Early 40th Birthday with the Family!

Tomorrow, Paul and I are taking off on a road trip to Asheville, North Carolina to celebrate my 40th birthday (it's Friday!), so this will be my last post for a week. But before I leave, I wanted to share about my family birthday celebration with my parents last Saturday in Arkansas.

I requested pizza because it's the ultimate birthday food, so my mom prepped some dough, and we each added our own toppings. Mine had Tofurky Italian sausage, Daiya mozz, and every vegetable I could fit on it! Enjoyed with one of the new Blue Moon low-cal beers because my parents only stock low-carb beers these days. A perfect birthday supper!

After pizza, we did presents! My favorite part! My parents got me a new computer chair since I'm still working from home and sitting in a ratty old hand-me-down that's been destroyed by cats. This new chair a bungee chair, and there are slats that I'm hoping will deter the cats. My mom also ordered this awesome RBG shirt, and they got me some new Hokas! They also paid for my ticket to the Biltmore in Asheville, which we're planning to see this Saturday. 

After presents, it was cake time! My mom made an awesome 3-layer Oreo cake (pictured above). So good!

She also picked up some of the new Dairy Queen Non-Dairy Dilly Bars for us to try, so it was a two-dessert birthday. I remember loving the regular Dilly Bars as a kid, and it's so cool to be able to eat these again. They have a coconut ice cream base!

Family selfie! I had a great time with my parents. I know I say it all the time, but I really do have the best parents in the world. I don't know how I got so lucky.

I'll check back in when I return from Asheville!

Funnel Cake! Corn Dogs! Fried Vegan Chicken!

I do my best to eat well at home. But when I dine out, all bets are off! Isn't the whole point of eating out to treat yourself? Case in point — a couple weekends ago, I heard Plant-Based Heat (a new vegan pop-up) was doing a Vegan Fair Food pop-up on Beale Street. I couldn't miss that! I was so excited that I got there BEFORE they were even set up. I have a lot of FOMO anxiety around the idea that pop-up food events and potlucks might run out of food before I can eat, so I try to always be first. 

The wait for them to set up paid off when I got this Vegan Funnel Cake! I haven't had funnel cake since, oh, at least 2004, probably longer. 

I also got an order of Vegan Corn Dogs with Mexican Street Corn. The corn dogs came two to an order, and while that seemed like a lot of food at the time (with the funnel cake), I was so glad to have a corn dog snack later in the evening. The street corn was FIRE. I need their recipe. 

Speaking of treating yo'self, I rode my bike to Imagine Vegan Cafe a couple Takeout Thursdays ago, ordered the Fried Chicken Sandwich with Mac & Cheese, and ate my food in the Cooper-Young gazebo area before biking home. That was fun. I love Imagine's new fried chicken. They've switched to a different brand, and it's hand-breaded at the restaurant.

It's not all fried food and cakes though! Sometimes, I eat healthy carbs, like these Chai Pancakes from Eat Feel Fresh. They're gluten-free since they're made with quinoa flour (you grind dry quinoa in the coffee grinder). Really good, but the quinoa cakes are very delicate, a little hard to flip on the griddle.

And finally, here's another at-home meal — Soy Curl Taco Soup! This hearty taco-inspired soup has Soy Curls, corn, black olives, tomatoes, and taco seasoning. It was really good. The recipe was printed on a card that came with my last order of Soy Curls.

Cookbook: Two Dollar Radio Guide to Vegan Cooking

Before the authors of the new Two Dollar Radio Guide to Vegan Cooking reached out about a review post on my blog, I'd never heard of Two Dollar Radio — an indie book publisher and vegan cafe in Columbus, Ohio. I've also never been to Ohio. But after reading their adorable little punk-rock cookbook, I now want to visit the Two Dollar Radio HQ!

The new Two Dollar Radio Guide to Vegan Cooking is a pocket-sized book that's filled with fun stories about made-up chefs (I presume? Maybe they're real?) Jean-Claude van Randy and Speed Dog with plenty of the chefs' winning recipes. I love a cookbook that's as fun to read as it is to cook from! The punk aesthetic that runs through the book reminds me of 90s zine culture. I grew up with zine culture  and even had my own long-running zine — Frenzy — for two years in high school.

The recipes are fancy but approachable, the kind of dishes that use ingredients you already have in your pantry but include something special, like an aioli. And many of the sauces and basics are used for several recipes, so if you make pickled onions or a homemade cheese, you can use it for days in many ways!

I made the Buffalo Queso sauce and enjoyed it mixed into whole wheat pasta on a Macaroni Monday. This sauce is made with cashews, tofu, and a whole lot of hot sauce! It's spicy as hell, but I like it like that. The book suggested topping the mac with vegan bacon bits and scallions, and I had some coconut bacon left from an Eat Feel Fresh recipe, so I used that and chives from my garden.

Next, I made the Slaw (it has cucumbers in it!) and Pickled Onions so I could combine those with the Buffalo Queso on these Nacho Mama's Home Fries. This has cubed, roasted potato topped with nacho toppings. Can't go wrong there!

The recipe that I was most excited about though was the Hot Sauce! Paul and I grow hot peppers, and we always end up with more than we know what to do with. We toss them into the deep freezer with big plans of making hot sauce and hot salsa, but rarely do we actually do that. This recipe made a tasty roasted pepper hot sauce that I will be making again and again. I used ghosts, cayennes, red chiles, Tabasco, and hot banana peppers for this. It's spicy but with excellent flavor.

I have so many more recipes from this book dog-eared for later! They include lots of recipes for tortugas (their own made-up name for a cross between a burrito and a quesadilla — like a flat burrito!), including one for a Gobbler Tortuga with homemade vegan seitan turkey, gravy, and cranberry sauce. The Mexxy Enchiladas and Fishless Filets (made with eggplant "fish") also sound fun. The Maple Frosted Cookie Dough Bars are made with chickpea-based "cookie dough," and I'm so intrigued by that!

The book is available on the Two Dollar Radio website and lots of other places online (including Amazon), but in the spirit of indie book stores, it's probably best to buy from them!

Weird Tomato! Pasta Power! Root Chakra Soup!

Our very generous tomato plant is finally winding down production. One plant has given me a whole summer's worth of big juicy tomatoes! There are a few green ones left, but fall temps have come early in the South this year so I'm not sure how many will ripen. Guess fried green tomatoes are on the menu! Some that have ripened lately have come out a little weird, like this guy who think he's a red pepper.

We ended up with a couple of these late-season weirdos. I enjoyed it sliced on some Avocado Toast, and it was actually really good! It was nice to have a tomato without the seeds.

I found some old pics that I forgot to share, like this big bowl of Pasta Marinara with Mushrooms, Parma, and Challah Bread that I ate the night before my Fortitude 25K race a few weeks back. Carb loading is my fave.

And here's some Root Chakra Soup that I made from Eat Feel Fresh when I was working on my root chakra. I'm doing work on each chakra for a few weeks before moving on. Currently working on the solar plexus. But back when I was doing root chakra balancing, I had this tasty Thai chili soup with roasted red peppers and beets. Topped with coconut flakes and swirls of coconut milk.

Here's a Lemongrass Tofu & Broccoli dish from last week. I was working on developing a new recipe, but this one needs some work before I share it. I tried to coat the tofu in cornstarch before frying, but it got a little gummy. Still tasty though. I ate it all.

Tacos! Burgers! Chess Bars!

Happy Taco Tuesday! If it weren't for tacos, Tuesdays would be kind of lame. It's nowhere near the weekend, and it lacks the "fresh start" excitement of Monday. Tuesday is like the January 2 of week days. But thankfully, we have tacos to make everything better. Last Tuesday, I made some easy Black Bean Tacos with buffalo cashew queso (more on that in an upcoming post!), Violife cheddar, slaw, tomato, and avocado. Simple and delicious!

I had some leftover Sweet Potato Burgers from Eat Feel Fresh in the freezer, so I thawed and enjoyed with fresh slow and Simple Truth Hot Pepper Jack (have y'all had this yet? It's so good!). On the side, I had some Kettle ACV flavored chips with Kite Hill French Onion Dip (another new-to-me find that I cannot stop eating).

Curb Market in Crosstown Concourse has recently started carrying Imagine Vegan Cafe's spinach dip and Vegan Chess Bars. Imagine has placed their products in stores across the city (and even in a few stores outside of Memphis!), and I'm so excited for them. They've been thriving, even in the pandemic! Even though Imagine is a short 10-minute drive from my house, Curb is more like a 3-minute walk. So it's super-great to have Imagine's products so close to me. I picked up a Chess Bar on my last visit to Curb. SOOOO GOOD and buttery as heck. I love the corner pieces the best.

And finally, I was sooooo excited to find a new flavor of Larabar!! They don't release new flavors very often, so when they do, I get REAL STOKED. This has bits of dried strawberry and chocolate chips, and it's very good. You can see in the pic that my cart was full of Larabars! I go through so many of these.

Review: Laiki Rice Crackers

A few months ago, I was perusing the aisles at Sprouts, looking for a new cracker. Crackers with hummus is a standard, almost-daily snack for me, and I'm always on the lookout for the most whole food, plant-based crackers I can find. I usually look for whole wheat or rice crackers with minimal ingredients. I noticed a bright red bag that said Laiki Rice Crackers and pulled it from the shelf. The ingredient list had just three things: rice, oil, and salt. That's it.

I put the crackers in my cart and finished my shopping. Little did I know, I'd found my new favorite cracker. I've purchased them several times since, and recently, Laiki reached out to see if I'd review their products. That meant they'd ship me some free crackers, so how could I say no?

These come in red rice and black rice, but they both taste pretty much the same to me. What I love about these, besides the minimal ingredients, is their wafer-like crunch. They're light and airy and crispy with a neutral flavor that pairs well with any savory topping (or even sweetened nut butter!). The texture is a lot like a sugar wafer minus the sugar and processed stuff, of course!

While I typically enjoy mine with hummus, I've also recently enjoy them with corn salsa. And I made a little vegan cheese plate with Simple Truth Hot Pepper Jack and a Bloody Mary for happy hour at home last Monday. 

They recently added some new flavors in addition to the plain salted ones. There's Black Rice with Vegan Cheddar and Red Rice with Cracked Black Pepper. They didn't send any of these to sample, but when I see those vegan cheddar ones for sale around here, I'll absolutely be buying them. 

I love these little tiny 100-calorie packs for traveling. I keep one in my glovebox in the car at all times in case if I have snack attack. You never know when the hungries are gonna strike!

Recipe: Solar Coconut Sunbutter Curry Noodles with Tofu

As I mentioned a few posts ago, I've decided to get back in the kitchen and start creating. I mean, I've BEEN in the kitchen, but I've been mostly cooking other people's recipes since my cookbook, Cookin' Crunk, came out in 2012. That's a long hiatus! 

I've had a few failed cookbook projects since then, but I've not been terribly inspired for several years. I'm not necessarily working on a new book this time. I'm just getting creative for the sake of being creative. If that turns into something bigger, GREAT! If not, still GREAT! As I've been doing my sacral chakra balancing, I'm finding that my creativity is coming back, so why not put it to good use?

Last Wednesday (WOK WEDNESDAY!), I created this yummy sunflower seed butter & coconut curry noodle dish with tofu and veggies. It was really awesome, and I can't wait to eat it again. I'm on a sunbutter kick right now, and I cannot get enough of the stuff! For the noodles, I used buckwheat soba, but rice noodles would work well here too. Or even udon!

Solar Coconut Sunbutter Curry Noodles with Tofu

Yields 4 servings

8 ounces of buckwheat noodles or brown rice noodles

For the tofu:

1 pound extra firm tofu, cubed

1 cup water

1/2 cup soy sauce

2 tsp. garlic powder 

2 tsp. sriracha

For the veggies:

2 tsp. sesame oil

1 inch ginger root, grated

2 cloves garlic minced

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

2 cups broccoli, chopped into bite-sized pieces

8 ounce mushrooms, sliced

For the sauce:

1 can coconut milk

2 Tbsp soy sauce

1 Tbsp sunflower seed butter (or peanut butter)

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp turmeric

Pinch of black pepper

To serve: 

Fresh cilantro, chopped

Sriracha

Mix tofu marinade ingredients, and add tofu cubes. Marinate for one hour or longer (overnight is even better!).

Cook the noodles according to package directions, drain, and rinse under cold water until ready to combine with other ingredients.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place tofu cubes on silpat mat on baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through.

Combine the coconut milk, soy sauce, sunflower butter, garlic, turmeric, and pepper in a small saucepan, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium, and simmer for 10-12 minutes or until reduced somewhat.

While the tofu is baking and sauce is simmering, heat the sesame oil in a large skillet or wok. Add the ginger and garlic, and saute for one minute, stirring often so it doesn’t burn. Add the carrots and bell pepper, and saute 2-3 minutes. Add the mushrooms, and saute another 3-4 minutes. Add the broccoli, and saute until broccoli is bright green, and all veggies have reached desired tenderness.

To assemble, mix together the noodles, veggies, tofu, and sauce. Garnish with fresh cilantro and sriracha if desired.