Raw Vegan Veggie soup

Posted on May 20, 2013 by cameraphonevegan

Thomas turned to me this weekend and asked if we could do a green smoothie detox for a few days to “reset”. I thought this was actually a great way to prep for the insanity that will be hundreds of vegan bloggers running around Portland this weekend at Vida Vegan Con 2013, eating everything in sight. Oh yes, it will be glorious.

We decided to do green smoothies along with raw food for variety. I decided to start out with a raw celery soup from Raw Food, but didn’t realize that I was running low on celery, so I tossed in a few carrots, extra tomato, some miso, garlic and a little bit of jalepeno and cayenne for kick. I love how flexible raw food is, and I love how full you can get on good fat like avocado.

Raw Vegan Veggie Soup

several stalks of celery, chopped into large pieces, about 2 c.
3 carrots, chopped large
3 small tomatoes, quartered
1 clove of garlic
handful of fresh parsley, about 1/2 c.
1 ripe avocado
1 c. filtered water
1 tbsp. of tamari (or shoyu or Bragg’s or red-sodium soy sauce)
1 tbsp. of lemon juice
1 tbsp. white miso, optional
1/4 fresh jalapeno
dash of cayenne pepper

Directions:

Add all ingredients to high speed blender and combine until warmed through and creamy. You’re done!

GUNAS – Hostess Bag, A Review

Posted on May 18, 2013 by cameraphonevegan

My focus for 2013 has definitely shifted from vegan cooking to vegan lifestyle integration. The most major cause of this was the move from Florida to Seattle. Since we got rid of most of our earthly possessions to come here, now that I’ve been working for several months, I’ve been able to start shopping for new vegan versions of things that I parted ways with. I’m the type of person who buys really high quality or unique things and keeps things FOREVER, so when I switched to a vegan diet, the rest of my lifestyle items just lingered around. The sheer expense of doing a complete overhaul was absolutely prohibitive, so I figured it would happen slowly over time as things wore out.

In my pursuit of vegan handbags, I’ve been a stickler for fashion and quality. I like shiny and black, with nice heavy hardware, and classic designs. I wasn’t about to give up my high end purses for some cheapie bag that looked terrible and fell apart in a few months. The replacements would have to be knock outs, vegan or not.

And then I found GUNAS… I was immediately fixated on this Hostess bag. Not only was it black and patent, it had a top handle as well as a nice sturdy looking shoulder chain, and the hardware was NOT gold. Plus, it was on sale. I figured it was worth a shot. Though you can’t really tell quality through internet pictures, I was hoping at this price point I’d get the kind of craftsmanship I was looking for.

After a little bit of a wait, my bag came and completely met [and even exceeded] my expectations! Celebrity vegans like Anne Hathaway carry Gunas bags, and now I know why. These limited edition bags are either made by hand in house or in socially responsible factories elsewhere, depending on the materials. They try to be as eco conscious as possible and have won awards for sustainability in fashion.

It has a beautiful red lining with a zippered pocket and 2 pockets of varying sizes for organization.

It even has feet, which is a touch I really appreciate in my patent bags.

The only con is due to the soft structure of the basket portion of the bag. Trying to get the magnetic snap closure to connect on the bag can be a little tricky. The top flap is sturdy patent, and the body gives with pressure, so you just have to let it slide down onto it. There’s a learning curve there, but I think it’s gotten a bit easier with time (I think due to the slight outward squashing, see below). It is nice and secure though, once it’s closed, which initially was a concern of mine since the points of carrying are all on the top patent piece, but it’s been fine.

Due to the soft body of the bag it has gotten a little squashed. That’s mostly user error though, I tried putting it into my work backpack, and subsequently stuffing them into my work locker. Maybe not the best idea. (Since then I’ve been changing bags and using a wristlet with just the essentials in there.) I don’t think it’s gotten any worse since, and it closes easier now!

Here’s a pic to give you an idea of the size worn on a 5’4″ person. This was its first trip out 5.5 weeks ago. It was right after my humerus fracture (that was one of the only shirts I could fit over my splint!) and it was really convenient to have a purse with a shoulder strap at that time!

Overall Impression:

I’m thrilled with my bag! They have a lot of variety in the styles they offer, so even hard to please people like me should be able to find something lovely to carry. The only thing that bummed me out a bit was that I found it on VeganCuts a couple of weeks after for $30 cheaper! So awesome for you, if you’re thinking about picking one up! (Here’s the link for all the GUNAS bags on vegan cuts!) And I’ll definitely check on there 1st for future purchases. (Which would probably be this wallet. It’s not the matching wallet, and it’s got gold hardware, but I don’t care. I think it’s ADORABLE!)

Thank you GUNAS! : )

BLINC Eyeliner Pen – A Review

Posted on May 10, 2013 by cameraphonevegan

Hey guys, I guess this post went up sans text when I uploaded the pictures this morning! My mistake; that happens sometimes since the default setting on the wordpress app is to publish! Oops! It was early.

Blinc known “across the world” for their “superior line of mascara”, is headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida of all places! (Pretty much my hometown.) While I have yet to try their mascara (don’t worry, that’s next!), I am IN LOVE with their eyeliner pen! All of their products are vegan and gluten free. (The pic above shows the pen and the packaging tube it arrived in.)

I was very fortunate in that right after fracturing my left humerus, this eyeliner came in the mail. Fortunate because I was able to apply it effortlessly with one hand on the 1st try. The control you get from it being a pen is just amazing. (1st use pics above & below!)

In fact, I was SO impressed that I immediately threw out the last of the brand that I had been using for the last 12 years. I had stuck with that brand because it lasted “16 hours”, and because it had a great cone shaped [non brush] applicator.

This has the best applicator I’ve seen! It delivers the right amount of liquid to get nice opaque coverage. And the liner is JET BLACK.

What’s also really great about it, is while it’s not waterproof in the traditional sense, it will NOT run. It only comes off with warm water and pressure. You don’t need eye makeup remover, and it won’t run in the rain. If your eyes water, it won’t budge. It’s absolutely fantastic. It also doesn’t smudge onto my eyelid the way my old one would after a long day.

Impression:

This is a 5 star eyeliner pen! I doubt there is a better one to be had, vegan or not! It’s a bit pricey at $26, but I will gladly pay it for as long as they make this product! Thanks to Melisser at Cruelty Free Face for the recommendation!

Teese, Tempeh & ‘Ties

Posted on May 7, 2013 by cameraphonevegan

This isn’t one of those recipes that you should bookmark because it’s totally going to blow your mind. Rather, it’s more along the lines of I didn’t want to pay to not cook again, and we could really use a trip to the store. That, and I had this roll of Teese Cheddar sitting on the counter from the last Vegan Cuts box. I also had a box of pasta, a brick of tempeh, and some frozen veggies. I ended up subbing out my 1st instinct of broccoli with chopped spinach.

Here’s what I did:

Teese, Tempeh & ‘Ties

1 package of tempeh, any variety, cubed

1 lb. pasta, your choice (I used Farfalle/Bowties)

1/2 package of frozen chopped spinach

1 8 oz. tube of Teese Cheddar cheese, chopped
(I threw in the last little bit of Daiya Jalepeno Havarti we had in the fridge too!)

1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. thyme
1/2 tsp. turmeric
1/2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. tamari
dash of cayenne pepper
fresh ground pepper

1/2 c. reserved pasta cooking water
1/4 c. nutritional yeast

Directions:

1. Heat a large pot of boiling water. Drop in the tempeh. Toss in the pasta, and cook according to pasta directions. Last minute or two, add the frozen spinach. Shut off burner. Drain, reserving a cup of pasta water.

2. Return pasta/tempeh/spinach to pot. (Mash up the tempeh or leave it cubed. I sort of did a little of both.) Add cheese and spices. Return pot to cooling burner and stir everything so that cheese melts. Add half of reserved water and nutritional yeast. Use a little more water if necessary, and taste for seasoning.

Thoughts:

There’s something really magical about making a “free” meal out of things you have hanging around. Especially when it dirties only 1 pot and combines a starch, a protein and some greens. It wasn’t bad at all, and it was pretty filling!

As far as the Teese goes:

It tasted a bit like american cheese or velveeta straight out of the tube. I thought the texture was maybe a little grainy, but it was hard to tell because I put so much other stuff in! If you were a velveeta kid, this is probably some good mac making for you.

Vegan in Denver!

Posted on May 1, 2013 by cameraphonevegan

I’d like to think that I’ve become much more of a minimalist over the years, and that’s why I was able to pack only a backpack’s worth of stuff for 4 days in Denver, but honestly, it has a little more to do with the fractured epicondyle on my left humerus. I really wouldn’t have been able to lift a roller bag into an overhead bin by myself, and I try to avoid checking bags if at all possible. (Especially after my gate checked bag got lost on the way to Vegas in February.) It made for much easier traveling though, and I even got to board the plane earlier, so I’ll probably try to do this for short trips in the future!

(This is a very picture heavy post, as I packed in all of my adventures into this one single post!)

I flew Fronteir Air, whom I’d never flown with before. I had a light dinner consisting of a Mediterranean snack box (similar to Alaska Air’s offering) that turned out to be all vegan. It included bruschetta, hummus, pita chips, seasoned olives, dried cranberries, almonds and cookies. I chose a Colorado brewed Hazed & Infused to sip on while I nibbled for the 2 hour flight.

Here’s Joanna displaying what’s left of their last snowstorm. She’s only been in Denver for a month, so she was excited that I came so we could do some exploring together. She also decided she was going to eat vegan with me the whole trip. She’s done vegan cleanses before and felt great on them, so she’s no stranger to what it’s all about. (Though I warned her that I was on vacation, so it wasn’t going to necessarily be health food on my part!) She’s been trying to avoid dairy, gluten and soy anyway, so I’m trying to encourage her to feel good ALL the time, and make a plant based diet a more permanent change.

Her hubby doesn’t care for Indian food, so she expressed a great desire to eat it, which I was more than happy to accommodate. I’m almost always ready to eat Indian food!! I found Bombay Clay Oven on Happy Cow. They have gluten free and dairy free items marked on the menu, but what I really wanted was my fave… Saag Channa. They had it on their lunch specials, so I asked if they could make it vegan for me. After I assured our waitress that I eat dairy free versions all the time, she went back in the kitchen to inquire. (Turns out she doesn’t eat dairy either, so she was excited to find out that this dish is still delicious sans yogurt.)

Jojo got a spicy Vegetable Medly Kadai, and we ordered some roti bread minus the butter, to go with our little feast. Best part? Even though it looks like a fancy place, with cloth napkins, excellent service and super good food, the whole bill was under 20 bucks!

After this we walked around a bit and I saw Joanna’s new work digs. Then I went and had a fantastic massage with Mallory Asti. It included much needed work on my upper body, full massage, and reflexology and energy work for my injured arm. She has an extra low introductory rate for new clients, so if you’re in the area, I highly recommend you check her out!

Mexican fast food joint Cafe Rio called to us for a quick dinner of bean tacos. Both their pinto & black beans are vegan…

and we loaded them with lots of green yumminess like lettuce, cilantro, guacamole and some pico and hot sauce for good measure. Another meal for under $10 per person.

That night, before bed I was on Happy Cow and found a local (CO & CA) pizza chain, Patxi’s Pizza that made VEGAN DEEP DISH pizza! I was so excited, I could hardly get to sleep. I hadn’t had deep dish pizza in at least 12 years. When Joanna called me on her way home from work, I quickly explained all about it and called in our order so it’d be cooking while we were on our way. (Deep dish takes 35-40 minutes).

We started with a greek salad (no feta!), no dressing. (The waiter said the dressing was vegan “except for the little bit of anchovy”, and Joanna promptly told him that it was not vegan then. Hah!) I splashed it with some of the red wine vinegar he brought to the table. Nothing to write home about here, just wanted to get some fresh veggies in before the pizza.

The pizza was FANTASTIC. I ordered it right off the menu, no adjustments.

Authentic Chicago “Stuffed” Our flagship pie. A deep dish pizza with a layer of crust on the bottom, followed by toppings and cheese, all covered by another thin layer of dough, and topped with our homemade sauce. Also available in whole wheat dough. Prepared and cooked in a deep dish pan. 35-40 minute cook time.

Vegan – Whole wheat crust, fresh spinach, crushed garlic, red onion, Daiya vegan cheese. $20.50 for a 10″

Seriously recommend you try this if you’re near any of their locations in California or Colorado!

Come dinner we had the extreme pleasure of finally (in my case!) meeting Amber of Monk and Mao. She moved to Seattle right before we did, but unfortunately (for me!) they moved back to her hometown of Denver before we ever got to meet up! So yah, totally one of those moments where you meet someone and instantly bond.

We chose Watercourse Foods based on their yummy beers and their vegan nachos. Amber and I settled in with some ale, nachos and seitan buffalo wings…

The lighting was a little tricky, so sorry about the picture quality there! The seitan wings are a huge portion! I didn’t really care too much about the ranch dressing, which I found reminiscent of soy milk, but the wings themselves were really good. Our nachos were delicious, but Amber nailed it when she said it was the “bottom of the bag” nachos. Almost all of our chips were in tiny little pieces, so that at the end I was just eating them with a fork. I’m not really complaining about that though, because it was heavy on the refried beans, and I love me some refried beans, eaten by fork or hand.

Joanna had the THE MAXIMUS BURGER – Homemade pinto bean and quinoa burger served on our kaiser roll and topped with lettuce, tomato, red onion and special sauce, with some steamed kale that I made disappear at the end of our meal. (Yes, I will eat your kale. You don’t have to ask me twice.) I also got to sneak a taste of the burger patty and it was pretty darn good.

The nice thing about Watercourse, as explained to us by the server, is that everything on the menu is vegan unless it says it has a cheese option. And Amber says they’ll usually confirm with you about if you’re sure you want dairy cheese when ordering those. So needless to say, this is one of her frequent haunts.

We all had such a great time! Joanna made a new vegan friend in Denver, and Amber and I chatted until Joanna practically dragged me to the car! Hahaha! Thanks Jenna for remembering that this is where she lived, and providing the catalyst for our meeting. I had totally forgotten that’s where she moved!

I was lucky enough to get some acupuncture from Joanna for my injured arm Saturday morning. She’s a talented little lady if you have any acupuncture/body talk/Reiki needs in Denver. You can find her over at the Om Flow!

Then I hit the leftovers for breakfast. ; ) It was super hot outside by mid day, and even though it was only 67, my weather app said it felt like 77. And that it did. So we did the only logical thing to do… we hit the ice cream shop.

Sweet Action is a regular ice cream shop with vegan options. And man, everyone I talked to loved this place! Seems like they carry at least 2 vegan flavors per day. This particular day they had cinnamon roll & boysenberry swirl. Surprisingly enough, the boysenberry won out in my personal taste test. It was like a yummy, frozen berry cheesecake in a cup! Heavenly!

They also regularly carry pre-packaged ice cream sandwiches, and this day, they had two varieties. They had double chocolate cookies with coffee ice cream, and Joanna got the almond cardamom cookies with vanilla. That sucker was huge! I ate all of mine and made a concerted effort to finish hers until she shut me down. (She literally took it away from me.) I had to admit, I had probably eaten enough sugar anyway. The cookie was nicely spiced, and the vanilla ice cream, well, it was a little vanilla in comparison. I think the chocolate/coffee combo would probably have been tastier. I’m not a huge sweet tooth, but there’s something very satisfying about eating ice cream on a hot day, with the windows open. We walked around a little and I found a cute second hand dress and a pair of vintage looking shades. Then we had to head home to get me ready for the airport.

I felt a bit bad that I didn’t go to healthier vegan places with Jo, and dragged her down a path of vegan junk food with me, but she insisted that it was still superior. It was a great little holistic get away for me too, and I always love a little quality time with my bestie. Thanks Jojo!!

So if there are any places you think I missed out on, please comment below as I’ll probably be out to visit my Denver ladies again. The only other place I was curious about trying was Sputnik, which is attached to a music venue. We passed it on Thursday night, and they had a punk rock show going. They have a small vegan menu in addition to their regular bar food.

Next trip for me is going to be next month, Memorial Day weekend for Vida Vegan Con in Portland (a.k.a. Vegan Mecca) so that should be a whole mess of photos and info and meetups too! Can’t wait!

100% Pure Liquid & Powder Foundations – a review

Posted on April 24, 2013 by cameraphonevegan

I’ve been on the hunt for vegan foundation for some time. I had been using MAC studio fix for years and years, and was scared to try anything different due to my difficult, sensitive, oily skin. When I found that 100% Pure had both liquid and powder foundations, I was so excited that I ordered both in their lightest shade. What I really like is that they’re “the first and only cosmetics colored from antioxidant rich fruit and vegetable pigments.” Since your skin is your largest organ, and absorbs everything you’re putting on it, it stands to reason that you should only put on your skin what you’d be willing to put in your mouth, right? That’s why I switched to making my own coconut oil deodorant, and that’s why I was so happy to find these products. They also both have an SPF 20 built in using titanium dioxide and zinc oxide.

For those of you who care, their lightest shade, Créme, is light enough! (My skin is too light for some lines, altogether.) Probably even a little too light for me according to some, but that’s how I wear my makeup thank you very much, and without blush, because I’m a goth girl at heart.

Powder Foundation

It comes in a metal tin instead of a compact with mirror. Towards the end of the product, the powder did break apart and crumble instead of leaving a little ring of powder, but it stayed pretty well in the container. From the reviews I read on their site, it used to come in a plastic compact that fell apart easily, so I guess this is their second attempt at the packaging. Still, it would be nice to have a compact with a mirror, and with an applicator sponge included.

I applied the powder with a damp sponge applicator from my last MAC compact…

I decided to give you two separate chances to look at how terrible my skin is up close! (Go ahead and click the pictures to zoom in.) If you look carefully, you’ll see not only my Rosacea, but also that my skin was grumbling and breaking out about the new product. I recalled this happening to me when I switched from studio fix liquid to powder foundation years ago, and decided to stick it out, at least until the end of the compact.

After a couple of weeks, my skin settled down and got used to it just as I had suspected. Here’s me later that day in natural light, in my work wig.

(I wear a wig to work because I currently have dark purple hair. I keep meaning to show it to my boss to see if it will fly, because it really is pretty dark, and not that obviously crazy.)

Liquid Foundation

Now the reason I switched to powder foundation years ago was because my face is so greasy. With the studio fix, I was super oily even before my lunch break. I found the powder kept me matte much longer. However, my skin has gotten a bit dryer due to our move from South Florida to Seattle, so when I ran out of the powder foundation last week, I decided to give the liquid a try. I think with my new dryer skin, the powder was making my skin look too flaky and old.

Here is a picture of me in the liquid foundation (in natural light) after working all day. 13 hours, without blotting once! Definitely a sheen, but not bad at all! So I’m going to continue to wear it and see how my skin fares. It may have to go through the whole adjustment process again, but that’s okay.

It comes complete with a pump already installed so it’s easy to dispense. I used a dry foundation brush to apply it…

And here’s me made up (with a couple of other products I’ll be reviewing for you soon!) in the fading afternoon/evening natural light…

Impression

I find the pricing of the liquid to be reasonable at $32 USD for 1.7 oz / 50 g. (MAC studio fix liquid is $26 for 1 oz.) The powder foundation is slightly spendier for how much you get at $26 for 0.316 oz / 9 g. (MAC studio fix powder is $27 for 0 .52 oz/15 g). We’ll see which lasts longer!

I’ll update with any additional details, but overall I’m super happy with their products! I think the liquid gives better coverage than the powder for my skin. I’m guessing that’s why I ran out of the powder so quickly, because I needed to apply more layers to get the same coverage. So the powder will probably work better for someone looking for less coverage, applied either damp or dry.

Find all of their products at their website www.100percentpure.com. Most of their offerings are vegan, and you can do a search for only their vegan products at the top. The only exception is “cruelty free honey” in certain products.

Super Easy Tofu Scramble (GF)

Posted on April 15, 2013 by cameraphonevegan

For some reason, I have been back in the kitchen with a vengeance, despite the broken extremity. Maybe I just needed a challenge? Maybe it’s that none of my coats fit over my splinted arm, and we just had a cold snap? Regardless, this is an updated, no knifework, no fuss version of my Tofu Scramble. Enjoy!

Super Easy Tofu Scramble (GF)

olive oil for spraying skillet
1/2 package frozen onion & bell pepper mix
1 heaping tsp. crushed garlic

1 package of tofu, any style, rinsed and drained
1 tbsp. tamari for gluten-free (or Bragg’s or shoyu or red sodium soy sauce)
1 tsp. turmeric
2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. thyme
1 tsp. paprika
salt & pepper, to taste
cayenne pepper, optional

2-4 c. chopped kale or greens (I used some leftover, lightly dressed mac n kale salad)

1/4 – 1/2 c. nutritional yeast

Directions:

1. Spray a skillet with olive oil and raise to medium-high heat. Add onions & peppers and cook until thawed, about 5 mintues. Add garlic and cook for an additional minute.

2. Crumble in tofu, and add all other ingredients except nutritional yeast and kale. Drop heat to medium, and stir until well combined, about 3 minutes. Taste for seasoning.

4. Mix in greens and cook an additional 3 minutes, or until wilted, but still bright green.

4. Remove from heat and stir in nutritional yeast.

My secret weapon!

I had Thomas crumble the tofu in for me since he has two working arms!

Before greens.

And after.

Plated! Too bad we didn’t have any ketchup! Thomas doused his in sriracha.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread (Vegan & Gluten Free!)

Posted on April 14, 2013 by cameraphonevegan

Leave it to me to go on a baking kick despite my fractured arm, after all that time of not wanting to be in the kitchen when I was perfectly whole. Not only that, but I’m typing this out using only one hand! :p I decided earlier that I really wanted to make chocolate chip banana bread for the first time in my life… tonight. When Thomas claimed he’d never heard of it, my resolve solidified. First I did a bunch of recipe research, and then I wrote out this number below. I hit the kitchen, with Thomas on call for the things I couldn’t handle single handedly. Our large mixing bowl was still holding some kale salad in the fridge, so I went ahead and made the whole recipe in my trusty Kitchen-Aid, which honestly worked better with my limited space and abilities at the moment. You can do whatever you like.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread (Vegan & Gluten Free!)

1/3 c. coconut oil (or your preference)
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 c. non dairy milk + 1/2 tsp. apple cider vinegar, optional
OR
4 tbsp. water + 1 egg replacer or 1 tbsp. ground flax seed (I used Beyond Eggs replacer)

4 mashed, ripe bananas

2 c. flour of choice (I used Trader Joes GF AP flour)
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 c. chocolate chips

extra sugar & cinnamon for sprinkling on top, optional

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350*F and grease your loaf pan with a little extra oil. Whisk milk & vinegar OR water and egg replacer, and set aside.

2. Cream oil and sugar. Add vanilla and milk or egg replacer mixture. Mix in mashed bananas.

3. In a large bowl, mix flour, baking soda and powder, cinnamon and salt together. Add wet mixture, and stir to combine.

4. Fold in chocolate chips, and turn batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon & sugar, if desired. Bake for 50 minutes to an hour, or when cake tester comes out clean.

I used the whisk for the oil and sugar, then switched to the paddle for the banana addition.

I added all the dry ingredients on top, mixed, and then folded in the chocolate chips all in the same bowl.

going in!

50 minutes later!

And this is what my left arm currently looks like :/

OK, I’ll leave you with a more cheerful picture. Here’s one that Thomas snapped of the kittens earlier…

Coconutty Chocolate Chip Cookies (Vegan)

Posted on April 7, 2013 by cameraphonevegan

I had been wanting to make chocolate chip cookies for some time now. When this month’s VeganCuts box arrived with Beyond Eggs egg replacer in it, I figured I’d have to just to try it out. These lovely cookies get their mild coconut flavor from the unrefined coconut oil I used, but you can certainly switch out the oil if you’re not into coconut. They do make the house smell heavenly! I used all white whole wheat flour, but I think any old flour will do… gluten free, all-purpose, etc.

Coconutty Chocolate Chip Cookies
makes about 18 cookies

3 tbsp. water + 1.5 tbsp. Beyond Eggs replacer (or 1 tbsp. ground flax seeds)
1.5 tsp. vanilla extract

1 3/4 c. white whole wheat flour (or your preferred mix)
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. fine sea salt (I may use 1/2 tsp. next time)

1/2 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. sugar
1/3 c. coconut oil, preferably liquid

1/2 c. chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 375*F. Whisk beyond eggs and water. Stir in vanilla extract, and set aside.

2. Sift flour, baking soda and salt into a large bowl.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or with a hand mixer) cream sugars and coconut oil. Whisk in egg substitute and vanilla mixture until well combined.

4. Mix wet ingredients into dry. Mix in chocolate chips.

5. Dough may be crumbly, depending on the consistency of your coconut oil, but they’ll bake up just fine! Take about a tablespoon at a time, and shape into discs, leaving an inch or so between them, about 9 to a cookie sheet. Bake for 12 minutes, and let cool.

My coconut oil was the consistency of softened butter.

My coconut oil was the consistency of shortening or softened butter.

Sifted ingredients.

Wet ingredients.

Crumbly texture due to my coconut oil not being liquid temp.

2nd batch done!

More Peas, Thank You’s Tempeh Stroganoff

Posted on April 6, 2013 by cameraphonevegan

I’ve been doing the amazon vine program for several years now, but have kind of been slacking for some time. It’s a program where they give their top reviewers (All of those reviews I wrote about kitchen utensils and cookbooks eventually paid off!) the chance to try products for free, as trade for reviewing them. It’s actually a big part of the reason I went vegan, if you want to know the truth. Some of the first selections I made were Alicia Silverstone’s The Kind Diet and Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows (which btw, was so graphic, I couldn’t even finish, and am still haunted by) back when I was thinking about going vegetarian again. I ended up going vegan instead, and staying vegan as a result!

The offerings are usually very book heavy, but I hadn’t seen a cookbook I was interested in for a long time. When I saw a vegetarian book, I got excited and figured I could veganize the recipes easily, and could use a kick in the butt to get cooking again.

Since I left my giant kitchen a year ago, and moved into smaller apartments in Fort Lauderdale and Seattle, my previous zest for cooking had diminished proportionately with my diminished counter space. Sure it’s not as bad as cooking in that tiny studio in Brooklyn, but it’s less than ideal. Unfortunately, that’s just city life, no matter what city you’re in, or at least it is in my price range!

Now onto the book…

Turns out more peas, thank you is already a vegan cookbook, with no help from me. Sure she does offer the organic, ovo-lacto vegetarian option as well, but they’re written vegan first. I was so excited about my good luck! It also turns out that this book is a sequel to her peas, and thank you volume, and that she writes a blog over at peasandthankyou.com, if you want to check out some of her recipes and writing style.

I started out by reading the entire book back to front (I also read magazines in this fashion) and dog earring all of the things that sounded good, whilst reading out titles to Thomas. Happily, I dog eared most of the book. The recipes sounded good, and were generally not too fussy, which I appreciate these days. I attribute that to her whole mother of two craziness thing that she writes about so often in her intros. I will also say this, I’m so used to anecdotes from the friends that I have that now have kids, that even this was okay. It’s most of the book, but at least it’s usually humorous, and sometimes even a little snarky!

The Tempeh Stroganoff was the first recipe I made, by Thomas’ request…

I chose to chop the onions in the food processor, because for some reason I really can’t stand chopping onions anymore. I end up burning and crying so much that I have to leave the kitchen and flush my eyes out with water repeatedly. (Though I think these bagged onions I bought from WF twice now are especially bad!) That being said, I chose to pulse the tempeh into crumbles in there as well instead of grating it as called for in the recipe. I highly recommend doing both of these things for convenience & as a time saver. Besides that, I followed the recipe exactly.

Results:

Easy, filling, delicious! I had never had Beef Stroganoff before, so I didn’t have much to compare to, but Thomas said it was pretty similar. I thought it was great, and had the pleasure of eating the leftovers for lunch the next day. The depth of flavor she achieved in this fairly simple meal left me excited and motivated to keep on cooking from her book. Expect to see more reviews of her recipes in the coming days.

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