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.

Baked Falafel Patty

This past summer my husband spent a month in Washington state. Left to his own newly vegan devices (less than month), he subsisted on the same few meals over and over. One of them being falafel from the food court next door. He was going there on a pretty regular basis until the owner thanked him for his continual business, and then he got embarrassed and cut it down to only a few times a week.

While there are plenty of places to buy falafel around here, it is such a easy (and healthier!) thing to make at home that I have taken to making him a big batch and freezing it. Well, now I just refrigerate it because he goes through it so quickly there's no reason to freeze.

Yesterday we both had falafel for dinner, and there is just something so satisfying about those chickpea patties.

Our recipes involves a few additions and then we pair it with a silken tofu tahini sauce.

Baked Falafel

3 cloves garlic

2 Tbsp dried cilantro

2 Tbsp dried mint

2 cups chickpeas

1/2 cup rolled oats

2 Tbsp wheat gluten flour

3 Tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp salt

pepper to taste

water (optional)

*This recipe doubles...or triples (which I did last night) very well*

Preheat oven to 400.

Mix garlic, cilantro, mint, chickpeas, gluten flour, and oats in a food processor until chopped and blended.

Sprinkle baking powder, cumin, salt, and black pepper over the mixture.

I like my falafel mix to be almost paste-like, so at this point I will add about 2 Tbsp of water.

Form the falafel mixture into patties (you could go for more traditional balls, but it will affect your cooking time), and place on a greased baking sheet.

Cook 10 minutes, remove and flip, and cook another 10 minutes until golden brown.

Now, my husband is also a big fan of hummus, so that invariably goes into his pita, but I prefer the taste of tahini with my falafel, rather than overload the chickpeas with more chickpeas (although I guess some would propose that impossible!).

Silken Tofu Tahini Sauce

1/2 cup silken tofu

3 Tbsp tahini

1 clove garlic

3 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp sugar

water to texture

salt and pepper to taste

Add everything into a small food processor or blender, and blend together. Add water to achieve the consistency you like. Ours was fairly thick, I added about 2 Tbsp of water.

In addition to health-i-fying the falafel by baking rather than frying, I had a falafel salad instead of a pita. As I've said before, I'm not a big sandwich person.

Go enjoy some falafel. Its good for you, its got protein and fiber, and..umm....its delicious!! Any other falafel lovers out there? From what I've seen, no one rivals my husband!

How to Have a Great Cook-In

The first step to having a Great Cook-In is to get your significant other out of the house.  Okay, he or she can stay if they want, but if they happen to be hiking in ridiculously cold weather with their friends, and your friend comes over instead, that would be fun.  

Second, you should arrange for the weather to look like this.  

This means that a cook-out is clearly out of the question.  However, what IS the perfect way to spend the weekend is having a cook-in.  

You'll want to start out the weekend with some Saturday morning yoga (you won't be doing much other exercising).  Then you should grab your friend, and stop at the grocery store to pick up some stuff, to make sure you are fully stocked.  It'll be nice if your friend wants to help you with some recipe testing for one of Robin Robertson's upcoming cookbooks.  Lunch for our cook-in was Lemony Garlic Chickpea Patties with Handy Hummus.  

Handy Hummus

Lemony Garlic Chickpea Patties

They were meant to be served as sandwiches, but I don't really like bread, so we just ate them with some salad greens and sliced tomatoes.  We both really liked these, and also thought that they would make a good base for lots of different flavor combinations.  The hummus was great also, really nice and creamy.  

Handy Hummus; makes approximately 1 1/2 cups, Serves about 6

Nutrition Information:  193.6 Calories;  12.4g Total Fat;  1.7g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  17.2g Total Carbohydrates;  3.9g Fiber;  5.4g Protein.

Lemony Garlic Chickpea Patties; Serves 4 (not including salad greens and tomato)

Nutrition Information:  280.5 Calories; 5.9g Total Fat;  1.1g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  44.7g Carbohydrates;  5.9g Fiber;  13.3g Protein

Since this weekend is all about the food, you can spend the afternoon being pretty lazy.  After all, did you see that snow?  We watched a few episodes of Planet Earth, napped, and chilled out (in?) with her puppies.  

Deiter

Katahdyn

Then we decided we didn't want to be quite so lazy anymore, so, in keeping with the food theme, we went to the little Asian grocery/natural food store near her house, the Green Market.  The first thing I beeline for in any new store like this are the bars.  Duh.  I found something new!  I wasn't expecting to, because it is relatively small, but it really had a lot of good stuff.  

Excuse the fuzzy picture, but these are Sencha Green Tea Bars.  They're vegan and gluten free. So far I have tried Original and Delicate Pear, but I also have one of the Lemongrass variety waiting for me.  They each have about 220 Calories and 9g Protein, and are chock full of good stuff like pepitas, pistachios, black sesame seeds, dried fruits (the original had goji berries, pear in the other), almonds, matcha powder, dates, etc.  They are awesome, but I do like the pear variety better, as I'm not a huge fan of gojis.  If you ever see these, I definitely think they're worth picking up.  

If you want to involve some culinary adventure in your cook-in you should pick up something that is new to you.  We went for fruit, and brought home some quince and kumquats.  How fun!   

Upon arriving home from our second grocery stop, we decided it was dinner time, so we made the second recipe we were testing for Robin, a Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Cashews and Kidney Beans.   

Serves 4

Nutrition Information:  369.3 Calories;  17.9g Total Fat;  2.6g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  44.7g Carbohydrates;  11.3g Fiber;  9.8g Protein

At first, we were kind of on the fence about this dish, but by the time were got to the end of it, we were both totally loving it.  There were a few different components, but they worked together harmoniously.  Plus, it was nice and colorful!  With that, it was time for dessert.  

If you aren't familiar with kumquats, they're a citrus.  Small, bitter, with an orange rind that is very thin, so it can be eaten if cooked slightly.  If you have ever wondered if there were cool things you could do with a kumquat, I am here to tell you that there are! 

We decided on cookies.  However, in order to make the cookies, we had to hit up the grocery store again.  Yes, count that, three times in one day.  That's kind of my idea of a good day though.  To each their own, okay?  We picked up everything we needed for some Chocolate Chip and Kumquat Oatmeal Cookies.    

Makes 12 Cookies

Nutrition Information:  136.7 Calories;  3.5g Total Fat;  1.7g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  24.4g Carbohydrates;  2.6g Fiber;  2.6g Protein  

These were completely awesome, especially right after they cooled a little out of the oven; nice and crispy on the outside and moist and fluffy on the inside.  They did make for a pretty cakey cookie, and almost looked like messy muffin tops.  I am going to try and make them again, to make them less cakey and gluten free, but it it doesn't work out, I'll post the recipe we used for these!  Soon, I promise.

A cook-in, if you aren't aware, is kind of a special occasion.  To make your cook-in truly great, you *must* have two desserts.  Since my friend had an avocado, we also made the Avocado Dark Chocolate Mousse that I posted about a few weeks ago.    

We ate dessert while watching the movie we rented:  Traitor, with Don Cheadle.  Honestly, he is fabulous, but I thought the movie was just okay.  If you haven't noticed yet, I watch a lot of movies, but I by no means claim to be a connoisseur.  I tend to like silly, lighthearted movies.

Its not the end of the post, and its not the end of the cook-in, but it is the end of the day.  Our cooking song for today was 'Nights in White Satin' - The Moody Blues.  We had a Classic Rock radio station on the TV while we were cooking.  You have to rock out while having a cook-in.    

We woke up to a lot more snow.

It continued to snow for most of the day.  This ruined our gym plans.  I mean...we were having a completely lazy cook-in so screw the gym  (I was supposed to go to the gym with her and take her on a walk through the weight room).  We did to some yoga on FitTV, which we both thought was pretty lame, but it was better than nothing.  We decided to try something with the remainder of our fruit adventure.  Today:  Quince.  

We didn't do anything quite as fun as cookies with it, but we did bake it up with some agave nectar, cinnamon, and lime juice with water at 300 degrees for 40 minutes, and 425 degrees for 10 minutes.    

Serves 2

Nutrition Information:  62.8 Calories;  0.1g Total Fat;  0.0g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  16.6g Carbohydrates;  2.1g Fiber;  0.3g Protein.  

If you've never had a quince, they're sort of inbetween an apple and  pear, although they're even grainer than pear.  Altogether they were good, but I wouldn't go out of my way to try it again.  If someone wanted to peel it, cut out that obnoxious core, and make it for me, I would eat it though.    

After this, we cleaned the whole kitchen.  This is not a necessary part of the cook-in, but chances are, you're making a mess...clean up after yourself!  

Another trip to the grocery store brought home some dinner supplies.  My friend has never had tofu, so I definitely wanted to make that.  We also got portabellos, tomatoes, kale, and some parchment paper.  Parchment paper?  Not for dinner, for the rest of the kumquats.  You want to waste as little as possible when having a cook-in (the more you can eat the better!).  

Since the rind of the kumquat is so thin and doesn't have much pith, I thought they'd be perfect for the Orangette recipe in My Sweet Vegan.  We split them in half, spooned out the flesh, which we dehydrated, and set to candying the rinds.  When both parts of the kumquats were done, we dipped them in chocolate.  

Dehydrated in the front, candied in the back

We did quite a bit of dehydrating while I was at her house, and it just made me want a dehydrator even more.  I keep saying that I want to wait until I have my own place to put it, but this is a lie.  I'll probably get one when I get another coupon for Bed Bath and Beyond or something.  Soon, hopefully.

While we were doing this, we also heated up the oven and made some Kale Chips.  I looked around the internet for this one, since I've heard varying reviews.  I don't understand why, they tasted like kale...crispy!  We both loved them.  They got tossed with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and salt, and were baked at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.  We could have also dehydrated these, but our cook-in was coming to a close.  

By the way, at this point in the cook-in you may be feeling a bit delirious and decide that your kale chips would look fabulous against a snowy white background...which you just happen to have right outside. 

I didn't take any pics of dinner.  If you are having a really great cook-in, your camera will most likely be running out of battery at this point.  Most of dinner ended up really good though.  We had roasted portabello mushrooms with balsamic and garlic, Italian marinated tofu, boiled and sauteed kale, and quinoa with pine nuts and tomato.  The quinoa was lackluster...sad.  That was okay though because like I said before, my friend was a tofu virgin, so that was where the pressure was really on.  She liked it!  Yay!  After dinner we rented The Go Getter on Demand, largely because I love Zooey Deschanel.  

So, if you ever plan a great cook-in, I hope that gives you some ideas.  We really did get a lot of snow, so I just got back this morning, hence the lack of posting on my part, and the huge lineup of posts in my reader, courtesy of many of you!  Student teaching starts tomorrow, so if I am slower at commenting and posting than usual, I apologize in advance!  

Lastly, I forgot to mention this in my last post, but your time to sign up for the Juicer Giveaway is running out!  I will be picking a winner on Thursday this week!  

I hope everyone is having a fantastic weekend, hopefully a nice long one, if you get to celebrate MLK day!  

Recipe Tester Hero

Ready for my shortest post ever?  

My brother and I just split Guitar Hero:  World Tour for his Xbox 360, and so...we clearly have to play that for the rest of the night.  

I will come back and edit the nutrition info tomorrow (edit, I updated it!!  I told you!), but I didn't want to get too behind.

First, I did go out for lunch with my mom's friends, and my friend (who was one of my bridesmaids, and I almost ran over with my car when I dropped her off, but that's a story I don't have time for right now...oh, wait I do.  I hit the gas HARD instead of the brakes.  Oops.).  

I had pizza with a whole wheat crust, pizza sauce, artichokes, broccoli, spinach, and sun dried tomatoes.  I brought these leftovers home, but by the time I went to the grocery store, almost ran over my friend, and got home, I was hungry again, so it is all finished :)  It was really really good.  And I was glad to be able to order some awesome looking vegan food instead of a salad.    

It was funny too, I totally recognized our waiter from somewhere, and figured I had just seen him there before.  But after coming over to our table a few times he goes "Are you my gym friend?"  Haha, I have been saying hi to this guy at the gym for 2 years, and didn't know his name (he didn't know mine either).  In my defense, he wasn't wearing the a hat, like he usually does.  In fact, I actually even saw him there this morning.  Speaking of the gym this morning...I was totally there for two hours, ugh.  I had to make up for the day I missed from the snow on Wednesday.  It was a lot of lifting, chest and leg day right after one another (with a banana in between), but I'm glad I did it and didn't have another weird behind week.  I like being on schedule.  

So much for being short, right?  I can't help myself!  

I am currently recipe testing for Robin Robertson's new book Vegan on the Cheap.  I am so excited about it!  Tonight we had one of the recipes I was given along with the Chile Cornmeal Crusted Tofu from Veganomicon.  

I actually think this is the first thing I have made from V'con?  I really liked them!  I don't have kids either, but it seemed like they would be pretty kid friendly.  Kind of like chicken fingers...but with tofu. 

Serves 4 (4 triangles per person)

Nutrition Information:  142.3 Calories; 5.7g Total Fat;  0.7g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  11.3g Carbohydrates;  2.6g Fiber;  11.0g Protein.  

If you're wondering how I figured this out, because you dredge the tofu and have a lot of cornmeal mixture left over, I actually measured everything before and after.  Yep...I'm a nut like that.    

This is a separate shot of the Orange-Chipotle Dressed Salad with Black Bean Salsa  

Serves 4

Nutrition Information:  189.1 Calories;  7.4g Total Fat;  1.0g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  27.3g Carbohydrates;  7.9g Fiber;  6.4g Protein.  

This was SPICY.  I was really surprised that my mom ate it, actually.  She has zero tolerance for anything spicy.  But she was good as long as she had the orange every couple of bites.  Everyone liked it, and, seriously, it was really cheap!  I had intentions of calculating the price, but I lost my receipt.  

I know I only got 5 recipes to test, but from getting a peek at the whole list, I personally can't wait to get the book.  

Okay, so I'm being yelled at by my bandmates.  I'll be back tomorrow to update this crappy post at the very least!

Don't forget to sign up for the Juicer Giveaway!!  

Taking a Shot at Raw

Today was my first day trying a completely raw day.  Well, maybe not completely, but over 90%, I think.  

Almost everything from this post is from Ani's Raw Food Kitchen.  

My main reason for wanting to try a raw day was because I think some of the stuff you can do with raw food is just so plain cool.  Poor Joanna has gotten a comment from me about this on her blog for her last 5 posts, at least.  I think that breakfast best showcased doing cool stuff with raw food.

Breakfast:  Crepe Kream Stack:  Coconut Breakfast Cakes with Cashew Coconut Pudding and Banana.

        Apart

Together!

This was so yummy.  I think I may have put too much liquid in, it was a little off since I quartered it.  So the cakes were softer and stickier than they should have been, but they still tasted awesome.  The pudding was good, but not so good that I won't try a different one next time.  All together it was awesome.  I made a full batch of the pudding.  I think it is going to be great with some Cinnamon Puffins tomorrow!  

Post Workout Snack:  Protein Powder and Orange Juice.  I don't think this is raw, I'm sure the OJ is pasteurized or something, right?  In the book, she seems to consider hemp protein powder raw.  I don't know if rice or pea would be.  

Lunch:  Spinach Salad with Apricots and Spiced Pecans in Shallot Lemon Dressing

Spiced Pecans and Lemon Shallot Dressing

This salad was supposed to be with persimmons, not apricots, but I couldn't find persimmons.  Altogether, the salad was awesome.  The pecans are stellar, they're spiced with cardamom and cayenne, and they brought it together perfectly.  I wasn't thrilled with the dressing, I just thought it tasted like olive oil really.  If I ever made it again, I would use less oil.  Also, do shallots make anyone else cry even more than onions?  My brother was in the kitchen while I was chopping it, in tears (literally), and was like "is it really going to taste THAT good?" haha.  My only gripe with this dish, really, was that I wish I had a dehydrator so that the coating stuck to the pecans better.  But it all mixed together perfectly.  

Snack:  Lemon Coconut Bars

Hm, I had a lot of coconut today huh? 

  

Not to be negative, but these were just okay.  I don't know if I didn't let them chill long enough, but the flavors were kind of splattered....and not in a good way.  Parts were really salty and parts were too lemony.  I probably wouldn't make them again, but maybe they'll be better tomorrow.  

Dinner:  Fettucine Squash Noodles with Cilantro Pesto

This was the only thing that really wasn't from Ani's book.  The zucchini isn't a new idea, and the pesto I just whipped up because I had a lot of cilantro I needed to use.  It was really yummy.  

For something different today, I am giving you a more detailed total nutrition breakdown for the day:  

Nutrition Information:  1982 Calories;  132g Total Fat;  25g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  2685mg Sodium;  170g Carbohydrates;  37g Fiber;  65g Protein;  66mg Iron;  28mg Calcium;  3262mg Potassium;  135ug Folate;  67ug Vitamin B12 

I'm also probably going to have a few strawberries before bed.   

This may seem like a lot, but its pretty much exactly what the calories I eat every day.  The fat is much higher, but I actually do pretty well on a high (good) fat diet.  My breakfast had 60g of fat, and it kept me full for hours.  I'm not saying I will do this every day, but I'm not feeling bad about it.  I do think that next time, I will try not to use quite so much coconut in one day!  

I going to try and do this once a week.  I felt like it took a lot of planning though.  It was kind of hard too.  The asparagus I bought yesterday was screaming "roast me, roast me!" every time I opened the fridge!  

So, I'd like to end this with some major props to people who eat primarily raw on a day to day basis.  I don't think I could do it!  I'm sure that sounds naive, like people who say "I could never be vegan, it would be too hard", but..oh well, I said it anyway.      

Tomorrow I'm going to turn on my oven again..yay!  

Mediterranean Chickpea Salad

Whenever I think of chickpeas, I consider their more sophisticated moniker, garbanzo beans.  This never fails to make me think of Gonzo from The Muppets.  Is anyone else a Muppets fan?  My most favorite "attraction" at MGM in Disney World is Muppets 3D.  Hm...now I really want to go to Disney (I've been many many times).  My husband and I are hoping to go when he gets back...we have enough credit card points for a week long hotel stay, so we're going somewhere.  

Moving on to today's specialty, which does showcase the delightful garbanzo bean.

Mediterranean Chickpea Salad

I think the name says it all for this one.  Its bright and shiny, and bursting with freshness and flavor.  I brought it to my friend's for dinner last night, and I kind of wish I had gotten to eat more of it.  I meant to put parsley in it but I bought cilantro on accident.  Since I was making it for others, I went light on it, since I know some people really hate cilantro, but my dad said it needed more (he wanted a bowl before I left, he was oggling as I was making it).  As I've mentioned before though, my dad likes really strong flavors.  

Recipe?  Yes.  

2 cans of garbanzo beans drained and rinsed

1 cup oil packed sun dried tomato, drained, rinsed, and sliced

2 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 red onion (small-ish?), chopped

2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

2 tsp agave nectar

1.  Put the chickpeas through cilantro in an appropriately sized bowl.  

2.  Whisk the olive oil through agave nectar until well combined.  

3.  Pour dressing over chickpeas and toss until everything is coated. 

4.  Cover, and refrigerate for as long as possible (at least 3 hours probably).

Serves 8.

Nutrition Information:  217.9 Calories;  8.2g Total Fat;  1.1g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  31.5g Carbohydrates;  5.9g Fiber;  6.5g Protein

Really do let it chill as long as you can.  We probably had it refrigerated for about 5 hours and the acid in the lemon juice makes the chickpeas deliciously creamy, which is a really nice contrast to the crunchy raw onion.  

Switching gears to quickly wrap things up, I mentioned a few weeks ago that I bought some Pure bars.  I gave my review on the Cashew Cherry, but I also bought the Trail Mix...

...and it was also really good.  I have to say that the Cashew Cherry was probably my favorite, but this was a good one too, especially with the sprinkling of carob chips in it!    

I've kind of had a headache all day, and I know its because I haven't been eating very well.  Between all the family get-togethers, going out for the day with the fam, etc., I've sort of fallen off track.  Not that I've been eating badly, just that I am aware I haven't been eating enough, or drinking enough water.  I have been keeping up with the gym, which is good, I hate breaking that habit more than anything, but at the same time, keeping myself fueled and hydrated kind of goes right along with that.  Here's to tomorrow, I'm hoping to get three good meals and three good snacks (I eat quite a lot), and at least 3 liters of water.      

ABC Stuffing

I was trying to come up titles and it was super long...Apple Barley Stuffing, Cranberry Barley Stuffing, Apple Curry Seitan, Apple Curry Barley Seitan Stuffing.  All the words started with A, B, C, S.  Hehe.  Hence the ABCs.  

So Hannah from BitterSweet gave a challenge a few days ago for barley stuffing.  I was too late posting it...that's what happen when you do everything at the last minute!  Anyway, I really like seitan and had been wanting to try it in a stuffing, so this was as good a reason as any to make it.  I'm not totally in love with the original Seitan O' Greatness recipe (although I love it baked, the texture and everything is great).  I made some substitutions, curry powder and sage (equal amounts) instead of paprika and allspice, apple butter instead of tomato paste, and a lot less pepper.  I also used some liquid smoke (only about 1 tsp) instead of the worcestershire, and added an extra tbsp of water.  

Apple Curry Seitan

ABC (Apple Barley Cranberry) Stuffing

The recipes goes something like this:

1 cup barley

2 tsp veggie bouillon (I use organic better than bouillon)

3 cups water

1/2 recipe Seitan O' Greatness (however you like it)

1 apple, chopped

1 large onion, chopped

4 stalks celery hearts, chopped

1/2 cup cranberries

1/2 cup sliced almonds  

1.5 tbsp olive oil

1.5 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp cumin

1 tbsp dried parsley

salt and pepper to taste

(you may want to add more spices, I just kind of added until it was good).  

The directions are obviously pretty simple.  

1.  Cook the barley according to directions (btw, my barley says it takes 1 1/4 hours, and it never takes more than 45 minutes). 

2.  Soak cranberries in a bowl of water (not necessary, but I do it to wash off some of that sugar.)

3.  Preheat oven to 350.  

4.  In a large pan brown the onions and seitan.  

5.  Add apples, celery, and spices to pan until combined.  Adjust seasoning to taste.

6.  Throw everything into a big bowl, add olive oil and almonds, toss until well combined and looks pretty.  

7.  Add stuffing to a large baking dish, bake for 15 minutes, until warm and a little crispy on top. *I like my stuffing baked, you can definitely skip this step.    

I calculated the nutrition facts based on 6 servings.  But those cute little ramekins in the picture?  One serving fills two of them.  So you may want to consider it 12 servings...in which case you would just cut everything in half!

Nutrition Information:  342.1 Calories;  10.8g Fat;  1.1g Saturated Fat;  0.0mg Cholesterol;  614.5mg Sodium;  46.0g Carbohydrates;  10.8g Fiber;  19.3g Protein

I have more pictures today!  

I've been having a really heavy breakfast the past few days, Muesli (from my [me]&Goji post, with blueberries with the HiLo cereal from my Shopping Trip on Monday.  So, I've been feeling pretty full by lunchtime and have been having salads.  Organic raspberries were on sale today so I made a big spinach salad. 

Raspberries, spinach, pepitas, and....well I don't know if you want to know what that is, haha.  It is actually the Tofu Whipped Topping from Joy of Vegan Baking.  Yeah, I know it sounds gross, but I swear it tasted good.  

Lastly, I don't know if I have mentioned, but I currently live with 5 cats.  Zoe, my cat, is to the right, but she has a bunch of compatriots in my parents' house.  Yesterday I took the cutest pictures of Zany, my brother's cat.  We found him abandoned outside of a hotel in Zainesville, OH.  We drove him all the way back to NY with us, and he is incredibly sweet. 

My parents are having the house painted, one of the places being the hall closet, so he curled himself up under some snow pants had been piled up!

I can't believe Thanksgiving is in a week!  This month has been flying by for me.