The Last Supper

Last birthday post (at least until next year). I love my birthday, and I like to drag the celebration out for a good week. Today, I held a birthday potluck at my house with all my friends. We usually have a big throw-down weekend party, but this Sunday afternoon party had a very special theme.

I'm 33 now, the same age as Jesus when he died. And for years, I've been dreaming about having a Last Supper-themed potluck for my 33rd birthday. I'm not religious, but I do love the kitschy factor. I called the event The Last Supper: Bianca's Birthday Potluck of Biblical Portions. Clever, no?

Anyway, we had the party on a Sunday around 2 p.m. so we could pretend it was a good old Southern church potluck. We dressed like church ladies and stuffed ourselves with casseroles. Cassi went with the classic church suit. I had some kind of crazy 80s Designing Women thing going on. And Sheridan was more Stepford Wives. By the way, Cassi provided the fabulous church hats, courtesy of her grandma.

Unfortunately, casseroles don't look terribly sexy in photographs, so the pics you're about to see don't do these baked classics justice. I made my Mama's Hash Brown Casserole from Cookin' Crunk (shredded hash browns, Daiya cheese, vegan cream of mushroom soup, onions, and vegan sour cream topped with cornflakes).

I went to plenty of Southern church potlucks as a kid, and nearly EVERYTHING is covered in either cornflakes, crumbled potato chips, and French fried onions. I was so happy Sheridan made a Green Bean Casserole topped with fried onions!

Cassi brought Baked Spaghetti topped with melted slices of Daiya Cheddar. That's another thing you see at all these potlucks — cheese slices melted atop casseroles. Classic!

Greg made a crucifix with green beans in his Green Bean & Squash Casserole. It was topped with a nooch cheese sauce and vegan bacon bits!!

Diane gets points for bringing the healthy dish to the smorgasbord of brown casseroles. This is Spaghetti Squash and Artichokes.

Another dish present at every church potluck is Ro-Tel Dip in a crock pot. Mike took care of that with his amazing and creamy Daiya Ro-Tel (just melted Daiya, Ro-Tel from a can, and almond milk).

Shay made her famous Vegan Pizza! She makes everything from scratch — the crust, the sauce. This time, she topped the pizza with mushrooms and Beyond Meat chicken.

Stephanie always brings the sweets because she's our local vegan dessert master. This was a Mock Eclair Cake. Soooo good! It's made with layers of vegan pudding, vegan cream cheese, vegan whipped cream, graham crackers, and chocolate frosting!

I made a dessert too! The Sweet Potato Pie from Dynise Balcavage's new pie book, Pies and Tarts with Heart. But I'm on Dynise's blog review tour on Wednesday, so I'll save the picture for that post.

Oh, and I almost forgot. We washed everything down with vegan communion wine FROM A BOX! We really classed things up today. This Bully Hill Vineyard Red Table Wine was just a tad sweet, and it reminded me of the wine we drank in church when I went through my Catholic phase in high school.

The devil even made an appearance! Here's Misti with Demon Greg.

We had a lovely time! Hallelujah!

Vegan Comfort Foods Cookbook Giveaway!!

A couple nights ago, I posted a review of Veronica Grace's new cookbook, Vegan Comfort Foods from Around the World. It's a collection of 60 low-fat recipes for classic comfort food dishes. We're talking vegan mac & cheese with broccoli, ranch dip, spaghetti with French lentil sauce, sloppy joes, baked ziti, you name it. If it's comforting, there's likely a recipe for it in Veronica's new book.

Well, I was supposed to host a giveaway of her book in that post. But I blog late at night, and I forget important things all the time. So I forgot to post about the giveaway! Here it is.

You can read the full review here. And then you should leave a comment on this post letting me know about your favorite vegan comfort food. What one meal just warms the heck out of your little heart with every bite?

Be sure and leave your email address in the comment unless you know I can find you through a blog or something. I just need a way to contact you. I'll randomly select a winner on Tuesday night.

(P.S. I've noticed that a few people have left comments on the review post linked above to try to win rather than this one. Sorry for the confusion! But please comments on THIS POST! To be fair, I'll include those folks who commented on the other as well. But it'll be easier on me if you comment here instead of there).

Best Food Birthday Ever!

Today, I turned 33. Here's a selfie I took this morning, so I'd remember what I looked like at age 33.

Since Wednesdays aren't exactly wild and crazy party days, I decided that my celebratory focus should be all about food. Today, I would eat whatever my little (and kinda old) heart desired. Don't worry — I'm having a proper birthday potluck this weekend.

So I started the morning with my very favorite breakfast — Tofu Omelette from Fat-Free Vegan!

For years, this has been my go-to recipe for vegan omelettes. I like that it just makes one omelette for a single birthday diner like myself. I stuffed this one with vegan mozzarella, sauteed bell peppers, and shredded hash browns. I used black salt in the recipe for an eggy taste, but I also sprinkled black salt liberally on top because one can never have too much black salt on one's birthday. On the side, I had sprouted grain toast with Earth Balance and hot pepper fig jelly.

For lunch, my friend/co-worker Shara and I went to Chiwawa! This is a fun Mexican/hot dog joint that serves a vegan dog named after yours truly! Of course, I had to get a Bianca Dog on my birthday!

This is a spicy vegan brat on a pretzel bun topped with black bean paste and slaw. And guess what? It was Weiner Wednesday! And that meant half-off hot dogs! It also rained today, and when it rains at Chiwawa, they pour half-off draft beer. Yes, I did have a Dos Equis at lunch on a work day. It was my birthday. Sue me.

On the side, I had their refreshing Mango, Cucumber, and Jicama Fries with Chili-Lime Salt. Healthiest thing I had all day!

Every Wednesday, my friends and I go to Imagine Vegan Cafe. So of course, that's where I wanted to have my birthday dinner. I ordered one of my favorite dishes — Vegan Chicken Fried Steak with Gravy, Vegan Mac & Cheese, and Mashed Potatoes & Gravy. Sorry this pic isn't the greatest. It was totally dim in the dining area where we sat.

Wednesday at Imagine is also the day my friend Stephanie delivers fresh desserts for them to sell. I was just about to order a slice of her vanilla-caramel cake when Imagine owner Kristie walked out of the kitchen carrying this!

They gave me a cake, y'all!!!! Imagine gave me my very own birthday cake because they're awesome and like family to me. This was Stephanie's peanut butter bomb cake!!! Btw, I'm not sure what that green is on the frosting in the picture. Some weird light that reflected from my iPhone camera? The peanut butter frosting was all brown.

I tucked three candles into my pocket before I left because I expected I'd need them for the slice of cake I was planning to order. But turns out I needed them for an entire cake!

I just can't believe Kristie and Adam and Stephanie did that!! I really have the best friends ever.

After dinner, we walked over to the new Cooper-Young wine bar, Greencork. This is the coolest! When you walk in, you put as much money as you want onto a card. You stick the card into a machine that looks something like a soda fountain, and you can pick a two-ounce pour, a four-ounce pour, or a six-ounce pour. Fun!! And you can refill the card with money again and again, so it's like a Starbucks card for wine!

Well, my birthday is pretty much over. But I had a blast. Between the vegan nacho bar my mama made me last Sunday, today's delicious eats (and cake!), and my planned Sunday birthday potluck (post coming next week!), I can say with certainty that this was the best food birthday ever!

Comfort and Joy

Give me a choice between a five-course gourmet meal and a simple bowl of pasta with marinara, and I'll choose the pasta dish every time. Fancy food is, well, fancy. Nice for a special occasion, but I'll take a frosty beer and a vegan cheeseburger over a glass of wine and some crap with a balsamic reduction any day.

So it need not be explained why I love Veronica Grace's Vegan Comfort Foods From Around the World. This new self-published cookbook by Veronica (a.k.a. the Low-Fat Vegan Chef) is loaded with 60 comforting (and low-fat!) vegan recipes! Nothing against fat, but I get plenty of that through other meals. This book offers me a chance to indulge sans guilt, and that's refreshing.

The full-color, photo-heavy book is divided into chapters based on regions of the world — Americas, Europe and Asia. There's also a chapter for comfort sauces, gravies, and dips. I picked out a few recipes to try first.

Last night, I made the Baked Ziti with Greens.

Admittedly, baked ziti doesn't photograph well. But most comfort dishes don't. This hearty meal of whole wheat penne pasta, homemade marinara, spinach, and tofu ricotta (made with silken tofu, nooch, and miso!) isn't something you make because it looks pretty on a plate. You make this because it tastes the way a warm blanket feels on a cold winter night. It warms the heart.

It did, however, look quite lovely before baking. Note: I was supposed to mix the tofu ricotta in with the pasta before layering in a casserole dish. But I didn't read the directions and just plopped it in piles on top. Either way, it all mixes together in your tummy.

For a potluck last week, I made the Low-Fat Hummus and served it with toasted pita.

My omni friends love hummus, and they didn't even miss the usual oil in this oil-free, light version. That's the thing about Veronica's recipes. As much as I love oil and fatty foods, I can't even tell that stuff is missing from these dishes.

There are so many more dishes that I want to try from Vegan Comfort Foods — Indian Spiced Basmati Rice with Peas, Rotini with Chanterelle Mushrooms in a Red Wine Tomato Sauce, Spaghetti Marinara with French Lentils, Herbed Tofu Ranch Dip, Slow-Cooker Meatless Sloppy Joes, and Easy Cheezy Shells and Broccoli.

Cassi's Slumber Party!

Yesterday, I told y'all about Birth Week, the days preceding and following my birthday. I celebrate for a week straight because that means more parties, more friend time, and more opportunities to pig out. But it just so happens that I'm not the only friend in my circle celebrating Birth Week this week.

My friend Cassi's birthday was on Friday (mine is Wednesday), and we had a girls-only vegan slumber party at her house to celebrate. We wore PJs, ate vegan pizza, watched Pretty In Pink, and played Girl Talk (yes, the old board game from the 80s where you have to complete dares or declare your loser-ness with zit stickers).

Oh, and we consumed lots of wine and wore mustache tattoos on our fingers. Here's Cassi sporting a very serious mustache and a bottle of Bitch Bubbly.

Cassi picked up a large Mega-Veggie vegan pizza with Daiya from Mellow Mushroom. In true slumber party fashion, we devoured this while sitting on a blanket in the floor.

And she got an order of their vegan Muffuleta Bread (olive salad, French bread, and Daiya!!! So good!).

I picked up a quart of TCBY's Silk Chocolate Almond Milk Yogurt on the way to Cassi's, but we were having so much fun that we forgot to eat it.

We didn't forget the cake though! Cassi requested a build-your-own cupcake bar from our resident vegan baker bestie Stephanie (Poopie Bitch from the PPK). We are so lucky to have a professional vegan baker in our friend circle! She brought un-frosted cupcakes, three bags of frosting (vanilla, chocolate, and raspberry), and sprinkles so we could decorate our own.

Here's some the ladies getting creative with their cakes. On the right is my pal Autumn, whose birthday happens to be today!

And here's my finished creation. Yes, I went with vanilla cake and vanilla frosting. I'm a vanilla kind of girl.

Later in the night, we made popcorn, and rumor has it there was even a late-night Taco Bell run for black bean burrito frescas!

Nacho Birthday

It's nacho birthday. It's my birthday. Get it? Okay, maybe it's your birthday too. If so, happy birthday! Libra power! Anyway, it's technically not my birthday yet.

On Wednesday, I'll be 33. But I celebrate Birth Week rather than one little ole day. My week of festivities kicked off today with a birthday celebration with my family in Jonesboro, Arkansas. This morning, Paul and I made the hour-long drive to my parents' house, where we met up with mama, daddy, granny, and me-maw.

A few days ago, my mama asked me what I wanted her to cook for my birthday. I requested a nacho bar! I expected she'd have a few basics, but she went ALL OUT. I couldn't even fit everything into one picture.

There was chips, Spanish rice, black beans, refried beans, Daiya cheese, Gimme Lean vegan burger crumbles, vegan sour cream, guacamole, olives, tomatoes, lettuce, jalapenos, green onions, and salsa.

I piled my nachos high with every vegan option available. This was soooooo good. I wish I could eat nachos every day. I think my favorite part of this meal though was my mama's homemade guacamole. Damn, that woman can make delicious guac.

In keeping with the Tex-Mex theme, my mama made vegan Margarita Cupcakes! Limey, tangy, and delicious.

After our lunch, it was present time! I got a new Mio Active calorie-counting watch (my old one was dying), money to buy new running shoes (for when my foot finally heals and I can run again), clothes, a new scarf, salt and pepper shakers, a silver bracelet, an avocado smasher (so I can make guac like my mama), and a dip platter for parties.

I was supposed to have run my first half-marathon today. I signed up for the Shelby Farms Greenline Half months ago, but my stress fracture hasn't totally healed yet. I'm so glad I got to spend the day celebrating with my family rather than being all sad that I can't run.

Vegan Vine Wine!

I have a confession (okay, I've made this confession here before, but maybe you missed it): I'm not the best vegan when it comes to drinking wine.

Here's the deal: If I'm at an art show or an open-bar party, and there's wine there, I'm not going to grill the bartender and break out the Google or the Barnivore to determine the vino's vegan-ness. I'm just going to drink it — don't ask, don't tell-style.

But despite my poor judgement when it comes to free wine, I prefer to only have vegan wines in my home. I do use Barnivore in the liquor store, and I have a few brands that I know are safe. Around these parts, I can find Orleans Hill wines (makers of Our Daily Red) in several varietals, but for everything else, I have to stand in the aisles and pore over my "Is This Wine Vegan?" app. It's a pain in the ass. I wish I had access to Vegan Vine here. How much more obvious could it get? The word "vegan" is in the name!

Vegan Vine generously offered to send me four bottles of their animal-free wines. Best review schwag ever. There was Vegan Vine's Red Blend, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc, and Chardonnay. Admittedly, that was way back in August, and I'm finally on the last bottle this week. I'm a little ashamed to admit it took me that long to finish four bottles of wine.

Anyway, Paul and I opened the first bottle — Chardonnay — in our hotel room in Chicago when we were there for Veggie Fest back in August. I'm a red wine girl, but Paul only drinks white. So I compromised (because I'll drink anything, really) for his sake. This a shot of the chard in our hotel window.

I thought it tasted peachy and dry with an oaky aftertaste. Paul said it had an initial Granny Smith apple flavor with a dry finish. Clearly, we have no idea what we're talking about. But it was lovely!

Next up, I opened the bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon to enjoy with some Trader Joe's crackers and Ste. Martean vegan muenster cheese. Nothing beats vegan cheese and red wine. Best snack in the world. I picked up this cheese in Chicago and toted it home. It was so perfect with the cab sauv. I'm kinda sad that cheese and wine didn't last forever.

I opened the Red Wine a few weeks back on a weekend night. When I open red wine, I get to drink the whole bottle by myself (not in one day!). So I think I had a glass of this for four days before it was all gone. Too bad I dropped the cork into bottle when I was opening it. I was digging out cork from my glasses for days. But nonetheless, best red blend I've ever had.

Finally, I opened the Sauvignon Blanc this week. Now remember when I said I'm not a white wine girl? Well, that's because I forgot about sauvignon blanc.

I love how it's not too sweet. It's just a tad dry. And it tastes like summer. Like an apple. Or a platter of delicious grapes. I have one glass left in the bottle, and I'm kind of sad it'll be over after that.

Lucky for all of us, you can order Vegan Vine wine online. And it's affordable. Each bottle ranges from $14 to $18. Or you can join the Wine Club and receive four bottles in the mail every quarter for about $54.