Point of View By Shel Silverstein
Thanksgiving dinner's sad and thankless
Christmas dinner's dark and blue
When you stop and try to see it
From the turkey's point of view.
Sunday dinner isn't sunny
Easter feasts are just bad luck
When you see it from the viewpoint
Of a chicken or a duck.
Oh how I once loved tuna salad
Pork and lobsters, lamb chops too
'Til I stopped and looked at dinner
From the dinner's point of view.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Thanksgivings Past
Thanksgiving 2007
My mom made pierogies (love a good pierogi), broccoli is a must, good ol' crescent roll, broccoli casserole (one can never have too much broccoli), and mashed potatoes with mushroom gravy
Thanksgiving 2008
My plate after a raw Thanksgiving "cooking" class in Kansas City. This was my first time eating fancy raw foods (you know, beyond a salad or some fruit) and everything was amazing! Clockwise from the left: cranberry-blood orange dressing, sprouted wild rice stuffing, a dehydrated portobella mushroom torte-type thing, "candied" butternut squash, green bean casserole (my first green bean casserole ever!), and in the center is mashed cauliflower with mushroom gravy. This wasn't even all of the food there, but I can't seem to find any other pictures. What's missing is another "stuffing," a big salad (and I mean BIG), two cheezecakes, and sun-nog. It was quite a feast.
Thanksgiving 2009
Clockwise from the left-ish: cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes with "Punk Rock Chickpea Gravy" (from Vegan with a Vengeance), homemade holiday loaf (with Punk Rock Gravy on top), Brussels sprouts, crescent roll, and raw veggies with roasted red pepper hummus.
I only have pictures of the last three years because that's about how long I've had a digital camera. What will Thanksgiving 2010's plate look like? You'll have to check back tomorrow!
Happy holidays, everyone! (And make sure to take pictures of your plates, too!)
My mom made pierogies (love a good pierogi), broccoli is a must, good ol' crescent roll, broccoli casserole (one can never have too much broccoli), and mashed potatoes with mushroom gravy
Thanksgiving 2008
My plate after a raw Thanksgiving "cooking" class in Kansas City. This was my first time eating fancy raw foods (you know, beyond a salad or some fruit) and everything was amazing! Clockwise from the left: cranberry-blood orange dressing, sprouted wild rice stuffing, a dehydrated portobella mushroom torte-type thing, "candied" butternut squash, green bean casserole (my first green bean casserole ever!), and in the center is mashed cauliflower with mushroom gravy. This wasn't even all of the food there, but I can't seem to find any other pictures. What's missing is another "stuffing," a big salad (and I mean BIG), two cheezecakes, and sun-nog. It was quite a feast.
Thanksgiving 2009
Clockwise from the left-ish: cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes with "Punk Rock Chickpea Gravy" (from Vegan with a Vengeance), homemade holiday loaf (with Punk Rock Gravy on top), Brussels sprouts, crescent roll, and raw veggies with roasted red pepper hummus.
I only have pictures of the last three years because that's about how long I've had a digital camera. What will Thanksgiving 2010's plate look like? You'll have to check back tomorrow!
Happy holidays, everyone! (And make sure to take pictures of your plates, too!)
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Hurraw! (and Larabar) Giveaway Winner(s) Time
The time has come to announce the winner of the Hurraw! Lip Balm giveaway! The lucky winner of this cute little baggie of lip-tastic balming (what?), according to Random.Org, is the author of comment #27...
PALINDROME. Congrats! Please email your mailing info to *HUNGRYVEGANTRAVELER[AT!]GMAIL DOT COM* before Monday, November 29th!
Thank you to everyone for participating in this very popular giveaway! I wish I had enough Hurraw! lip balms to share with all of you, but when you do your holiday shopping, consider ordering some Hurraw! products for the chapstick users and lovers in your life. Or for yourself ('cause you deserve it, too).
Aaand, since it's been over a week since I announced the winner of the Larabar giveaway and still have not heard a peep from her, I'm drawing a new winner. According to Random.Org, the winner of a box of Ginger Snap Larabars is... the author of comment #3 on that post... Jenny of Vegan and So Forth! Please send your mailing info to the email address mentioned above and the bars will be shipped out to you ASAP.
And for the rest of yous, don't worry -- I still have a couple little tricks up my sleeve before Vegan MoFo comes to a close. Stay tuned!
Review: Tofutti Yours Truly Frozen Dessert
When I was a kid, long before my vegan days, I was a big fan of Drumsticks. Don't remember those? They're the ice cream cones with the hardened chocolate shell, covered in peanuts. At the tip of the rubbery waffle cone was pure chocolate. This was my favorite summertime treat.
When I saw these Tofutti Yours Truly cones at the supermarket, it brought me back to those summer days in Connecticut, sitting on the patio with my feet in the pool, sitting in the sun, trying to finish a Drumstick before it melted all over my swimsuit (as if I really cared!).
Sadly, Yours Truly cones don't have any peanuts, which is almost a deal breaker for me. Still, being back in Florida has me craving frozen treats again, so I looked passed these nut-less cones and gave them a try.
The cookie topping is deliciously chocolatey, but this is a messy shell. I recommend eating this over the sink (if you're a classy dame, such as myself). Otherwise, be prepared for little pieces to fall all over the place and melt almost instantaneously.
The ice cream is a yummy, sweet vanilla. Semi-related question: Are you one of those people who can BITE into ice cream? I cringe just thinking about that. My teeth are too sensitive and the idea of sinking my teeth into some ic... I can't even finish that sentence.
I got a great kick out of the cone because it had that familiar rubbery texture that I remember from my Drumstick days. And, I was happy to find a chunk of chocolate in the cone's tip!
In conclusion, Tofutti Yours Truly cones are a fun, messy treat, that would be made so much better with the addition of nuts.
What is your favorite Tofutti product?
PS. I'm going to randomly choose the winner of the Hurraw! lip balm giveaway tonight at 11pm, Eastern. Make sure you get your comment entries in!
When I saw these Tofutti Yours Truly cones at the supermarket, it brought me back to those summer days in Connecticut, sitting on the patio with my feet in the pool, sitting in the sun, trying to finish a Drumstick before it melted all over my swimsuit (as if I really cared!).
Sadly, Yours Truly cones don't have any peanuts, which is almost a deal breaker for me. Still, being back in Florida has me craving frozen treats again, so I looked passed these nut-less cones and gave them a try.
The cookie topping is deliciously chocolatey, but this is a messy shell. I recommend eating this over the sink (if you're a classy dame, such as myself). Otherwise, be prepared for little pieces to fall all over the place and melt almost instantaneously.
The ice cream is a yummy, sweet vanilla. Semi-related question: Are you one of those people who can BITE into ice cream? I cringe just thinking about that. My teeth are too sensitive and the idea of sinking my teeth into some ic... I can't even finish that sentence.
I got a great kick out of the cone because it had that familiar rubbery texture that I remember from my Drumstick days. And, I was happy to find a chunk of chocolate in the cone's tip!
In conclusion, Tofutti Yours Truly cones are a fun, messy treat, that would be made so much better with the addition of nuts.
What is your favorite Tofutti product?
PS. I'm going to randomly choose the winner of the Hurraw! lip balm giveaway tonight at 11pm, Eastern. Make sure you get your comment entries in!
Monday, November 22, 2010
Taking Down a Pumpkin
Last night, one of my roomies and I attacked a pumpkin that had apparently been sitting on her counter for almost a month. Well, she did most of the attacking, knife-wise.
First things first: clean the pumpkin seeds and season them for baking. Sadly, this giant pumpkin didn't yield many seeds, but we still made two small batches: one sweet, one savory.
The savory batch was seasoned with a little oil, cracked black pepper, granulated garlic, and some kind of Creole seasoning that I found in the cupboard. The Creole seasoning had garlic in it, but you know, you can never have too much garlic.
Our sweet batch was just cinnamon and brown sugar (and a little vegetable oil). This gave the seeds a candied texture, which was delightful.
Next, the hollowed out pumpkin was cut into chunks and thrown into the oven to bake for about an hour. I admit: I've never done this before. I've always bought canned pumpkin when I needed pureed pumpkin, but this is such an easy process. Granted, it's not as easy as opening a can, but it feels better to do it the slower way than the easier way.
Peeling off the pumpkin skin was pretty easy (especially the burned parts). Now I have a giant Ziploc baggie of peeled, baked pumpkin chunks. We're not entirely sure what to do with it yet, but we're leaning toward either soup or a baked pasta dish. Any suggestions? What do you like to do with baked pumpkin?
First things first: clean the pumpkin seeds and season them for baking. Sadly, this giant pumpkin didn't yield many seeds, but we still made two small batches: one sweet, one savory.
The savory batch was seasoned with a little oil, cracked black pepper, granulated garlic, and some kind of Creole seasoning that I found in the cupboard. The Creole seasoning had garlic in it, but you know, you can never have too much garlic.
Our sweet batch was just cinnamon and brown sugar (and a little vegetable oil). This gave the seeds a candied texture, which was delightful.
Next, the hollowed out pumpkin was cut into chunks and thrown into the oven to bake for about an hour. I admit: I've never done this before. I've always bought canned pumpkin when I needed pureed pumpkin, but this is such an easy process. Granted, it's not as easy as opening a can, but it feels better to do it the slower way than the easier way.
Peeling off the pumpkin skin was pretty easy (especially the burned parts). Now I have a giant Ziploc baggie of peeled, baked pumpkin chunks. We're not entirely sure what to do with it yet, but we're leaning toward either soup or a baked pasta dish. Any suggestions? What do you like to do with baked pumpkin?
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Vegan Thanksgiving Potluck
I had a busy day yesterday. It was a fun day, but also a long, busy day. Friday was kind of like that, too. I like being busy, though. But this busy weekend prevented me from updating yesterday. When I finally crashed on the couch at 5am this morning, I started to sleepily play back the day in my mind, and I found a few moments where I could have posted, but alas, I didn't. Wishes don't catch fishes, so I apologize for missing the mark for a third time. If I could figure out a way to update from a headset while driving, then I could probably blog a couple times a day. I'm not sure how picture posting would work that way, though...
I attended a vegan Thanksgiving potluck last night. I cooked up a double batch of chocolate coconut rice pudding (based on the recipe for Mexican Chocolate Rice Pudding in Vegan with a Vengeance) and, guess what? I forgot to take pictures of it. Just take my word that it looked pretty good. It smelled phenomenal, but I would not have been able to share that with you via blog anyway.
The potluck was held outdoors on a truly lovely night. Full moon, barely any breeze, and it really doesn't cool down until much, much later in the evening, so the temperature was perfect for dinner. (Although, most of the Floridians in attendance, I noticed, were wearing jackets and long sleeves. Funny to think that I was just like that about 5 years ago.)
It was obviously dark, so a flash was necessary, but I hope these pictures can still give you a decent idea of the deliciousness that was had last night. Here was my plate:
What you're looking at, clockwise from the left, are sweet potato casserole with a delightful nutty topping, Field Roast with mushroom gravy, a peek of a pot-pie-kind-of-veggie casserole, some kind of spinachy phyllo dough business, veggie moussaka, spicy coconut veggie curry with a bit of jasmine rice, fresh raw cranberry dressing, and in the center, a daikon radish and beet salad. Whew! My favorites were the sweet potato casserole, raw cranberry dressing, and the radish-and-beet salad.
When I went up for dessert, I ended up getting little tastes of OTHER dishes that I missed the first time around, so this next plate is part sweet and part savory.
Clockwise from the top: "sea salad" (which featured wakame, dulce, rice, and chickpeas), millet-corn (I liked the texture of the millet), followed by the sweets: chocolate pudding cakes on a graham cracker crust with blackberry and kiwi slices (which made for a cute presentation), carrot cake with a Tofutti cream cheese frosting, and grilled pineapple with cinnamon. Yum!
And I didn't even try everything! I bypassed the salad table because I've been eating a lot of salads lately, but fresh, raw veggies were not in short supply! (This wasn't even half of the salad offerings.)
Seriously, SO MUCH SALAD. What's super awesome is that they sent home baggies of salad with everyone. I love leftovers! I ate some of the salad leftovers tonight (along with leftover cranberry dressing and some kind of couscous salad):
Now I'm off to roast some pumpkin seeds with a friend. I'll have my camera at the ready! Promise!
Also, make sure to check out my Hurraw! Lip Balm giveaway! A winner will be randomly chosen on Tuesday!
More reviews coming this week and hopefully more delicious eats from yours truly.
I attended a vegan Thanksgiving potluck last night. I cooked up a double batch of chocolate coconut rice pudding (based on the recipe for Mexican Chocolate Rice Pudding in Vegan with a Vengeance) and, guess what? I forgot to take pictures of it. Just take my word that it looked pretty good. It smelled phenomenal, but I would not have been able to share that with you via blog anyway.
The potluck was held outdoors on a truly lovely night. Full moon, barely any breeze, and it really doesn't cool down until much, much later in the evening, so the temperature was perfect for dinner. (Although, most of the Floridians in attendance, I noticed, were wearing jackets and long sleeves. Funny to think that I was just like that about 5 years ago.)
It was obviously dark, so a flash was necessary, but I hope these pictures can still give you a decent idea of the deliciousness that was had last night. Here was my plate:
What you're looking at, clockwise from the left, are sweet potato casserole with a delightful nutty topping, Field Roast with mushroom gravy, a peek of a pot-pie-kind-of-veggie casserole, some kind of spinachy phyllo dough business, veggie moussaka, spicy coconut veggie curry with a bit of jasmine rice, fresh raw cranberry dressing, and in the center, a daikon radish and beet salad. Whew! My favorites were the sweet potato casserole, raw cranberry dressing, and the radish-and-beet salad.
When I went up for dessert, I ended up getting little tastes of OTHER dishes that I missed the first time around, so this next plate is part sweet and part savory.
Clockwise from the top: "sea salad" (which featured wakame, dulce, rice, and chickpeas), millet-corn (I liked the texture of the millet), followed by the sweets: chocolate pudding cakes on a graham cracker crust with blackberry and kiwi slices (which made for a cute presentation), carrot cake with a Tofutti cream cheese frosting, and grilled pineapple with cinnamon. Yum!
And I didn't even try everything! I bypassed the salad table because I've been eating a lot of salads lately, but fresh, raw veggies were not in short supply! (This wasn't even half of the salad offerings.)
Seriously, SO MUCH SALAD. What's super awesome is that they sent home baggies of salad with everyone. I love leftovers! I ate some of the salad leftovers tonight (along with leftover cranberry dressing and some kind of couscous salad):
Now I'm off to roast some pumpkin seeds with a friend. I'll have my camera at the ready! Promise!
Also, make sure to check out my Hurraw! Lip Balm giveaway! A winner will be randomly chosen on Tuesday!
More reviews coming this week and hopefully more delicious eats from yours truly.
Friday, November 19, 2010
Attack of the Guac
I bought a mammoth avocado (a "Large Florida avocado," to be exact) at the grocery store earlier this week and eagerly awaited its ripening. I brought it to a friend's house tonight and we feasted on a large amount of guacamole. Pictured here is what came from ONE avocado (and we had already had several tastes). This doesn't adequately represent the massive amount of guac we had at our disposal, but use your imagination. This was a pretty large glass bowl.
Heck yeah! We were SO CLOSE to finishing it all, too, but then these little snacks fell into our laps (but not literally - that would be messy).
An everything-but-the-kitchen-sink-style veggie juice.
Freshly sauteed string beans with Bragg's (enjoyed while sitting on the porch this evening, hence the bright photo).
Ah yes, kicking back on a friend's porch, sipping fresh veggie juice, and snacking on hot string beans with my fingers. It all makes for a pretty swell Friday evening.
Heck yeah! We were SO CLOSE to finishing it all, too, but then these little snacks fell into our laps (but not literally - that would be messy).
An everything-but-the-kitchen-sink-style veggie juice.
Freshly sauteed string beans with Bragg's (enjoyed while sitting on the porch this evening, hence the bright photo).
Ah yes, kicking back on a friend's porch, sipping fresh veggie juice, and snacking on hot string beans with my fingers. It all makes for a pretty swell Friday evening.
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