Chocolate and Date No-Bake Balls

What makes more sense then making desert before making dinner? Nothing - except, maybe that chocolate tastes good even when you are full.

Work was great today, but the world got a whole lot more exciting when I got home and started playing around with some dates, raisins and a lot of vegan Belgian chocolate. My only regret is the banana - next time I will nix the banana and maybe try some coconut milk. Don't get me wrong - these balls are blissful (and totally satisfy my cookie cravings when my oven is 5 days away from its return home), I would just do something a little more exotic next time.

These are uber-easy and so tasty that you will skip dinner and just fuel up on these little nuggets of goodness.

Ingredients:

-20 dates (pitted)

-1/2 cup of sultana raisins

-1 cup of oats

-1/4 cup of cocoa

-1 banana

-1 1/2 walnuts

-1/2 cup of maple syrup

I guess having the chance to share some really exciting news with my family at a silly early hour this morning (they are six hours behind me) got me thinking about my mom, because I pulled out my hand me down Braun food processor in my afternoon ball adventure. With the Euro-adaptor this 15+ year old kitchen machine handle the voltage with no problem and was my accomplice throughout this yummy process. I also had a pretty handsome looking side kick who was right there rolling balls, pitting dates and experimenting with double broiling.

How To:

In a food processor crush the walnuts and pour them into a glass bowl. Add the dates, cocoa, raisins and banana to the processor and pulsh until you get a sticky mess. Add the walnuts, maple syrup and oats - this will give them a structure that allows you to roll these bad boys into tasty little balls of goodness.

I dumped the contents of the f.p. into a glass bowl and pulled out a golf ball size of 'batter' and rolled until I had a firm and well-rounded ball. K covered a plate with organic cocoa, which we then rolled the goodies through, covering them completely. We had a bit of inspiration at the last second and threw some chocolate into a do-it-yourself double broiler and rolled a couple of the balls in the liquid chocolate.

They were delicious and topped off a great dinner of tomato soup and steamed brocolli.

Really easy no-bake desert. I can imagine rolling them through coconut, crushed nuts, puffed millet etc.

And what did I have for dinner last night? Oh my.

I found some white Belgian asperagus at the market earlier in the morning and ended up making a great salad, (and some not so great artichokes). The salad was really just about the asperagus, but had notable guest appearances from balsamic mariantated red pepper and some simple grilled tofu steals. The lettuce was a beautiful red, again, from the market. Excellent and really satisfying - I feel summer and its salads, roasted veg (and my trip to Italy) right around the corner.

Mission Accomplished!

I did it. I made the vegan sausages! This Sunday's brunch did not disappoint (see last week's post on damn pancakes).

I was up and at them quite early this morning, finished up some reading, tidied for a while and then attended to the project I had set for myself: my first faux-meat. After all of these vegan years I have never made a sausage, a burger, or a hot dog. The closest I have ever come is referring to my square slices of tofu as 'steaks'. But now, I have been initiated into the ever growing vegan group (vegan dad, post punk kitchen, vegan in vancouver) of those with enough energy on Sunday morning to tackle a session of sausage making.

To be honest, these were so easy, that I could have drank much more wine at last night's very important dinner and managed just fine this morning. Do it! Do it! Do it! Even all of you wacky non-vegans out there - you will love them, you will dig them, you will worship them (ok, maybe I have been reading too much of the medieval female mystic stuff this morning...you won't worship them, you will like them).

Ingredients:
-1 1/4 cup of gluten flour/vital wheat gluten
-1/4 cup of nutritional yeast flakes
-1/2 cup of white beans, mashed with a fork
-2 dashes of soy sauce
-1 teaspoon of olive oil
-2 dashes of maple syrup
-1 cup of water (cold)

herbs: use your own discretion with the quantity - but it was the spices that really made it!
-crushed dry fennel
-fresh basil (red and green), fresh rosemary, fresh thyme
-powdered cumin

How to: (I used vegan dad's guidance for this part and watched a pretty kickin' video on ppk.)

While I was measuring out my ingredients, and cutting/grinding my spices, I started my water. I added everything together in a large mixing bowl, and was amazed by how quickly it began to form into such a firm substance. I pulled golf ball sized chunks out of the bowl and rolled them between my hands until I had little cigar-ish sausages. I laid each one on the end of a piece of aluminum foil (next time I will use cheese cloth - not impressed with the amount of waste) and rolled the suckers up, twisting the ends up nice and tight.

I stacked my Chinese (all the way from Spadina Street in Toronto to Brussels) bamboo steamers onto my pasta pot full of boiling water and added 8 sausages to the steamer - side by side. I added a second level and filled it with a 'burger' and a larger sausage - to steam and set aside for later use.

I waited 25 minutes, checked them, decided to turn them and let them have another 25 minutes (this departs a bit from vegan dad). I let them sit in their bamboo tower while I headed down to the market - I was planning a feast and I needed a little more.

When I returned with bags full of goodies I cooked up tofu scramble (eggs for K), warmed up the sausage in a bit of maple syrup, soya sauce and olive oil, and had K make some sauteed mushrooms while I cleaned up the kitchen. The syrup, sauce and oil browned the sausages into disguise and no one could have picked my vegan sausages out of an almost all-meat line up. I served brunch with some nice dark bread and a big pot of Lady Grey Tea. K was totally impressed and is demanding vegan sausages for every meal from this day forth.

To be honest, having never worked with wheat gluten, I am really impressed. Dead easy. Dead yummy and, most importantly, fun!


And hey, if you are looking at those super sexy containers in my top photo, you can find them at Habitat in a range of styles and colours. They are super cute with birds and ferns; they have a great seal so your goodies will stay fresh.

Thanks for the comments on the new layout. Much appreciated. I am pretty content with it as well.

Content is one thing. But, overjoyed and ecstatic are totally different. These exuberant emotions filled me last night as I munched on my dinner last night. I implore you all to make this little VeganCowGirl-experiment-gone-right. Please.



I was feeling a little funny last night, looking around the shop, filled with thoughts about today's presentation (which is but an hour away) and couldn't quite focus on what I was buying, or what I had hidden in the fridge. About the only thing I had nailed down was that I wanted some tofu and I was feeling like a salad. My brain hopped onto an old favourite - 'the single girl's salad' - which I love. I adore. I pine for. And would have gladly eaten. However, given aforementioned mental state, I didn't think to buy anything but the tofu and the lettuce - and I had not much more fresh and summer-salad stuff hanging around. I had a moment of raw carrot consideration (if it was good for a mid morning snack there is no reason why I can't eat it for dinner), but then I decided to be wild and make a Warm Salad with the rest of the vegetables laying to waste in the fridge (maybe not waste, that is an exaggeration of sorts).

My Wild and Warm Eggplant Salad

Ingredients

-eggplant
-white mushrooms (i used a lot. in fact, maybe an actual lot's worth)
-garlic
-canned tomato (just a small bit).
-fresh crushed black pepper
-one cutlet of (shock, horror - but sorry they were out of the usual plain fu) flavoured tofu
-organic boston lettuce (I used about half a head)
-a few green olives
-balsamic vinegar
-juice of 1/2 a lemon

I started with warming up about 3 tablespoons of the tomatoes and adding some basil, fresh rosemary and the pepper. I added all of the mushrooms, and the lemon juice, letting it all simmer for about 20 - 25 minutes. The tofu was very firm and didn't really need to be in the pan for any practical reason - accept to heat it up, but I decided to throw it in quite early - and I am glad I did, the fu had a great coating of the sauce when it was laying on top of the lettuce. I added the garlic and eggplant to the mix, and moved it all around so that the eggplant was flush on the pan with the mushrooms/fu a top. Here, I added a dash of Balsamic, I wanted something heady and rich - and it did the trick.

I washed and ripped the lettuce, adding it to one of my favourite green bowls, finally, placing the warmed fu/veg to the top. A few more splashes of vinegar and I had my masterpiece ready for munching. It was amazing, satisfying and had a surprisingly large depth of flavour. Overall, one of the best vegan experiments yet!

I also had another great discovery last night - I listened to the Czars. Really great band. Impressive C.D. called goodbye. Get it.

Look At That View...

No, no, not the hummus sitting atop my kidney beans. Look past the acceptable lunch time fare and be incredibly jealous of the view that I get to look down upon when not wondering about Julian of Norwich, or whether or not my new blog format works.

Lunchtime didn't involve dipping into any fantastic left overs. Sadly, no. Rather, I had the layered salad bar treat that started with red kidney beans and ended with some corn. It wasn't as exciting as my mid-morning snack of carrots and hummus.

I adore the ceramic container that I had my carrots in, which was later transformed into my lunch bowl. These containters are fantastic! I have them in two sizes, but wish that I had about 40. In addition to being a million times better for the environment (when compared to some Tupperware out there), they are also acceptable for the microwave (if you so choose to use one) and are great for VeganCowGirls who have memory problems and aren't quite too sure how long the soup has been sitting in the fridge. Each container has a 'chalk board' strip on the side that allows you to write everything from: VeganCowGirl's Lunch to Chickpea Delight March 6 2008. Excellent stuff! They wash up wonderfully as well. Not that I ever do that.

Today, while reading about the infused bread made by pleasantly plump vegan, I got to thinking about the joys of bread making and how much I miss the (once to me) conventional ovens of North America, and how I long for something other than the dinky (and currently busted) oven I have been continuously complaining about. I miss baked loaves from the shores of Lake Ontario.

So, in honour of my much missed bread baking parties I am going to share one of my favourite things to do at the end of a bread baking session....by far one of the best reasons to bake the bread in the first place!

Ingredients
-left over newly risen dough (preferably something whole grain/wheat
-left over (or freshly made) chili
-olive oil
-parchment paper
-pizza stone
-sea salt
-rosemary (crushed)

How to create your very own CHILI BOMB!

Roll out some dough into a shape that resembles a thick mini pizza shell (about 2 cms thick and about 5 cm wide). Add a splog of your chili to the middle of the dough, sprinkle some rosemary on top (and/or any other applicable spices). Now...here comes the fun....if you are wrap challenged, now would be the time to call in your favourite vegancowgirl to the rescue.....grab the 'sides' of the shell and start to pull it together at the top like a little purse. Hold the top bits tight in your hands for a few seconds to let the dough settle into a nice little dough clump atop your chili bomb (I even got really fancy at one point and tied an elongated piece of dough around the pieces - but not necessary). You want to have your chili bomb tight packed tight enough so that it feels like the tummy of a fat kitten (does that make sense? or is it gross?). The trick is figuring out how thick to make your dough so that you can make your bomb without it breaking through.

Bake the bombs on a pizza stone, after coating them in olive oil (or not) and a little bit of celtic sea salt (or not). Enjoy!

Pumpkin Curry

There are so many things I want to share! My curry from last night, the amazing blogs I have been reading, my love for puffed millet, the bubbling excitement I have for my weekend project: making the vegan sausages I have seen on VeganDad and Vegan Miscellanies.

Let's start with the curry. Over the weekend the cauliflower and broccoli where imploring me not to let them go bad this week. No problem. The thai curry from last week, and the quarter bit of pumpkin I picked up on the way home from work, inspired me enough to ignore the power point I was making for Friday just a little bit longer and whip up a curry.

I started by skipping the oil and adding half the juice of a can of tomatoes. Next I added the onion, garlic and a load of tumeric (I was reading a National Geographic article about the Okinawan people and the connection between their use of tumeric and their notable longivity.) Next, I put in a spoonful of the red thai curry paste I used in last week's curry - spicy!
As I threw in the pumpkin, I also added about 250 ml of water - to help with the cooking of this brightly coloured veg. I let the pumpkin cook for about 20 minutes before I added the brocolli, peas and cauliflower, which was about the same time I added the coconut milk. A surprising addition was a handful of organic/fresh spinach that was sitting in the crisper.

The dish was great. But, like K's beans, it was even better for lunch. The clue here is that I should buy a slow cooker and chuck in everything before heading to work in the a.m. This makes loads of sense considering my close relationship to the Energizer Bunny at 5 30 am. Why stop at whipping up juice, doing the laundry, making breakfast, tea and lunch - let's get dinner in there while I'm at it!

Of course the eating festivitites were hardly over for the night - walnuts and dates were chewed on before bed.

Ok, so, I have been reading. I admit, the reading has not been professional development, heady fiction or Scientific America. It has been blogs, blogs and more blogs. Specifically vegan blogs. I have been addicted lately. My assumed reason for this new addiction is that I don't have the time to run to bookstores anymore, and my circle of vegan friends in Brussels is quite small (ummm....me, can I be my own friend?). So, I have started to look towards the work of my fellow bloggers to become inspired and adventurous. I am most pleased by the connections you can make and the information that can be share. Mostly, I have just been enjoying the writing of so many cool people, whose personalities are bright and shiny on the computer screen. I am particularly taken with Pleasantly Plump Vegan, her blog is hilarious and the recipes are totally manageable and yummy looking. Vegan Dad is a great writer (I think he might even be a prof of some type), Vegan Talk has a political edge that I love, and Chocolate Covered Vegan is just so sweet (oh! that pun is great!). I love the idea of collaborative blogging and will be writing on What Do Vegans Eat - looking forward to sharing VeganCowGirl's recipes with Josh's audience.

My dinner plans for tonight are malleable. Not sure yet. Could be anything from a carrot (because us vegans really only like carrots, and they have to be raw) to a Tofu Wellington.

Input? Ideas? Offers to Cook?

I just had the best lunch. This isn't something that I usually get to say when I am writing from school. The cafeteria is a little daunting for this little vegan, with a salad bar as my only option most days. And, really, how many times can you eat shredded carrots and not feel a little disenchanted with the whole raw food movement?

Last night, in response to my statement of "I am not doing any more domestic activities for the weekend", K made a spectatcular dinner. I don't have enough trumpets on hand to support the style of fanfare I think appropriate for this culinary coux, but suffice to say he did wonders. And it was an intensified pot of left overs that I peeled back the lid on a mere 10 minutes ago. Thank you Mr. Healey, Thank you!

Bring on The Beans

Since I was lounging on the sofa, shouting a variety of orders and obscenities from my perch, I am not 100% certain as to the exact recipe. I will have to wing it.


olive oil
onion
garlic
fava beans
chick peas
tomato sauce
frozen - thawed tofu (crumbled)
rosemary

I am pretty sure that he cooked the onions down for a wee while before adding the garlic and tofu, which he crumbled (he wasn't very impressed with the browning abilities of the tofu). He then added some tomato sauce, the beans and the rosemary (which was the standout flavour in the dish) and let it sit until I couldn't wait any longer. K is all about the slow roasting - which of course pays off in the end.

So that's it! Please, please make it. If you have some thyme throw it in as well. Apparently this is an adaption of an old favourite, which originally included some type of (cover your eyes) sausage. It was wonderful.

I think I might spend less time in the kitchen and more time on the couch.

Ode to my Juicer

It has been about 2 months now, since I purchased my Philips HR 1861, and it is as cosmically wonderful as its name is science fiction fodder. The clean up is a breeze and the assembly is no stress.

With rare exception my morning begins with some peeling, plunging and pouring. The machine, and its end results are totally satisfactory.

Now, I am not the kind of girl to get all silly about machines - there are a few that have served me well, but most, like my OVEN (!!!), break down, don't live up to expectations or, occasionally, seduce me into procurement and then sit idle in some dust covered state. Not this puppy though. This past week, I have been in a bit of a juicing rut (see previous tempeh post, obsession is not unusual). I can't stop creating the concoction below. Yummy.

1 pomplemouse (grapefruit - pink or yellow)
2 apples
2 blood oranges
5-7 strawberries
1 thumb of ginger
1 iphone - watch this video

A few mornings over the past week I have added a little bit of echineaca to ward off the warnings of a cold. (sniff, sniff).

This morning was another early morning. Up with the birds. Feeling as though I had already accomplished a huge deal at 7 am (with a lab and half an article written), I thought I would tackle the vegan pancakes that were aborted twice last week for lack of ingredients.

Apparently, Brussels is on a different altitude than Oakville. The last time (of about 25) that I made vegan pancakes they were as great as every other attempt - never a problem. I have almost always used a combination of recipes from Vegan Planet, with results that pleased many a Sunday morning palette.

I actually went through 3 frying pans this morning (finally resting with the tiny cast iron option), a whack of batter and more patients than I knew I had stored up after a night of DIY IKEA style. The end results were none too pleasing. I'm not sure if it was the different soy milk, the flour, the flax....hmmmm....but either way, I am determined to figure it out. In the end they were gobbled up by the badger living under my bed.

The dodgy pancakes could easily be a way of the vegan gods to balance out the OH MY GOD IT WAS SO GREAT curry I made last night. Who knows? I through together onion, garlic, broccoli, cauliflower, chick peas, red curry paste, coconut milk, water, bean sprouts and tomatoes and ended up with heaven. It was, by far, the best little cook-off I have had in a while.

Strawberry and Tempeh Salad

Anyone who has loved me, and maybe even a couple of folks who have hated me, will tell you that when I love something (a food, a C.D., a person) I go all the way. I love the hell out of it. There have been a variety of food examples: Pickles, mushrooms, dates, all vegan items at La Luna. I lose all sense of other options existing and focus totally on whatever has taken my fancy. I must have logged over 5 marathons worth of running to Franz Ferdiand and ONLY Franz Ferdinand (right now, I can't stop working out to the older Killers disc.)

So - my recent adoration of tempeh, which, when I had it previously, only registered on the 'acceptable protein source' section of my food radar. But, since last Saturday night's recipe, I just can't stop. Tonight, I make no indication of slowing down, as I am patiently waiting to top a great looking salad with some browned tempeh.


Ingredients (all from tonight's market):

5/6 leaves from a Boston Red Lettuce
5 strawberries (no, they aren't local, but....)
1 blood orange
1/2 English cucumber
8 pieces of tempeh
1 cup of bean sprouts
1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil
1 teaspoon of sesame seeds
Soy sauce - as you need/like

I added a little bit of the oil, 1/2 of the orange's juice, and loads of soy sauce to a warmed pan and let the tempeh quietly brown (can tempeh brown quietly?), and then eventually added some sesame seeds to the warmed tempeh. In a medium sized bowl I laid out the lettuce, which was torn up, the sliced strawberries, the other half of the orange, sliced. I cut the cucumber in half moons and added the bean sprouts. I had the best intention of adding an avocado to this little dinner of mine - but, the dark coloured skin betrayed me. The internal flesh was more pasty white than the bright green I was hoping for.

My lunch and breakfast were much too boring (breakfast = rice puffs, lunch = miso) to go into any great detail about.

The slight exception might be how, during lunch, in a very Lyndsay-esque kind of way, I spit my food all over my colleague (in her ear, while laughing hysterically, I said: "Its all vegan!" As though that would make up for the soup marks on her left sleeve.)

In much more exciting news: I am going to be reviewing a new vegan cookbook. Robin Robertson's: Vegan Fire and Spice, which you can already pick up through Vegan Heritage Press - Robin's very own publishing house. I will be sure to keep you up to date on which magazines/sites will be publishing the review(s). Three cheers for Robin, her new book, and the press.

Speaking of books. After being spit on by yours truly, Britt did me the kind honour of sharing a fantastic book, called: Dog Food. This New York Times Book Reveiw Best Illustrated Children's Book Award winner is hilarious. Check it out online if you get the chance.

I am a few days away from a Thursday night with Jens Lekman, who is playing in the uber-intimate upstairs space at AB. I can't wait - vegan pancakes here I come.

With Jens Lekman on my horizon I am also about to add the Tindersticks to my roster of shows coming up in the near future (ohhhh how many more sleeps until tegan and sarah?). The Tindersticks are fantastically depressing, they churn up all the best dark and desperate feelings of love, hate and those moments of not finding the right soy ice cream. About a million years ago, City Sickness found its way onto a great little mixed C.D., way back in the days when mixed C.D.s were as common as a vegan restaurant in downtown Toronto. It was a great C.D. Complete with Nicco, Lou Reed, Joy Division, The Flaming Lips and This Mortal Coil. Gorgeous

Stuart Staples, the husky-voiced lead singer has a huge number of his own albums (which, to be honest, sound, musically, exactly like the larger ensemble). I am quite partial to Leaving Songs.

Hey VeganCowGirl, what did you have for dinner last night?

Last night was a dinner of fairly uninspiring stirfry sustenance. I was disappointed. I had put in a lot of effort, and the return was minimal. I think my heart was in the right place, and the tempeh was, again, super fantastic (I could easily see myself replacing tempeh with every ounce of Tofu I eat), and the aubergine cooked down quite well - but, the courgette were not to my liking and the flavour was a little bland (despite the black bean sauce, and last minute hot sauce).

In an attempt to reclaim the food follies of the early-evening, I dipped into my favourite treat last night: Dates on a Rice Cake. I know, I know - about as exciting as taking Grade 10 math for the third time. But, I swear, the crispy/sweetness combination is one made in vegan heaven - and the sticky fingers look great on the bedroom door frame the next morning. I have managed to ween myself from my U of T days, when I would, equipped with killer nut butter (only Paris has managed to pull me out of a nut-butter-stomach-ache spiral), and dates - I would work my way through a sleeve of No Name original rice cakes.

At 300 calories for the whole 12 Rice Cakes, I would rarely feel any guilt - but the iron stomach I would wake up with the next morning has been enough to deter me from over doing it with the Rice Cake Delights. And...of course, I have put Nut Butter (of all types) out of my reach - for good.

How to make the best Rice Cake Delight:

2 rice cakes
1 banana -sliced into coins
2 tablespoons of nut butter * unless you are me
8 dates

Spread the nut butter on the rice cakes, lovingly lay the banana coins around the crispy cake, add your dates (I usually press them down flat to avoid them popping off in the eating process).

Enjoy!!!

MMmmm.

I just finished lunch. The conversation was awesome (!) (The Five List: Alan Rickman, Peter Mansbridge, John Stewart, Natalie Portman, and Patrick Dempsey), and the food was a perfect mid-day snack.

I picked up a Lima Miso Soup box on Saturday, which I dipped into for the first time today. The little 60 grams of soup (for a total of 53 calories wasn't going to be enough to hold me after a killer workout this morning and only a bit of puffed rice and soy milk for breakfast). I added to my soup snack a little memory of my time in China. Beihia had this great 'cafeteria' ish hall of a restaurant (easily fit 300 people) and it was just a long line of windows where, in a very science fiction-like manner, you selected food stuffs by looking, pointing and being served by masked men behind a sheet of glass. One of the best foods that I would always dash for was the cucumber salad (which you could also find at almost any bar, night market, or park). I loved it so much that I started making the dish at home - and it was fantastic. Oh, and super simple for the hot chinese afternoons.

Ingredient:

1 cucumber (doesn't really matter which variety you use)

Sauce/Dressing

1-2 tablespoons of soy sauce

1 teaspoon of vinegar (I like the sushi vinegar, but apple cider is good as well)

How To:

Just shred the cucumber and let it sit in the sauce for a while.

Ahhhh.....I miss China. Some great meals were had in China. Some great times were had in China. I would give my left arm for a good afternoon of rice-field mountain biking. But, I have heard rumours that a mint-tea awaits me at Cafe Belga. This totally (way too) funky (for me) cafe is at the heart of Place Flagey and serves vegan speculous treats with their coffee.

Also - check out the link of the week. Vegan Vancouverite is a cute little site, whose author, as a good catholic, is in the middle of Lent. Giving up cooked food as a vegan takes a special disposition. Her recipes look great, and her writing is quite endearing. And! It is from B.C. - who doesn't love B.C. Check it out.

The sun is shinning, and the radio's playing Drive By Truckers and I have some bright yellow soup in my tummy. All is well.

We actually just spent about an hour sitting on a patio. It is February 24th isn't it?

Oh my.

Here's my soup recipe.
Can I suggest listening to Alaska in Winter while putting it together. It turns out that my random purchase was a good choice. They just released concert dates for April, but they show up in Brussels smack between two conferences (Amsterdam and Atlanta) and a family weekend. Nope. Sorry.

Ingredients:

1/4 butternut squash (chopped)
1 spring onion
1 sweet potato
1 can of chick peas
2 tablespoons of tumeric
1 tablespoon of cumin
5 cups of water

I let everything except the chickpeas boil for about 25 minutes (perfect floor washing opportunity) and added the chickpeas before giving it all a good blitz.

I liked it.

mmmmm....Also - the only other vegan I knew in the Hammer (besides mr. wonkey himself), Abram, has a vegan website, which he shared with me this past week. Check it out!

Winkles* and Recipes

I found a new bio-winkle and restaurant in downtown Brussels yesterday. I suppose, I didn't find it. It has been around for quite some time - a little fact that is betrayed by the rickitiness of the shelving units and the well -layered information walls, which if you are into yoga, meditation or learning Russian rhythm dancing, are quite helpful. The selection was as good, if not better, than Shanti and Tsampa, and offered me an atmosphere that allowed me to continue kidding myself (chant: I am not a yuppie, I am not a yuppie...buying dried mushrooms, miso soup and extra firm tofu does not make me a yuppie).

The shop, before lunch, was just crammed - a line snaked all the way back to their well stocked walk in fridge. I was hungry, and I hate queuing. So, we dropped the basket and headed for the staircase.

Den Teepot, the restaurant, is perched above the shop and feels more like the inside of a tropical bird store than any restaurant in Brussels I have ever been to. Bright yellow and green walls, with a couple of hokie murals, were less than soothing to my eyes, and the sarried and abrupt hostess only added to the intense entrance into our lunch stop. The menu, found on each wooden table, is inside a plastic insert and warns guests that they, essentially, have no choice. They offer: Miso Soup, The Plate of the Day, Rice, Bread, and a couple of beers, teas and juices. I was unsure about the whole thing (to how many wacky places can you take your patient-but-non-vegan boyfriend?) but K was up for the challenge.

The plate of the day was macrobiotic, consisting of: a mini mound of brown rice which was encircled by a tasting of various other foods: broiled Belgian Endive, black beans, carrots, boiled cabbage, and a couple of other not so memorable dishes. I could have stayed for a vegan desert (cakes, tarts etc), but the idea of hitting the road was much more enticing. On the upside - the meal cost us 19 euro, and that included the beer and tea that we ordered with our 'meal'. Overall - Den TeePot is a great idea, but lacks something (taste). I will head back to the shop though - I was impressed with the selection of soy products, bulk goods and eco-friendly cleaning products (they even make a car wash)....

The day was hardly over - I started writing (rewriting) a paper I have to give at a presentation and then re-give at a conference, we went for mojitos at Roxy, I found a wooden watch at DeDees, I found a great clothing shop downtown, and....MediaMarkt informed us that the oven was still no where near complete.
Bastards.

Still lacking in proper appliances, I did manage to make up for the wonky Thursday night meal with a DIY dish that impressed me!

Ingredients:

Tempeh (cut into 1 inch by 4 inch slivers)
Olive oil
Spring Onions
Mushrooms
Onion
cumin
basil
paprika
Chipotle Sauce

Tortilla shells
Hummus

How To:

In one heavy bottomed and non-stick pan I heated the mushrooms and onions until they were quite soft.
I added all of the spices to the onions and mushrooms (recreating the smokey flavour of the other night's dishes).

In the second pan I cooked the tempeh, browning it on both sides - I added a little bit of tomato chutney to it. I think, next time, I would try and make (or buy) a salsa instead. The spring onion went into this pan as well - though more as a garnish then an essential ingredient.

The tortilla shells were smeared with hummus and an extra dollop of the chipotle sauce. This was followed by a generous filling of the mushrooms and tempeh. They were folded up and down they went.

It was a fantastic dish. Next time I would add some chopped black olives to the tempeh. I really recommend it to anyone looking to do something a little different from the regular vegan staples. The flavours at first glance might not add up (hummus and chipotle sauce), but it was well worth the gamble. We enjoyed the wraps accompanied by a good bottle of wine and the new Mountain Goats C.D. - all so good.

We thought the fun was over....but no way. We had made a quick stop at the Asian Grocery shop (KY) to pick up some coconut milk. That wasn't the only thing we picked up. We were in a wacky mood and wanted to try something really...unusual....so we opted for the NEON green and pink Thai Desert, otherwise known as: Suong Sa Hot Luu. The packet informed us that we needed to Chauffer le Hot luu for one minute - but we decided to be daring and eat our Hot LuLu (as it immediately became known as) without warming it up (mostly because we don't own a microwave). The excessive packaging included: a packet of funny agar agar noodles (neon green), tapioca pearls (hot lulu), coconut milk, and sugar water. It was actually really yummy - and super fun to eat.The night ended with a whole lot of Wallace and Grommit
*A winkle is a store in Flemish

When it all goes wrong...

It must be said. It is time to fess up. It is time to come clean.

The VeganCowGirl isn't perfect.

I know it is hard to imagine a night going past when I don't crank out amazing acts of culinary creation. But, sadly. It is true.

In fact, it happened last night.

Visions of tasty gourds and crispy tofu danced in my head as I puttered around the kitchen, I had a dream. I had a goal. (maybe that was the problem). Dreams and goals were quickly extinguished. I knew - long before I put the fork to my lips - it sucked.

One could easily pull a Lydia Bennett and blame other elements of the night. The fact that I was using the stove top to cook the squash (roasting was the obvious choice, but I am still without an oven) wasn't helping, and the tofu was decidedly less EXTRA firm than the packaging had led me to believe. Of course I could take this route of causation realism. It would be totally acceptable.

But, no. Like so many others I am choosing to place the blame on myself. Or, so I did last night as I sat on the rug and started to make direct links between the questionable dinner service and the war on terror, global warming and the fire on Queen Street West. My fault. All of it.

Good thing I am eating out tonight - another flop and I could be responsible for the coming of the anti-christ. (Anti-Christ. Now that's a title. "Hey, I am the anti-christ". Though, that isn't really a title one takes seriously if someone has hung such heavy nomenclature on their own shoulders).

Oh well, I suppose that I can save the world by whipping up one really good weekend wonder over the next couple of nights.

Hmmmmm....what shall it be?

Racy Recipes

Tonight's post, and the dinner I have slapped together, were both inspired by a couple of ISB moms who are hosting some vegan musicians. The questions and queries that they sent my way got me thinking about K before K's bean burritos and my killer** pot of chili.

First - the burritos. These bad boys and their various incarnations were regular features on the good old shore of Lake Ontario. They would stick to the glass stove-top like mofos, but the combination of root veg, and refried (President's Choice was always the best) beans was well worth the into-the-night scrubbing.

Never Mind the Bullocks, here are the Burritos

Ingredients:

Black Beans (actual refried beans, like: President's Choice, or Amy's Kitchen Organic Refried Beans with Green Chilies, or you can use a can of black beans - cooking them up in the fry pan before starting with the rest of the dish)
1 onion
1 pack of tofu or tvp
1 sweet potato - diced (and, if you have the chance giving them pre boil/broil is always a good idea - speeds it all up)
1 handful of raisins - secret ingredient!!!
2 cloves of garlic
1 red pepper
2 tablespoons of chili powder (now...this is the CHILI powder that you can buy in Canada....the Mexican, smokey, chipolte type spice that is a very deep red. I found out tonight that if you use Chili powder bought in the U.K. or Europe that is labeled Chili powder, you will be throwing out the first batch of onions. It was pure fire-up-your-nose chilies. Oh my god).
Salsa
Whole Wheat Wraps (anything grainy of your choice would work)

Add oil to a warmed pan/wok and let the onions cook through for about 5 minutes, add your spices and your super finely diced tofu - let it brown (but don't let it get too crispy, as it doesn't work for this recipe so much). Add your spices, a little bit of salsa to keep it from sticking and throw in everything except for the beans. Add as much salsa (or chopped tomatoes) as needed to prevent the dish from sticking to the pan. When the potatoes are cooked through and you can go for it with the beans. Let it simmer for about 20 minutes and serve with diced lettuce, salsa, home made guacamole, pita, wraps, rice....whatever your heart desires. But don't eat it in the company of a golden spaniel. Just don't.

Last night's meal, which I had originally hoped would be a burrito reincarnation, went down the chili path quite quickly (mostly because it being market night we didn't really feel like stepping converse-covered-feet into a grocery shop (why go to GB when you have a huge market spread out before you? Why?

So, with Mexican on the mind, a chili was invented - my first in Brussels AND my first without proper (see above note) chili powder.

Killer First Date Chili
(seriously, I used the wrong spice the first time I made this dish, and it had the potentional of shutting down a windpipe or two. But who wants to tell the cute vegan she has lite your insides on fire?)

Ingredients (super duper similar to burritos):

1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 sweet potato
2 cans of red kidney beans
1/2 a block of tofu
1 jar of bio tomato puree
1 tablespoon of cumin
1 tablespoon of paprika (smoked)
1 tablespoon of chipolte sauce (I used Trees Can't Dance sauce)
1 tablespoon of cocoa
1 tablespoon of Cinnamon
a touch of olive oil
Fresh Cilantro

I know the ingredient list seems simple, and the prep is pretty much: chuck it all in, simmer and wait for it to taste good. - but, I think that is what makes it so amazingly good - simple.

I served it with some lemon stuffed olives and some really, really good rye bread.

YUMMMY.

treats and treasures

On our last trip to Manchester K took me to an arts and crafts centre. Similar to some co-op artist projects that are happening in Toronto and Guelph. The oldish building encapsulates about 20 different artists of various genres (jewelery, fabric printing, fine art, screen prints, sculpture, button funk) and is (wo)manned by the creators themselves.

On our last visit baggage allowances inhibited any major spending of art, but our workhorse of a Ford Fiesta changed all of that this past week. Given the choice of a couple of artists we quite liked on our last trip we settled on a piece from Lily Greenwood, whose work was also spotted later that day at the Eighth Day cafe , where we had stopped in for a quick vegan hot chocolate.

There were a couple of Emily Carr-ish paintings that would have worked well in the front room, but in the end we decided on this butterfly painting, which will cover a large portion of the open space in the bedroom.

If you dig natural, appliqué, oil, canvass type delights then give Lily a shout. Or, check out the Manchester Arts and Design Centre: 17 Oak Street, Northern Quarter, Manchester M4 5JDShe also designs snazzy websites.

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggidy Jig

Despite rumours of eternal darkness and showers, Brussels is sunny and warm today. A nice follow up to yesterday's equally wonderful weather. I feel spoiled - especially with reports from Athens and China of unprecedented snow and cold.

My holiday was amazing! With the exception of some banking troubles yesterday afternoon (which has left me with negative euros and hopes that K will let me eat the left overs in the fridge until things get sorted out), the week away from work/school was magnificent. The weather, the people, the landscape, the road tripping, the history - it was all just as it should be. I feel relaxed, rested and ready to tackle the next five weeks until Slovenia.

I can't possibly pack in the last ten days of good times and good eats into one post - so you will have to be patient and experience vicarious associations at a moderate pace.

Rather than going in any sort of order, I want to start with my blogger-ode to Northumberland. I loved it. It was fantastic. And K-before-K is a big turd for raining on my 'let's move to Northern England' parade with his unfounded comments about darkness, drudgery and bleakness. Blah - he knows nothing. The people of Northumberland were wonderful, the scenery was breathtaking, and, even on the darkest day, the pubs were warm and they knew more about vegan-good-eats (The pub in Twice Brewed makes most of their soups VEGAN....and yes, they actually said "Vegan") then most of Southern Ontario.

We drove up from Manchester on Tuesday - leaving after our last Healey and Healey oats and tea breakfast. We were privy to blue skies and sunshine the whole ride up. We stopped for a pizza lunch in Newcastle (after taking in the jaw dropping size of The Angel of The North). The pizza was ok (no, La Pizzeria, but the olives and wine were yummy). Kevin had a camera-clicking party along the riverside and we were back on the road by about 4 30 -headed for our final destination.

The rest of the drive up north was sheepy and hilly. The Cheviot range of hills were full of brightly spray painted sheep - I liked the pink ones the best. We arrived at The Coach House just after the sun had set. Leona, one of the owners, met us at the front door, showed us our (fantastic) rafters room and took us to the lounge for an afternoon tea.

I have stayed at but a few B&Bs in my lifetime, and maybe they weren't the best. But, The Coach House exceeded all of my expectations. I was totally impressed with the service, the food, the room, the laid back atmosphere and the surrounding area.

Food wise, Leona went out of her way to make me comfortable and meet my wacky needs. Every morning a new soy product had sprouted on the table K and I shared during breakfast. Breakfast!!! Breakfast......if so much food could be labeled by but one name. She slow cooks her oatmeal every evening (salted in the yummy Scottish tradition), and serves it in the A.M with stewed fruit and maple syrup. The oatmeal was meant as a starter - toast, (eggs, bacon, and other meaty options) followed. The carbs, though many, went to good use - hiking, walking and regular tom foolery kept us svelte all week long.

I would (and hope to) head back to the Coach House. I can't recommend it enough. It was perfect distance from everything we wanted to check out: Hadrian's Wall, a cult of Mithra's worshiping site (who doesn't want to worship Mithra?), Lindisfarne, Alwnick (home of the Harry Potter castle....and a very likelysite of where Alan Rickman has slept, eaten and walked around), the shore, loads of great castles, and some cute little 'spend the day' towns.

The cost didn't gut me either - totally manageable room rates. The room itself was fantastic - huge, comfy bed, bright and big bathroom. My only complaint was the water pressure in the room.

Lunch and dinner - with the exception of Thursday - were foraged for in other locations - and, on the whole, I was really impressed with my options and the fare that found its way into my mouth. A picnic of hummus and oat cakes after our walk around Lindisfarne, a descent curry at the Twice Brewed Inn and a great pub dinner on the night of our arrival were some of the highlights.

Our one true food disappointment didn't come until we reached Durham: an oily, buttery, food throwing Tapyanaki-house fleeced us for a good portion of our first born son's college fund. The only cool thing about this noisy hill top restaurant was the veggie sushi...not maki...sushi. I was impressed.

There was loads of other wonder moments to this past week - great new C.D.'s, my brand new copy of Pride and Prejudice (Colin Firth Style), Kevin's new alter ego (sun glasses can change a man forever), really good Marks and Spencer side road stops and some kid named Mr. Bean. I promise to find the time to post Ks really good photos - they are too good to miss.

Glad to be home. Brussels is just about perfect. All that's missing is a little bit of Bigger.

Just came back from a walk at Tegg's Nose. Magical.

A perfect leg stretch after a pasta lunch and coffee snack.

I know I said I would be out of contact, but, what can I say....ferry crossing is just about as sleek a travel experience as you can get. The wifi has me hooked up and sending packets of gigs as we speak.

Behind me, K is committing the ultimate non-vegan atrocity - the greasy British breakfast line. I think I would rather spend my morning with the rough looking lady serving him (whose green teeth are in interesting juxtaposition to the pristine white "I just had my first cotillion" hat the ferry company forces her to wear), then eat the sausage and eggs available for a whopping 2 euro.

With my tea beside me, my body is slowly starting to wake up from a late (great) night and an uber early morning (4 10 am - thank god Kevin had a bad dream or we would still be sleeping).

Last night K and I headed out to join Andrea, her broken (mystery) foot and James for a lighting fast Fanny Thai (YES, I have an addiction) before our long awaited Stars show. They were astoundingly wonderful (and yes mom - your shirt is in the mail). Their newest cd:In Our Bedroom After the War is really well done. A bit of a depart from their previous L.P., a bit more lyrically smart if you ask me. Set Yourself on Fire and the compilation of Arts and Crafts folks doing covers of their stuff (Do You Trust Your Friends) were both great stuff, but this was more art than craft.

Apostle of Hustle opened up for them, and who would have thought that a song about Easy E would be as good as Easy E himself?

Can I just make a comment about the music scene in Brussels? I am short.

The Arts and Crafts label has just about all the best bands on the planet. Just about.
We had a wonderful night.

The ferry is making its turn, pointing it nose away from France.
Dover...here I come.

I plan on being out of contact for a while this next week commeth.

The northern reaches of England (which are apparently lacking in vegan options) will be my home for Reading Week. After birthday celebrations just outside of Manchester, we are headed for the Coach House in Crookham. I have fingers crossed for day trips to Hadrian's Wall, Lindisfarne (Holy Island), and I would love to see some of Henry VIII's army's battle sites. We are spending our last night away in Durham, hunting up ghosties and other ancient memories.

Perhaps the part of the trip that I am most looking forward to is my pair of yellow (and I mean YELLOW) rain pants that I hope and pray I will get to wear while hiking. Please, please let it be wet enough for me to wear these pants. They go really well with everything.

If I get the chance I will try to update, otherwise, expect vegancowgirl to return sometime the week of the 18th.

I Heart(ichoke) Chickpea Soup and Sunny Avocado Salad

I dipped my emulsifier into a new breed of veggie last night! Jerusalem artichokes, which are neither artichokes or grown (traditionally) in Jerusalem, were the main staple of the soup I blitzed last night for dinner.


I had always seen these knobby little guys at the grocery shop, but, for some reason, had steered clear. I wasn't quite sure what to do with them, and it was the king of the world's vegetable patch himself that made the suggestion last night (when philistine me was about to stick to the mundane sweet potato - foolish me).


They came home in a card board box and were small and full of bumps and dirty bits. A good wash down and a slicing revealed their off-white inside. They could easily disguise themselves as bits of parsnip or turnip. They made up the bulk of my root veg and chick pea soup last night - and their flavour was distinct, without being obnoxious.


I paired this thick and earthy soup with a light and tangy salad. Find the recipe nuggets below!



I Heart(ichoke) Chickpea Soup


8 Jerusalem Artichokes: sliced
5 carrots: sliced
2 sweet potatoes: sliced
2 large cooking onions: diced
2 cloves of garlic: diced
1 jar of chickpeas: drained and washed
1 tsp of olive oil
Rosemary
Sumac (optional)


Instructions: Warm the olive oil on medium heat and add the onions. I let them sit for about 7 minutes. I added the whole lot of veg - giving it a big stir, coating them in the oil. (you don't even need the oil - you could actually just add the veg to boiling broth or water - you can reduce the fat and lose almost zero flavour - just make sure to find other ways to get in your EFA).

I added about 5 cups of water to the soup and let it sit for 45 minutes (the carrots were the last to go soft). I emulsified, added the fresh Rosemary and let it have another few minutes to bubble away. When I ladled the soup into the bowls I topped them off with some Sumac. This was a great soup for a damp night - you could easily replace the chickpeas with lentils, and omit the pesky carrots all together. Yet, there was something perfect about this mixture. The nuttiness of the artichokes was a perfect compliment for the chickpea flavour.


Sunny Avocado Salad


A good loaf of dark German bread wasn't the only thing I was serving with the soup. I added to the meal a salad that was a question mark until I put the first forkful in my mouth. My gamble on the mixture paid off!


5 slices of sun dried tomato
2 hot house tomatoes - quartered
1/2 a bag of organic mesculin greens
3/4 of a fresh avocado - cubed
about 25 cashew nuts
olive oil
balsamic vinegar


Through this together at the last minute and enjoy!

Cabbage Wraps and Sesame Greens

We finished off a gorgeously productive weekend with a feast in our new dining room (ok, dining alcove). The three dishes that came out of our ovenless kitchen were all well beyond the expectations that I had for myself - it was Sunday after all.

But, apparently, all I need was a little inspiration from my new cookbook: wild garlic, gooseberries...and me, and the embedded memories of a chinese restaurant in downtown manchester, where, according to K, I stole the cabbage leaf recipe from.

Cabbage Wraps

2 blocks of extra firm tofu - Diced
(my fu was frozen, so after some deliberation, it was decided that I would boil the tofu until it was soft enough to dice. The end result was actually better than I had hoped for)

2 spring onions - Diced

3 cloves of garlic - Smashed and Diced

1 red pepper - Diced

1/2 a zucchini - Diced

1 tub of mushrooms - Diced
(I think that this could be a mushroom-centric dish. I think a trip to the mushroom man on the market on Wednesday might illicit a tweak of this dish).

Olive Oil

I warmed the pan and added all of the ingredients at the same time. I also threw in a little Japanese rice vinegar and some organic soy sauce.

While this mixture was cooking through I tore apart a Boston lettuce I got from the market on Wednesday, nicking it from the kitchen gods but seconds before the brown goo set in. It was the inner, clam shell like leaves I was after.

I cooked the stuffing for about 20 minutes - stirring occasionally and served it in a bowl allowing for the self-serve option. I did this mainly because K loves to roll these bad boys.

The second dish - the one that was inspired from the culinary musings of Denis Cotter (you really need to buy this book if you are into narrative and food). I only made a few changes here and there, most of the yumminess should be contributed to Denis. Thank you Denis.

Sesame Greens

Bok Choi: I used a large Bok and pulled off all of the outer leaves, gave them a good wash, sliced the lower, tougher white bits and cut the actual leaves vertically down the centre.
Sesame Oil
4 garlic cloves - diced
3 spring onions - diced
1 thumb of ginger
soy sauce
sesame seeds
sea salt

This was dead easy - and probably the most delicious dish I have eaten in ages.


I warmed the pan, added my oil and threw in all of the ingredients. I covered it was a lid and let it sit/steam/cook for about 15 minutes. It was wicked. I imagine a squeeze of tangerine would be pretty good as well.

The night was capped off by the rice pudding I had made (using a rendition of a recipe from Robin Robertson's Vegan Planet). We (Kevin) crushed some cardamom pods and the fresh spice was added to the bubbling rice and soymilk. I also threw in a cinnamon stick, some fresh Iranian dates and enough soymilk to drown a small village. It worked as breakfast for us this morning, in addition to ending our weekend off with a sweet smile.

Market Madness - How can I not fall in love with the wacky bunch at the bio stand I find myself standing in front of every Wednesday evening. This past week they exceeded usual wackiness by using some Anise for portraiture purposes:


Shameless Food Photo - This photo is from an impromptu meal we enjoyed after our market madness. Kevin's famous chickpea concoction was excellent - and the artichokes were almost worth the inflated price.

I just found a great site!

Following a link for the NoMeatPoWeek I stumbled upon The League of Maternal Justice. Run by two vigilante moms (with monacures: Pregerella and Lactivista) who have dedicated this site (and perhaps their lives when not breastfeeding) to various 'missions' that have the end result of saving the environment, detoxing communities and saving animals from the slaughter house. With the big goals come a great deal of attention and awareness raising. Way to go! I am happy to report that the 'boob squad' are Canadian moms and are so cool that they use comic book lingo and decals in their attempt to wave their diaper bags at the evils of the world.

I have to say that I am intrigued by the way these women subvert the stereotype of the 'mom' with their 'fighting the big fight' with our babies on our hip images. I quite like it. Through university and the last few years, one starts to feel that a choice is made at some point: be a super sassy vixen of a vegan with a PhD, save all the kitties, chickens and cows at risk, own a vegan restaurant, and have a couple of novels selling out around the world OR be a mom. It is nice to see women continue in the vein of my mother and her good friend mary rose who decided to be world champions and raise their children.

Let's hear it for breast milk!

As usual, my head has been turned by something on S. Jackson's blog. This time it isn't a kick-ass soup recipe, or Valentine's Day vegan treats. Nothing so delectable as that. In an always evolving search to find something else to read, I clicked on the BlogHer link on FatFreeVeganKitchen and spent about 30 minutes of my morning cruising through some of the blogish postings on this 'women power' online community.

I wadded through the pregnancy/breast feeding-this, and weight loss-that (all of which I am sure is useful to loads of women - but not this one) and found some rather good posts on travel, natural beauty, sleep (see last post), cooking, non-profits, and books.

I also fell pray to thinking about 2008 in a goal oriented frame of mind. Goals are great, but I like to plan my year with crazy inventions like: the days of the week (saturday is my favourite), hours, months, calendars (the chinese one is pretty happening with all those animal friends to hook up with). But now, inspired by a Boca-advertisement-party of a contest, I am seeing the upcoming months slip away to be replaced by "wellness goals".

So here are some of my wellness goals for the year of the rat:

1. Eat less tofu and chick peas. Now, now. Don't get me wrong. I love tofu. I adore a good can of chickpeas. But, I have become analogous to the mom who reaches, without thought, like a robot for the box of Kraft Dinner, because, hey, it is Wednesday and we always have Kraft Dinner on Wednesday. I have it all there. The TVP, the lentils, the white beans. I just have to use them a little more. You can't have your vegan recipes going stale. That would be silly. And besides - I have a growing K at home to think about.

Update: for dinner, following the day that gave birth to this post I actually ate a stir fry that was comprised not ONLY of chickpeas, but of some left over tofu as well. Nice job.

2. Spend more time under the covers. I am getting better. Really, I am. The spring loaded 'up and at them' device has been disengaged (almost) on the weekends, but I have to learn to slow down, to soak up, to hunker down (into the duvet) and snuggle in.

3. Spend more time exercising outside. The gym is amazing! I love having it all to myself every morning. The machines are great, lots of free weights to keep my pipes a'pumping (kiss, kiss). But, I live in a great place for outside run-fun. Brussels is flat with mostly manageable temperatures (remember: I am Canadian - the idea of even (shock, horror) -5 in the winter months is essentially inviting me to run in my shorts!)


That all seems quite manageable, healthy and fun. Happy Goals = a Happy VeganCowGirl

Argh. Today is a day of exhaustion - both body and mind are in need of some major revitalization. Three late evenings: nerves, work thoughts and friends have been the culprits of these post 9:30 bed times. And, silly me, has managed to keep a morning commitment to the gym with a body that needs more deep sleep snuggles then it needs another couple of minutes on the elliptical.

Sunday and Monday night were anomalies in my sleeping pattern. It wasn't that I didn't manage to get tucked in at a reasonable hour. I was de-socked and in my really ugly pyjamas at a reasonable hour. It was due more to worries and nerves (meetings, interviews, increases in work responsibility, stressed out kids and other concerns propped up my heavy eyes). Last night was a late night with purpose. K and I joined Andrea, James and Sarah (intrepid traveller on her way to Bangkok! Go Sarah Go!) for a fantastic Ethiopian feast.

After a drink and a nip home to tidy myself up, we headed out to Kokoba, where we have eaten before, and thought would be wide open and free for five people on a Tuesday night. It must be the Manikin Pise, because, this place was packed. No chance.

Hungry and disappointed we got back in the car and patched together a plan that included a hasty call to another restaurant of similar ethic leanings to double check on the vegan options - no problem! We met up at Salaam, which is located across the street from Dolma restaurant and bio shop on Ixelles (just a little north of the ever-severed Flagey). The atmosphere was modest and a little on the nineteen eighties side of family-restaurant dinning experiences, especially when compared to the original destination of Kokoba - which is swanky and uber-designer-conscious. But, I think, that is part of the charm and appeal of this new favourite. The down to earth and laid back feeling of the decor was reinforced by a charming proprietor who offered great service by pretty much leaving us alone for the night to enjoy the food and the great conversation.

I ordered the vegetarian platter and I was really pleased with the array of choice - lentils, amazing spinach, a small salad, curried veg, beans, and of course - the ethiopian bread. Ahhhhh it was fantastic. Everyone else, meat eaters included, seemed to enjoy their meal, and everyone was pleased with the hummous and m'table that started our experience.

Writing this piece, and some conversation with my kids this morning, reminded me of a post about a great little vegan Ethiopian place in Toronto that I blogged about in the sweaty days of summer. If you are a hungry vegan in Toronto - check out Yummy's on Queen (in Parkdale), but maybe read this post first.

Stack Em' Up!

There was a time in the past when every trip to the video store included a hunt for the Woody Allen film: Husbands and Wives - and, never, to any avail. Now, let's make it clear: video shops were once as regular as my vitamins, as usual as my breath, as constant as the sun. Every night. Every single night. Despite the melange of shop floors tread upon over four longish years of Blockbuster and Independent customership there was never a copy of this long sought after, and much acclaimed by K-before-K, film. It was, apparently "the best Allen movie to be seen". Until tonight. The White Knight on the corner (a Euroversion of Mac's Milk) has a basement video store with an array of titles. Everything from Jesus Camp (great, yet freaky, documentary that was the impetus to my mac being dropped on the floor last Valentine's Day...) to all of the Six Feet Under T.V. series (might look into that). There it was with a wide selection of Woody films, indicating the person in charge of acquisitions must have some taste.....I snatched it up and here I sit enjoying and watching after a yummy and spontaneous meal of 'stacks'.

The Stacks were excellent. We came up with the notion while standing on the street on the way back from an evening drink on the square (yah!! Way to finish your reports!). They turned out amazingly - and they were dead simple to make.

What to get (you could really do just about anything you wanted with these - go nuts):

Tofu (sliced into 1 inch steakettes)
12 mushrooms (sliced)
onions (sliced)
zuchinni (1 sliced into coins)
1 red pepper (sliced into 4 segments)
olive oil
tomato sauce and one tomato
coriander

What to do (keep in mind the oven is broken - under normal circumstances, and when ours returns from MediaMarkt, I would broil/grill these rather then frying them)
After warming the oil in two pans I added the tofu to one and let the onions and mushroom soften in their own good time. I browned the tofu and added some basil, flipping them occasionally with a total cooking time of about 15 minutes.

After the onions became nice and squishy I added the zucchini. K busied himself with taking on the responsibility of cooking the red pepper slices over the open flame. To quote: "I might swear more aggressively if I burn myself, but you are more likely to burn yourself" - he was right. I let him enjoy the flame.

I made a quick tomato sauce with fresh tomato and some canned tomatoes, to which I added some fresh coriander. I added the sauce to two wide bowls - just to coat the bottom. I then stacked the remaining ingredients on top of the red pepper bits. Red Pepper - tofu - mushroom/onion - zucchini - tofu - mushroom/onion - zucchini. Yummy. It was amazingly good to eat. I enjoyed mine with rice cakes, and K ate a flame roasted pita.

Husbands and Wives. Tofu and Mushrooms. Perfect.

K knows his film references.

Today, in the midst of a lazy Sunday, I finally got around to taking a photo of a gift that I mentioned in my 'trapped in the Brussels airport' entry. It still resembles, almost too closely, a kit for some sort of illegal activity....but apparently it can make some kicking spaghetti-candy.

After an unplanned trip to the market, I came home with a lunch plan - Tabbouleh Salad. To be honest, with the exception of gorging on Tabbouleh at various Middle Eastern restaurants around the world and watching while Alia's mom put it together a couple of times in my youth, I have little face-to-face experience with this cracked wheat dish, and it usually falls second to the likes of Fattush or Hummous when I am placing a La Luna order. However, inspired by the salad that took up most of my veg platter yesterday, I was up for the challenge. Fresh parsley, fresh mint, cucumber and tomatoes were picked up at the market, and just last night I discovered a sack full of bulgar that was tucked away from a December (or maybe November) trip to Shanti Health shop. I was ready.

It was a quick salad to make, and it didn't seem to suffer from being eaten a.s.a.p - without what I assume to be the usual soaking up of the lemon and olive oil that comes from hours in a restaurant refrigerator. In fact, the bulgar was still warm when I tipped it into the salad bowl.

There are loads of other ways to make this bad boy; K and I had a lengthy conversation on the variety of ways we have seen this dish served: with chick peas, with pine nuts, with raisins, with coriander, with olives....you name it...you like it...throw it in.

Here is my more traditional approach: (which if you aren't too keen on you are more then welcome to check out Delia's version, or Robin Robertson's in Vegan Planet)

2 bunches of flat leaf parsley

2 sticks of mint - pluck off the leaves and make a rolande (roll the leaves up into a little cigar and chop it up)

1 huge tomato

1/2 a cucumber

1 cup of bulgar wheat (i had loads left over)

olive oil

citrus juice (i used half of a grapefruit)

While the bulgar was cooking (super easy grain to cook: 1 cup of wheat, 2 cups of water, boil and simmer for 20 minutes - stir and add water if needed) I chopped and diced all of the other ingredients adding them to a large salad bowl. I simply threw in the bulgar when it was finished cooking, added the oil and citrus and gave it a good mix. I served it with some citron olives, 1/2 a loaf of bread, carrot and cucumber sticks, hummous and purree aubergine.

It was fantastic and I plan on reinventing it as often as possible.

And I can't leave out my other treats from the market:

My terrace was looking a little lame with only a dead mini-christmas tree to brighten it up. So, I brought home some modest greenery with the hope to build a small rainforest by the time I have to go away to Slovenia, leaving them with nothing more then the hint of my return.

I am reading an excellent fiction book right now. I can't remember the exact name of it, so you will have to wait until I dig it out of my gym bag. I am dying to read some Anne Carson right now....does anyone know where my Anne Carson books are? The Beauty of The Husband....Hmmm...Carson, Cranberry Bubble Bath and the potential of early Bed Time. Maybe a Edith Piaf CD.....Nice. This vegan is signing off.

Mmmmm.....cauliflower curry and spirulina. Excellent combination.

As my evening accompaniment I have The Dears and the clinking of the dishes being done by someone else (one of the BEST benefits to cooking dinner). We just finished scarfing down a double curry and quinoa dinner. I tried a dry curry: cauliflower, peas and onion. But, damn it, I added too much cumin at the end and made something that I was anticipating a little less appetizing. The carrot, squash and sweet potato/tomato curry was much better, and will be a lunch feature next week.

I had a wonderful day today, a mirror to the golden day that kept a quiet cap over Brussels from early morning until the sun dipped down a few minutes later then it did the week before (so...around 4 4 5pm). We saw a rare saturday sunrise, as I couldn't keep myself asleep this morning - which, I am sure is a direct result of drinking way too much last night, and needing water more than I needed a couple more minutes of sleep. Luckily it was Saturday and I was off breakfast duty and had the pleasure of lazying about while the food I was about to break a fast with was being made for me. Not long after eating we were off and headed in separate directions for primming and preening - teachers can be pretty too. A quick customary coffee at The Coffee Club on Balli and we started for what was supposed to be a trip to Zara on Ave. Louise (continuing my endless search for 'pants' - which has only been made worse by leaving my favourite pair of black work pants at my mom's), however, before long I had found my way into my favourite funky shop and had snatched up the cutest dress and skirt.

We had a great lebanese lunch (I ordered a veg platter and only had to sacrifice the tzatizki and some fried cheese stick (always am I being reminded why I love the choice I made to be a vegan). After a brief Tori and Megan sighting (let's all say a prayer for M tonight.....Brussels needs more Megan), we headed for the antique shops behind Sablon and although we failed to find the bargain of a life time we had a million laughs, circa January 2008.

A quick pop into Tan, where we found (and bought) the biggest block of Tofu, some Spirulina tablets and some organic vanilla, we continued our trek home.

And here we sit with Quinta do Bispado in our hands and The Dears on the radio.

I am a snow horsie!!!!

Mmmm...I am having a divinely relaxed lunch; I am managing to ignore all niggly feelings of guilt as K and others slog away at work, and here I am perched on my (uncomfortable) kitchen chair, having just finished up a really great 'Lyndsay Lunch'...you know...the girl-vegan-not-at-work-boyfriend-not-around kind of lunch. Ok, so maybe you don't know what I am talking about - some description will help:

1 handful of organic boston lettuce
about 20 coriander olives purchased last night on the market
some sultana raisins
5 or 6 asparagus tips (thanks Annie)
4 stuffed grape leaves
a couple of rice cakes

and....I think I might get around to a pear. Oh, wait. I need some tea. Ok, I am set.

Why am I home and enjoying a match making documentary compliments of This American Life? Well, today was my interview at the Ixelles commune. Despite the horror stories about Belgian bureaucracy, it was actually quite simple. Only a 5 minute delay. Rather then rushing back to work, I decided to lounge about in my new official status. Whop. Whop.

Beyond my self-reflections and this interesting documentary, I am also digging through a new 'blog network': SlashFood. I can't help curiosity, despite an awareness that Slash is connected to Turner Media. I admit to already finding a couple of interesting articles - not so bad. I want to believe the 'uncensored' testament I found on their About Us page...hmmmmm.

The tea was great, and the documentary a touch depressing. I have 21 little people to get to - the pear will have to wait.