Planes, Trains, and Automobiles: Day 3 of My Wild Weekend Up North

On Sunday, Elizabeth and I woke up in a brisk hotel room that we shared with 4 other people, one of whom insisted on keeping the thermostat at 60 degrees (!!). We hit up the free breakfast (not much for wheat-free vegans, like yours truly, but bananas are all one really needs first thing in the morning), made ourselves presentable, and got a ride to the Farmington bus stop, the same one we were dropped off at the day before. What happened next is a long story, one that I will share at length on another day, but in a nutshell, Greyhound sold us bus tickets for a bus that “doesn’t run on Sundays,” (but they never said that until Sunday) and we weren’t the only ones with tickets for this apparently-non-existent bus. Thankfully, our ride stayed with us, and after E’s verbal battle with a Greyhound representative in Springfield (the only human being she could track down) didn’t lead to any resolution, we high-tailed it to Hartford to try our luck at Union Station. It got a little hairy, but we ended up on a non-stop bus to NYC, two frustrating hours behind schedule.

Once we got back into the city, we made our way to Central Park. Since this was a short trip to NYC, I only had two goals: visit the MOMA and Strawberry Fields. I was never a huge Beatles fan, but John Lennon and I share a birthday and I remembered reading many times about birthday celebrations at Strawberry Fields and always thinking that sounded pretty cool. I wasn’t at Strawberry Fields on our actual birthday, but a week early is close enough.

We made it to the Imagine circle just in time to take some pictures before the rain started, which caused us to not explore the massive park much further, as the rain just fell steadier and steadier. We had been through enough already that day, so when it seemed like the rain wasn’t going to let up anytime soon, we decided it was time for some food. We headed to Peacefood Café in the upper west side on E’s boss’ recommendation.

I typically never order hot drinks at cafés or coffee shops because I have what I consider to be a highly-sensitive tongue. The few times that I have purchased a hot beverage, it took probably 15-20 minutes before it cooled down enough for me to drink it. No matter what the weather is like outside, there is a 99% chance that I will be ordering an iced drink. However, on this rainy early autumn day in New York, I decided to embrace that 1%. Seeing a Brazilian nut chai on the menu sounded too good to pass up, and as night fell outside the café’s windows, a warm drink sounded so cozy. Besides, I figured I would just order it right off the bat and give it 15-20 minutes to cool off.

I was pleasantly surprised to discover that just 5 or 6 minutes of waiting cooled this drink down to perfection. And oh, it was perfection. See, I’m a sucker for a good chai, always. This one was not a disappointment. Foamy steamed soy milk on top, smooth and creamy and slightly-nutty chai underneath.

E went with a hot drink, too: an apple ginger soy, which sounds a bit peculiar, but it was really great! The ginger really hits you first, but all in all, I’ve never had such a refreshing HOT drink.

E ordered the roasted Japanese pumpkin sandwich, which looked really nice. I was especially intrigued by the walnut crusting. The pumpkin was warm and soft on crisp brown bread.

I originally ordered the veggie tamale, but was told they ran out, so I went with the pan-seared Japanese pot stickers. I wanted something light because I knew there would be dessert happening (if you saw their dessert cases, you’d be eating light beforehand, too!). These were pleasant little pockets of crisp diced veggies and hearty tofu and shitake mushrooms.

But let’s get to dessert.

Never in my life have I tried tiramisu. Not when I was a meat-eating child, not when I was vegetarian tween & teen, and not in my years of veganhood. When I spotted tiramisu on Peacefoods’ dessert menu, I figured it was a sign: the time to try it was now. What was brought to the table was this big, beautiful specimen.

Maybe I got myself too hyped up, but at first bite, I was a bit disappointed. For starters, I was completely thrown off by the texture. It was ultra-soft, where I was expecting there to be a layer of fluffy cake and a layer of soft cream. Second, the cake was chilled, where I was expecting it to be room temperature. And thirdly, all of the flavors were so muted, I could barely detect the coffee, nor the chocolate, nor the vanilla flavors. Still, the presentation was lovely and that kind of made up for it. Later, I ate the rest of the slice, which had warmed up to room temperature, and I liked it much more and could finally taste the coffee and chocolate. I guess I’m just a weirdo when it comes to tiramisu.

E ordered a chocolate cookie sandwich, which was delightfully chocolaty.

From there, we made it over to Highline Park in the lower-west side, which is this really cool walking path/park place that used to be an old railroad track. Parts of the track were incorporated into the design, and there were tons of plants. Lots of big windowed apartments run alongside the trail and it was kind of funny to look into the windows, like looking into stacks of hamster cages or an ant farm or something. (I’m telling you, NYC is THE BEST for people-watching.) Since it was later in the evening and dark outside, I didn’t take very many pictures, but trust me when I say that this is a cool place within the city and you should check it out if you have the time.

And now I leave you with this warm & fuzzy sign.

And that's it! My last day in NYC for this trip. There's so much to see and do in New York City. I can't wait to go back soon and spend more time exploring (and eating!).

Up next, I'll be highlighting some yummy vegan eats around the Tampa Bay area until we get to VEGFEST DAY! (And stick around, because there will be a VegFest-y giveaway next week.)

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles: Day 2 of My Wild Weekend Up North

Saturday morning, Elizabeth and I got up with plenty of time to spare to get ready for the ride to Connecticut. We ate our leftovers from Curly's, watched an episode of Freaks and Geeks, and packed up our stuff. We took a Greyhound out of Port Authority to Farmington, Connecticut, near the wedding site. The ride was smooth and uneventful and we dozed off a bit. My cousin picked us up from the bus stop (which was just a parking lot near UCONN Health. Weird.) and took us to my grandparents' house, where some other relatives were hanging out until the wedding. We got gussied up, took a bunch of pictures, and just hung out. It was bittersweet to be there: the family all together for a happy occasion, but my grandmother and two of my uncles were not.

The wedding itself was AWESOME. Seriously, non-stop fun. During the cocktail hour, E and I grazed on raw fruits and veggies. For the main course, we lucked out with a couple of bean salads, veggie sushi, and pasta with marinara sauce. There was even a gluten-free pasta option!

Soon, the dancing began. E and I must have danced for about 4 hours straight. We were so busy bustin' moves that we were completely oblivious to the frozen drinks station or the dessert buffet! We noticed the Belgian waffle table toward the end of the night, though. Man, my cousin thought of EVERYTHING! Between the dancing and the photobooth, it was NONSTOP FUN.

We also danced with this rubber chicken. (It's rubber -- so no real chickens were harmed in our dancing.)

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles: Day 1 of My Wild Weekend Up North

Whew! What a weekend I just had! My cousin got married in Connecticut last Saturday, and since my +1 lives in NYC, I went ahead and added a little extra adventure to the trip by rompin' about NYC with my friend before and after the wedding. It was a crazy-busy weekend, but SO MUCH FUN!

I flew direct from Tampa to Laguardia. It's been so long since I've flown direct that when the self-service kiosk only spat out one boarding pass, I stood there for a moment, wondering where the other one was.

When I landed in Laguardia, I stood in a long line for the ladies' room (poor planning, Delta, closing the other restroom), then stood in the long taxi line, where many yellow chariots awaited us.

When my friend came home from work, we took a short walk to the health food market in her neighborhood in Queens for some quick grubbage. We both grabbed a few things from the bar.

At Elizabeth's insistence, I also picked up one of their "peanut butter cups," which is a taste of heaven in a plastic shot glass.

This was a thick, RICH peanut butter mousse with a delicious, nutty-crunchy topping. I could have eaten a bucket of this. But that would be ridiculous.

Soon we were on the subway to the Museum of Modern Art, which is free on Friday nights! Woo! Bargain traveling!

The MOMA is HUGE and awesome and there is so much to see. It was also a little difficult to navigate, not just because of the massive crowds, but because there didn't seem to be a whole lot of rhyme nor reason to the exhibits. Still, there were some fun photo opps and I was pleasantly surprised to see some giant Monets and Picassos and Van Goghs.

After a couple of hours, we took to the streets to see some NYC landmarks. I really wanted to swing by 30 Rock in the hopes that I'd run into my personal hero, Liz Lemon. I mean, TINA FEY, but on a Friday night, I knew that wasn't likely. Still, I sang the 30 Rock theme song as we spotted some of the landmarks from the show's opening.

All of that art and walking made us hungry, so we attempted to eat at a Blockhead's, but they were packed, and when we finally sat at a table, it was next to a PAINFULLY loud group of people. No sense in grimacing through nachos, so we left and went to Curly's on a recommendation.

What a cute little diner! Very small, very cozy. This is the kind of place I'd like to run someday. Still craving nachos since talking about them on the way to Blockhead's, I ordered Curly's tostada salad, which was enormous!

Crisp romaine lettuce, black beans, avocado, shredded Daiya cheese, mushrooms, and grilled red pepper and yellow squash and zucchini. I loved the ranchy dressing that came with it.

Elizabeth ordered the po'boy sandwich and a side of gravy fries.

You can read her review of her meal HERE.

We started walking toward Union Square, but then the rain came down. Since we had a big day ahead, we hopped on the subway and headed back to her place to try and rest up.

Stay tuned for Day 2 of my wild weekend, featuring WEDDING EATS!

Gettin' Figgy Wit It

My best friend Kate is married to a chef and it is such a treat to visit them and have a meal prepared for us. The best part is that, although they both eat meat, Brandon is very open-minded in the kitchen. When I visited them and their new baby last month, Brandon even said that he is excited to cook vegan for me because it's a fun challenge. What a fantastic attitude!

For lunch that day, Brandon put together a spring mix salad with carrots & jicama with fresh oregano balsamic vinaigrette dressing, and sauteed brown sugared-butternut squash with fresh fig sauce. This was my first time eating figs, so I was very excited to try this.

This was fantastic! I loved the cooling salad paired with the warm butternut squash and fig sauce. Salads are great and all, but the squash and fig sauce totally stole the spotlight.

Brandon even gave me the recipe to share with you folks!
Fresh Fig Sauce

1 C Vegetable Broth
2 C Water
1/4 t Salt
12 Fresh Figs, Stemmed and Chopped (I used Mission Figs)
3 T Balsamic Vinegar
1/2 t Fresh Ground Pepper

1. Add Broth, Water, Salt and Figs. Reduce heat to low, cover, and
simmer about 20 minutes.
2. Stir in the Vinegar and Pepper. Increase heat to med-high and cook,
stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened slightly, 5-7
minutes.
3. Mash or Blend to desired consistency or serve as is. (I used a Potato Masher)

This recipe is from the Mayo Clinic Williams-Sonoma Cookbook

A week later, after checking out the cool modern art exhibit at the Tampa Museum of Art, I found myself eating more figs, at the museum's SONO Cafe.

This time it was in the form of their Mixed Melon Salad.

Zesty arugula atop chunks of melon and marinated figs, dressed in a black pepper vinaigrette. A very light but flavorful little salad. I was pleased to see a couple of vegan options on SONO's menu, including a couple of sorbets offered alongside their gelato.

What's your favorite fig dish?

Up Close & Personal (Pizza)

Busy vegan bee product reviews continue. This time, it’s about pizza!

Last month I purchased a frozen Amy’s pizza – the personal-sized gluten-free soy cheese pizza. No frills. I didn’t actually photograph this (if I remember correctly, I was eating in a rush and didn’t have time), but you aren’t missing much.

Shortly after that, while strolling through the Tampa Whole Foods Market, I was excited to find this – a frozen, gluten-free, vegan veggie-tastic pizza. At just $3.99 – considerably cheaper than Amy’s – I threw one in my cart with little hesitation.

Right off the bat, let me say that this is a great little pizza! It has plenty of toppings, but would still be fun to add more (for some reason, while munching this pizza, I kept thinking that chickpeas would have been a good addition).
frozen-

baked-

My favorite thing about this pizza is the crust. It’s fantastic! Kind of on the thinner side, but not too much (not cracker-thin), it had just the right crispness. The sauce was delicious and all the veggies added such wonderful flavors. I will definitely be purchasing this pizza again!

A recent Groupon purchase brought me to Chuck’s health food store in Brandon, Florida. I kind of hate Chuck’s: they are ridiculously overpriced (more so than Whole Foods), their customer service sucks, and they often have expired refrigerated items sitting on the shelf for weeks at a time, even after a customer bring it to their attention. Ahem.

Anyway, like I said, I had a Groupon, so I paid them a visit. The $20 Groupon didn’t get me very far, but I wanted to use it toward something new. This Ian’s gluten-free vegan French bread pizza looked promising.

I followed the baking instructions, including the 4 minutes of broil time at the end. Turns out, 4 minutes was too long, so if you make this, keep an eye on it!

Despite a little extra crispness at the edges, this was a good little pizza! (Emphasis on little.) Again, the crust won me over, but in a different way than the Whole Foods pizza. This Ian’s pizza had the thickest, fluffiest gluten-free crust I’d ever eaten! Most GF crusts that I’ve had were on the denser, crisper side, so this thick, fluffy crust was a welcome change.

Again, this pizza is like a blank canvas for toppings. Veggies, mock pepperoni, ‘shrooms, anything could go with this pizza, as long as it fits!

Have you tried either of these pizzas? What is your favorite frozen veg pizza?

Vegan MoFo 2011: The Beginning

Happy Vegan MoFo, everyone! I’m so excited to be participating in this, my second MoFo. Last year’s MoFo started in northwest Missouri, followed me on my journey south, stopping in St. Louis, Nashville, Atlanta, and Gainesville, and then wrapped up with me starting a new life in Tampa Bay, Florida, which is where I still hail.

Since Vegan MoFo 2010 ended, I found a job in my preferred field (making peanuts at a non-profit, but I'm happy!), moved two more times within the area, survived a pretty ugly car accident, slept in a tree hut, made some amazing new friends, lost one of the most inspiring people in my life, conquered my fear of wearing shorts in public, became the busiest I’ve ever been in my entire life, and I am continuously learning (and loving) more about myself every day. Vegan MoFo 2010 started with some trepidation, but Vegan MoFo 2011 begins with so much love for life and everything in it. Yes, this is about a Month of Food, but for me, it’s also chronicling my life and how I’ve changed and grown.

But don’t worry – there will always be food.

What can you expect from the Hungry Vegan Traveler during Vegan MoFo 2011? More adventure! In fact, adventure is the theme of my MoFo for this year. I'm starting out the month with a short trip, then I'll be covering a lot of the Tampa Bay area, and then I'll swing by two nearby cities and bring you the goods from there, as well. And guess what? There will be giveaways! So stay tuned!

You can also expect product and restaurant reviews, rock and roll, and possibly a celebrity sighting or two. So again I shall say, STAY TUNED!

Ah yes, you're probably expecting some food. Here's the pesto vegan pizza on a gluten-free crust from Gourmet Pizza Company, my favorite pizza place in Tampa.

Let the vegan month of food BEGIN!