C'est La Vegan

Even though all the kiddies are heading back to school and we’re approaching labor day, I kind of feel like summer is just starting because it’s finally gotten really hot here.
When it’s super hot out nothing tastes better to me than a simple and refreshing salad, and this Corn-Quinoa Salad from Vegetarian Times makes good [...]

This past weekend, we went to see “Planet Earth Live” at the Hollywood Bowl with our good friends Tim and Ildy.   I always love a night out at the bowl, complete with tasty food and wine, good friends and live music, all whilst tucked away in the Hollywood hills.  It’s definitely one of my favorites [...]

Okay, right off the bat I have to tell you that yours truly took the above photo.  I don’t think I’m anywhere near Ryan’s level yet (although in my defense, he has been doing it for over fifteen years and happens to be amazingly talented), but I think I’m off to a good start!  He’s [...]

When I studied abroad in London I was fortunate enough to enjoy several afternoon teas.  I love sweets, I love sandwiches, and I actually prefer tea to coffee, so a classic tea is a little piece of heaven for me.  I know that my love of this tasty ritual informed my menu of baked goods [...]

I’m a huge fan of polenta.  I know it’s really easy to make from scratch, but I like to buy the pre-made tubes of it for even easier meals.  Sliced up and pan fried (or baked), it makes the perfect base for so many different toppings.
I had some kale on hand that I needed to [...]

I sometimes forget how great a simple salad can be.  This one is from Janet Fletcher’s “Fresh From the Farmers’ Market”, and I used a mix of baby escarole and frisee lettuces.  Combined with the shallot vinaigrette, avocados, and oranges, this salad is full of different textures and flavors, all of them fantastic.  It calls [...]

Chicago Soy Dairy recently sent me a sample of their new mozzarella teese, which I think should be coming out to stores shortly, though I’m not sure exactly when that will be.  I wanted to find something that would really highlight the teese, and I’d seen a recipe for White Pizza with Sage in Deborah [...]

Happy Cinco de Mayo!  Living in Southern California, there’s no lack of holiday celebrations to take part in today.  If you’re having people over, or even if you’re just having a quiet night in, this Mexican-Style Casserole is the perfect thing to celebrate the holiday.  Now, I say Mexican-”style” because I have to [...]

On Saturday I presented a dessert demonstration at Animal Acres’ Compassionate Cooking Extravaganza, and I had the chance to see a couple of the other presenters including Rod Rotondi, founder of Leaf Cuisine and author of “Raw Food for Real People”.  His presentation about raw foods was extremely informative.  In particular, I really appreciated that he [...]

The full title of this sandwich is “Gardein ‘Steak’ Sandwich with Watercress, Red Pepper, and Horseradish Mayonnaise” and it comes from Tal Ronnen’s “The Conscious Cook”.  I have to say, the more recipes I try from this book, the more I fall in love with it!
This is one of the best sandwiches I’ve ever had, [...]

As I’ve said many times before, I love me a good, creamy soup!  With asparagus in season, I couldn’t resist trying this asparagus soup from Tal Ronnen’s The Conscious Cook.  For some reason I was thinking it was going to be harder to make than it actually turned out to be.  [...]

The other night we had some friends over for dinner, and I thought I’d make a soup and salad type meal featuring this Cauliflower Bisque.  I’m constantly saving recipes that I find online, but I often forget to go back and actually make them.  I found this one in an old email I’d sent to [...]