR!

The Vegan Relationship Survey

I just finished reading the results of The Vegan Relationship Survey and I must admit, I had mixed reactions to it. Not the statistics, mind you. I have nothing against stats. I'm a sociology major. I heart stats. But the way the information was presented really squicked me. 

Perhaps, in M. Butterflies Katz's defense, this is my own personal issue since I'm used to reading study results that are presented in accordance with a certain professional standard. To my knowledge, Katz never claims the study is scientific. As I read it, however, I couldn't help but lament over the poor writing and clumsy handling of the findings.

The worst part of the article, in my opinion, was the paragraph dealing with two survey responders who reported battling cancer. Katz uses these people's illness to segue into a rant about the toxic world in which we live and cites vegans that "eat loads of processed junk food." She wags her finger, reminding us all of the importance of eating a healthy, wholesome, and balanced diet. This evoked an audible gasp from me. Katz, unwittingly or not, actually implies that these people are culpable for their illness. I consider this an unforgivable injection of personal opinion that is not only myopic, but in poor taste.

She also makes clear to us all, twice, that she is personally opposed to having children, or as she puts it, "continuing the overpopulation of the Earth." I know this is a hot button issue amongst vegans and environmentalists alike and even as a parent of my own biological son, I can appreciate this perspective. However, I don't want to have it, or any other personal opinion, thrown in my face when reading survey results.

I think this is the crux of my issue with this article. Are these study findings or is it a platform for Katz's personal opinions? Because the two should never catch sight of each other in a scientific survey. But then again, as I stated before, Katz never claims this thing to be scientific. It's good thing, too. If she had, I'm afraid she'd have half of academia after her.

That said, I'm actually happy to see this sort of survey done. I found the results very interesting, even if I had to soldier my way through the article. I recommend that you read it. And if you do, give me your opinion about it. Am I being too hard on Katz here?

Mexican Hot Chocolate Mini Cuppies & Our Latest Biggest Loser Throwdown Weigh-In Results

Mexican Hot Choco Mini Cuppies
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

Greetings vegans and veg-curious readers. Just thought I would let y'all know I tried another cupcake recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World this past weekend. I was tasked with bringing dessert to a Mexican food inspired get-together and decided on the Mexican Hot Chocolate Cupcakes. I crowned them with the Chocolate Mousse Topping from the same book and sprinkled them with crushed Mexican Chocolate.

They were so tasty! They came out super moist with a fun kick from the cayenne pepper. The Chocolate Mousse Topping was over-the-top decadent. I know they look like little swirls of poo, but that's the inherent problem with chocolate swirls and smears. You just have to close your eyes and trust it'll taste good. And these definitely do!

By the way, to make these mini I reduced the baking time to about 13 minutes.

We weighed in Sunday morning and unfortunately, the win for last week goes to Team Red. :::booooo hisssss::: The Husband actually went two pounds in the wrong direction - bad Husband! And that was before the mini chocolate cuppies! I gained .2 pound, which basically means I stayed the same. Fine with me because it's That Time right now. I know it'll come off next weekend and then some.

We have fun things planned for Memorial Day - swimming and more barbeque. I hope to blog about it all very soon. Have a fantastic holiday!

Vegan Summer Nail Polish Colors

I was out with a girlfriend last night and wandered into a store with a great selection of OPI nail polish. Now, I've had a long-time love affair with OPI colors ever since I discovered what's got to be the best red nail polish on the planet: I'm Not Really a Waitress. Yes, that's the name of the color. OPI colors have the best names!

When I transitioned to veganism, I was relieved to learn that OPI products are vegan but for the exception of their Ridge Filler, which I've never used. I've also heard that some of their pearlescent colors may not be vegan, but I'm not completely sure about that and I don't wear those either. If anyone knows anything to the contrary, please let me know.

Anyhow, OPI releases seasonal and other inspired collections every so often and the colors are always spectacular. While I tend to wear only red, black or nearly black, and pale pink polishes (depending on my mood and the time of year) sometimes I like to go wild with color. Especially on my toe nails during the warmer months when I'm wearing open-toed shoes and sandals. Problem is, their collections come and go real fast and if you don't grab them while the grabbing is good, they're gone. 

So last night, when I stumbled upon this great OPI display, I noticed their summer collection is now available. It's called Bright Pair and is inspired by various colors of Paige Premium Denim. I eyed a 4-pack of mini Bright Pair bottles that includes three colors and a top coat. The price was in the neighborhood of $10.00. What a steal! So I grabbed one.

What I love about these little mini packs is that I can afford to dabble in multiple colors, without making the commitment of purchasing a full-sized bottle. Also, by the time summer is over, most of it will probably be gone. 

The OPI Bright Pair Mini 4-Pack includes four 3.75 mL or 1/8 Fl. Oz. bottles of...

• A Grape Fit! - A gorgeous light purple
• Shorts Story - A super hot pink with cool blue undertones
• On the Same Paige - A fabulous orangey-red
• RapiDry Top Coat - Dries hard with a delicious high-gloss shine in minutes

Score! The changing of nail colors is part of my Friday ritual, so I'll be trying at least one of my new colors tonight. It's the little things that make us girls happy. And these little OPI sample packs definitely put a smile on my face.

Sunday Night Dinner: Za Za Ziti with Spinach Salad

Sunday Night Dinners are back in la casa de La Vegan Loca and I couldn’t think of a better way to revive the tradition than with an Allison Rivers Samson recipe. As you may recall, she’s the creatrix of The Best Mac n’ Cheese Ever and the Clam-Free Chowdah that was so good, I couldn’t get pictures of it before it was devoured. So when I saw she had another recipe in the latest issue (May/June 2009) of VegNews, I knew it would be the one to usher Sunday Night Dinners back into our home.

Za Za Ziti with Spinach Salad
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

Her latest offering is called Za Za Ziti and it is beyond indulgent. I must confess, when I read the recipe I was a little skeert. The Husband and I are still working diligently on loosing weight and Allison’s Ziti has macadamia nut ricotta cheese and a cashew cream sauce. That’s on top of fire roasted tomato saucy pasta. We weigh in every Sunday morning, so I strategically planned the meal in order to maximize “recovery time” before our next weigh-in. By the by, see the bottom of this blog post for the results of this morning’s weigh-in.

While reading it, I also noted there are several steps to the recipe. In order to get the most out of my Sunday, I spilt the work up over the course of the day. I started soaking the nuts for the macadamia nut ricotta cheese just before lunch. I also threw the cashew cream sauce together while I was in the kitchen, because it’s a quick and easy food processor or blender job.

Come mid-afternoon, I hopped back in the kitchen and made the tomato sauce.

When it was time to get serious about dinner, I had the three main components prepared so all I needed to do was boil the pasta, throw it together and bake it. No problem! Sure, there were some extra dishes to be washed, but this meal is worth it. I assure you. Besides, The Husband did all the dishes tonight. ☺

While the ziti was baking, I made an Italian salad with baby spinach, some extra macadamia nut ricotta cheese, toasted pine nuts, fresh Roma tomatoes, and hearts of palm. I tossed it with Newman’s Own Lighten Up Italian Dressing, which next to a big pile of Za Za Ziti is kinda like having your donuts with a diet coke, but whatever. It was tasty and I didn’t have to make a dressing.

We sat down to eat and both The Husband and I were shocked at how luscious this dish is. Some of the little bits of pasta that were sticking up got all crispy and nummy while baking which was an awesome contrast to the creamy goodness beneath. It was a very quiet dinner. And you know the food is good when nobody’s talking!

My notes for this recipe are:

1. I had to add a bit of extra water both to the cashew cream sauce and the macadamia nut ricotta cheese in order to get the proper texture and consistency. No problem there, just an FYI. These things happen particularly when you’re measuring things like nuts by volume rather than by weight.
2. Next time, I’ll make extra cashew cream sauce because the pasta soaked up most of it. I’m sure that added to the flavor, but the sauce was so delicious on its own, I think the dish would be even better with a bit of it drizzled over the top after it comes out of the oven.
3. Lastly, plan ahead. Like I said earlier, this is a multi-step recipe. You can’t wait ‘til late afternoon (when I usually start thinking about dinner) to start putting this baby together. It’s seems like a lot of work when you look at it, but if you break it up into manageable chunks, like I did, you’ll be fine.
   

That’s it for notes. I have no criticisms. Za Za Ziti rocks the Casbah. I’m officially an Allison Rivers Samson devotee. Try this recipe, or any of her others for that matter, and you will be too.

As for our weigh-in this morning, we rocked it. We dominated Team Red with a Blue Team total loss of 6 pounds this week. The Husband lost 4 and I lost 2. Now it’ll be interesting to see if we can recover from Za Za Ziti and register another loss next weekend. But we were smart and offed the leftovers as soon as we were done eating. We ended up feeding a family of four omnis with what was left in the pan and got rave reviews. They couldn’t believe it didn’t have any dairy cheese.

Winner, winner, chickpea dinner! Now I'm going to roll myself onto the couch and bask in the afterglow of my temporary self-indulgence. 

Mexican Chocolate Tofu Pudding

It's no secret I'm a fan of Mark Bittman. His book, How to Cook Everything Vegetarian is basically the main text book for my DIY culinary school program. He's not a vegan. He's not even a vegetarian. But his recipes are spot on and the things he has to say to omnis about reducing the amount of animals and animals products they consume in order to be kind to our environment and ourselves are quite encouraging. Why? Because he's a foodie, so people listen to him. They don't really listen to us. We're too fringy. 

Anyhow, yesterday he published a lovely article in the New York Times encouraging people not to fear tofu and using a recipe for Mexican Chocolate Tofu Pudding as a selling point. There's even a cutie instructional video. Check it out!

(The above photo is from the online article. I believe it can be credited to Evan Sung.)

I Am Mercy for Animals

A lovely and short video you can share with friends, veg and omni alike. No slaughter or cruelty footage. Lots of famous quotes are paraphrased. It would have been nice if they had credited them, but overall it's nicely done. Enjoy!

Mother's Day Barbeque! With cake!

We just wrapped up a fantastic weekend filled with lots of great food and fun with the family. This past Sunday, we celebrated both Mother’s Day and The Boy’s (belated) birthday.

Grilled Veggie n' Tofu Kebabs
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

My parental units decided they wanted to barbeque, so after a little brainstorming, I decided to make tofu n’ veggie kebabs. I filled each skewer with big hunks of locally grown zucchini, mushrooms, gorgeous Amorosa tomatoes, and tofu marinated in a homemade Cherry Barbeque Sauce. I got the sauce, which we also slathered on the other veggies while grilling, from this Vegetarian Times recipe. Delish! A wonderful balance of sweet and savory with a lovely kick from the cayenne pepper. The next time I make this sauce, I’ll make a double batch. It was so yummy, there wasn’t enough to go around.

Mother's Day Vegan BBQ
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

I also made a beautiful Grated Raw Beet with Jicama, Avocado, and Orange slaw, another Vegetarian Times recipe. It was outstanding with some really unique flavor notes. Crunchy, fresh, and the perfect side dish for any barbeque. I’ll definitely make this again, too!

We enjoyed our grilled kebabs slid off the skewer and onto some whole grain buns, which we also grilled. We topped all that with some sliced avocado and it was a little bit of heaven. Alongside our grilled kebab sammies was the lovely, pinky-red slaw and some killer, locally grown, grilled corn on the cob. So summery and so so good!

Lime Coconut Cake w/ Lime Coconut Buttahcreem Icing
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

After we ate, we dove into The Boy’s birthday cake. I baked him the Lime Coconut Cake with Lime Coconut Buttahcreem Icing from Jae Steele’s awesome book, Get it Ripe. This was my first experience with this cake and it was definitely a winner. The cake, which was made with spelt flour, was super moist and dense deliciousness. The Lime Coconut Buttahcreem Icing was so incredibly tasty! I decided to try my hand at one of those rustic, drippy looking cakes and I think it turned out pretty well. I garnished it with more shredded coconut and some lime zest.

Vegan Cake n' Ice Cream
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

We served the cake along side some vegan vanilla ice cream that we topped with a homemade Lime Sauce. I just altered the recipe for Lemon Sauce from The Joy of Vegan Baking by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau. It was super easy, very pretty, and delicious on top of the ice cream. It really tied the flavors together with the cake.

A glorious and sunny, southern California day spent by the pool with family, good food, and a book. Perfection!

A note to my fellow bibliophiles: I’m currently reading and very much enjoying The Tricking of Freya by Christina Sunley.

Mini Vanilla Birthday Cuppies

Mini Vegan Vanilla Cuppies
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

Last week I had the pleasure of baking up a couple dozen mini cupcakes for The Boy to take to school in honor of his birthday. It was so much fun! He picked out the colors for the tie-died cuppies and then carefully observed as I frosted them all. When I ran out of coloring, I decorated the rest of them with multi-colored sugar sprinkles.

The next day, I dropped him off at school with 2 dozen mini vanilla cupcakes, a bunch of juice boxes, and a stack of napkins. He was so excited and his classmates were super stoked when they found out they got to eat cuppies for their mid-morning snack. They even made a cute Happy Birthday sign for The Boy. It was all way too much fun. Since he's in preschool, this was the first time I was able to play the role of the cool mom who bakes good shit to eat and I gotta say, I liked it!

Mini Vegan Vanilla Cuppie
Originally uploaded by Marni Molina

Also, I learned something really important: mini cuppies are dangerous. Their size makes them even harder to resist. What is it about things in miniature that makes them so alluring?

Anyhow, I used the recipe for basic vanilla cupcakes from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World and just reduced the baking time to about 13 minutes to accommodate the mini size. I frosted them with the killer vanilla buttercream recipe from the same book. These recipes never fail.

Winner, winner, chickpea dinner!

And after much effort, Man created swine flu

If you abuse nature by mass-producing meat in appalling conditions, you pay the price by incubating diseases.

Follow the link to a very interesting article about mass "producing" animals in deplorable conditions and the consequences that come along with it. Worth the read.

Raw Banana Coconut Cream Pie and "Offsetting"

This looks amazing!  And watching the vid is zero calories.  :)