A much needed fast

My very own posting has inspired me (haha) to do some fasting this week and that includes a blog fast! I will miss everyone's posts but will catch up when I get back. Please feel free to leave me comments though!
Have an awesome spring day everyone! Today is a great day.

I'm leaving you with a picture of 3 of my favorite people in the world, again another non-post-related picture, and with

nature around us

My Weight Loss Story

I asked Catherine to share her weight loss story and she promptly posted it in her blog. Now it's my turn to share.

I started gaining the weight when I moved here from the Philippines 15 years ago. The 10 pounds I gained was a gradual and slow process. A year and a half after my first child was born, I joined Weight Watchers at work. I got 2 co-workers disgusted and quit WW because they thought I was an insult. I looked skinny to them. (That was their excuse!) After losing 12 pounds or so, some thought I had gone too far. I walked out of a WW meeting because I got so sick of some people's excuses for not taking the weight off, and I never came back again. I was a lifetime member until then. Well, the weight started creeping back in, and some. Two more pregnancies later, I was at my all time high of 132 pounds. I wasn't about to go on any "diet". I already know the program- I know what I needed was a lifestyle change. But like Catherine, I never thought of myself as "fat". Yet, I also avoided parties and gatherings just because "I could never find anything to wear."

I was doing a liquid fast one day last July, which also meant taking it easy and not doing much around the house. I just think that when the body is weak is a good time to feed our spirit, so I would spend time in prayer and reading during fasts. I was looking for a particular book about fasting at home but I couldn't find it. I pulled out a book called Go Natural instead. This is a book that I picked up 2 years ago- flipped through the pages, put it aside, and didn't open again 'til that day in July. The author kept talking about the McDougall diet which at that time I've never heard of. Curious, I went online to see if the local library carry this Dr. McDougall's books. In a couple of days I was reading his 12 Day Program.

Now I have to add that before reading that book, our family was already "eating healthy"- or so we thought! We shop at Whole Foods, buy organic food, avoid hydrogenated fat like a plague, don't drink cows milk, and only eat free-range chicken breast for meat at home. Before this day, being vegetarian was like climbing Mt. Everest for me. But I really think it was the fasting that open up my heart to it. It gave me courage. By the end of the day, I was clearing my fridge and my pantry of junk. No mercy, bags after bags of junk. The next day, I had the most fulfilling day at Whole Foods Market. My husband had also agreed to support me in this 12-Day Program. After all, it's less than 2 weeks of not eating meat- big deal! He didn't know I had more in mind than that.

Day 2 of the program, the cook in me came out. It was so liberating. That's when I realized that I dreaded being in the kitchen because I dreaded handling meat. I never looked back. On the other hand, hubby was getting irritable, he said. Meat withdrawal, I suppose! But he stuck to it- he was doing it for me.

But other things were also happening. We started feeling light and having more energy. I don't get headaches anymore. My toddler's skin problem was no longer. I could go on and on. By then, dear hubby knows this is more than a 12-Day program. Even family and friends noticed the changes right away.

In the first month, I lost a total of 10 pounds, 20 more to go. By Thanksgiving, I've achieved my goal. I've gone from my biggest of size 12, to 8 to a size 4. When the scale hit 100 lbs, I knew it was time to add more nuts and seeds to my diet.

The whole time, I never felt deprived at all. I never called it a diet- it's a lifestyle change. I was (and still am) constantly eating, and yet the pounds kept coming off. And I feel good about it, not just for me and my family, but knowing that I'm being a positive influence to others and a good steward.

Playdate at McD

We have not gone to McDonalds since June of last year. That is, until yesterday.
I was supposed to take the kids to open gym, but the little one decided to take a nap just before I could get her bundled up for the ride. It was a short nap, but since there wasn't much time left to play at the gym, and the kids are fired up to run around, I thought I'd take them to an indoor play area. But nah, that's inconvenient right now, unless of course we go to McD, of which just the mention of it made the kids go "yah!"
The first question asked of me was, "We're not gonna eat the food, right mama?" I was laughing in the inside. And to the inevitable, they ended up eating yes, non-vegan fries and vanilla sundae cone.

The kids had the play area to themselves until a van load of kids came, 12 beautiful kids to be exact. They all have dark hair, like mine. I approached the only adult with them and started a conversation. They were all hers except for one- 7 adopted, 4 foster. And that's not all, she has 4 of her own, all grown up. I noticed how well behaved the kids were and how calm the mom was- I told her she is amazing and that I have such respect for people like her. It was interesting to me how this mom has this many beautiful kids with her and yet she was all eyes on mine! (I also found out that they do 9 loads of laundry a day.) When they had gone, I was left thinking about my own attitude about my kids and motherhood in general. Boy, was I changed by that encounter.

I usually carry a book bag with me and this was no exception. I brought a couple of sprouting books that I just picked up from the library and a cookbook. I've had Jennifer Raymond's "The Peaceful Palate" cookbook for a while now, but had only looked at recipes until yesterday. I was flipping through the pages when this title caught my attention: Dairy Products and Eggs. I immediately felt heaviness as I started reading... mixed emotions, then the tears, then rage and yes, compassion.
For a little background, I started cooking vegan mainly for health reasons- I shouldn't really be calling myself one. If you're a hardcore vegan, I won't fit in your definition of the word, really. But that is slowly changing.
Who would have thought that a cookbook could make someone cry? The Peaceful Palate did that to me, but then again, that happens when I'm reading aloud a piece of good literature to my children anyway!

I still don't like going to McDonalds. They probably won't see us for another year or so, maybe never. But I really had the sense that God was showing me somethings there. And I'm thankful He did.

Quick Meals 101

The other day I asked dear hubby to make some rice, and because I did not specify "brown", which I assumed he already knew that's what I was talking about, he decided to make white rice, which we only keep for company. Well, he made a rice cooker full of it and normally I refuse to save leftover white rice, but yesterday, I decided to make Filipino-style fried rice with it.
Using a nonstick skillet, I sauteed an enormous (minced) garlic clove until lightly browned, then added frozen peas and chopped carrots. Once the veggies are heated thoroughly, I added the (loosened) rice, and seasoned it with light soysauce and fresh ground pepper. And as if it wasn't garlicky enough, I sprinkled some garlic powder to it. Then more of the light soysauce for color and extra flavor. (If you're using tamari or any dark soysauce you wont' have to use as much.) That should be it, but I remember I have that fivespice baked tofu in the fridge, so I cut it into cubes to join the merry crew. The kids started munching on the tofu before I could add it to the fried rice. They liked it, but I wasn't really crazy about its rubbery texture and fivespice flavor.

Although I try to minimize purchase of processed food in the house, I thought it a good idea to try something new- such as mock meat, prepared tofu, etc each week. The kids seem to be attracted to dinner when there's something "meaty" on the side, so I think this is a good compromise.

The fried rice turned out good. But then again, that's our comfort food around here. Weird, huh? Aliyah was asking why I don't take photos of my food anymore. Quoting her, "This fried rice sure looks good, you should blog this." (Sigh, a new camera would be nice, you know.)

Today, I wanted to use my celery (so I could buy more, lol) but didn't feel like munching on them. Think, think- nothing fancy today...so I chopped them with some red bell pepper and artichoke hearts. I pulled some black beans and chickpeas from the freezer and added some dressing to it. I normally like making my own dressings, but wasn't going the extra mile for this one. Besides, we have some in the fridge that needed to be used up. (Spectrum Naturals Sweet Onion & Garlic organic fat-free dressing= 15 cal, 0 fat)
A whole big bowl of that is now gone, and we decided to call it our "Five Color Salad", which should really be "Six-color" since I added chopped red onions on mine.

Midweek Munchies

Another week. Happy Midweek Munching everyone!

What Kaivegan is contributing for the week bananas, gala apples, valencia oranges (all organic) mangoes (more this time, I even got the Manila kind) avocado roma tomatoes, lemons daikon, radish organic garlic organic yams, red potatoes organic green onions, red and green bell peppers mushrooms, pea pods whole wheat pitas fivespice baked tofu barley flour (now I need to find this in bulk) shredded coconut, unsweetened green curry paste org. unsweetened applesauce (for baking), Eden organic apple strawberry sauce (for the kids) Wholesoy yogurt, variety organic peanut butter Mori Mates chocolate pudding mix silken tofu Silk vanilla soymilk & organic apple juice (at the warehouse club, cheaper) chocolate soy milkshake (Zurielle finished the whole 32 oz-carton in 24 hours!) blueberries, frozen peas, frozen hashbrowns caribbean (frozen fruit) bars Ezekiel 4:9 sprouted multi-grain bread Rudy's organic honey whole wheat bread (Aliyah's request) Veggie chips (to bring to Zurielle's playdate tomorrow) IN BULK: at the co-op blackstrap molasses, vanilla extract maple syrup (yes, a very big bottle!) seeds for sprouting IN BULK at Whole Foods: quick rolled oats, almonds, pecans dates, dried cranberries, sesame sticks AT THE ASIAN MARKET: chinese broccoli, baby bokchoy pea tips, okra, opo squash red bean buns, frozen (again, for the kids) sweet potato chips I went grocery shopping with Ron's sister this weekend while he watched the kids (all 6 of them!) He was really surprised that I spend less than half of what I normally do, but then I had to go back to the store yesterday and ended up spending more than I planned. Then there's the trip to the asian market, and the co-op for some bulk stuff. Although we are a member at the co-op, I hardly shop there (too expensive and not much selection), but I went this week to get some maple syrup in bulk- thanks to Shawn for the tip. As you can see, I hardly saved for my goal (cutting on food bills) this week, but hey, I could try again next week, right? And that, I plan to do. Midweek Munchies sponsored by HARMONIA

spring is here... or is it?

I woke up this morning minutes before dear hubby was to leave for work. I had planned on waking up early to prepare lunch for him, but oh well. Straight out of bed, I boiled some water, added some rolled oats, frozen corn kernels, frozen black beans and a little tomato paste. I let it simmer while dear hubby put his coat on and everything. A couple of minutes later, there it was: instant breakfast/lunch (or in between) that he took to work with a Thai Kitchen Hot & Sour rice noodle soup bowl- which is always there for days like this.

Well, dinner was a different story.
Susan of Fat Free Vegan recently posted a dish called Korean Tofu and Vegetable Stew on her blog. I had been thinking about it ever since, and decided to make it today.
Okay, so I made a store run, and yes with all 3 kids, to pick up daikon and then some. And since we had to go to swimming lesson right after, we decided to eat lunch at the store as well. That wasn't really the plan but we were there longer than anticipated and had to go around the store a few times to find Lyrica's socks which she managed to keep taking off and dropping when no one is looking. (I would have not bothered, but at 20 degrees, this one year old needed socks.) Oh, and we also met a nice lady who found one of the socks, when it was dropped the nth time, of which then I finally had the sense to put it and the other one in my purse.

I'm surprised that considering that this is the bigger Whole Foods (Minneapolis) that we went to, they had no vegan-friendly hot food at all! Interestingly, there's always something for us at the cramped St Paul location. I ended up getting the spicy tofu salad (cold, with bell peppers) and tabouli. Odd combination, but good.

Going back to Susan's Korean Tofu dish, I still didn't have some of the vegetables that it calls for, but I just substituted with what's on hand. I put extra daikon and red bell pepper, and instead of the baby bokchoy (which I refuse to buy from WFM), I thought it would be fun to use the chinese broccoli which we have an abundance of. And what else did I find in the fridge? You got it- some okra! I also didn't have the red miso, so I used white instead. (I've only used this kind but should really try the red miso next time.)

This dish is awesome! Even dear hub said so. He likes that the veggies look and taste very fresh. Oh, and was that Aliyah eating tofu? You bet! Susan, it's a success!
And what a plus that this was easy enough and super quick to make.

Okay, this picture has nothing to do with my post, but I haven't posted images of my own cooking for a while now, and hey, this is the best thing I could come up with- kids playing with cousins while moms are shopping. And yes, that snow is still there today. Happy spring, everyone!

Pea Tips

I had been eyeing these pea tips (snow pea tips, pea leaves, tom yau, among its many names) at the asian market and just finally decided to pick some up yesterday. Sure glad I did!

I sauteed it in vegetable broth with lots of garlic, light soysauce, brown rice wine vinegar and a little hoisin sauce. A couple of stirs, then it's done!

Right before this, I had stir-fried some chinese broccoli- the same way I did them last week. And although I basically put the same things in both the pea tips and the chinese broccoli, the flavors of both veggies remain distinctive and yes, awesome! The pea tips were nutty, sooo tasty, done just right. Okay, I'm changing my mind again today, and saying that this has to be my new favorite vegetable... or leaf... or food... whatever- it's just good!

Cabbage & Cannellini Beans for St Patrick's Day

This dish is posted on the McDougall board. Thanks, Gin for sharing.

½ pound dry cannellini beans (or white beans)
Rinse, soak per directions, drain.

Add soaked beans to 2-3 cups of water and boil for 45 minutes. Add:
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 veggie bouillon cube
1 tbsp. yellow mustard powder
½ head cabbage, chopped
1 tsp. caraway seeds
3 tbsp. yellow mustard
1 tsp. black pepper

Reduce to a simmer and cook until cabbage is tender. Stir in ¼ cup of whole grain mustard.

For the dry beans, you can substitute 2 cans of great northern beans or cannellini beans, rinsed and drained. Just add them after the cabbage is cooked.

( I have frozen cooked cannellini so I used that and just added it in the last few minutes of cooking the cabbage. I didn't have whole grain mustard, so I just put extra of the other mustards.)

I am also making avocado smoothie, but won't be able to post any picture. More on that later!

There you have it, folks. Happy St. Patrick's Day!

An unusual day...

I had a very unusual day yesterday. I woke up really tired and achy. It got worse as the day went on. The whole day, I just had mango, thai noodle soup, homemade muffin and apple juice. None of that went well. I was so desperate for dear hubby to get home since the middle child was all over me after her afternoon nap. I stayed in bed pretty much the whole day, getting up just made me dizzy and such. When hubby got home around dinnertime (which your guess is right- there's no dinner), he fixed the kids something to eat, and gave me the last of the kids' peaches in strawberry-banana gel cup, which I happily shared with the 2 little ones. With good soothing music in the background, hubby got me a cup of Peach Rooibos tea. I don't know if it was the annointed music or the tea or the combination of both- but I started to feel better right away!
None of the people that we know that we had contact with over the week was sick. But then again, we were out a few times in public places, too. This is the second time this winter that I've had what seemed to be a "one day-flu". And I never got anybody else sick! Hmmm. Have any of you had this? I really suspect it had something to do with what I eat.
To give you a little background, I started cooking low-fat (to no fat) vegan last summer. We used to dine out a lot, but after this lifestyle change, found ourselves desiring to eat out less and less. Well, this week, we did quite a few of that (eating out with friends, family, and acquaintance). Greasy food, etc. etc.- just a bunch of stuff that made the food taste good but normally you won't find in kaivegan's kitchen. (Must be sodium overload!)
Anyway, I am noticing that I am more in tune with my body now. (Dear hubby says the same thing of himself.) I pretty much know now what food does certain things to me, and it's just a matter of me knowing where the limit is.
As for today- it is a better one! I woke up energized and refreshed, ready to face the day. Healthy food/s really have its rewards, and I love the feeling that I get not just from eating it, but the outcome of it.

Midweek Munchies

It is that day again.. Happy "midweek munching" everyone!
The biggest mangoes I've ever seen were $1.49 at Whole Foods. They were so good and now I wished I got more because the 4 that I got are all gone!
At a restaurant, over the weekend, one of the kids (guess which one!) dropped and broke the camera.
I have challenged myself to lower our grocery bills for the next few weeks. I figured if I save at least $50 a week in groceries it would be easier to replace the camera, which I so desperately want since Zurielle's birthday is coming. Any advice? (If I just succumb to buying all conventional produce vs. organic, I would save some already.)

What Kaivegan is contributing for the week bananas, strawberries, mangoes lemons roma tomatoes red onion, 3# yellow onions yams, red potatoes red bell pepper zucchini cabbage Spring Mix/ salad greens whole wheat flour tortillas vegan mozzarella (for Zurielle- no one else would eat that around here!) barley flour brown rice syrup maple syrup - yes, again! I'm getting the smaller container because the bigger one is grade B. I always get the A kind, but would really like to take home a larger container next week. Can someone tell me if there's much of a difference? chocolate chips, carob chips whole wheat couscous fire-roasted diced tomatoes unsweetened applesauce (to replace oil in baking) crushed pineapples, canned rice milk, soymilk (vanilla) blueberries, frozen WF Seduction bread (so good! thanks to Leslie of EatPeacePlease ) Sweet Nothings non-dairy fudge bars (Zurielle asks for this everytime we're at the store) IN BULK: quick rolled oats sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds almonds, raw navy beans, dry nutmeg, whole coriander

stir-fries and sunlight

I have been thinking about simple, yet tasty vegetables lately. Yesterday, I made this stir-fry with:

chinese broccoli,
chopped onions, lots of garlic
soy sauce, rice wine vinegar
and hoisin sauce

I had to boil the broccoli's stalks (or stem?) for a few minutes while I sauteed the onions and garlic in veggie broth. This time, I remembered to use just a splash of vinegar, less I ruin the whole thing! If you haven't had chinese broccoli before, this is nothing like the regular broccoli- you just have to try it. This is good stuff!

Chinese broccoli over brown rice.

I decided that instead of my rice cooker I would just use a regular saucepan to cook my brown basmati rice. Since I didn't have to make the stir-fry until the last few minutes of cooking the rice, I sneaked away from the kitchen and did some "blogging."
Oh yeah, I almost burnt the rice, but it smelled so darn good that I didn't throw it out. It tasted better with the veggies, too!

Kale and some sunlight-- so good and healthy! What a pair!

My 8 year old just decided that she's going to add kale to her very short list of "edible" vegetables. Now, I am looking for ideas on what else to do with it,though she really liked this one! (I pretty much cooked it like the chinese broccoli.)

Did I tell you that was lunch?
Well, here's what we had for dinner. I had some creamy hummus that I want to use up so I decided to use it as a sauce base. The hummus was really good, but have I told you that my crew is not a big fan? I decided to thin it with vegetable broth and added more fresh lemon juice to it. It really reminded me of an old pasta sauce I used to make that the whole family loved, so I thought this would work. See for yourself:

This girl is up to something again! Yes, it's the same hand that grabbed the falafel! Yes, she eats edamame just like that. And no, that is not her plate!
Well, dear hubby barely touched his dinner. Cub #1 finished hers because mama bear promised that if she does, she could have a muffin after. I almost finished mine, but just because...well, you know, it wasn't really that bad!
So the hummus was really good- but I shall remember not to be so bold as to make my own pasta sauce with it. I should have just learned from Leslie of EatPeacePlease and her recent soba experience!
So what happened to the rest of the pasta? Down the drain- it wasn't even good enough in hubby's standard to go in his lunchbox for the following day, which by the way, I took a photo of the other day's.
That's the baked falafel on whole wheat pita with lemon tahini sauce and lettuce, a VLV* chocolate chip muffin, some oat bars (also VLV) and yeah, some carrot sticks. Though I packed him a banana, I wouldn't put banana inside this lunchbox. I just don't like how it makes everything else taste and smell like itself!

--the end--

*VLV- Vive Le Vegan!

Falafel, Food Manners & Muffins

I cooked a big batch of chickpeas yesterday, without a plan to make anything. I just want to be able to have them handy in the freezer when I need them. Then I thought it would be fun to make some falafel- but bake them instead. I got a recipe to follow (well, sort of) from the Fat Free Vegan website.
I was still removing the rest of the falafel from the tray when I turned around and caught this young lady eating a still warm patty, picking from the plate on the countertop. (Zurielle, where's your table manners?)

"Sorry, Mommy. The smell is making me so hungry, I couldn't wait anymore!

Who needs tahini or pita, anyway?"

So when you have a hungry cub and it's not even dinnertime yet, you don't really have time to take a picture of everything else. But here's the leftover ready to go in the fridge.

I served them in whole wheat pita with some lettuce, and whipped tahini, fresh lemon juice & a little water. I don't know why I did that when I just made hummus the other day. Oh, yeah, I remember now! The cubs and Papa bear didn't like the hummus I made, but they are fine with the lemon and tahini.

And last but not the least: ----Chocolate Chip muffins from Vive Le Vegan!----
Okay, so you won't find that in the cookbook- simply because it's supposed to be "Carob Chip Muffins". It is so yummy that cub #1 wants us to make more today. (Yes, these muffins are gone now!) For those of you who don't own the cookbook yet, these muffins have orange zest and coconut and is baked with barley flour- what interesting combination! We made ours a little smaller, and cut the baking time a bit.
I'm really looking forward to posting my own creations (or recreations) soon, but for now, I shall enjoy all these goodies created by culinary experts like DREENA!

cabbage roll-ish

I have never made cabbage roll before and have always thought that the prep work was just too much trouble for what it is. Well, it wasn't too bad-- until I got to the sauce part. I've had a long day...what in the world was I still doing in the kitchen?
Well, I still had VLV's Roasted Tomato Bean Stew left-over from lunch, and so I decided to improvise.

What was inside the cabbage wraps? Brown rice, pine nuts, mushrooms, raisins, the rest of the cabbage and seasonings.
Will I make this again? The filling yes, but not the roll! I would just sautee the cabbage with tomatoes, and still have a happy crew.

And now I'll leave you with this uninspiring plate...

Midweek Munchies

What KAIVEGAN is contributing for the week Most of the items are organic, except for those that I marked with *. kale *lemons & limes parsley, cilantro baby carrots, tomatoes celery, bell peppers, cucumber *pineapple, *cantaloupe, *mango bananas, oranges rolled oats pine nuts sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds flaxseed meal dried cranberries, raisins fennel seeds, cumin seeds, cinnamon bay leaves barley flour shredded coconut, unsweetened natural cane sugar (this should last forever, love the smell!) fire-roasted diced tomatoes *silken tofu brown rice crispies cashew butter, peanut butter ww linguini, 2 kinds of penne, (tri-color) fusilli soymilk (got 4, used 2 up already! my kids are thirsty!) * FROM THE ORIENTAL MARKET: garlic, ginger okra chinese broccoli chinese eggplants baby bokchoy baby bananas (for Aliyah) frozen peeled edamame frozen Red Bean buns dried lily flowers (tiger lily buds) Asian stores by where we live don't have much of a selection (or expensive). The ones I go to are not convenient location-wise. Therefore, I don't go on a weekly basis.

More treats

This is my" new thing" now: making my own snacks for the whole family. Thanks to Leslie of Eat Peace Please for the inspiration!
Last Saturday I made the absolutely delicious "Totally Nutty Bars" from Vive Le Vegan! No pictures, but they turned out really well and I couldn't believe I pulled it together in such a short time! I'll be making that again very soon and this time with pics!

Easy Pleasin' Oat Bars: again from Vive Le Vegan!

I love them because they're wholesome, somewhat chewy, and not too sweet.

Note: I didn't use the canola oil that the recipe called for, but I added some unsweetened apple sauce.

And from the dessert section- Crispi Squares:

I used brown rice krispies so that explains the darker color. I used a combination of peanut butter and cashew butter, some good dried cranberries and vegan chocolate chips. It didn't call for sesame seeds but I'm seed happy this week, so there.

Aliyah took this picture of her plate. The crumbs speak louder than words.

vegetable meme

I have been tagged (or should I say, I got myself tagged?)by Paz of the Cooking Adventures of.. with a meme to share!

The Vegetable Meme

1. Do you like vegetables?
Yes, especially when they're cooked. I wish I could eat more of them raw, though.

2. Do you have a favorite vegetable?
Yes! Zucchini. But I also like asparagus, mushrooms and chinese broccoli, among many others.

3. Is there any vegetable that you think (or know) most people don’t like, but that you find great?
Yeah- okra!
Why?
I don't know a lot of people who like okra. I, myself, in the past, couldn't even stand the feel of it. Oh, it's slimy! But now I think it's great. It's an interesting food.

4. Is there any vegetable that you think (or know) most people find great, but that you don’t love that much? What experience did you have with it?
Lettuces and other greens in salad- I would buy greens to make salad, but would always end up wasting most of it, so I rarely buy them now. I just never learned to like them, especially the texture when chewed! I eat them to be "normal"- but that's it! lol

5. Which kinds of vegetable are unusual to you?
I couldn't think of any right now. Unusual is good, I think. But there are still veggies that intimidate me, like leeks and artichokes. I guess I just need to watch someone else prep them.

6. Name a couple of vegetables that you cook or eat.
I always have zucchini and bell peppers. I can eat them cooked or raw.
I also love asparagus and different kinds of mushroom, even dried.

7. Which vegetables do you want to know more and bring into you kitchen more frequently?
Kale, different cabbages and many others. I'm also looking into sprouting.

8. Some thoughts about vegetables.
I could talk about vegetables all day long. They are good for us! They're supposed to be our friends! Oh, they are so lovely to look at and to eat (well, most of them)! I also think they can save lives.
One thing- organic is the way to go. If that's not possible, make sure the produce are washed thoroughly. I get really obsessive about cleaning my veggies if they're not organic!
I would compare conventional veggies to this: a friend who has a cold or some other "virus". You love that person, but won't necessarily be wanting to be all over them when they have the "bug", right?

9. Name a great cookbook on vegetables.
Honestly, I haven't found that ideal cookbook that would let me do what I have in mind- the one that would not make me work hard in the kitchen, that would make me feel good and not have any guilt, and yet come up with something that's delicious. But then again, I used the word "ideal".
Talking about great, my new favorite cookbook is Dreena Burton's Vive Le Vegan! , and I can always depend on the McDougalls' Quick and Easy Cookbook.

* Now, I tag you, (yes you!) to participate in this meme. Go for it!

bagels

Thanks to Rae of Bunnyfoot for being the inspiration to these bagels. They didn't turn out as pretty as Rae's, but boy are they good... and chewy... all on its own.
And for the kids-
These bagel "dogs" were quite a treat. The kids happily ate the left-overs for lunch. I love how the bagel wrap turned out- it was awesome! But you won't see me eat that fake dog!

Unselfish Missey Gray

"I have another ultrasound, dr. visit, and non-stress test today so I will update y'all this evening. "

That was the first entry on Missey's blog yesterday. She wasn't able to give that update anymore...

Missey, a homeschool mom, died yesterday after an emergency c-section. I learned about this shocking news from a Yahoo homeschool group that we're both members of. I don't know Missey, and don't have all the details, but PATTYCAKE has the updates on her blog. Please keep Missey's family in your prayers. She has a husband and 5 children: 3 girls, a young boy, and the newborn- Melissa Kate.
Click HERE for Missey's blog.

Animal Cookies and Pancakes

We made the Peanut "Better" cookies from Dreena's Vive Le Vegan! today. The kids begged to use the cookie cutters although I didn't think it was a good idea, and we ended up with- yeah, animal cookies! Aliyah said they were the best animal cookies she ever had, although she kept breaking the head off before she could take a bite.

"Hi, Mr. Bear! My name is Groundhog."

The tiny orangy spots were from the Pumpkin Spice cookies that we made right before these peanut "better" kind.

"Pumpkin Spice Cookies" from Jennifer Raymond's The Peaceful Palate. I like cookies like this- light and not so sweet. The pumpkin used was leftover from baking the Pumpkin Bread below.

I got the recipe for this bread from a blog but I kept searching and couldn't find my source. I did a lot of tweaking so it might not be recognizable by the owner anymore. I will post that later on.


More animal creations.
For Pancake Day, I made the "Banana Bliss Pancake" from Dreena Burton's Vive Le Vegan! And yes, I made them round, but I played with a couple of them for a special 2 year old. This is Zurielle's plate. She only had the bear because big sister traded her "regular one" for the cat.
Whatever shape they were, every bite was awesome! The "Blueberry Maple Syrup" from the same cookbook is now the official Kaivegan kitchen's syrup!