Vegan Exchange Numero Tres

For our next installment of our Vegan Swap, we were paired to receive goodies from Janessa of Epicurious Vegan. I got to meet Janessa oh-so-briefly last summer at Vida Vegan Con, the extraordinary vegan blogger conference of which she is a co-founder and organizer.

She sent us a super thoughtful and really nice package. I adore the card featuring one of the Portland bridges that she sent (from Lark Press). It makes me even MORE nostalgic for Portland than I usually am when I gaze at it, a daily occurrence because I set it in a prominent place.

She also sent us chocolate, chocolate darling dear chocolate. Fancy and delightful-- one a fig, fennel and almond bar and the other chocolate raspberry. Wow, wow.

And yummy yummy sprouted crackers, which my son couldn't wait to try...India black salt...and lime sugar!!! !!!!  Yes, that's !!!!!!! The black salt really does add a strangely deliciously eggy flavor not usually found in vegan food, and I'm saving/hoarding the lime sugar for some autumn cupcake baking. All of these things are really great and the kind of thing that intrigued me but that I wouldn't necessarily purchase for myself. I think that is one of the great beauties of this idea!

Thank you so much Janessa, and if you, dear reader, are down with trying out the swap, get up in Cat's email box here!

Vegan Exchange Numero Dos

I'm jealous of my past self-- the one who noshed on these cookies and this candy bar.

You may recall that my kid and I are enjoying the vegan exchange run by Cat at The Verdant Life. We had a glitch in that we didn't receive a package in May, but June's package was from Janna over yonder at Nom Vegan Nom. Yeah, ok, Janna's package was SUPERB!

Those multi-seed crackers? Delicious. My son still asks if we have any.
Those chocolate chip cookies? Gone rather quickly.
Those gummi bears? What the what? They were so good.
That chocolate bar? Son never saw it.
Ramen and rice and beans? I had a bachelorette weekend and they were just right for my cooking-for-one lifestyle!

Thank you so much Janna, we loved our goodies but most of all, we loved your card. We are crazy for kitties!

Potluck Picnic in the Park

Even though we haven't been mealgrouping it in the way in which we began, we've all been sharing meals together semi-regularly. I will be posting more on pulling together potlucks later, but I wanted to share our most recent potluck, which was a picnic in a local park. It was summer weather, there were adorable children playing, delightful adults chatting and fireflies as the sun went down! And all of the food was so, so good.

Summer picnic! (photo by Dianne Wenz of Veggiegirl)

The menu included...

• Pasta salad with black beans and cilantro
• Quinoa mushroom risotto
• Bean salad
• Carrot salad with a light lemon dressing
• Corn salad
• Watermelon salad
• Bread with pesto spread
• Slow cooker focaccia 
• Lima/edamame hummus
• Cookie dough balls
• No-bake double chocolate torte (click for the recipe, do not be daunted by the avocado)

...and an adorable baby!

Vegan Exchange Numero Uno

One of my favorite kids and I signed up for The Verdant Life's Vegan Food Exchange. We were paired to send a box to Vegan Princess in an Omni Kingdom and we received an awesome, awesome box from Esther at A,B,C Vegan!

Esther emailed me ahead of time to check in and to ask if we had any particular likes or dislikes. I told her we like a lot of healthy foods but we LOVE chocolate. Man, did she hit the nail on the head with the box that she sent to us!!

1. She sent us brownies from one of our family's favorite bakeries of all time, Sticky Fingers. YES!

2. We also got a fabulous chocolate bar - Sea Salt and Nibs from Madecasse. I highly recommend!

3. She made us chocolate dipped macaroons, which were heaven in a bite. I love chocolate and coconut together.

4. In the healthier category, she sent us Pizza Flavored Flax Snax which are delicious. I've had them before and they are a great healthy, on-the-go snack. She also sent Kaia Food's Garlic and Sea Salt Sprouted Sunflower Seeds. We've enjoyed snacking on these and I also made a yummy kale pesto using them as a base as well.

5. Esther also sent us a very cool card which she made herself! It reflects many of her great attributes: sunny and inspirational.

Are you swooning? I was.

Thank you so much, Esther, for the wonderful package, and thank you to Cat for coordinating this fun swap. It is a great, fun project. Check out some other swaps that went on this month. We're looking forward to next month!

Interested in swappin'?  Then hop on over here and sign up!

Checking In!

Vegan Ice Cream at Go Lightly!

Hello, hello!! We've missed you when we aren't being REALLY busy. Since we've been away, we've been so happy to have been featured on Our Hen House -- thanks, Jasmin and Mariann!

Our official meal share is on a hiatus right now, while we put energy into other projects. Besides the variety of ice cream that she offers, Jen C. has vastly expanded the vegan lunch offerings at Go Lightly, which have become a hit with vegans, veggies and omnivores alike. Watching her business grow and thrive is wonderful. Her food is fabulous, so please come check her out (an easy and fun trip from Manhattan, or check out how close she is to you, Jersey folks!).

In the meantime, Jen G. has been having a series of monthly vegan potlucks for friends of all eating persuasions. Each month has been a fun and yummy experience (and no two alike) and they all tend to feature freshly baked bread. Stay tuned for some photos, updates and tips about hosting a series of vegan potlucks.

Finally, in the spirit of communal vegan delights, I wanted to point you to this great sounding opportunity: Cat at The Verdant Life is starting up a vegan food swap. Click on over if you would like to sign up. Who knows, maybe we'll become vegan swap buddies?

Chana Saag, Brown Basmati Rice and Two Chutneys

Date:  10/28/2011
Cook:  Jen G.
Menu: Chana Saag (Indian Greens with Chickpeas), Brown Basmati Rice, Green Chutney and Sweet Carrot Chutney

The Vegan Slow Cooker continues to be a great resource. Tonight I made Chana Saag (with kale) and served it with brown rice and two chutneys: a green chutney and a sweet carrot chutney. It was my first time making both-- I'd add some salt to the green chutney next time, and less sugar to the carrot chutney. Heaped in a bowl all together, it was a delicious meal.

I delivered the goods to Jen at one of our local bookstores, where we gathered around Terry Hope Romero, who was swinging by our fair town to talk about baking, pie, Thanksgiving, life and stuff like that. Oh. I have a new book about making pies. Yes. Vegan Pie in the Sky.

There is a Boston creme pie calling my name.

Mushroom Hot Pot

Date:  10/24/2011
Cook:  Jen C.
Menu: Mushroom Hot Pot with Black Pepper Grilled Tofu

Jen cooked up a delicious mushroom hot pot, inspired by today's post on the PPK. It was another instance of me feeling very grateful for meal group since I had a long and unpleasant day, including driving for 6 hours and eating lunch at what some people refer to as the world's worst restaurant (without hyperbole). Living in such a vegan-friendly place, one does get a little accustomed to restauranteurs taking veg*ns into account.

Jen's soupy meal was deliciously flavored and added much needed warmth and flavor to my day. It was eaten so quickly that there is no photographic evidence of it's existence.

Mushroom Soup. Scallion and Corn Cornbread.

Date:  10/20/2011
Cook:  Jen G.
Menu:  Mushroom Soup, Fresh Corn and Scallion Cornbread, Pumpkin Puff Cookies

Every once in a while I enjoy a good mug of mushroom soup. I like the recipe found in La Dolce Vegan although I'm not all that picky. I paired it with the Fresh Corn and Scallion Cornbread from Appetite for Reduction which was tasty though somewhat lacking in loft.

For dessert I made Pumpkin Puff Cookies, also from La Dolce Vegan. We shared them freely and widely and they proved to be very popular with everyone (or else I just know really polite people). I loved them and justified eating a large number of them because they are totally healthy because they have pumpkin in them. I excel in justifying things like that to myself.

Slightly flat but very good cornbread full of scallions and kernels of corn.

Popular pumpkin puff cookies .

Gnocchi Soup

Date:  10/17/2011
Cook:  Jen C.
Menu: SOUP! With GNOCCHI!

Jen and I had shared a lunch of leftovers together this afternoon but she still provided us with a soup for dinner (pictured here with a piece of bread from yet another loaf of No Knead Bread). With autumn in full swing, the chilly weather makes soup eating even more important.

Burritos Filled With Potatoes

Now this is an autumnal meal I can appreciate.

Date:  10/20/2011
Cook:  Jen G.
Menu: Mashed Potato and Edamame Burritos with Quinoa; Tortilla Soup

Mashed Potato and Edamame Burrito Filling from The Vegan Slow Cooker intrigued me and I must say...it was delicious! It was really simple and makes a very tasty eating time experience. I made Tortilla Soup from La Dolce Vegan and it was chock full of black beans and corn and brothy and good. I also cooked up a pot of quinoa to throw into the mix.

I had two regrets about this meal. One was that I left the burrito filling in the slow cooker for waaaaaay too long and the condensation from the process caused the filling to become more watered down than was probably warranted. I hasten to add that it was still delicious. The other concern was that my tortilla chips for the soup were hella stale, dude. Learn from my errors, friends.

Jen C. and I got to have this meal in each other's presence because she came over to make felt flowers as favors for a shower we were planning. Mashed potato burritos and craft night...heavenly.

Burgers! Salad! Pickle!

Date:  10/11/2011
Cook:  Jen C.
Menu:  Raw Sunshine Burger with Raw Sundried Tomato Ketchup and Kale Salad; Homemade Pickle

I adored this meal but for once, we were not all in agreement and I was not in the majority. One person in my house didn't like the burger and one person in my house refused to even try it because it was served, for crying out loud, on bread and not a bun. Heavens to Murgatroyd. Who cares, right? Apparently sometimes kids do.

Jen C. is serving this yummy sunflower seed based burger now over at Go Lightly, and I recommend that you run (don't walk) over to get one as soon as possible. That kale salad is delish, as well. It goes without saying that it is extremely healthy.

Oh, p.s. - I love pickles.

From the Vault: Summertime

Due to a back to school night situation, we will be bringing you our regularly scheduled meal group meal...tomorrow.  In the meantime, please enjoy thinking about back when it was the early days of summer and the Eastern seaboard was experiencing a heatwave.

Date:06/09/11

Cook:  Jen G.
Menu: Cold Soup, Rice and Quinoa Salad and Watermelon

The soup was disappointing to me, it was missing a depth of flavor. The grain salad was standard and prosaic. But the watermelon....delish.

Now I'm even MORE nostalgic for summer.

Sweet and Sour Tofu, Tomato Basil Salad, Rice and Bread

Date:10/06/11

Cook:  Jen G.
Menu:  Sweet and Sour Tofu, Tomato Basil Salad, Brown Basmati Rice and A Loaf of Bread

I don't eat raw tomatoes, but a pretty little salad like this one makes me wish that I did. Also, I don't have a great track record with rice preparation but this batch came out well!

The tomato basil salad was fresh from our little garden. The basmati brown rice was fresh from the shelf of a nearby Trader Joe's. The sweet and sour tofu recipe was from The Vegan Slow Cooker. (I slow cooked it a little too long so it was somewhat on the mushy side, but the flavors were still delish). 

One hard working slow cooker. Note that my meal somehow didn't look as nice as the photo in the cookbook. Paging my food stylist...

And the bread....I always love to talk about how much I love the No Knead Bread recipe published a few years ago in the NYT. It is nearly foolproof and I have proven this a few times by seriously mucking up the directions. I heartily and nerdily enjoy coating it with different seed/grain combos each time (um, btw: wheat germ kind of burns in the 450 degree oven). Today I used half whole wheat flour and half white for the dough and chose to coat with some Irish oatmeal mixed with a bit of coarse sea salt and black sesame seeds. Our loaf came out really nicely.

My love for the No Knead Bread knows no bounds.

Lasagna, Oh You

Date:10/04/11

Cook:  Jen C.
Menu: Lasagne, Curly Kale Salad and Blood Oranges

Jen delivered a fine, veggieriffic lasagne to my porch just when I needed it most. I cannot begin to describe what a relief it was to pop that sucker into the oven and not have to worry a whit about preparing dinner that night because I was really running with other projects, as was the other person capable of meal preparation in our home.

We all really liked it, my kid is a big lasagne fan and loves to deconstruct the layers. I prefer a more tidy approach to my own lasagne ingestion but either way you slice it, it was great. We all loved her idea of tossing some black beans into the mix.  The kale salad was a perfect side.

Hello, My Friends, Hello

Date: 09/29/11

Cook:  Jen G.

Menu:  Thai Pumpkin Coconut Soup; Amaranth, Roasted Tomato and Basil Terrine; Jelly Doughnut Cupcakes

 I do declare! Our meal group has been back in swing for a few weeks, and here it is already the first full week of Vegan Mofo, and yet this is my first post in a whiiiii-lllllle (say it like Oprah would). In my defense, because not posting this far into Mofo makes me defensive I guess, its been hella busy, and not always in a good way. But then, sometimes in a good way.  

I also have news! First, I have to let you know that Stefanie has had to say goodbye to our meal group due to some dietary changes she is implementing. However, we still get to hang out with her, even if you don't know what she is eating any more. Second, Jen C. has introduced a raw vegan cafe into the mix over at Go Lightly! I'm finding myself partial to her Save the Tuna on raw onion bread. Locals and near-locals, check her out. Yummy smoothies and desserts too.

So lets get to what we all come here for: talking about the food!

I got a copy of The Vegan Slow Cooker and I Literally Walk Around Town With It. For example, today it went on a journey to a school, a Starbucks and a French cafe. It gets around town. And it is good. I am impressed. I'll be doing a full-blown review of it over on Vegbooks after I make a few more things from it to verify it is as solid as I currently think it is, but its a gift that keeps on giving, in a really good way. Take, for example, this Thai Pumpkin Coconut Soup. Very warming and quite simple to prepare. 

I wanted to make something with amaranth and concocted this little terrine using amaranth and ingredients from my teeny tiny garden. I am not sure that it was a hit but it wasn't bad or anything. It also totally didn't match the flavor profile of the soup, but sometimes that works. Sometimes, perhaps even this time, it doesn't.

Finally, those doughnut cupcakes from Veganomicon. My kid calls them muffcakes, a hybrid of muffin and cupcake. We ate a lot of them that day. Isa and Terry tell ya to let the tops get stale for optimal yummyness but they have never lasted long enough for that to occur in our home.

Post-immersion blending, this soup is just waiting for delivery.

Isn't that just a happy scene? Slow cooker burbling away, amaranth awaiting chilling and roasted tomato and basil stuff all mushed up in the food processor.

I just love these sweet delights.

Aztec Salad

I want to lick the screen of my computer.

Date: 05/12/2011
Cook:  Jen G.
Menu: Aztec Salad: Broiled Marinated BBQ Tempeh Served on a Bed of Greens With a Quinoa Salad, Topped With Roasted Tomato Balsamic Vinaigrette and Pan-Toasted Spiced Pepitas

The recipe for this Aztec Salad is in Crazy Sexy Diet by vegan darling Kris Carr (a book I highly recommend, not just for its fabulous recipes but because it gives great insight and guidance into living a healthier life). 

Ahhh.  Aztec Salad.  This is possibly one of the most delicious things that I have ever eaten.  The combination of all of the different flavors was divine.  I will admit that it took some time in the kitchen -- the tempeh needed was steamed, marinated and THEN broiled, the tomatoes roasted, the quinoa cooked up, the pepitas seasoned...yadda yadda...but it was so very worth it.  I did used a prepared BBQ sauce (such cheatz!) though the recipe gives you ingredients to make your own.  I know you will love this so please give it a try!  And trust me when I say that the dressing is key!  Report back to me on how loudly your taste buds sang with delight when they first met a forkful of this treat.

Tofu with Vegetables, Brown Rice and Confetti Slaw

Date: 05/11/2011
Cook:  Stefanie
Menu:  Cubed Tofu with Collards, Asparagus and Mushrooms with Brown Rice, Confetti Coleslaw

With asparagus in season, this meal was delicious!  The tofu was seasoned really nicely and the accompanying veggies were super and made me feel healthy and good.  As if we needed to feel more virtuous about this meal, the confetti coleslaw was a light and delightful complement.

Forty Clove Broccoli and Chickpeas, Rice Salad, Millet

Date: 05/05/2011
Cook:  Jen G.
Menu: Forty Clove Broccoli and Chickpeas, Rice Salad and Millet

Appetite for Reduction continues to be an awesome resource.  I highly recommend this book-- I've really enjoyed cooking from it! I LOVED the idea of this recipe for a few of my favorite taste sensations (garlic/broccoli/chick peas) all in one dish, and I enjoyed making it as well.  It is definitely very garlicky but in an extremely delicious way.  The cool rice salad and millet provided some nice balance.

Spaghetti With Non-Meatballs, Garlic Bread and Salad

Date: 05/04/2011
Cook:  Stefanie
Menu: Spaghetti With Non-Meatballs, Garlic Bread and Salad

This simple meal was so tasty!!  Stephanie didn't know that we were celebrating a birthday in our household and that her meal that night was incredibly welcome-- and devoured in a flash.  I loved the Non-Meatballs. I traded my child extra non-meatballs for the garlic bread, which he loved. 

One More Month of Hiatus!

Suburban Vegan Meal Group has been on a summertime hiatus for the month of July, and we'll continue our break through the end of August.  In the meantime, check back for posts about some of our spring meals, and enjoy the rest of your summer!  And if you are in the area, stop by for some yummy ice cream at Go Lightly -- I highly recommend the peanut butter fudge!