Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Tuna Salad Craving

I'm still happily living on Chipotle & Boca Burgers, but the other day I had an intense craving for a tuna salad sub.
Fortunately, Whole Foods stocks this locally made vegan tuna salad. I've bought it infrequently over the past ten to 15 years because I've found the quality to be inconsistent.

Today, however, I must say it totally hit the spot. Either I just got a good batch or Asmar's adjusted their recipe. Either way, my craving has been satisfied!

Monday, June 15, 2009

Forced Adventure

I've been mainly having Chipotle for lunch (no more Perfect Pita for me since the alert that the Hummus contains feta. Why????!) and Boca Burgers for dinner the past few weeks, but I thought I had to post something different on the blog.

I took the risk of ordering a new menu item from Sunflower: "Adventure of Tempeh Land" (Organic Five-Grain Tempeh sauteed with Red Bell Pepper, Snow Peas, Asparagus, Baby Corn and White Mushrooms in a Thai Style Curry Sauce). I really wanted Chipotle today, and this dish looked terrible, I was bumming big time before I tasted it. ....It was fantastic! Can't wait to get it again! (Still having Boca Burgers for dinner though)

Saturday, June 6, 2009

Broccoli and Garlic Breadcrumb Spaghetti

Tonight's dinner seemed like a good way to use up all the ends of bread in the freezer that Mr. SV is always threatening to throw out. I used them to make my own bread crumbs to toast and toss with pasta and broccoli.
Unfortunately, the sum of its parts turned out pretty dry. It would've helped to drizzle some Olive Oil over everything before serving. But there's now a little more room in the freezer.

Friday, June 5, 2009

Quiche

Dinner tonight was Veggie Quiche...
...made with Broccoli, Green Pepper and Onion...
...sauteed for around 15 minutes......then mixed in with the Tofu that has been blended with 1/2 teaspoon Turmeric, a tablespoon of dried Basil, a smidge of Nutmeg, two tablespoons Nutritional Yeast and Salt & Pepper.
Smooth the mixture into a partially pre-baked pie shell...
.....and bake at 425 degrees for half an hour.
Pretty darn good!

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Chipotle, Reston

This is my Burrito Bowl from Chipotle today. There's Rice, Black Beans, Salsa, Guacamole & Lettuce. It was delicious.

Monday, May 25, 2009

Mr. Noodle & Rice, Winchester

Today's lunch at Mr. Noodle & Rice was aesthetically and tastefully delightful.We started with some Veggie Sushi, but I'm not sure of what else was in it besides the Cucumber. It was delicious whatever it was.
The entrees come with Miso Soup, but I was too hot for soup today. Mr. SV ate mine.
5.26.2009 - Miso Soup is very often non-vegan. The ingrediants can contain dried fish flakes. I thought Miso Soup was just Miso Paste, Tofu and Scallions, but go figure. Please ensure that whenever you order any item in a restaurant, verify the item is vegan! Do not rely on my posts.
I ordered the special for $7.95: Tofu Teriyaki with mixed steamed vegetables. Superb.
I also hit the mother lode at Big Lots today. Each of the items above was only two dollars, and the items below were even less.
I'm always on the lookout for non-petroleum lip balm. $1.50 for a two-pack of balm was more than fair, so I stocked up. You never know when you'll want to bake cupcakes for a NASCAR fan, but just in case, I am ready! Dinner was Sweet Potato Falafel from 101 Cookbooks. I subbed parsley for the cilantro because Mr. SV hates cilantro.

It was good, but I doubt I'll make it again.Finally, here's one of the many little toads we have around our pond today.

Sunday, May 24, 2009

Sunflower, Vienna

Today's lunch was at our favorite vegetarian restaurant Sunflower.
To start, Mr. SV had the Cold Basil Roll (Jicama, carrot, lettuce, dry spiced tofu, vegi-ham and basil wrapped in rice paper). I didn't try the roll, but the peanut sauce that came with it was fantastic.
Above is my appetizer of Fried "Chicken", made with fresh white mushroom and soy protein. It was not as good as usual. The soy protein was over-fried to the point of toughness, but it was still very much better than any real fried chicken.
For our entree, we both got the 'Curry Supreme' ( Chunks of soy protein served with broccoli, potatoes, mushrooms, carrots and green peas in a special Japanese curry sauce). This was great as always. The soy protein chunks are so succulent. We love this place.

Dinner was Susan's Ribz and Potato Salad made with Veganaise, yellow mustard, sweet relish, celery seed, minced onion and salt & pepper.

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Cooking For The Upcoming Week

It was a scorcher outside today, so I stayed cool inside and prepared dinner for next week.
The Burritos were made by mixing a can of TJ's Black Beans, TJ's Refried Black Beans and a box of Mori-Nu Extra Firm Tofu together and wrapping the mixture in TJ's Whole Wheat Tortillas.
Using up all the Tortilla's in the bag makes eight medium-sized Burritos.
Then I used the rice that came with yesterday's Chinese Food to make Martha Stewart's Easiest Indian Stew:
The recipe calls for two cans of Garbanzos, but I use only one. It also calls for three cups of 'Best Quality' Tomato Sauce, but I used two cups of Hunt's and it does the job just fine.
I pre-mix the Rice with the Sauce and when it's time to servce, I slice up a Tofurkey Italian Sausage into mine.
Next I made the Pierce Street Vegetarian Chili from 101 Cookbooks:
That's a defrosting Chipotle Chili in the little dish in front. I used water instead of stock and left out the Serrano Chili.
I haven't tried any of this food yet, but it will be nice to have dinner already made when getting home from work next week.

Friday, May 22, 2009

Oriental Star, Alexandria

I rarely go to this Alexandria, so I consulted VegDC.Com for a place to get some lunch. Oriental Star had the easiest location for me to find, but so many veg choices, I couldn't make up my mind. So I got two lunches to go: 'Kung Pao 'Chicken'', which was delicious...
and ''Chicken' with Cashews' which I'll enjoy another day. It looks to be equally as good. Since I'm rarely in the area, I will probably explore other options next time, but if I were local I'd return to Oriental Star.

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Knossos, Berryville

A significant percentage of hits on this blog are from people searching for Knossos in Berryville.
So in their honor, I stopped by Knossos today to try their new menu item: The Veggie Burger!
Not only is it a great bargain at $2.25, but they successfully managed to leave off any possible trace of dairy product. I don't know how vegan safe the Fried Zucchini is, but I will definitely be returning regularly for this burger. I am pretty sure it is the Boca Burger they sell at Costco, but food tastes better when it's cooked by someone else and the service was super friendly today. (No Ipsy Pipsy bars today tho).
Dinner was Green Curry Tofu Scramble.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Stir Fry

We went back to Backseat Bar & Grill today (no, that's not our vehicle).
We came for the Frickles and were not disappointed. Piping hot and crunchy on the outside, cool and dillicous on the inside.
The fries that came w/my veggie burger were outstanding. Whoever is working the fryer at Backseat Bar & Grill deserves a raise!
Here's our exciting Chinese dinner tonight.
Yes, she's thrilled.
I found organic Hen of the Woods mushrooms at the Lotte. That was cool.
Not the most colorful stir-fry, but very good served on Soba Noodles.

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Bryanna's Easy Spicy Middle Eastern Pasta and Chickpea Casserole

Lunch today at Mimosa (Sichuan Kung Pao Tofu -- outstanding as usual).
I've had my eye on this recipe for ages, but finally got around to trying it tonight. I sauteed a large Onion with Garlic, Crushed Peppers and Parsley.
Tossed it with Shell Pasta, Diced Tomatoes, Chickpeas and Water and put it in the oven for an hour....

It was delicious! The pasta wasn't as 'al dente' as I prefer, it was softer, but it was definitely all cooked. I will make this fun recipe again. Thanks, Bryanna!