Happy Valentine's Day!

Image by Kevin Sherry

As my co-worker said this morning, "I tell everyone I see 'Happy Valentine's Day' because everyone deserves to hear it!" And so do you, dear readers - Happy Valentine's Day to all of you! Stay tuned for a post-Vday recap; J's planning a delicious dinner and I will be sure to post recipes! 

Detox Time

I don't know about you, but I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by all of our holiday eating. Yes, we're vegan, but we still eat things like....Salt and Pine's Chocolate-Peanut butter Decadence Cake. (Yes, I made that this past weekend!)

Although I don't plan to stop baking (it's my "job" on the side and my passion) I do plan to start a detox plan on Monday with J. If I bake, I'll take it to work or give it away so that it's not lingering around the house. 

I got the idea when someone I know on Facebook posted a link to the 2012 Whole Living Action Plan. I'm at a place where I'm not losing the weight, I'm constantly tired and just want to re-start my body. This detox goes on for 4 weeks and we'll have to create some vegan alternatives for the later weeks since the menus include fish. 

Our first week will include:

Breakfasts:

Antioxidant Smoothie

Carrot, Mango & Herb Smoothie

Green Smoothie

Mango-Coconut Water Smoothie

Orange-Berry Smoothie

Cucumber, Honeydew, and Mint Smoothie

Lunches:

Spiced Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

Kale Slaw with Red Cabbage and Carrots

Sweet Potato, Celery, and Apple Salad

Avocado with Bell Pepper and Tomatoes

Dinners:

Steamed Broccoli and Squash with Tahini Sauce

Roasted Peppers, Cauliflower and Almonds

Snacks:

Dried Fruit and Nut Bites

Crispy Roasted Cauliflower

Cinnamon Poached Apples with Toasted Walnuts

In addition, the site gives you a mediation of the week, suggests starting a food journal, and has several detox yoga poses.

I'm excited to get started new week and hope to not only shed some weight but to feel rejuvenated!  

Thanksgiving Day Vegan Fest Recap

I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day yesterday! J and I were supposed to go to his mom's for a family dinner, but I've been sick and so we decided it best to have our own little fest at home. J, the sweetheart that he is, insisted I relax while he prepared our T-day dinner. About a week ago we had discussed what we were going to make and created a delicious menu:

• Vegan YumYum's Seitan Roulade with Chestnut Stuffing (with pecans substituting chestnuts because we couldn't find prepared chestnuts at Whole Foods)
• Vegan YumYum's Mushroom Gravy
• Garlic mashed potatoes
• NYT Well Blog's Stir-Fried Balsamic Ginger Carrots

So I sat on the couch watching TV as J worked away in the kitchen, running back and forth to the computer and to me with questions and exciting taste tests. The dinner he put together was spectacular. I had been a meat eater for many years, and this was MUCH better than any "normal" Thanksgiving dinner I'd ever had. He even changed up the menu a bit; we'd run out of mushrooms for the gravy, so he made Vegan YumYum's Tangerine Cranberry Sauce (made with orange juice instead of tangerine). Everything was delicious and definitely worth making again! Here's some photos he took while he was putting everything together:

Pecan Stuffing

Finished Pecan Stuffing with Homemade Croutons added

Cranberries, Sugar, & Orange Juice boiling down

Finished Orange Cranberry Sauce

Roulades just out of the oven. We realized we forgot to get cotton cooking string, so J was innovative and used tin foil "twist-ties" instead

Our beautiful dinner!

I had originally planned to bake a vegan French Apple Tart to take to J's mom's house, but as I was sick, I wasn't feeling up to baking. The tart would have looked like this though: 

This was the first year I did not feel overly stuffed from Thanksgiving. I didn't feel lethargic; I felt satisfied and lively. In retrospect, we didn't even need the tart - it probably would have been overdoing it. And what's the point in that?!

I'm glad we had an animal-free meal this Thanksgiving. As I perused Facebook, so many people had the status "Happy Turkey Day!" and it made me feel so sad that people don't realize the meaning behind what they're saying. Thanksgiving should not be a day about killing thousands of turkeys, most of which lived horrible lives in cages too small for them to move. Thanksgiving should be about being thankful for what we have and, if you're going to partake in the act of eating animals, at least have the decency to be thankful for the life you took rather than making light of it and wishing everyone a happy turkey day. 

For me, I'm thankful to have such a loving, caring, devoted fiancé. I'm thankful for our companion animals, kitties Ellie and Bob, who show us unconditional love and have lifted our spirits daily. I'm thankful for the family we've made for ourselves and for the happy home that shelters us. I'm thankful for the life I have and the happiness I can bring to others. 

Valentine's Day Delight!

We stayed in for Valentine's Day because, let's face it, most resturants are jam-packed and many serve a "special," highly limited menu, which makes vegan options scarce. Besides, nothing says "I love you" like a homecooked meal!

I've been getting into stews, soups, and chowders lately. With the cold weather upon us, these hearty dishes warm us up in a jiffy. So last night we decided on Vegan Black Bean and Corn Chowder. One word: YUM. I packed some of the left over chowder for lunch today and had it cold - and even cold, it tastes delish!

Lunch: Left-over Chowder, Fresh cut veggies and a banana with peanut butter



Recipe? Here we go...this one's coming from my head so pardon any mistakes!

Vegan Black Bean & Corn Chowder
1 yellow onion
1 clove garlic
2 cans black beans, drained & rinsed
1 can fire-roasted tomatoes
1.5 cups frozen corn, defrosted
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp chili powder
salt & pepper to taste
3 cups of veggie stock (make you're own! it's EASY!)
1.5 cups textured vegetable protein

In a large pot over medium heat, cook onions & garlic in some olive oil. Cover and let them get soft, about 5 mins. Add beans, tomatoes, corn & spices. Add veggie stock and simmer. Taste and add salt & pepper to your liking. Add the TVP and let the chowder simmer, uncovered, for about 30-45 minutes. The TVP will soak up a lot of the juice, so it will look brothy at first but then get nice and thick. Add more stock if you need to thin it out. Serve hot!



I prepared the chowder, my boyfriend prepared the drinks: champagne with a hibiscus flower floating on the bottom and some hibiscus syrup mixed in - gloriously romantic. It was certainly a wonderful Valentine's Day meal :)