On the Road Again ted

We just can't seem to stay home on the weekends. We're always somewhere, and the past two weekends in a row have brought us down to the area where we went to college, and where my husband grew up.

A few weekends ago (has it really been that long?), we hit up the first annual DC VegFest.

Lots of vegan vendors, and lots of vegan food. We both, obviously, had to have dessert. Our own desserts. I had already been to Vegan Treats and Sticky Fingers, so we hit up Emily's Desserts. Nick had the chocolate cheesecake, which was to die for.

I was boring, and had my default dessert, carrot cake. If ever there is carrot cake available, that is what I will be having! And this was one of the most adorable carrot cakes ever.

After all that sweet, I needed some more substantial food. Nick had a falafel which was gone way before there was an inkling of picture time. I had a house made mini veggie burger from Sunflower Vegetarian Restaurant.

Does anyone else not like sandwiches? I didn't eat the bun, just the burger, and the little cup of chili. It was pretty good, although I wasn't a fan of the service...the person taking orders was a little intense.

When we head down to either the DC or Baltimore area, we stay with my in-laws. My sister in law is gluten-free, so even though she is away at college now, my mother in law is constantly searching for places that she can go to when she is home. In doing this she found Great Sage, which is all vegetarian, almost all vegan, often gluten free restaurant in Clarksville, MD. We went there one weekend with my in-laws, and I forgot my camera. But we liked it so much that we went back by ourselves the next weekend.

This didn't quite capture it, but the atmosphere is really nice. Very calm, and that art on the back wall is actually a water feature. I think I stared at it for 75% of the time we were there the first visit.

We were really hungry, so Nick dug into the bread right away.

He was nice enough to let me snap a quick pic of his vegetable terrine before he dug into that.

I had the special which was grilled polenta with white truffle, on roasted garlic puree, topped with vegan parmesan (Daiya - not a fan, I took it off), and garlic sauteed spinach, garnished with roasted pearl onions. This was totally as good as it sounds, even though the picture is kind of dark.

If you ever find yourself in Clarksville, or are driving from Baltimore to DC, or are just going south on 95 and want to stop for some really good veg food, you should most definitely go there.

We also visited St. Michaels on Maryland's Eastern Shore. While there was no fun food, I did see flowers that looked just like the head flower from Alice in Wonderland.

Is anyone else really looking forward to the new version of this coming out? Looks trippy. Alice in Wonderland was always one of my favorite movies. Its one of the few movies I actually own.

We walked by the water too, and saw some jellyfish. I watched them for far longer than was probably considered normal, but I think they are so cool. Plus, I've never seen them in the "wild" before, just in aquariums.

I have the hardest time going away on the weekends because I miss Zoe! She is a really good girl while we're gone, but I like to think that she really misses me. So when we came home, we cuddled a little.

So that is where I have been, and what I have been doing. Now that school is in full swing, I don't know how often I will be able to post, but we are canceling our cable tomorrow, so hopefully I will have more time to dedicate to blogging instead of feeling like I have to catch up on television!

But I wouldn't expect to hear from me this weekend. Now we're heading up north to my family!

It (Was) My Birthday!

So I mentioned awhile ago how excited I was for my birthday, and then, I completely missed the opportunity to post about it.  I did have a good day, no one important forgot, I got a hug from my yoga teacher, Denny wrote a lovely post in my honor (that's a first, thank you Denny!), and my mom went crazy finding me a vegan cake.  But find one she did!  So, I felt I would be remiss to not share it with all of you.

It is from Back to Earth, which I have actually never been to before.  I've intended to go a few times, but never actually made it.  And, it is peanut butter chocolate.  Oh man...you all are most likely aware of my slight peanut butter obsession.  Needless to say, it did not last long.  Thanks mom :)  

The main reason I didn't post on my birthday was because I was so busy.  Too busy to even come up with birthday present ideas.  My brother was smart enough to ask me almost a month ago, and I got his present a few weeks ago (he's at college), and have been using it, so there is no real picture, but it is this Gaiam yoga mat bag.  

Love it!  I wanted one where you could open it to place the mat in, not slide it in, because my last mat-holder (meaning the mesh bag it came in) was like that, and I hated it.  This has a nice magnetic closure, and lots of pockets.  I have no use for said pockets, but I love that they're there.  Gaiam has lots of other bags and yoga accessories, if you are in need of anything like that.  

My other brother and my parents gave me my presents the night before my birthday, along with going for Indian food at Saffron, and then my cake.  

The only thing I could come up with for my parents was a stainless steel water bottle.  I think the rest of my present will be a dehydrator, but I'm still on the fence, plus, I haven't had time to research them.  Anyway, the water bottle is great!  Its a liter, but because of the way it is shaped I can still fit it in my hand.  Made by Enviro Products.  My brother who lives here got me a turtle Build-A-Bear (the shell is a backpack!).  Its really cute, and he knows I love turtles!  Its name is funny but...well, also potentially offensive, so I am choosing not to share it online.  Trust me, its better this way!  Plus, the fact that my 16 year old brother spent half an hour in Build-A-Bear making my birthday present?  That is almost present enough!!

So that was, more or less, my birthday in a nutshell!  I did go to DC the weekend prior, had fun, went to Sticky Fingers (awesome), and I do have a few pictures from there, but they're on my phone so....don't count on ever seeing them, frankly, haha.  I expect to be going back there soon, so I'll try and remember to bring my camera and take real pictures.            

Nutty and Nutritional "Parmesan"

Hi everyone :)  I was at my in-laws' this weekend, forgot my power cord and was busy, so I didn't have a chance to get on.  That's okay though, I'm sure you all needed a break from me anyway, right?  

Anyway, I drove home today, had two hours to catch up on a ton of email, then went to my brother's show.  I know I have posted this before, but he has a band, you can find them here.  

We got back pretty early, were kind of rude and didn't stay for the other band, even though we're big fans of one of them.  I was just tired from driving all day.  How does sitting in one spot make you so tired?  Regardless, I made some super simple pasta for dinner.  The only thing that is really worth mentioning is the Nutritional Yeast and Pine Nut Cheese, which is equal parts toasted pine nuts and nutritional yeast, pulsed in a food processor until it looks like that grated parmesan cheese you can buy at the store.  Today I had it with kale and broccoli with some tomato sauce.  I've also had it with just some vegan margarine, and it was also really good.  

Spelt Pasta with Easy "Parmesan" Topping

Nutrition Information:  414.2 Calories;  12.7g Total Fat;  1.0g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  62.6g Carbohydrates;  12.7g Fiber;  18.3g Protein

I can't call this gluten free because the spelt pasta does contains gluten.  Eden's Organic (the brand I used) says:  

Spelt is allergy friendly. Although it does contain gluten it is different from modern wheat, highly water soluble making it easier to digest. Research has shown that like kamut, another ancient non hybridized wheat, spelt can be an excellent substitute for most people with wheat allergies.

I'm not a gluten free expert, and I don't need to be gluten free, so I'm okay with this, especially because this pasta is tasty...but I do see a lot of recipes that are called gluten free that contain spelt?  Maybe someone who IS an expert can enlighten me on this.  The impression I got it that some people with a gluten allergy or intolerance are okay with spelt, but if you have Celiac Disease, its a big no-no.   

From here I just wanted to post some pictures from this weekend, so if you only came for the food, feel free to leave now.  Aww, you want to stay?  Thanks, that is nice of you. 

I spent a few hours Sunday in DC with my best friend from college.  I usually go to her place in Adam's Morgan, but this time we went to the National Cathedral for the gargoyle tour!  It was very cool.  Our tour guide was great (his name was Mark), very knowledgeable.  The only downside was that it was FREEZING.  Or, rather, WINDY.  We ended up asking him to cut it short, although he did spend some extra time inside since we were being babies about being outside (it wasn't just us, there were other cold people on the tour!).  So the rest are just some pictures from that, enjoy!  

Outside the Cathdral...looked like such a nice day

Looking up at the gargoyles

A DC Black Squirrel!

Ahh, leave me alone and stop taking my picture crazy lady!!!

Because I can't resist anything cat related..

Inside the cathedral, warming up.  

That's it!  There was actually a sad story about the cat, apparently he was carved after a real cat.  His owner was one of the cathdral carvers and was killed in a car accident right outside the cathedral just a few years before it was finished (took over 80 years to complete everything), and so the cat is watching over the place where his owner died. 

We also went to eat at Open City in Woodley Park (right near the Metro stop), and it was kind of vegan friendly.  Friendly in the sense that their vegan items were marked VEGAN in big letters.  However, there were only two of such items!  No matter, I kind of like not having to choose from a ton of things.  My food was okay, a veggie sub with hummus, but the side of fruit was actually awesome, as was the hot mulled apple cider.  Yum.  

In completely unrelated news, I am a co-owner and administrator of a website for military significant others.  It is a pretty huge site and we got hacked recently, but I think we've finally got it under control, its really looking good.  If you or anyone you know has a boyfriend/fiance/husband in the military, feel free to message me and I'll give you the address.  That honestly wasn't meant to be a plug for it, the whole situation has been stressful and I just wanted to say that I'm glad its up and running smoothly again.    

Today's Song:  "Nothing Happening" - Ben Kweller

*Oh, and I will be catching up on everyone else's blog soon, I promise!  There are so many posts!*  

Weekend Away

I don't have any food posts today.  So sad :(  I've been away this weekend, visiting various people in the Baltimore/D.C. area.  I went to undergrad in Baltimore, so a lot of my friends from school are still down here, and my husband grew up in this area, so my in-laws are here.  

This is the first time I've really spent a significant amount of time away from home since going all-out vegan, and it was interesting.  

First stop was my in-laws'.  It was late by the time I got there.  My 4 hour trip took 6 because the Garden State Parkway was ridiculously backed up...the half hour I usually spend on it took two full hours.  Luckily, I had plenty of food packed.  First, I did bring a pre-packaged tofu sandwich from my local natural food store, Mrs. Green's.  I know, not the perfect solution, but I was far too busy to be making something ahead of time.  Plus, it is delicious :)  I don't have the exact nutrition info because the packaging is gone, but my favorite one is around 350 calories with 25g of protein.  I also had some soy chips later on, with some cut up bell pepper.  

Saturday I went into D.C. to visit my college roommate.  I had the Spicy Thai variety of Primal Strips on the Metro, which is my favorite.  We went to The Diner for lunch, which was good, although very un-vegan.  I had the veggie sub without the cheese, and the bread was really squishy and good.  Also came with a side salad.  We spent the rest of the day hanging around watching TV, went out to The Reef for dinner and drinks, also very un-vegan, but plenty of salads.  Its bad, but I think I end up eating more veggies when I am away from home, although the protein intake definitely suffers.  Ended the night at the Black Squirrel.  Apparently absinthe is legal now?  They had it there, it was strange (didn't try it, just strange that other people were).  One of our Organic Chemistry professors in undergrad had us try it, and...it was gross.  But then, I guess people drink a lot of things that I think are gross.  I had two different really good red wines at The Reef, that is what I like.  

Today, Sunday, we just chilled some more, and then I went our for lunch with my cousin, who was on her way up to Baltimore to visit her boyfriend.  We stopped at Thai at Silver Spring.  I love Thai food.  There are very few "ethnic" restaurants where I live, so whenever I go into a city, I try and get some Thai.  

I really have a hard time staying with other people, because most people eat three meals, which is not at all how I eat.  I usually eat between five and seven times a day.  I am back at my in-laws' now and just snuck upstairs for another Primal Strip (mesquite lime this time, those are the only two I like).  My mother in law is in the process of making dinner.  My sister in law (who is at college), has a suspected gluten intolerance, so my mother in law is experimenting with gluten-free ingredients, and I am pretty sure she is also trying to make dinner vegan so....that's pretty nice :)  

So, I know this post was kind of boring, but I didn't want to go for too long without posting.  I will be home tomorrow, but have a huge paper due Tuesday, and don't get home from class until almost 11 on Tuesday, so, sadly, I don't think my blog will get any more food until Wednesday.  Better be something good!!