Back in Business

I never thought the day would come when I would have a) no energy to cook, b) no desire to look at recipes, and c) no taste for sweets. Luckily, those days are quickly fading, although Baby to Be is still giving me the woozies over sweets, bitter greens, and too much citrus too early in the morning. I feel like I'm one of Pavlov's dogs, and I'm a little slow on the uptake, learning what I can and can't eat!

Anyway, I was psyched that at least problems a) and b) are a thing of the past, although I'm often still too tired to cook much. However, I was able to crack open my new Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar by Moskowitz and Romero, in order to make my first treat from this brand new cookbook: Pumpkin Pie Brownie! Yes, it was as good as it sounds and looks. Funny thing, though - I'm not much of a chocolate person! Anyway, the pumpkin on top was "just right - not too much" as confirmed by a friend who's not big on pumpkin, and the brownie part was deliciously fudgy. It was pretty easy, too.

The perfect fall dessert! Three and a half stars ***1/2, only because I thought the topping came out too dark and again, that chocolate thing of mine...









On a healthier note, after a recent Veg Group meeting, I was inspired to buy and try opening a pomegranate for the first time! As suggested, I scored the fruit's skin, then opened it up in a bowl of water. As also predicted, the seeds fell to the bottom and the rest floated to the top where I could skim it off!





It took a little bit longer to dig out all the seeds, but there was basically no mess and no cleanup! Yummy treat in no time. The seeds are crunchy but sweet and tangy. Great antioxidants and just plain good!








I haven't really craved anything with this pregnancy, but sometimes I'll think about a past meal and think, "I really want that again!" Despite my aversion to greens (I literally gagged and had to walk away while cutting up the spinach for this dish), I really wanted this from Palak Soyabina Paneer from ED&BV. It is pretty easy to make (just marinate and crisp up the tofu cubes, which Mr. PLV said tasted very similar to the traditional cheese) and then wilt the greens with some spices and tomatoes, puree, and add the tofu back in. Not too spicy and a good way to be sneaky with my greens (although not very sneaky - this is pretty obvious).

Meanwhile, we had some pasta sauce to use up, so I snuck some gluten-free pasta (rice, amaranth, and quinoa) into Mr. PLV alongside his highly praised Chickpea Cutlets from Veganomicon. These are much better if you bake them (much more firm) but still, they are eerily like cutlets of an animal form, or like eggplant parm. Still, a familiar meal on a night with no time and little energy. The cutlets are wicked fast to make and can fry while the pasta is boiling. Three and a half stars ***1/2 - better if baked but we don't always have that kind of time! :)
I had to work this past Saturday - ugh - but really it's not so bad when you come home to a home-cooked meal by your hubby! He was craving these Tempeh Reubens that we've made several times before, so I gave in :) I had mine on Ezekiel bread (toasted with Earth Balance) and it was just as good as other breads I've had it with. The dressing was a little runny, so the photo isn't that great, but it was a comfort meal, to be sure! Marinated, grilled tempeh, hot sauerkraut, homemade Thousand Island dressing, all on toasted bread - so warm and crunchy! Four stars **** even with the sub par dressing. Well, that's it for this week's post. I was sick last Sunday (had just overdone it the week before) so I had tomato soup for dinner, not the Indian meal we had planned, but I'm going to go rest now, so that I'll have the energy to make samosas tonight! :) We'll have those alongside chana masala and hopefully a spinach/tomato dish. I'm full just thinking about it!