Yummy Sauteed Veggies

Dh made these to go along with a frittata that he made for dinner last night. Squirrel devoured it! I have never seen her clean the plate so quickly. I wish that I could share pictures of the main dish, but they did not look good.

We are finally getting there...

We are finally getting to use our kitchen again. I cannot tell you how happy that is making my family. I really did miss cooking. I painted the trim this morning so that I could move the desk back into the kitchen. I am so excited!! I can finally use my Kitchen Aid mixer again. I will also to put my brand new toy in the kitchen. What new toy?? My favorite guy bought me a Cuisinart food processor. It has been sitting in the box for a month now waiting for a new home.

We did run into a small problem, ok big problem. The facing of my lower cabinets is shot. They are only made of plywood. They need to be completely redone. Well, since I couldn't put drawers or my lower cabinet doors back in they are all under the desk in the kitchen now. While I am loving the ease of putting things away without the cabinets doors, I am missing them as well. The kitchen looks a little cluttered with the open cabinets. I promise to post more pictures once I get the clutter off the cabinets.



We have also finished all most all of the bathroom painting. I did the trim in there this afternoon. I cannot get over how fabulous it looks. I will take pictures tomorrow after I get the new curtain up. We just need to redo our mirror and pick up a thing of two. Shh, don't tell dh. He doesn't understand the need for nice hand towels. :-)

Lunch Ideas Needed

Dh has started a second job and he has to take his lunch. He will not always have access to a microwave. This have to be portable and non-fussy. Is that even a word?

I have made sandwiches in the past, but I am just running out of ideas. I don't want him to have the same thing everyday. I try and pack at least 2 snacks (trail mix & soy jerky or granola bar), main thing, fruit, and something sweet (cookie, fruit leather).

I am afraid to give him anything with nuts because of his job. It cannot be anything that is messy. He has a cooler that will keep things cool and I think hot. But being in the south, that won't be necessary right now.

Any ideas???

The Reason Why I Did Not Follow My Menu

Because my kitchen looked like this on Friday......





They look like this after the primer..






My pantry is in the living room now.....



Tomorrow the cabinet doors and drawers will get painted. The walls will also be painted. I cannot wait. I cannot wait to get my living room & dining room back. My goal is to have everything put back in cabinet doors or not Tuesday night. I can handle not having doors, but

My kids keep asking me when I am going to make something other than sandwiches again. To view some more pictures click here.

Menu Plan Monday

It has been awhile since I have made a menu. My family needs to stop eating out so much, so I made up a menu for the week. The meals might get changed from day to day. We are in the middle of painting our kitchen.

Monday: Nachos
Tuesday: Veggie Pot Pie, Salad
Wednesday:Messy Lasagna, garlic bread sticks, green beans and salad
Thursday: Pancakes, bacon, orange juice
Friday: Pizza
Saturday: stir-fry or italian eggplant

Breakfasts choices this week:
cereal
bagels
egg sandwiches
oatmeal

Lunch choices:
leftovers
tuna melts
salads & baked potato
sandwiches
black bean dumplings

For more idea check out Organizing Junkie.

Same Old Same Old

We have not been cooking anything new lately. We have had some good meals and some that were so bad we couldn't even take another bite. Dh and I are finally getting back into the swing of things. It was unreal to have 2 bog losses within 24hrs. It was a little bit too much to handle. We took some time off and just chilled.

We are slowly getting back to normal. I cannot wait to get back in the swing of things.

Vegan Sausage Dogs

Yesterday I made Vegan Dad's Sausages. My son renamed them Sausage Dogs LOL. Now I changed the recipe to fit what I had on hand. I used black beans and I didn't add fennel seeds because I didn't have any. I made the sausages while I was making breakfast. Once they were done I stuck them in the fridge for dinner. Dh cooked them in a pan with some onions. YUMMY!!! We served them on hot dog buns. My boys gobbled them up. My dd wasn't too sure of them, but I think that it might of been the heat. They had a little kick to them. The only complaint that I heard was that there wasn't enough for all of them to have seconds. This is because we put some up for dh's lunch. The other one we froze, because I wanted to see how they would do.

Merry Christmas!!!

I hope that you and your family has a magical Christmas.

Photo courtesy of Sodahead.

Vegan Breakfast Cookbook?

When I try and plan a weekly menu, I always have trouble with breakfast. I always look for ideas in cookbooks, but they all seem to be the same thing. I want something different. I made an amazing tempeh hash the other day, but it takes forever. I want some quick ideas. My kids are not fond of scrambled tofu. They love pancakes, waffles, and breakfast pizzas, but you can only have so much of those things. My kids love oatmeal, but this mom can't stand the texture.

I would love a vegan breakfast cookbook. I would love one that has a variety of recipes. One that has brunch ideas, quick morning ideas, and everything in between.

Any suggestion?

The Ultimate Comfort Food

It has been raining all day. I really wanted some comfort food. Dh made me Chickpea cutlets and lemony roasted potatoes from Veganomicon. He made his own gravy and it was awesome. Let me tell you, it was beyond amazing. I can't use enough adjectives to describe dinner.

Black Bean and Butternut Squash Chili

It has been raining all day so I thought that chili would be in order. I made Black Bean and Butternut Squash Chili from Vegan Planet. Dh made a cheeze sauce from The Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook and a tofu sour cream from Vegan Express. It was delicious.

Accidently Awesome!!

Tonight I was going to make Vegan Dad's Italian Meatballs. I thought that I had all the ingredients, but it turned out that I didn't. So I tried it anyway. When it came to making the meatballs, they would not stay together. They kept falling apart. I did not have anymore BBQ sauce, so I used a little ketchup. I don't know if it made that big of a deal or not. I ended up spreading the mixture out on a cookie sheet and baking in it the oven. Once it was browned I added it to my homemade spaghetti sauce. My family loves thick sauce. It was the best spaghetti sauce that I have ever made! My family devoured it. They all complimented the chef. Well..it was an accident that turned out awesome. Of course our spaghetti was not vegan because we used Parmesan cheese. I need to get dh to make some more vegan parmesan sprinkles.

Favorite Cookbook

I was just getting out my cookbooks to look for inspiration. I have a couple of cookbooks that I always turn to. The first one is Vegan Planet. I use this book at least twice a week if not more. Here is what it looks like from all the use. LOL.



The second one that I grab is my The Joy of Vegan Baking.

I started to wonder what your top 2 cookbooks are. So what are the cookbooks that you grab when you need inspiration??

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

I just wanted to take a moment to say thank you to all my blogging buddies.
Thank you so much for allowing me to peak into your kitchen.
Thank you for sharing your awesome recipes.
Thank you for being you.

Happy Thanksgiving from my family to yours.

A Food Meme

What’s the last thing you ate? bagel & cream cheese.

What’s your favorite cheese? muenster.

What’s your favorite fruit? strawberries.

When, if ever, did you start liking olives? I have always loved them.

When, if ever, did you start liking beer? 20

What was the best thing your parent/s used to make? Apple pie..from what I am told. I have never liked pie. I always loved mom's macaroni salad as well.

What’s the native specialty of your home town? crab cakes.

What’s your comfort food? Morning Star Farms chick'n sandwiches & baked beans.
What’s your favorite type of chocolate? none

How do you like your eggs? omelets or hard boiled.

How do you like your potatoes? baked and stuffed with goodies.

How do you take your coffee? yuck!

How do you take your tea? sweet.

What’s your favorite mug? It was a snowman mug that was a gift from my kids. It broke last year. :(

What’s your cookie of choice? sugar

What’s your ideal breakfast? everything bagel and cream cheese

What’s your ideal sandwich? avocado, lettuce & tomato on toasted whole wheat.

What’s your ideal pizza (topping and base)? homemade taco pizza or veggie pizza on homemade crust

What’s your ideal pie (sweet or savory)? Pie? pumpkin

What’s your ideal salad? mixed lettuces, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, balck olives, roasted red peppers, chopped peppers, mozzarella cheese chunks, cooked mushrooms, black beans and homemade croutons.

What food do you always like to have in the fridge? soy milk, vegan mayo, borden sliced cheese, wheat gluten, nutritional yeast, flour, coffee, fruit, tempeh

What food do you always like to have in the freezer? tofu, egg roll wrapper, spring roll wrappers, frozen veggies

What food do you always like to have in the cupboard? spaghetti, tomato sauce, soymilk,veggie soup cubes, canned & dried beans.

What spices can you not live without? garlic, onion powder, basil, oregano, Dinosaur BBQ Rub Fore play

What sauces can you not live without? can't think of one

Where do you buy most of your food? Kroger, costco, & natural health food store

How often do you go food shopping? Major shopping every 2 weeks. fresh veggies & milk once a week.

What’s the most you’ve spent on a single food item? I am not sure

What’s the most expensive piece of kitchen equipment you own? Fridge.

What’s the last piece of equipment you bought for your kitchen? ?? a cookie scoop

What piece of kitchen equipment could you not live without? kitchen aid standing mixer

How many times a week/month do you cook from raw ingredients? all the time.

What’s the last thing you cooked from raw ingredients? soup

What’s your favorite thing to make for yourself? soft pretzels


What’s the last time you ate something that had fallen on the floor? I don't know. I don't tend to do that.

What’s the last time you ate something you’d picked in the wild? in the summer...blueberries. YUMMY

Place the following cuisines in order of preference (greatest to least) - Italian, sushi, Chinese, French, Indian, Thai: sushi, chinese, italian. I have never had french or indian food.

Place the following boozes in order of preference (greatest to least) - Whiskey, tequila, vodka, brandy, gin, rum: I very rarely drink.

Place the following flavors in order of preference (greatest to least) - Garlic, ginger, basil, aniseed, lime: garlic, basil, lime, ginger, aniseed.

Place the following fruits in order of preference (greatest to least) - cherry, apple, orange, pineapple, watermelon: watermelon, apple, orange, pineapple, cherry

Bread and spread: cinnamon raisin bread(toasted) and cream cheese.

What’s your fast food restaurant of choice, and what do you usually order? Subway veggie sub.

What are three of the best dining-out experiences you’ve had? I can only think of one. When dh and I went out for sushi a couple of months ago. It was our first date in 2 years.

What’s your choice of tipple at the end of a long day? Water. I don't drink.

Favorite cookbook/s? Vegan Planet & The Joy of Vegan Baking.

Got any favorite food blogs? yep~~~~>>>>

What’s the next thing you’ll eat? soup and grilled cheeses for lunch.

Tempeh Two Ways

I made 2 different versions of tempeh for lunch yesterday. Dh was at the station and I wanted to surprise him with something new. I made him Tempeh simmered with Tomatoes and Sauerkraut from Vegan Planet. He loved it. He said that he added just a little bit of sour cream and it was even better. I reduced the recipe since it was only going to feed him. It was a very quick recipe to make. I will be making it again for him.

I made another tempeh recipe from Vegan Planet for the kids and myself. I made Teriyaki-Glazed Tempeh. My kids loved the sauce, but the tempeh was a little to soft. I think that I cooked the tempeh to long. I served it over brown rice, broccoli and onions.

What's Been Cooking

Dh made the most amazing soup. Even my bean hater LOVED it. When I asked him for a recipe he said that it had a little bit and a little bit of that.

We only had one complaint...there wasn't enough.

Next he tried Bryanna's New Beefy Seitan that Vegan Dad talked about here. Tracker couldn't get enough of it. He called it meatloaf and kept asking for more. We had that with roasted red potatoes, steamed green beans and a Sun-dried Tomato and olive bread for The Joy of Vegan Baking. Yummy!! I don't think that this picture does it justice.

I tried to make bite sized quiches. They looked wonderful, but they were not that good. I need to fool around with the recipe some more. Has anyone ever made something similar before? Quiche is one of Tracker's favorite breakfast treats. I would love to find a way to make it a little bit lighter.

I also made a veggie sandwich with roasted mushrooms, onions, red peppers and garlic spinach. I used some homemade bread that dh made the day before. I will admit that it was not one of my best recipes. It was still ok.

The Best Nuggets EVER!!

Tonight dh made Vegan Dad's Hot Wingz and his Sweet & Sticky Wingz. He made them into nuggets and they were delicious. They are my new favorite finger food. I have already mentioned that these will be made next week during the last NASCAR Race of the season. I cannot tell you how delicious the BBQ sauce was for the nuggets. I could just eat the sauce straight out of the pan. My only complaint is that we didn't have anymore.


Dh also made 2 deep dish pizzas to go along with the wingz. The pizzas were outstanding as well.


I just love it when my hubby cooks.

Meat*loaf

I made the most amazing meal tonight. I made *meat*loaf, roasted veggies and biscuits for dinner. It was beyond amazing. I got the recipe from a vegetarian yahoo group that I belong to. The vegetables that I roasted were purple sweet potato, red potatoes, baby carrots and onions. The purple potato was my favorite. It was the first time that I ever cooked with them. I was disappointed that they weren't purple on the inside. The biscuit recipe came from The Joy of Vegan Baking cookbook.

*Meat* Loaf

1.5 cups dried lentils, rinsed
2 yellow onions
1/4 cup olive or canola oil
3 cups brown rice (cooked)
1 (6-ounce) can of tomato paste
1/2 cup ketchup
1 tsp marjoram
1 tsp sage
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
3/4 cup tomato sauce (or pasta sauce)
Additional ketchup or salt to taste



Rinse the lentil and cook them in 3-4 cups water until soft (about 30 minutes). Drain excess liquid. Mash lentils slightly.

Meanwhile, peel and chop both onions, cooking them on a skillet with the oil until translucent or golden.

In a large pot or bowl, combine mashed lentils with onions, rice, tomato paste, spices, quartered tomatoes, and pasta sauce until mixed well.

Press mixture into a well-oiled loaf or baking dish. Spread 1/2 cup ketchup across the top. Bake at 350-degrees for 1 hour.

Add additional ketchup to taste. Will keep (covered) in the refrigerator for 7-10 days.

Number of Servings: 10

***SF Notes*** Of course I didn't have all the spices. I just used a generic seasoning blend. I also didn't have the cherry tomatoes so I used a couple of spoonfuls of canned diced tomatoes. The only complaint that I heard was that it was not firm enough.

Baked Oatmeal

We woke up to a very chilly morning. I decided to make the kiddos some baked oatmeal. It is always a sign of fall when I start making this dish. I got the recipe from Allrecipes.

Baked Oatmeal II

Cook Time: 40 Minutes Ready In: 50 Minutes
Yields: 4 servings

INGREDIENTS:
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup brown sugar

Publish Post

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk
2 eggs
1/2 cup melted butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup dried cranberries
DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, mix together oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Beat in milk, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla extract. Stir in dried cranberries. Spread into a 9x13 inch baking dish.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2008 Allrecipes.com

***Summer Fae's Notes*** I don't use cranberries. I use raisins and chocolate chips.