Gingerbread, Gingerbread, Gingerbread Rocks!

I spent all day Saturday in the kitchen getting ready for my Tia's Tamale Party. She makes so much food for everyone, there is no way I expect her to make something special for a small group of vegans. I usually bring a snack or a dessert but this year I wanted to do both. I made Jackfruit Carnitas from The Vegan Girl's Guide To Life and the Gingerbread Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World. I also had two pots of frijoles cooking, but didn't have time to refry them in time for them to make it to the party. I really tried to fit too much into a day so I had to pack up the icing and ginger pieces to decorate the cupcakes at the party. Nobody minded since they were delicious, but I will remember to pare down the menu if I don't have enough time. I can't believe I thought I could make two desserts, but the strawberry cupcakes I planned for Saturday are in the oven right now and they smell yummy. Cookies are going in next.

There's not much to say about these cupcakes except that they are amazing. Until about a year ago I hardly ate anything with ginger in it. Now I can't get enough of it. The lemon is the perfect compliment, which I would never have figured out on my own, luckily I have Isa and Terry to teach me everything! If you don't already own VCTOTW, I highly recommend you get yourself a copy (or make someone buy it for you!). There are 75 recipes and I've only tried 8 in the three years I've owned the book. I've got a lot of catching up to do, but you can enjoy this book, and the cupcake goodness for many years. I only made two dozen of this recipe, so I might make some again for Christmas if I have time. I would eat these any time of the year, but that's just how I do. Enjoy!

Señorita Carnita

taco overloaded-toothpicks employed to keep it together

I have been lusting after Jackfruit Carnitas from the first time I read about them. I can't remember where it was first, but it was either from quarrygirl's blog or The Urban Housewife. I could never find the right jackfruit at regular stores and did not have the presence of mind to look at asian grocery stores, where I would have found it much sooner. When we were in L.A. I managed to cajole my sister into stopping at Figueroa Produce where I managed to take the last four cans they had on the shelf. Sorry to whomever else wanted some.

I used the recipe from The Vegan Girl's Guide to Life, by Melisser Elliott a.k.a. The Urban Housewife. The directions are really simple and you can make these in the crockpot or stove top. They probably come out better in the crock but I am still crock-shy so I opted for the range. Everything was going great until I realized I had timed things so poorly. I had to take the dog for her walk and I didn't want to leave the pot unattended when it was so close to almost being finished. So I stupidly added a bunch more liquid, knowing there was no way it would all cook out by the time I got back. Eveything was cooked but it was still too wet, so I simmered for another hour or so before calling it quits for the day.

A day or two later I took them out and drained the excess liquid. Then I tried to shred them up a bit and toast them in a pan. They were more like small chunks than stringy carnita goodness but they still tasted great. I will have to cut the spices/simmer time when I make them again since they were a bit much for my sister, which meant there was no way my niece could try them. I fixed up a huge taco like so: bean layer on the bottom, "carnitas", onions, cilantro, radishes and squirted the whole thing with lime juice. I washed it all down with mexicoke. ¡Delicioso!

p.s. Today is my late great-grandmother's birthday. She passed before I was vegan or even really learned how to cook. I wonder what she would think of this. It's also my friend Judy's birthday.¡Feliz Cumpleaños!