red, red wine... stay close to me

So TGIF, right?  It's funny how certain vices are so culturally acceptable that you can gain acceptance and approval merely by giving the sight-unseen, I-could-be-a-liar-but-you-don't-know impression that the happiest way to welcome a Friday evening, once safely home from work, is by begging your bottle of wine not to stray too far from your side.

As though it can actually move without my help.

Social persuasion and acceptable conformity aside, I must admit I was pleased to find my darling Apothic Red at a $2-off discount upon my "detour" on the way home from work.  I'm trying to keep my wine-drinking to the weekend, so the little sale tag was a welcome sight and the familiar taste and scent were similarly comforting.

I didn't have the best day at work (that seems a trend lately, eh?) so I was glad that the less-than-coveted "Last Meal on the Menu" spot belonged to my very favorite recipe for beans-n-rice: Cajun Red Beans and Rice from The Accidental Vegan.

It was every bit as fabulous as I wanted it to be and the wine was a fairly complementary addition  Mister and I ate it all up, so if I haven't done so previously, let's add this to the No Leftovers pile.  Although I could probably go on and on about how awesome this recipe is, I'm sure I've done that already in plentiful previous posts about this dinner.  I'm hoping to have something slightly more exciting to babble about soon, so for now, the most exciting thing I can share with you is the new (exceptionally long for no good reason) menu:


1. Chickpea Croquettes with Green Salad Topping from Vegetarian Times: Quick and Healthy, which was really reprised from an earlier issue of the magazine I don't feel like finding right now.  I've made this before and it's a fun, light, quick summer meal.


2. Tuscan Vegetable Ragout from Vegetarian Times: Fast and Easy.  I figured it's been long enough since the last time I made this.  Hopefully, I can restrain at least some of my enthusiasm so I don't overcrowd the pot like I normally do.


3. Singapore-Style Rice Noodles with Snow Peas, Peppers, Cabbage, and Tofu also from Vegetarian Times: Fast and Easy.  I'm pretty confident that the reason I've never made this in all the time I've owned this cookbook (quite a few years now) is because the title is just overwhelmingly long.  I mean, seriously - once you've listed three vegetables, don't you think we could name it something like "Singapore-Style Noodles with Tofu and Vegetables"?  How likely is it, really, that simplifying the name would make it less appealing to someone looking for a "fast and easy" dinner recipe?  There's no need to list the ingredients in the title - it takes away all the mystery.


4. Chickpeas Romesco on Saffron-Garlic Rice, both from Veganomicon because one of my silly readers reminded me it was sitting on my bookshelf collecting dust and that made me sad.  Oh, and also because this is a kick-a$$ recipe.


5. Pasta Della California also from Veganomicon and also super-awesome.  Besides, my Sister-Trip is coming up - we've begun the "scheming an itinerary via email" phase of planning and squealing.


6. Pasta E Fagioli, also from Veganomicon.  It's still the reigning champ, so I figured it couldn't hurt to remind myself why.


7. Stewed Lentils with Soy Sausage from Vegan Express for two very viable reasons: one, I have an open package of Tofurky in my fridge that needs to be used (primarily the reason I sought this recipe out) and two, because my beluga lentils are threatening to find a different cupboard to live in - one where they'll occasionally get used.