In Conclusion: The 30-Day Vegan Challenge

Unrelated picture of Mom showing off her belly fur, for your enjoyment. You're welcome.

My 30 days of animal-free eating ended just a few days after Thanksgiving. I have to say it really was not hard to do. It's very simple to replace certain products such as butter or sour cream with an animal-friendly alternative. I tried to go SUPERHERO for about a day- turns out I just cannot do nori (dried seaweed). Alicia Silverstone loves the sea vegetables, but they make me throw up in my mouth. I tried! I really did! No go.

Upon beginning this challenge I assumed I was going to lose a ton of weight while saving the world; I was wrong. I did drop a few pounds but I believe that was simply because I stopped replacing meat with carbs and instead replaced them with more vegetables and meat-alternatives. I began cooking a ton more than I was (which was also quite a bit) and found some really great recipes. I cooked a vegan Thanksgiving feast and no one could believe there were no butter or eggs in anything. Like I said, simple vegan is just that-simple. It's when you go superhero that things a get a bit more dicey (though worth it: superheroes have fantastic skin).

Financially, eating vegan is definitely more expensive. First of all, we had to start traveling to Wegmans (40 minutes away) instead of our local ShopRite (3 minutes away) to find the products I needed. We switched our food shopping day from Sunday morning to Saturday afternoon after I get out of work. This proved to be a nice change of pace, and I love not having to go out on a lazy Sunday.

There is a section of Wegmans we lovingly refer to as the "Snobby Refrigerated Section." Some of my favorite finds there are: Follow Your Heart Sour Cream and Cream Cheese, Tofurky Italian Sausage Links, Tofurky Turkey lunchmeat, cubed seitan, Smart Foods Bologna and of course, Earth Balance 'butter.' We've come to the conclusion that about everything in the SR section costs about $5 or more, except for the tofu (though flavored or smoked tofu can cost over $5, which is ludicrous). I love all of my favorite finds, and usually try something new and different. This week was a small bag of vegan shredded mozzarella rice cheese ($4.99). I can't help but cringe at the checkout line as I watch my special foods rack up, and up, and up. We found one coupon for LightLife foods (they make the SmartFoods line) but it saved us only a dollar. We can definitely afford this new way of eating but I just HATE spending $40 or more on only a few items. The fake lunchmeat will make 3 sandwiches, the seitan is about 3-4 servings, the cream cheese lasts a few bagels between the 2 of us.

There are a few items I am not willing to give up. The sour cream for example is nothing short of amazing. The lunchmeat is a nice break from dinner leftovers for lunch the next day. The Earth Balance is an absolute necessity- I've been using it for years!

In order to balance out my expensive foods I've simply decided to make more soups and large dishes like casseroles and pot pies, food that I can eat for a few days at a time. I'll only be buying from the Snobby Refrigerated section once a month instead of bi-monthly and will be scouring the internet for coupons. For the first time in my life I'm going to attempt to "budget," which I've heard is something people do.

I'm not going to say that I intend to continue eating vegan, but I do intend to continue to eliminate dairy intake as much as possible.

/Tangent

It took a long time, but I 'm finally ready to say it- I'm happy. I've come to realize that some days I'm going to have a flat stomach and other days I may have a little belly (or a big belly). Some days I will break out and other days my skin will be smooth and even. Some days I will feel crappy and others I will be all floaty-elated all day. I'm tired of counting calories and guilting myself if I miss a day or even week of yoga. I tried to jog the other day, failed miserably, and beat myself up over it. Why? Because I thought I was "supposed to jog." When I was eating strictly vegan I thought I was "supposed to only eat certain things." I restricted myself, for all the right reasons, but went a bit overboard.

I understand that some people, who eat and live strictly vegan, have strong feeling regarding animal rights, our ecosystem and their bodies. I completely respect and understand the vegan philosophy and applaud those who take the time, effort and money to educate themselves and treat their bodies and the earth as temples. I really do.

I was thinking the other day of all the places I'd like to travel to- Tibet, Japan, China, Scotland, England, Iceland, Morocco... the list goes on and on. If I traveled to Tibet and backpacked through the mountains or took a more uncommon approach to a Tibetan vacation, I would have no choice but to eat cheese and meat, for that is all many Tibetan people live on. The dry and dusty mountains are not conducive to growing vegetables, and the meat and cheese from the native animals sustain the Tibetan people. Tibetan Buddhists in the temples tend to follow a strict vegetarian diet, as Buddhism is a peaceful, passive religion.

So if I do get a chance to one day go to Tibet, or India, or China, or Italy... am I going to not fully experience culture because I'm "not supposed" to eat cheese? or chicken? or a pastry? I do not plan on going back to meat, as I have had no ulcerative colitis flare ups since going vegetarian in February of this year. I do plan on not worrying if something has an egg in it, and eating those tiny quiche ores devours on New Years Eve. I plan on sampling the local cuisine of the places I eventually travel to. I plan on continuing with yoga, because it makes me feel good.

That's my new approach. Instead of "eating vegan" I'm going to "feel good." I'm going to take my vitamins, continue to make healthy meals and splurging on occasion, and am going to stop taking things to extreme. No more telling myself NO for fear of gaining a pound, being judged, or waking up to a zit. More reading, thinking, loving, DOING. Less beating myself up all the time. Maybe I'll do a fruit detox for a few days every few months. Drink more water, eat more vegetables, and keep myself full of good stuff. But I'm not putting restrictions on my life anymore.

/endTangent

So that's that. I think everyone should try new things, taste new foods, experience life from a different point of view. I used to think veganism was crazy... then again I thought vegetarianism was nuts, too. Don't knock anything 'til you try it, and don't get all extreme with stuff. Carpe Diem, and whatnot.

White Bean Dip

I know I've been slacking with the blog. Excuses include but are not limited to: intense school studying, work, screenplay-writing, music-making, website-creating, cookbook-conjuring, online-store-opening, christmas-decorating, etc. I didn't take any pictures of the Thanksgiving feast of last week, and so now have to recreate all of the dishes to post on here. Coming soon will be a slew of vegan recipes including Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Garlic Cream Sauce, Vegetable Pot Pie, Oatmeal/Peanut Butter/Chocolate Chip Cookies, Cornbread/Sausage Dressing, and Potato Leek Soup.

...But for now I give to you...

WHITE BEAN DIP.

I just discovered a 'chop chop' mini food processor that my grandmother gave to me. I received it a few months ago, stuffed it into a cabinet and promptly forgot about it.

Well... today I found it. And it is AWESOME.

Recently at Whole Foods I fell in love with a white bean dip. It was delicious, creamy, and around $7 for a small container. The ingredients listed were: white beans, garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper and lemon juice. I figured I could totally make the same dip without spending a fortune.

I was right!!! This dip tastes EXACTLY THE SAME as the store-bought brand, cost me less than $1 to make and yields twice as much. It also took less than 5 minutes to create.

You're going to need a food processor for this one. Go out and buy a chop chop. Nothing fancy. So worth it, trust me.

For this recipe, you will need:

1 can white beans

1 lemon

safflower oil

2 cloves garlic

garlic powder (optional)

sea salt (finely ground)

mixed peppercorn, ground

Because my chop chop is a mini processor, I had to only dump in half a can of beans at a time. If you have a full food processor, just add in 1 can of drained beans, 2 tsp oil, 2 cloves garlic, the juice of one medium lemon, salt and pepper and you have magic. Add garlic powder for a punch to the breath. If you want your dip a bit more loose, add a drizzle of oil at a time until you have the consistency you desire.

Open and drain your can of white beans. dump about half into your processor. Add the 2 peeled cloves, 1 tsp of oil, and the juice of half a lemon. I added 4 grinds of sea salt and 6 grinds of peppercorn, then processed. After the mixture was smooth and creamy I added the other half can of beans into it and the rest of the lemon juice. You'll probably need to add a bit more oil here, around 1 tsp.

Taste as you go- I needed a bit more kick and so added a light sprinkling of garlic powder. I love garlic, but others may not. When you have exactly what you want, plate and serve. I ate mine with corn chips as we have nothing in the house right now. So good.

This recipe yields the perfect amount of dip to bring to a party, or enough to last you a whole week at least. Add some spinach and artichokes and some vegan cheese and you may just have perfection. This is full of protein, healthy, delicious and SUPER CHEAP.

Steve Gets Dinner: BBQ Tofu

I first had barbeque tofu earlier this year at my sister's house. She used a recipe found on youtube. I've created my own recipe using a batter. You can easily substitute the tofu for seitan, if you wish.

This recipe is super similar to my recipe for Sweet and Sour 'Chicken.' Basically you are switching proteins and sauces, and getting a completely different meal. Try them both whenever you feel like eating some fried deliciousness.

For this recipe you will need:

1 package extra firm tofu (firm works, also)

1/3 cup organic brown rice flour

1/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp sea salt

safflower oil

water

barbeque sauce

rice (we used white this time)

You might want to start with your rice. I used my rice cooker, and it finished cooking just as the tofu was finished frying. Brilliant.

The tofu takes a little bit of preparation before the actual cooking. I'd set aside about 25 minutes for prep. Carefully cut open the package of tofu and drain it over your sink. Drain as much water out as possible, maybe gently aqueeze the tofu while it's still in the package to get out as much moisture as possible. You'll want to set up a nice cushy pile of paper towels on a cutting board or plate on which to set your block of tofu. You want as much water out of the protein as possible. Set your tofu on the blanket of paper towels and then place an equally thick wad of paper towels on top of the block. Place something heavy on top- I used a huge vat of vegetable oil. Set your oven to 350 F and lightly grease a baking sheet with some oil.

After letting the tofu drain out for about 10 minutes, cut into squares. I made this recipe forever ago for Steve in a completely different way, and he had some complaints, one of which was the size of the tofu. Seasoned vegetarians could easily handle and enjoy larger chunks of tofu, but if you are new to soy protein or are making this for a carnivore, please do yourself a favor and cut into tiny bits.
Spread them out onto your greased baking sheet and bake them. You could probably bake for as long as 20 minutes, but everyone's oven works differently. I say check them at 15, flip them around a it. They should be slightly browned. I really wouldn't go over 20 minutes- I once baked mine at 25 minutes and they were shriveled and looked like sea urchins. I still ate all of it, but I grumbled the entire time.

Now it's time to make your batter. In a medium bowl mix together your flour, baking powder and salt. I've read recipes that say to add some oil to the mix, but I say- isn't frying them in a vat of oil ENOUGH? Do we really need to add oil to the batter itself? It's like putting salt on your salt- you just don't need it. So just add some water a little it at a time and stir with a fork. My batter was that of a loose pancake batter and it turned out great, but I have a feeling I could have made it a bit thicker and it would have come out even better. The choice is yours. You could always fry some tofu in the original batter, see how it comes out, and add more flour to the batter for the next batch. The rules are very loose with this one.

Remember the cushy mini blankets of paper towels you used to drain the tofu? Make another one of those, or make one with newspaper, and set it aside- you'll want to drain excess oil after frying.

Once your tofu is finished baking, heat up some safflower oil (or grapeseed or sunflower) in a medium pan. You want to have a decent amount of oil there but don't go overboard; you can always add more as you need it. Spoon some of the baked tofu into the batter and roll it around. You want them smothered and covered. Once the oil is heated, use a fork to GENTLY drop the battered tofu into the pan. Depending on the thickness of the batter, they may start to stick together. No problem! Just separate them with a spoon or something and continue to fry. Flip them over after a minute or so and cook until both sides are as brown as you want them to be. I prefer mine to be more than just golden brown, but that's just me.

When they're cooked to your liking use a slotted spoon to place them on your pile of paper towels. Once all of the tofu is fried, place in a serving bowl and cover with a nice layer of your favorite BBQ sauce. Mix around until everything is covered, then serve over rice. This has little leftover potential as fried stuff is best served fresh, so eat up, people!

This recipe got 2 thumbs up from Steve, who really didn't like the last time I made these in a different way. The tofu was crispy but not greasy or heavy. Really nice over rice, and a great comfort food.

Veggie Fried Rice

I've been hankering for vegetable fried rice for a few weeks now. I originally was going to cheat and use my favorite fried rice seasoning packet, but it contains milk. WHY it contains milk, I have no idea, but it does (I'm becoming more and more surprised at the food companies are throwing unnecessary dairy products into... but more on that later). This version does not include milk or the traditional fried egg. Don't be deterred, though- this was incredibly delicious, fast, and healthy.

You will need:

brown rice

frozen shitake mushrooms

frozen broccoli florets

low sodium soy sauce

safflower oil

1 small yellow onion, diced

1 clove garlic

baby corn (fresh, preferably)

any other vegetable you think would stir fry well

Begin to cook your rice. I used leftover brown rice, which cut my prep and cooking time considerably, down to only about 8 minutes from start to finish.

*Note: I usually make way too much brown rice. 1 cup of cooked brown rice is a TON of food. Inevitably after a few days of rice I get sick of it and need to move on to another grain. I freeze my leftover rice in a Ziploc freezer bag. That way, if I need to add a whole grain to anything (something that happens often), I always have some on hand, ready to go. This has saved me tons of time with soups, hot/cold salads and everything else you can think of.*

Dice your onion and mince the garlic. Heat up some safflower oil (or any other light oil) in a medium sized pan. Once heated, throw in your onions and garlic. Give a quick toss, then add your broccoli, corn and mushrooms. If you are using canned baby corn, rinse it off thoroughly before adding it in- this will take away a ton of sodium. I strongly recommend using fresh or frozen mushrooms instead of canned, as canned mushrooms are rubbery nastiness. Other veggies can be added such as slivered carrots, cabbage or sweet peas (mmm). Throw in whatever you think would taste good. Once your rice is cooked, throw that in, too. Mix it all up and add a bit of soy sauce for flavor and coloring. Add as much rice and vegetables as suits you.

It's official- you have dinner (and lunch tomorrow!) Steve hates mushrooms and broccoli, so this one was allll mine.

One of these days you need to remind me about the unbelievable 15 minute vegan fettucine alfredo I concocted the other night using exactly 1 pot. There's no picture, as there was no time; I was far too busy shoveling food into and around my mouth.

Steve Gets Dinner: Samosas!!!!

...Apologies for the completely unappetizing photos. I know it's hard to tell what's what here... just make these and see for yourself how great they are.

I CHALLENGE YOU.

These samosas are baked, not fried. They are filled with healthy ingredients and super interesting spices. They're ridiculously good.

For this recipe you will need:

2 cups all purpose flour

3 tablespoons Earth Balance

cold water

packet of vegetable biryani spice mix

sea salt

2 medium yellow potatoes (but really, any kind will do)

1 can chickpeas

1 tsp minced garlic

a bit of red onion, minced super small

1 tbsp ginger garlic paste

safflower oil

plain soy milk

The dough is ridiculously easy to make. Mix 2 cups all purpose flour, a few grinds of sea salt, and 3 tbsp melted Earth Balance (0r butter) with your hands. Bit by bit, add some cold water and knead the dough. I made the mistake of adding too much water, and my dough was just one gooey blob. I countered this by sprinkling some whole wheat pastry flour into the mix until it was the right consistency. These samosa shells aren't like the ones I've gotten in Indian restaurants... they are a basic hard shell, not flaky. They may have turned flaky if I'd have fried them, who knows. (They're really good as is, if nontraditional). I covered the dough and stuck it in the fridge for a bit while I made my filling.

Wash your potatoes, and cut into tiny pieces. Put them in boiling water for a few minutes (10?ish?) until they've softened up. Drain, and add your can of drained chick peas. Add a bunch of vegetable biryani spice mix and some plain soy milk to coat everything with the spices. I added WAY too much spice, and in a pinch threw in a 1/2 cup of yesterday's homemade potato leek soup (which was awesome, in case you were wondering).

If you also go crazy with the spices, add some mashed potatoes. It will add a nice creaminess to the filling and will tone the flavor down. In a pan, fry up your garlic, red onion and ginger/garlic paste.

At this point, you are all set to fill the dough. Preheat your oven to 350 F and grease up a baking sheet. Take small balls of dough and knead them to warm them up, then roll into a ball. Roll the dough out to an oval or whatever it turns out to be. You don't want the dough too thin, but also not too thick. Trial and error on this one.

There's a correct way to fold your dough to achieve the correct "samosa shape." I found it far too complicated, and so put a dollop of filling in the middle of the circle of dough, then wrapped up the sides. A little water run along the edges of the dough will help the sides to stick together. Place all of your samosas on the greased sheet. Whip up a concoction of a 1 tbsp oil to 2 tbsp soy milk and brush it over the top of the samosas. This will help them crisp up really nicely. I don't have a brush and therefore spooned the mixture over the top. This worked alright, except it all ran off onto the pan and made the bottoms of the samosas crispy. The bottoms turned out to be the best part. Next time I make these I will be sure to have a brush and brush the entire samosa prior to baking.

Stick your baking sheet into the oven and bake for around 40 minutes. At 35 minutes peek into your oven and see how much they've browned, then adjust your cooking times accordingly.

The dough took the longest part to make, about 15 minutes. The filling takes basically no time. Because there is no meat, the filling does not actually have to be cooked. Boiling the potatoes obviously took some time. This is totally something that could be prepared on a Sunday night so Monday after work you'd only have to fill your dough and bake!

Steve loved these and so did I. They are filled with protein (chickpeas) and are totally delicious, in addition to being a nice change of pace. Did I mention they are vegan as well? Winner!

Steve Gets Dinner: Sweet and Sour "Chicken" with Udon

This vegan thing isn't as difficult as I initially thought it would be. I've had some cravings for soda, which is weird because I don't normally drink soda, anyway. I'm thinking this is my body's way of telling me to drink more water, and keep my sugar level by eating small meals throughout the day. I haven't had too many withdrawal symptoms, as I don't use caffeine and don't over do the white sugar, but I am getting some headaches at night. No doubt this phase will soon pass. My daytime energy has increased by quite bit and I find that I've just been in a groovier mood the past 2 days. Also, and this may just be because I am getting over being sick, I am hocking up a ton of phlegm. Really nasty stuff from the deep reaches of my throat. Daily yoga has been amazing for stretching me out and relaxing me.

I've used a few recipes from The Kind Diet so far, including the whole wheat biscuits, vanilla cupcakes with chocolate icing, and steamed cabbage and leeks with umeboshi vinegar. This book is so necessary as whenever I think "What the heck am I going to eat today?" I read a bit and get inspired.

A few nights ago, I made us some Sweet and Sour "Chicken" using seitan, and also some udon noodles. It's not an entirely wholesome dish, as it is very wheat-heavy (seitan is wheat protein and udon are wheat noodles) but I was in the mood for comfort food and secretly wanted to know if Steve would eat fake chicken.

OH which reminds me, Steve ate SPINACH the other night! (more on that later)

So for this recipe you will need:

1 package cubed seitan

1 pack dried udon noodles

brown rice flour

whole wheat pastry flour

sea salt

vegan cane sugar

baking powder

safflower oil

pepper

water

sweet and sour sauce

Served Steve and I at dinner, me at lunch the next day, plus 2 extra servings of noodles.

Making dried udon is easy- just heat a pot of water. Once it's boiling, add the udon and wait 8-10 minutes. Bam, food.

The seitan was almost equally easy to make. I did my take on tempura, and it turned out very well. The batter was thicker than traditional tempura, but delicious and not greasy.

Open the package of seitan. Do not sniff the seitan. Just open it and take all of the cubes out. They will be wet, so feel free to squeeze them gently over the sink just to rid them of excess moisture. They will probably be huge, also, so break them up. I broke each cube into 2 or 3 pieces.

To make the batter, mix 1/2 cup brown rice flour with 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour in a medium bowl. Add in 1 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp vegan sugar cane and a about 3 grinds of sea salt. Mix together with a fork, and then add 2 tsp of safflower oil and a bit of water. I filled a glass with water and poured a bit in, stirred, then kept adding until I got my desired consistency which was about equal to that of pancake batter.

*Note- you can always sift your flour to make it all more fluffy. I don't have a sifter, but would have sifted had I owned one.*

Heat up some safflower or sunflower oil in a pan. You'll be frying, here so add a nice layer of oil at the bottom of the pan. Ready some paper towels or newspapers on a plate nearby on which to drain extra oil off of your seitan. While your oil is heating, coat all of your seitan cubes in the batter. Make sure they are fully coated as you want the oil to touch the batter and not your protein. To test your oil, drop a bit of batter into it. When it sort of 'pops' and sprays out a little like fireworks, it is ready. Carefully drop in your battered seitan and flip every so often to cook all sides. This only takes a minute or two- your oil will be very hot and you do not have to wait until the cubes brown. A nice golden color is perfect. Of course, if you like your fried things more well done, be my guest. Once your seitan is done (1 pack should fit in the pan at once), scoop out and place on the paper towels to drain. In the meantime, finish up with your udon.

You will probably have extra oil in your pan. Feel free to save it, or dump it. I had only a bit of extra in my pan, so I left it there in which to toss my udon. I dropped the heat of the medium pan to a medium heat, and dumped in my udon. I mixed it all up with a fork, and peppered quite a bit with a mixed peppercorn grind. You don't want your udon to be oily or greasy, you just want to give it a hint of flavor. What I should have done is added some sliced cabbage, crimini mushrooms, greens or peppers... anything really to add some nutrition or flavor. Even a side of steamed collard greens or spinach would have been great. Unfortunately I took the lazy way out. Never again!*

*Never say never.

Now you're practically done. Your seitan and udon is ready to be plated. Heat up some sweet and sour sauce, or make your own black bean sauce, or general tso's spicy sauce to dip with. You can make this dish as healthy or naughty as you'd like. The sweet and sour sauce that we used was leftover from Chinese food a month or so ago. It's basically sugar, ketchup (sugar), ginger, peppers and rice vinegar. In my defense I did try to make my own General Tso's sauce but failed miserably and opted for the easy way out.

This dish turned out really well. Steve really liked it, which gives me hope for the future. One step at a time, right? Though this recipe is far from superhero, it was a good way to introduce Steve to seitan, and... well, I can't really justify it, it was just DELICIOUS, OKAY? Get off my back!

Horseman's Hollow and The Great Jack O'Lantern Blaze

Steve and I are new members of Historic Hudson Valley (HHV). HHV is a series of historic, awesome sites throughout Sleepy Hollow Country in New York. We went for the first time over the summer, and visited Washington Irving's Sunnyside estate and garden, and toured Phillipsburg Manor, where I bought fresh, stone ground flour. We loved the area so much that we became paid members. For only $100, Steve purchased a dual membership that lasts one year. All money goes to benefit the historic sites, tours, and events the area has to offer.

We have been anticipating our Fall visit for a few months. Last night we FINALLY got to go back to our favorite place, for The Great Jack O'Lantern Blaze at Van Cortlandt Manor and Horseman's Hollow at Phillipsburg Manor.

We went to Horseman's Hollow first. We got there incredibly early, so we had to sit around for about 40 minutes. The grounds of the manor were across a body of water; we could see the house lit up but could not hear anything except for the occasional blood curdling scream. There was a stand set up with hot dogs, burgers, cider, hot chocolate, and vegetarian chili with corn and black beans with a side of cornbread (looked great, but did not try due to nerves).

I won't give anything away about Horseman's Hollow because it is so imperative that you be surprised. I will tell you what one website says- basically the Headless Horseman has taken over a town and is leading his undead minions to cause destruction and mayhem. The whole area is filled with zombies in period dress. It's absolutely incredible. I've never experienced anything like it before. It's a walking tour, and you go at your own pace... though I doubt you'd want to stay put in one place for too long. For us, from start to finish took 40 minutes. The costumes are unreal, the makeup is perfect, the entire thing was absolutely unbelievable. Once your ticket ($20/person for non-members) is scanned, you begin a short walk to the village, where the horror begins. You begin to forget that it's all just an act, that you are basically winding through one huge movie set. It's terrifying! Definitely not for kids under 14. The best part of the night was when the woman in front of us, who was with a small flock of kids, stopped paying attention. I won't give details, but basically after The Terrifying Incident, the woman started shrieking to her daughter, "Katelyn, we have to go. Mommy just hit someone. Oh my god. We have to go." The woman totally flipped and accidentally hit one of the zombies out of reflex. It was hysterical! She led her kids onto some exit trail and we didn't see that group again.

You HAVE TO GO! It's UNREAL.

We went to the Blaze afterwards, which was a nice way to wind down after the Horseman's Hollow affair. Until it's time for your group to begin the walking tour, you hang out in an enclosed tent where you can buy hot cider, doughnuts, and other Fall fare. You can also pick up some sweet light up pumpkin necklaces and things like that. You then begin a crazy tour through the grounds of Cortland Manor, which are covered with over 4,000 carved, lit jack o'lanterns. It's really a magical experience. Apparently the seriously intricate carvings are done in faux pumpkins, and the rest are all done with real ones. Every week the real carved pumpkins rot and new ones have to be carved. My camera is not the best, so I apologize about the crappy pictures. You'll just have to go and experience it all for yourself! We walked through at a normal pace, stopping to take pictures, and the tour took about 40 minutes. You, however, can take all the time you need. Non member adult tickets are $16. Thousands and thousands of people travel from all over for the blaze, so make sure you buy your tickets in advance.

Become a member of Historic Hudson Valley. With Horseman's Hollow and The Great Jack O'Lantern Blaze tickets being free for members, the membership basically pays for itself. Basic membership also includes free tours of Sunnyside (non-member house tours are $12/adult, grounds only tours are $5/adult), Phillipsburg Manor (non-member tours are $12/adult), Van Cortlandt Manor (non-member house/grounds tours are $12/adult, grounds only are $5), Union Church of Pocantico Hills (non-member tours $5/adult and kids), and Montgomery Place (grounds and house tour are only $10).

Sleepy Hollow and the surrounding areas are beautiful and teeming with history. Walk the cemetery from the legend, get a bite to eat at The Horseman Restaurant and Pizza, and go tour a dead guy's house. Visit Rockefeller's giant memorial, peek into the Old Dutch Church, and get inspired by brilliant architecture, creepy legends, and friendly people.

I've included a few pictures here... I was not able to take any pictures of Horseman's Hollow, as every time I stopped to get my camera I was attacked by a zombie. For this I apologize (and I am totally not kidding). Taking pictures was just not safe. I also apologize for the blurry shots of The Blaze. We took many more than these, but here's just a taste of what to expect:

Soldier

Dinosaur!

Dragon

?

Walking to the check-in area of Horseman's Hollow

Pumpkin pyramid, surrounded by mummies (not shown)

Archaic fish

Pumpkin pirate ship

Van Cortlandt Manor in its blue stage

Taking it to the vegan mattresses.

Every pay period I buy myself 2 books as a thank you to my brain and soul for not losing it completely. This past week I purchased Alicia Silverstone's The Kind Diet: A Simple Guide to Feeling Great, Losing Weight, and Saving the Planet, which is an excellent resource for anyone interested in veganism, animal rights, and just feeing better in general. I was first introduced to this book over a year ago by my sister who picked it up rather accidentally in Costco. It has changed her life completely and inspired her to read more and get more involved in her own health. I bought mine from Amazon.com last week, used, for under $10! The Kind Life is Alicia's blog which covers all things healthy and balanced, going into recipes, restaurants, fashion, decor, etc.

I've been a non-meat eater since February of this year, though I can't say I made it a healthy choice for me. I eliminated meat, which I never really ate too much of anyway, but did not replace my protein at all. I didn't up my vegetable protein, eat more beans or even get too funky with meat replacements like tofu, tempeh, or seitan. I took the easy way out, relying on empty carbs. I will say that -on the plus side- since not eating meat, I have had absolutely no stomach problems.

I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis almost 12 years ago at 14 years old. It was so bad initially that I missed a month and a half of school. On bedrest for that full 6 weeks, I dropped to a crazy 105 lbs (at almost 5'7", that was entirely unhealthy for me). I was force-fed the BRATT diet, which consisted of Bread, Rice, Applesauce, Tea and Toast. I still hate Gatorade to this day because of it all. Since that initial punch to the large intestine, life was spent in rollercoaster mode, with flare ups and remissions. Spicy food, hoppy alcohol, anything fried, basically all the 'bad' stuff made me sick for days.

I don't know why not eating meat changed all that. To be fair, I will say that other factors may be involved as well... in September 2009 I

1. Quit smoking (9/1/09)
2. Basically stopped drinking (and if I do it's wine only)
3. Stopped drinking coffee
4. Began exercising regularly (yoga and qi gong are amazing in every way)

All of these things affect your body and it's daily workings. I know for sure that the coffee definitely wasn't doing my ulcers any good. Perhaps once my body was a little cleaner, it was able to start functioning a bit more properly. And with the yoga and qi gong, my brain was able to slow down and mellow out, which affects all health.

Anyway, I've realized that despite these great changes I've made with my life, I just haven't been playing the vegetarianism card smartly lately. I've been lazy. I cook for Steve every night, and just eat his non-meat sides. Because he's pretty anti all vegetables and things I like and know I need, I've basically existed on mashed potatoes since August. No more.

I read The Kind Diet and took the whole thing as a pseudo-challenge. I want to lose a few extra pounds. I want the whites of my eyes to shine. I want to have boundless energy. I want to radiate health. I want to sparkle, like those guys in Twilight. I want superpowers! While eliminating animal products from my diet may not actually allow me to see through walls or fly like a bird, I'm hoping it will give me the power to

Stay awake all day

Have the energy to wake up at 4 each morning and do yoga for an hour every day

Ride the bike a few times a week

Finish my writing projects

Start my writing projects

Keep the house at a manageable level of clean

Start my own massage therapy business (Next June! Can you believe it?!?)

Launch the website and start everything up for the other business venture I've concocted

Volunteer locally

Be a better girlfriend, sister, daughter, granddaughter, aunt (a responsibility I take very seriously), friend and hooman bean.

I've been sick as a dog for the past few days. Fought an ear ache and low-grade fever for a week or two, only to have it all explode Friday afternoon into a full on sinusy/flu-y/face-cold-y mess. I don't want to feel sick and gross. I want to feel silky and sexy and new!

So, Alicia Silverstone, I accept your challenge to live better, look better, and feel better. I will win this war. I will take my conservation efforts to the next veggie level. I will turn Steve's cholesterol around. I will have a Yoga Body, and a Moby-like demeanor. I promise to be honest about my health, my time, my successes, my failures, and my wallet. For the next 30 days, I will eat a vegan diet only.

And then I will fly around and see through walls... (watch out, Mr. Depp).

The Flaming Carrot

Vegan Burritos

This dish wasn't supposed to be vegan, but it turned out that way and is absolutely delicious. This dish includes tofu, pinto beans, and quinoa, but can be modified to fit your tastes and what you have in the pantry. The tofu can be replaced with tempeh, soyrizo, meat, whatever. Instead of pinto beans, you could use dal, kidney beans or peas. Quinoa can be replaced with millet, brown rice, or anything else that will absorb some of the spice.

This dish is also super spicy- included is jalapeno, habanero, long hot, and a chili sauce I picked up at a Korean market. The peppers alone added kick but the spice really sets the whole thing off. I mean... wow. This tiny jar is going to last me a lifetime because you only need a TEENY TINY amount.

I made a vegan version for myself, and Steve's is the exact same thing, with beef replacing the tofu. It is low in fat and super high in protein, thus very filling and great for leftovers. The filling can be used to fill a burrito or taco shell, or can be eaten as is.

For my version, you will need:

olive oil

reduced sodium taco seasoning

jalapeno pepper

long hot pepper

habanero pepper

1 small yellow onion

quinoa

garlic powder

minced garlic

1 can pinto beans

2/5 pack of firm tofu (mine was pre-seasoned Cajun-style)

water

taco shells or burrito wrap (whole wheat preferred)

chili sauce (optional)

* The peppers, garlic and onion are enough for both mine and Steve's dinners. If you are only cooking yourself one serving, reduce the portion of onion by half, and add less peppers and sauce, but still use the 1-2/5 block of tofu*

Time to make your quinoa. It's incredibly easy- just dump 1 cup quinoa into a pot, and add 2 cups of water. Bring to a rolling boil, then stir and leave on simmer -covered- for about 15 minutes. You can tell when it's done cooking because it turns very fluffy, and each individual grain looks like a tiny Saturn- a little white ball surrounded by a clearish halo. Quinoa has an almost nutty flavor and is PACKED with protein. It is a complete whole grain and was declared a miracle food by the Mayans. This stuff is serious. I'm an idiot and let mine cook for about 10 minutes, uncovered. I couldn't understand why it wasn't fluffing. Don't be like me- when it's done boiling, cover with an oven-safe plate or pot topper and check on it every few minutes to stir.

One pack of firm or extra firm tofu will usually yield 5 servings. Drain your tofu and slice into 5 even sections. I am freezing the remaining three in a freezer Ziploc bag. Normally you would place your tofu between two layers of paper towels, top with something heavy, and allow most of the moisture to drain out. I just didn't have the patience for this. Preheat your oven to my classic standard of 350 F, crumble the tofu onto an ungreased cookie sheet, and pop into the oven for around 20 minutes. While this was baking I diced very small amounts of habanero, long hot, jalapeno peppers and onion.

In a medium pan, heat up some olive oil and, once heated, drop in your minced garlic, onion, and peppers. I added the smallest amount of chili sauce, which is completely optional. If you love spicy foods, definitely run out and get some. If you prefer minimal heat, definitely skip the sauce. Toss around with a wooden spoon and once the onions are translucent, spoon into a bowl. You will be using the same pan to cook everything up.

Once your tofu is done cooking (I overcooked mine by leaving it in the oven for 25 minutes- it's uber crispy and cooked down but workable), scrape it into your empty pan. Add some of your onion/pepper mixture and stir. Sprinkle a bit of taco seasoning on top and also just a bit of water. Mix around and taste until you've got the amount of seasoning that works for you. Drain a can of beans and add half to your concoction. If your dish seems a bit too spicy, fear not- we've still got to add the quinoa.

(before the quinoa)

Scoop some fluffy quinoa out of the pot and mix into your pan. The quinoa adds texture, protein and also takes the heat down a notch. Add a dusting of garlic powder and stir. You'll notice that you have a ton of food here- more than enough for leftovers. You can also freeze some to eat at a later date.

You're all set now. Scoop into a taco shell or make burritos. Maybe even skip adding the quinoa to the dish and eat everything over a bed of it. Mmmm.

I used 1 pot, 1 pan and one wooden spoon. I'd say from prep to eating took about 45 minutes.

Delicious!!!

The Case of the Unknown Woman

Last weekend, we travelled to The Historic Rahway Cemetery in Rahway, NJ, home of Assman.

The Merchants and Drovers Museum Association presented an informational tour that wound throughout the cemetery, ending at the Grave of The Unknown Woman. The case of said Unknown Woman dates back to March 26, 1887. A woman was found on Central Avenue in Rahway with her throat slashed from ear to ear, and her face blackened with bruises. Her killer was never found, and her identity was never discovered. News of murder went across America, and then around the world.

The victim was kept at the cemetery in a cement holding building, which is now a tool shed (and extraordinarily creepy) for days and days. Over 10,000 people from around the globe came to identify the victim (note- at the time Rahway's population was only around 5,000) and NONE were able to.

An official hearing was held, and 6 sessions of questioning "witnesses" took place, but no one was ever tried or convicted. The Unknown Woman's body was finally laid to rest in an uninhabited part of the cemetery, as no one knew if she was a 'clean' woman or not, and god forbid a prostitute was buried with good, god-fearing people.

The tour took about 2 hours, and as a group you walk from grave to grave of people involved in the case. You meet the mayor, one of the guys who discovered the body, gossiping townswomen, the reverend who conducted her funeral mass, etc. You meet 16 people in total, ending at the Unknown Woman's grave. The tour cost only $10, with free juice and cookies at the end (just go for the cookies, they were excellent).

Alex Shipley, author of the book The Case of the Unknown Woman: The Story of One of the Most Intriguing Murder Mysteries of the Nineteenth Century, is also the Director of Museum Operations. He explained what to expect at the beginning of the tour, and signed books at the end. Books were $26, and all sales benefited the Merchants and Drovers Tavern Museum Association.

This year the tours were available on October 9-10 only. If you have the chance to take this tour next year, I highly recommend it. It's educational and fun. It's also quite creepy to look across a cemetery and see people walking around in period dress...

The Count, who claimed he knew the victim.

Quintessential headless cemetery statue

The holding tomb, now tool shed. Bodies were stored here in the winter, as the ground was too cold to break.

'Albert' was not on the tour, but I just really liked his stone for some reason.

Steve Gets Dinner: Rice and Beans

I originally was just going to take the recipe for Rice 'n Beans off the back of the Goya can, but realized that I was missing some key ingredients, mainly the imperative culantro seasoning. Desperate times mean desperate measures... fate smiled upon us and I actually threw together a severely delicious dish that was super fast, incredibly easy, and HEALTHY to boot!

You will need:

rice (brown, preferably)

1 can dark red kidney beans (drained)

chili powder

sea salt/pepper

ground red pepper

1 diced orange bell pepper

1 small diced yellow onion

olive oil

1 tbs minced garlic

garlic powder

1/4 vegetable bouillon

Set up your rice to cook. While it's cooking, prepare the rest of the dish. In a medium frying pan, heat some olive oil on medium. Once heated, throw in your garlic and onion. Once the onion turns translucent, drop in the bell pepper and beans. Stir around, and sprinkle with the slightest pinch of sea salt and black peppercorn. Throw in your vegetable bouillon and add the slightest bit of water, enough to dissolve your bouillon and that is all.

*Note: It is important to remember that you are not really *cooking* this dish as you are *heating* it. There's no need to use high temperatures on the stove. Just a basic low-medium heat will do.

Taste your concoction thus far and begin adding chili powder, ground red pepper and garlic powder. Taste and add, taste and add, until you have the flavor you desire. Steve likes his food spicier than most, so I made sure to keep this mind while cooking. Once you have the taste that pleases you, plate on top of some rice and enjoy.

Because there's no real sauce to this dish, it is a far cry from traditional Mexican rice and beans. It is, however, a tasty alternative. Though there is no sauce, the beans didn't feel or taste dried out. It was delicious! Perfect for a cold day, or if you're trying to watch your weight. If you use brown rice, this is an extremely healthy meal, full of protein and practically no fat.

Attack of the Killer Apples

Steve and I aren't really Apple People. We like apples. We love apple pie. We're just not the type to pick up an apple and eat it. During the Fall I get more into apples, and eat them plain or with peanut butter, but apples generally aren't my thing...

...So WHY IN GOD'S NAME DID WE PICK 10 POUNDS OF APPLES 2 WEEKENDS AGO?!?

I suppose we got caught up in the moment and temporarily lost our minds. We still have a bunch of apples in a basket on our dining room table that are slowly looking worse and worse.

Luckily, I am a woman with answers. A tired, hormonal, crampy woman who can't decide between sweet and savory, who wants those apples gone, and also would like a small, satisfying snack before bed without waking up feeling guilty and even more bloated then I already feel.

Apple Quick Fix

3 apples

brown sugar - light or dark

ground cloves

cinnamon

whole wheat flour

water

Preheat your oven to 350 F. Take about 3 apples of medium size, wash and cut into 1" by 1" squares (leave the skin on, unless you're cooking for kids and are worried about the whole choking thing) (or was that just my mother who was paranoid about that...?) Basically just dice the apples, but dice them so each square is bite-size. Throw them into a bowl and add some brown sugar, whole wheat flour, ground cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon. Add enough water to make a soupy consistency (this will thicken while cooking). You should not be drowning the apples in water, and should probably not use more than 1/4 cup. I didn't measure anything for this, as usual, and thus cannot be held responsible for you screwing this up. Steve doesn't like things too sweet, and so I added extra spice and less sugar. Definitely taste as you go, so it suits your palate.

Dump your Christmas-y smelling concoction into a small square pan, and bake at 350 F for 20 minutes. When it's done your apples will be the perfect consistency- soft but not mushy. Your spices and flour will now serve as a poor-man's pie filling, coating each piece of apple but not smothering them. Serve with ice cream, or eat as-is. Leftovers (there will be leftovers, this is very filling), can be eaten for breakfast over some hot cooked oats, or in any way you like!

Jesus' Fried Green Tomatoes

I fried fresh green tomatoes for the first time in my life, just 30 minutes ago. Half of them have been scarfed. I... I just can't find the words to describe the absolute AMAZING-ness of these!!! They are UNBELIEVABLE. I chalk up a large part of their success to the fact that they were just picked on Thursday morning (a huge benefit to buying locally from the farmers market).

/Tangent

One of my major problems with store-bought produce is the fact that most of it was picked and plucked long before it was ready. Think about it... those bell peppers from Holland were probably picked days to weeks before they were ripe, giving them enough time to ripen while in storage, then transit, then in the cooler of your local grocery store, then on the shelf- store-bought fruits and vegetables are practically completely devoid of any nutrients. Most of US soil is depleted of all the good stuff, and the produce isn't even close to being mature when picked. It is like a premature child, still needing time to develop. Compared to fresh, local produce, store bought stuff is bland, old, and boring.

When you buy locally, your produce was probably picked that morning. And if you're not sure and want to know when it was picked, you can ask a real person- a person who may have even planted the seeds of the food you are eating! You can get to know the people who are breeding your food, ask about seeding practices and fertilizers used. You can educate yourself and become more involved in what you are putting into your body.

Ahem.

I digress...

/endTangent

You will need:

1 green tomato

panko bread crumbs

corn flour

sea salt/pepper

3 egg whites

vegetable oil

Slice your green tomato into thin, round slices. You want them a bit thicker than 'paper-thin.' Rub in some sea salt and grind some pepper onto them.

Set up a little station with 3 small bowls- in the first bowl, crack 3 egg whites and beat with a fork, enough to break up any clots. In the next bowl have corn flour, and into the next pour some bread crumbs.

Fill a medium frying pan (with high edges) about 1/3 of the way with vegetable oil, or at least enough to almost cover a breaded tomato slice. Turn the burner to a medium heat. You can tell when the tomatoes are ready to be dropped in by flicking some water into the pan of oil- when the water sizzles upon contact, you're ready to cook.

Take a slice of tomato and place in the bowl of egg whites. Fully coat the slice and then place in the corn flour. Corn flour is extremely fine, and it is up to you to choose how thick a layer of flour you want. After flouring, place back in the egg white, only briefly, and coat once again. Do this quickly so that the flour does not start to come off. Coat the slice in the panko bread crumbs. Test your oil, and when it's ready, drop in your slice. You can choose to cook your slices one by one or all at once.

These green tomatoes cook very quickly in the hot oil, so be sure to keep a close eye on them. A minute or two on each side should be sufficient and bring the slices to a beautiful golden-brown. When they're cooked to your liking, place them on some newspaper to sop up the oil.

Then plate, and eat with a cold beverage.

Warning: Even 15 minutes after cooking, these are VERY hot inside. Be cautious.

The end result is a crispy-on-the-outside, heaven-on-the-inside slice of... well... Heaven. Slightly tangy and just... wow. 3 slices are all I could handle. These fill you up. SO GOOD.

Steve hasn't had any yet, as he is completely full from his free range steak (pan-seared) (I chewed a piece- it was like butter. Amazing.) and farmers market sweet potatoes (baked) which he described as "so different from what I'm used to...surprisingly sweet... really, really good..."

See??? Buy local, and eat well!

Only a few Thursdays left...

until the Kearny Farmers Market goes out of season.

Sigh.

Today, in the interest of time, I was very non-ecofriendly and drove to the market. This was an interesting experience due to the issue of parking. I'm amazed at how busy downtown Kearny Ave. is on a Thursday morning. I had to park 3 blocks away, and though there were 24 minutes left on the meter, I popped a quarter in, to selfishly Pay-It-Forward and reap some kind of karmic reward.

Today I purchased from Alstede Farms again. I'm really liking this place... the prices are extraordinarily reasonable (when compared to the competition), the produce is extremely fresh and vibrant, the selection is super, and they take Visa! No more trips to an ATM. They also sell baked goods and honey. If we hadn't just gone to Delicious Orchards last weekend and stocked up on decadent treats, I'd be all over Alstede's homemade donuts and apple pie.

While shopping, which never takes me more than 10 minutes, I really tried to plan out my meals. Christmas is coming, and I've never been on a stricter budget. Did you know that if you don't spend money, you have more money to keep? It's a crazy concept, but it just might work.

Today I walked away with:

• a huge, fresh bunch of basil
• 2 small white eggplant
• 1 huge red tomato
• 2 medium green tomatoes
• 1 quart of purple beans (so excited about these)
• a whole bunch of sweet potatoes
• 1 big red bell pepper
• 1 big orange bell pepper
• 1 half gallon of apple cider, courtesy of Melick's Town Farm
• one awesome canvas bag, for free

...all for only $22. I feel like I got my money's worth this week. We still have 10 pounds of assorted apples from our apple and pumpkin picking excursion last weekend (post to come), and I have 1 huge butternut squash from 2 weeks ago.

I had better get to cooking!

I'm thinking some baked eggplant and linguine with homemade sauce, some mini apple pies, my favorite green bean casserole, some stuffed peppers, fried green tomatoes...

I'll have to fit it all in somewhere between work, school, 3 wreaths in the making, and my latest project: a paper mache cat head candy dish.

It's alright to be envious; I forgive you.