Asian Stuffed Cabbage

Last week Napa Cabbage was on sale
for $1.00/pound....

I saw Martha Stewart make Asian Stuffed Cabbage
on The Today Show and thought it
would be a good way to use the cabbage
and some leftover rice.

I used a 14 ounce package of Gimme Lean and
reconstituted Shitake Mushrooms...

Combined in a large bowl with the Garlic, Ginger,
Rice, Scallions, Crushed Red Pepper, Soy Sauce
and Sesame Oil.

Then I stuffed the cabbage leaves and baked
for a half hour.

I heated up some of these Spring Rolls.

The Stuffed Cabbage was excellent! (The Spring
Rolls not so much). Thanks again, Martha!

Diner Deluxe, Herndon

I haven't gone here in over ten years, but I

thought I'd live dangerously today.

Under the Pickle, Tomato and Lettuce is a

Gardenburger w/slivered Red Onions on

Pita. It was pretty impressive, but it should be

for $9.25. Now I know why the Amphora

restaurants have stayed in business for so

long. I will definitely add this place to my lunch

rotation.

Esme's Sauce

This time I used Rice Vinegar, Miso, Mustard,

Soy Sauce, Tahini...

and Olive Oil to serve on shell pasta...

After boiling and draining the pasta, I mixed

the sauce ingrediants in the hot pot.

I tossed the pasta and sauce with some scallions.

It's a really yummy way to make pasta.

Here's a cute dog I saw waiting for its owner

in the parking lot of Big Lots this past weekend.

L'Auberge Chez Francois, Great Falls

Lunch today was at L'Auberge Chez Francois in Great Falls.

The restaurant is Alsatian French and very

quaint and charming.

There were two kinds of bread to start...

The 'Others' (not the ones on Lost, the non-vegans)

got an amuse bouche of quiche. I got this little

fruit assortment.

For an appetizer, I was given steamed

asparagus.

Everyone got a salad, mine was sans croutons

and dressing -- but I had oil & vinegar.

The palate cleanser was grapefruit sorbet.

My entree... amongst the items was a tomato

stuffed with wild rice and what was believed to

be candied chestnuts.

Dessert was a massive portion of sorbet.

Extremely delicious. All this was $61. A

lovely lunch.

Fresh Gourmet Croutons

I know it's easy enough to make croutons, but

I am too lazy to do that, so I was really happy

to finally find some made without dairy products.

Here they are on my salad today along with

some Goddess dressing and Avocado. Better

tasting than anything I could make myself.

Vegan Cupcakes at Tysons Corner?????

I was just wandering around the mall today

and went by this little place. I looked at the sweets

in the case and thought to myself, "Wouldn't it be

wonderful if they had vegan cupcakes?"

AND THERE THEY WERE!!!! I was ecstatic.

I've been shopping at this mall my whole

life. Finding anything labeled 'vegan' in the

mall gives me so much hope.

The girl who worked there was as sweet as

the cupcakes. She noticed me taking pics and

took out the tray of vegan cupcakes for me to

get a better shot.

I had half a vanilla cupcake tonight with

some 'Soy Creamy' Cherry Chocolate Chip.

The icing on the cupcake was like whipped

cream with sugar in it. The cake had the

texture of cornbread. Not what I was

expecting, but delicious. I will definitely

stock up on these next time I go by.

Back to Whole Foods

After yesterday's mayonaisse debacle, I went
nuts at Whole Foods today and couldn't resist
anything labeled 'vegan'. I wound up feasting on
Curried Pumpkin Soup, an Olive Roll, Lemon
Roasted Tempeh, Black-Eyed Pea Salad and
Tabouleh. All so clean-tasting and delectable.

Knossos Cafe, Berryville

Today I got carry-out from Knossos Cafe.

When ordering the Veggie Sandwich on Pita,

I said to leave off the cheese and specifically

said 'I don't eat dairy products' to really drive

home the point of leaving off the cheese, lest

I might have lactose intolerance or other issue.

I was so disappointed to later unwrap my sandwich

and see it was drenched in mayonaisse. (I'm

pretty sure it wasn't Veganaisse). The menu

didn't say there was mayo on the sandwich,

and it's not something I associate with Greek

cuisine.

At least my side order of Hummus & Pita was

pretty sizeable and more than made up for the

sandwich loss.

Lotus Vegetarian Restaurant, Chantilly

Lunch today was from Lotus Vegetarian.

I got one of the the lunch specials: Sauteed Spinach
Noodles with Tofu skin, veggie-ham, shitake mushrooms,
organic carrots, bean sprouts, napa and celery.
$7.95 includes a Spring Roll (or soup or salad).
It was all super delicious. The best thing I've ever
ordered from Lotus. I also got a bowl of Hot and
Sour Soup, which I just brought home to Mr. SV
because the Noodle dish was much larger than I'd
anticipated. Can't wait to get it again.

Using Up Leftover Rutabaga

I had to use up about a pound of Rutabaga,
so I found this recipe for Clapshot.

Just one pound each of peeled Rutabaga, Potatoes

and Carrots.

Boiled good and long....

...mashed w/three tablespoons Earth Balance

and salt & pepper.

I spread it into an 8x8 casserole dish for

reheating but it's not necessary.

Served with some Cornmeal Crusted Tofu and

a drizzle of Heinz 57. It was pretty good. I

might make it again.

Il Fornaio Restaurant, Reston

Lunch today was at Il Fornaio Restaurant in
Reston Town Centre.

It's a beautiful restaurant inside.

The juices are fresh squeezed and the bread -
Wow! Crusty on the outside, soft on the inside.
The most delicious bread I can remember
ever having. But then...

Unfortunately, the Vegan Minestrone was
pretty dull. I've had better at Olive Garden.

My salad of chopped Romaine, Radicchio, Tomato,
Cucumber, Cannelini Beans and Avocado tossed
with Balsamic Vinaigrette wasn't half as good
as the salad I got yesterday from Baja Fresh,
yet it cost twice as much. The Romaine was
surprisingly yellow and bitter.

Mr. SV's Capellini Al Pomodoro, however, was
delightful. Light w/just a touch of olive oil.
Il Fornaio -- go for the service, atmosphere
and bread.

Baja Fresh

Not very unusual, but surprisingly 'fresh': Lunch
today was a Tostada Salad from Baja Fresh.
Romaine Lettuce topped with Chopped Tomatoes,
Black Beans and Guacamole. Really good value
for $5.50.

I didn't know if the salad would be filling enough
so I ordered the side of Rice & Beans for $1.75.
There was plenty of both. I took the Rice &
Beans home for Mr. SV.

One Pan Cake

I only make the simplest of recipes, so Rural
Vegan's One Pan Cake really appealed to me.

These are all the dry ingrediants..

Topped with the wet...

Stirred up and then I tossed in some FoodLion

Butterscotch chips.

Afterbaking...Apparently all the butterscotch

chips sunk to the bottom of the pan and everything

was completely stuck.

The cake pieces were great with a scoop of Soy

Delicious Dulce De Leche. Next time, I will

make this cake in a separate bowl and bake

it in a greased pan.