julie’s kind kitchen

I have many things I want to blog about, but I think I’ll start with telling you about all of the lovely meet-ups I’ve had with people I’ve met on The PPK.

These meet-ups are so fun! We’ve probably had about 5 get togethers thus far at various places (Kim’s house three times, Udupi and The Farm). It’s so nice to be surrounded by good food and good company. I know I’ve posted some pics from meet-ups in the past, so I’ll just post the latest pics, which were taken this past Saturday. These are all stolen from Kim because we (Matt & I) only took 2 food pics before eating :]

I know, right?! Deliciousness. Everything was sooo good. I think if you put your mouse over each pic, you’ll see what I saved it as and thus can figure out what each pic is of. Let me know if you want more info about anything. Some highlights include what I made: the fruit salad with mint (the mint was already getting brown when the pic was taken boo) and the green salad with yellow heirloom tomatoes. I made Dreena’s Creamy Basil Dressing from ED&BV and WOW, I love that stuff…and so did everyone else. Also not pictured on the salad was the addition of avocado and almost the tip of my pinky finger. Oooouch. When I was slicing the avo haphazardly, I cut myself pretty bad. I am ok, though…no stitches or anything thankgoodness.

The last picture is sadly the only people pic that was taken (oops!). It’s of me and Kate relaxing by Kim’s pool soaking in Summer. Ahhhh…

I should be posting more frequently, so I’ll catch you ’round here soon.

*Catherine*

Thanks everyone for your wonderful suggestions! I have to admit, I couldn’t decide between all of the tasty recipes/suggestions, so I put everyone’s name in a bowl and drew out the winner. Catherine, email me your address so I can send you some goodies :]

Just a quick post for now, but I will post an ETL update in a few days…

Hello all,

Sorry I haven’t blogged lately! I have been incredibly busy with school, work and my internship. The good news is, I only have one more paper to turn in and then I am FREE for the summer! WOO My goal for this summer is to RELAX and take time for myself.

In the spirit of taking care of myself, I am starting the 6 week Eat to Live program with some other PPKers on May 1st. I am excited, but scared! No dark chocolate?! Does.Not.Compute.

Here’s where you come in. Starting today until May 5th, leave me a comment with a yummy and ETL friendly recipe (or more than one). Remember, these are the parameters. Oh, and it doesn’t have to be your recipe…but, it can be. *ETA-I will be consuming small amounts of salt and olive oil, so it’s ok if the recipe has either * I will choose the tastiest sounding recipe and send that person a bad ass care package full of chocolate goodies. Hey, at least I can live through you :]

P.S. I went to a lecture today at ASU featuring Dr. Peter Singer! I enjoyed the lecture a lot and his accent is actually quite charming.

Hello all! I hope everyone had a great weekend. I spent mine with family, which always makes me happy. I have tons of food pictures on my camera, so I better start posting them!

First up, mini loaves of banana bread. Aren’t they sooo cute?? There are actually three different kinds of loaves on that mountain: blueberry, chocolate chip and plain. I always use the VCON Lower Fat Banana Bread recipe. It makes for ultra moist bread.

Next up, some pure raw goodness. The first picture is a raw salad with mixed greens, mushrooms, spouts, avocado and pâté. The second is a wrap, pre-wrapping. The pâté is of the Save the Tuna variety a la raw goddess herself, Ani Phyo. I am no raw foodist myself, but I love her book. It has great recipes and tips for anyone who likes to eat (and maybe needs some more veggies/fruits in their life?).

More vegetable luuuuvin’. Roasted brussel sprouts. mmm

Last, but certainly not least, Black Bean and Sweet Potato Burgers. This is a combo of a few different recipes. YUM! We loved these. I am still tweaking the recipe, but I will post it once it’s perfect.

This weekend is Matt’s birthday (it’s also this gal’s special day)! We are celebrating with friends on Friday night and then going to Prescott again! Woohoo. As anticipated, we are staying here.

P.S.-If you are reading this and are in the Phoenix area, contact me please! The Phoenix PPK meet-up group is expanding and we want you to join us for our next get together (beginning of May). Speaking of get-togethers, I will post pics from the last one soon.

Here comes…

Chesapeake Tempeh Cakes

and Banana Flapjacks!

Oh, Isa. Will your creative genius ever end?!

Prescott may be my favorite place to go on vacation. Why? #1, it’s only about 1 hour away. #2, it’s a simple, slower-paced town compared to Phoenix or Tempe (read: you can truly relax). #3 there is a lot to do and discover! Also, for me personally, it brings back memories…Matt and I used to take day trips to Prescott in his ‘89 Ford Thunderbird when we were in high school. Aww…

Matt and I spent 2 days in Prescott this past weekend and we really enjoyed it! When we rolled into town, our first stop was New Frontiers. New Frontiers is an awesome natural foods store that has locations in Prescott, Sedona, Flagstaff and a few in Cali. I love this place. We no longer have any small, local natural food stores in Phoenix or Tempe, so we always visit New Frontiers when we are in Prescott (or Sedona or Flag). They have an awesome prepared food section, as well as the option to make your own sammich. Matt got their homemade veggie burger with a salad and I got a half sammich with marinated ‘fu, hummus, and a ton of veggies. Mine also came with a salad and I chose a tahini-based dressing-YUM!

For dessert (because there is always room for dessert), I got a HUGE ginger cookie. The best part was, there were multiple vegan dessert choices… I think I made a good choice, though. Very ginger-y.

That night was Matt’s choice for dinner, so we went to the Prescott Brewing Company. The beer was good and surprisingly, they had a pretty veg-friendly menu. I ended up having the jalapeño hummus, which was really good and really filling. They call this an appetizer!

The next day, we had leisurely morning walking around the town square and visiting all the cool shops. On day trips, Matt and I usually take food for a picnic in front of the beautiful courthouse and play rummy (our favorite card game). In this picture, Matt is reading the time line of Prescott, painted on the sidewalk.

At New Frontiers, I picked up a free “Healthy Living Resources” guide, which led us to our next stop, Honeyman’s Natural Food Store. This place was an exciting new find! I picked up two kinds of tea (yerba mate and blueberry green tea), raw macadamia nuts, beautiful looking sun-dried tomatoes and some stuff from the Cactus Candy Company. I know, I know. An AZ native should not be getting stuff from the Cactus Candy Company…but I have always been curious about the Cactus Jelly and Pomegranate Syrup (btw, what do I use these for?!).

Before we left, we ate at the only entry for veg restaurants on happycow, Taj Mahal. I was pleased to see an entire section of the menu devoted to vegan dishes. Matt and I shared veg pakora, dahl and naan. It was good and I am glad to have it as a veg option when we go to Prescott. Although, they claim to be “The Best Indian Food in Arizona,” which is simple not true. Udupi is a lot better and 100% vegetarian (more than 1/2 vegan). So, I guess what I am saying is, we are spoiled when it comes to Indian food.

Before we headed back, we stopped by New Frontiers again to get some of this:

That right! Locally made vegan ice cream. I found this because of another tip from that awesome Healthy Living Resources guide. I got some No-Butter Pecan, although I was bummed to see that they also make Peanut Caramel and Strawberry Delight, which weren’t stocked at NF. Oh, well. I should be happy that something like this even exists. Check out the ingredients. Anything catch your eye? Quinoa, perhaps?! It doesn’t taste like quinoa, though. I promise! It’s yummmmmy and I think better for me than my other indulgence… Supposedly, they stock Freezees at WF’s in the west coast, so check it out!

Before I go, a picture of the loot I took home (minus the “nut cream”). The dried apples, locally made ww tortillas and free bumper sticker are from NF.

Matt and I are already planning our next trip out to the beautful and hospitable town of Prescott and are thinking about staying either here or here. We found both places while taking a relaxing drive up the mountains.

That’s it for now. I hope everyone had a great weekend.

Oh, and check out some of my favorite blogs. The last one is an oldie, but a goodie.

Peace!

in the form of Liz Lovely “Lovely Os.” mmmm I am not one for commercialized holidays…but, how am I supposed to turn down chocolate?! I mean, seriously. Gracias, Dreena! And my sweetie too, of course.

Whether you go all out with your partner or celebrate the friendships in your life, I hope you have a good day.

We are going out of town this weekend, but I hope to have more foodie posts up in the next week or so…

Nothin’.

Those are Julie Hasson’s sausages, if you are wondering. I am NOT a fan of baked seitan, but this steamed seitan is quite yummy. Matt likes it a lot too. Thanks, Julie!

I a major blog neglecter. I blame it on the holidays!  Well, things have been busy in my world (busy in yours too, right?)  and blogging has definitely been taking a back seat. So sorry. Forgive me?

Anyway, I have been cooking, mostly from VCON. I have also been trying my hand at some raw recipes, so that’s been fun. Matt and I also went to San Diego and Sedona since I last blogged and ate at some awesome restaurants! Unfortunetely, I have only a few pictures documenting this cooking/trip taking and eating at veg restaurants. I promise to take more pictures these next couple of weeks, but for now I leave you with this…

my latest culinary experiment! Homemade soy yogurt without a yogurt maker!

It feels as though I have celebrated my birthday for about a month now. So many friends and family members keep on taking me out for meals and drinks. I really don’t think I have cooked for at least a week. Hey, I’m not complaining. However, I did get some cool kitchen stuff for my bday, which I wanted to try out. Also, I felt kinda icky after eating out so much. Anyway, here’s my detox meal (it’s very healthy for me!).

Hot Sauce Glazed Tempeh, Grilled Asparagus, Mashed Sweet Potatoes, Kale Salad

The tempeh, asparagus and mashed potatoes are inspired by VCON. The kale salad by Ani Phyo’s book.

Can you guess what kitchen stuff I got?