Bitchtastic!

I didn't cook dinner tonight because I had a HUGE and AMAZING lunch from a new vegan-friendly restaurant in Memphis (more on that later). So I thought I'd share a mouth-watering pic of the brownies my mom made this weekend:



They're the "Bitchtastic Brownies" from Skinny Bitch in the Kitch. She doesn't have the book, but she got the recipe from the latest issue of VegNews (which she bought because my story was published there ... she doesn't normally buy VegNews). Anyway, my mom is great about making vegan desserts and entrees. She's super-supportive and usually even eats vegetarian when we go out.

I went veg at age 14, and of course, she wasn't pleased at first. She had no idea how to cook for a vegetarian. But that was 13 years ago ... now my parents even started buy veggie bacon for themselves (because it's healthier and they learned to like the taste when I was growing up).

So back to the brownies — they were delish! The addition of soft tofu gives these brownies the perfect chewiness factor. Mama didn't use the recommended whole wheat pastry flour though because it was unavailable in her small town. But she picked up a bag in Memphis this weekend, so she's stocked for any future "skinny" brownies.

Oh, and about that restaurant. For you Memphis readers, it's in the old Java, Juice, and Jazz space at 1423 Elvis Presley. I don't think it really has a name yet, but it's like a classic meat-and-three soul food joint. You get a protein and two veggies for $7.99. I had curried tofu, garlic mashed potatoes, and fried cabbage. And for dessert, they make the best (and only) vegan banana pudding I've ever eaten. I got that (and a vegan chocolate chip cookies) to go!