Finally, access to my computer...

I've been a little slacker-ish on the blog lately; just kind of busy doing nothing (and the hubs insists on using both the PC, which has a dual screen, AND the laptop in the evenings to both watch a DVD while playing a game on the PC. "Because if I have it all on the PC at the same time, it lags." Lag you.). So I haven't been able to download my rad pics of food until tonight--I know, wth?

Here's the DL on some of the cooler things I've been consuming lately:

{more tofu shirataki noodles. this time, the angel hair kind. yum.}

{apple crisp. recipe from vegweb.com. my first fruit crisp!}

{deeeeelish}

{i had half a bag of apples that were going bad. best use of "on the verge" fruit, ever.}

{choco-nana and strawberry-chia smoothie}

{chia seeds, 5 froz. strawberries, 1 froz. banana, small palm of vegan choc chips & choc almond breeze}

We've decided to have a BBQ at the end of April around my birthday. I'm obviously going to make some veg-friendly dishes, and I am drawing a complete blank besides the obvious grilled portabello...any ideas? What do you like to bring to BBQ's?

Jes

Surviving Summer BBQ's

It's that season again. Time to pull out the grill (if you haven't already!), fire it up, invite friends over, and have a ball. The only thing is, I can't eat meat this year. So...what now? How is one supposed to partake in the merriment surrounding a BBQ if one is vegan?


When confronted with this:





I reach for this (sounds like a beer commercial, yeah? LOL):




Portabello mushroom burgers are sooo yummy. They've become my "BBQ go-to" so far this summer (and I've been to several already). Friends have been awesome about letting me grill my shiz first. If not, I'd probably end up using the handy-dandy grilling basket we bought at Target.

Some vegans are very particular about cooking their food on a grill or range that recently cooked flesh, and I have to say that as much as I CAN control that, I will. I've eaten portabello sandwiches at restaurants before, way back when I went vegetarian the first time, and I honestly didn't even think about it.

My fiance worked at one of these restaurants (also a brewery) and can confirm that they cooked the mushrooms on the same grill as the meat (or at least used to, as it's been 3 years since he worked there). I guess it's all in ASKING for a different cooking surface, like a pan.

So for you omnivores out there reading. please take note: vegans don't want their food cooked in meat, near meat, in grease from meat, etc. Being considerate is best. Vegans are amazingly considerate of omnivores, I've come to find (contrary to popular belief).

Luckily, I have the best friends a gal could ever ask for, so it has not been a problem for me :)

Jes