Vegan Mofo VI-Day 18- An Apple A Day

 This week has been crazy. I have had to let a few things go to the wayside. I really need to get some rest, but there was just too much that needed to be done. I foolishly tried to do it all and now here I am, super tired and feeling like absolute crêpe. I usually end up doing this to myself about once a year, but this one came early. I have been drinking lots of tea and gargling with an apple cider/water solution. I slept in until about 11 a.m. this morning. I should be feeling much better in a few days. Now that some of my stressors have been knocked out I should be able to get back on track tomorrow. Yay!

If I didn't already mention it, I work in a library. We have a weekly storytime which is a lot of fun, at least when I observe from the desk. We recently did an apple theme, which was one of my favorites since I love apples. We take turns choosing topics, books, crafts/activities. My boss chose the topic so I helped pick the craft and the books. I don't remember the books because we do our planning so far in advance, but the craft was super cute. We cut a frame out of construction paper, lay it down on a piece of contact paper and let the children stick colored tissue paper on top to fill it in. We always do a test to make sure it's not too difficult and to have an example to show the kids. Since I'm a big kid and I'm the one who found the craft, I got to make the sample. Isn't it adorable?

My other co-worker bought several different types of apples so the kids could have a variety to choose from. She dropped them off at my house and asked me to make labels for them. More fun for me! The best part was that after the shift was over, she had way too many apples to take home so she let me have a few. She knows I am crazy about honeycrisps so those are the ones she gave me. The only thing better than honeycrisps are FREE HONEYCRISPS, right?

I don't know how true it is that an apple a day will keep the doctor away, but it sure couldn't hurt to try. I think I'm going to have one for my snack during "Scandal" and work toward catching up on my 5 a day. Peace!

Vegan Mofo VI- Day 9: Frittering My Time Away

I love apples and am thrilled that Honeycrisps are back in season. They have been hard to find in our area so I was super excited when I had my first one last week. We did a storytime about apples at work and my co-worker brought in a variety of apples to show the children. When we were getting ready to go home she wanted to divide the apples up amongst us. I told her I'd take whatever she wanted to give me but she knew which ones I wanted most so she gave me 3 of the Honeycrisps. Yay!

I think they taste perfect on their own but sometimes I will dip them in peanut butter. Since I had extras I thought I would try using them in a recipe. I didn't have enough for a pie and didn't have time to make donuts, so I decided on fritters. I printed the recipe and planned to make them on Friday or Saturday but I didn't get around to making them until today.

They turned out great! My sister stopped by on lunch break to try them and loved them too. I think next time I will use a cookie scoop to drop them into the pan so they come out more uniform, but as long as they are evenly cooked through I don't think anyone will complain. I was tempted to make another batch before putting everything away, but I realized that wouldn't be a good idea. I'd rather make them again when there are a few more mouths around to enjoy them. I definitely plan to make them again, but will probably just dust them with powdered sugar rather than trying to glaze them.

I'm glad these were a success because they were the last recipe to be mixed in my favorite bowl. It was on the very top of the dish rack and I somehow managed to knock it off. I didn't even think to try and catch it because it's hard plastic. I thought it would just fall and then I'd pick it up and re-wash it. I quickly learned I was wrong when I felt a chunk of plastic hit my leg. It cracked in half and a few small pieces went flying. It's silly but I am sad to not have my favorite bowl anymore. It was a good size and we made tons of delicious treats together. I hope I find another bowl I like almost as much. I need to start looking because I have tons of baking on my to-do list.

Vegan Mofo V Day 1: It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Yearrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

I love Autumn for so many reasons but my top three are Vegan Mofo, soup and honeycrisp apples. It's still a bit too warm to fire up the soup pot, but in the meantime the apples have arrived. I bought four last night at Sprouts and the produce guy asked me if I didn't also want some of the Galas he was putting up. I politely told him that these were my favorite, that I wait all year for them. No offense to Galas, they're great, but honeys have my heart forever.

I thought I was excited about my first round last night until I found this at Trader Joe's today! I brought home two more that were just about the same size. I am not usually a "bigger is better" gal when it comes to fruit, but these were too tempting to pass up. Since these are larger than the ones I would normally buy, I shared with a friend, a.k.a. my dog Penny.

This isn't a great beginning for MoFo, but it will get better. I did not go to the grocery store at all last week and the baking I had planned for last night/this morning was cancelled due to a last minute job test I had (cross your fingers!). I have ideas for theme weeks, not as creative as some others but there will be more structure than I've had in MoFo's past. Here are some ideas you just might see:

*All The Single Ladies (and mens): recipes for one/two people from Vegan Bites or Table for Two

*"Stuff I Always Say I'm Going to Make, but Haven't Yet": potpies, tofu benny, crepes (my fear of flipping)and whatever other requests I keep putting off

*Magazine Week: finally making the recipes I have torn or cut out and carefully filed in binders, where they still sit unused

*Dreams Come True Week: things I really miss that others have veganized for me (I love you!)- most likely Ctate's Pan Dulce, Julie Hasson's pastrami seitan, house vegan's Daiya Not Cheezits, donuts, etc.


Or it could be totally half assed and by the seat of my pants like the last two years, stay tuned! There are so many other (better) bloggers participating so please check them out as well!

Vegan Mofo IV Day Two : Apple Crack

 
Even though we do not experience all four seasons in California, Autumn is my favorite for one lovely reason: Honeycrisp apples. I start trolling the supermarket aisles in anticipation the last few weeks of September hoping to catch the first harvest. It's a little crazy, but if you've had one you understand.

I used to be all about Fuji, until a few years ago when I was visiting a friend in Austin and she turned me on to Honeycrisp. I haven't looked back since. I've managed to get a few more people hooked, but haven't told too many folks, for fear of depleting the local supply. I'm not good at sharing, sorry.

Luckily the store my sister works at has an amazing deal right now, $4.88 for a 3 lb. bag. I can go through a bag or a bag and half a week if left to my own devices. I have been eating two a day for the past few weeks, but every now and then I'll sneak in a third. They're just so delicious I can't help myself. An open bag is an empty bag.

p.s. Sorry for the short entry but I spent most of my day at the DMV. I had a honeycrisp apple, yummy tempeh scramble from Vegan Brunch, two cups of tea and it was time to go get in line.

Two (New) For Tuesday

I had apples and peanut butter together for the first time today. I know you're thinking, how long have I been living so wrong? I am already over the moon since honeycrisp are in season. I am eating one a day-minimum. Adding crunchy peanut butter into the mix nearly sent me over the edge. I don't normally slice my apples so I am not good at it yet, but it was all going the same place so it did not need to be perfect. I really wanted to take a picture but I was at work and only had my cell phone. I had to hurry in case anyone saw a flash and asked what I was doing. I barely have them understanding what I eat and why, I am pretty sure MoFo would blow their minds. If confronted, I could have played dumb and asked "Doesn't everyone take pictures of their food to post on their blogs?".

Tonight I made "Chunky Celery Soup" from 101 Cookbooks, definitely in my top 5 food blogs. I've never tried a recipe of hers that I did not like. I nearly ran out of steam with the prep, but my mom offered her assistance. Everything did not come out as uniform as I would have liked but without her help I would probably still be peeling and chopping so we'll let that slide for tonight. My soup looked and smelled so delicious while cooking that I hoped not to mess it up. It's a really simple recipe which seems impossible to ruin, but I've done it before by misreading measurements or rushing. I cheated with the brown rice by using instant and I added two bay leaves for the final simmer for some extra flavor. If there are not too many spices listed I worry I will have a watery pot of veggies, but again, I know Heidi would never steer me wrong. If you aren't going to make the pesto I would suggest adding a bit more seasoning. However, I fully recommend you go for the pesto. It was my first time making one as well as the first time actually using the celery leaves. I had to go through about a dozen bunches of organic celery to find a winner, but I did end up with just over a cup of leafy goodness. I had chopped enough garlic for the pesto and the soup then realized the garlic for the pesto was probably meant to be whole since it's a puree. I put the chopped garlic plus a few more cloves into the processor along with the other ingredients and yumminess ensued. As far as I am concerned, you can never have too much garlic. I usually put 2-3 extra cloves per recipe, sometimes five.



My sister did a quick taste when she came home from work and immediately packed her lunch portion, as did I. I have two jars full of soup in the fridge but I don't think they will survive very long. I passed the recipe to my co-workers this morning so we'll see who else made it and how theirs turned out. I think it might be fun to do little cook off's or even take turns bringing soup, salad, bread. My other friend wants to start a little baking business but so far I am only a recipe follower and not an inventor. I feel like I would have to put a huge "these are not my recipes but I did make them with love" disclaimer on whatever we might put out there. Not that I am in any hurry, I just started cooking dinner again.