Earthlings part 2...

Okay, I have had a few people asking me what I thought of Earthlings and I promised a post...

The Documentary is split in to 5 parts: pets, food, clothing, entertainment and scientific research.

I have only made it through the first two parts. I have been busy and it is just so sad, I can't handle watching it all in one sitting.

The pets thing was hard to watch, some I already knew and some things I didn't. It made me extremely glad that I have adopted my cats and didn't buy them from a pet store.

Food was just heartbreaking to get through! To be honest there wasn't a lot that I didn't already know, but actually seeing the horribleness of all of it was just too much for me. I will never look at a piece of meat the same way again.

Part of me thinks that because days later I'm not depressed about it and functioning that it shouldn't matter any more, but after actually seeing the things I've heard about, I just can't do it. I haven't had any meat since the day before I watched it and am really feeling okay about that decision.

I probably won't get around to watching the rest of it for a few days. I've got a busy and fun rest of the week. I don't want to make myself depressed watching that. Will pick it up later this week or early next.

Epic failure and a blog I LOVE!!

So last night I stayed up all night to finish some baking so that I could bring treats to my coworkers today. I have been making an honest effort to try and veganize my holiday treats and a lot of my favorite recipes.

Well last night I tried to veganize my recipe for butterscotch blondies... What an EPIC failure that turned out to be! The batter tasted really good. It has been a while since I've made them so I wasn't quite sure of what the consistency was supposed to be but it seemed okay. Well I couldn't find my 9x13 pan (my roommate hid it by accident) so I decided I would just pour it into my cupcake pans and make little individual ones instead...

I put them in the oven and set a halfway done timer. Well when I went and checked on them I was shocked at what I saw! The outer edges were crispy and the centers were boiling... Not at all how it should be cooking! I for some odd reason decided I'd leave them in longer and check to see if maybe they'd improve if they just cooked some more.

Wrong! So I took them out and now my poor cupcake pans are possibly ruined! The edges are so crispy I can't pry it away from the pan and the centers are so gooey that even once I scoop out what I can there is tons stuck to the bottom and sides....



You really can't tell how awful it is by this picture. I've got them soaking in my kitchen sink now in some warm soapy water hoping that if they soak and soften I can get it all out without ruining my pans. *fingers crossed!*

On to another topic! I have recently made a new friend on twitter, her name is also Meagan spelled with the extra A.(very rare, we were definitely meant to be friends!) :) She's a friend of my friend Jordan which is how we came to follow each other online. Anyway... She has one of my favorite vegan blogs!!


Meg's Cooking Addiction

Most vegan blogs are a little scary if you are new to the world of vegans. To someone like me who is unsure and just trying to learn the basics they can be terrify with all these fancy ingredients that are somewhat hard to find or foods you've never dreamed of combining.

Meg's blog is great! It is all food you'd eat anyway, simple recipes with things you can find at your local grocery store. :) I urge even my non vegan friends to look at her yummy recipes!!

Meg's Cooking Addiction

Pie Crust

You will probably never see me post a recipe for any of my fruit pies I make. Mainly because I have no idea what amounts I use of anything, but I decided that since I am awake waiting for some butterscotch blondies to come out of the oven that I would post a recipe for the pie dough I use, or at least what I used to use when I first started making pies years ago.

This is the Basic Pie Dough recipe from the Joy of Cooking cookbook.


Basic Pie Dough

2c flour
1teas salt
1/3c vegetable shortening
1/3c chilled butter
5+TBS water

This makes 2 9in pie crusts

Super simple... I add white sugar to my dough also. Again, I don't know how much because I tend to make tons at a time and really don't pay any attention to how much of anything I put in.

If using this for something like potpie I'd say use it the way it is, if making a dessert pie, I'd say be sure and add some white sugar to it! Totally changes the flavor! I always have people asking how I make my crust, they love it!

This isn't my copy, but this is the same version I have. :)



Pie Dough

Peanut Butter thumbprint cookies...

My phone takes super crappy pictures and makes everything look yellow... But those are 3 different ways to bake the same cookie! I made some regular old school peanut butter cookies, thumbprint cookies (some with my grandpa's homemade crab apple jelly and some with black raspberry jam) and peanut butter blossoms with Hershey kisses on top. This is the first year I have ever not done just the kisses on them. Worked out well all the way around though. :)

I have made these every year for Christmas for years and years and I always use the recipe off the bag of Hershey kisses. I cut it out and taped it to a piece of paper a few years ago and now I'm glad I did because this year they changed the recipe on the bag and I didn't want to use the new one.

This year though, I veganized the recipe... I am going to post the recipe I actually made and those of you who don't want to veganize it can switch things back to what they would be.

1/2c vegetable shortening
3/4c peanut butter
1/3c sugar
1/3c brown sugar
Ener-G Egg Replacer to equal 2 eggs (original recipe only calls for one egg)
2TBS vanilla soymilk (I imagine any form of milk will do, that is just what I had)
1teas vanilla
1 1/2c flour
1teas baking powder (the original recipe calls for baking soda but I was out)
1/2teas salt

I mix all the dry ingredients and shortening together, then add the 'egg', vanilla and milk and mix again then add the peanut butter very last until it is all smooth. It'll be a little sticky but its supposed to be that way. :)

Roll it in to 1in balls then roll the balls in sugar. Bake at 375 for 8-10min. Keep in mind that they continue to bake for 3min after they come out of the oven, so don't leave them in too long. If you want to make just regular peanut butter cookies, press them down with a fork before putting them in the oven. If you're adding jam then make a thumbprint in them as soon as you take them out, or add your kisses as soon as they come out of the oven.

Let cool a few minutes before trying to move them or they might crumble cuz they are a bit soft when they first come out.

Here is a picture of the egg replacer I used.

Earthlings....

Wednesday my buddy Jordan is coming over. He is going to teach me how to make 'chicken' and I'm not quite sure what else to make a complete vegan meal. We are also going to watch the Earthlings documentary. Neither of us have seen it, he has been meaning to watch it and I have been told by numerous people that I should. This movie has the potential to be life changing... Honestly I've been putting off watching it for so long because I'm afraid to see it. I have a basic idea of what it is about but am not looking forward to actually seeing the horrible graphic things it has in it....

http://www.earthlings.com/

I'll write about that experience next week, if any of you feel the need to watch it you should. Will be interesting and possibly eye opening for you...

Chistery's!! (drink recipe!)

Okay so tomorrow or I guess later tonight is my annual holiday party with my friends. Last year we started a tradition of doing a spin on a white elephant party.

Tonight I am starting all the baking for our party and the treats I plan on bringing to work. Last night I made the vegan pumpkin pie, it is amazing! So much better then the recipe I usually follow on the can! Even my roommate who seems to think EVERYTHING should have meat in it agreed.

I had a friend I really wanted to come tonight, but she was a little hesitant because her husband will be at work. So I bribed her into coming by promising her our favorite alcoholic beverage! We've been saying for months we needed to get together just to have an excuse to make them, but just haven't had time. Well tomorrow is the perfect excuse!

So I don't have a recipe, just a list of ingredients that go in it, you can add things to your liking.

Chistery's
Ice
Margarita mix
Vodka
Vanilla bean ice cream
Mike's hard raspberry lemonaid

You blend together everything but the mike's hard until it is kind of like a shake. Will probably have a few ice chunks, that's okay!!

After you pour it into a glass pour some of the Mike's hard over it and drink.


This is something a couple of my friends and I created while watching the Dark Side of Oz... What is the Dark Side of Oz you ask?

Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon dubed over The Wizard of OZ. Here is a link to a video if you don't believe me...


We were watching it one night while making these drinks and decided to name them Chistery's after one of the evil monkey's in the Wizard of Oz movie! :)

Vegan baking! (pumpkin pie recipe)

Starting my baking for our holiday party on Saturday and some stuff to bring to my coworkers for Christmas. I just put a pumpkin pie in the oven. It's my first vegan pumpkin pie! I was a little worried to be honest, but I tasted the batter and its pretty good, hoping the pie turns out just as well.

I used the recipe from here.
Vegan Connection

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Have ready, one 9" unbaked pastry crust

2 c. solid-pack canned pumpkin (if you use home-cooked pumpkin, drain it for
several hours hanging in a cloth bag, so it's thick like canned pumpkin)
1 c. non-dairy milk (I used vanilla soymilk)
3/4 c. brown sugar or Sucanat (I used dark brown sugar)
1/4 c. cornstarch (yes the amount is correct, I thought it was odd, but it worked)
1 T. molasses
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. EACH ground ginger, nutmeg and salt
1/4 tsp. ground allspice or cloves

I only used about 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon and about 1tsp nutmeg instead of putting ginger, allspice and/or cloves in it. They aren't things I ever have on hand so I just used what I had already.

Pour the filling into the pastry and bake 60 minutes, covering the edges with foil if they begin to brown too quickly. Cool on a rack, then refrigerate overnight before serving.

It is REALLY dark, but considering it has molasses and dark brown sugar in it that would make sense. It doesn't look at all like pumpkin pie though, but really turned out way better then the recipe I follow off the can every year! Seriously, try it out!!



Also going to make some cranberry-orange muffins tonight and then tomorrow making my yearly peanut butter cookies and probably some butterscotch blondies. Maybe some potato chip cookies or some jalapeno potato chip cookies. We'll see!!

Thanksgiving part 3...

Finally getting around to getting this blog posted almost 2 weeks later! It has been a week from hell and well... Getting online was not my biggest concern.

Dinner turned out great, I think for the first time since I started doing Thanksgiving at my house, NOTHING went wrong! We had TONS of snow that day but my brother and family were still able to brave the storm and make it to dinner. :)

Does anyone know how I can post a slideshow of pictures instead of mass amounts of individual ones?

Thanksgiving 2010 pics

here is a link to them on my Facebook page, I don't want to post a million pictures on here. This is all the food from start to finish... Check them out!

Thanksgiving part 2...

Let me start this one with the vegan/vegetarian checklist link.

Here is a checklist for you with a few recipes on it as well. Vegan/Vegetarian Thanksgiving
Let me add that these recipes are good even if you aren't vegetarian... feel free to try them. :)


The best advice I got from anybody the first year I made thanksgiving dinner on my own was to do everything I possibly could the day before. Thursday went over much better then I thought it would since I didn't have much to do that day. I make my pies, stuffing, dress my turkey and start on my rolls all the night before. If I could peel my potatoes without them turning brown and yucky I would.

This year I have 4 pies to make! Two pumpkin and two apple. The pumpkin recipe makes two, which is why I'm making two of them, and one of the apple pies is being sent home with my brother to give to his friend that helped me move last week.

I have LOTS to do the night before this year!

Recipes!!

Over the years I have learned that I don't have a lot of friends that like sweet potatoes/yams so I don't often make many of them. I had a request from my brother for them this year though so I am making them special for him...

Yams/sweet potatoes with a twist...

Yams-however many you need to feed your crowd
Pineapple rings- 1 or two cans depending on how many people. (10 slices per can)
1 bag mini marshmallows

Prepare them however you like... I know some people just like butter and some salt in them like mashed potatoes, others like brown sugar added to the mix. I like them with a little brown sugar to sweeten them up.


boil them, mash them and flavor to taste...

Drain your pineapple rings and lay them flat on a baking sheet, spoon your prepared yams onto the center of them then cover with mini marshmallows. If my brother could he'd have more marshmallows then yams on his pineapple rings. Place in the oven for a few minutes until your marshmallows are golden brown, take out and serve.

They are so yummy even my friends who don't usually eat them have to have at least one serving! :)

I tried to find a picture online but I can't so I'll just have to wait and post one on the next blog after I've done my dinner.

Scalloped corn

2 cans creamed corn
3/4c cream
1/2package saltine crackers crushed
Salt & pepper to taste

Stir it all together, it'll be a little on the runny side. Feel free to add more cream or crackers accordingly.

Bake at 350 for 30min.


Super simple and one of my favorites!



It isn't the most appetizing dish to look at, but I promise, when made right it is really good!

Turkey

I don't have any fancy special ways to dress your turkey, season it how ever you like. I usually smear butter all over the top and under the skin, salt, pepper, a few Italian seasonings, some garlic and that's about it, oh and of course filling it full of stuffing! ;)

The real family secret though... After you get it all dressed and ready to go... Put a layer of really good, thick cut bacon over the top of it. It helps hold in the moisture and saves your turkey from being picked at when it comes out of the oven! Everyone is picking the bacon off the top instead of turkey. :)



I love seeing the look on people's faces when they hear that I am/have already covered my turkey in bacon. They all think I'm crazy until they taste the bacon and the turkey. :)

As far as actually baking it goes... I think its 30min for every pound or something like that. Honestly I can never remember. I get it ready every year and let my friend Cade do the rest because I'm usually at work. This year will be the first year I've actually cooked it myself.

We baste it every 30min and to get the juices started I usually just use a can of chicken or vegetable broth. I always buy a few extra cans for that purpose. The turkey has always turned out great, so we're doing something right. ;)

I have been debating posting the family recipe for 'grandma buns.' I have finally decided against it. Mainly because it is kind of a complicated recipe and most people aren't going to be making their own rolls anyway so I will skip it this time around.

Have I forgotten to post anything here? If so leave a comment and I will add more later.

Thanksgiving part 1...

I had all intentions of boycotting Thanksgiving this year for some rather lame reasons, but slowly one by one people started asking what we were doing and I just couldn't say no. I've always done dinner for my friends and whoever I knew that didn't have any where to go. This will be my 4th year doing it and although watching my grocery bill add up at the register wasn't fun, I know that once we are all sitting down and eating and the stress of cooking is over I will be very glad that everyone is together enjoying such a great meal. :)


We will not be celebrating on Thursday though because I will be working 2p-12:15am and well, that doesn't work well when I need to make an entire turkey dinner by myself. So instead we will be enjoying our dinner the Sunday after... Nov 28th.

I plan on posting a Thanksgiving blog with pictures of the process and the finished product after I'm through but am thinking that some time this week I will post a pre-Thanksgiving blog. Things to do ahead of time that help make it seem like there isn't sooo much to do the actual day of cooking. Also a few basic recipes of family favorites that we have every year AND the family secret for an amazing turkey! :)

So here is part one...

Make a shopping list of EVERYTHING you even think you might need. Try and keep it somewhat organized. I am a bit OCD and like to organize my shopping list (only for turkey day) by where things are in the store. I don't imagine most of you will be that crazy, but at least try and group things like celery, onions, and potatoes together because you know those are all going to be in the same part of the store, lump eggs and butter together because those are usually close to each other... My reasons for this... It is harder to forget things that way. With that said... I promise you will almost always forget something still, but this way it'll be less likely.

I always try and go at least a week in advance... That way when I forget something, I still have time to get to the store before it is closed for the holiday.

Yes, I realize how commonsense this stuff is, but sometimes reminders are nice. :)

More to come in some time in the next few days on prep to do the day before and recipes I like for my Thanksgiving dinner. :)

Also... For my vegan friends or anyone that needs to make vegetarian/vegan friendly food for their dinners. Vegan/Vegetarian Thanksgiving checklist

Haven't forgotten about you!

This blog might not be getting updated as much as I'd like to for at least a few weeks... I've been taking these new pills to help balance out my system and I've been so incredibly nauseous since I started taking them that any thought of food just makes me more queasy.

Also, I am moving!! I am moving back to my old apartment complex downtown! I am hoping to be done moving by the 13th. Will be busy packing and gradually moving stuff over during the week and might not have internet for the first week or so that I am there.

Just wanted to let everyone know that I didn't forget about my blog, just a little busy with life right now. Will hopefully return soon!!


Here is a recipe I have been meaning to post for a while.

Black Bottom Banana Cheesecake Bars

Bottom:
4oz cream cheese (room temp)
1 egg
1/2c butter
1 box chocolate devil's food cake (i used triple chocolate cuz that's what I had on hand)

Mix it all together, it'll be kind of like a dough and spread in the bottom of a 9x13 pan

Top:
2- 8oz packages of cream cheese (room temp)
2 eggs
1c mashed banana (about 3)
1c powder sugar
1 teas vanilla

Cream all that together then pour over the bottom.

Bake at 350 for 45min or so

I think you could just use a regular cheesecake recipe for the top and it would work just the same, or maybe even a different fruit....

The only problem I had was that the cake part seemed to finish baking before the cheesecake part was done. I haven't worked out the kinks of it yet, but did enjoy them and was glad it was fast and easy to put together. :)

Cinnamon Rolls & Bread! (2 recipes!!)

I've had an off few days and have been on the verge of tears for some unknown reason. I blame the hormone pills that my doctor put me on last week. Anyway... Spending time in the kitchen always helps my off moods... sad, angry, stressed... time in the kitchen always makes it better. :)

I made myself pasta and a pink sauce for dinner then chilled for a bit and decided to lock myself in my kitchen with some upbeat music and make some cinnamon buns. I called my mom to ask her advice on a sugary topping for it and in the process ended up getting my grandma's bread recipe from her. I had no intentions of making bread tonight too, but in the end decided I'd be awake so why not. :)

Sadly I only got half the info I needed for the bread so I had to kind of wing it and hope it turned out right.

The rolls turned out really well! The best part... They are vegan friendly!


(they are a gooey mess on the bottom!! :D)

Combine
1c lukewarm milk (I used vanilla soy milk)
1 package dry yeast.

Let stand for 5min. Stir. Add

2TBs soft butter
1Tbs sugar
1teas salt

Mix in gradually 2 1/2c-3 1/4c flour until dough is just firm enough to handle.
I kneaded it a bit and let it rise for about 40min before I punched it down and rolled it out. Spread butter over the flat dough and sprinkle with a cinnamon sugar mixture. (I also sprinkled brown sugar over it)

Butter the pan you're going to bake them in then pour in some cream or milk to cover the bottom and sprinkle with brown sugar, mix it together and add your sliced rolls. Let rise before putting in the oven.

Bake at 375 for 25min. Enjoy!


Well the bread baked much faster then it was supposed to but I'm glad because I am ready for bed!



Its a really heavy bread, but I'm not surprised considering my grandma was raised on a farm. It turned out really well!

1 package dry yeast
between 5 3/4c-6 1/4c flour
2 1/4 c milk (I used vanilla soy milk because that is what I had)
2 Tbs sugar
2 teas salt
1 Tbs shortening

combine the yeast & half the flour
warm the milk, shortening and sugar enough to melt the shortening then combine with the flour/yeast. Mix it together then combine the rest of the flour and the salt.

knead and let rise in bowl until it doubles in size then punch down and shape into pans. Let it rise a bit before putting in the oven.

Bake at 400 between 45-60min.

Cranberry Cake...

Tomorrow or rather later today is my roommates birthday! A wonderful excuse to try a new cake recipe!!

I have two 9in round cranberry cakes in the oven baking right now! It smells sooo good in here! I'm hoping it is an indicator of how it is going to taste! :) It is basically just a white cake mix with a cup of chopped cranberries, a tablespoon of orange 'zest' and a cup of finely chopped walnuts... Simple!

The recipe I have comes with a cream cheese frosting recipe but I'm not going to use that. I am going to make a ricotta filling for the middle of it and an orange butter cream frosting for it.

The original plan was to use grapefruit zest in the mix and do a grapefruit butter cream filling/frosting for it, but I took a vote and everyone wanted ricotta so I decided to go with orange instead.

I will post pictures when the cake gets out of the oven and the finished product tomorrow when it is all decorated!


I'm excited!! :D

Killer Cookies

Killer Cookies

1 3/4c Shortening
2c sugar
2c brown sugar
4 eggs
2tsp vanilla
3c flour
2tsp salt
2tsp baking soda
6c oatmeal

1/2 to 3/4c chopped nuts
1/2 to 3/4c coconut
1 12oz package chocolate chips

Bake at 350 for 9-12min

Makes 80-100 cookies

This is a HUGE recipe so I usually only half it when I make them. I got this recipe from my friend's mom years ago.

An odd fact about them... Not putting the coconut in completely changes the taste of them, still good either way though. When there is coconut in them they seem to taste like they have raisins in them even though they don't, which I like because I like the taste of raisins but I'm not a big fan of the texture of them.

Sorry!!

I'm so behind on this blog and I feel awful about it! I just have so much going on lately and not a lot of computer time.... Will try and post some more recipes soon!!

Amazing Banana Bread!

This is a recipe I got from my grandma years and years ago! It is the only really good banana bread I have ever had. It's really dense and moist and just all around amazing! My only complaint... it is time consuming, but in all honesty... When is bread not time consuming unless you put it in a bread maker? Try this recipe... I promise you will love it!

Banana Bread

2 eggs
1/2c shortening
1 1/2c sugar
1 1/4 c mashed banana
1/4c buttermilk
2c flour
1tsp baking soda
1/2tsp salt
1tsp vanilla


I like to add walnuts, chocolate chips or sometimes blueberries or dried cranberry's to the mixture. Not all together of course, but it should make at least 2 loafs so I tend to make one just plain then add something to the second half of the batter

bake at 350 for an hour or more

It'll start getting really dark on top before its done, just cover it with foil and it will be fine. :) I hope it works out for you! I love love love this recipe!

Recipes I plan on posting soon....

I have a few recipes I'd like to post soon, but don't have time right now so I'm hoping if I post this that will make me get my butt in gear and post them when I get the chance.

I'm going to post my grandma's amazing recipe for banana bread! I've been so spoiled with this recipe that I've never found any other banana bread I actually like! This recipe really is truly amazing!

Killer cookies will soon follow the banana bread. It is basically a high tech chocolate chip cookie that makes like a million cookies and they are sooo good and there are so many options with things you can put in them!

Black bottom banana cheesecake is something I tried making a few weeks ago that ended up being a huge hit and should be shared also some banana oat muffins with honey that I made... I was on a bit of a banana kick for a while. Can you tell? ;)

I've also been considering posting random dinner recipes on here, but not complicated ones. Ones that are quick and easy for when you don't have a lot of time to cook... Kind of 'cheater' dinners... Thoughts on this??

Also... A friend of mine shared this blog with me, it makes me smile every time I see it, she's got some great fun ideas!! You should check it out!
http://picky-palate.com/

From her blog, some amazing stuffed oreo cupcakes that look like a must try! I was thinking of making them for my nieces 2nd birthday in a couple weeks... I'm sure the parents would love their little ones eating such a gooey mess!! ;)
http://picky-palate.com/2010/08/23/fluffer-oreo-birthday-boy-cupcakes/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+PickyPalate+%28Picky+Palate%29

Jalapeno cookies?? I think so!

Sometimes when in the kitchen a little idea light pops in my head... Sometimes it ends in epic failure, other times just alright and every once in a while it turns out to be genius! This time around it was genius!!

Not to long ago I finally got around to posting my recipe for Potato Chip Cookies, a recipe that I've been using for years and years! Well last week I went to Jimmy Johns for lunch and got some baked jalapeno potato chips with my sandwich and half way through my lunch decided those chips NEEDED to be in a cookie!

Tonight I experimented with my idea and it turned out to be amazing!! I substituted half of the margarine for cream cheese and kept the rest the same, even using the sugar to smash them down.

I think these cookies would be great at a BBQ or just for because! Definitely something I am going to make again!! And as a reminder..... very easily turned in to a vegan cookie for my vegan friends!! :D



Here is the updated recipe:

Jalapeno Chip Cookies

1/2c butter
1/2c (4oz) cream cheese
1/2c sugar
1 1/2c flour
1tsp vanilla
1 jalapeno finally minced
1/3-1/2c crushed jalapeno potato chips (depending on how hot you want them)

you blend the butter, cream cheese and sugar together then add everything else. roll them into little balls then push them down with a cup that has sugar on the bottom.

bake them at 350 for 8-10minutes.

Contests.....

So while I was making a peach-raspberry pie for my friends birthday last night I decided that IF I had the money I think it would be amazing to open a pie shop!! I'd make filling and crust all day long and hire someone else to take care of the making them look pretty part! Its the one thing that I make that ALWAYS turns out no matter what kind or when I experiment and make some random flavor I've never tried before. If I ever thought I had a calling in life, pie maker would be it! ;)

With that being said... I decided that it would be fun to enter a pie in to the state fair this year. I was looking at the website today and the only way for me to enter a pie is to enter the Karo syrup contest that Karo brand is putting on. The only requirement... I use Karo syrup in it... I make a point to not use it in anything for no other reason then.... it is MESSY!! I'd also have to type up a recipe for it to submit with it... I've never measured anything when it comes to my pies, so that I'll have to work on too.... I'll have to do some experimenting with things some time in the next few weeks if I decide I still want to make one.

There is also another option of canning pie filling and entering just that in. I think it was an option under the canning category. Or possibly skipping the pie part altogether and entering something else... I was thinking maybe entering the Ghirardelli contest. The only requirement is that it use some form of Ghirardelli chocolate! Easy! I have an incredible banana bread recipe and I love putting chocolate chips in it. Sounds gross, but it's actually quite good! So who knows what my final decision will be.... Either way I'm hoping to do some amazing baking in the next month or so! :D

Potato Chip Cookies!!

Have you ever had potato chip cookies?? They are amazing and super easy to make and easily turned into a vegan friendly recipe!! I like to add food coloring to the dough and make the colorful for kicks! :)

1c butter
1/2c sugar
1 1/2c flour
1tsp vanilla
1/2c crushed potato chips.

you blend the butter & sugar together then add everything else. roll them into little balls then push them down with a cup that has sugar on the bottom.

bake them at 350 for 8-10minutes.


I like to add food coloring just for fun to them :)

Frozen food...

Some days I really don't feel like cooking anything but I've never been a big fan of prepackaged frozen food, or the 'just add water' type things... I wasn't raised eating stuff like that so I try to avoid it as much as possible.

Today was one of those days I just didn't feel like making anything so I went to the store when I got off work and wandered around until I decided to go down the mostly vegan frozen food isle. I ended up getting a vegan frozen dinner to try. It was a black bean tamale and spanish rice. It was really good, so much better than other frozen dinners you can get. It cost a bit more, but was totally worth it I think. It was nice to know that there are those vegan friendly options out there...

Very slowly getting away from meat and moving over to a vegetarian diet. Once I get that down, I will work on taking the next step. I bought some avocados today and some more vegan mayo, so my plan for tomorrow is to try that tofurkey I bought a couple weeks ago. We'll see how it goes....

Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Blondies...

Today I am just logging on to post a recipe! This is one of my most favorite desserts to make, its simple and fast and super yummy! I am going to post the regular version of it, because again... The vegans that read this probably have better substitutes to use then I do for things. :)

3/4c unsifted all-purpose flour
1/4c unsifted cake flour ( I just use 1 cup regular flour instead)
1/4 teas baking powder
1/2 teas salt
1c semisweet chocolate chips
8 tbs unsalted butter, melted & cooled
1c brown sugar
1/4c granulated sugar
1 extra large egg
2 extra large egg yolks
2 teas vanilla

Mix everything together then add chocolate chips. Grease & flour a 9x9 pan bake at 350 for 25-30min

I made some today for the first time in a while... They are sooo yummy! Also good if you want to add walnuts and/or coconut.

fish tanks...

Earth day was yesterday, was reminded a lot by different people how much eating meat really is effecting the planet.

My roommate has a 40 gallon fish tank that her uncle gave her. She's had a couple fish die recently... Last night her second angel fish wasn't doing so well so she wanted to put him in a bag of water in the freezer to 'help' him along because she thought he was dieing. When she asked me what I thought, I pretty much lost all ability to speak. I can't even handle flushing a dead fish down the toilet let alone killing a live one! We ended up taking him out of the tank and putting him in his own little bowl. He seems to be swimming a lot better today and has finally eaten a little. I think he is getting better!

I used to have a beta plant bowl thing, went through I think 3 of them before I finally realized how terrible it was that I was keeping them like that. Fish are not meant to be kept in little tiny bowls/tanks. They never seem to live all that long, and okay maybe a year is a long time for a fish...I'm not really sure, but it doesn't seem like a very long time. I can't count the number of fish she has had die since she got the tank a few months ago... It just makes me sad!! I am soooo glad I talked her in to putting the angel fish in its own bowl last night! She has mentioned a few times today that she really doesn't think he is going to make it... I say give him a chance to fight!


Am I a hypocrite for talking about my roommates fish, when I have two cats? I'd like to think that I am not, I adopted them from a shelter and knowing what kind of life they came from before I would like to think I saved them... I don't know....

I really don't think I am ready to make the switch over to vegan 100% but I can say I am willing to make an effort to work on watching the animal products I am putting in my body. I am allowed to make a slow change right, and going vegetation is half the battle isn't it?

It is late, to much deep thought for 2am! I am going to bed! Good night

Pink Lasagna

I was sitting at my roommates parents house last night doing my taxes and listening to my roommate and her mom go through a cookbook talking about things they thought sounded good, things that were gross, and others that were just really interesting. At some point I heard the word Lasagna mentioned, it took me about 20 minutes for that to register in my brain since I was concentrating pretty hard on getting my taxes finished. I have made lasagna only one way for as long as I can remember, the only thing differing is the small changes I would make to my sauce when I made it. I for some reason got the urge last night to want to make one with a white sauce instead. The only one I've ever had was one an old neighbor made us years and years ago with green beans. It was amazing! I had a happy accident in the kitchen a few months ago and have started making a pink alfredo sauce... I mentioned it to my roommate and I think we are going to try it out this weekend. It won't be vegan friendly, but it will be vegetarian friendly. At least part of it..... my roommate still has issues with the no meat thing, so I think it will probably end up being half and half... I'm pretty excited for it! Will post pictures after I make it.

Finsihed product! I made a pink alfredo... I made a regular alfredo sauce and added canned tomatoes, and some onions and mushrooms that I had sauteed. It smells really good, but it is 3am so I won't be trying it until tomorrow afternoon. I hope it is at good as it looks!

Eggs...

I am noticing that even thought I only did the vegan thing for 20 days my body still isn't liking me eating foods that used to be 'normal' for me. I have been getting horrid cramps after I eat, and I imagine it is because my body isn't used to it... I have been trying to stick with mostly healthy food, but have fallen a time or two from that, and those are the times it seems to be worse... It makes me think that maybe this vegan thing wasn't such a bad idea after all... Starting it up again isn't something I plan on doing right away, but I really do think I might need to cut meat out completely. There are only a select few of my favorite dishes that I feel it is required and well... There is always a way around it.

I made some wonderful blueberry waffles yesterday, and I think I want to make some again soon, minus the eggs to see how I feel about them. I really am very turned off of eggs in any form at the moment after the egg I saw while cooking yesterday...

I'm in need of good things to use as a replacement when baking... Is the egg replacer powder stuff the best way to go about it? A friend of mine told me to use cornstarch and water (1tbs cold water & 1tbs cornstarch mixed together = 1 egg), and as it has worked well, I don't think it is the best idea to use all the time.... Thoughts opinions??

Easter...

I got a horrible reminder today of why I don't like to eat eggs other then they make me sick when I do... I've been sick all day since I saw that... Didn't even want to eat my food after I made it.

I have had little to no meat since I stopped the vegan thing. The smell of it grosses me out now, kind of strange how that works. Things seem to be going okay with the eating issues though. I don't think I've been eating as much as I should be, but I've at least been eating more then once a day so that is a plus. :)

Other then that, it has been a really good day so far! The snow has stopped and the sun is shining! I made some chocolates for Easter the other night, I had a lot of fun and think I might want to make them again for other holidays or just for kicks. :)

Giant peanut butter cup...



White chocolates



Because everyone needs a chocolate spoon!


Peanut butter chocolates too!

Please don't judge/hate...

A blog I have been dreading writing for a few days....

Before I get in to the details of things I am going to ask that people please be understanding and not judge me for this...

I had to stop the vegan diet, I was 20 days in, so half way through my initial 40 day goal. If you've been reading this you know I have been sick for about 12 days now. Today is the first day I haven't had to take anything and I'm still not feeling great, but at least not bad enough that I feel I need to take something for it. On top of the awful cold I haven't been able to get over I have had some other health issues come up and needless to say I have been not feeling well at all because of it.

After googling some stuff and scaring the crap out of myself on Friday I decided that I need to stop the vegan thing for a while and work on getting myself healthy. I've hardly eaten anything in a week and most of what I have been eating I have had to force myself to eat. The last few days have been mostly crackers and yogurt with grape nuts mixed in. So I'm trying to stay as vegetarian as possible, with small amounts of meat mixed in just to get some protein in my system.

Please understand it isn't that I don't have a strong love for animals or that I don't care what I am putting in my body or where it is coming from because that isn't the case at all. Heck, I cry when I go to super pet adoptions or see on the news how many animals didn't get adopted at one. My heart sinks when I see a dead animal on the side of the road, and I barely made it through Food, Inc when I watched it. This is completely a health concern at this point....

I can try it again in the future, and if/when I do I need to plan things out a bit better. Going vegetarian is an easy thing to do, and I knew that when I started this which is why I wanted to try the vegan thing instead... Turns out it was much harder then I thought it would be. I did try a lot of new things and a few of them I plan on keeping in my diet. I spent a lot of time not knowing what to eat or how to make things... I am still open for suggestions and going to make a point to keep eating healthier, still going to keep as much junk food out of my diet as possible.

So again... please don't be mad and just hope that I get better fast so I can try this again.... I will keep trying to turn my old recipes into vegan versions and update and post them on this blog...


With all of that being said, I'm still open to ideas of vegan food to try or make...

Pies & Tarts....(now with pictures!)

I made some blueberry tarts and a peach-raspberry pie tonight! Not what I should have been doing on my day I spent home from work, but I have a depressed friend and he needed treats! Plus my roommate has been asking me to bake a pie for a while, so I figured it was time. My battery on my phone died so I will have to post pictures later, but yay for yummy treats!! I am going to go leave them at his apartment while he is at work tomorrow night so he will find them when he gets home. :)

I haven't eaten much food today... all the meds and being sick is just making me not want to eat. I've had some toast and a few crackers today but that is about it... Hopefully I start eating somewhat normal again... I think my body is lacking some major vitamins! I honestly think that is why I got sick in the first place, lack of vitamins my body needs to stay healthy and a horrible sleep schedule... I don't know... I'm in ramble mood today, I'm kind of in la la land. I think the night time pills just kicked in... Better be going.... Goodnight!



In all the years I have been making pies I have never attempted doing a lattice top before. So this was my first, very poor attempt at one.




Blueberry tarts and one peach-raspberry one. I had so much fun making these!

cheese

So Wednesday will be day 7 of being sick and finding myself being tempted to eat food that I know I shouldn't be eating. I've been good and am holding to this vegan diet, but I'm still tempted when I open the fridge and see so many things that I used to munch on. I miss cheese! I'm glad that I haven't been eating it, I know I shouldn't but its soo yummy! Its the one thing I really haven't found a replacement for that I like.

My roommate has so much 'junk' food in the house and being sick and not wanting to cook, I keep thinking how much easier it would be to just eat that instead, and then I realize how much healthier I have been eating because of the diet change.... She complains all the time that its to expensive to eat healthy but I don't feel like I've spent any more money on food then I used to buying the stuff I have been. Would like to see her try, but I guess that in the end it is her decision and not mine.

Jordan has been keeping me posted on the Pie getting vegan cheese in again... I am anxiously waiting that, I LOVE pizza of any kind and am sooo curious to try vegan pizza and see how it is!

I'm pretty sure I had more to say and better words to use to say what I already have, but I think the night time medicine has finally kicked in, so off to bed I go...

2 weeks!!

So I am officially two weeks in to this vegan thing, it got a lot easier after the first week. I made some awesome salsa, learned that I LOVE fresh pineapple and vegan pancakes are pretty darn good. :)

I've still been super sick so I didn't want anything that would take to much effort for dinner tonight, and have been craving waffles for some odd reason, so I decided to make pancakes. I just found a recipe I used to use when I was younger and used the egg substitute Jordan told me about, and used coconut milk.... They turned out pretty good. :) I had no idea coconut milk was so thick! I ended up having to put a bit of soy milk in them so the batter was a little thinner.





I still have way to many potatoes I need to use up. Someone suggested a stew, but it makes a ton and I know I wouldn't eat it all before it went bad. I really don't know what else to do with them... I will figure that out eventually.

I also need to work on expanding my diet still... There is a world of vegan food out there that I know I haven't even made it past the surface yet... I really just don't know what to cook though.


Back to lounging and resting... Work again tomorrow night, I need to get better before then!!

Salsa!!!

So from Green Bee I got a produce box and a salsa box! I made the salsa tonight, super yummy but super spicy, and I imagine it will be hotter tomorrow. It made a lot of salsa too, I need to go buy some chips. :)


The produce box had lettuce, tomatoes, potatoes, celery, zucchini, avocado, plums, apples, bananas and a mini cantaloupe in it. A few things I already had, so I've got TONS of potatoes I am trying to figure out how I am going to use before they go bad. My roommate and I both used them in our dinners tonight though... If anyone has suggestions on how to use them other then the common baking or mashed that would be helpful.

I didn't make the stir fry tonight because of the potato issue, I figure I should knock some of those out of the way first. I had a tiny bit of left overs still from my fajita's the other day so I put those in a pan with a sliced up potato, a tiny bit of olive oil and at the end a scoop of salsa I just made. Put it all in a tortilla with some 'cheese.' Turned out pretty good. :) Here's a salsa picture!

I just realized that I'm two weeks in to this vegan thing as of today!!

Green Bee!

I got my green bee box today! yay!


Produce box...


I got a salsa box too!

I heart smoothies! (updated)

Smoothies are amazing!! I'm glad I finally got around to making one! They need to become a regular thing!


Still not feeling great... I feel fine as long as I'm not talking or moving, but as soon as I get up to do something or start talking with my roommate I feel like crap again... Oh what fun! Glad I am off most of tomorrow too, I just have a work meeting at 1am that I am really not looking forward to knowing I have to work a double on Sunday.... Calling out of sick was needed today though, I don't think I would have been okay to go in to work today. Weird feeling to in sick to work, it isn't something I have done in over three years!!

If I'm feeling up to it, I plan on making either some form of stir fry or maybe fried rice... We'll see...............


*updated*

I'm getting my produce box tomorrow!! I'm so excited! Should make for some interesting meals the next week or so! My roommate is picking it up in the morning on her way to work, so I won't see the box until later in the afternoon, but am sure it will be wonderful. :)

Its 12:30a and I just finally started feeling a bit better about an hour ago. I had been talking to my mom and she mentioned that maybe I should take some IBprofen to help with the swollen gland, so I took that and some tylenol as well. Its amazing how much it helped! Hoping I'm still feeling alright when I wake up tomorrow. Work meeting tomorrow at 1am, I'm DREADING it... Who schedules a meeting that late at night??? I don't think I will be home until after 2am.... Then work Sunday morning, should be an interesting few days....

Got some food ideas for tomorrow nights dinner. My mom gave me some stir fry tips... Not sure how it will turn out, but super excited to try it.

I think as much as I've had a hard time with the food I've been trying to cook, I have at least had a great time experiencing all these new things. It has forced me out of my little bubble of things I ate on a regular basis, and dinners I enjoyed making. I'm finding new things I seem to love and learning how to adapt some of the old recipes... Don't get me wrong, I've cooked plenty of bad things the last couple weeks, but it is all part of the learning experience.

Okay, I'm sick and I should be in bed, not up typing, so Off I go!

Sick :(

Today was not a good day for sticking with my new rules! I stayed up sooo late last night and was in bed until around 330p today. I just had zero energy today, even when I did get up and start moving around... I was just tired! Turns out I'm getting sick... bleh. I could kind of feel it last night, but now after going to work and talking all night, my throat hurts my head is stuffy and I have a swollen gland in my neck. Its 2am and I should be sleeping instead of doing this, but it is so hard for me to wind down after work.

I took lots of vitamins and drank some orange juice and I think I'm going to finally get around to making a fruit smoothie tomorrow... I hope it all helps. I really can't afford to get sick right now!

No exciting food eaten today... Just leftover mashed potatoes and some egg veggie egg rolls.

I really want to learn to make stir fry, I have a ton of stuff to go in it... Anyone know how to go about it or sauces or anything?? It seems like it would be pretty common sense, but I don't know. I will make it my plan for Saturday since I am off most of the day... Tomorrow I think I'm just going to eat fruit and veggies all day... Nothing processed... Hoping it will help me get better.

St. Patrick's Day!

I'm not sure if I will ever quite catch on to vegan cooking/baking. I made some cupcakes for St.Patrick's day. They were pretty yummy, but they seem soooo much different then regular ones and the only difference is that I had to use something other then eggs in them. Strange...

Here is a picture of some of the messier ones I made, I forgot to take pictures of the pretty ones before I took them to work.



I also made green potato chip cookies, green mashed potatoes, and an artichoke for dinner yesterday. The only thing I had all day that wasn't green was water. :)




potatoes...



Other then the cupcakes being a bit off I've had a good week so far with food. :)

Dinner!

The fajita's I made tonight for dinner! They had a spicy lime sauce, sooo yummy! Good to be enjoying my food again!




I even put "cheese" on them!

Day 9...

Today has been very productive!! I'm LOVING the weather and being able to spend time outside! I got all my St.Patrick's day shopping done today and can't wait for all the green food on Wednesday!

I bought a pineapple for the first time today!! I'm a bit scared to cut it, I'm good at hurting myself... I also bought a few artichokes to make for dinner on Wednesday. I stocked up on lots of veggies and am genuinely excited for food this week! I have decided that I need to learn to make stir fry, it doesn't seem like it should be to hard... We shall see!!

I did give in a little today to non-vegan food. I made a decision to add milk back into my diet. Only to drink though, I still plan on checking labels and making sure I am not buying food with milk in it and I don't plan on cooking with it. Doing all of this cold turkey was a bit harder then I had anticipated... I don't plan on 'cheating' any more though.

I had a dream the other night that I accidentally ate some chicken and it kind of freaked me out! I was panicked even a little when I woke up because I wasn't sure if I had or not... Weird..... Maybe this no meat thing is good.. :)

So much to do still today!

Day 8...suggestions welcome....

Feeling a little better again today so yay for that!! I stated taking some of my vitamins again, I think they are going to help.

I'm off work tomorrow so my plan is to do some St.Patrick's day baking! I'm going to make green potato chip cookies, which I have made vegan before but never tried to dye them a color... I'm excited for those. I'm also going to attempt making vegan cupcakes... lemon-lime ones with lemon frosting and fun St.Patrick's day sprinkles! Those might wait until Tuesday before work, we'll see how much time I have.

I am finally going to make fajita's tomorrow as well... Should be a productive day. I need to go shopping again.... I have no idea what to make.................... Help!

Day 7...

I started my day by getting up and heading to the St.Patrick's day parade with my roommate and some friends. Lots of rain but so much fun! I've never been to a St.Patty's day parade before. :) So yay for getting up at a decent time today!

As far as food goes.... I made some guacamole and was planning on making fajita's but they don't sound very good right now, so I will make them another day. The guacamole was pretty good though... I can taste that it is different then what I usually make but its one of the only things I've made this week that I've actually enjoyed.

My first couple days of this I had a hard time, my stomach was gross and I just didn't feel good, then I had a few days of feeling better and now I'm back to feeling gross again. I don't know what it is, but if this keeps up I don't know if I can keep doing this... Maybe I should have gradually cut things out instead of just doing it all at one time? I don't know, but this isn't fun. I am going to see how I feel at the same time next week.... Either way... I plan on sticking with my rules that I posted last night.

revamp...

So it has been decided that I need to start eating better, and by better I mean I've hardly eaten anything all week and most of it has been some form of grain... Not good! Jordan has been encouraging to make smoothies, so tomorrow for lunch that is the plan! I have a ton of frozen fruit and lots of juice and stuff I can use!

My roommate told me tonight if I don't start eating she is going to make me stop this 40 day trial... So in an effort to make sure this works I am going to try and make a better effort to make sure I am eating, and not just anything, but eating well. I went grocery shopping again tonight and bought stuff to make some spicy fajita's and some guacamole, so that should good for dinner tomorrow and lunch for a few days.

I was talking to a long time customer the other day at work and it got me thinking about what I am doing with this 40 day vegan thing.

My work schedule has made it so my sleeping and eating schedules are a mess. On the nights that I close I don't get home until anywhere from 12:30am and 2:00a depending on the night. I'm also not allowed to clock out for a break or leave the store while I am working because I am a manager and I can't leave the CSR's in the store by themselves. Makes it hard to get to bed at a decent hour and hard to make sure I'm eating when I should be if I forget to bring something with me.

So in an effort to do this thing right I am going to try and do a total revamp of things... I need to fix my sleep schedule... Staying up hours past when I feel tired doing nothing productive is pointless and unhealthy... So

rule #1, if I'm tired I need to go to bed.
Rule #2, no sleeping until the middle of the afternoon unless I'm genuinely sick. I stay up all night and sleep all day and get absolutely nothing done during the day.
Rule #3, no more wasting so much time doing mind numbing things like staring at the TV watching movies or spending countless hours on my computer not doing anything to better myself. Just because I get free movie rentals at work doesn't mean I need to spend all of my time watching movies, which brings me to...
Rule #4, I need to read more! I own so many books that I have never read, and a bunch more that I have and love and wouldn't mind reading again.
Rule #5, I need to make a point to plan out my meals at least a little bit... Maybe make some kind of schedule? I'm not quite sure yet how to fix my eating habits... Suggestions are welcome...

Tomorrow I am getting up bright and early to get ready for the St.Patrick's day parade. I work 5p-1:30a so its going to be a long day... Happy thoughts everything goes well!

Day 6... discourging...

So this no meat thing isn't a problem at all, but the no dairy is proving to be much harder then I thought it would be.... Being Italian and not being able to cook with dairy is not an easy thing to do. I decided tonight to try making vegan alfredo... It did not go over well. It smells just as good as the alfredo I usually make does, but the taste is just bleh.... I don't know how to fix it and the ingredients aren't much different then what I would normally use... Just the vegan versions of them. I will try it again another day. As for dinner tonight... My roommate is making fajita's so I asked her to cook some veggies separate for me so I can have some.

I have spent my entire life cooking and baking. I grew up in a house where everything was made from scratch, we never ate anything from a box... Heck my mom was a professional pastry chef. My moms family is from North Dakota so from them I learned to cook all these hearty meals.... the kinds that keep you full all day long because they grew up on farms and the men needed hearty lunches to keep them going for the day. From my dads family I learned how to cook italian food... Everything has meat or cheese or cream of some sort in it... Cutting the meat is easy, always has been. Not being able to even sprinkle parmesan cheese on something is pretty hard. I'm sure it will get easier... I'm only 6 days in...


Here's a not very good picture of the sauce I made... Its a bit pink because I add tomato's to it.

Day 4... not to exciting.

Nothing exciting to type today.... I had big thoughts going through my head today after a conversation I had with a regular at my store, and well... I just don't have the energy to get it all out right now, so I will save it for another time.

Today I remembered that I love tortilla's even if they don't have anything on them, I grabbed one on my way out the door this morning and have snacked on a couple tonight, I had a leftover stuffed pepper from yesterday when I got home and a lettuce and tomato sandwich tonight. Went and saw a movie with my roommate... Really, nothing exciting today... I will try and post something more exciting tomorrow.

Day 3...

So last night after I posted I had some crackers with the vegan cream cheese... not so sure how the cream cheese was, I couldn't really taste it with the crackers I bought... The crackers were pretty nasty though, but thats not a vegan thing it was just some gross flavored crackers. I was still needing to find something to eat though since I hadn't eaten dinner yet. I decided to make a BLT, minus the 'B' of course! ;) I used the veganaise on it and it was so good! I was really surprised. I figured since I was on a roll of trying new things I would try the vegan cheddar cheese that I bought for the peppers I made... I made the mistake of smelling it first and had a little tiny sliver of it... Soo not something I want to try again... I have a habit of smelling everything I eat or drink before I try it and well, maybe it would be better if I didn't smell it first...


So I made some stuffed peppers today, I think they turned out pretty good! I made one with just spanish rice in it and real cheese on top for my roommate, because well... she is a bit scared of all this stuff, and honestly I don't blame her. I chopped up some mushrooms and onions and and sauteed them in some olive oil with some salt and pepper and mixed that with the rice for two of them and then for the third one I added some boca burger stuff to it. I even tried some of the vegan sour cream with it on the side... not to bad. I decided that maybe I should give that cheese another try so I put some on top of a couple of them but haven't tried it yet.

Maybe it is because I know it isn't cheese, or the fact that its rubbery feeling or that it didn't really melt in the oven even though it said it would... I'm not sure, but I guess this whole thing is about trying new things so I really do need to give it another chance.

Oh! So one of my coworkers has been vegan for a really long time and has been helpful in letting me know about where to find things and what ingredients to look for that I wouldn't normally care was in something so that I know I shouldn't have it... Anyway he gave me this website http://www.greenbeeproduce.com . Its pretty cool, you order a box of fresh produce on Monday and on Saturday morning you go pick it up. There are a bunch of different pick up points, you can just choose the one closest to you. My roommate and I decided to give it a try and ordered 2 different boxes last night, one with just a bunch of fruits and vegetables in it and one is a salsa box to make your own salsa. I'm excited to go pick it up on Saturday! Being as picky as I am with fruits and veggies I'm not so sure how it will work out but I figure if I don't eat it my roommate probably will.

That is all for today...

Here is a picture of the peppers I made.

Vegan Day 2...

Today I went shopping for some vegan food.... Things I never thought I would try, but here I am..... Try something new every day, right?

I bought vegan mayo that actually smells better then real mayo... I'm excited to try it on a sandwich! I also bought two kinds of vegan cheese! I find it hilarious that a selling point on the package is that it melts! I should take a picture! I bought some soy milk... something that I get in Jamba Juice when I go there but one of those things I have never tried on its own even though I grew up with it in my house... What else... vegan friendly cream cheese and vegan friendly sour cream...

I was going to make stuffed peppers tonight but its already 10:30pm so I'm not sure yet if I will still. I'm not to concerned about them turning out okay because they aren't much different then how I would normally make them... Its the cheese to go on top that I am curious to try!

I also bought some stuff to make vegan alfredo... To be honest, I am a little afraid of how it will turn out, but I looked up some stuff online earlier and well I'm hoping it will work out.

Okay... That is all for tonight!

Vegan Day 1...

I didn't really plan this vegan diet well... I have just some basics to hold me over until I get paid on Friday and will have more money to spend at the store on food. I had a boca burger today for lunch and a Jamba Juice while I was at work and a PB&J sandwich when I came home from work tonight.

Nothing terribly exciting and all things I would normally eat...In all honesty I probably will be eating a lot of similar things for the rest of the week, but plan on finding some recipes this week and start making some more substantial meals.

I think that this is going to also help with my extra spending at work.... Its easy to just grab some candy and snack on it if I forgot to bring dinner to work. I know that eating most candy is still an option but I am choosing to cut it all out while I am doing this.... Lets see how it goes!

Vegan

For Lent this year I decided I would go Vegan for 40 days... I didn't start it on the 17th of February like I was supposed to though. I started Sunday March 7th, my last day will be Sunday April 18th. I've decided I would start a separate blog just to track things and see how it goes.... I posted a blog yesterday on my other one so today will be a lot of posts just to have everything in one place....