Greetings from DC

We have been in DC for a couple of days now, and the trip is going really well. The flight was a non-stop and very easy and almost fun. Great, funny crew on Southwest and really nice neighbor passengers. Little bean played and napped and the flight was over in a jiffy. Her aunty picked us up at BWI, saving us a lot of hassle. We only brought 2 carry on suitcases and the stroller, but that was enough to handle.

Saturday morning we walked down to Eastern Market. The farmer's market was very busy, and there was some beautiful produce.


We bought local lettuce, tomatos, pears, zucchini and a huge stalk of gorgeous broccoli. We stopped at a stand run by an ecuadorian guy and purchased a couple of really random knitted finger puppets: a buzzard (bean's choice) and an alpaca (my choice). The seller was stoked that I spoke spanish to him. And I was stoked that I could! G cooked a delicious pasta primavera with the fresh veggies and made a great salad too. Just delicious...we cleaned our plates.

The little bean has pretty much decided to reject the time change, so we go to bed late and sleep late too. Auntie has been very flexible with our wacky schedule, but keeping the bean happy is our first priority. We woke up to the delicious cinnamony aroma of Creme brulee french toast!


Sunday was designated for apple-picking. We stopped at the world's busiest most cramped Whole Foods to get a picnic then kept heading west to Homestead Farms. I was a little nervous when we arrived because it looked sooooo busy with lots of cars in the dirt lot. But the orchards were so large it was no hassle at all. Little bean and dad stalked people in the lot for a discarded wheelbarrow and we were off and running! The farm didn't have any Honey Crisp apples, but they did have Sun Crisp and Sun Fujis. We also picked Red Delicious, which although usually gross in my opinion were sweet and juicy. Cameo, Staymans and Pink Lady round out the list. How many apples did we pick???? Can you guess???? My guess was right on target.










We also picked a couple cute pumpkins, little but still to "heavfy" for the bean. We picnicked in one of the orchard rows and watched the hay riders heading to the pumkin patch. Just a really fun day. Dinner was nachos and they were yummy too. Today, Monday, we are off to the National Zoo!
PS- It was 30 pounds!!!!!!

Should be too hot to cook

And too hot to eat soup.  
Oh well, I've been doing both.  Took the little bean and Grandma N to Sipz Cafe, down in Clairemont last week.  I devoured my wonton soup, but managed to snap a picture of it before I ate it all.  It was crowded with people at noon, and I am always happy to see a very busy vegetarian restaurant!  Service was speedy and our food came quickly, always a bonus when accompanied by a 20 month old.

Now my next masterpiece is really an accomplishment, toot toot (that's my own horn). 

 I rarely order Pad Thai at thai restaurants due to many poor experiences.  Too sour.  Too sweet.  Too much not vegetarian.  Then I finally got my hands on some tamarind paste & fresh lemongrass and I was ready to make VWAV's Brooklyn Pad Thai.  

Oh boy, I was not disappointed.  This was truly a delicious dish.  I did make a few adjustments, used 1/2 as much soy sauce for one, and sprinkled julienned raw cucumber and crushed peanuts instead of cooking the dish with bean sprouts and peanuts.  Man, this is making me soooo hungry!!!

I've also been making the Fronch Toast from VWAV, and the little bean just snaps that up like a baby turtle.  It really is tasty.  

This is my mexican restaurant meal-at-home.  Cheese enchiladas, cilantro rice and black beans.  This was really a better than restaurant quality dish.  

Cheese Enchilada recipe, makes 9 enchiladas cause that's what fits in my pan!

9 corn tortillas

~ 1 lb. shredded organic jack cheese

1 can of El Pato brand enchilada sauce

1 Tbsp canola oil

Preheat oven to 375.  Heat canola oil over medium low heat.  Pour a layer of enchilada sauce in 11 inch baking dish.  Dip tortillas one at a time to soften, only keeping them in the pan just long enough to soften - not crisp.  Place softened tortilla in pan, filling with a couple tablespoons of cheese and rolling up as you go.  Repeat for all 9 tortillas.  Pour most of the sauce over the top of the prepared enchiladas, then top with remaining cheese.  I usually have about 1/2 cup of sauce left over.  Cover the pan with foil, then bake for 20 minutes.  Uncover and bake until cheese is browned, or you can see the sauce bubbling.

Cilantro Rice Recipe

2 cups of cooked rice

2 Tablespoons butter (olive oil is OK)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Cook garlic in the butter over medium low heat in a medium skillet.  Remove from heat, stir in rice and cilantro (or do it in another bowl).  Salt to taste.

The black bean recipe

1 can of organic black beans

1/2 onion, small dice

1 clove garlic, minced

1 bay leaf

Cook onion in a couple teaspoons of olive oil in a sauce pan.  Add the garlic after a few minutes.  Dump in the can of beans and the bay leaf, and 1/2 can of water.  Cook over medium low heat until most of the water is reduced.

Blackened Tofu-liciousness

There is the most annoying character on Project Runway this season (OK, there are multiple annoying characters, but this guys is the worst). Blayne makes everything "licious", except when he writes it down he always spells is licous. I'm so petty, but it so annoying. Anyway, his super crispy fakin' bakin' tan must have gotten me in the mood to blacken some food!

I recently snagged my dad's beautifully seasoned cast iron mega-skillet and haven't been sure what to make first. Had some hamburger buns and guac in the fridge, so knew it was time to try to copy Taco Loco's amazing blackened tofu burger. I grabbed Ole' Faithful, the Joy of Cooking, and flipping around came to their Cajun Dry rub recipe. I didn't measure exactly, but it was more or less a teaspoon of each: dried thyme, dried oregano, paprika, and black pepper. Plus a 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt, and a healthy sprinkling of ground chili peppers. I pressed the firm tofu for about 1/2 hour while I prepared the seasonings above. Cut the block of tofu into 3 "steaks", dipped them in a couple Tbsps of melted butter then dredged the tofu in the seasonings. Heated the pan up to 6 on my electric stovetop (this is really hot on my stove), turned on the exhaust fan, then let those little puppies hit the super hot iron skillet. I drizzled the tofu with the remaining butter (about a tsp was left) and cooked for 3 minutes on each side. Perfectly blackened, and didn't smoke up the house a bit! It turned out great, but was missing the noise of 101 traffic, sketchy parking, scarce seating and ocean breezes of Taco Loco. Sigh.

The Tofu

The Burger

Lazy August Days

Haven't been cooking too much of note, too hot and too lazy to put anything fancy together. Haven't been eating out though, either, so that is good for us and our budget. I'm bummed that I didn't grab a shot of the greek salad the hubby made this weekend, it was beautiful. That is his "go-to" salad, and it rocks.

VWAV Fronch Toast (unadorned)

So yesterday I made creme brulee french toast (stillllll working on perfecting the recipe for this one) and vegan french toast from VWAV. That was delicious. With maple syrup and earth balance on top, the vegan french toast tasted just like french toast sticks. In a good way. Oh man, even the hubby ate 2 pieces before he went to the traditional stuff.



Killa Breakfast Scramble
I guess we were on a breakfast kick, because we had a scramble for dinner. I had some cooked red potatoes in the fridge, so I just browned them in a skillet with onions and garlic, threw in some beaten eggs and YUM! Topped with cheddar cheese, cilantro and a little dollop of sour cream. Really good for a hot august night, but seemed funny eating breakfast on the patio at night ;)
I was happy because it didn't look like a pile of brown mush. That seems to happen most of the time when I scramble a bunch of stuff together.

Soyrizo Scramble

Ah, when the hubby comes up with a recipe, he really does it right. We had a similar dish as a daily special at the Naked Cafe in Solana Beach.

The Soyrizo Scramble
makes 2 brunch servings
3 eggs
2 corn tortillas, torn into pieces
1 T canola oil
1/2 pkg soyrizo (Trader Joe's has a version now)
1/4 C chopped cilantro
1/2 C feta cheese
1 avocado, sliced
















1.) Beat eggs until well mixed, he usually does this in a pyrex measuring cup. Add the tortillas to the eggs.
2.) Fry up the soyrizo in 1 Tbsp canola oil over medium heat. When crispy and brown, remove to paper towel covered plate.
3.) Scramble the egg/tortilla mixture. Fold in soyrizo, remove from heat. Fold in feta cheese and cilantro.
4.) Serve with slices of avocado on top.

Sleepy Saturday Night

After a very full day, the hubby and I are enjoying a lazy evening. He got up super duper early to get sod from home depot, we didn't need much but he wanted to beat the rush. By the time the bean and I were up at 8, the sod was laid in the patio and we were all ready for breakfast. I made breakfast sandwiches: whole wheat toast filled with scrambled eggs, cheddar cheese, and Morningstar farms sausage patties. Oh and ketchup. Plenty of ketchup. The little one only had eggs and ketchup. We all really love the organic ketchup from Trader Joes. Soooo tasty. Of course, eating al fresco always improves ones appetite.

After trying in vain to purchase a baby bike seat at the local sporting goods store, we returned home for lunch: leftovers from last night. I made a modified Bisquick impossible quiche/pie. I used garlic sauteed kale for the veggie, and it was really tasty. The kale wasn't bitter at all (the hubby's usual complaint), and came out like a mix between broccoli and spinach. Served it up with crispy parmesan potato wedges and we were happy campers. The baby managed to pick out every bit of the kale and just eat the eggy bits. Too funny.

We all crashed out for a nap, then headed down to the beach with my mom. She hadn't been to the beach in years, and it was just a gorgeous day. The water was warm, but the waves were a little choppy for swimming. The little bean charged the water, we have to keep her from diving in completely. She really loves digging in the sand, too, and now that she's older she isn't interested in sampling it.

Dinner was at Kealani's hawaiian restaurant. Mom and hubby enjoyed mahi mahi with rice and mac salad, and I had the teriyaki tofu with the same sides. I was so nervous, because tofu at non-asian restaurants can be ever so awful. What a relief, cooked to perfection and not drowning in sickly-sweet teriyaki sauce. I really liked it and even got to eat the mac salad. There is a chain in San Diego that has meat IN EVERYTHING, including ham in the macaroni salad. Well, they might have iceberg lettuce salad or something, but that doesn't make a meal. We finished off the meal with malasadas, which were super fresh and piping hot. 3 people well-fed for under $25. (The baby gorged herself on rice and malasadas, but that doesn't really count).

Mmmm vegan mac 'n cheez

Actually, this has been a pretty vegan-filled week. Except for the delicioso pizza from last night...Trader Joe's boboli-type crust topped with homemade pizza sauce and plenty 'o melty mozarella. The hubby and I agreed, it was really better than delivery! Little bean ate her little pizza-lovin heart out.

Tonight was the vegan mac 'n cheez, from vegandad's recipe. I tried a taste of it right out of the blender, and I was really impressed. I made it with tiny ziti, which was a fun size for the baby. She doesn't like regular macaroni and cheese, but definitely ate a good portion of this version. She was still hungry for something else, though, and polished off a man-size bowl of rice and black beans. Sheesh, this kid can eat!

Midweek I made seitan & udon noodles with peanut sauce, based on the VWAV recipe. Really good, but the little bean totally avoided it. She seems to avoid peanut butter for some reason. Maybe a good one?

Last weekend the hubby and baby made pumpkin waffles from VWAV. They were outstanding, and really enjoyable with tempeh bacon and maple syrup. Mmmmm. They freeze and reheat very well, too.