October 17, 2011

The #VeganMofo Emergency Post


Everyone needs an emergency back-up post from time to time and this one is mine. 20-30 posts in a month is  a lot of work and half of the struggle is finding topics to blog about and the time to blog about them. Lucky in my VeganMoFo blogroll I have 800+ blogs to steal borrow ideas from, so if you see this post it means I didn’t have time to write one ;)

1. Favorite non-dairy milk?
I haven’t experimented a lot with non-dairy milks but soy and almond have been great so far, especially the low fat varieties.

2. What are the top 3 dishes/recipes you are planning/planned to cook?
Pumpkin/pecan pie, candy corn, seitan.

3. Topping of choice for popcorn?
Nothing.. or sea salt! Or caramel, possibly with crushed nuts… Lolly Gobble Bliss Bombs anyone?

 4. Most disastrous recipe/meal failure?
Once I made bread and mixed up the salt & sugar. Even though it tasted like Playdough I drowned it in jam and ate it anyway because I was too proud to admit defeat.

5. Favorite pickled item?
Dill pickles and ginger! Also the Japanese side-dish pickles. Also the pickles in burgers and cocktail onions and beetroot… umm… a lot?

 6. How do you organize your recipes?
I don’t. I have a couple of books, a few bookmarks and a few magazines but that’s it. I’m not a big recipe person.

7. Compost, trash, or garbage disposal?
I live in an apartment and we have rubbish and recycling collection only. I had an incident with an Insinkerator once I don’t want to talk about.

8. If you were stranded on an island and could only bring 3 foods…what would they be (don’t worry about how you’ll cook them)?
Wholemeal bagels, Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese and Tropical Fruit Salad (hah! cheated)

 9. Fondest food memory from your childhood?
Being at a party and eating too many lollies, then the amazement on the host parents’ face when I shyly asked if they had any carrots. Love my veg!

10. Favorite vegan ice cream?
The best I have access to is Tofutti cuties. They’re awesome. Dying to try Coconut Bliss though, I found something similar and it wasn’t vegan, although it was dairy & egg free. Ugh.

11. Most loved kitchen appliance?
My Starbuck’s 4 cup filtered coffee machine. Followed closely by the George Forman grill at my parents’ house (until I manage to steal it) and my waffle iron.

12. Spice/herb you would die without?
The powdered vegetable stock with the bits in it. I forget what it’s called. Also the Japanese chilli powder with black sesame seeds.

13. Cookbook you have owned for the longest time?
Probably my Donna Hay cookbooks.

14. Favorite flavor of jam/jelly?
Strawberry or Raspberry. Boring, I know.

15. Favorite vegan recipe to serve to an omni friend?
I have a few that I like to “Surprise, it’s Vegan!” people with, I try to make different things each time.

16. Seitan, tofu, or tempeh?
Seitan because I don’t understand it so it’s a treat food for me. Then tempeh because it’s so hearty, then tofu, but I love them all.

17. Favorite meal to cook (or time of day to cook)?
Breakfast! I love breakfast foods. Nothing like a big ol’ veggie fry up, or pancakes, waffles, epic breakfast bagels, porridge, etc…

18. What is sitting on top of your refrigerator?
An Oreo branded mini basketball backboard & net that fell off the side.

19. Name 3 items in your freezer without looking.
A half full bottle of vodka, frozen vegetables and wholemeal pizza bases. Oh, and bread.
Here’s a photo I prepared earlier… I actually had a photo of my freezer contents in my phone, so there. What of it.

20. What’s on your grocery list?
Literally, from the list in my pocket; Bagels, new toothbrush, kitty litter, coat hangers, salad, vegetables, peanut butter, tempeh/tofu, beans in cans, mozzarella Cheezly, Better Than Cream Cheese, coffee, filter papers, kitten food, soy milk.

21. Favorite grocery store?
Habib Wholefoods, Radical Grocery, Macro Wholefoods (gone now), Thomas Dux

22. Name a recipe you’d love to veganize, but haven’t yet.
Heaps of stuff form Donna Hay, I can’t even choose. Turducken might happen one day. Ha.

23. Food blog you read the most (besides Isa’s because I know you check it everyday). Or maybe the top 3?
Actually I don’t read Isa’s. I think that calls for a #badvegan? To make up for it, you may have my Top 5. If y’all would like to recommend me more, go for it.
Easy As Vegan Pie
Vegan Crunk
Carrie on Vegan
Where’s The Beef?
JL Goes Vegan

24. Favorite vegan candy/chocolate?
Red Vines.

25. Most extravagant food item purchased lately?
I bought Kale chips (1 bag for $7.50 or 2 for $10), but I’ve been poor & conservative lately so my protein shake tub, even at the price I get it for is probably the most.

26. Ingredients you are scared to work with?
I’m scared to make seitan, but I’ll get there. Nutritional yeast (the work “nooch” creeps me out), probably agar as well.

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October 15, 2011

HPG’s Pole Idol and #VeganMoFo so far…

I’m still struggling to keep up with all the blogs, yesterday I didn’t get a chance to read any because I was so busy! Before work I had a house inspection, after work I had the second of my Pole Jam workshops for the Cancer Council, then caught up with Bestie G after that because I feel like I actually haven’t seen her in ages. Pole Jam was awesome! Bestie B came along as well as one of my two super inspirational pole dance instructor lady friends and we worked on a bunch of different stuff including my “demon trick”, the Vertigo (yes, I am still working on that, grrr), and then we did a saucy exotica routine and I also managed to slip in a run-through of my solo routine before Monday’s performance. Epic. The bruises on my legs are ridiculous! But we always say they are a pole dancers badge of honour. I spent most of yesterday getting material together to promote workshops with my absolute Pole Idol, Alethea Austin. There are so many amazing vivdeos of her but here’s one.

Now, back to the food…

So far this month on HPG, you have seen;

Introducing VeganMoFo & Ocsober - HPG does #VeganMoFo 2011 & a bunch of other stuff
The first weekend of Ocsober & my meal plan - Not drinking is rad, and other weekend updates.
Trying the Vegie Bar’s raw menu items - A little late to the raw party
Mister Nice Guy cupcakes fan post - A Nice Guy stole my heart
Shopping and eating at the markets - Victoria Market organics and lunch at Invita
Cooking from my favourite book - Veganomicon: Pineapple cashew quinoa stir-fry
Blog round up from week 1 – The best of #VeganMoFo so far…
Gallivanting around Brunswick St – Gosh, is that the time? You can’t take a weekend off anymore
I admit I might have a small problem –  Hey Hombre! Soy adicta a la comida Mexicana…
Self explanatory - The lazy… er… busy Vegan’s guide to quick dinners
Getting a bit experimental –  Veganomicon: Cholent and Pistachio & Rosewater cookies
Ode to this Vegan favourite  - Who needs pizza delivered when you can make it!

That’s already 12 VeganMoFo posts! What’s been your favourite so far?

 

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October 14, 2011

Who needs pizza delivered when you can make it!

I love beer and pizza as much as the next guy. Working at a laser tag centre with a pizza kitchen as a teenager (okay, and working there again now) meant lots of staff pizza heavy with cheese and not much else, maybe some ham & pepperoni (ew). I also had quite an affinity for BBQ chicken pizza for some time during my teenage years… Once I got over that and remembered my lactose intolerance, I didn’t eat pizza for ages and when I did it was a vegetarian without cheese on thin base… so pretty much exactly the same as I would order now if I was getting pizza delivered! The only Vegan pizza place (at least near me), Plush Pizza, closed down a few months ago and I resent having to pay through the nose for a pizza I can stomach at a gourmet shop, and I can tell you that making pizza bases at work with just tomato paste and garlic are pretty boring. 

There was a delivery error at work recently and I scored a bunch of thin wholemeal pizza bases. When we had a “Girls watching the Footy” night, I made pizzas and sweet potato fries and we drank Sailor Jerry & dry. Yum! The pizza was pumpkin purée, with soy cheese and rosemary, baked in the oven and then topped with fresh roquette (arugula). It was pretty awesometown. I was a bit inspired by the Organico pizza at Lucky Coq/Bimbo Deluxe which was my favourite but since I found out they use the brand of soy cheese that still contains rennet, I haven’t gone back for it.

Pumpkin, rosemary & mini-chol with roquette

The next one I made got interrupted, as I had oven issues (like learning how to use it) and then my lift to my dance workshop arrived just as the timer went off, so we ended up sharing it after class. I used a plain tomato and basil pasta sauce as a base and put spinach, mushrooms, red capsicum, tomatoes, olives, pine nuts and crumbled Cheezly over the top. It was heaven post workout. I grabbed a photo before I put it in the oven but because I turned the oven off and ran out the door, it wasn’t as photo-fresh when I got back. Still amazing to eat though.

Before it went into the oven

 Here’s my most recent creation – leftovers pizza. Which I feel is pretty much what pizza was invented for anyway, right? It collected pumpkin purée, zucchini, eggplant,  red capsicum, broccoli, vegie roast, red onion and mini-chol soy cheese. Loved it. Actually found it so filling that I could only eat half, even post-run. I took two slices to a friend to prove I can cook/assemble and two slices to go with my lunch salad the next day. Really happy with how it turned out. I’m a bit fussy with organizing my toppings though, I’d hate to have someone watch me and think I have OCD. Hah.

Leftovers pizza

I also made a garlic pizza last weekend using Nuttelex, garlic and mixed herbs and then just cut it into small triangles and served in a bowl as an afternoon snack with my housemate & guests. So quick & easy. I’m definitely going to keep some bases in my freezer now that I’ve used them a few times with great results. The ones I use are Bazaar Wholemeal bases. Bazaar make individual serve bases as well but I haven’t seen them in wholemeal yet. I tend to eat a whole pizza anyway because it’s mainly vegetables. Just keep me away from the garlic bread, I will inhale that stuff!!

What’s your favourite pizza topping?

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October 13, 2011

Veganomicon: Cholent and Pistachio & Rosewater cookies

Matzoh ball soup, latkes, borscht, challah, bagels… I love Jewish food. I have a kind of unexplained affinity with the Jewish culture given that I have no blood connection to it, but I did go to shul for a little while when I was trying to find my faith, and a lot of the principles followed made sense to me. The food was a pretty big draw-card, bagels with Better Than Cream Cheese (might be what I’m eating right now, maybe) are definitely in my favourite breakfasts list. I wanted to make something hearty, that would yield leftovers and allow for more time chatting and less time preparing but still be impressive enough to serve a guest. Cue Veganomicon! Plus, checking off a couple more recipes in my quest to make everything in this book. Cholent is the Shabbat stew, slow cooked for 12 hours and eaten for lunch.

Cholent (from Veganomicon)
serves 6

Veganomicon Cholent on cous cous

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp tarragon
1 tsp caraway seeds (or 1/4 tsp fennel seeds/rye seeds)
1 tsp salt
freshly ground pepper, to taste
1/2 cup red cooking wine, water or vegetable broth
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup French lentils, rinsed
1 cup peeled, sliced carrots (about 1/2″ thick)
4 medium sized potatoes, peeled and diced.
1 15 ounce can tomato sauce (I used crushed/pureed tomatoes)
3 cups water
1 cup TVP chunks (I used Sanitarium casserole pieces)
1 cup frozen or canned and drained lima beans (I used peas)
1 15 ounce can kidney beans, drained and rinsed

In a large soup pot heat the oil over medium heat
Saute the onion until translucent.
Add the garlic, tarragon, caraway seeds, salt and pepper
Saute until the garlic is fragrant
Deglaze the pot with the red wine (or water/veg broth…)
Add the bay leaves, lentil, carrots, potatoes, tomato sauce, water and TVP chunks
Bring to a boil then cover and simmer 30 minutes until the carrots and potatoes are tender
Add the beans and simmer until the stew has thickened and the beans are heated through.

I served the Cholent with cous cous and added extra vegetables to leftovers for another meal. Super tasty! Then for dessert I got a little bit fancy…

Pistachio & Rosewater Apricot cookies/ice-cream sandwiches

Not the most attractive picture ever, sorry.

I could not find rosewater, nor Turkish delight, but I did have dried apricots and So Good Chocolate Bliss – chocolate soy ice-”cream” and then I had a brainwave. Have you figured out I improvise a lot when I cook?

Suggested ingredients:
1¼ cups sugar
½ cup canola oil
3 Tbsp. rice or soy milk
1 Tbsp. rosewater (didn’t have this)
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
1 tsp. finely grated lime zest
¼ cup cornstarch (cornflour)
1¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder (didn’t have this as far as I can recall)
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. ground cardamom
½ cup shelled pistachios, coarsely chopped

I added:
1/2 cup dried apricots, diced

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease two cookie sheets with vegan shortening or margarine.
  2. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, oil, rice or soy milk, rosewater, vanilla, lime juice, and zest. Add the cornstarch and whisk until dissolved. Add the flour, baking powder, salt, and cardamom. Mix well.
  3. Roll the dough into balls about 2 teaspoons in size (a bit smaller than a walnut) and dip the tops into the chopped pistachios. Press down with two fingers; the dough will flatten a bit and the pistachios will collect on the bottom (actually, I mixed the pistachios and the chopped apricots in with everything… lazy)
  4. Place the cookies, nut side up, about 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. You should be able to fit 16 on a standard baking sheet. Bake for 13 minutes; they will be soft but will firm up as they cool.
  5. Remove from the oven and let cool on the cookie sheets for about 5 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack and cool completely before serving
Or, sandwich two cookies together with a layer of So Good Chocolate Bliss and then put in the freezer on a lined tray until ready to serve. Beware as the cookies tend to get a bit harder in the freezer. But the dough itself was so tasty that a lot of it didn’t even make it into the oven. They were really, really good though. I want to try them again with the proper ingredients but the pistachio, apricot and lime flavour combination was absolutely divine.

This is what they should have looked like - from nothanksimavegan.com

Help me choose another recipe to make form Veganomicon! I plan to get through the whole book by July 2012.

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October 12, 2011

The lazy… er… busy Vegan’s guide to quick dinners

As I write this (it’s 11pm Tuesday night, scheduling post for tomorrow) I am eating Nutolene out of the can with a butter knife as I got home hungry from work at 10pm and my cat got out for the 8th time in the last few days. Once I found her I realised I don’t really have any food in the house because tomorrow is pay day, and I wasted a good half  an hour on Facebook and looking at school photos of rappers to cheer myself up. I’m not sure how I got there because originally I had just clicked through from Facebook once I had discovered this song, which is amazing…

Anyway, even though tonight is a terrible example of what I have for dinner, to be fair I cooked a tofu, shiitake & vegetable stir fry and put it with brown rice to take for work dinner except I ate it for afternoon tea. I know that people sometimes think that it’s time-consuming to eat well but I am a prime example of how that statement is complete BS. Apart from my Mexican problem, which we discussed earlier, I pretty much cook dinner for myself every night. Here’s a few ideas for people who might be struggling, keeping in mind it’s the tail-end of winter here in Melbourne…

Tofu, mushroom & veg stir-fry on brown rice

Chop up some tofu and marinade – I use mushroom soy, mirin & sesame oil, then chop and cook vegetables or use frozen stir-fry mix, add fresh mushrooms – I use shiitake, add tofu & cook until vegetables are tender. I made a batch of brown rice at the start of the week and just heated it up as I needed it. Much quicker that way. Or try the microwave 90 sec sachets from the supermarket.

Spinach & facon in a tomato sauce on wholemeal & vegetable spirals

This was a bit leftovers – jar sauce with the addition of frozen chopped spinach, diced facon strips and I think some Cheezly mozzarella style as well. I use a combination of wholemeal and vegetable spirals for fibre & colour.

Shiitake & greens on udon

This can be a dry or soup dish with the addition of vegetable stock. I boiled dry udon, diced up vegetables and shiitake and cooked them lightly in sesame oil & mirin, then added the cooked udon. The red sprinkle is Nanami, Japanese mixed spice. Could also add tofu, tempeh, or any mock meat and even use frozen vegetable mix for this. I use vegetable stock when cooking the udon, then add the cooked vegetables & mushrooms to that.

Mac'n'veg'n'Cheezly

Possibly one of my favourite quick & easy comfort foods ever. Whilst cooking small pasta, make a white sauce using the traditional method but Nuttelex/Earth Balance instead of butter to melt; make a paste with the flour and add non-dairy milk to create a white sauce, season to taste. Then grate a heap of mozzarella-style Cheezly into it and add the cooked pasta an vegetables and heat through. Do not eat it straight out of the  saucepan (okay, do).

Leftover Cholent on macaroni

I made Cholent from Veganomicon and then just added a few extra vegies that were lying around and had it on top of macaroni. It was pretty baller. I’ll put the Cholent recipe up soon, I kinda forgot I made it.

Fried tempeh salad for two

My bestie G’s first foray into tempeh – she was not a fan, maybe when it’s marinated because I love the taste but I know it’s not for everyone. Bonus tempeh for me! Fried it, added it to spinach, cucumber, canned corn, red capsicum and kumatoes with a grainy roll. Dressed to taste. Quick & fresh! Another chapter in my “Forcing Friends To Eat…” series; Salad!

So I work two jobs, which means 6 days a week, plus I take 3 or more dance classes a week and try to fit in cardio, studying and a social life into the rest of those days. Just a little bit busy… Consequently, I often have dinners which consist of leftovers, or meals that are easy to put together. So long as I have a jar of pasta sauce, beans, rice/pasta and frozen vegetables I can eat a balanced meal. Making it a more interesting is where the problem lies. Noodle soups, stir-fries, pasta dishes, one-pot dishes and basic vegetable+protein+sauce combinations tend to get a lot of use. So does ye olde “pick up a burrito on the way home”, depending on my budget. I also eat dinner at work a couple of nights a week so leftovers and rice+whatever work well for dinner out of plastic containers.

These meals probably prove my ability to a) budget and b) eat balanced meals but don’t show c) that I’m actually quite a good cook! I want to save those photos for other posts but I’ll leave you with this quick dinner I made for when I had a friend over for dinner – we were planning to go and play pool afterward and I wanted to make lasagne so I would have leftovers but forgot I didn’t have my Pyrex dish after I moved house so it became this… free form lasagne, I guess. cooked the sheets in a wide shallow pan, roasted vegetables – capsicum, zucchini, eggplant, portobello & toasted pine nuts, heated a jar sauce, layered sheets, sauce, veg & topped with olive tapanade.

Free form roasted vegetable & portobello lasagne with olive tapenade & toasted pine nuts. Chyeah.

So just because you’re short on time, it doesn’t mean you have an excuse to eat crappy meals. I place fast food, microwave meals and most take-away in this category. Whilst I spent more time on my lunches, entertaining and weekend meals, I like to think that I put enough effort into refuelling my body all the other times as well. I’ll post some of my breakfasts and lunches later on in the month. Enjoy your day!

Do you have any other ideas for quick, balanced, Vegan evening meals?

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October 11, 2011

Hey Hombre! Soy adicta a la comida Mexicana…

When I was growing up, I struggled to see the appeal of Mexican food. To me it was just nachos and tacos which came from packet mixes and jars, with heaps of cheese, sour cream, over-cooked mince and were pretty much just the lazy teenager’s parent-free meal option. I did partake in the occasional nacho bowl alongside jugs of beer at Uni, but otherwise, Old El Paso left me cold. Mexican went down the bottom on the list of preferred cuisines. Slowly, over the last couple of years, things have changed…

The first seed that got planted was probably when I found the Vegan Quesadilla recipe in Skinny Bitch and decided that maybe Mexican food didn’t have to be the sludgy cheese & sour cream-fest that I thought it was. This became a semi-regular meal option for me because it was so easy. The combination of tortillas, kidney beans, avocado, salsa and vegan cheese was way too exciting, and given I generally had all the inside ingredients, I just had to get tortillas from my local grocer and bang, instant comfort food.

Then I discovered the Vegie-packed bowl at Salsa’s in Westfield Doncaster after a pole session with one of my besties. She was raving about Salsa’s and after I tried this menu item, I was sold. It had frijoles, onion & capsicum, broccoli & zucchini, salsa, salsa fresca, guacamole, coriander & lime rice and I just ordered it without cheese or ranch sauce. Amazing. Pretty much everything you look for in a Vegan meal – carbohydrates, protein, good fats, vegetables and enough food to actually fill you sufficiently.

Vegie packed bowl at Salsa's

Living in Richmond with a guy friend meant plenty of weekends scoping out pre- & post-drinking semi-healthy meals. Taco Bill lured me in with fishbowl margaritas and the Vegetarian Combinacion but after I stopped eating dairy completely, they had much less to offer. Ensalada Verde with a side of frijoles and corn chips with salsa is pretty good for a light meal, or build your own with sides of tortillas, salsa, frijoles & guacamole, unless they have the Vegetarian Fajita on the specials board. That sizzling plate is boss. We ended up going to Taco Bill and Mexicali Rose (a slightly further but better quality option) for work lunches and I started to come around.

Vegie packed Burrito at Salsa's

Meanwhile, a new restaurant opened in Melbourne called Mamasita. No bookings, just rock up and hope to get a seat – but the wait is worth it! A few of us went to try their quesadilla and the well-priced meals and amazing food impressed us greatly, their traditional Mexican menu meant Old El Paso was left well behind in distant memories and replaced with Tostaditas, real Tacos with all sorts of fillings and amazing ‘Comida para la familia’, plus proper Mexican beers and heaps of Veganizable menu options. In fact, last time I went with my brother earlier this year, the waitress was sad that she hadn’t known ahead of time that I was Vegan to offer extra appetiser options. Bless!

Tostada's at Mamasita

In Adelaide I was already seeking out somewhere to get some Mexican flavours while I was over for a conference, and fell in love with Zambrero. Basically, I walked in and they were playing Dashboard Confessional and when I told the server that I’m Vegan he said “no problem!” and told me everything I could and couldn’t eat, wrapped me up a huge burrito and I sat quite happily enjoying a lunch beer and burrito with my happy face on. Then I realised I was hooked… I started searching for a “Fresh Mex” place near me and campaigned Salsa’s to open a store near my house in Richmond. It happened, after I moved to Camberwell. D’oh.

Naked burrito at Mad Mex

But I found Mad Mex, an awesome place to get a ‘naked burrito’ near work (I sit and enjoy a Jarrito soft drink and perve on hot tattooed skaters, it’s Windsor, come on), Salsa’s is still near the studio that I train in, and Taco Bill is near my house in case I really need a fix. But Mamasita is definitely a must-visit when anyone is here from out of town… or just because.

Vegie fajita at Taco Bill

Now, I’m quite happy to admit that Mexican cuisine is my favourite, especially since my previous favourite, Japanese, is so heavy with seafood products and Buddhist Japanese cuisine is a lot harder to find… so that is part of the reason why I’m more interested in travelling to the US and Mexico now than before, when I was all about going to Japan and eating for two weeks and why I love reading all of your blogs about Taco Trucks (hola, Seabirds!), empanadas and cornbread. Plus, playing the computer game Grim Fandango has left me obsessed with Dia de los Muertos, which doesn’t help. I’ve even realised my salads get pretty Mexinspired too…

I was trying to get photos for this post but there are so many pictures of burritos and Mexi-salads and vegie bowls it’s getting silly. Yes, my name is Ceri and I’m a Mexi-holic.

Salsa’s – www.salsas.com.au
Taco Bill – www.tacobill.com.au
Mamasita – www.mamasita.com.au – 1/11 Collins St, Melbourne, ph: (03) 9650 3821
Zambrero – www.zambrero.com
Mad Mex –  www.madmex.com.au

Also… Trippy Taco on Smith St, which I haven’t listed here because for some reason I had no photos… it’s all Vegan and it’s amazing. They even have Vegan dessert quesadillas. Go.

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October 10, 2011

Gosh, is that the time? You can’t take a weekend off anymore.

So I’m a bit late on my scheduled blog update because I didn’t write one. I was having too much fun over the weekend and in my spare time not having fun, was trying to catch up on the thousands of VeganMoFo blogs. Not even exaggerating. So my friend D came down from Canberra for the weekend and bought me an Ocsober leave pass, which basically meant I could drink on the weekend, not feel guilty, and still raise money for the Life Education program. It had an interesting effect. I actually didn’t really want to drink that much, found myself drinking a lot slower and on Sunday, even though I ended up having a couple of catch-up beers with a different friend, could really have left the rest of the weekend dry. I’m sorry, who am I and what have I done with HPG!? I love a social drink or few, usually… but I have really realised what an effect it has on my system.

Regardless, we had a great weekend. I wasn’t feeling that great in the morning on Saturday so instead of all my amazing planned exercise, I went shopping with my housemate, L, and our friend A, for our Adam Jay photo shoot costumes. I didn’t find anything I liked and I hate shopping so I got bored pretty quickly. They looked smoking hot though. In the evening, we headed out to Brunswick Street aiming to have dinner at The Vegie Bar, which wasn’t my idea for once! Too bad they had a 45 minute wait and we ended up at Naked for Satan instead. There the four of us enjoyed a multitude of pintxos including their Vegan options (Veg*n options clearly labelled), and flavoured vodkas. Mine was violet, it was odd. From there we tried to get into Mana Bar but the wait was long there as well, so off to the cocktail lounge, Polly, instead. They had heaps of amazingly-named cocktails including Chairman of the Board, Booty Call, At The Drive-In, Flower of Tokyo, and more. We all chose each others which I think ended up pretty well.

Shared plate: Vegan Pintxos at the rear

Cocktails at Polly - please excuse the bad photo

I’d like to pretend we didn’t end up at China Bar, but we did. A few Vegan pintxos aren’t really filling, especially after only having two sushi hand rolls for lunch.

Waking up not hungover was quite nice though. We had coffee and then headed out to Yum Cha at Tao Tao House. Even though I had a crummy experience last time with the “vegetarian” trolley, I was prepared this time and spoke to the maitre’d about my food preferences and the menu. Doing so meant I had enough dishes brought to me to lapse into a food coma along with everyone else, having inhaled steamed vegetable dumplings, spring rolls, fried tofu skin rolls, Chinese broccoli with garlic, salt & pepper tofu and finally coconut agar jelly. Sorry, no pics. Too busy eating. The maitre’d was hilarious and really helpful. I rate her!

So, I did indeed have a weekend off from everything. Even though I did have an awesome workout and heaps of fun at the Pink Poles Across Australia Girls Night In for the Cancer Council (phew), I didn’t do any of my planned weekend exercise, had a weekend of (modest) drinking with my Oscober leave pass and even though I didn’t eat badly, I didn’t exactly eat really well. In fact, I just remembered the bag of caramel popcorn my housemate and I ate on Saturday afternoon. Don’t be hatin’.

Back to it this week! I slammed my Advanced Pole assessment tonight and even though I think I could use another term to work on technique, I nailed a few difficult tricks & combos tonight that I felt I had no hope of getting 7 weeks ago. Now I have a week to practice my solo performance before that gets assessed. Scary. Tomorrow I need to get my run on, and make a tofu & vegetable stir-fry to take to work for dinner. I’m out of protein powder so that makes me sad but on Wednesday night when I get paid I’ll do another grocery shop and try to get some ingredients for another Veganomicon recipe.

Naked for Satan – www.nakedforsatan.com.au - 285 Brunswick St, Fitzroy, ph: (03) 9416 2238
Mana Bar – www.manabar.com.au - 336 Brunswick St, Fitzroy, ph: (03) 9417 3432
Polly – www.pollylounge.com.au - 401 Brunswick St, Fitzroy, ph: (03) 9417 0880
China Bar on Urban Spoon – 325 Brunswick St, Fitzroy, ph: (03) 9415 8118
Tao Tao House – www.taotaohouse.com.au - 815 Glenferrie Rd, Hawthorn, ph: (03) 9818 0968

Can you have a weekend off like I did, or do you blow-out like crazy? What Veganomicon recipe do you think I should make next?

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