Lazy Vegan, Party of One
Holy moly, look at those curls! 9ish months post chemo.
There was minimal productivity this week, d/t the good old Iowa weather. One day it's decent, not too windy, the next so windy you can barely stand straight, and today, excessive rain with a touch of hail...in April. Go figure. Clint and I did manage to work minutely on Sarabeth and plant some green (well brown, but they will be green) things. Yay spring!
Someone slept through our morning workout.
Monday was one of those somewhat/ not really productive days. I spent pretty much the whole day reading, with a therapeutic ct scan at the local hospital in the morning. Spoiler: it was clean. Yippee, no lymph node activity! I'll see my doctor in three months, and have another surgery to remove Port Hudson. I've been craving comfort food literally this entire week. There's just something incredibly comforting and satisfying about a dish that makes you feel warm and happy.
Pho makings. Eat all the colors!
One of my top comfort dishes is pho. Traditionally, it's similar to chicken noodle soup with a twist. Pho 888 on 2nd Ave used top be my go-to happy spot for pho pre vegan (kick a#@ flavors and a ridiculous amount of broth). Pickles n Honey has an awesome (and fast) pho recipe I've used quite a few times. Fyi, do not skip any of the steps, and be warned if you are low sodium: this soup won't taste quite the same as what it should if you skimp on salt. Pho is decently salty, and it makes it that much better. I usually double the recipe so we have leftovers for a couple days. Use ground cloves if you don't have whole. I always have a heck of a time trying to find star anise, so the next go-to is fennel. Our local Hyvee has bok choy and ginger root. Do not skimp on ginger. I repeat do not skimp on the ginger. It gives pho the fresh yum taste that the medley thrives on. I prefer using fresh ginger, because it has better flavor in my opinion. But you do you.
Obviously sans sriracha. Cilantro, jalapenos, and lime already added. The extras are worth it. Sriracha makes everything better.
http://www.picklesnhoney.com/easy-vegan-pho/
Tuesday was a step up from the day before. I was able to plant the free peony roots a friend picked up. In a few years there will be 12 ish happy peonies around our property (among other fun plants). Sarabeth was clamoring for attention so I gave her a little love in paint form. Alas, Clint was also loving on Sarabeth and it just wasn't worth the wood shavings in the wet paint to continue. Instead, I washed the door from mom and dad's (their house was built in 1932, we're pretty sure Dorothea the door is original) twice.
Dorothea will be receiving a fresh look very soon.
I wanted something I could easily throw together with the 80° weather and the vegan8's sweet potato chickpea bbq wraps hit the ticket. I didn't have chickpeas so I subbed pinto beans (yum!). I also added a little rice vinegar to the onion/poblanos pepper mix for some acidic. Everything came together very easily (duh Kel, 8 ingredients). If you haven't checked out the vegan8's website or insta, I strongly encourage you. Each recipe is 8 ingredients or less (hubs may have ordered me her cookbook.. eeeeee!!!).
All you need is.. a sweet potato chickpea (pinto bean) bbq wrap (from the vegan8). That is all you need.
https://thevegan8.com/sweet-potato-chickpea-bbq-wraps/
In the recipe, there's a link to make the vegan8's bbq sauce (if you want to use store bought, that's on you). Holy delicious bbq sauce recipe though. You should throw whatever you have out and use this from now on (psa). I added extra garlic powder and chili powder since we like it a little spicy on the farm. I also didn't have molasses so it was left out and I adjusted the recipe accordingly (ie extra maple syrup).
Wednesday was by far the most productive day of the week (kind of). I painted Sarabeth's roof 2x4s (most of them once), and planted the rest of the free peonies and roses (David Austin garden roses...squealing! Delivered were Mill on the Floss, A Shropshire Lad, and Constance Spry...beeeeaaaauuuutiful roses). Also delivered was the roof (but of course it was too windy or raining/ snowing for it to go on Sarabeth this week.. go figure).
Slowly, but surely.
Thursday was a stay inside, lose-your-hat-in-hurricane-gails type of day. I vowed to use all 8 browning bananas and it was a success. I made Thug Kitchen banana chocolate chip cookies (seriously, the cookbook is worth it just for this recipe.. and Dan Dan noodles). I added orange zest and juice on the second batch to switch it up (Clint could tell and wasn't impressed but ha, more cookies for me suckaaa!).
I’ve had fruit all week… in cookie form. That counts right?
I baked cinnamon swirl banana bread from the Big Man's World. I ground my own oat flour (poured oats into the food processor, turned on, and ignored said appliance until oats were itty bitty) to use in the recipe. I figured I should attempt to stockpile my one measly bag of normal flour (are all of you making bread or something!? Every time Clint goes to the store there is zero flour). When done baking, the banana bread tastes like cinnamon sugar oatmeal with bananas. Clint approved 100% (he was a little salty when I asked him to stick it in the freezer for a future date, wonder why?).
Cinnamon sugar deliciousness from The Big Man’s World
https://thebigmansworld.com/cinnamon-swirl-banana-bread/
I whipped up hummus from Elavegan (what I have on my toast every morning) since I was out and wanted to decrease my plastic consumption/didn't want to run to the store. Like usual, extra garlic was added, as well as smoked paprika (how did I live without this spice?), and cayenne pepper. Add what you want (it's your hummus, customize accordingly). Our local Fareway does have tahini. I usually buy mine at Trader Joe's since we're in Des Moines once a week or so (not right now 'Rona).
EDIT: So I made this hummus again, subbed garlic powder for the raw garlic, added extra paprika, and left out some of the liquid. Spot on. I tell you what. Clint said it tasted like a certain store bought brand that has a red lid and starts with an S.
Hummus or food art?
Supper might be my favorite meal of the day. It's the meal I tend to experiment with the most. Thursday's supper (or dinner, whatever floats your boat) was another the vegan8 creation. Cajun cauliflower bowls. Yuuuum. I made the cajun spice blend from A Mindful Mom-link below (I didn't measure anything, just eyeballed). It is a little spicy and I may have added extra heat (I feel most cajun spice has some kick?). Back to the cauliflower. When the recipe says do not skip making the line tahini dressing. Seriously. Don't skip it. It's the bomb.com. I used my handy dandy rice cooker for those dry grains. However, the recipe does have instructions on how to cook rice without said apparatus. Sweet and spicy and tangy and I could eat this bowl for the rest of my life.. or at least for lunch tomorrow (lunch leftovers are the best).
It's cajun spice blend. And you'll have extras!
Cajun cauliflower bowl from the vegan8. You're welcome.
https://thevegan8.com/cajun-cauliflower-bowl/#wprm-recipe-container-33717
Friday… I honestly don't even know what we did Friday. Piggybacking on Thursday, here's my typical breakfast. 2 slices of Ezekiel multigrain bread, usually bought at Trader Joe's, Fareway carries it too. Diced raw pepper, hemp seeds, hummus, turmeric, smoked paprika, sliced green onion, cilantro, and Trader Joe's every day seasoning (the day to day toppings can vary but it's generally the same concept). This is always consumed with Pammel Park Coffee (no exceptions).
Since variation of this has been my breakfast for about a year and a half.. no joke.
We decided pizza sounds delightful so Clint made up his meat and cheese monstrosity and I started what is lovingly referred to as kitchen sink pizza (yes, I made that up) Starting with premade crust from Trader Joe's, the base was Green Goddess Salad dressing (also from Trader Joe's), leftover cajun cauliflower, bbq pinto beans, diced sweet potatoes, onions and poblano peppers, raw red onion, and sliced mushrooms, with a drizzle of the lime tahini dressing. Delicious. Easy. My kind of meal.
I give you… kitchen sink pizza! It it looks good, throw it on a pizza.
Last but not least, I give you Saturday's lazy food: kung pao cauliflower from Trader Joe's. The sauce was awesome, and a little spicy. The cauliflower baked beautifully, and tempura batter made the outside crispy crunchy and inside soft. With diced sweet potatoes and rice, it hit my lazy vegan spot.
Pre baked, pre sauced tempura cauliflower. Don't judge a book by its cover. Wait until it’s sauced up.
Hopefully there's an uptick in productivity next week because this week had minimal effort written all over it. Bring on the sun.
