New Week, New Job, New Food!

There are a few things I haven't really mentioned on here. First, I quit my job. Second, I got a new one. I know a lot of you were with me for my student teaching earlier this year, and I was really stressed out. I started a job with a very large school district here, and it just wasn't working for me. I think I cried every day except Fridays and Saturdays. So I quit.

Today I am starting a new job at a vet's office. I am really looking forward to it. The best part is that I don't have to do hours of planning at home, so I had plenty of time to get everything ready for this week regarding food. Of course, food is the first thing that pops into my mind when I have any kind of free time.

Sundays now, are spent planning meals, food shopping and cooking. All through the week when I find something I want to make, I put it on the "Dinner Ideas" list, and then add the ingredients to the list. By Sunday, I maybe have one meal to add, and we are ready to go. After hitting Trader Joe's (we are addicted to their granola, aka crack in a box) and Wegmans, I headed back for a nice afternoon of cooking my little heart out.

First up is a batch of seitan, same as I made last week. I had dinner plans, but I really wanted to bake something. I poured through my many cookbooks and ended up on the computer going through Sweet Freedom. I love this cookbook, but I've only made a few things because many of the recipes include things that I should have on hand...but don't. Like agave. I ran out a few months ago and didn't buy it again. There is a lot of agave. Anyway, I settled on a delicious Raisin Tea Bread. Named not because it is to be eaten with tea (which was what I thought), but because there is actually tea as part of the liquid in it. Sweetened lightly with maple syrup and made with whole grain spelt, this baked up beautifully, with a nice crunch to the exterior, but a light and moist interior.

I used Chai Tea, which was intensified by the warm spices added to the bread.

After that, we watched a movie and I have to say that our recent movie rentals have been dismal. One of them we didn't even finish, and the other two...if I had my way, we wouldn't have. Nick said, that's what you get when you get your movies from a vending machine (Redbox), but I really think we just chose poorly.

Dinner was Breakfast. Or the other way around. I wanted to try Bianca's Breakfast Casserole, and I knew I would never actually get around to making it for breakfast. Her recipe calls for the use of any cheesy sauce recipe, and I doubled this recipe, from Fat Free Vegan's Eggplant Parmesan, which was one of the first posts I made on here, actually.

It came out delicious; yummy pieces of soaked bread, chunks of scrambled tofu, and bites of smoky sausage. I used Yves breakfast sausage, and I added garlic and onion to the scramble. Next time I think I will add some greenery to it, maybe mix in some peppers, or spinach.

Of course, it was only natural to follow this up with something else breakfast-y, the Tea Bread! With some vegan cream cheese slathered on, this was the perfect end to my day of food.

How do you go about planning your meals for the week? Do you just play it by ear with what's in the fridge? Go shopping every other day? Plan everything in advance and hope it all works out?

Hope everyone has a fantastic week! I hope to see you back here fairly often since, as my job doesn't start until 11, I will have plenty of blogging time!

In a Wrap or on a Bed

My husband loves things to be wrapped, sandwiched, covered with some sort of carbohydrate goodness. While I'm not afraid of carbs, I prefer that they be a separate entity (like muffins). So its become a trend that when I make tacos, or burritos, or anything that could be a wrap or sandwich, I end up eating it on a bed of greens.

Yesterday, our wrap vs. bed meal was BBQ Seitan Tacos.

This weekend I used this recipe for Seitan Cutlets.

I chopped up three cutlets and mixed with half an onion, sliced thin, and enough BBQ sauce to coat. I let it marinate while I cut up some avocado, tomato, and cilantro. After that, the seitan and onion went into a medium-hot pan coated with cooking spray, and it was covered, and cooked for about 15 minutes, stirring periodically (but not too often, so you get those nice brown spots).

Then the raging debate began.

On a wrap?

Or on a bed?

Then the debate ended because our mouths were too full. This was so easy and so yummy. Plus I had no idea how happy avocado makes my husband!

Anyone else for the wrap? Or the bed? I'm a supporter of greens wherever I can get them!

I am now off to a yoga class! We started at a new gym and I am quite pleased.

A New (Raw) Day

The first time I ever did a "raw day" I was nervous about exercising.  Worried that I wouldn't be eating enough, not getting enough calories, would be tired, sluggish, etc.  Yesterday, after having some dates, I went out and ran (and walked) a total of 5 miles, and I'm still feeling pretty peachy.  

The menu included a lot of nut and seed soaking, prep time, and a very messy kitchen, but it was well worth it.  

Breakfast was a Vega Smoothie.  The very lovely people at Vega sent me a nice sized bag of Vega Whole Food Smoothie Infusion last week.  While the hemp in Vega is raw, the other proteins aren't (like the pea protein).  I figured with so much good stuff in it, was still okay with me to start a raw day.  

But, I was skeptical.  Oh SO skeptical.  I have regular Vega and I'm not a fan of it.  I bought it because it has so much great healthy stuff in it, but I just can't have it every day, for various reasons.  I decided I'd make their Blueberry Smoothie suggestion on the back of the package, since I had fresh blueberries from the farmer's market yesterday.  My first impression?  Ew.  The powder is a gross green color...but that's because its filled with greens (spirulina, spinach, broccoli, etc)!  So I sucked it up and made the smoothie.  And...it was really good!!  It was still a gross greenish brown color (hence the lack of picture...you didn't want to see it), but that's just what happens when you add greens to a smoothie.  The Vega Smoothie Infusion is about 120 calories a serving and has 14 grams of protein.  So the verdict is, if you're looking for a very healthy, very easy way to start (or end, or continue) you day, there is no denying that this stuff is really good for you, and pretty tasty to boot!

I can't possibly say enough about how delicious my lunch was, so I will just give you a picture which does not do it justice.  

This is the Baked Macaroni and Cheese from Everyday Raw, with Buckwheat Cheezies (recipe follows).  This was SO good.  What really made it just the best was that it was dehydrated for awhile, so the squash softened a little bit.  Really, this is fantastic, if you have the book, you must try it.  

The Buckwheat Cheezies are based on a recipe that was in Vegetarian Times a few months ago, but I made it raw-ish, so I will share.    

1/2 cup Raw Buckwheat Groats

1/4 cup plus 1-2 tbsp Nutritional Yeast (not raw)

2 tbsp Olive Oil

3 garlic cloves

5-ish Basil Leavs (depends on how much you like basil)

2 tsp salt

1.  Soak buckwheat groats overnight.  Give them some space because they just about double in size.

2.  Dehydrate the groats for about 3 hours at 104 degrees.

3.  Blend together the oil, garlic, salt, and basil until it makes a thick paste.

4.  When the groats are dehydrated, add them to a bowl with the paste and mush everything together until all the groats are more or less coated with something (it may not be even).  

5.  Dehydrate for another 30-60 minutes.

These are so yummy!  I wouldn't eat them by themselves, the raw garlic is fairly strong, but they were absolutely perfect over the baked mac and cheese.  Also, for those of you without a dehydrator, you can do this in a 300 degree oven too, which is what the original recipe calls for.  If you want to roll that way, you don't need to pre-dehydrate them, and you should only keep them in for 30 minutes.  Also, if you're not keeping it raw, you could cook the garlic with the oil.  

Makes 8 2-Tbsp Servings

Nutritional Information:  90.5 Calories;  4.1g Total Fat;  0.6g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  10.7g Carbohydrates;  2.6g Fiber;  4.6g Protein.  And 181% of the RDA for Vitamin B12!

One of the things I was really itching to make with the dehydrator was Ani's Black Sesame Sunflower Bread.  

I had it as a raw sandwich for dinner along with her Sun-Dried Tomato Cheeze, topped with some avocado and tomato, along with some fresh farmer's market green beans.  This Cheeze was okay.  The Black Pepper Cheeze was way better.    

The bread was somewhat of a disaster, although it worked out in the end!  Because my kitchen is still in pieces all over the country, I don't have things like sieves, so it was hard to get all the water out of the teeny flaxseeds and sesame seeds.  I think that made it too watery, and it made a bit of a mess.  Again though, it worked out.  Next time I make it I think I'll take her advice to make a few batches of it.  I calculated the nutritional information for it and was really surprised.  I'm not a big "real" bread person, so I'd choose this any day.  

Makes 9 Slices

Nutrition Information:  167.6 Calories;  13.0g Total Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  9.6g Carbohydrates;  7.0g Fiber;  6.6g Protein

Dessert, of course, was the impetus for having a raw day at all.  I've had my eye on the Key Lime Kream Bars in Ani's Raw Food Desserts since the moment I opened the book.  

I really didn't need a "raw day" as an excuse to make them, since they came together in all of 5 minutes (plus freezing time).  They are yummy!  I made a dessert or two in Ani's first book and I thought that they were incredibly salty, but it seems like she's toned it down for this book, and everything I've tried so far (like the Strawberry Macaroons) has been fantastic! 

I really love having an (almost) entirely raw day.  Because I have far too much time on my hands now, I calculated the nutritional information for everything (email me if you want any of it), and it came to just about 2000 calories (including an orange I had for a snack), which is perfect for me.  What is really more important to me though, is that it all came from good, whole food.  Nothing is better than that, right?  

  

Want to see Food Inc?

If you're in the NY area and are free on Saturday around 3PM and want to see Food Inc, send me an email (not a comment, I won't be able to get to the computer to check the blog, but I'll check my email on my phone).  

Long story short, my brother, Nick, and I are going to see it tomorrow.  I bought the tickets for the wrong day.  So, you should be able to take two friends.  I need to talk to the box office, and they haven't been answering their phones, but I'm assuming it'll be okay if I just give you the confirmation number.  It'd be even better if you contact me before I get there tomorrow around 3PM, so I can give them your name in case there are any problems with the tickets being purchased in my name.  

Also, its first come first serve, but if you are only one person, then I'd hope you'd be open to me giving the other tickets to other people and meeting up to go in together (you don't have to sit together, but you could make new friends!).  

Anyway, if you want to see it, again, email me asap!  

Portable Food

Sorry I skipped a post yesterday.  I have just been..tired.  But it is getting better!  I can tell, I'm not as exhausted when the school day is over, but I'm still yawning during class...oops.  At least I'm not teaching yet, and yawning in front of the kids.  

I don't have a lot of time to plan breakfast and lunch, so I have been making something that I can eat for a few days.  Also, I don't really like to eat in front of other people when they aren't eating, so I've been eating in the car.  Yes, 

I know this is kind of strange, but it works out.  

For breakfast I have been having these Breakfast Cookies.  They're kind of bastardized version of Ani's breakfast cakes, but I think I have changed them enough that the recipe is postable.  I really like these.  They have a lot of protein, healthy fat, and complex carbs.  Plus, they don't need to be cooked, and they stay together really well.  You can actually pick them up and eat them like a cookie.  

Okay, I realize this picture looks lame, but I promise, they're good.  

Protein Breakfast Cookies

1 cup protein powder of choice (my choice)

1 cup rolled oats

1 cup ground flax seeds

2 tbsp coconut oil

6 tbsp maple syrup

2 tbsp molasses

3/4-1 tsp salt

4 tbsp water

Melt the coconut oil, and throw everything into a bowl, mix it well.  Form into 8 cookies, 2 cookies per serving.

Serves 4

Nutrition Information:  445.5 Calories;  18.1g Total Fat;  6.3g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  51.2g Carbohydrates;  11.0g Fiber;  26.3g Protein

I've been just having a snack while I'm at school; some kind o

f bar, and fruit (apple and bananas).  I found two new bars at Nature's Pantry (it is right by school!).  First is Ruth's Hemp Power in Peanut Butter Banana.  

This was 190 calories and 7g of protein.  It was okay.  They had a few other flavors though, and they were good enough to try the other flavors.  

Today I had this GoRaw bar.  You can see the ingredients pretty clearly on the front...I had the pumpkin variety.    

I am very sad that they don't have more varieties of this at my store, as it is one of the best bars I have tried in a long time that can really hold its own as a meal replacement.  There is about 275 calories and 14g of protein.  I think what sets this apart from most other raw bars, is that it has been dehydrated.  I'm actually considering buying some online, I am a fan.  

On my way home, I have what you would probably call lunch?  I don't know, its just a meal, I guess.  Anyway, I made the Mini Tofu Quiche from Fat Free Vegan.  I have made these before, and I love them.  Plus, you can pick them up and eat them with your hands on the way home.  

The vegetables in these are roasted asparagus and portabello mushrooms, and sun dried tomatoes.  I also use regular silken tofu instead of lite.  They're really good, I highly recommend them.  

Serves 3:

Nutrition Information:  163.9 Calories, 4.6g Total Fat;  0.4g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  17.1g Carbohydrates;  4.5g Fiber; 19.1g Protein.  

Additionally, I just want to sing the praises of dates.  They're fantastic.  Also, they're really great to have right before the gym, they give a great energy boost.  I normally can only find them pitted, but my grocery store had fresh dates, which I had never had, and had to try, even though I have tons of dates in the pantry.  These are so fantastic.  They're really easy to pit too, which I was nervous about.  YUM.  That's all I wanted to say.  

Dates are awesome

I have a bunch of good news, but I am going to post it tomorrow!!  Hah, you will have to wait.  

Hopefully everyone is excellent.  I have been trying to keep up with everyone's blogs, but if I slack a teeny bit, please know that I am still reading, and just not commenting as much.  I love you all, I promise!!  

Do Not Disturb Us - Gluten Free Day 5

A little bit of background, my husband is in the Army, currently in Iraq.  He's been there for awhile.  Anyway, while he was home for R&R (2 weeks) this summer I broke my toe at a friend's wedding, and was out for quite awhile.  I really dislike the Army medical system, I am still having issues with the civilian ER bills, and the Army doctor I saw (over a month later), swears it wasn't broken.  What?  I saw the X-ray in the ER, it was broken in two places!  My point is, I wasn't able to run or lift weights for awhile (I probably could have done some upper body stuff, but I wasn't feeling it).  Now I've been back at the gym for over 3 months and I am finally feeling the muscles in my legs come back.  It is making me so happy, I can't even tell you!  I have a really warped body image sometimes, but I've been feeling pretty awesome lately.  

On to the food?  Okay, there's a lot!   

First, I had mini ramekin quiche for breakfast.  It was based off of Susan's Mini Quiche recipe, which I have made before, as muffins, like she suggests.  I just used bell peppers and onion instead of what she puts in it, because that is what needed to be used up.  Specifically, 1/2 an onion and 3/4 of a red bell pepper.  I threw 1/4 cup of rice in the bottom of 4 - 7oz ramekins, and then filled with the quiche filling, then baked at 375 for 45 minutes.  

Nutrition Information:  156.1 Calories;  4.0g Total Fat;  0.6g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  378.1 mg Sodium; 21.6g Carbohydrates;  3.8g Fiber;  10.0g Protein

I had two last night and two this morning, with broccoli both times.

I made cookies today...they were terribly disappointing.  So disappointing that I actually threw them away.  I guess there is a reason there aren't too many gluten free vegan cookies recipes.  I used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Baking Mix, and the aftertaste was just...bad.  Very disappointing because initially they tasted fantastic.  

Oh well, right?    

Dinner tonight was the last VWaV recipe I had bought ingredients for.  I promise, no more for awhile.  A copy of Vegan Fire and Spice came into the library for me a few days ago, so I am hoping to cook up some stuff from there.

Tonight we had the Black-eyed Pea and Quinoa Croquettes with Mushroom Sauce.    

They came out fine.  They're really cute, actually.  I just don't think I liked the very strong thyme taste in them.  If I were to make them again, I'd use a different spice.  The mushroom sauce was TO DIE FOR though.  Seriously, it was awesome.  If I were unrefined I would have licked the plate.  Meaning, I did lick the plate.  

To serve 3

Nutrition Information (for croquettes only):  225.1 Calories;  7.0g Total Fat;  0.7g Saturated Fat;  0..0mg Cholesterol;  585.3mg Sodium;  34.3g Carbohydrates;  9.5g Fiber;  6.9g Protein

(excuse the ugly container)

To serve 6 

Nutrition Information (for sauce only):  72.4 Calories;  0.6g Total Fat;  0.1g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  1056.1mg Sodium;  9.9g Carbohydrates;  2.2g Fiber;  4.5g Protein

One significant change in the gravy was that I didn't use any oil, just cooking spray.  I'm not worried about getting too much fat, it just seems unnecessary to sautee everything in oil, plus it spits at me.  I'd rather eat my fat...as you will see in a second.     

Dessert today was one of my absolute favorites, no-cook Dark Chocolate Mousse.  And yes, it is as good as it sounds.  I mean...if you think it sounds freaking awesome, then it is as good as it sounds.  

4 servings 

Nutrition Information:  146.8 Calories;  9.8g Total Fat;  3.3g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  26.2mg Sodium;  23.0g Carbohydrates;  6.5g Fiber;  3.0g Protein 

My understanding is that this recipe came from somewhere and has been passed around various places.  I changed the ratios a little though, so I figured I will post it anyway.  But I did get the recipe here.    

1 avocado

1/2 cup cocoa powder  

1/4 cup agave or maple syrup

2 tsp coconut oil (although I hear this is optional)

3 tsp granulated sugar (I used beet sugar, because I'm still trying to avoid unnatural sugar)

2 tsp water

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp balsamic vinegar

1/4 tsp soy sauce/Bragg's

Directions?  Put everything in a food processor and whiz it all together.  I do it in steps, first the avocado and oil, then add everything but the cocoa, then everything.  But, that is because all I have is a little magic bullet and making this is a pain in the ass with it.  If you had a nice big food processor bowl, it would be delicious, and would be fast enough that you wouldn't have to eat it before you even put the ingredients away.  Or maybe not :)  If you can possibly wait long enough, you might want to chill it a little, but I have never gotten to that point. 

To leave you with a smile for the weekend, this was my first time soaking and cooking beans.  I usually just used canned, but the only black eyed peas at my store that were canned, were also spiced.  My family hates stuff left out on the counter, so the explanation for them also explains the title for this post...

Hey at least I amuse myself, right?  

Today's Cooking Songs:  Christmas Music.  Lots and lots of Christmas Music (not my choice, although I do love it)  My favorite Christmas Music is the Charlie Brown Christmas CD.  

 

Dairy-Free Macaroni and Cheese

Everyone has their own version, don't they?  I've tried my fair share.  When I was vegetarian, I used this Tofu Alfredo recipe a few times.  I really like Susan's Easy Macaroni & "Cheeze".  I've read countless other recipes, almost every vegan cookbook has a version and of course, many vegan blogs have them.

This is my dairy-free version of the oh-so-classic macaroni and cheese.  I'm not gonna call it "cheese" or "cheeze" or anything that implies that this isn't real cheese either, because I don't think that the dairy industry gets to hold the word cheese hostage.  At the very least, if you read VegNews, you'll see gourmet nut cheese either featured or mentioned in the past few issues.  Therefore, I suppose this is a nutritional yeast cheese sauce.  Or a pine nut cheese sauce.  Or whatever you want to call it, but I'm still calling it cheese!   

Anyway, I can't say this is completely my own.  But I've doctored it and combined little things from so many different recipes that I can at least post the recipe for it! 

Dairy-Free Macaroni and Cheese

2 oz whole wheat pasta (I used mini penne)

Cheese Sauce:

1/2 medium onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

3/4 cup water

1/2 tsp yellow mustard

2 tbsp pine nuts

1/2 tsp Bragg's (or soy sauce)

1/4 tsp miso

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

3 tbsp nutritional yeast

1/2 tsp tumeric (you can use less, I just like it)

1 tbsp chickpea flour

a few grinds of fresh pepper

*optional, but included in my nutritional information*

1 cup frozen broccoli

1/8 log of Seitan O' Greatness

2 tbsp whole wheat panko breadcrumbs

1 tsp parsley

1/4 tsp curry powder

pinch cayenne

1/8 tsp garlic powder

1/8 tsp onion powder

Recipe

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  

2.  Boil water, add pasta, cook until not quite al dente.  

3.  Sautee onions and garlic in a pan coated with cooking spray.

4.  Add onions, garlic, and everything except the pasta, broccoli, and seitan, in a blender.  

5.  Cook broccoli 

6.  Sautee seitan in a pan coated with cooking spray until browned.    

7.  Mix together in a bowl:  Pasta, Cheese Sauce, Broccoli, Seitan.

8.  In a separate bowl, combine panko and all remaining "optional" spices.  

9.  In ramekins or an appropriately sized baking dish, put pasta mixture, then top with panko mixture.  Bake 15-20 minutes.

Serves 2

Nutrition Information:  331.0 Calories;  9.7g Total Fat;  1.0g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  977.4mf Sodium;  42.3g Carbohydrates;  10.2g Fiber;  24.5g Protein  

I like to finish things in the oven.  I like the crusty texture on top, and I like that it gives me time to do all the dishes so that I can eat with a clean kitchen!  Also, I have to tell you that, this is good...its really good.  But I think the best part is actually the broccoli, since it really soaks up all the sauce.  So I highly suggest using it, or even using more of it!

I had more fun in the kitchen today.  All of my food today was revolving around the plan to spend the next week gluten and sugar free.  Breakfast was pancakes!  I can't remember the last time I make pancakes, I was so excited.  I made Susan's Golden Spice Pancakes, omitting the cloves to add ground ginger, and using clementine zest instead of orange, because it is what I have.  I also pressed in some cranberries, and it was really yummy!  The recipe, as Susan has posted it is for 10 normal sized pancakes.  I didn't want to have batter left over (as I won't be eating it tomorrow), so I cut it by 1/5, to make 2 normal sized, or 4 small pancakes, as pictured.   

Cranberry Spice Pancakes

Nutrition Information for 2 small pancakes (with cranberries):  114.0 Calories;  0.5g Total Fat;  0.1g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  277.0mf Sodium;  25.5g Carbohydrates;  3.9g Fiber;  3.9g Protein.

I topped this off with some maple syrup, some tofu scramble with green peppers and onions, and the zesting clementine!

Tomorrow is that start of a new workout cycle for me and I am very excited!  I will post it tomorrow, I'm not quite finished putting it together yet.  

Today's Cooking Song of the Day:  Ghost in Pencil - Sad Zombie      

Comfort Food

I had already planned what I was going to have for dinner today, but I hadn't planned on having a crappy day and it being so comforting.  Actually, it wasn't that bad, I was just stuck in traffic.  It just so happened that I made dinner right after that.  

Anyway, I had Susan's Eggplant "Parmesan" in mind for the past few weeks, but was putting off making it because it isn't eggplant season...I couldn't wait anymore.  

It was soooooo good.  So good.  Yum.  I could tell my mom was kind of scared of it too, but she really liked it.  My dad just came home to eat his leftovers and deemed it "ummy ummy ummy dinner"  (yes, three ummies exactly).  I was kind of scared making it...the "cheese sauce" was so thin, and there was so much, I thought I did something wrong and it would be a soupy mess.  Not so.  Delicious!  I used some ground raw cashews instead of soy "parmesan".    

The nutrition information I calculated was practically the same as Susan's, so if you are interested, you can check it out on FatFree Vegan. 

I'm going away again this weekend, to see a friend of mine in Albany, and I wanted to bring something.  Last time I brought wine, I figured this time I would bring cookies.  I set off trying to find a recipe I thought would make everyone happy, unless someone doesn't like chocolate.  I should add that I know these girls from online, so I don't know them super well.  They could very well not like chocolate.  In which case I will have many cookies.  Anyway, I went through alllll my cookbooks, and nothing really struck me.  I am not a good enough baker to make up my own.  

I ended up making these Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies from The Post Punk Kitchen.  I swapped half the chips for dried cherries, used 1/2 whole wheat pastry flour, and used 1/2 cup less sugar.  I should also add that after sifting all the dry ingredients I realized I didn't have enough canola oil, so I ran out to get some.  

Nothing I did could produce a picture that would do them any justice, but I swear they are so so so good.    

I'm scared to find out the calorie count (I calculate after for cookies, or I won't make them, hehe).  Here goes...wow, not nearly as bad as I thought it would be!

Nutrition Information:  127.3 Calories;  6.1g Fat;  1.0g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  68.7mg Sodium;  18.2g Carbohydrates;  1.6g Fiber;  1.7g Protein

Wow, those were so good, and those calories (for a cookie) are so reasonable, I would actually make them again.  Except I might order some white chocolate chips, that'd make them even prettier.  

BTW, my dad gave dinner another "ummy".  

Today's CSotD made an awesome Genius playlist, I saved it, totally awesome:  Time Bomb - The Format

I'll be back on Monday!