One Disaster After Another!

Hi everyone,

I know it has been almost 2 weeks since I have posted anything new, but I have an excuse. (Don't you just hate excuses?) Well many of you know I have been out of work for about 15 months with a back injury. It became quite clear that money does not grow on trees, and the health insurance fairy does not exist. This meant I needed to go back to work to survive. My doctor released me to work 3 days a week, 4 hours a day. I can tell you after 1 week that is truly all I could handle. I work from 8-12, but by 11 I am ready to hit the road. So enough about my wonderful work schedule and financial ruin. lol

I came home from work starving and hurting. I needed to cook. but hurt. I had nothing prepared, no leftovers, no bread, nothing, which led me to a pouting party. DH decided to take a nap (I think he was trying to leave the party gracefully), which left me alone to pout. Have you ever noticed it is no fun to pout by yourself. Shoot, there isn't anyone to feel sorry for you. lol As DH slept I figured I would empty the fridge and see what I could make. Of course, all vegans know you make, a stir fry! I cut up some broccoli stems, cut fresh corn off the cob, some potatoes, and frozen peas. I wasn't lying, there really was little to use. I also added spices, tamari, and some broth. Oh my, did it taste good! I grabbed a small bowl of applesauce and off I went to sit down and eat. Somehow as I sat my plate down it tipped and my entire lunch went on the floor including the applesauce. Needless to say I went without, but my dogs had the lunch of a lifetime. This is the before shot. Trust me you didn't want to see the aftermath!

Disaster number 2- I once again tried another seitan roast recipe. I can tell you that this one may look interesting

and even the slices

seem to be the real thing, but the texture! That is a whole, different story. When you were a kid, did you ever chew on silly putty or rubber bands? If so, do you remember that funky rubbery texture? You know the one where you bite into the silly putty and it gave a cracking kinda noise. That is the texture of this roast. It was so bad that I put it in my food processor to make ground seitan. The funny thing isn that I had just finished emailing Kleo telling her that you never have to throw seitan away because you can grind it up and it makes perfect ground "meet". All seitans are salvageable with this technique. WRONG! WRONG! WRONG! This seitan would not even chop up. It looked, tasted, and felt like little cut up pieces of rubber bands. GROSS! In to the trash it went. Moral of the story, not all seitan is created equal and not all is salvageable.


Last and final disaster, Coconut Cream Pie. DH loves this pie. It is one of his favorites. I looked through another vegetarian cookbook, which I will leave anonymous, and found a vegan Coconut cream pie recipe with an oatmeal crust. I was so excited. I made the crust and began to get my ingredients together for the filling. Oh my gosh! The recipe calls for 2 containers of silk tofu. I couldn't believe it. I only had one. So when all else fails hit the Internet. I found Dreena's site and fell in love with her pie. I got out her cookbook, The Everyday Vegan and saw that I had everything needed. I was thrilled! My only regret is that I would have opened her book sooner because the crust I made sucked!! It was hard, dry, and tasteless. Here is my pie. The filling is wonderful and it will be a regular with our family, but the crust is out the window. Next time, I will be using Dreena's suggested crust recipe. Trust what you know is good! Thank you, Dreena!

Just a shot of a slice of this yummy pie. Well, yummy filling. The crust went in the round file. We ate coconut pudding. :o)

That pretty much ends my disasters for now. I have wheat soaking to make sprouts so we will see what my next adventure will be. Thanks for stopping by and listening to me rant!

(((hugs to all))))

Julie's Berry pie and summer time treats

Saturday Chuck and I went over to my mom's house to help her out with her computer. We took our fur kids, Shiloh and Josh. They had the time of their lives. Running up and down the stairs to the garden. Lucky for us, mom's peach tree was loaded with pure goodness. We came home with a nice batch white peaches. Then a good friend of ours came over and brought us some fresh raspberries and strawberries, which was perfect timing since I had just finished reading Julie's berry pie post! I know this is a crazy confession, but I have never liked berry pies or fruit pies for that matter. I have also never made a berry pie. If I was at someones home and they served berry or cherry pie for dessert I would smile and eat it, only if it was drowned in vanilla ice cream. Now I don't know if this is just me or if other vegans have had this experience, but when I went became a 100% totally committed vegan my taste buds changed. Changed big time! I love fruits and veggies, that I had never eaten before and I love it!! I think part of it is because even as a vegetarian, heavy sauces and cheeses' played a big part in my diet. Both of these can hide the true beauty and taste of wonderful produce.

So on with my first berry pie. I had a store bought crumb crust in the pantry just waiting to be used. I put a layer of raspberries around the edges, filled in the center with strawberries, and topped it with slices of the peaches from mom's house.

The next layer is made with a frozen berry mixture of raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries.

And finally it is served with non other than Soy delicious purely decadent vanilla ice cream. This ice cream is a treat because it is very rich! The picture does not do the pie justice, but let me tell you Julie's recipe is wonderful. This pie was gone in 2 days. In the future I think it would work better with a pastry crust. By day 2 we had more of a cobbler then a pie because the crust had soaked up all the juice and was too soggy to slice. Out came the spoon! Thank you Julie for another awesome recipe!

Julie also posted some great ideas for summer time icy treats. I wanted to make some, but was short on ingredients for each of her recipes. Well, what does one do? They search the Internet until they find a recipe, which they have all the ingredients for. Foodfit.com has 5 different Popsicle recipes here. I had all the ingredients for Tropsicles. Who can go wrong with banana, mango, pineapple juice, coconut milk, and honey or agave. Now it has been quite awhile since I made Popsicles and was so happy when Julie's post inspired me. The hard part was searching out my rustic Tupperware ice pop molds. They have to be close to 30 years old. So here are my tasty treats. Blend 1 banana, 1 cup chopped, peeled, pitted mango,1/2 cup pineapple juice,1/2 cup light coconut milk,1 tablespoon honey( I am sure you could substitute agave), and 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice. Pour into your molds, freeze, and enjoy! This recipe made 8 Popsicles and they are 1 point on weight watchers

Friends, finds, and food

Karen and I finally got together. We live so close and we were just waiting until my back decided to behave itself. We had a great time. Karen is such a sweetie. She brought me a new book and a coupon for 5 bucks off at our local Henry's Market. I also got to meet Mattie. Her fur baby is so sweet. I fell in love with her immediately and I can't wait until we get together again. It was so weird when we met, we hugged and I felt as though we had been friends forever. I am blessed. Karen made my day! I think, no, I know, I have found a gem of a friend!!!

Mattie and Shiloh meeting for the first time. The two blonde's are too cute together. They finally wore each other out and decided to kick back and enjoy the company!

Check out Karen's blog, you can see more adorable pictures of

Mattie!

Karen shops at a really neat store called GTM right her in Santee where I live, which I have only been to once and that was a very long time ago. They have everything plus, an isle with lots of vegan items. After playing with our kids and visiting we took a drive over there. Now I drive by this store almost everyday since it is a block from my chiropractor and have never go inside. What a blessing Karen is! We had a good time. Look at my cool finds. All recommended by my new friend, Karen. You are the bomb, Karen!

This bag of Seitan Teriyaki Jerky was only $2.39. What a steal! I also bought a box of

Quinoa/Corn blend pasta. for 79

cents. The little bags of Jerquee

were only 48 cents and a couple

of "hot and spicy" meatless jerky strips for 69 cents. I couldn't believe it! I will definitely be making this store one of my regular stops. Thanks again, Karen!

I love all types of beans. Diann made some great BBQ beans on July 4th. Be sure to check out her site. She originally got the recipe from Bazu. Thank you ladies for helping my dinner turn out fantastic. Who can go wrong with corn on the cob, baked potato, steamed squash, broccoli, chard, and these yummy beans. Oh, the recipe for the beans makes a ton of them. So try them and enjoy!

The temperature is rising here in SUNNY San Diego! No one likes to do much cooking in this heat, so here we have a quick, simple, and nutritious lunch. Sprouted corn tortillas, (if you never had them and have the chance get them at your nearest Whole Foods, do so!), black beans, corn, carrot, olives, tomatoes, lettuce, green onions, and some avocado. So light, yummy, and refreshing.

The 4th of July and Triple Chocolate Pudding

We went out with the kids, Micah and Brandie, to take engagement pictures. I just love this one! It was just a fun shot in front of a huge fountain down in Balboa Park in San Diego. They were both giggling like crazy. Yes, Micah got his hair cut. Brandie told him he was HOT before and didn't think there could be improvement. She admitted she was wrong. Now she says he is REALLY HOT!!

Our church has a 4th of July breakfast with games, music, flag ceremony, and fun every year. It is an OMNI"S delight and a VEGAN'S nightmare. DH went early to help the men cook the bacon, sausage, eggs and cheese, pancakes (with eggs and milk), and a load of other stuff. I came later and brought my own breakfast . Here is my tofu scramble, which by the way, I can't seem to get enough of lately. It is just so refreshing! I also made myself some whole wheat blueberry pancakes. I was so happy to see bowls of juicy, red, ripe watermelon to feast on too! It was a good day. I love it when we all say the Pledge of Allegiance! It brings tears to my eyes. I love my Country!

Our 4th of July BBQ was Gardenburgers and my black bean burgers. We also had fresh pineapple, watermelon, and cantaloupe. Brandie loves her spud puppies. Oh, I found some cheese called "VEGAN" cheese at Whole Foods. Brandie loves it! She misses cheese. I am lucky not to have that problem, but I do love nutritional yeastie sauces.. :o)

Another wonderful way to use Bryanna's Chicken Cutlets from the Everyday Dish DVD. These cutlets are the best ever. Brandie says she can not get enough of them. This stir fry was delish. Clean out the fridge and wala! Stir fry over steamed brown rice. Yum-O!

Julie's Triple Chocolate Pudding from the Everyday Dish DVD is so rich and decadent. I know the picture does not do it justice, but the taste is everything any Vegan or Omni would desire. My DH thanks you Julie!

I will leave you all with my picture of my little friend that stopped by for a visit to our garden. I wish it came out clearer, but he has a marking on the back of his head that makes him look like a cyclops. He only stayed for a short visit and then off he went to bigger and better gardens. :o)