All American Break Fasting O' Champions

Oh my freakin' gourd, I am sooooooooooooooooo sorry I have denied all ye fellow plant-eaters out there for so long. What is my blogdarn problem? They say habits take 21 consecutive days of practice to form, (some say 28, tho, and some say 7), but my writing practice is so rusty that I can't seem to come up with more than 50 words per week. That being said, this will again be a sadly unprolific post, as I am currently hanging with the family unit back in ol' Weirdginia Beach, and there is much spelunking and cavorting to do.

Before continuing, however, there is one thing I want to make clear. Being holed up for 5 days amongst 10 extremely flesh-eating fanatics (half of who have animal companions that they, like, totally love), the vegan mind tends to roll certain topics over and over inside the skull, keeping one awake at night in silent conversations, and constantly on their toes during the daytime, either running away from horrific visions on plates or putrid smells of searing carcass, or straining to keep mouth shut regarding inconsistencies and hypocrisies in the carnivorous lifestyle. These thoughts led me back to this blog, in which I suddenly realize that I have as yet to make the point to all my fellow readers and bloggers out there that I have, FIRST AND FOREMOST, chosen the vegan lifestyle for ethical, compassionate reasons. While my focus here so far, and perhaps, mostly, is to show the world how enticing, healthful, and varied eating a plant-based diet can be, I still have my ingestion vices, and I did not choose veganism for "health" reasons (altho many a long time ago I did, and guess what? it was not the glue that stuck me to it). It is the fundamental obligation to others---in this case other species---that is the casein-free adhesive that binds.... On that note, as someone who tries to live compassionately in whatever way I can, I also believe in being compassionate to myself (admittedly, these words at times speak louder than my actions); taking care of my body in turn takes care of my mind, and, yes, feeds my soul. The purely plant-based diet (vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, beans, seaweeds, etc.) is the most beneficially healthy way to stuff one's gullet in a temperate clime, ......which is just my set-up to boast to you that after my blood panel last week, the doc said to me "You are disgustingly healthy"; in fact, she said "disgustingly" in such a dramatic, drawn out way that I thought for sure she was about to give me horrible news about my state of health!

O.k. Now we can move on...these pics are from the last week and a half from my life. For some reason, I switched to an "Americanized Diet", in the vegan vein, of course, for several days. This includes your typical meal staples: cereals with "milk" and fruit, waffles, sammiches, tots, crap like that. So, even though I just went on above about how yummy and creative vegan food can be, I am not really offering up a lot of creativity in this post. Solly. Better luck next time! But to keep you abreast of my mouth-shoveling habits, here goes:

I bought a huge batch of blueberries which I ate almost every morning for breakfast. Here, thrown over a bowl of wheat-free granola. I had no plain beanjuice in the house, so I used a little chocolate soymilk as my "wettener", and oddly, the flavor combination was awesome!

After eating so many blueberries, it is necessary for one to take a long, hot bubble bath to release the toxins...

salad and spanakopita from Cafe Life. yum.

oh yeah, my token lounging felines pics:

another extremely simple breakfast: brown rice cakes, nanners, and cinnamon.

see how easy it can be when you need to take a break.....fast?

extremely blurry picture of a durn good stirfry: rice, swiss chard, purple peppers, daikon, carrots, broccoli, almonds, and I-d0n't-remember in a garlic-ginger-shoyu sauce

more of those blue balls!

I made brown rice with a coconut curried dal, and topped it off with tamari sweet pertaters and collard green rolls. the filling in the rolls is simply leaf lettuce hearts in an almond/coconut "dressing". OMG they were soooooo good!

and of course, one needs pappadam to scoop up the curry.

sammich time! it was tasty, but sorry for you, I don't remember what-all went in it. use your imagination.

below are 2 different versions of an interesting meal: soy nuggets served with creamy pesto, sweet potato/carrot/garlic mash, and pesto yellow squash mash. don't knock it. it was super-tasty, so much so that we were still talking about it the next day. the pesto is a cashew, parsley, basil, chive mixture (with garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, and salt)

Ok, there is a svimming pool calling my name, so in the words of a band from long ago that I sadly can't remember the name of now in my old age: "that's it tell next time, yellow-bellied toadsuckers!" (eh-hem, which I hope none of you really are)

keep on rockin in the free animal world of our hopes and desires!

she wants to see inside my fridgamicator!

ok, I uploaded these pictures yesterday, but then we lost power due to an electrical storm (lots of those this week), and I couldn't finish my post. lindyloo, from yeah, that "vegan" shit wants to know what is in my fridge (and yours, too), so sorry for this what-some-might-consider banality, and bear with me...



I won't bore you with a list of details, for if you are reading this, then I assume you have the eyes, brain capacity, and/or imagination to make out the goodies inside and pretend what may be lurking beyond.

here is the "meat" drawer, watched over by Filberto the Fire Pig

some produce goodies

I use Sta-Fresh bags to keep my greens and other veggies, well, fresh

and in the door, we have condiments!

hot sauce in every variety and nationality

here is a close-up section of magnets and ooey gooey food remnants that no amount of scrubbing with biokleen can erase

Now for some gratuitous kitty fotos before we move on to the gastronomical portion of this simple post.

here we have the Black Boy (a.k.a. Sylvester) showing us how to slumber

and here we have L'il Frito, one-upping Black Boy in the how-tos of Zen Beauty resting

Last night's supper (and the night before, as well) consisted of brown rice fusilli, curly kale, white onions, broccoli, and almonds in a garlic lemon sauce (with a little white wine and olive oil thrown in as well, bien sur!) sprinkle a little cayenne powder on top, and you've got yourself a pretty pasta meal deal!~~~ an episode or two of The Lost Room is a fine accompaniment for this dish.

The creeping kitties want my lunch! I don't blame them.... I made a burger with the same leftover patty mash concoction I previously made some "croquettes" with (scroll down to see). I'm not sure I can remember all of the ingredients I used now, but originally they were meant to be millet bean burgers. After I pretoasted then pressure-cooked my millet, I lifted the lid, let them steam clear for a second, and to my soooooo-prise I found that I had cooked yet another batch of quinoa! In their raw, dried form, the two grains (well, quinoa is not technically a grain, it's a seed) look almost identical. The good news is that they also make good substitutes for one another, although millet has more of a sticky quality that holds burgers and croquettes together better. On the other hand, quinoa is a complete, power-punching protein, so take that! No wonder those frisky frelines are trying to get at my sammich!

quinoa bean and beet burgers go a long way, topped with lettuce, onion, pickle and 100% rye bread!

the farfrednugen said they tasted very "convincing", or something to that effect

howdy-hoo, am I ever getting hongry! thought you might like to see the precooked patty (shaped just like a slice of bread). if you squint your eyes just a little, it looks like an authentic bloody-cow burger that's been left to fester in the heat. the quinoa wigglies appear to be maggots, and there're a few dead cockaroachees and who-knows-what-else in there! ok! so don't squint your eyes! and believe me when I tell you it's not only tasty, but 105% prime healthy.

contains (besides quinoa): beets, sunflower seeds, black beans, garlic, onions, much-rooms, cumin, and what-all

a simple breakfast of cinnamon raisin mochi with a tahini/maple syrup dish. deeeeeelish, and such a more nutitious, longer energizing sweet morning treat than an almond croissant!




...and here are the quinoa-bean croquettes, served with avocado and red leaf lettuce (to make wraps), a mustard dipping sauce, and summer squash fries with chili dust. the fries were super-tasty, but next time I will use a deep fryer to give them a better crunch.
fianally, the lunch pic I promised in my last post...

I don't really have anything mind-blowing, earth-shattering, creative, or even dull to say right now (and haven't in a while). I am just taking it all in... so as Porky Pig would say, "Th-th-th-that's all folks! Now stay away from me and go eat a tree!"

amazing days of grains

I have a huge container garden on my back deck, full of sun-loving plants---->flowering, fruit, vegetable, and herb. I really had grand visions for this south-facing garden (think BH&G centerfold), but there have been 3 major problems: a.)my backyard is full of large hickory trees which block the sun until about 3:30 pm, 2.)we suffered a pretty bad heat drought here over the past couple of months that no amount of running around, up and down stairs, with pitchers of tap water, could alleviate, and thirdly.)last week the rains finally came, greening out the foliage, but now the sky turns gray everyday right around 3:30 in the afternoon, right when the sun is angled best to supply much needed chlorophying love to my garden. So now a fungus grows among us, in the form of mushrooms and mold thru-out the soil. Thankfully, culinary herbs are best when not in flower, and I've got a bunch growing in pots all down the back steps.

Jaime, Sylvester, chives, parsley, spearmint, chocolate mint,

sage, marjoram, thyme, oregano, lemon balm, and basil

On Sunday and Monday, I had to finish off some "soy products" in the fridge before I 86 them (no, not an interstate) from my menu for a while. So Sunday night we had TJ's Soy Nugget lettuce wraps with a dipping sauce, a mound of quinoa with rice, and steamed broccoli with a thick, creamy, "cheesy" sauce. Ahhhh, simple pleasures!

taking the picture with a Rose of Sharon backdrop gives it a bit of a Hawaiian feel

the dipping sauce was tres simple as well: vegenaise, spicy mustard, shoyu, dash of brown rice vinegar, dash of maple syrup, and cayenne powder (kind of a glorified BK sauce)

The best way to serve leftovers is to add one or two fresh new ingredients, then present it in a different style. In this case, my batch of quinoa rice has gone a long way. Last night I sauteed some corn, scallions, and pine nuts, then tossed it with the grains and fresh minced ginger, and plated it atop a bed of mesclun. The tempeh, I first steamed, then marinated with brown rice vinegar, mirin, toasted sesame oil, ginger, and a splash of water (I saved the marinade to toss on my salad later). Then I browned the tempeh in my cast iron pan with a hint of sesame oil, and flash-sauteed some mushrooms. At the end, I threw some teriyaki sauce (shoyu, mirin, vinegar, maple syrup)in the pan to coat the tempeh, deglaze the pan and thicken into a sauce at the same time. The remaining sauce was drizzled over the plate. Wooo boy!

and here is the salad: carrots, daikon, cukes, cilantro, and sesame seeds,

with the ginger dressing

In today's lunch, I used last night's leftover grains and corn combo to make a new dish, and I finally finished off the quinoa rice! Peculiarly enough, it was the most savory, wonderful meal of them all....I will post the pic tomorrow. Until then, chow happily and ciao bella!

Macrobi-NOT-ic

Firstly and most importantly, let's reflect on unconditional sibling love of the fur-klan. This is sweet Megan (whom the menfolk of Moon are all intrepidly in love with) kissing and licking on her brother (my paramour), Little Lord Fauntleroy. One of my favorite meditations is to watch these displays of affection and wisdom; felines, I believe, coined the maxim "cleanliness is next to godliness" many a long time ago.

And a gorgeously blue morning glory on my balcony...

o.k... as far as the first week of my elimination diet went, I started out with a bang and went down with a sputter. Starting on Monday, I cut out wheat in all forms, corn, peanuts, and alcohol. Coffee was still in my "ok" list, because while I make mine half-decaf (and organic), the coffee detox/withdrawal is one of the hardest for me, and I couldn't handle that hullabahookie on top of any food reaction withdrawal symptoms I am having/may have. Unfortunately, by Friday, my resolve was not only broken, but crushed and ground a la mortar and pestle, when I went with friends to see The Decemberists at Chastain Park. With very noble intentions, I got a bottle of water for my imbibing pleasure, while everyone else bought oilcans of Fosters or bottles of vino. However, by the time we sat our rumps down on the metal benches and the first bottle was uncorked, I couldn't stand the idea of only having a "good time". I wanted the full experience, like everyone else! So, in compromise, I allowed myself a half of a small plastic cup-ful of the good red stuff. It was by the 3rd pour however (of only half a cup, mind you), that I had to finally admit to myself that this "counted", and I had broken my diet. When we left the ampitheatre, it seemed silly to get back on the wagon immediately after I had lept so valiantly-yet-foolhardily off, so we shimmied back to the neighborhood "Regal Beagle", where I faintly protested against the glass of merlot that was offered to me, and then vehemently demanded that I be served a carton of peanuts as well! (I won't even begin sharing details of the neighbor's yardsale the following morning, in which spicy bloody marys and mimosas were free-flowing onto the lawn...)

So without further ado, here are a few meal cut-outs from my weak week:

today's redemption lunch: rice, beans, and tempeh bacon atop mixed mesclun greens, finished with carrot almond sauce and whipped tofu "goat cheese"

Mid-week, I made something slightly off the plan, but still relatively healthy---->Eggplant Dharmasan with "nomato" sauce. It was scrumpdillyicious, and left my eating partner and me feeling fantastico afterwards!

some ingredients in the "nomato" sauce are below. Why not tomato sauce, you ask? The simple answer: because tomatoes, altho delicious, are nightshades; nightshades contain solanine; solanine is an alkaloid that can really mess with your joints and bones. Think "arthitis + rain". Here's a place to find

more info on the subject.

layers of the eggplant Dharmasan: nomato sauce, eggplant slices coated in potato chips (my favorite--->salt & pepper Kettle chippies), tofu "goat cheese", more of the same layers, with the option of topping it all off with FYH mozzarella.


ready to go in the oven


and served with a side of brown rice angel hair tossed with rosemary, olive oil, lemon juice,
capers, and pine nuts


tuesday's lunch: leftover long-grain brown rice, topped with water-sauteed kale and carrot-almond sauce, served with a mix of pinto and cannellini beans, suncheese,
and grated daikon (tossed with a touch of ume-zu).


On Monday, I made green rolls, and they rocked! they're made with steamed swiss chard, beet greens, and cabbage, rolled with flash-sauteed button mushrooms, diced stems from the greens, and suncheese (a combination of soaked sunflower seeds, lemon juice, garlic, and umeboshi vinegar, or ume-zu)

Starting tomorrow, I am cutting out all soy products as well (for at least a week). This will suck royally, as I am rather dependent on Silk soy creamer in my morning java, and almond milk, whilst good in its own right, just does not provide the thick velvety goodness of the creamer. Better luck to me!

I'm aLiiive!!

Ok, I'm coming out the other side of a black hole brain fog time warp, which caused a crash in my cognitive motor equipment (see above pic). There's still a lot of static in there, but hopefully by the end of this week (this is elimination diet week to determine FOD contaminants entering orifice) I will be seeing clearly again, and, perhaps, remember what the word "passion" means. Translation: I will begin posting again, in earnest, with plenty of tongue-teasing fotos. On the what-might-be-considered-to-some downside, since I am cutting wheat, soy, corn, peanuts, and WINE!! out of my diet for a little while, my meal concoctions may appear slightly less decadent, a.ka. Simple and Healthy.

The beauty of simplifying your cooking, however, besides the numerous health benefits = feeling on top of the world, is that your tastebuds begin to truly come alive, delighting in the subtlest flavors. What used to seem bland, due to extreme flavors (sweet, sour, bitter, pungent, salty) deadening your tongue sensors, suddenly becomes packed with exciting new taste sensations. Plain brown rice becomes sweet and nutty, and is perfectly delicious in its own right, without shoyu, salt, or butter. Vegetables steamed or slow-sauteed with just a pinch of sea salt need nothing else before popping into your mouth. Indeed, foods with added sweeteners (think cake) become so overpoweringly sweet, your tongue will feel as if it is going numb. If you have stopped eating sugar for a month, or even just a week, the negative effects of just one little bite of chocolate chip cookie will be immediate: muscles will feel suddenly weak and heavy, migraines will strike like a bolt of thunder, and your brain will fog over like the windows of my '73 bug.

It has been a while since my diet has been "pure", and I've paid the consequences: weight gain, acid reflux, chronic joint and muscle pain, depression, IBS---->to name a few. Right now I am reading The False Fat Diet, by Elson M. Haas (which I highly recommend for anyone who suspects they have food sensitivities), and it has given me the encouragement to track down and cut out the culprits, once again. I am not much good at fasts, even juice fasts, so I choose to do a limited elimination plan for a couple of weeks (and I'm fairly certain wheat is my enemy). I will keep you posted on the progress...

For now, however, a few pictures from lost weeks gone by, probably with minimal explanation :)

to satisfy the repressed carnivorous shadow in me, a little "kitty a la king". this is tomlucas, a defector from the 'hood, who decided the West End of Moon St. was a far more royal environment for his regal (and extremely demanding) bloodline.



errr, for some reason I have been on a total pizza kick over the past month or so.

One Saturday eve, when I was dining alone (well, just me, the 8 felines, and the tele), I decided to do it up right Japanese-style. Obviously, I went a little crazy and made 5 times as much food as one dainty little sprite like me could ever eat.

here is vegetable tempura, including baby bellas, red peppers, summer squash, and my favorite--->teriyaki tempeh wrapped in nori

cucumber and daikon salad, with a dash of ume vinegar

and toasted sesame oil, topped with toasted dulse

teriyaki tofu nigiri, topped with scallions and sesame seeds

(that's edamame in the background)

vegetable dragon roll (I can't remember everything I put in it), red pepper-

portabella-scallion roll, and inari nigiri

ahh, the infamous pizza, this time as a casserole. I wanted to try upside-down pizza bowl, but changed my mind at the last minute. sorry about the horrible picture quality;

I need to work on my lighting.

I took my morning's leftover coffee, and made this wonderful afternoon pick-me-up: cold coffee, frozen banana, vanilla soy ice cream, and chunks of dark vegan chocolate. eeeeeyyummmm.

super-groovy eggplant "cannelloni", with my fantabulous tofu ricotta, basil, marinara, spinach, and pine nuts. topped it off with some sourdough breadcrumbs.

I semi-promise, one of these days, REALLY SOON, I will start supplying recipes for some of these creations. Meanwhile, be on the lookout for an entourage of macrobiotic-y repasts. See you next time!