crack the plates

After a lovely dinner of barbequed oven-baked tofu, Nate I are settling in to watch Disney’s Alice in Wonderland in protest of the Burton abomination presently sweeping the nation. (Has anyone I know actually seen it yet? What did you think? Or, if not, why are you avoiding?)

One of my favorite scenes.

These days I drink only a handful of times a year; tonight I’m enjoying a lovely beer called Éphémère by Unibroue, a Canadian brewing company. According to their website, it “possesses a fresh apple aroma with reminiscent notes of ‘Granny Smith’ and ‘McIntosh’ a subtle flavour of green apple is complemented by delicate notes of fruit and spice topped by a rich white head.” I first tried it in October at Chicago’s vegan bike-themed restaurant, Handlebar; Nate picked up a couple more bottles at the famous Half Time party shop in Poughkeepsie, New York, over Christmas. It’s best served in a champagne flute.

If you’re a vegan who enjoys spirits, you’ll do well to check out Barnivore: your vegan beer & wine guide. It proved an invaluable resource last fall as I bought for Nate’s Hobbit-themed birthday bash. I was surprised that every specialty beer I looked up was accounted for: Gulden Draak (more at Beer Advocate), Weyerbacher (Merry Monks; Quad), Hitachino Nest Ginger Brew by Kiuchi, Trappistes Rochefort (#10, bebe), Lagunitas (Censored & IPA), Unibroue (La Fin Du Monde & Trois Pistoles), and Rogue (Rogue’s Hazelnut Brown Nectar makes me melt!). They’re not all available in Indiana; I had to pick up the Lagunitas in Michigan while visiting Jina beena.

Speaking of, check all this gorgeous bottle opener she brought back from Greece in 2007:

Thanks, Jiji. You are one classy lady.

For our sumptuous tofu dinner I used Isa’s “BBQ Pomegranate Tofu” recipe as a guide. Have you been eyeing that one in Vegan with a Vengeance but haven’t yet tried it because it calls for crazy ingredients? Well, don’t be bullied by the inclusion of pomegranate molasses–I’ve been using plain ol blackstrap & the dish always turns out fine. I also subbed a finely-chopped onion for the shallots tonight & used crunchy peanut butter instead of plain.

Don’t have Vegan with a Vengeance? Buy a copy! It’s one of the best vegan cookbooks out there for new & seasoned vegs alike. You won’t be disappointed. (And, of course, if you’re in the Richmond area you’re welcome to use my food-spattered copy.)

(PS: I typed this entire post tipsy. How obvious?)

My dear friend Jacquie over at Constant Conversion has been doing Photo Friday posts recently. This week she channels Cookie (“‘C’ is for..”) & the rest of the Sesame Street gang with a focus on the letter T & what it stands for in her life right now: tea, teamwork, & treasures. And what a treasure of a post it was! Best of all, she inspired me to start my own “Photo Friday” series: food porn Friday is here!

These pictures were taken when Nate & I visited our friend Catherine (and, to a lesser extent, the Interfaith Youth Core Annual Conference) in Chicago last October. Let me tell you about Arya Bhavan! Just a short bus ride from C’s place in the historically German Lincoln Square Neighborhood (where a piece of the Berlin Wall resides in a bus station), Arya Bhavan is located on Devon Avenue in “the heart of India town in Chicago”. A night view from the other side of the street:

The food was delicious, the setting serene:

You might not expect to have too much contact with wait staff at a buffet restaurant, but Arya Bhavan is different. We were immediately greeted by a polite, kind young host who led us to a table, provided drinks, & invited us to the buffet. I have no idea how he guessed, but it’s a testament to his extraordinary hospitality skills that he immediately confirmed our veganism–and then thoughtfully took us through the the large buffet, pointing out what was “suitable”. (Happily, over 80% of the offerings were vegan!)

I was over the moon for his hospitality at this point–but then he secretly notified the kitchen of our presence & asked the cooks to prepare a special vegan garlic & onion naan! We felt like royalty when our special surprise arrived:

Make no mistake–I later lavished praise upon him in front of the management.

The meal itself was divine, though we both needed Tums later. (Spicy!) Here’s a shot of Nate’s plate:

I highly recommend Arya Bhavan for all of the reasons described (pictured!) above–and particularly for the price. The dinner buffet was $11/person not including drinks (but we just got water). Next time I’m in Chicago you bet I’m showing up with an empty stomach, a handful of antacids, & a few hours to spare.

As a bonus, here are a couple of embarrasing shots of Nate & me enjoying vegan avocado bubble tea in Chinatown:

greasy hair, gigantic grin, tapioca tooth.

The first several times I made the chocolate chip cookies from Isa’s Vegan With a Vengeance I was thoroughly perplexed. Despite the fact that I followed the recipe precisely–er, at least after that first disaster of guesswork & overconfidence–the dough was maddeningly crumbly! So crumbly, in fact, that I had to Hulk Smash it between my palms to get it to hold any kind of shape–and even then it was tentative at best.

My solution was to add some soymilk as a binder. But it was no solution! It sort of helped with the shaping issue…but the cookies came out so flat & chewy that they were only suitable for cookie sandwiches. (Mmmm… cookie smammiches). I got online to see what other VWAV readers had tried–and sure enough, many of them complained about the mysteriously crumbly dough. Even a friend in my vegan co-op dinner rotation, Suzanne, mentioned that she’d attempted the repair the weird recipe by adding soymilk.

Most recently I skipped the soymilk and, fingers crossed!, gingerly placed the misshapen lumps onto the cookie sheet. Guess what? They came out perfectly:

Here’s the deal. I, apparently among many, am an amateur cookie (& food science) enthusiast–and so I totally missed the fact that the VERY HIGH PROPORTION of fat (in the form of a quarter of a container of softened Earth Balance) would actually melt & meld the cookies together in the baking process, giving them a lovely shape & texture after ten minutes. Instead of exercising patience, I felt I had to “fix” the crumbly dough by adding soymilk. Don’t make the same mistake! Just Hulk SMASH your cookies & wait for the magic!

Thanks & credit go to “el-grimlock” at deviantart.com for the awesome base Hulk image.

As you probably already know, I hosted a successful free sale about a month ago. (For more details and DIY suggestions, check out my earlier write-up). Over thirty “shopped” and about half of the attendees also brought items for sharing. While this was a wonderful surprise, it also meant that at the end of the day, we had much, much more than what we’d started with. Oh, what to do?

The natural response was to take everything to a local thrift store (or two, to spread the love). But as I sorted through the items to be donated, I noticed that many of them could–should–be put to use immediately. Like the 20 or so jackets that didn’t get taken, or the half-dozen good-quality men’s sweaters. I didn’t feel comfortable taking these kinds of items to the thrift stores where employees & volunteers readily share the fact that it often takes months for clothes to get on the racks. (I don’t know about you, but I’ve seen the gigantic intake rooms of the local Goodwill and Salvation Army–not pretty.) What good does it do to donate high-demand, seasonal warm clothes in January if they may not make it out til June?

Also: the focus was on free. Goodwill & Salvation Army are certainly cheap–but they’re not free. I hosted a free “sale” to move myself & others towards an anti-consumer vision of simple abundance & sharing. How to continue in that spirit?

I decided to contact local community centers & direct aid organizations. I first called GENESIS of the YWCA, our overburdened & perennially underfunded domestic violence, sexual assault, & homeless agency serving women in Wayne & four other area counties. I was sadly informed that they could not accept further material donations because they’ve dwindled down to one volunteer who, alone, is slowly chipping away at the mountain of donations from times past. In short, the receptionist explained, GENESIS is not able to reach women in need with some of these items because they simply don’t have the people-power to organize & distribute what is already there. Because this need made my own desire to donate impossible, I placed an announcement soliciting volunteers in our church bulletin &  received a great response. (If you’re in the 47374-area and want to volunteer, just let me know–I’m coordinating volunteer orientation in early March. And if you can’t donate you’re time, they’re still accepting donations of money, food, and cleaning products. More info here.)

Rebuffed by GENESIS, I next tried AMIGOS, Richmond’s Latino/a Center. I explained my situation; amazingly, the person who answered had tried a kind of free sale of her own at AMIGOS just a month prior! She breezily recounted how she had to strongly encourage the suspicious young moms & other community members to take advantage of the items that had been laid out for free. “Our friends are not used to getting things for free. Here, they work hard for what little they have and don’t expect anything else. They have a hard time accepting these valuable items as no-strings-attached gifts.” She also provided some insight into the cultural differences of the US and Mexico (where she lived for a while & where many of AMIGOS’ clients call home): in the US, she explained, you can be wealthy, your brother dirt-poor, & nobody questions your character. The poor brother is blamed for his personal moral/etc failings. In Mexico, that isn’t okay. If your sister or brother is hungry or homeless, you do whatever you can to help.” After a great in-person conversation we set a date for the big AMIGOS free sale!

I admit, the desire to reach out in this particular way didn’t just pop into my mind–my mom inspired it. For most of my childhood she worked in the grounds (landscaping) department of an elite private Atlanta country club (golf course); she was the only Bobcat-driving woman in that hardscrabble department & most of her colleagues were undocumented immigrants, many doing unskilled manual labor. Every year or so she’d round up our family’s ill-fitting clothes & take them to Atlanta for distribution among the friends with whom she regularly shared lunch, cracked jokes, & picked up new delightfully dirty words. It was a profoundly meaningful act of giving, even at a young age.

I support donating to thrift stores; after all, that’s where I get the majority of my clothes and household items! But I don’t think any of us ought to underestimate the impact of giving directly in our communities. We can seek out opportunities to improve the quality of life for others by giving our time & material resources to organizations doing local good. Next time you have a pile of clothes, useful household items, or the like, check locally for women’s shelters/centers, substance-abuse recovery homes, tutoring programs–whichever you think might be in a good position to receive whatever you have to give.

I learned that people are ready to respond with generous hearts–they just might need the opportunity! In the days leading up to the AMIGOS event I solicited donations at church & encouraged my friends to ask their friends for donations. In addition to offering some of her own daughter’s former items, one friend connected me with a mom who literally filled our car with boxes and bags of toys, baby clothes, children’s books, and similar in-demand items. jackpot, I thought, as I made a housecall to pick up the abundance. Other friends donated a dresser that was quickly scooped up by a local family at the event.

The most memorable moment of the event was, for me, when I noticed a young boy, about seven, flipping through some of the donated books. He’d taken a fancy to a few but wasn’t quite sold on James and the Giant Peach, one of my childhood favorites, til I started excitedly telling him the story of the little boy with the horrible aunts who climbs up into a magic giant peach, meets some crazy new friends, and travels all the way to New York City! He hung on to my every word, eyes widening, mouth slowly gaping, til finally I finished & he asked softly–”Do you mind if I take that one home?”

Open yourself to such moments! Host, or facilitate, a free sale today! Some inspirational photos from the event:

One year ago today Nate & I emerged from a late-night study sesh in Dennis Hall to discover the world’s most adorable creature crouched under my car, worrying herself to pieces over the in-progress ice storm. Because she seemed house-trained/people-friendly and desperate, I swept her up into my arms and, shortly thereafter, our lives. (BAAAWW) To celebrate the first year, we gave her two extra scoops of cat food and lots of playtime with two of her favorites–Mr. Springy Foil Bow and Dr. Dental Floss. The latter is possibly her best-loved “toy”–every time she hears the rattle of the canister at teeth-brushing time she sprints into the bathroom and demands her own string.

Some of her other quirks include: snorting, snoring/wheezing, scratching everything (til one of us bellows “Hugs Time!” and she stops, fearing an embrace), getting in a box and planting, being a B, attacking her small bean friends Mr. Dog and Cow-Cow, hiding out in the shower, sticking her weird cat-arms through the holes in a particular laundry basket, and mauling mobile phones, especially while in speakerphone mode.

According to Unix, though, the best part of her birthday was the catnip binge. (Big thanks to Auntie Catherine for making it possible.) Photographic evidence as to why a run for public office is no longer an option:

Birthday kisses, Ra-ra.

Some photos from this morning:

Our porch and freshly shovelled walk; an imperiled "Mount Doom".

The absent neighbor's tin porch roof buckles under the weight of the icicles.

Our place, side view. Note the devastated "privacy bush".

A view from the road

Next door, from a squatting position (for drama).

The beleaguered privacy bush.

A lovely tree

Serene view of the house on the corner.

Bhindi (okra) is one of my most-loved vegetables, but it is a seasonal favorite whose availability further varies by location. In the southern US, I’ve mentioned before, you can find it fresh in grocery stores mostly year-round, but dismal demand in the midwest renders its delivery spotty even in summertime–and impossible during winter. I was floored to find it fresh in the waning summer Saturdays at our local farmer’s market, buying up at least a couple pounds each morning it was available. (And subsequently offered my tips toward choosing fresh okra here.) I mostly used it in bhindi masala, trying variations on Tara Shetty’s outstanding recipe. Here’s what it looks like with fresh okra and fresh tomatoes:

In despicably inhospitable climes I’ve been forced to consort with bagged frozen okra. Desperate measure, but I’m managing. Our local Kroger sells the whole frozen okra essential to this dish–pre-sliced just doesn’t, ahem, cut it. The former’s slime factor helps the spicy sauce cling to the vegetable better, evenly distributing the flavors. All I do is steam the okra and, once it has cooled, chop it lengthwise and continue with the recipe. Instead of using two chopped tomatoes (& paying a fortune for pinkish hot-house grown monsters), I simply use one 14.5oz can of organic chopped tomatoes (unsalted if possible). The results? Not too bad! Two separate occasions:

January bhindi

February bhindi

PS. I recently (VERY MISTAKENLY) adjusted some unfamiliar setting on my camera and am mostly taking gloomy-looking pictures as a result. Hopefully getting that figured out soon.

Geeks do geeky things. Usually they’re rather harmless, even mundane, like quoting Star Wars, debating the relative merits of window managers, and chortling over xkcd comics. But sometimes they’re extraordinary, as when we gave up on making a snowperson (“too hard”) today to instead craft a mini-Mount Doom of snow:

For an eco-friendly lava, I mashed and gently rinsed some frozen Michigan raspberries in a colander (over a bowl) and then drizzled the mixture down the sides.

Measuring up:

Honestly? There was no way to avoid this. While we set out with the most earnest of snowperson intentions (even soliciting materials advice on facebook) our love of all things LOTR quickly persuaded us to rethink the not-really-working-out snowman strategy. Several passersby looked on with puzzlement during the build…wonder what they’re thinking now that it’s (seemingly) blood-spattered?

Happy building!

Brunch: Mattar tofu:

It was my first attempt at Bryanna Clark Grogan’s recipe from Twenty Minutes to Dinner and it came out beautifully. Running on only a chocolate peanut-butter pillow (see below) and with something painfully stuck in my eye, I kept her honest: even making a separate pot of rice, it took less than 20 minutes to throw the whole thing together. Better still, it was one of the best iterations of the dish I’d ever had, the flavors perfectly balanced. (Only a little bit of credit goes to the superior curry blend from Frontier that I use.)

This book is especially handy because it contains recipes for traditionally dairy-based items such as ricotta cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, cream cheese, pourable cream, melty pizza cheese, and more. If you’re a vegan or vegetarian & you’re not already familiar with Bryanna Clark Grogan, head over to her blogspot to learn more ASAP. Young, hip vegans worship Isa Chandra Moskowitz (and rightly so), but there’s no doubt that Grogan inspired even her–as a 20+ year vegan, she’s basically already successfully veganized everything. Angel Food Cake? Done. Marshmallows? No problem. Cheeses, from feta to blue? She’s figured them out. The first of her recipes I ever tried was “fresh tofu, Indian style” and it has been a favorite since college. She tests her recipes so rigorously that seemingly anything you attempt will be delicious (so long as you have the right ingredients–on rare occasion, that’s the tricky part). Highly recommended!

Now…back to that chocolate peanut butter pillow. Because we were snowed in last night, Nate & I couldn’t make it out to celebrate Earlham Animal Advocates United’s third birthday. A damn shame, too, as Jenny had prepared homemade vegan ice cream in her new maker and Suzanne wowed with red velvet cake…or was it coconut heaven? To make up for it, I finally tried out Isa’s recipe. They were surprisingly easy to make–most of the work went towards shaping the chocolate dough around the peanut butter filling. Very yummy, but two concerns: overly sweet, and only very, very soft–pillowlike!–fresh from cooling. Once stored, they became very chewy. But, really, when you’re eating a peanut butter frosting-filled chocolate cookie, neither of these issues come up.

And finally, because Richmond is in the throes of the snowpocalypse, I whisked together some snowcreme:

the raw materials

whisking

I hope you took similar advantage of the snowmageddon. Let me know!

After a week or so of mild temperatures, Richmond is once again covered in a thin blanket of snow. Looking through some old pictures today I happened upon a few from this time 2009–and a day, in particular, when I introduced my northeastern-Pennsylvania-housemate and my upstate-New-York-bred-boyfriend to a recipe direct from some of my fondest childhood memories: snowcreme. A cotton-candy-sweet mixture of fresh snow, (soy)milk, a little sugar, and a pinch of vanilla extract, all whipped up in a stainless steel bowl, snowcreme is the finest confection old man winter can offer. Behold!:

I emphasize my friends’ places-of-origin because I was so baffled by their lack of awareness of something I, a Southerner with extremely limited snow experience, so delightfully cherished. For truly, my familiarity with the stuff only extended so far as the infamous Blizzard of 1993 (which has its own wikipedia page) and fewer than a handful of other pathetic dustings. My ever-clever momma taught me about snowcreme when the blizzard hit, seeking, as she might have been, a way to distract the six restless nine-year-old girls who’d just been snowed in at my birthday party. (Yeah, the biggest meteorological event of the decade happened a day after my ninth birthday.) How could two people who grew up with seasons of snow year after year never think to whip it up in a big bowl with some cold milk, sugar, and vanilla? Heavens to betsy! I exclaimed, in my mom’s accent, I’ve got to teach these boys something!

Ever the inappropriately under-dressed, over-confident belle, I trotted out to the back porch in one of my more laughable get-ups: thin pink nightgown over pumpkin-print pajama pants, protected by a red WECI hoodie. I harvested the primo first layer of fluffy snowdust from the back-porch railing, even as new snow continued to come down. (Protip: There’s a narrow window between when the snow falls and when it gets soggy, hardened, and yucchy–so time your collection well.) Befuddled onlookers snapped shots of my work from behind the screen door:

harvesting snow

at work

As you can see in the picture, I did some of the work with the snowcreme on the back porch, feverishly whisking the snow into a sweet soymilk and vanilla base. By the time I got back in the house it was ready to be served.

I can’t quite remember how my housemate & boyfriend described their first experience, but I’m pretty sure the words “transcedent” “miraculous” “glorious” and others from their heavenly ilk flowed like honey in the kitchen conversation that day. And it didn’t hurt that I’d just made some of Isa’s pumpkin oatmeal cookies from Vegan With a Vengeance, either…

Zoomie (my housemate) delighting in cookies

…or that I decided to make a chocolate-mint version of snowcreme with Vitasoy’s Chocolate Peppermint holiday soymilk:

Lucky housemates. The feast:

Snowcreme recipe, veganized:

• Whisk some soymilk (vanilla, chocolate, or peppermint!) in the bottom of a large stainless steel bowl with a little organic vegan sugar and a dash of vanilla extract
• Go get some snow. Preferably light, fluffy, and fresh. Scrape it off into the bowl. Whisk til the mixture thickens. Grab a stainless steel spoon and start to do more stirring, less whisking. Add a bit more milk as necessary. Eat!!