Last Soccer Game

It was a stormy night and, in the morning, we were sure Jackson's last soccer game of the season would be cancelled, but the coaches felt it would be too difficult to try to reschedule, so the game was on. The field was basically one giant, muddy puddle. Of course the boys had fun slipping and sliding around!

Afterwards we walked over to the playground for a little end-of-season celebration. Their wonderful, encouraging coach said a few words about each boy and gave them a trophy.

Go Dragons!

I made chocolate mini-cupcakes with raspberry buttercream (recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World.) They went quickly!

We snacked the rest of the day on olives, fruit, and Spinach Artichoke Dip from Dreena Burton's latest, Plant-Powered Families. I love that it's made from cashews rather than a ton of faux cheese and mayo. Dreena feeds her kids the way I like to feed my family.

We scooped the dip onto torn-off chunks of fresh baguette. The bread recipe is from The Garden of Vegan, it's an old favorite that produces a great baguette.

Breadmaker

While on spring break from school, Jackson was my frequent sous-chef. One morning we made our own pita bread, using the recipe from The Garden of Vegan

He rolled out all eight pieces himself, and was quite proud of his efforts.

We ate it all up along with various packaged Indian entrees from Trader Joe's. A mini-Indian buffet, at home.

El Sol

Today we used a Groupon for lunch at El Sol ya La Luna. We ate there a few times, years ago, when they were in their South Congress location. We had not been back since they moved to 6th Street because we are hardly ever on 6th. But, with the enticement that only Groupon can provide, we made the trek downtown.

It's a cute restaurant, with interesting murals and paintings adorning the walls. 

I had the tofu veggie tacos on whole wheat tortillas. I don't know of any other Tex-Mex restaurant in Austin that does tofu tacos, so it's pretty neat. The tacos were served with an intriguing dark sauce. It tasted like it contained molasses and hoisin sauce, maybe? Anyway, we all enjoyed our lunch, and I really should take the time to say so on Yelp, because they have such bad reviews! I don't know why...maybe their service genuinely sucks in the evenings. But our lunchtime waitress couldn't have been sweeter and our meals arrived quickly.

Later, Olivia helped me make cinnamon rolls.

I hadn't had cinnamon rolls in literally years. Why would I be so cruel to myself? I made the Savory Cinnamon Rolls from The Garden of Vegan. As you can see from the frosting slathered all over them, these guys are not savory, but sweet. Maybe savory means something different in Canada.

Vegan MoFo Day 16: Falafel Feast

Tonight I made a few dishes from The Garden of Vegan that seemed to go together. We had Extraordinary Quinoa Tabbouleh and Mo-Mo's Falafels with Mo's Tahini Sauce

The tabouli is chock-full of veggies. Cucumber, tomato, scallions, carrot, and radish. Throwing in some kalamata olives isn't a bad idea, either. 

Jackson gives a half-hearted thumbs up...too busy clearing his plate.

Vegan MoFo Day 14: Dragon Hunters

This morning we went in search of a dragon named Draka. I heard about this mythical creature over the weekend and knew we had to seek her out.

Draka is an art car built from an old van and two trailers. Apparently she won some awards in her day and made some trips to Burning Man. Now she sits abandoned in a produce distributor's parking lot.

I've lived in Austin for several years, and yet there never seems to be a shortage of unique stuff like Draka to go check out. It's one of the things I love about living here.

For dinner I made calzones, using the Calzone Dough recipe from The Garden of Vegan.

I filled them with faux pepperoni (recipe from Vegan on the Cheap), tofu ricotta, and spinach, and served them with marinara for dipping. The dough was easy to work with; they turned out great and we'll definitely make them again, since the variety of fillings is practically endless.

Another Day, Another Splash Pad

2013 is the summer of the splash pad. Austin has countless to choose from, and there's no better way to spend a couple of hours, slathered in sunscreen, little ones frolicking, and this mama frequently taking a run through herself to cool down.

Perfectly Amazing Pasta Salad from Garden of Vegan for tonight's quick and easy dinner. Hooray for not turning on the oven!  It really does live up to its name. I've made this salad so many times over the years for potlucks and family dinners, and it always gets eaten up!

Crepes with Matcha Cream and Raspberries

This morning I made a special, "treat" kind of breakfast, for no reason really. I made crepes, using the recipe from The Garden of Vegan. For the cream filling, I blended one package of extra-firm silken tofu, one cup confectioners' sugar, 1/2 tsp. vanilla, 1/2 tsp. matcha tea powder, and a pinch of salt.  (You can use more matcha tea powder if you want a stronger flavor, but since this was for my kids, I kept it mild.)  I topped the crepes with fresh raspberries and a sprinkle of confectioners' sugar.

These crepes are Olivia-approved.

Summer Vacay So Far

I haven't loved the past couple of summers in Austin. By May, the temps were already in the 100's. This year is milder, thank goodness. And we are embracing summer. We have lemonade, we have sunscreen, we have pool noodles. We are set.

One evening I made a spinach-mushroom lasagna worth turning on the oven for.

I've noticed quite a few new vegan parmesan substitutes lately. I make my own, it's super easy.

We also tried the jackfruit carnitas tacos from Vegan Eats World. I didn't love the sweetness of the carnitas marinade, but I'm open to using jackfruit as a meat substitute. Just have to find the right flavors for it. I like how light it is; you don't feel stuffed afterwards.

One evening I tried a Pinterest recipe -- Penne with Roasted Asparagus and Balsamic Butter. We all adore asparagus, and Jackson and Olivia loved the buttery-sweet sauce coating the pasta.

Raspberry cornmeal pancakes from Garden of Vegan. I'm on a big Sarah Kramer kick lately, giving some love to the first vegan cookbooks I ever owned.

Also from GoV, Aloo Chana, and Indian potato and vegetable soup. I love making soups on hot days because I don't need to turn on the oven and cleanup is so simple -- just one pot! That means more time to relax on the patio in the evening, with a book and a cold lemonade or Lone Star, before the mosquitos come out and try to eat me up!

Rainy Day Entertainment

Another gloomy day with rain in the forecast. We've had a lot of those this spring. Not that I'm complaining! We need it. And although entertaining the kids is a more of a challenge when playgrounds and splash pads are off the table, I think I'm up to it.

We had to venture out to H-E-B and do our weekly grocery shopping. Jackson and Olivia are getting to that age where they find grocery shopping to be, shall we say, not incredibly exciting. Buddy Bucks make it slightly more tolerable.

Came home and prepped tofu for dinner. I made Matthew's Delicious Tofu from The Garden of Vegan. My favorite way to prepare tofu for use in sandwiches.

Dinner was Vietnamese Seitan Baguettes with Savory Broth Dip from Veganomicon. My favorite meal ever. I changed it up this time, using the tofu in place of seitan. Along with the usual cucumber, cilantro, Veganaise, and sriracha, I also threw on some red bell pepper and red onion slices.

After dinner we turned the bathroom into a spa, as I treated the kids (and myself) to a foot scrub. This recipe is also found in The Garden of Vegan. Sarah Kramer's second cookbook came out about ten years ago and it's been sitting on my shelf, collecting dust, neglected in favor of shiny new cookbooks. Recently I was looking through it and I remembered how great it is. It's just so darn comprehensive! In addition to breakfast recipes, there are tons of smoothies and juices. There's a chapter on lunch-box friendly foods and even a bunch of recipes you can make in your microwave. And, in the back, there's a cool section on homemade bath items, such as this foot scrub, made with oats and cornmeal. The green food coloring was my addition, to enhance the kid appeal.

A Good Balance

Today I took the kids to a splash pad for some fun and sun.

We also had "school time," practicing their letters. I'm not sure why they think school involves standing on the table, but...whatever helps them learn?

I'm going on two and a half years now as a stay-at-home mom, and I think I've finally reached a good balance. A balance of outings with friends and family time. A balance of crazy physical activity and quiet learning moments. 

And, a balance in our diets, as well. As longtime readers know, I was vegan for a year and a half before returning to my lifelong vegetarian ways a few months ago. It's working for us. Sometimes, we have margharita pizza...with plenty of cheese.

Many nights, however, I still cook vegan.  Most of my cookbooks are vegan, and I love trying out new recipes, like Hayley and Ian's Peanut Butter Pasta from Garden of Vegan.

Still, I'm happy with the vegetarian label. Veganism was an interesting experiment, but a difficult one for me personally because my husband isn't vegan. While he's always complimented my cooking, he's happier now that I'm including cheese and eggs from time to time. He knows I'm never going to cook him a steak, but he's okay with that. It's our compromise. As in all things in life, it feels good to find a balance.