VeganMoFo: Sucky month (sucky me)

Last mofo day, and I posted even less than last year! Shame on me.

As I said in my last post, I'll be posting some Christmas recipes this month : ) and I'm very excited about it.

Anyway, I don't have anything else to say, so I'm leaving you with a picture of a delicious Lula's sundae.



I guess I should write a post about that trip to NYC, huh?
Have a nice week!

VeganMoFo: Beware; -kind of- long post!

Hello. I've been hella busy with school and many other things. For example, yesterday, I returned from a mini-trip I made with my dad to a town in Estado de México (estado de méxico is another state in my country, super close to México City).

Why, you ask? Because we were invited to a wedding.
I was really worried because I didn't know if I was going to have food options at both the hotel and wedding reception.
So, I made a quick trip to San Diego with my mom and got a few things...2 clif bars, 2 raw bars, apple sauce, 2 instant rice noodle soups and a cookie : D
All these things were really helpful for the flight and while we were in the hotel room.

Happy applesauce-face before leaving to the airport and part of Master Yoda's head.

Ok, here's the church!

Isn't it gorgeous? It's more than 400 years old : D and it has a beautiful baroque style decoration inside.

The wedding had a beautiful indian theme and many of the bride's relatives got dressed up according to it:

The bride looked so pretty and her dress was amazingly beautiful as well.
Right after the ceremony, we headed to the reception, that was held in a ranch.

Cute/small artificial lake near the reception

Well, well, well, onto the food.
My dad told me that the bride's grandma is a vegetarian...but I never thought there would be vegan food!

Ensalada de nopales: not great, but edible and spicy ; )

The perfect combination of sweet, spicy and tangy; [delicious!!] tamarind martini (I would also say boozy, but I couldn't taste the alcohol)

Tabouleh over lettuce leaves, hummus and pita wedge

After my meal, I had a snack!

Potato chips with lime juice/salt and drowned in hot sauce (valentina!) or Hot sauce with potato chips...

Enjoying the concert (yeah, Juan Gabriel sang at the wedding, haha)

Plane snack (err, breakfast)

I had a great time and the wedding was awesome. I wish I had posted more this month, but it was impossible. Before christmas, I'll be posting holiday recipes : D!
Currently, I have in mind ponche navideño ; ) with piquete (booooze, haha, I'm sorry. Anyway, I think I'll have mine alcohol-less : p).

VeganMofo: Creamy chipotle spaghetti

I never thought I would ever say this, but I don't think I'm ready to share the recipe; it needs some serious tweaking!

I was so excited because my mom (yeah, again!!) got some silken tofu for me and I've been wanting to make a vegan version of this creamy sauce since forever (alright, maybe since I went vegan : p).

Anyway, I may post another soupy soup recipe tomorrow.

Good night : )!

VeganMoFo: I'm sorry!

For not posting.
I've been muy busy, but I have a small gift for you...

Have you ever been to Pokez?
Well, then you probably know about their awesome burritos.

I'm a freaking tease and I don't have a recipe for my recreation of the pokez tofu and potato burrito(s), but here's a picture. -I think I got pretty close!-

UPDATE:

Alright! As I've already said, I don't have a recipe for this, but I'll write down some directions.
Are you cool with that? Yeah, you are? Okay!

I peeled a large russet potato, diced it and boiled about 1/4 of it. I pan fried the rest (I used olive oil), along with some minced white onion, minced garlic and creole seasoning. I mashed the potatoes (not completely) with a tbsp tomato sauce, bouillon powder and veggie broth to moisten things up.

I threw a piece of seeded tomato in the pot where the potato bits were boiling, then took everything out until tender.

To make the sauce, I blended the hell out of the boiled potatoes/tomato with a bit of tomato sauce, veggie broth and garlic-parsley salt.

Ok, and for the tofu part, I used about 1/3 block of tofu, teared it in medium-ish pieces, pan fried and seasoned with more garlic-parsley salt and -fresh- cracked black pepper.

Filling: I mixed the mashed potatoes and tofu and used a bit of pico de gallo for one of the burritos.
I rolled them and then poured the sauce over the burritos.

Sorry if the directions are weird and/or boring, hah.

VeganMoFo: Squash and eggplant bisque!

Okay. I love soups and I should make soups more often!

Last night, I was -kind of- craving veggies. Since I'm not a big veggie fan, I decided to have them blended instead.
And then, while searching in the fridge, I found two big eggplants that my mom got for me ♥. Both my heart and mind got illuminated and I started to cook.

Ingredients:

Magda squash and eggplant, diced (about 3/4 cup of each)
Vegetable oil (I'm sure it was more than a teaspoon)
1 tsp jarred minced garlic or fresh minced garlic clove
2/3 cup tomato sauce

1/2 cup Veggie broth
Creole seasoning to taste

Heat the oil in a sauce pan and cook the vegetables for a couple minutes. Add the garlic, mix it a bit and add the tomato sauce and broth.
Cook until the soup looks less watery (about 10 minutes).
Remove from heat, blend, blend, blend and return to pan.
Heat until the bisque is bubbly, season and voilà! Your bisque is ready.

Makes 1-2 servings

Plated. Sprinkled with nooch and decorated with sriracha happy face : )

Ohh, this was spicy and really good. Creamy without adding any cream replacements, ha : p

VeganMoFo: Survey.

What is one food you thought you’d miss when you went vegan, but don’t?

Creamy pasta.

What is a food or dish you wouldn’t touch as a child, but enjoy now?

Avocado.

What vegan dish or food you feel like you “should” like, but don’t?

Fetuccini Alfreda Sauce from VWaV.

What beverage do you consume the most of on any given day?

Water!

What dish are your “famous” for making or bringing to gatherings?

I don't make food for gatherings : ( but people tend to like what I cook : )

Do you have any self-imposed food rules (like no food touching on the plate or no nuts in sweets)?

Sweet or savory stuff on the same plate. Unless it's plantains, chinese or thai food.

What’s one food or dish you tend to eat too much of when you have it in your home?

Potato everything (fries, tots, hashbrowns, etc).

What ingredient or food do you prefer to make yourself despite it being widely available prepackaged?

Seitan.

What ingredient or food is worth spending the extra money to get “the good stuff”?

Field roast smoked apple sage sausages.

Are you much of a snacker? What are your favorite snacks?

Yes. Tortilla chips with hot sauce and lime juice, potato chips, dried fruit...

What are your favorite vegan pizza toppings?

Vegan cheese, seitan, tofu ricotta, spinach, mushrooms.

What is your favorite vegetable? Fruit?

That would be zucchini or kale. Watermelon.

What is the best salad dressing?

Maple-mustard!

What is your favorite thing to put on toasted bread?

Almond butter :)

What kind of soup do you most often turn to on a chilly day or when you aren’t feeling your best?

Vegetable soup.

What is your favorite cupcake flavor? Frosting flavor?

Red velvet. Vanilla.

What is your favorite kind of cookie?

Almond butter chocolate chip cookies.

What is your most-loved “weeknight meal”?

Any pasta dish.

What is one dish or food you enjoy, but can’t get anyone else in your household to eat?

Seitan sausages.

How long, in total, do you spend in the kitchen on an average day?

About an hour, maybe more.

What about you : D?

VeganMoFo: Sopa de tortilla!

Look at this baby...
It isn't the best picture, I know, but I freaking love tortilla soup!
And I like it even more now as a vegan, because I've been adding some garbanzo beans and love.
Tasty tasty addition, I must say.

Ingredients:

2 tsp veggie oil
2/3 c tomato sauce
1 tbsp. New Mexico chili powder
1 tsp. California chili powder
2 pinches ground cumin
1 1/2 tbsp. veg bouillon powder

Pinch oregano

3 cups water
14 oz. can garbanzo beans (drained)

Heat the oil in a pot and add all the ingredients (except water and garbanzos) until the mix starts to bubble a bit.
Reduce heat and add the water.
Bring to a gentle boil, turn off the heat, add the garbanzos and cover.

Serves 3

Tortilla strips

I don't have an exact recipe for this, but here are some instructions.

Cut desired amount of tortillas into thin (but not too long) strips.
Heat a generous amount of oil in a pan or sauce pot and fry until crispy and golden.
Drain and enjoy!

I garnished my soup with a few avocado slices and a bit of mozzarella daiya on top.
(Oh, and I used just one tortilla for my soup).

I'm still sad. Back in august, when I was vacationing in NYC, a cab driver laughed and said "YOU DON'T LOOK MEXICAN!". What's that supposed to mean?! haha. I know I don't have super black straight hair, awesome chocolaty skin and I'm not short, but really? Do I look like some weird hybrid or something? I don't know, but I love mexican food and traditions; like Día de Muertos : )

In school, some classmates and I made an altar for a deceased teacher

I made a cempazuchitl flower path : D! I swear I worked my ass off taking those petals off of the bulbs

My boyfriend and I went to a cemetery

And after that, we went to the church where my grandpa's ashes are.
I drew something for him, and somehow, that made me happy.

: )

VeganMoFo: Well hello there!

I'm a lazy person and I'm not hungry enough to cook something right now, so I'll just post some tempeh reuben awesomeness.
Enjoy these pictures ; )

Tomorrow I'll post a recipe and all that.

Tempeh reuben @ Caravan of Dreams in NYC

Tempeh reuben @ Foodswings in NYC

And finally, a tempeh reuben I made back in TJ : )