My ghost is all full up

I was recently contacted by the publishers of Feeding the Hungry Ghost by Ellen Kanner, inquiring if I'd be interested in an advance copy to review.  From the title alone, I (like many people probably did) thought the book would be in some way religious.  I don't talk much about religion here, and there's a simple reason for that - I don't have any.  I grew up in a religious family (and my parents are still very strong Christians), but I also grew up in a family that encouraged me to observe the world and draw my own conclusions.  As it turns out, my conclusions about the world, the universe, and everything are currently incongruous with the tenets of religion.  That said, I generally don't begrudge other people their religion (and I sadly have many friends who do).  I think this might be related to my veganism - I have very different beliefs about food and food-related ethics than most people I know, but I expect people to respect my beliefs about food (as I respect theirs).  So it's easy for me to understand that some people have different beliefs about religion, and it's easy for me to know how important it is to respect that.  This long, rambling introduction is just to say that I wasn't immediately put off by the thought that this book might have religious undertones.  So I immediately responded in the affirmative, and I received this lovely new book in time for a recent trip to Tennessee for a wedding (congratulations, Rick and Elizabeth!).

I settled into my window seat and cracked open the book, not sure what to expect.  Just a few pages in, I felt like I had been invited into an intimate conversation with the author - no preaching, no proselytizing, no pontificating.  We talked about her relationships, we talked about her travels, we talked about her childhood.  Admittedly, the conversation was pretty one-sided, but it was still delightful.  I nodded knowingly when she recounted the story of the Stone Soup.  I giggled like a school child when she told me about trying to induce an orgy with a cardamom-laced apple crumble.  And I teared up when she talked about the death of a dear friend.

Without giving away any of the plot twists, the hungry ghost refers to the Tao concept of people who are so desperate and clutchy that they are hungry even beyond the grave.  But you don't have to be dead to be a hungry ghost!  People are hungry, too - for food, sure, but also for love and meaning and human connections.  This book aims to feed your inner hungry ghost, with both physical and emotional nourishment.

* We'd better feed this hungry ghost before he eats the cat ... *

In addition to the stories, Ellen (after all that sharing, we're on a first name basis) offers about fifty recipes, from simple dishes like Spring Pea Puree to more exotic combinations like Pumpkin, Poblano, and Spinach Tacos.   After returning home, fully in love with this book, I hoped to make many of the recipes so that I could report back to you all about how amazing and delicious everything is.  But, of course, life got in the way. And by life, I mean work.  But I'm saved for now - if you want to see what sort of recipes are in store in this book, just head over to Carla's review.  She made a cool dozen recipes (and they definitely look good).

All in all, I highly recommend this book. I can't speak to the recipes just yet, but the book is thoroughly entertaining and heart-warming.  It gives you plenty to think about and gentle nudges to guide you on the road to satiating your own hungry ghost.  I highly recommend it.

** Disclaimer: This book was provided to me by the publisher at no cost.  The opinions and review given here are my own.  My hungry ghost would not like it if I sold my ethics for a free book. **

The one where I actually cook something for once

After yesterday's treatise on the wonders (and, dare I say, convenience) of convenience food, I felt like maybe it was time I actually cooked something.  Pawing through my fridge, I came up with a lot of random vegetables; normally, this would translate to stir-fry, but tonight I threw caution to the wind and went for fried rice ;)

* This is totally different from stir-fry. Totally. *

I can hardly say this wasn't convenient, though.  From pulling things out of my fridge to eating dinner was probably only about 45 minutes. Double-plus bonus, I have enough for three or four meals.  So if you look at it on an effort per meal basis, we're really only talking about ~15 minutes of prep.  That math definitely makes sense.

There's no recipe for fried rice, because who am I to tell you how to fry your rice?  Here's how I did it:

• First, start pressing some tofu. 
• Start cooking rice. I used brown jasmine here.
• Prepare all your vegetables. Here, I diced some onions, garlic, peppers, hot chiles, and carrots; halved some brussels sprouts; and scooped out some frozen corn, edamame, and asparagus. Last, but not least - cube your tofu.
• Heat your wok (or very large pan) over medium heat.  When it's hot, add some oil and let that heat briefly.
• Quickly fry the tofu cubes.  When they're done, remove them to rest while you cook the rest of the food.
• Add onions, garlic, hot chiles, and grated ginger to the oil.  Cook for a few minutes.
• Now throw in the brussels sprouts.  Cook for a few minutes, until they turn bright green. 
• Add carrots and peppers, and (you guessed it!) cook for a few more minutes.
• Add in the frozen veggies and fried tofu.  If you're feeling crazy, throw in some cashews or peanuts.  Add a splash of soy sauce and some black pepper, to taste.  Let everything cook through.
• Finally, stir in the cooked rice and mix everything up! Let it all heat for a few minutes.  
• Devour and enjoy! 

It's lucky that such tasty food can be so quick and easy.  Zucchini and other summer squashes are also great in fried rice, along with basil or cilantro.  Honestly, most vegetables seem to be good in fried rice.  And that's why we love it.

Another super easy dinner

For anyone who forgot, I'm not buying new food during Vegan MoFo. I haven't made nearly as much of a dent in my food stores as I hoped to, but I have been slowly clearing some space out.  The benefit of going to the grocery store is that you can buy a nearly-made meal for those days that you just can't be bothered.  One of my motivations for the big kitchen clean-out is to get rid of the convenience foods that tend to be a crutch.  Of course, some days I am just limping along and I need an easy lunch or dinner (or both) -- luckily I still have plenty of convenience foods for when laziness strikes. 

* These are empty containers, but you get the idea *

I bought this Kashmiri Curry sauce at Ross (yes, Ross the discount clothing store) for $4 or $5 a few months ago.  I often go to Ross after my shift with C.A.R.E. (I clean out the cat room at Petsmart and play with all the kitties for about an hour. It is pure bliss.) every other Saturday, pretty much just to kill time.  My modus operandi for these trips is to look for short-size pants, then check out the dresses and skirts, and then I head to the home section.  This always includes a pass through the half-shelf of food items, just to see what's there.  I've purchased vanilla extract and vanilla bean paste at Ross several times - always a steal of deal.  On this particular day, I was looking for nothing in particular.  I almost didn't pick up this sauce, because I assumed it had milk in it based on the color.  But I allowed my hopes to get up; upon turning the jar over - joy of joys! the one word I always hope for on food labels - it proudly proclaimed it's veganacity.  The sauce quickly became mine and then languished in the back of my cabinet.

* I love companies that label foods as "vegan" *

Last Saturday, after returning from another morning of pooper-scoopering, I wanted a simple, quick meal.  Rifling through the conveniences still in my kitchen, I pulled this sauce out and figured it was time to try it.  In the continuing theme of convenience, I kept the curry pretty simple:  potatoes, thai chilies, and a can of braised gluten (which has been in my possession for no one knows how long).  One word of advice - rinse these things well before you use them.  They are a little too oily straight out of the can, but you can just run them under warm water and rinse most of that off.

* I highly recommend rinsing thoroughly *

My lunch (both that day and the next) was this tasty curry over brown basmati rice.  Although it may be difficult to tell because most of my posts involve some convenience product, I do really enjoy cooking.  But for days when I just don't have the energy or the wherewithal, I definitely appreciate being able to pull a few things out of my pantry to put together a decent meal with little headache or commitment.

* This dinner was born from sheer laziness,
but out of laziness deliciousness can be born! *

October Vegan Food Swap

For the final vegan food swap of 2012, I received a box from Aimee at Big Spoon Kitchen Adventures.   The box contained a lot of delicious treasures: blue corn chips (my favorite color of tortilla chips!), cinnamon and current flackers, bee free honee, Newman's Own green tea, some coupons, and - the greatest items (and quickest gone) - homemade cookies and brownies. 

* Try to not be jealous. This was all delicious *

It's a little difficult to tell, but I got two types of cookies: peanut butter and pumpkin pie.  And a bag full of yummy brownies.  Aimee wrote in her note that she'll post the recipes for these goodies soon - I'm watching for them (and you should too - the peanut butter cookies were especially delicious).  The box had a few more baked goods than what's in the picture .. they just looked so good, that I couldn't resist trying some out immediately.  I'm only a tiny bit embarrassed to say, the cookies and brownies were all gone in a few days. 

Lilly decided to investigate while I was trying to get a photo of the whole spread. 

 

She was sad to find that no cat toys or treats were included, and she quickly lost interest.

* Luckily, she doesn't know what she's missing *

Thank you so much to Aimee!  This was a great end to the 2012 Vegan Swap season.  Vegan food swap will resume in 2013, so head over to the sign-up page to learn more and get on the list for January!

Late as usual.

I'm sorry that it took me a few extra days to get this up, but if I wasn't late - you wouldn't know it was me.  I have a house guest this week, and it's taking up a lot more time than I anticipated.  Regardless, I want to announce the winner of Miss Muffcake's Vegan Spa Day zine.  And the big winner is ...

* I'm learning to program in Python .. this took longer than it should have *

Comment #2: Carol Weaver.  Carol said:

 

Carol - please send your mailing info to theradioactivegan (at) gmail (dot) com.  Thanks so much!  If you're interested in this zine and you aren't Carol Weaver, please head over to etsy and pick up a copy - at only $2.50, it's a steal of a deal!

The one where you get a nice, healthy glow

Just before Vegan MoFo started, I ordered Vegan Spa Day from Miss Muffcake.  I first saw something about the zine posted on the PPK forum, and I instantly wanted to try it.  I have some troublesome skin, and I'm always looking for ways to get it under control. I won't bore or depress you with the stories of my skin woes - I know a lot of people have it a lot worse than I do, but I honestly expected something better by the time I was nearly 30! That is just to say, I'm always on the lookout for new skincare items, and I love the chance to make it myself (I know exactly what's in there, and it's only been tested on me!).

The zine arrived just after MoFo started.  It's a pocket-size zine, which makes it easy to slip in your purse or jacket to take to the store and make sure you don't miss anything.  Since I'm not buying anything new at the grocery this month, I've been a little limited in what I can try.  I've read through the whole thing, though, and I've got a list of ingredients to buy on November 1 to fully test the offereings!  This zine has 21 "recipes" for DIY beauty treatments: tips and tricks for everything from facial treatments to haircare to eyelash growing!  There are even recipes for making your own shaving soap and blackhead-removing pore strips.  Each recipe has a note of the use or purpose of each recipe, such as "firms and smoothes" or "smooth shave" or "to make your face radiant."  A few recipes indicate that they are specifically for dry or oily skin.  The good lord saw fit to bless me with both of those, so I figure I should try all the treatments.

The recipes largely use normal, everyday ingredients.  In fact, a lot of you probably have every single thing in your house already.  I've got a lot of the ingredients sitting around, so I tried out a few things.  I especially loved the Lemon and Baking Soda Microdermabrasion (to get my skin glowing) and the Apple Cider Toner (for oily skin).  I was a little skeptical of wiping my face with vinegar, thinking it would be stinky, but it worked great and didn't leave a harsh smell.  I'm looking forward to trying a lot of other recipes, including Oatmeal Skin Soother and the Orange & Baking Soda Mask/Scrub.

If you noticed in the picture at the top, I have two of these little beauties.  I'll admit I need as much help in the spa and pampering area as I can get, but I don't really need double of every recipe.  I got the second zine to share with one of you lucky ducks! Just leave a comment here before 11:59 PM, PDT on Tuesday (October 16) if you want to enter to win your own copy. I'll announce the winner on Wednesday, so check back then.  If you want to, leave a comment with your favorite DIY beauty tip.  If you don't want to, just leave any comment at all. I'm pretty flexible.

I'm a mish mash!

Thank you for indulging my pity party yesterday.  Today, I'll try to return to a more MoFo-related topic and get back to the vegan eats.  This is a pretty typical dinner for me - basically, I open the fridge and see what's what.   Tonight, I had tomato slices, sauteed kale (topped with some green goddess dressing), mashed potatoes, and baked tofu.  Everything here except for the tofu and dressing is local - the tomato and kale are from my CSA, as are several of the tofu marinade ingredients, and the potatoes came from a recent food swap.  I haven't been able to decide if this plate is sufficiently colorful or not .. it's got a healthy amount of brown, but when you through in the red and green ... well, it's downright Christmasy (or Italian?)

* Serious noms! *

The only even slightly interesting thing on this plate, in so far as cooking goes, is the mashed potatoes.  In all my years of cooking (including five, nearly six years with a serious potato fiend), I have mashed a lot of potatoes.  Here are my time-tested potato-mashing tips:

1. Don't peel the potatoes. It's an unnecessary effort, and the peel is both delicious and nutritious.  So, go rustic - leave the peels in there.
2. When you put the potatoes in to boil, add some other things.  Here I added some very roughly chopped garlic cloves and a sliced thai chili.  You can add leeks, onions, cabbage, turnips, etc.  Boil everything together, just until the potato cubes are cooked through.
3. Save some of the cooking water when you drain the potatoes.  Lately, I don't bother with soymilk, margarine, or oil.  I just use the cooking water to mash the potatoes.  I'm not sure that you could just use regular water, but the added starch in the potato cooking water keeps the mashed 'tatoes light and delicious.

So .. that's pretty much what I've got.  Happy Friday, everyone!