Things We Ate in the Summer

Gardenburgers with homemade sauerkraut from Tony's coworker, and Alexia sweet potato fries. Fixins for this meal are always on hand in my freezer.

Cheezy Mac from Vegan Diner. Or cheezy farfalline, to be precise. I liked it, wouldn't change anything.

Yet another batch of salt and vinegar roasted chickpeas from Oh She Glows. Olivia's favorite. She would probably enjoy a salt lick if we purchased one for her.

Chocolate-blueberry pancakes (Jackson requested these, specifically) with blueberry maple syrup, and scrambled tofu.

Romesco Vegetable Bowls from More Quick-Fix Vegan. I am always a fan of romesco sauce.

Tofu and Green Beans with Hoisin Almond Sauce, also from More Quick-Fix Vegan. This was a hit with Jackson and Olivia, lovers of green beans.

Chimichurri Quinoa Bowls from, you guessed it, More Quick-Fix Vegan. Not the most flavorful chimichurri.

Matcha milkshake: almond milk, vanilla extract, matcha powder, stevia, ice. Blend. Repeat daily.

Water babies.

I've been listening to my old Low CD's lately. Slow and lazy. Summer soundtrack.

Swimmin' n' Splashin'

I know, that's a lot of apostrophes.

Lunch was a salad composed of romaine lettuce, blue cheese crumbles, mandarin oranges, and Fresh Raspberry Vinaigrette from Let Them Eat Vegan. Love the crunchy bits of pecan in that vinaigrette! Panera used to offer this salad, when I was in grad school. I spent many afternoons camped out there, grading papers and munching on yummy salad. It's no longer on their menu; luckily, it's easy to recreate at home.

We enjoyed an afternoon swim at a friend's house.

Dinner was pasta with Romesc-Oat Sauce, also from LTEV, with some homemade faux parmesan sprinkled on top. This sauce wasn't hitting the right notes for me. The oat flavor was too noticeable. Oh well.

After dinner, I spent an hour at the splash pad, thoroughly wearing out these little monkeys.

Romesco Hummus

Breakfast today was slow-cooked steel-cut oats made with cranberries and almond butter. Sorry for the crappy pic, it was an early morning shot.

Lunch was at Phil's with our play group. I always rave about Phil's and I always order the same thing, a veggie burger with mixed regular and sweet potato fries, so there's really not much to discuss here.

Dinner is a different story. Since I had a big lunch, I figured I would just have some hummus and pita chips for dinner. And I could go on at length about how good this hummus was. Instead, I'll just give you the recipe. It's based on Spanish romesco sauce.

Romesco Hummus

15-oz. can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 cup (loosely packed) roasted red peppers, drained

2 cloves garlic, chopped

3 T almond butter

2 T red wine vinegar

1/2 t salt

2 T sliced, toasted almonds (garnish)

In a food processor, combine chickpeas, red peppers, garlic, almond butter, red wine vinegar, and salt until smooth. Garnish with toasted almonds, serve.

I saw this truck while out and about today, and had to snap a picture. Someone is prepared!

My Blog Name is No Joke

My goodness, we have been so busy lately. Today, Olivia and I accompanied Jackson's school on a field trip to a Christmas tree farm. It was so much fun, but this mama is wiped out! Truly, if the energy of a pack of three-year-olds could somehow be harnessed, we would never be dependent upon foreign oil again. I thought for sure J and O would take nice long naps this afternoon, but actually, twenty minutes in the car on the way home was enough to recharge their tiny batteries.

Some recent eats:

Vegan Brunch Pumpkin Pancakes.  Seen here with Jackson's pinecone turkey.

Appetite for Reduction Lotsa Veggie Lentil Soup.

Peas and Thank You Chewy Energy Bars.

Appetite for Reduction Catalan Couscous Salad with Pears and Romesco Dressing. Like a dummy, I forgot that I don't really like the mealy texture of couscous.  It had been so long since I'd eaten it. Next time I'll make this with a chewier grain like quinoa or bulgur. The dressing is amazing.

Appetite for Reduction Chipotle Lentil Burgers.

So good on a whole grain bagel with spinach, Veganaise, and dill pickles.

Gratuitious cute toddler shot. She will tire soon. I know she will.

Urban Vegan Tester #19 - Romesco Bruschetta

My latest tester recipe for the Urban Vegan, Bruschetta with Easy Romesco Sauce, perfectly meets my need for simple meals with minimal cleanup. In the time it takes to toast some baguette slices, the sauce is ready, since you make it in the food processor.

Romesco is a Spanish sauce made with roasted red peppers. I served these little toasts with chili-marinated olives for a light, snacky lunch.