Mom's Fruit and Nut Bars

My mother and I are on a quest to get her to eat better. After having absolutely no luck getting her to read The China Study, she's currently reading Eat to Live and thinks it makes a lot of sense. I don't think she'll ever go vegan, but in the past month or so, she's definitely become a barelyanymeatatarian, which I think rules (she even ordered her first cheeseless pizza today).

While looking for healthier alternatives to the candy and snacks she usually eats, my mother came across an ad for Mrs. May's Trio Bars and wanted me to order them for her. I refused, saying we can make them better ourselves. I hit the Internet, bookmarked about 473892 different raw bars, figured out what the basic deal was and got to playing with food myself. Thus Mom's Fruit and Nut Bars were born.

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A Night of Improv

The only thing I can think of that could be worse than your oven breaking during VeganMoFo is your oven breaking during VeganMoFo when you have a birthday cake due in about a week*. So far, no one has been able to repair our oven and I have no idea when we'll be getting a new one. Just as I was about to give up hope, I had a brainfart: Try the toaster oven! Improvise!**

So I did:

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I Knew I Forgot Something

Welcome to today's VeganMoFo trip down Memory Lane. Back in 2008, I offered to bake for everyone who sponsored me in that year's AIDS Walk. It ended up taking me ages to make something for everyone and even longer to remember to blog about it. Even longer = until today = over a year. Oops. Sorry, Internet! Better late than never, here's a small sample of what I made to thank the people who contributed.

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Curry Laksa

When it's not too spicy, I love curry and all things curry-related, so it surprised me when I realized I had never cooked with curry paste before, just powder. I remedied that recently, by testing a new recipe for Isa Chandra Moskowitz's upcoming whole foods book: Curry Laksa.

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Asparagus Muffins

If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times: I love asparagus. I would gladly eat it in prepared any way, in any dish, at any time, in any place. My latest new asparagus experience was in a muffin, in August, at a picnic, in Prospect Park (suddenly this post sounds like a game of Clue).

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Pesto Rolls

If I had to pick my favorite herb, it'd probably be basil. It's not the most exotic herb around, but it's so pretty and fragrant that I can't help but love it and, by extension, love pesto. I'm always trying to find new ways to use the stuff. Most recently, I came up with pesto rolls, which are basically like a savory version of cinnamon rolls.

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Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow

Speaking of sharing food with people one cares about, a few days after the aforementioned picnic, my little brother left to study abroad for a year. I offered to make him a farewell dinner of all his favorite things, which was easy for me, since despite eating everything, he absolutely loves vegan food.

He requested the Cesar Salad from Veganomicon, chili from Yellow Rose Recipes, grilled asparagus with lots of garlic and Raspberry Chocolate Chip Blondies from Vegan With a Vengeance.

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Food and Friends

Whenever I see a food-related quote I like, it almost always says one of two things: Food is better when you share it with people you care for or food is a great way to show people you care.

Because of this, I try to cook and get people together for a picnic at least once a year. We spend loads of time together doing other things, including eating in restaurants and one another's homes, but it's not the same. Being outside on a nice day makes people happy and enhances the whole experience. It's an opportunity to eat and chat in a completely relaxed environment, without even the structure of table and chairs (if you sit in a different spot on the blanket when returning from the restroom, no one cares, but if you do that at the dinner table, your former neighbors will probably sniff their pits and check their breath).

My favorite type of picnic is brunch. For one thing, I just love brunch foods. I love to make them and I love to eat them. Another reason is that it's probably the most relaxed meal around. You eat brunch because you woke up too late for breakfast and are too hungry to wait for lunch. Late to start the day but eager to start the eating is my kind of deal.

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Leggo My Lego Part II: The Barfening

Welcome back, MoFos! Hope you're all well.

Last week, I showed off my poor excuse of an attempt at the first draft of a Lego cake. Today, I'd like to discuss the lessons I learned and let you see how they didn't help. At all.

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Leggo My...Lego?

I love to bake, and that works out well, because I'm pretty OK at it. I also love to decorate what I bake. That works out significantly less well:



Disapproving cake disapproves.

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