sorry about the lack of posts yesterday; it was a hell of a day! we put in an application on an apartment after viewing it (cross your fingers!), and our roommates dog got hit by a car (she is currently stable, though). plus, you know, working 8 hours…didn’t leave me much time to bake :( anyways, today, i didnt have much time before work, so i thought i would try some cookies.

you will need:

1 3/4 cup flour, sifted
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp ener-g egg replacer (equivalent to 1 egg)
2 tbsp water
1 1/4 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup natural peanut butter, smooth or crunchy
1/3 cup vegan margarine (i used earth balance)
3 tbsp soymilk
1 tbsp vanilla extract

preheat your oven to 375 degrees. in a medium bowl, combine ener-g egg replacer and water, and mix together. add all other ingredients to the bowl and mix together on medium speed. i would melt the butter first. you can also add chopped peanuts or chocolate chips to your mix (about 1/2 a cup) to add some extra flavor. drop by rounded tablespoons onto your cookie sheet about two inches apart; these cookies will spread. flatten slightly in a criss cross pattern with the times of a fork. My first batch of cookies werent very sweet, seeing as how no sugar is added… so i sprinkled the tops with a bit of sugar before and after baking, the second time. bake for 10 minutes, or until the cookies are just beginning to brown, the bottoms burn easy, so dont leave them in too long. remove from the oven and let cool for about 5 minutes. yields two dozen cookies :)

this recipe is from the lovely tracy of shutterbean, I modified it slightly, and veganized it and it was simply deeeeeeelicious!

• 1 large yellow onion
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 tablespoon of dried thyme
• 2 teaspoons curry powder
• 7 large zucchini, cut into chunks
• 1 quart of vegetable stock
• 1 cup of soymilk
• 1/4 cup of melted vegan butter (i used earth balance) mixed thoroughly with 1/4 cup of flour

In a large pot, Sautee onion and garlic in olive oil until transparent. Add Thyme and zucchini. Cook Until soft. Add curry powder, soymilk & stock. Bring to a boil. Add butter & flour mixture. Reduce heat and simmer soup for 15 minutes. Puree soup in blender or use an immersion blender(ironically i didnt have either, so i used a hand mixer on high speed… didnt quite do the trick because there was still chunks of zuchinni in the soup. i found a small smoothie blender that my mom had given me right before i left houston, and that worked perfectly. i never thought i would use that thing, so thanks mom! hehe).

I added pepper and garlic salt, to taste, and it was wonderful. I also added a can of peas, but that really didnt do much, so i think i’ll forget that addition next time around. this was super easy and inexpensive, and the recipe yields enough for your whole family, with plenty of leftovers to pawn off on the neighbors (or hungry vegans at the tattoo shop) :)

I was craving chicken salad the other day so i decided to look up some recipes on vegweb and see what other people include in theirs. After picking apart a few recipes, I ended up with my own version:

vegan mock chicken salad

1 scant cup vegan mayonnaise (I use Vegenaise)
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 lemon, juiced
2 celery stalks, small diced
2 dill pickle spears, diced
2 tablespoons chopped parsley leaves
1 package tofu, cubed
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup roasted, salted almonds
poultry seasoning
a pinch of garlic salt
cooking spray (i use canola oil spray)
salt and pepper to taste

start out by draining your tofu; the original recipe called for 1 package of seitan, but i couldnt find any in my local grocery store, so i substituted tofu. Cut the tofu into medium-sized chunks and sauté over medium heat, with two cloves of finely chopped garlic. be sure to spray your pan with cooking spray so the tofu doesnt stick. you can leave the tofu in cubes, or you can chop it up with your spatula into crumbles, all depending on the texure you’d like for the salad spread. once the tofu starts to brown slightly, sprinkle poultry seasoning onto the tofu and continue to cook. I wanted the tofu to have more taste, so i cooked the seasoning with the tofu, instead of just adding it to the mix later. you’ll know the tofu is done when it’s golden and slightly crispy. once the tofu is fully cooked, go ahead and place it aside in a small bowl to cool.

in a medium sized bowl, add vegan mayo, mustard, lemon juice (go light on the lemon juice, the first time i made this, it was a bit too lemony), celery, pickles, parsley, & garlic salt… mix well. for the almonds, my first time around, i tried to use a coffee grinder on low speed since i dont have a food processor or blender to chop them quickly… and it just turned to almond dust. so next time around, i placed the almonds in a ziplock, and decided to chop them the ghetto DIY way… with a hammer. hahah :) it worked well, actually. add those to the mix once they’re chopped up, and go ahead and add your tofu as soon as it cools.

I like to cover + refridgerate this before i eat it, because it’s better when served cold. I generally just eat this on bread with some sprouts on top. makes about 4-5 sandwiches :) after letting my non-vegan co-workers try some, the verdict is “it’s better than the real thing”! sometimes my favorite part about making vegan food is the shocked look on peoples faces when they realize how good most of it really is. :)