Bluff City Vegan Eats: Trolley Stop Market

I apologize for posting two restaurant reviews back to back, but I've been eating out a lot lately. I promise to get back to cooking for the rest of the week. But I couldn't miss an opportunity to try the food on Vegan Night at Trolley Stop Market.

The Trolley Stop Market is a new-ish cafe run by one of my favorite farmin' couples — Jill and Keith Forrester. They've been selling their fresh produce (and delicious heirloom tomatoes) at the Memphis Farmers Market for years under the name Whitton Farms. I've even had the pleasure of touring their farm in a nearby Arkansas town.

Earlier this year, the couple opened a Medical District restaurant featuring fresh food made with local produce from their farm. The market also sells local products like Memphis-roasted Ugly Mug Coffee and pecans treats from Delta Pecan Orchard. They even sell some of their fresh produce right out of the store.

On most days, they only offer a couple of vegetarian/vegan options. But Monday night is Vegan Night and the entree special is totally cruelty-free. I kept meaning to go and finally found time tonight. The special was Trolley Stop Biryani with Roasted White and Sweet Potatoes:

Yum! The biryani featured traditional eggplant, summer squash, spinach, onion, and tomato over brown rice, and the whole dish was seasoned with homemade garam masala. On the side were some super-tasty taters, also seasoned with a blend of Indian and Middle Eastern flavors.

Though I wish the Trolley Stop would offer more veg options all of the time, the Vegan Night idea is pretty impressive for Memphis. Though most places in Memphis offer a few vegan items, many are "accidentally vegan" and they don't feel quite as special. I love that the chefs at the Trolley Stop go out of their way to cater to vegans at least one night a week. It makes me feel pretty special.

If you're reading this and you live in Memphis, please support Monday Vegan Nights so we can keep it around. Even if you're not vegan, this food will impress. Promise.

The Trolley Stop Market is located at 704 Madison Ave. Call 901-526-1361. Check out their Facebook page for daily specials. Vegan Night begins at 5:30 p.m. every Monday and runs through 9 p.m.

Bluff City Vegan Eats: Saigon Le

My neighborhood is only a few blocks away from Memphis' version of Little Vietnam. Cleveland Avenue in Midtown is lined with authentic Vietnamese restaurants and an Asian grocery called the Viet Hoa. Most of those restaurants boast plenty of vegan options, especially the Pho Hoa Binh on Madison (just a few more blocks away) and Saigon Le on Cleveland. Though Pho Hoa Binh is my favorite, Seigon Le holds the esteemed title of my "second favorite Vietnamese restaurant."

On Saturday afternoon, my friend Greg and I were craving fried tofu. We drove to Pho Hoa Binh at 7:30 p.m., only to find the place was closing early for the night. They're really bad about closing whenever they want. So we opted for the second choice, Saigon Le. The no-frills Vietnamese joint offers about 15 to 20 vegan options, including this tasty Hunan Tofu:

This was my first time trying the semi-spicy Hunan Tofu, and I think it might be my new fave dish at Saigon Le. So many Vietamese tofu dishes are heavy on fried tofu and low on veggies, but this dish offered a great balance. The broccoli was an impressive co-star to the chewy tofu, all covered in a savory-sweet 'n' spicy sauce. Of course, I doused it in extra sriracha because I love the burn. It's served with sticky white rice, but the above picture is actually my leftovers. Though I love the white rice, I can't justify eating it at home. So I made brown rice to go with the leftovers.

Other yummy vegan dishes at Saigon Le include curry tofu, barbecue wheat gluten, tofu in black bean sauce, and sauteed green beans and tofu. Watch out for the tofu with vermicelli as it contains eggs. I made the mistake of ordering it once.

The atmosphere is super-casual, and maps of Vietnam grace the glass-covered booths. Though it will never top Pho Hoa Binh (they have a $5 all-you-can-eat tofu lunch buffet!), Saigon Le holds a special place in my Vietnamese cuisine-loving heart.

Saigon Le is located at 52 N. Cleveland. Call 901-276-5326 for more information.

King Cake

To be honest, I'm not a huge Elvis fan. But I live in Memphis, and I've gotta give the man props for putting us on the musical map ... oh, and for um, inventing rock 'n' roll. Not to mention that Elvis was smokin' hot.

Elvis is everything here, especially for two weeks out of the year — Elvis' birth week in January and his death week in August. Early next week, thousands of tourists from across the globe will descend upon our fair city to pay homage to their fallen King on the 33rd anniversary of his death. Though he actually died on August 16th, Graceland offers a week of celebratory events.

Tonight, I honored His Highness by baking a batch of my kitschy Elvis Cupcakes to bring to O.C. Night:

These are going in the cookbook, and I've featured them before. But I'm testing, so I thought Elvis Week would be a very appropriate time to make these again. Plus, I wanted to get the opinions of the bitches at O.C. Night.

Basically, it's a banana bread-like cupcake topped with peanut buttercream in honor of Elvis' favorite fried peanut butter and banana sandwich. I know the pirate cupcake wrappers don't really fit the King theme, but I've been dying for an excuse to use them. I'm sure Elvis could appreciate a good pirate.

Succotash Success, Bread Machine Fail

You win some, you lose some. That was the case with last night's dinner. First, the win. I'm testing a few recipes by Zel Allen (author of The Nut Gourmet) for her new book, starting with this vibrant Harvest Succotash:

Isn't it gorgeous? The green beans are a mix of limas and edamame, creating a fun twist on an old classic. This dish came together in less than 40 minutes, and it made a ton. I'll be eating plenty of succotash over the next few days.

Now for the lose. I really thought fresh wheat bread would be a great accompaniment to the succotash. I recently purchased a gently-used Sunbeam bread machine from Poopie Bitch for $20. She was about to sell it in a yard sale, but I snatched it up first. I've always wanted a bread maker.

The machine came with a little recipe book, which contained instructions for Whole Wheat Bread. It called for plain ole' whole wheat flour, and that really didn't sound right. I always thought bread machines required special bread flour. But I tossed in the whole wheat flour as instructed. I let the machine do its thing while I was at work Tuesday, and I came home to this:

What a sad, inflated loaf of bread, right? Not sure what happened, but next time I'll try whole wheat BREAD flour instead. Though the bread looked crappy, it didn't affect the taste or texture. I spread this slice with a little Earth Balance and garlic salt and enjoyed it with Zel's tasty succotash.

Cheater Fajitas

Slaving away for hours in the kitchen, creating everything from scratch, is my form of meditation. I don't do "sitting still" very well so traditional meditation is pretty much out. That's why I don't mind complicated, multi-step recipes. But some nights, I just don't have time for all that.

Last night, I had to go to a Tennessee Department of Transportation meeting for story I'm writing for the newspaper. The meeting lasted from 5 p.m. (right after work) until 7 p.m., leaving me no time to eat dinner. When I got home, I was famished. Something quick and filling was in order. Enter Beefless Veggie Fajitas:

The beefless part is made from Trader Joe's Beefless Strips, which I picked up at the Nashville Trader Joe's on the weekend. Memphis doesn't have a Trader Joe's, so I always pick up a pack of the beefless or chickenless strips when I'm at a TJ's in another city.

I sauteed the gluten-based strips with onion, strips of red bell pepper, and the last of my local squash from Dodson Farms. Then I stirred in a package of McCormick Fajita Seasoning (yes, it contains corn syrup solids ... not my first choice, but it's all Kroger had when I was grocery shopping). I served it up on some warmed corn tortillas with a little roasted tomato salsa and some Daiya cheddar shreds (added after the picture). Dinner was on the table in less than 20 minutes.

A side salad was the perfect accompaniment — romaine, iceberg, fresh corn, summer tomato, cucumber, Craisins, and a low-fat raspberry vinaigrette:

I Love Ramen!!

I love a good home-cooked meal, but my ultimate comfort food isn't slow-simmered collard greens and fluffy biscuits. Those things are delicious of course. But the one food that makes me the most warm and fuzzy inside is simple, cheap-o Ramen noodles:

I typically add veggies to up the virtually nonexistent nutritional value of the noodles. I've added fresh zucchini, Soy Curls, corn, green peas, and chili-garlic sauce to this bowl. I always add lots of sriracha or chili-garlic!

I eat a hot, steamy bowl of Ramen almost every Saturday and Sunday for breakfast. Yep, breakfast. As a kid, I actually chose to eat Ramen before school on the weekdays. Back then, I ate the well-known, non-vegan brands like Maruchan and Top Ramen. But these days, I'm a bit of a Ramen snob. I purchase noodles in all kinds of vegan flavors from the Viet Hoa, my local Asian market:

MAMA is a favorite brand, as you can see. They make noodles in fake meat flavors, like artificial beef, chicken, and tom-yum pork. They also make some bad ass rice noodles called "clear soup," that are only 200 calories per package. That's a good deal considering that fried noodles (which I also love) range from 300 to 500 calories per package. Here's a bowl of the "clear soup" rice noodles with edamame and the dried veggies that come in the package:

One of the best features of Asian market Ramen is the packets. I love packets! While the American brands typically only have one powdered flavor packet, these guys come with packets of powdered seasoning, flavored oil, dried veggies, chili powder, and sometimes fried onion topping! The more packets, the better.

Most of the Asian brands do contain MSG, but I don't mind. In fact, I actually kinda love MSG. It's one of the few "bad" ingredients that I'm not ashamed to love. Sorry, MSG haters. I'll never give up my monosodium glutamate or my precious Ramen noodles.

Don't Have a Cow ... for Dinner

Though Memphis has a decent number of veg-friendly restaurants, we're lacking a totally vegetarian eatery. Thankfully, Nashville's Wild Cow Vegetarian Restaurant is a quick three-hour drive down I-40. The boyfriend and I were in the state capitol this weekend visiting his siblings, and we made dinner at Wild Cow a number one priority.

The place opened several months ago, and I've been drooling over their menu ever since. I've been dreaming of the day when I'd finally have a free weekend to make the road trip. When we arrived at the restaurant on Saturday night, I could hardly contain my anticipation. After much deliberation, I finally settled on the Seitan Philly Cheezesteak with Spicy Kale:

Oh my god, y'all. Best thing ever. Their seitan was sliced thinly and it may be the most tender wheat meat I've ever put into my mouth. It was sauteed with green peppers and onions and covered in a yummy nooch sauce. They offered a choice of Daiya or nooch, but I was curious to taste their homemade sauce. The kale, my choice of side item, was so, so tasty. I doused it in sriracha and some nooch sprinkles that were offered on the table.

Paul isn't vegetarian (and definitely not vegan), so he chose to have dairy cheese subbed out for the standard nooch sauce in his Pinto Bean Nachos:

Wild Cow makes everything vegan unless you request dairy cheese. Isn't that crazy awesome? A vegan default! I managed to sample a bite of beans and rice with no cheese and it was pretty tasty.

Paul ordered the Black Bean Soup as his side item:

I ended up eating about half of it. We both loved this soup, which was the featured soup of the day. It was thin and sorta chipotle-ish.

Wild Cow offers numerous vegan dessert options, and I wasn't about to pass up a moist slice of this Grasshopper Cake:

Here's a messy inside shot of the cake in my eco-friendly to-go container:

We thought we'd be too full to share cake, so we requested the takeout container. But we ended up eating the whole slice in the restaurant. I think this may be the tastiest slice of vegan cake I've ever had. Seriously. So, so moist and rich. And the frosting had just the right amount of mint. Just like a vegan cake version of a Girl Scout Thin Mint!!

I knew that I'd need to have something for lunch on Sunday since we were staying with Paul's sister. So I ordered Wild Cow's daily special to go — Sauteed Veggies and Brown Rice with Blackened Tempeh and Harissa Sauce:

The best part about this dish? $1 off every purchase of the daily special at Wild Cow goes to the help the Gulf Coast oil spill relief effort!

I heated the entree up this morning and it was to die for! The tempeh was sliced thin and blackened to perfection. The veggies were a mix of cabbage and sweet corn. I did add a little Maggie Seasoning to the dish because I love sodium.

I can't wait to go back to Nashville for more Wild Cow deliciousness! I was originally planning on meeting Lacey from Kuntrageous Vegan there, but she wasn't able to make it. So it looks like I have a great excuse to go back soon!

Wild Cow is located at 1896 Eastland Ave. Here's their mouth-watering menu.

Speaking of Nashville, check out this adorable veg children's book Garlic-Onion-Beet-Spinach-Mango-Carrot-Grapefruit Juice by local author Nathalie VanBalen. It's a cute book about two vikings who love to juice. When the vikings learn that yellow-spotted snail shells make a great nutritional supplement in their juice, they're forced to confront the ethical issues with eating animals. Here a link to Nathalie's website (and you can even buy little stuffed vikings!).