C'est La Vegan

Last year I made an Aphrodisiac Pasta dish for Valentine’s Day, and this year I wanted to make something else that also incorporates foods with aphrodisiac qualities.  This would make a great start to your main meal, or a nice light lunch to get you ready for the big night.  It’s pretty effortless to throw [...]

Even though it’s technically fall, we’re still dealing with some very hot weather here in Los Angeles, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to let up anytime soon.  Since heirloom tomatoes still abound at the farmers’ market, and given that it feels like summer here, I thought I’d share this Grilled Avocado and Heirloom [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

This bright green spring salad is one of my favorites.  I love panzanella salads in general (who wouldn’t love a bread salad?!), and this version from Michael Chiarello is really awesome.  Thank god I finally like asparagus and peas – if you’d served this to me as a kid I’d have probably made a wise-crack [...]

A few years ago I was in Manhattan for some improv shows, staying with my best friend, the beautiful and talented Jennifer Valle.  We took a raw foods dessert class at Matthew Kenny’s The Plant in Brooklyn.  Those desserts were some of the best I’ve ever had, and it definitely peaked my interest in raw foods. [...]

I was trying to think of what to make for dinner the other day, and it was one of those hot days when you know you’re not going to feel like cooking, but you want something good to eat.  I’d gone to Whole Foods and saw a chicken salad they make that I actually used [...]

Ryan and I had another chance to head over to SunPower Natural Cafe, and I guess I’m a fan of their drinks since this is the second one that I’m posting about! This is the Fresh Squeezed Lemonade with Agave, and I think I can say without exaggeration, that this is the best lemonade I’ve [...]

Now for the best part of going to The Hollywood Bowl – the food!  It’s been a while since we’ve entertained or since I’ve cooked real food, so I was excited to try some new recipes.  I looked through Veganomicon because I hadn’t done that in a while, and tried to find some things that [...]

The next dish that I made for our Hollywood Bowl Picnic was the tempeh pate from the Native Foods Cookbook.  This is one of my favorite recipes, and I can’t even count how many times I’ve made this.  We’ve eaten it in Palm Springs wraps (Ryan’s favorite), I’ve baked it in puff pastry, served it [...]

The title of this dish is a mouthful, but it’s actually much simpler than it sounds.  It’s really just a mish-mosh of recipes I’ve been wanting to try for awhile now.  The first recipe is the Almond Feta with Herb Oil from the April edition of Vegetarian Times magazine.  This recipe takes patience, but most [...]