Cowgirls

When someone sent me this article I first just got really excited about the fact that vegan fried kool-aid balls existed. Then I got excited because I thought they were being served at Cowgirl. Cowgirl is definitely not vegan, but it is certainly veg friendly and holds a special place in my heart as a utopia of southerness in the city and one of the first places I went out when I moved here.

However, I soon realized that if I wanted to get my hands on some animal-free fried kool-aid I had to go to Cowgirl's Baking. Completely different. On my visit there this weekend I did not find it particularly Southern at all, but it's definitely a utopia of vegan sweets. One of the reviewers in NY Mag said the fried kool-aid was 'like freebasing a pixie stick' and I knew I needed to have one immediately. I was lucky enough to go there at a not busy time and they happened to have a new batch out fresh from the fryer.

It was incredibly sweet, and delicious and I got all shaky after eating it. Yeah, y'all should definitely try one.

I don't wanna leave out Cowgirl, and their awesomeness, so I wanna share this recipe for their black eyed pea salsa. This salsa is one of the main things I get excited about when eating at Cowgirl, and I made it for some friends for Christmas this year. It claims to be the same recipe the restaurant uses and it turned out pretty darn well when I made it.


3 16-oz cans black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed of all juice
1 small jar chopped pimentos, juice included
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced, green part only
1 tablespoon fresh oregano
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
1 tablespoon Worchestershire sauce
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 bunch parsley, chopped
3 canned or fresh jalapeño chiles, chopped
1 firm, ripe, chopped tomato
2 cups vinaigrette
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
3 cloves fresh garlic, pressed or minced

In a large bowl, stir all ingredients very well. Refrigerate for at least 4-6 hours, preferably overnight, in a sealed or covered container. Remember the longer it sits, the better it gets!

Hope y'all enjoy :-)

The Cinnamon Snail

This past Sunday I decided to expand my flea marketing to the Hell's Kitchen flea. Other than fighting with a gay couple over an apron, the most exciting thing that happened was discovering The Cinnamon Snail. When eating from food trucks vegan options can be scarce (especially when you're tired of falafel). However, the Cinnamon Snail delivers 100% vegan fare while also managing to be environmentally conscious.


Looking at their menu I honestly thought every sandwich on there sounded delicious, but I decided to go with the Maple Mustard Tempeh Sandwich.




Fancy and on a biodegradable plate! They also have a wide selection of baked goods, and I got an apple cider doughnut for dessert. It was my first vegan doughnut, and I loved it.

They even do event catering and wedding cakes. :-)

Tree Yields Vegetables

If there's one thing the French know how to do right, it's wine. And mustard. And chocolate. And pastries. And cheese. And bread.

...ok, maybe that wasn't just one thing. Let's be honest, the French are damn good at food. However, the staples of French cooking tend to be rather vegan unfriendly. That's what peaked my interest in Tree, a French restaurant claiming to have vegetarian and vegan friendly options. A French restaurant? With vegan food? Quoi?

Of course, they also serve plenty of meat, and dairy and such, but every night the chef creates a new vegan dish for the night. On the night I was there the option was root vegetables and greens with a pomegranate glaze. Délicieux.

Cleansed

I haven't eaten solid food since Tuesday. Why? Because a friend asked if I wanted to try out the Master Cleanse and I said yes. The main part of the cleanse involves drinking a mixture of fresh lemon juice, maple syrup, cayenne pepper and water. The book says to do this for 10 days, but I chose to do three so I wouldn't kill anyone. There is also 3 days of easing in and easing out, with one day of raw fruits and veggies, a day of soup and juice, and a day of just orange juice, making my total cleanse time 9 days. I won't say it's been easy, but honestly it's not as bad as I thought it could be. I had one day of sore muscles and a bit of a cold, but living on lemon juice was actually ok for a few days. The main thing I noticed was all the crazy cravings I've had since I've stopped my normal diet. I craved everything from cheese and crackers to the bread at Bahari dipped in olive oil and lemon juice. I even saw this recipe for buffalo chicken dip posted on Facebook and thought "I want that." Note that this doesn't even come close to being vegan or even vegetarian, but I admit, it still looked tasty. I think partly my body just wanted the salt and fat it isn't getting during the cleanse. I also found it really interesting that most of what I was craving was for things I don't generally eat. This doesn't mean I'm going to change my diet, it's just information. What I do know, is that on Thursday when I'm done with all this, I'm getting dinner at Pukk.

Now it's time to go pour myself a glass of OJ.

...but man I could go for some of that bread. Or some crackers and hummus.

Comfort Food

Right before the holidays the organization I've been working for since August decided it was the right time to announce layoffs. It was decided they wanted to fill my position with a bachelor-level social worker, so in less then two weeks, I was out of a job. But this post isn't about my job woes, it's about solutions.

I've been hearing rumors for awhile now that S'MAC had added a vegan option to their menu. Most of my experiences with vegan mac and cheese have been relatively disappointing, but they have such a great reputation and nothing is more comforting than a big bowl of cheese pasta I thought I should give it a shot.

I got my vegan mac and cheese with spinach, broccoli, and portobello mushrooms mixed in. Overall, I think this meal gets an overall comfiness rating of 4 out of 5 stars. I recommend pairing it with the Allagash white ale. I have to admit though, that I think vegan mac and cheese is a bit of a lost cause. I enjoyed this more than the mac and cheese at Foodswings, and I really love Foodswings food. It's just that vegan mac and cheese just isn't quite the same. I have no problem with substitutes, but I haven't found anything that's quite the same for me. I think the S'mac version is worth a try, but I think you gotta get the mix-ins.

As an added bonus I wanna share a recipe with y'all. Cowgirl holds a special place in my heart since it's the first place I went to go out when I moved to the city. They also manage to have decent veggie options especially for a southern-themed restaurant. My favorite part of eating at Cowgirl is the chips and black-eyed pea salsa that comes as an appetizer. I decided to try to make some myself for some of my friends as a Christmas present. I even managed to find Cowgirl's recipe, so here ya go:

3 16 oz cans black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed of all juice
1 small jar chopped pimentos, juice included
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced, green part only
1 tablespoon fresh oregano
1 tablespoon Tabasco Sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 bunch parsley, chopped
3 canned or fresh jalapeo chiles, chopped
1 firm, ripe, chopped tomato
2 cups vinaigrette (see note)
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
3 cloves fresh garlic, pressed or minced

In a large bowl, blend all ingredients very well. Refrigerate for at least 4-6 hours, preferably overnight, in a sealed or covered container. Remember the longer it sits, the better it gets! Serve with old-fashioned saltine crackers or with corn tortilla chips.

*NOTE*Make a vinaigrette dressing quickly and simply in a shaker jar: Add crushed garlic, vinegar, oil; close; and shake well. Let stand, then shake well again. Use less than you're tempted to use.

Enjoy :-)

Thanksgiving: Now more than just Tofurkey

This year for Thanksgiving I decided to forgo the traditional Tofurkey and instead made my own version of some of my favorite Crif Dogs.




This little guy is my version of the Tsunami. Tofu dog wrapped in tempeh bacon, topped with pineapple, green onion, and teriyaki sauce.








This one is my favorite :-) This dog has tempeh bacon, tofutti, and avocado with a McClure's Spicy Pickle on the side.




Don't forget, Crif Dogs are deep fried!

Overdue

I've had many ideas for this blog over the past few months, and haven't bothered to post any of them. Maybe this post will just be a highlight for some of the things I've been meaning write over the past few months.

In June, I spent a few days staying with a friend in Raleigh who is probably pretty much opposite of vegan. But because she is a good hostess, and my friend she said that I could invite people over for a small party and include vegan treats. In the end we compromised and I said it was fine if she made jalapeno poppers too and even tried really hard not to make grossed out faces towards the bacon. In preparation she looked up many vegan recipes that also wouldn't involve too many crazy ingredients and came across this chocolate cupcake recipe. No weird health-food store ingredients necessary (not that I'm opposed to those), and it is damn tasty. We paired it with this frosting recipe. Damn. Tasty.

One night she also made me a dish called Christians and Moors. I don't have the recipe, and its just black beans and rice anyway. I just wanted to let you know that I went to Raleigh and ate Christians and Moors. Raleigh is hardcore like that.

In more recent news, being too lazy to go to the food coop I ended up creating a tempeh bacon and asparagus sandwich for dinner one night. Lucky for me it turned out well. More specifically it was lightly cooked asparagus, LightLife tempeh bacon, veganaise, and picante pepper mustard. The mustard I picked up on a trip to the National Mustard Museum in Middleton, WI, in case any of y'all are mustard enthusiasts. Here is the result:

Maybe sometimes laziness can result in good things.