Throw It In a Bowl and Call It a Day

Quick and easy? Sign me up! I do not have time for fussy recipes. In the time it takes me to cook supper the Bumper can undo all of the house work I have done for the day. Now a microwave a veggie burger or dog is fast and can be tasty, but they also full of  additives that I do not want in my regular diet.  Since we are in the middle of a heatwave here on Maryland's Eastern Shore I decided to make a super easy cold salad, from this http://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipe/mango-and-black-bean-salad/ Vegetarian Times recipe.

What I like about this salad is I already had every thing on hand in my refrigerator, the only substitution I made was fresh mango. Unless it is disguised in a smoothie I don't really like the taste of frozen mango. I will use them if I have no other choice, but I prefer fresh.

The Bumper's favorite quick and easy vegan recipe is cherry tomatoes fresh off the vine: just rinse and eat!

P.S.
 On the tofu scramble from yesterday? I think a half teaspoon of cumin will suffice.

Vegan MoFo: Such Fond Memories- Just Like Nana Made (Not Exactly)

Okay so the prompt for today was to recreate a meal from your childhood. I figured a good way to approach this would be to ask my mom what my favorite meal was when I was a kid and then veganize it. I expected her to say something like pizza or spaghetti and meatballs, or tater-tots and fish-sticks, or even beef stroganoff. All of which I definitely liked. Nope none of the above. Apparently from my mom's recollection, my hands down favorite meal was dat da dah dah: Spinach and egg over rice. Does anyone else hear the wamp wamp wamp music?

Apparently I was a budding vegetarian way back when. Just so you know the freak fruit does not fall far from the tree the Bumper's current favorite is spinach pizza with vegan cheese. Well this is vegan mofo, so what did I do to make this dish vegan? I swapped out the egg for that perennial favorite tofu. Yep yet another tofu scramble recipe as if the Internet wasn't awash with them already. I am, however, pretty free wheeling with the tofu scramble and I never expect it to taste like eggs. In fact I think I would be grossed out if it did. Instead I played around with garlic, cumin, turmeric, salt and pepper to get something savory and that would complement the spinach. Not quite the dish of my youth, but tasty and cruelty free.

1tsp olive oil
1 bag (roughly 2 -4 cups) of fresh or frozen spinach. Take your pick scrambles are pretty forgiving.
1 package extra firm tofu. ( drain and press lightly)
1tsp cumin
1-2tsp powdered garlic or 1 clove fresh minced.
1-2 tsp turmeric
1 tspt nutritional yeast(optional)
Sprinkle of Old Bay Seasoning optional
dash of salt
dash of pepper to taste.

Lightly saute spinach in olive oil ( about 5min or until spinach starts to wilt but is still bright green) in a large frying pan.Crumble the tofu and add it and the spices to the spinach. Cook until tofu is completely coated with the spices and warmed all the way through. Serve over rice.
To save time you can steam spinach in the microwave, scramble the tofu in the pan, and serve when tofu is done. Like I said this recipe is forgiving. Play with it. I always do.

Happy MoFo
Kim

P.S. I know this isn't MoFo related, but I am on the instep of the second sock, here come the toes!

Kim
Crumble tofu into pan

Vegan Mofo : Breakfast

My hands down all time favorite vegan breakfast is Post Punk Kitchen's Puffy Pillow Pancakes http://www.theppk.com/2011/12/puffy-pillow-pancakes/. Yes  this is an old photo, but it still the best one I've taken even though I have made the pancakes many times since then. They turn out puffy and pillow-like every time, except for the first time I made them on our new flat top stove-- then they were little inedible hockey pucks. Still vegan, just not fit for consumption.

 However much I like them I can not have them every day, or I would end up looking as puffy as the pancakes. So most mornings it is more mundane fare. Including oatmeal or cream of wheat with bananas or other seasonal fruit. Now that school has started for the Bumper, both of us have to get up a lot earlier than we have become accustomed to. Cold cereal to the rescue. Fast, easy and as long as we stick to plain oat, rice or corn brands, vegan. Just add non-dairy milk of choice, my favorite is unflavored soy and the Bumper's is vanilla almond, and eat. Easy. Peasy. And for this mom on the go? A staple.

I am open to trying new things, like avocado on toast, but the Bumper  has put in a request for carrot pancakes. Does any one know a good vegan, kid-friendly recipe?

Happy Start to Vegan Mofo!
Kim

It Is Amost Here

It is coming and I am excited!
Almost as excited as when I finished turning the heel on sock#2

Stay tuned
Kim

Tuesday's Are For Making

1. A dishcloth- knit out of Lily Sugar and Cream Cotton Colors

2. A cheerful blanket  using Stylecraft yarn and a pattern from Attic 24 

3. The infamous second sock, unfortunately I don't remember the name of the yarn only that I bought it at Hancock Fabrics
4. A page in a coloring book- when I get a spare moment I thought I'd give it a try
5. The novel 500 words worth- I am pleased, though hoping to up the creative output soon.

 These are all the things I am currently working on. Let me set one thing straight, though, I do not have vasts amounts of time to do these things. I do them on a catch as catch can basis. I can knit, crochet, sew or color in about 10 -15min increments, usually before bed. I carve out an hour a week for the writing, which is the only thing I do in a solid block in the morning. This also explains why it takes me a long time to finish a project. I enjoy doing these things, so I make time for them. Some days a little more or less gets done. If I am making time for exercise, then less gets done.
So what are you making?

Kim

Meatless Monday - Banana Bread

I thought about saving this meatless Monday post until September, but then I asked myself why I was waiting. I have no good reason.  This is my absolute favorite hands down go to recipe  for banana bread. It is a life saver in the hot summer months when banana ripen faster than we can eat or freeze them.  I use this recipe from Post Punk kitchen http://www.theppk.com/2007/10/banana-bread/.

When I first made it I did not have access for vegan margarine so I used 1/4 cup oil and 1/4 cup applesauce. I also reduced the sugar to one 1/2 cup of brown sugar. This time I made it with Earth Balance brand, and the Bumper and Nana liked it a lot. They also liked the addition of the chocolate chips on top.

It can be made ahead, made into muffins, and freezes well. What is not to love? It is Bumper tested and Pre-school approved. I can't really say more without sounding like a paid advertiser for Post Punk Kitchen, which I am not. The only bad thing I can say is that while making banana bread I did not get a lot of knitting or crochet done, so the sock, blanket and dishcloth are all still about the same size they were on Friday.

The Bumper has two more weeks of camp and then school starts. We are both ready. She is lonely and wants other kids to play with and I am ready to kick up the daily writing.

Kim

p.s. I am pretty sure I have blogged about this banana bread before, but it is seriously good enough to warrant another post.

Friday Check In

It is already August. Wow! We are making the most of our time before school starts in just three weeks. The Bumper has been in half day camp at our local YMCA. She loves it! She has made friends, played games, learned new songs, and gone swimming twice a week. The three hour break I get gives me time to run errands, clean house and write. I feel so much more like myself when I get to write.
We have been able to eat fresh tomatoes and green beans this week. I can not say enough how glad I am to be eating garden vegetable. The taste is worlds away from winter tomatoes that look pretty on the outside, but are soft, bland and mushy on the inside. Accorinding to Nana we should be feasting on these beauties well into September.
Speaking of September, I plan to participate in Vegan MoFo (Vegan Month of Food) again this year. I had so much fun last year I decided to give it another go. I like the challenge of coming up with recipes and blogging everyday.
On the craft front: second sock is getting longer, blanket has more stripes and dishcloth is almost finished.
Have a great weekend!
Kim