klutz in the kitchen

You would think I didn't know my way around a kitchen.  You'd think I've never cooked before... or measured anything... or stirred a pot.  If you haven't been following this blog for the last couple of years, you might think I was just learning to cook from the way I was dropping things and tossing things around tonight.

You know, it's ridiculous - I took a couple of days off from my kitchen and it's as though I've never handled a measuring spoon or a spatula before.  I spilled water, poured salt all over the counter, knocked rice on the floor, and dropped at least two measuring spoons.  I tossed bits of spinach all over the stovetop and God forbid I transfer the coconut milk from the counter to the pot without dumping some of it on the skillet and pan-frying tofu in the process.

Fortunately, it all came together (after a little swearing and a lot of stooping) to make Sag Paneer from Celebrate Vegan.

I'll be honest, I was not all that impressed, after all my hard work (of spinach-slinging, salt-spilling, and rice-scattering).  It was really rather bland, despite the addition of the maximum amount of salt (plus a little, probably) and the shallot-garlic-ginger base.  I caught Mister trying to be subtle as he snuck more salt onto his second serving and unabashedly doused both servings with a generous amount of hot sauce (at my suggestion).  I did not have an opportunity to test this before the cookbook was published, but I wish I had so I could have suggested a ton more flavor.  One of my favorite parts of Indian food is the almost overwhelming 'spiceyness' and flamboyant flavors - those aspects were disappointingly absent from this recipe, making me glad as heck for the overboard flavors in The 30 Minute Vegan's version of this Southern Asia staple.

Angst still seemed to think he urgently needed to share Mister's dinner...

"This is my Imploring Face"
(note the paw on Mister's knee) 

"Please, Mister, I NEEDS!"

So, Black Friday I came home and ate leftover Spanakopita and leftover Apple Pie.  Saturday I slept most of the day, drank some coffee, got another make-up delivery, and then went out on a belated Anniversary Dinner with my hubby because....

...Vedge finally opened!  Hallelujah, folks.

I took a bunch of pictures, but it's possible that Vedge is even dimmer than Horizons was, so none of them came out.  Here's the synopsis:

I started out with an Apple Cide Car, per the power of suggestion from Dynise's review of the Friends and Family night.  With dinner, I enjoyed a nice glass of Dolcetto.  The server explained that the Chef suggests three plates per person and that the menu lists plates in order from light to heavy.  To share, Mister and I ordered our old favorite from Horizons - Truffled Fingerling Fries, a newsie Crispy Cauliflower with Kimchee Mayo and an order of Roasted Baby Broccoli from their "Dirt" list (today's fresh veggie sides).  I elected to try a new dish, despite many of my favorites from Horizons making a slightly altered appearance on the menu - Steak-Spiced Tofu with squash, chanterelles, and a few other unidentified vegetables.  I can honestly say that this dish marked the very first time I have actually found mushrooms enjoyable.  I will not be seeking them out any time soon, but it was nice to not have to eat around them.  Mister stuck with what he knows, ordering the Grilled Seitan, even though it came on a bed of beluga lentils with some mushrooms surrounding it.  It was so refreshing to be able to order and eat anything on the menu.  The delightful thing about the small plates thing Vedge is doing is that it enabled us to order and enjoy dessert without feeling like total pigs (and since it's much further from home, the walk back helped burn off a few calories).  Mister, as usual, got Fig & Quince Cheesecake and discarded the fruit.  The figs tasted kind of "green" and the quince was middle-sweet.  I would have left them on, myself.  I got the Sticky Toffee Pudding with Pumpkin(-spiced) "ice cream" and loved every warm, melty bite.

As a side note, Angst helped me finish the blog post tonight and Mister took pictures:

pasta's hungry work

Sometimes I think Mister is just a little bit looney.  Tonight was absolutely one of those nights.  I made Pasta Con Broccoli from Appetite for Reduction because I knew it would make Mister happy (and also because I had planned to make it last night, but we'll get to that in a moment).

After scarfing down two bowls full of linguini and plenty of broccoli (as well as plenty of garlic - I have the world's stinkiest breath right now, thanks to that and the nasty little chunks of diced red onion that were hiding in the lentils of my salad this afternoon), Mister said he was hungry.  I thought, "Surely, I misheard!" So I asked him if he said he was still hungry.  To my surprise, he responded by nodding vehemently and then sticking out his lower lip in a pout.

My husband is the only human being on the planet who can eat two bowls of linguini and be hungry afterwards.  If I'm wrong, please tell me.

So, about 15 minutes after dinner, Mister put on shoes and his coat and went out to find a sandwich.  Seriously.  He came back a little while later, happily stuffed with a Wawa sammich and a stale donut.

Sometimes, I just don't get him.

Anyway, on my way home from work last night, I stopped at Superfresh because I didn't realize how little bouillon I had until I used it all up making the Vegetable Lentil Stew the other night.  I was hoping to pick up a can or quart of veggie broth even though Superfresh doesn't believe in it but something new caught my eye instead:

Mister thinks that image is completely unappetizing, but I think it's kind of cool that they have concentrated liquid broth base in little individual squeeze-packs.  That's how it ended up in my home.

Each of the little squeeze-packs, when combined with water, make one cup of broth, which is actually kind of perfect, considering the number of times I've had to cut a bouillon cube in half because I only needed to make one cup of broth.  Nevertheless, these will not be a standard issue in our home for two reasons: first, though I'll admit I haven't checked the nutritional info on Rapunzel bouillon in a while, it seems a little excessive for each packet to provide 770mg sodium.  That is a solid third of the RDA and it only makes 1 cup.  God forbid I use two packets...  The second reason is purely economical and ecological - they are way more expensive than premade broth or Rapunzel bouillon cubes and result in a lot more material waste.

I guess it smelled pretty good, though, as part of the Broccoli Con Pasta, because Angst bugged Mister for a sniff/taste the moment we sat down to eat.

Could you resist those imploring eyes?  That sad, hungry little face??

Yeah, neither could Mister.

Fortunately, once it was down at eye-level, Angst remembered he doesn't like pasta and resorted to staring me down to see if I had something different to eat.  I gave him a small piece of pasta and after he licked it, he left it on the floor for me to pick up after dinner.  What a sweetheart.

If I could go back a night, though, even after I made a special trip to Superfresh specifically to get the broth so I could make Pasta Con Broccoli, upon returning home, I stood in my kitchen, my apron half tied, thinking.  Realizing that I absolutely could not muster the desire to make and eat that dinner, primarily because I'd gotten a completely different cuisine stuck on my tastebuds, I called out to Mister, "Hey, do you want to go to Cedar's for dinner?"

Yes, he did.

carpe diem...et rosae

I can be a bad influence.  I don't mean in that You-Should-Do-Drugs-'Cause-It'll-Make-You-Cool kind of way.  Rather, I encourage people to choose the better of two evils when locked in an internal conflict of conscience.  For example, the following conversation occurred at work today:

Colleague:  I really want to go to Sampan for lunch, but I shouldn't.
Me: Why not?
Colleague:  I brought a sandwich, so I was just going to get soup.
Me:  Okay...
Colleague:  Aw man.... I just remembered how good their soup dumplings are...[self-flaggelation follows]
Me:  You should go.
Colleague:  No, I should eat my sandwich, otherwise it will go to waste.  I'll just go tomorrow.
Me:  You don't know tomorrow will come - no one is promised tomorrow.  If you want to go, you should go today. [little horns start to poke up from under my hair]
Colleague:  You're a bad influence.
Me: Yes.
Colleague:  But I'm having dinner with my cousin after work, so the sandwich will go to waste.
Me:  The sandwich you were eating earlier?
Colleague:  Yes.  But I still have half left.
Me:  Okay, but it's 4:30 right now and you're working until 9, so you won't have dinner until 9:15 at the very earliest.  You'll be back here at 5, you'll eat your other half-sandwich around 7 because you'll need a snack to get you through until dinner.
Colleague:  You're a bad influence.
Me: Yes.

With that, Colleague headed out the door for his lunch of Kimchi Fried Rice and Soup Dumplings at Sampan.  He came back 30 minutes later with a satisfied smile and the last bite of an ice cream cone that had been his dessert poking through his lips.

I try to live by that whole "carpe diem" thing.  Some people think it's morbid when I point out that we don't know that we'll have tomorrow, but it's true and I'm just trying to be realistic - you don't know.  People close their eyes on their last day every day - if today is mine, I want to know I had a good one and didn't say, "eh, tomorrow," as though I had a limitless supply.

Actually, one thing, before we move on to happy things - here is a clip from Brandon Lee's last interview before he died quite unexpectedly on the set of "The Crow."  You can skip to minute 5 for the part that is relevant to the first part of this post.

Now, Angst also likes to live in the Now, and doesn't want a single opportunity to eat something he shouldn't to pass him by.  Enter the newest object of his hungry lust:

Two or three times a year (anniversary, birthday, and/or Valentines day), Mister ignores that Angst likes to destroy my roses and gets them for me anyway.  At that point, Angst commences to stalking them, so we have to take them in the bedroom at the end of each night.

Yesterday was Mister's and my fourth wedding anniversary, which we celebrated by me working until 9pm, freezing my butt off as I walked home, and then hugging some and deciding to go out tonight instead (when I was home from work much earlier).  Nevertheless, he did a bunch of sweet things for me - he got me my beautiful roses, changed the kitty litter and lit a smelly candle, and turned on the heat so I'd be warm when I got home from work.  He's a keeper!

After a full day of trying to find somewhere to fill the void of Horizons and wishing Vedge was open, we ended up at La Fourno, having an enjoyable Italian meal.  I will say, they have some of the most creative and substantial salads I've seen - we had some trouble finding the lettuce under all the grilled veggies!  There was nothing terribly outstanding but I do have one little word of advice for my friends at La Fourno: wine should never be served in a heated glass.  They really need to work on differentiating "cellar temperature" from "pizza oven behind this wall" temperature.

home, sweet huh?

Sometimes when I come home from work, the home I return to looks very little like the home I left.  It both amuses and disturbs me when Mister does huge, home-changing projects in my absence because he never ever finishes before I get home, and then he gets distracted and loses steam.

As proof of that, there are two large boxes hanging out in the middle of the living "room" and clothes are strewn all over the bed and floor in the bedroom.  At least we found a place for the shelving unit that had also been in the middle of the bedroom when I first returned from work.

When I married him, I had no idea he would rearrange our furniture every few months while I was at work.  Isn't that something for which women are supposed to be blamed?

Lest you think me ungrateful or dissatisfied, let me assure you - my very first reaction to our home, aside from a brief moment of "what the heck is going on??" was one of joy.  It really looks better (except for the clothing all over the bedroom floor, but that's an easy fix).  He cleared up some space in the living room and finally hung up my carved antique shelves and unpacked the two remaining boxes in the bedroom (yes, I know we moved in February...obviously we didn't need the stuff in the boxes that bad).

I had stopped at Superfresh on my way home because we lacked bread and garlic and apples.  Although he did let me put the groceries away first, as soon as I had my coat off, he required my input for the bedroom, so we finished arranging a few things and moved them around a bit.  Only then did we park on couch and Mister said he was hungry and asked if we could eat.  He isn't usually that forward, so I asked if he wanted me to make something or if he wanted to go out.

Well, today was payday and Friday and I lead the team in sales today, which is quite an accomplishment since I just started a month ago, so we went to Pietro's for a nice little dinner.

We started with a plate of grilled vegetables.  Forgive the dark picture, but the inside of the South Street Pietro's is modeled after the darkened streets of Italy, apparently.  It's beautiful and rustic, with red bricks and stucco and green things growing all over the place and Juliet balconies "overlooking" the dining area.  There are even "gas lamps" on the walls and at the ends of "fences" between dining areas.  It's actually quite gorgeous, but dark.

Anyway, the grilled veggies consisted of artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers, grilled zucchini and eggplant (which I rescued from Mister), tomatoes and a couple of cheeses Mister was happy to have to himself.

Mister happily ate his standard order: pizza, while I tasted a little bit of heaven in each bite of my Spaghetti con Pomodoro Fresco.  When I was running an errand for work earlier, I passed the Rittenhouse location and that got my tastebuds drifting off in a reverie of remembering the last time (first time!) I had this and how incredible it was.  Honestly, and it's awful to say this so close to Ralph's (I hope they don't hear me), but this is the best spaghetti I've ever had.

Speaking of heavenly... there are only 1 minute left for the Rapture to occur!  Hold onto your hat, Mr. Camping - I think the bus is coming!

stocking weather

It's coming.  It will be here before you realize, making even the fittest women feel like slobs.

Stocking season.

Now, I know bare legs have been the trend lately, but nothing is going to change the fact that every day it gets a little further into autumn, a little closer to winter, and the new season of stylish legwear is making its way into stores: tights, stockings, nylons - whatever you want to call them, they are coming and they are cruel.

You can cheat a little - I know I do - by wearing thigh-high stockings, but there comes a part of winter when it's too bitterly cold for anything but serious, sweater-material, covering every-last-part-of-my-legs stockings.  This is the part where I start wondering if I've been deceiving myself when I see a woman in the mirror who appears to be an appropriate weight.  By design, stockings are meant to be tight - this helps to prevent adding bulk to the legs and prevents any possibility of cold air squeezing in.  That does not mean they don't give otherwise healthy-weighted women a "fat" complex upon donning them the first, second, or hormonally-driven time.

Why do I tell you all of this?

I have been a size 4, more or less, for about 13 years.  Since my early twenties, I have managed to stay within a 10-pound range in my weight, with a couple of odd life circumstances bleeding an extra few pounds on one side or the other for a very brief time.  Over the course of my life, I've been subjected to the misdirected ire of overweight and obese women.  Some "can't wait" until I get fat, others insist I weigh so little because I don't eat anything.  More than a few people want to blame my horribly restricted dietary choices for my ability to maintain my weight, but let me tell you - there are plenty of fattening vegan foods.  For heaven's sake, there are several cookbooks devoted solely to making delicious vegan desserts, followed by a vegan diet cookbook...

No, friends, the reason I have done a fair job of maintaining my weight for most of my adult life is because I keep myself in check.

I know that sounds boring as heck, but it's true.  If you've been reading Angst Loves Spinach for a little while, you may have even experienced some of my "OMGINeedToDetox!!!" moments already.  Well, hold onto your hats, because I'm pretty sure stocking season will bring on another round of that panic/vigilance.  Which is good.  Because I'm having Mardi Gras a few months early.

Every once in a while, I have a day where I am completely aware that I am taking in way more calories than my body needs and I do it anyway because sometimes, I just can't make myself care.  Now and then, I have a week or weeks like that...that is when I start to gain weight.  Not a lot, of course - it takes far more effort than you might imagine to gain a lot of weight (unless there are extenuating circumstances), but my skirts fit a little tighter, I like my profile a little less in a full length mirror, and I dread putting on full stockings.

After a healthy breakfast, a several-hundred-calorie snack at our staff meeting this morning, and two large slices of tomato pie (more in a minute - let me finish my self-flaggelation first), I recognized that I was probably about topped out for my small body's caloric needs for the day, but I still had my heart set on Put the Tex in Your Mex Chili from The 30 Minute Vegan for dinner tonight, served with a generous bowlful of tortilla chips, which I have come to accept as our standard "utensils" on Chili Night.

testing the limits of my saute pan... crowded much? 

It really is a fabulous recipe - two kinds of beans, two kinds of peppers, an acceptable amount of garlic (not that I needed more after lunch today!) and seitan, among other things.  It's hearty, savory, and fun to scoop with tortilla chips.  Fortunately, I was able to stop after just one bowlful purely because I don't want to have someone carting me to work in a wheelbarrow tomorrow.

Ah, well.... as I used to tell my clients when I worked for a weight loss company, tomorrow is a new day with new opportunities to make healthy choices.

Now, about that lunch: any local readers, please do yourselves a favor.  If you find yourself in the vicinity of 21st and Chestnut Streets, find a way to be hungry and then head into Mix Restaurant and Bar.  I went there for lunch today with a colleague, so I can't speak for the bar part of the restaurant, but the pizza!  They have several pies available from which you can select a slice, including a masterful tomato pie: fresh chunks of tomato, tons of garlic, olive oil, and an artful spiral of jade green pesto adorning the pie.  I thoroughly enjoyed both of my pieces and happily wolfed them down accompanied by water they don't charge you for and a delightful lunchtime conversation.

I absolutely do not regret my lunch choice and I will do it again (with an overpowering mint gum as a chaser, in the best interests of my customers), but again, the time for moderation is at hand... we can't start stocking season with a over-thought body image crisis, can we?

day dates and lazy nights

Since I'm such a sweetheart (except when I eat Mister's soup), I woke up on the first day of my serendipitous three day weekend this morning.  As usually happens on days I can sleep in a bit, I woke up an hour before I needed to in a complete panic that I was going to be late if I didn't get up right now.  Fortunately, I remembered quickly that I was off today and didn't have anywhere to be until I went to see the magnificent and persevering Philadelphia Orchestra play the first concert in their opening series.

Please forgive the blurry picture, but you can see the important bits.  The pouty young man in the lower right corner is Julian Rachlin, the violin soloist for today's (and tomorrow's and Sunday's) performance.  He is quite a performer!  He is actually only a few years older than Mister and I and I laughed a little to myself when he took the stage - I had no idea they could make nice expensive suits to imitate the growing (and somewhat disturbing) trend of skinny jeans on boys.  I discussed this with a colleague 12 years my junior - she sees no problem with boys wearing girlpants.  Call me old-fashioned, but men's and women's pants are designed differently because, frankly, men and women have different spacial needs in certain areas....

Anyway, back to the performance.  Julian was totally a rockstar - he was a pleasure to watch as he nearly danced along with the more lively parts of the music he played and had some of the most charmingly pretentious facial expressions and theatrical, dance-like movements while he was waiting for the orchestra to let him play again.

Ordinarily, when I see the orchestra (not that it's a common occurrence, though I'm trying to weasel my way into the Lang Lang concert next Saturday, what would have been Franz Lizst's 200th birthday), I prefer to sit in the balcony so I can see all of the instrumentalists, not just the ones closest to the stage front.  The seats Mister and I occupied today were the closest I have ever sat to the Orchestra and it was amazing to be able to see the faces of the performers.  In a time when the arts in Philadelphia are encumbered at best and more realistically, endangered, and in the first few days of a new contract negotiation for the players which results in "downsizing" their salaries and benefits (the Orchestra declared bankruptcy earlier in the year and is trying to keep one of the world's best orchestras afloat), it was heart-warming to see how genuinely they enjoy playing their instruments.

For any arts lovers out there, here is the concert I had the privilege of seeing this afternoon:
Prokofiev's Symphony No. 1 in D Major, Opus 25 ("Classical)
Sibelius's Violin Concerto in D minor, Opus 47 which was magnificent
Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Opus 92 (which was featured in the movie Mr. Holland's Opus if anyone is familiar)

I loved every minute, but classical music is not really Mister's thing.  To reward him for accompanying me, we visited a new restaurant for a late lunch (resulting in no fun dinner stories, unless you want to hear about the PB&J I'm about to eat).  Zavino is a pizza and wine bar, part of the 13th Street Renaissance owed to a pair of visionary female entrepreneurs.  Despite the threatening sky, we elected to sit outside.  There was an awning to protect us when it did start to pour but we felt badly for the waitresses who brought our food (shielded by a tray over top).  We started with a tray of marinated olives and an apple and candied walnut salad, then each of us got our own pizza.  They had a Garden Pizza on the menu and when the waitress told me what was on it, there was no question what I would order: house-made marinara (spectacular) with large, thin slices of garlic, sauteed spinach and thin spirals of fennel.  It was amazing.  Even better, my evil plan worked - it started raining once we were seated and stopped when we paid the bill, allowing us to stroll home without getting wet.  Timing is everything folks.

Speaking of timing, this seems a good time to share the new menu!

1. Monk Bowl from The 30 Minute Vegan because it's been a really, really long time since I've cooked from this book and I missed a couple of the recipes.  Those follow:

2. Pasta Florentine, which, to be honest, was the whole reason I was looking through the book to begin with.

3. Put the Tex in Your Mex Chili.  I'll be honest (again).  I hate the name of this meal, as well as a lot of others in the book.  There is no need to be this cheesy - it's a vegan cookbook!  :)

4. Homey Vegetable Stew with Dumplings requires a little extra effort but is so worth it.

5. Farfalle with White Beans and Cabbage from Vegan on the Cheap.  It's a 7-meal menu and the week before payday, so I figured I should probably complete the menu with some favorites from this book.

6. Mexican Rice and Bean Bake


7. Better-Than-Takeout Tofu Stir-fry

have lunch, will travel

I can't say it enough - I love that I work in the city now.  Every single day I find a new or rehashed reason to appreciate it.  Some of the highlights include being able to walk to work somedays (there are two center city locations and one is only a little more than a mile from my home), being able to walk from one location to the other, and being able to walk to a variety of fun places for lunch.

Although I really haven't been doing anything special in the kitchen since I started (which should change sometime this week), I have had some wonderful lunch time adventures, so I figured we could do a little lunch-time round-up.

My first day of work it was pouring rain, but apparently the Big Guy managers like to take the trainees to lunch, so we ran through the rain to a crappy little bar next door.  I don't want to sound ungrateful and I don't think I will, since everyone acknowledged that we only went there because no one wanted to be outside any longer than we had to be.  The place was kind of a dump.  Several years ago, Philadelphia passed a ban on smoking in bars and restaurants - this has been both a blessing and a curse (since making people stand outside to smoke then creates a serious loitering problem for people who just want to walk down the sidewalk unmolested), but I swear, this place either still lets people smoke or so damn many people smoked when they were allowed to that the musty, stale scent of leftover ashtrays will never leave.  In addition to smelling awful, the menu was honestly burgers and salad.  I was very excited when I saw that a veggie patty could be subbed in any of the dozen burger configurations...until the "waiter" told me they didn't have veggie patties.  Okay, then - salad it is!

Our second day, they ordered Thai food.  I was cautious about anything with sauce, but all in all, I fared far better.  The third day, they let us go out on our own and that is where the fun begins.

Friday, I happily ambled over to Pure Fare in my brand new cowgirl boots (more in a minute).  It's about a block and a half away from one location and I could very happily go here every day for lunch.  If they double my salary, I could afford to do so, too!  Since that's not likely to happen anytime in the foreseeable future (I need more than a week to take over the world), I'll just let it continue to be a special treat.

There was a new salad I hadn't seen before (in the whole four times I've been in there), so I picked up the Wheatberry Salad with beets, roasted yams, tons of happy kale, and wheatberries, dressed in a nutty, tahini-like dressing and sprinkled with tiny, cute sesame seeds.  It was absolutely delightful and far more filling than I expected it to be.  I topped off with something I've been meaning to try for a while now: a Kale-Apple Smoothie.

This could absolutely become an addiction if it weren't so expensive.  It tastes incredible - just the right amount of sweetness from the apple (and I think they snuck a banana in there... I'm not complaining) with a lightness and, for lack of another word, greenness from the kale.  In a word?  Love.


Sunday found me at the more central location because of our Grand Opening of that store, and I was about 5 hours into my shift before we slowed down enough to send people to lunch.  I needed something fail-safe, so I headed to Starbucks.  I grabbed the Sesame Noodles Bistro Box, a banana, and my beloved Americano.  No, the beverage sure didn't go with the rest of the meal, but it made me happy for the last two hours of my shift...

photo from Starbucks' website

Yesterday, I remembered we're kind of poor and I'm just starting this job and should be cautious about finances, so I packed Leftovers Lunch and ate it on the steps of a church just off of Rittenhouse Square while eavesdropping on the organist practicing.  Have I mentioned I love working in the city?

By dinner, my plan kind of backfired.  I got home way later than I thought I would because I stopped into Trader Joe's to get food and ended up having a delightful surprise encounter with an old friend.  By the time I got home, I was lacking two things:

1. complete ingredients for anything on the menu (I didn't get to Superfresh)
2. the energy/desire to cook.

So, my money-saving Leftovers Lunch saved us the money to go out to Pietro's for dinner.  I wish I'd remembered to take pictures but please trust me when I tell you that the simple Spaghetti con Pomodoro Fresco was out of this world with flavor.  I only stopped eating so I wouldn't waddle home and I can't wait to eat the leftovers.  Mister essentially had a pile of mozzarella cheese (mozz sticks appetizer with a ricotta-less Broccoli Calzone).  I also had a pleasant Chianti that would have gone better with pizza, but I didn't want pizza.

Today, I completely forgot to take food, but a colleague used the opportunity to introduce me to my new favorite lunch spot for that location: Greenhouse.  As you approach, it just looks like a convenience store with normal convenience store stuff.  When you actually enter, you find a second room, as big as the first, and full of a hot/cold buffet.  Everything is labeled and looked fresh and delicious and it was far less expensive than I expected it to be (and the least I've spent on food so far).  I got mixed greens with sesame-sauteed spinach, snow peas, big chunks of cantaloupe, 3 halves of kiwifruit, a stuffed grape leaf, two pieces of teriyaki-glazed tofu that was stellar, and some black olives. It was an amusing combination (fusion, if you will) of Asian and Mediterranean fare and it was awesome.

Tonight, I actually bothered to cook (Mister, angel that he is, went to Superfresh for me today) and I decided to keep going on the faux-Asian theme with Seitan Pepper Steak from The Accidental Vegan.

As always, it was tasty - this time around, it seemed to have a more distinct ginger taste than I remember.  I wonder if that is because I used organic ginger - I don't think I do, ordinarily.  It seemed much "fresher" than what I get at Whole Foods, but I might have just used more or be imagining all this.  I wanted to make this first because it involves slicing 4 peppers and I hate when they sit too long and get all shrivelly.

Tomorrow is another adventure, but I have tons of leftovers in my fridge, so I must take my lunch again tomorrow....Pure Fare will have to wait at least another couple of days.  (I really could eat there happily every day if I had a million dollars.  Now that that song is stuck in your head, I'm going to skidaddle.)  

pale september

Pale September... I wore the time like a dress that year.  The autumn days swung soft around me, like cotton on my skin.  But as embers of the summer lost their breath and disappeared, ....all my armor falling down in a pile at my feet,and my winter giving way to warm...

Yes, it is finally September.  As the nighttime temps seem to be habitually landing in the mid- to low 60s, I turn my face happily toward Autumn - my favorite season.  A season when Mister's allergies finally get a small bit of reprieve, a season full of beautiful colors, incredible scents (they already have the cinnamon pine cones at Superfresh!) and shorter days through which to squint.  A season when the spiders in my basement, theoretically anyway, should leave me to do my laundry in peace, rather than sending Mister down to make sure they're not waiting to eat me and then freaking out halfway through loading the second load into the washer because a new, not-dead, spindly spider is creeping up the wall only a couple of vulnerable feet away.  If you'll wait a moment, I need to go ask Mister to switch the loads now...

Anyway, to celebrate the new month, we met up with my parents for lunch today.  Okay, actually, it was completely coincidental that they were in town today and it just happened to be the first of September.  Regardless, we met them at Cooperage, outside the Curtis Center, and I finally got to sit at the wood veneer tables in those neat black wicker booth benches with orange cushions.  Normally, the orange and black combination makes me think of Halloween, but for some reason, with this place it just makes me think of manly men who drink bourbon and how masculine I fancy myself sometimes.  I'm probably going to regret writing that.

I got a veggie burger with sweet potato fries - yes, sweet potato fries!  This was a very exciting moment for me.  Unfortunately, they were not nearly as tasty as the ones I've had out west.  At this point, it may be a power of suggestion kind of thing.  The veggie patty was okay, but since Mister's squooshed out in every direction, I just ate mine with a fork.  Not very manly of me, I'll admit.  Then again, neither is this drink:

That's my Bumboo Punch and it had something like 5 different fruit nectars in it.  It was strong, though - despite the many competing fruit juices, I could taste the rum quite distinctly.  It was a fun lunch - our water was served in mason jars with handles and our sandwiches came in shallow metal pails.  I'm not totally sure what that was about, but it definitely added to the whole Early 20th Century vibe the place had going on (which was exactly why I chose it).

Nevertheless, after sitting in the sun for about an hour and drinking that tall, fruity, rummy drink, I was ready for a serious nap when we got home.  Instead, Mister and I had a pot of coffee.

Isn't that pretty?  Mister bought me that tea-cup a few years ago and his mom got me the saucer for my bridal shower.  Normally, I just display all of my antique tea-cups (and saucers, of course!) on my china cabinet shelves, but I thought to myself today, "What's the use in having pretty things if I don't occasionally use them?"  So I pulled that pair off the shelf, rinsed them off and had my coffee in pretty china.  That made Mister smile at me.

This makes me smile.  Actually, it makes me smile and giggle a little, too.  It never stops being funny to me how I can make Leftover Molds.  I told Mister I didn't want to make Lasagna tonight because we still had so much Jambalaya leftover, so I heated up the three pounds of leftovers for dinner tonight.  It didn't taste any different than the first time, but it sure was more amusing, slipping out of the Gladware and holding its shape like a little Cajun Bundt cake made with rice, vegetables, and seitan.

walkin' in berkeley (SF part 2)

Before continuing the picture parade, I realized I left out one of the most memorable parts of our karaoke experience, so we'll pick up with my inventive rendition of "Walking in Memphis" (inventive because it's been a while since I've heard it so I made up parts of the melody that I forgot...oops!  no one seemed to notice, though - tip from a music teacher: if you are confident in your mistakes, no one will know you made one).  Anyway, there was a group of about 8 reeeeaallly drunk 20somethings close to the stage and by the time I sang my last song, they were singing along with everyone and dancing to everything.  One of the girls had fabulous legs and she knew it, since she was wearing a micro-minidress and apparently doing high kicks to impress her boy-toy and showing off a bit more than she needed to.  I'll censor one of the comments my sister and her friend made, but this one needs to go down in history (inserted inflated sense of importance here):

"I felt like I was watching a peep show with my sister singing in the background."

There ya have it, folks.  Glad I could entertain.  Moving on....

Sunday morning we packed up our things and checked out of The Chancellor because Sister's company was picking up the tab at the Oakland hotel we were staying at until Tuesday.  After checking out, we took BART to downtown Oakland (which I learned upon my return home is the 5th most dangerous city in the USA) and checked in at The Waterfront on Jack London Square, overlooking - you guessed it - the water!  The room had a charming nautical theme and was a bit larger than our room in Union Square.  It also had a Keurig, which is really all you need to make me happy.

Best Do Not Disturb sign ever

Between the BART station and the hotel, we passed two Starbucks and I'll tell you - people in the Bay Area take their coffee seriously - every Starbucks we passed while we were out there had a line to the door and every table was taken.  I've never seen anything like that in Philly, but then, we have an almost snobby "need" to patronize indie coffee shops.

After getting settled in the new room, we headed up to Berkeley, my mouth watering just thinking of the cinnamon bun I was only minutes away from eating.  We made our way to Cinnaholic and I was stunned with all the choices.  I realized I was just going to have to make a decision and regret that I couldn't come back every week until I'd tried them all (and gained about 10 lbs).

Sister chose the Blackberry Pie bun: vanilla frosting with blackberries and pecans and a sprinkle of streusel topping.

After much deliberation, I ordered a cinnamon bun with butterscotch frosting and bananas.  It was insanely tasty.  I thought it was funny how they made the frosting (since I was watching everything like a hungry vegan hawk); there was a big bowl of pre-made vanilla frosting and they added the desired flavor to it (in this case, butterscotch), but it still looked like vanilla.  The bananas were perfectly ripe and the whole experience was just incredible.  As I was waiting for my bun, I spied something irresistible in the corner of my eye.

And so I came to be the proud owner of a 16 oz Cinnaholic travel mug.  At the time this picture was taken, it was also full of freshly brewed coffee mixed with Silk French Vanilla creamer.  Heaven!

After the buns, we walked around town a bit to burn off the calories.  While I don't doubt a dieter would get into serious trouble there, the buns were actually not that big - they were smaller than a Cinnabon which is the food equivalent of Death, I think.

Sister ducked into a coffeeshop (Peet's, not SBUX, so she could get a table) to work on something she was presenting at her conference while I wandered the streets of Berkeley and visited a few bookstores, emerging victoriously with a book I'd been searching for for years (2nd in a series of which I already possess the 1st and 3rd books).  We were meeting up with a couple of her friends for dinner, but were a little ahead of schedule, so while we waited for them to show up, we decided to make a little Happy Hour action happen.

Completely by accident, we ended up in a beer garden called Jupiter.  The reason we found this amusing enough to commemorate with a photo is that our dinner plans involved the Saturn Cafe!

We met Sister's friend and her boyfriend at Jupiter and headed over to Saturn together after we finished our Ciders (yes, we drink the hard stuff).  It was funny being at a vegan/vegetarian diner with three omnivores because they were both intrigued by the menu but also felt like they needed to state how they don't actually eat meat all that frequently... such an interesting phenomenon - I've even noticed my mother saying that to me more, as though my lifestyle demands reckoning of their own.

Anyway, we started out with a not-so-healthy appetizer just to nail down that "vegetarian" does not always equal "healthy."

potato fries, onion rings, sweet potato fries, taquitos and some kind of ranch-y lookin' dip

Then we all ordered burgers, which came with more fries.  I was thinking of getting a vegan milkshake, too, but decided that between the burger (which was quite substantial!), fries, and earlier cinnamon bun, I didn't really need those calories.

As you can see, the food was incredibly colorful!  Isn't it just astonishing what fresh ingredients can do?  Sister went with the California Burger, made with organic veggies and a slice of local jack cheese, accompanied by the standard burger toppings, as well as avocado - they put that on everything out there, don't they? No complaints here!

Hers took a prettier picture but I was pretty darn happy with my Guacamole Burger - an organic veggie patty topped with house-made guacamole and salsa - and a very generous quantity, too!  We both selected sweet potato fries because they are such a novelty to us East Coasters (I don't care if she currently lives in Arizona, they still don't have sweet potato fries there, either).

Sister's friend and her boyfriend shared a Portobello Burger with a side salad - they were far more responsible than Sister and I, but we normally eat very moderately, so we felt like it was alright to splurge, especially with all the walking around we'd been doing.

Speaking of which, after we stuffed ourselves with dinner, we wandered around University of California's Berkeley campus before getting back on BART and returning to Oakland.  From our travel from downtown San Francisco to Oakland and then to Berkeley and back, my sister proudly dubbed us Public Transit Queens until I had to go and rain on her parade by pointing out we were just barely skimming the surface of my daily commute to work.

We retired early because Sister had to be up very early the next morning for her work conference.  I got up shortly after she left and made my way back to San Francisco because I wanted to visit the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market.  I mean, I heard they had vegan donuts - how could I resist finding out if that was true?  Also, a friend told me I had to try Blue Bottle Coffee while out in San Fran.

It turns out they do have vegan donuts.  Tucked away in a dark corridor near Sur La Table, Pepples Donuts were everything I wanted them to be - cakey and dense, moist and sweet... I got a Salted Caramel donut and I can't describe how satisfying the crunch of coarse salt sprinkled over sweet icing was.

I wandered along the corridors, seeing specialty shops of all ilk - salted pig bits, a creamery, a butcher, a couple of confectioners, a honey stand, a jam stand, assorted ethnic food kiosks, a couple of actual grocers, a little corner devoted to tofu (!), and plenty of trendy looking restaurants.  One loooonnng line caught my attention and I was not at all surprised to find that it led into Blue Bottle Coffee, so I took my place and waited for my super-hip pour-over brew.  While waiting, I looked at their merch and found a couple of gift-worthy coffees, so I left with a cup of fabulous coffee (you are so right, Kelly, and I'm glad Pure Food serves this coffee for an East Coast fix!) and two bags of beans - Bella Donovan for my sister, Giant Steps for me and Mister.  My favorite line from the description of our Sumatra-Uganda blend is "if it were any heavier-bodied, you could pour it on pancakes."  In all seriousness, it was some of the richest coffee I've ever had - it was very similar to espresso.

After walking the market back and forth a couple of times, I went out on the back deck pier, overlooking a gorgeous setting while I drank my coffee.

After mourning my East Coast anchor, I took one more pass of the market, including a short pit stop in the ladies room, then headed back to BART and north to Berkeley to have lunch in another spot I didn't want to go home without hitting.

I scoped out Cafe Gratitude while wandering around Berkeley before dinner the day before, but there simply wasn't enough time between our Cinnaholic "lunch" and Saturn dinner to squeeze in even low-cal "living" food, so I figured I'd lunch there while Sister worked.

The menu is amazing - I very much encourage you to check it out, not only for the actual food descriptions but also for the names!  I'll admit, ordering felt a little bit awkward, but I figured the nice lady behind the counter had probably watched plenty of non-crunchy folks fumble through their orders before.  The really fun part was that when she brought out the various components of my order (that is, my beverage and entree), she turned the affirmation around on me, saying "You are [insert fruity affirmation here]."

I am Effervescent
(lemon + ginger + agave + sparkling water)
incredibly refreshing and no flavor overwhelmed the others

I am Fortified
(quinoa + steamed veg + avocado + sunflower sprouts + sesame-ginger dressing)
completely satisfying, hunger- and taste-wise; aptly named!

After my life-affirming lunch, I wandered back through Berkeley, taking my time observing the amusing interactions between college kids, John Mayer Wannabes with a guitar, their voice, and a hat for cash, and homeless folks trying to sell "newspapers."  Intriguing culture, really.  It occurred to me to double back over to Saturn Cafe to see about that "milk"shake for dessert, but then I came upon Gelateria Naia, which had a stunning selection of vegan gelato.

I got the small size, which consisted of two scoops, so I chose Mint and Cookies 'n' Cream (the irony was not lost on me).  It really hit the sweet spot on my tongue, though I must say, the Cookies 'n' Cream could have been a bit more flavorful.  The Mint, however, was sublime and I was thrilled to see flecks of real mint in the gelato.

When I'd finished my gelato (and numbed my lips!), I got back on BART and returned to the hotel just in time to join Sister for her company's wine (and cheese) reception in the lobby of the hotel.

It is indescribably bizarre to walk into a room in July and see a fire burning in the fireplace.  It is even more bizarre to be excited and grateful for that, but I was and Sister claimed the seat closest to the fire.


After some amusing and slightly rowdy conversation with a few of Sister's colleagues, we headed to the room to pretty up for dinner.  Ever the Public Transit Queens, we hopped back on BART and returned to Berkeley at my suggestion for dinner (thanks for the tip - again - Jackie!) at Herbivore.

We started dinner with a couple of cocktails - a Mad Cow for me (kahlua + amaretto + vanilla soy milk) and a dirty martini for James Bond my sister.

We shared Sister's greens-n-beets salad, as well as an order of Bruschetta that appeared to be coated with a sprinkling of sumac for reasons I will probably never understand.  It was interesting, but the tomatoes and basil could have been marinated in olive oil and lemon juice with a bit of garlic for flavor, in my opinion.  There are way too many Italian restaurants with close proximity to my home...

Although there were many amazing things on the menu, I could not escape a need to order the Macaroni and "Cheese".  I've steered pretty clear of the obsession with vegan Mac 'n' Cheese so far, but eventually, if you hear about something enough, you have to just go for it.

I was not sorry - it was as delicious as it is attractive.  I was also quite happy about the broccoli.  Despite my best intentions, when I travel I turn into Captain Junkfood and feel completely justified in eating all manner of NotGreenThings.  Granted, my Fortified lunch was totally, unavoidably healthy, but aside from that, I didn't exactly seek out vegetables.  Whenever I do that, this moment comes when I have an irrepressible obsession with veggies - although that did not happen this time, I think the kale at Gracias Madre and the broccoli at Herbivore (and everything at Cafe Gratitude) helped keep it at bay.

Ever the curry-lover, Sister got Coconut Noodle Soup, which shamed me with its BrimmingWithVegetables-ness.  Once again too stuffed for dessert, we returned to the hotel for a nightcap at Miss Pearl's Jam House.

The next day was Leaving Day.  My flight actually ended up getting cancelled and I was rebooked on a flight that left 10 hours later, so I waited for sister to get finished her conference, then we went back to the Ferry Market, ate another donut, drank more coffee, looked out over the bay, and then took the ferry back to the hotel before heading to our separate airports (she flew out of Oakland, I flew from San Francisco).  I had plenty of time to kill, since my flight didn't leave until 11, so I discovered:

• how easy it is to get through security when everyone is bored - seriously, there was no line.
• how easy it is to get a seat at the only restaurant in the terminal when there are no flights for a couple of hours.
• how tasty a Lemon Drop really is.
• what restaurants do when they run out of silverware.

again with the avocado - do you see it peeking from beneath the bun?

apparently, plastic knives are a completely acceptable 
substitution if you run out of "real" knives.

So there you have it!  I'm pretty sure no one wants to hear how much it sucked getting home (San Fran to Detroit was the most turbulent flight ever) or how after two planes, two trains, a bus, and a few blocks I finally walked through my front door at 11AM, crawled into bed and completely messed up my schedule by sleeping until 4PM, and then went food shopping and made dinner for the first time in 5 days... but if you do, then there's always tomorrow's post!