Almond extract pancakes
Sunday morning I woke up not wanting the same old, same old, but rather….a hot, homemade, stay-at-home morning kind of breakfast. What better time to make pancakes!!! I used the pancake recipe in Vegan with a Vengeance , p. 31, but tweaked a few things. It calls for all-purpose flour, but seeing that I hardly ever use that, I used what I had on hand this time. The first time I made these, I did so with whole wheat pastry flour, and they came out great. This time I had spelt flour. They came out great again!! My conclusion….either works, and both are healthier options than just plain white. My other tweaking was that I only had vanilla soymilk, so that’s what I used. And lastly, I was out of vanilla (I swear…I need to go to Mexico and get a couple of gallons of this stuff). Anyone know of a website to order it in bulk for cheap?! I spend so much money buying the little containers of it at Whole Foods. Instead of vanilla, I used almond extract in the pancakes (about 1/2 teaspoon). It gave it amazing flavor. I also was very generous with the cinnamon. Smothered in earth balance and hot maple syrup, these cakes hit the spot!!
Here’s the husband scarfing his down…
Also on the breakfast front this week…Whole Foods had organic strawberries on sale, so you can bet they will be finding their way into my cereal bowl. This week I bought Uncle Sam’s Original cereal (toasted whole-wheat flakes and flaxseed). I combined it here with a little bit of Nutlettes (some good soy protein).
Dinner guests
Well they’re not really guests per say because they’re family, but last night I made dinner for my father-in-law, sister-in-law, Eric, and me. On the menu:
- Scrambled Tofu from Vegan with a Vengeance (made with squash and broccoli in place of the mushrooms)
- Lightlife smoky tempeh fakin bacon strips
- Freshly made guacamole from Whole Foods
- all stuffed in tortillas (My sis-in-law and me had it in Ezekial sprouted grain tortillas, and I heated up flour tortillas for the boys.)
I’ve served this scrambled tofu loads of times. It’s always a hit! It’s just so yummy with the spices, lemon juice, and nutritional yeast. Eric LOVES it in a tortilla, so I’ve started to make that a habit now. It’s really delicious! I, of course, had to have it for lunch today as well. 
I’m 29 now!!! :)
My birthday breakfast was FABulous!! I had leftover scrambled tofu with a frozen bagel (Agnes’ very very homemade bagels) topped with almond butter and jelly. I don’t normally eat this much food in the morning, but it was so lovely and delicious. It was the perfect start to my special day…..especially because…look at the cute card Eric left out for me. The wrapped present underneath it was a dark chocolate bar. Yum!
Upon arriving at school, my friend (and co-worker) Kristi had a Starbucks treat for me…a green tea soy latte. I had never had that drink before, but it was delish! It sounds a little odd, but I will definitely get it again. Another co-worker and friend, Pam, called a little impromtu party during our morning planning time. She had made vegan brownies!! She had gone to the special effort of going online to find the recipe, printing it off, shopping at Whole Foods, and then making them for me. She even brought them in on her special birthday plate. We all enjoyed an early morning sugar rush! Thanks Pam SO much! I really am still breathless at the thoughtfulness.
The day just kept getting better…Eric came up to school for lunch. He made us salads at the Whole Foods salad bar. It was the perfect lunch after consuming a big breakfast, a latte, and a brownie.
Lunch didn’t end there though. Eric had made cupcakes for my entire class!! From Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, he made Pineapple Right-Side-Up Cupcakes. He even brought 29 candles, which he lit (breaking every fire code rule at my school…that’s ok though…we didn’t set off any alarms…thank goodness). The kids loved it and him of course. I had one parent tell me the next day that her daughter came home saying, “Mrs. V’s amazing husband came to school today, and he REALLY likes her.” haha The mom was amused, and said she told her that yes, that’s how husbands are suppose to be. heehee It was very sweet indeed! He made them the night before after I had gone to bed. In the morning, he hid them in the fridge. You can see the “no peeking” sign below. 
The one minor bummer of my birthday was that it was Meet the Teacher Night at my school, so I had to go back to work and speak for 30 minutes in front of about 40 parents. It’s not that it’s that bad, but I do get nervous. It ended up going great, and the parents were so sweet. When I phoned Eric on my way home, I was happy he had planned something at home for dinner. I was ready to relax!! This is the cute table he had set up on our patio. He’s so wonderful!!! He had made us wee salads, and gotten my favorite pizza from Campisi’s. It was a thin-crust pizza with red sauce, pineapple, tomatoes, onion, jalapenos, and garlic. It hit the spot FOR SURE! We also celebrated with a bottle of Iron Horse sparkling wine that we brought back from Sonoma.
I just have to share this with you. Eric’s birthday was at the beginning of August, and I blogged about what I made him. So for my birthday, Eric decided (since we said we were making each other things this year) to make me a ribbon of treats as well. It has homemade coupons on it. My favorite one being “off dinner duty for a week”. I do love to cook, but that will be a fun week!! It also has a couple of gift cards, like to Genghis Grill. Yum! Isn’t it cute?! He even painted the top wooden plate that says “Happy 29th Birthday Tara”.
That was a recap of my totally spoiled, special day. Thanks to everyone who called and made it that way! It was the perfect birthday filled with wonderful memories. I will hold on to this for a long time.
A Couple of Cool and NEW Dinners!!!
Black Bean Sloppy Joes from The McDougall Quick & Easy Cookbook….so easy, yet so homemade. We both took it for lunch the next day as well with two slices of regular sliced wheat bread. This will definitely be a recipe I repeat OFTEN. For dinner we had it on Ezekiel sprouted grain buns (so hearty), with lettuce, tomatoes, red onion, mustard, ketchup, a big juicy pickle, and frozen peas and broccoli sprinkled with vegan cheese.
This night I made Isa’s famous Scrambled Tofu from Vegan with a Vengeance. (I make mine with zucchini and broccoli, instead of the mushrooms. Everything else I do the same though.) Instead of just having it with potatoes, avocado, and toast, like we normally do, this time I made it into a taco! I had Ezekiel sprouted grain tortillas (again, sooo hearty and yummy…so good for you). After loading up the scrambled tofu inside, I slathered on some salsa and topped it off with a couple of sliced of pan-grilled Lightlife tempeh bacon strips. Oh my goodness….best ever!! I took the leftovers for lunch a couple of days later. This scrambled tofu is great the next day or two! I ended up eating with a group of my kids in the classroom that day, and it was such a hoot to see how intrigued they were with my lunch. Some of the things they said… “Wow…I’ve never seen a tortilla like that.” “That definitely has a smell…I can smell the spices.” So, I gave them a little tofu 101. I had also brought a little container of green salsa. Some of them had never seen that before either. Glad I’m expanding their knowledge in the amazing world of food too!!
Another day in the food life of me (and my family)…
Almond butter waffles make another appearance this week. This time with bananas on top. Drizzled in agave nectar, they were the perfect start to my Thursday.
Mom and I hopped on over to Whole Foods for a lovely, yummy lunch together. We invaded the salad bar. Look at all the yumminess on that plate! Most memorable was the beets, cilantro tofu, curried sweet potatoes, and the dolma. I also had a wee bowl of black bean soup and Lime Perrier to drink.
Madre and me at lunch. Love you Mom!
Dinner tonight was Fettuccine Alfreda (p. 142 in Vegan with a Vengeance). This is really the most awesome recipe. I’ve probably made this sauce half a dozen times. I roasted brussel sprouts in the oven at 430 degrees F for about 20-30 minutes. We like them a little burned and crispy. I sprayed them with a little Pam, fresh black pepper, and Maine Coast organic kelp granules (my favorite low sodium salt alternative) before going in the oven. I think I learned about this product from the amazing vegan cookbook author Dreena Burton. After the brussel sprouts came out of the oven, I baptized them with half of a lemon. Yum! On the side was a mix of every frozen vegetable I had left in my freezer: broccoli, corn, and fava beans. Time to go shopping.
We LOVE a good cookie around these parts. These Super-Charge Me! Cookies from Dreena Burton’s cookbook, Eat, Drink, and Be Vegan, get my vote for all-time favorite vegan cookie. They are so versatile. I have made them several ways. If you’re out of maple syrup, you can sub in agave nectar to make a chewier version. Tonight’s Super-Charge Me! Cookies were made with maple syrup, almond butter, and chocolate chips (along with the oatmeal, and other regular ingredients). The fam wasn’t in the mood for nuts or raisins in their cookies tonight, so I left those babies out. Maybe they’ll make it in the next batch.
Favorite Breakfast
This is my all time favorite breakfast. Nothing is better than piping hot waffles smothered in almond butter and drizzled with agave nectar. Unless of course you have a ripe banana to slice on top. Pure food bliss! I usually buy Van’s original, wheat free, gluten free waffles. I don’t own a waffle maker yet, but I hope to start making my own waffles soon. Stay posted! Frozen ones will have to do for now because I clearly have a love affair with these things. Every morning I have a cup of hot herbal tea. Today’s tea was organic nettle leaf. Never heard of it before? Me either! Last year when living in Scotland, I read a lot about the health and digestive benefits of this particular tea. I used to buy it all the time in Glasgow in the most charming wee (and I do mean small) grocery store called Roots and Fruits.
Lunch today was made up of leftover components from last night’s dinner (refried beans, broccoli, corn) stuffed in two blue corn tortillas. I poured a wee bit of Bragg’s and vegan worcestershire sauce on them to flavor it up. Paired with a nice side salad, it made a lovely lunch. Dessert was the same as yesterday, half of Eric’s blueberry cookie (which he left uneaten in the biscuit tin…anything is free game in the cookie jar…right?!) with ice cream.
My sweet mom flew in today to spend the week with us. I thought I would give her a proper welcoming by whipping up a delicious vegan meal. On the menu was Falafel (p. 98 from VWaV) with tahini dressing (p. 121). Eric LOVES falafel, but is quite picky about it, so I was a bit nervous to see what he would think. Everyone loved it (including my lovely sister-in-law Ashleigh, who was also over)! It was such a yummy dinner…I mean… how can you not like a homemade pita stuffed with crunchy falafel, crisp lettuce, red onions, cuccumbers, tomatoes, and drizzeled with a zesty tahini dressing?! Thank you Vegan Dad for the pita recipe. I would be remiss though if I didn’t tell you that this meal was A LOT of work. Buying pita bread would have made it easier. They seemed to love the pita bread, and it did have a great homemade bread taste to it, but again just a warning, it was quite time consuming.
Dessert was the recipe from Fatfree Vegan Kitchen’s latest post, Blackberry-Lime Tartlets. Except when I went to Whole Foods, they didn’t have any blackberries, so I made Raspberry-Lime Tartlets instead. Delish!! These were so super easy, yet so elegant. They probably thought I slaved away in the kitchen for hours on these babies.
