Friday, December 18, 2009

Snow, Daiya Cheese, and Berries who <3 Coconut

It’s snowing here in NC.


It’s snowing a lot.

Trapped inside with no where to go, Brandon and I decided to treat ourselves to the Daiya cheese that has been hanging out temptingly in our fridge since we went up to Baltimore for Thanksgiving and brought it down with us. If you haven’t had Daiya cheese yet, I suggest you go out, find it, and give it a try. It might be the best vegan cheese so far. It’s hard to find, since it’s only sold to stores and restaurants for now.

We were lucky to find it packaged in one of our favorite health food stores in Maryland (Roots) and sold in little plastic containers. Not able to pass up something as awesome as Daiya cheese, we filled up a cooler with ice and took it home with us. We used this great, quick pizza crust recipe, which we absolutely adore, and piled it high with veggies: spinach, tomatoes, onions, and olives.


For dessert, we made Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s Berry <3 Coconut crisp from Veganomicon. I’ve made this a ridiculous amount of times. It’s quick, easy, and no-fail delicious. Fresh and warm out of the oven, I put a big scoop of Rice Dream Vanilla on it and just savored the awesomeness.


After a day full of fresh veggies – green smoothie for breakfast, a big salad for lunch, and fruit all day – I was ready to indulge my bad side with this wonderful dinner. It was a great night – curled up watching the second season of Allie McBeal and frolicking in the snow with our pup. I hope that everyone is also enjoying their snowy night as much as we are!

Saturday, December 12, 2009

Holiday Stress, Pumpkin Cookies, and Raw Apple Pie

All the holiday fervor has been keeping me busy. We went up to Baltimore to visit friends and family for Thanksgiving and my sister is coming down to visit us this weekend. Then there is all the shopping and tree-putting-uping... whoo. Plus, it's been a bit of a shock to my system to get out in the real world and go shopping. I haven't been a very good consumer this year, and I had forgotten just how crazy and stressful it is out there. I went out after work one day to do a little X-mas shopping... by the time I got home, I was a stressed, crazy mess. Was it always that way or has it gotten worse?

One good thing about the holidays though is all the baking... (or un-baking): the cinnamon, the nutmeg, the pumpkin... I made these wonderful Oatmeal Pumpkin Cookies from the Post Punk Kitchen website for our local vegan meetup. They were a hit! This recipe makes a ton of cookies, so be prepared to gorge yourself or to bring them into work to share.


In our little southern city, we also have a thriving raw vegan meetup. For that meetup, I made the All American Apple Pie from Ani Phyo's uncookbook. Wow! It has the most minimal of ingredients and took me 10 minutes to throw together. Not only that, but it tasted fantastic. Raw vegan desserts are dangerous!


Also, there is a droolworthy giveaway on the adorable blog of a local NC vegan bakery in Carbarro area. The giveaway is here. Good luck!

I hope your holidays are filled with stressless online shopping and tons of cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin baked (or unbaked) goods!!!!