After traveling non-stop for the last 2 months... Imagine my sadness when I am back at home & making my green shakes when the horrible happens... My blender burns out! Aaaahhhhhh really? I mean, I knew it would happen eventually since I stick full stalks of kale & parsley into a regular cuisinart blender, but I'm still in shock that I killed my faithful friend on this green-drink-making-morning! :(
My girl in happier days...
She used to blend me 3 smoothies at a time...
And I would share her "labors" with my friends at work. She was a great smoothie-maker & I'm going to miss my girl... Goodbye Miss. Cuisinart...
After the appropriate mourning time... I hope to say Hello to Mr. Vitamix!!!
(Stay tuned for more on that!)
Onto happier meal-making! A lot of you have been asking me to blog about my vegan recipes, so I need to make this painfully clear... I'm not a chef, I don't cook, I can barely read a recipe without my eyes glazing over & I am as low-maintenance as one can possibly be, in the kitchen. So having said that... I LOVE this "homemade" soup "recipe":
Which is basically: just throw everything leftover in your pantry & fridge in a pot & simmer! I tossed in tomatoes, corn, green beans, spinach, red kidney beans & lentils.
I'm an instant-wanna-be-chef! I have to say that this "recipe" could not be easier & the soup was actually good! I'm not just saying that, (because I'll eat any veggie, prepared any way) my coworkers actually enjoyed a few nights of my soup dinners that I brought to work!
Another way I enjoy "cooking" is by steaming veggies. For those of you not familiar with this very complicated cooking style, steaming means putting said veggies in a steamer with water, boiling them in water or the tried & true method of: microwaving them.
Have I told you that my favorite vegetable in the entire WORLD is the artichoke?! I've been eating these yummy labor-intensive veggies since I was a little girl - thanks to my Mom - who kick-started the addiction! Don't ask me why, but while all the other kids were begging for happy meals, I was requesting artichokes for dinner. Anyway here's my "recipe": steam for an hour & DONE!
(Serve with olive oil as a dipping sauce)
Ok this might be my "hardest" recipe becaus it actually required work: Marinating! I've already told you how obsessed I am with "meaty" & "beefy" portobello mushrooms because they are delicious & they seem to take the place of a protein dish.
So after I slice them up & throw them in a container, (I seem to do a lot of "throwing in the kitchen - very odd!) I douse the shrooms with olive oil & balsamic vinegar. Now for all my raw vegans, if you let these guys marinate long enough, you can eat them raw. But for those of you who like to heat your food, like I usually do, you can throw them directly into a pan for a quick sauté. There's that "throwing" again!
PS... You can also use the baby bellos for this "recipe" as well - they work exactly the same. The oil & vinegar provide so much flavor & the shrooms are shockingly filling!
I eat at home & at work plenty, so this dish is an example of absolutely zero preparation. I bought the falafel balls from Costco & just stuck them in the toaster oven so that they would come out "toasty." Then I "steamed" some peas & finally, I made quinoa. To make quinoa, all you have to do is boil water & scoop the quinoa into the pot. Seriously, does it get any easier?!?
This dinner is just as difficult. Once again, "steamed" spinach AND corn & then a veggie burger popped in the toaster oven. Do you guys think I should write a cookbook? I mean, this stuff is GOLD!! ;)
Now I have to say, A LOT of people don't really understand what it means to be vegan or what we are "allowed" to eat. Case in point, I was at my 3 year old nephew'a house bringing him souvenirs from San Francisco & his Mom & Dad wanted to feed me, but they didn't know how, so in a hysterical tongue-in-cheek move, they handed me a cooked potato & a bag of lettuce! That works... I guess!!
Good think my little Kenji is soooooo cute that I'll eat whatever "vegan" meal he makes for me! Heck, his "cooking" isn't so bad compared to mine! :))))
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