But where's the turkey?

This year marked my third full on vegan Thanksgiving meal. It's become second nature at this point. Over the years people ask me what do vegans eat at Thanksgiving and I always tell them it's similar to their...but without Turkey/Ham/Lamb/Duck/Chicken/Beef. This year we had mashed sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, mashed garlicky yucca, a Harvest Field Roast, vegan Ham (yuck actually.. more to come on it later), butternut mac n' cheese, dressing/stuffing, green bean casserole, pumpkin cornbread, apple pie, and vegan chocolate pumpkin  Plus don't forget the mushroom gravy and cranberry sauce.

Don't these plates remind you of a traditional "American" Thanksgiving. They sure do to me. My parents who are meat eater joined in the festivities and embrace a full vegan Thanksgiving, even though I offered to get them a turkey. My parents couldn't believe how the food reminded them so much of a normal Thanksgiving food.

My Sister-in-law from Chicago didn't get this who concept either I feel based on my mother-in-law's story. What I mean by this is, that she didn't know how to make mashed potatoes without the butter and milk. How do you make desserts without cream or oils?

This is when I realized, there are still many misconceptions of what it is to be plant strong/vegan/dairy-free/egg free/and more. I started this blog just to fun out of encouragement from others to share what I have learned and that is why I am still writing. I feel I am not alone and others have experience similar feelings about holidays or pot lucks. Who says food cannot be healthy and tasty but vegan? I challenge and encourage each one of you to explore good eats and share your food with others. Until later, my readers. I will post more with recipes and reviews.

Preview Thanksgiving

It's almost time for Thanksgiving and my family and I are gearing up for the holiday. We are celebrating it twice this year. Our first will be on the actually day of event with a small celebration with my brother-in-law and his family. The second will be on Saturday and that one, we are going all out vegan Thanksgiving for.

Sneak peak menu for Thursday and Saturday: Mrs. Weasley's vegan shepred's pie (yes Harry Potter inspired), Field Roast Harvest roat, cornbread, sweet potatoes, pumpkin pie, and garlic mashed yucca.

Folks, stay tune for upcoming post with pictures and recipes! Plus, I might throw a side comment about football in there. Yours truely will be watching the Lions on Thursday play. It's tradition in my home. Be safe and have a great week everyone!

Spicy Soy Chorizo Chili

Ring the alarm and cue Beyonce. Ladies and Gentlemen, today's post will be my spicy chili recipe that sparked from my hubby's request to make a chili from Trader's Joe's soy chorizo.

As you might have notice, we love spicy food. With that being said, for us, this is a good amount of spice but for others, it might be way to spicy. My suggestion is to modify it your taste and liking. When the Monster gave me this challenge, I gladly accepted it. I started searching online and ran across two recipes that I have loosely based mine from. First one is this great vegan one. My issue with it was, not enough spicy for me and it called for sugar. I don't add sugars in my chili and that's my personal preference. The second one which wasn't vegan but had the spicy I was looking for but not enough. As you can see, this one called for two of the chili peppers from the adobo sauce. Personally, that's for me mild.  One more thing, I like to add a can of beer to my chilis. In my opinion, a can of beer can add such depth of flavor to the chili. I was determine to blend these recipes and make my own kickass chili!

So without further ado, I present you with my recipe that is spicy and flavorful. Please reminder, this is a template that you can modify to your taste and liking.

Spicy Soy Chorizo Chili

• 1 package of Trader Joe's soy chorizo, removed from the casing
• 1 package of baby bellas mushrooms, sliced
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 1 whole head of garlic, chopped
• 1 red pepper, sliced and chopped
• 1 green pepper, sliced and chopped
• 1 can of chili peppers in adobo sauce
• 1 bag of Trader Joe's frozen roasted corn, you will use half the bag
• 1 can of Foster's lager beer-or your beer of choice
• 2 cans of kidney beans, drained
• 1 28 oz. can of tomato sauce
• 1-3 cups of veggie broth, depends how much you need depending on the size of your beer can
• pinch of salt and pepper, flavored to your taste

First get your pot HOT and slice you baby bella mushrooms. One the pan in hot you will place them in there to saute. Meanwhile, quarter your red onion and garlic and place them into the a food processor to chop. (I like to take the easy way when I have to cut that much up.) Add the onion and garlic to your pot. If they start to stick, add a little water or veggie broth. Next chop your pepper and add that to the pot with half a bag of the frozen roasted corn. Next, work on those chili pepper in adobo sauce. Remove the seeds from each pepper and chop them fine. You will want to add them with their sauce to the pan. Add all remaining ingredients and let it simmer for the next 45-60minutes and enjoy. Serve with chopped onion, cilantro, avocado, and cashew cream or vegan sour cream. Also goes good with a nice cold beer too! Enjoy and modify to your likely. 

Buffalo Avocado Fries

Everyone knows how I love spending my Sundays watching Football. Last Sunday, I needed a crowd hit that vegans and carnivorous would enjoy. Monster told me about this recipe for Buffalo Avocado fries and knew I had to try these out on my brother-in-law's family.

They were spicy and creamy! My only complaint is that the panko breading did come off the "fries" when I coated the "fries" in the wing sauce but otherwise, these were a total crowd hit! Now my 5 year old niece wasn't a huge fan of them, because the claims they are sour, and without the sauce, they are. The avocados are coated in lime juice, to prevent the avocados from browning in the oven. I understood why she didn't like it. Plus, she isn't the hugest fan of them (avocados)  as is. We're working on her love for guacamole...it's a work in progress is all I say.

Overall, I would make these again and highly recommend them for you to try out at your next group sporting event. I'm sorry the only picture I have is where it is almost gone. Let's just say the adults loved it in the group. Until next time, take care my readers. Tomorrow, is Miami Dolphine football in my house and there is a mean pot of chili I am cooking. Stay tuned reader. ~Bunny~

Loving Hut

I am crazy for the Loving Hut and I had to share with you about one of my favorite restaurants. The Loving Hut is a vegan restaurant with locations throughout the world actually.  I cannot get enough of this place. For my birthday weekend, my parents took me out to eat there to celebrate. One of my favorite things to eat there are their soups, but specifically, the Bun Hue Soup.

Bun Hue is a traditional soup from Vietnam that is normally made with beef. Well at the Loving Hut, everything is 100% vegan. This soup was load with yummy tofu and other meat alternatives with, basil, bean sprouts, rice noodles, jalapenos, and lime. It is one spicy fireball of amazing!

What else do they offer, Monster always gets the Pho there and my parents get the Wonton soup. Now other than soups, they have great spring rolls and awesome Pad Thai. They offers curries, sandwiches, and other noodle dishes. It's mostly if not all Asian cuisine. If you have the chance, check them out. My parents are meat eaters and cannot get enough of this place. They swear it is the best Wonton soup they've ate and that's saying something for them. (I know they love the wonton soup from the Chinese restaurant by their house).

For those who are curious, Yes, I did have a nice birthday. It was a very relaxing day, which is what I needed. I am enjoying my last few days at home with my staycation from work. I made brownies, which I forgot to take pictures of. Bad me. I have also done some awesome retail therapy with gifts from my family and friends. Just saying, clothes and Bath and Body Works make me very happy. Until another times readers, take care!

Review of Raphsodic Bakery

Monster and I recently celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary 2 week ago. Over that weekend we were in the Orlando metro because he partook in a mud obstacle course race about an hour away. For our anniversary, we decided to get a small 6" vegan cake to celebrate with my parents. We ordered our cake from Raphsodic Bakery in downtown Orlando. They offer many flavors to pick from and and work with different allergies as well. Here is a link to their tumblr. Monster's favorite is Red Velvet. So I got us a Red Velvet cake with Vanilla cream frosting (yes, yes, 100% vegan).

The cake was great! Very moist and flavorful, but it didn't taste like traditional Red Velvet to me. It taste more like a carrot cake to me. I kept tasting a spice that isn't normal for red velvet...like allspice or cinnamon. It's not that we didn't enjoy the cake, because we did, we wouldn't call it red velvet though. My parents agreed. It tasted great but didn't have the taste of tradition red velvet. It was missing something and I'm not sure what. I did double check my order and it was their red velvet I order. The cake was iced in their vanilla butter cream, which was yummy. It did have a coconut taste to it, which leads me to believe they make it from coconut milk, which I love.

I would order a cake from them again, but I think I would try their chocolate. I highly recommend them as well. If you are looking for a bakery that will work with allergies or just need a dang good vegan cake that won't break the bank like Whole Foods, you have found the right place. I will have more entries throughout the month. Stay tuned to see what I do for Thanksgiving and my birthday. Yours truly will be cooking and baking up a storm this month. Until later my readers. ~Bunny~

Vegan Chipotle Seitan Tofu Scramble

One of Monster's favorite things to eat for breakfast when he was consuming them was eggs. Since becoming vegans, he hasn't. When we discovered tofu scrambles, he was hooked. Personally, I am not an egg person by nature. I never care for the taste or smell (Yes, the smell). I promised to make him tofu scramble for his birthday...6 months ago and well....life happened and I didn't make it. Better later than never, RIGHT!

So I got up yesterday and make him this amazing chipotle seitan tofu scramble. It was packed with yummy veggies and tons of protein. I'm normal not a huge lover of a tofu scramble simply because I feel the tofu taste like tofu. I don't normal pick up on seasonings in it but today I did. I added from Sweet Earth, their chipotle style sliced seitan.  Holy boomerangs Batman, it was tasty!

Vegan Chipotle Seitan Tofu Scramble

• Diced red onion (about 1/2 cup diced)
• 1/2 of a green bell pepper, diced
• 1 tomato, diced
• 4-6 baby bella mushrooms, sliced thin
• 1 huge handful of spinach
• 4 cloves of garlic, diced
• dash of salt and pepper
• 1 block of organic firm tofu, pressed, drained, and then mashed 
• turmeric, to taste
• nutritional yeast, to taste
• Tamari or Braggs' liquid aminos, to taste

First, start of with draining and pressing the tofu and preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Here's a great how to video about it. While the tofu is pressing, chop and dice the peppers, onion, mushrooms, and garlic. Next heat a pan and saute the garlic, onion, mushrooms, peppers, and spinach. Make sure you place the mushrooms down in the pan first because mushrooms release water while you are sauteing. Meanwhile diced your tomato. Grab a mixing bowl and begin to crumble the tofu. Mash the tofu with a fork or I used a potato masher to get the consistence you like. Add you seasoning of salt pepper, turmeric, nutritional yeast, and liquid aminos. Mix it together.Your tofu should look yellow, like an egg. Fold into the scramble the seitan, sauteed veggies, and tomato. Scoop the mixture then into your baking dish. I used my pie pan. Cover your pan with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes covered. After 15 minutes, remove the over and bake for an additional 5-7 minutes. Remove it from the oven, plate, and Enjoy!!  Happy Cooking everyone! I'm off to my brother-in-laws to watch some football and grill with the family. Say what!! Yes grill time- I'll write a post about it for you as well later. 

When life gives you lemons, make Lemon Lentil Soup

Life gave me lemons this week and I am recovering from the flu. Both Monster and I got sick over the weekend. I will say this, while I may get the flu it is no where as serve as what it use to be when I consume dairy and meat. I still have minor aches in my muscles but I do feel much better. 

Right when we returned from the business trip, I saw a recipe online for Lemon Lentil Soup. Yesterday, in my hot mess I was, I got up from the couch and made a large pot of this. It was so tangy and hit the spot. I based my recipe off this one from Vegangela.com. I didn't take any pictures and I am sorry my beloved readers. Next time!!!

Bunny Pops take on Lemon Lentil Soup

8 cups of veggie broth

the juice of 5 lemons

the juice of 5 limes

1 whole head of garlic, chopped

1 chopped yellow sweet onion

5-7 baby bella mushrooms sliced

1 cup carrots either shredded or chopped

pinch of salt and pepper

several handfuls of dill

1.5 cups of dried red lentils or yellow lentils

First measure out 1.5 cups of lentils. Wash and rise your lentils to remove any debris. Next chop your garlic, onion, and mushrooms while you are warming up your soup pot. After your soup pot is hot, add the mushrooms first, then followed by the onions and garlic. Saute 5-8 minutes and add water if needed to help with the cooking process. Add your lentils, broth, the juice of the limes and lemons, salt, pepper, carrots, and dill. Cook 30-45 minutes until the lentils are done. Enjoy and Happy Eating!! 

**Note, you can use more or less of the the seasonings and lemon/lime juice. I added more because I wanted my soup to taste more like citrus. 

Ethos Vegan Restaurant Review

Monster and I recently just returned from a business trip to the Orlando, FL metro and had the chance to eat at one of the local vegan restaurants, Ethos. What a wonderful dinning experience this was.

Ethos Vegan Kitchen is located in downtown Winter Park, FL, which is just outside of downtown Orlando, FL. Ethos offers a variety of yummy treats from soups, salads, sandwiches, calzones, and pizza. Not to mention, cookies and milkshakes made from soy milk.

I got an awesome Vegan Philly with Slaw. The philly is made from seitan with grilled peppers and topped with vegan cheese from Follow Your Heart. This was pretty spot on. Monster got a "Meatball" sub for his lunch. I couldn't get a picture before he ate it. The meatball are made there in house. I got to try a bite and the flavor was great.

We also got the Healthy Trio, which was hummus, homemade mango salsa, and olive tapenade. It's served with this yummy local vegan bread and veggies for the hummus. It was great! We also got to go two bowls of their soup of the day, Fiery Chili. That chili was so flavorful. It had large red kidney beans with peppers, onions, and other basic chili ingredients. Now, in my opinion, it wasn't fiery. Because I love to consume HOT and flavorful food, I thought it was average. It needed hot sauce for me but Monster thought it was great.

Prices of food compare to potion size: I feel the restaurant was spot on. For what we paid for the potion sizes was good. I have been to some vegan restaurants where they charge more money because it's 100% organic vegan raw and the portion size was tiny. Not here! If you leave hungry, it's your own fault.

This is a restaurant I truly feel I can bring my family and friends to who are not vegan. We will be back in that area again the in the near future and look forward to going back to get more yummy food. I plan on taking my parents, who are not vegan. Something tells me this will get my father's approval. Until later, happy cooking!

Cranberry Loaf

Earlier in the week, the Monster and I were at Costco. We were picking up some fruits and veggies in bulk when we saw that they had 2lbs of cranberries for $3.00. I was shocked that they had them so earlier in the year in bulk, that I become hypnotized to buy them.

Well fast forward to now and I am trying cook with them. I have already made Rum Cranberry Sauce but still have plenty of left overs. I started looking for recipes online for desserts with cranberries. I kept seeing things with orange juice, lemon zest, and orange zest. Well I don't have any of those in my pantry presently. Back to the drawing boards I went and found a recipe from Mlive.com, where one of their writer made a recipe from the Happy Herbivore cookbook. Luckily, I had everything in the pantry and I went on my way baking.

Overall, I am beyond satisfied with this and may have just found a new holiday dessert to make. I have modified the recipe from 1/4 cup of sugar to maple syrup. You could use honey. Also, I found in my oven it wasn't ready in 38 minutes, so I let it go for an additional 20 minutes. Here is the original recipe and my modify one below. 

Cranberry Loaf 

• 2 cups of flour
• 1 cup of dairy-free milk
• 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1/4 cup of maple syrup or honey
• 1/2 cup of unsweetened applesauce
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla
• 1 cup of fresh chopped cranberries-wash them first before chopping

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Pour mixture into bread baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes depending how your oven runs. Happy Baking!!! 

Coffee

Coffee is essential in my morning. It's what keeps me going throughout the day. Its that one cup each day that make everything better. With fall here, I find thing I crave the most is Pumpkin Spice Lattes (PSL for short). Sadly, at Starbucks their Pumpkin Spice syrup isn't dairy-free. Talk about crushing my soul here. 

The LA Times back in September 2013, wrote an article about this issue. I agree, this is a first world problem we have here. But truth be told, Vegans do want a PSL dairy-free option! So what is a vegan girl suppose to do when her beloved Starbucks failed her...find alternatives!

If you have the time, stop by here and sign the petition on Change.org for a vegan PSL option

I am happy to report that Whole Foods offers PSL with a dairy-free syrup that they can make with many kinds of dairy alternative milks, like hemp, soy, almond, and more. Now, if you are trying to save your pennies below are three recipes you can make at home. Happy PSL making :) 

Kblog's Vegan Pumpkin Spice Latte

PETA'S PSL recipe

Popsugar's PSLSt

Vegan Guava Banana Bread

Wow, it has been a busy past week. I see since launching this blog, we have readers from across the WORLD!!! This makes me super excited. So Hello to my readers across the USA, France and Poland! Thank you so much for reading.

So Guava...Guava is one of my favorite fruits from the islands. Have you ever had a Cuban Guava pastry? Omg, it's amazing. Guava Jelly is sweet and tangy! I was introduced to these treats years ago when I first came on vacation to South Florida and have been addicted since. Well, fast forward, I'm now following a plant strong vegan diet and these pastries are usually covered in an egg wash or sometimes filled with cheese. When we moved back down here 2 years ago, I was craving for guava pastries but did not have the stuff to make my own pastry dough. I had however everything else for banana bread. I said to myself why not give it a try. I am happy to report this was my greatest spark of genius and I am going to share my recipe with you. At every party and work function, it is a popular request. I am even baking some in the near future as a care package item for my dear friends in Georgia soon.

Vegan Guava Banana 

1 3/4 cups of flour
2 tsp of baking powder
1 cup of banana puree (3 to 4 banana mashed/blended)
1/2 cup of non-dairy milk (I use unsweetened vanilla almond milk)
1 tsp of vanilla extract
1/2 tsp of baking soda
1/2 tsp of allspice
1/2 tsp of cinnamon
1/4 of a cup honey, maple syrup, or sugar  ** you can even use date paste if you want**
pinch of salt
1 long piece cut off from the Guava Jelly bar, that is cut on the length of the bar-such brands like Goya found in your Latin food isle

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

First you need to make/mix the wet ingredients. Place three to four banana in blender with the almond milk and vanilla extract. Blend until it is all mixed together.

Next, mix all the dry ingredients-the flour, baking powder and soda, allspice, salt, and cinnamon together. Then add the banana puree into the mix. Mix the batter until it is a smooth and combined.  Pour  2/3 of the mixture into your bread pan. Next, take your guava jelly bar and cut a long piece of the jelly running length side of the bar. Add your piece on top of the batter in your pan.

Pour all the remaining mix on top of  it.  Now, for an extra kick and my personal secret, sprinkle lightly sugar  on top of the mix. Place it in the oven and cook for 45-50 minutes or until you stick a toothpick in and it comes out clean. ~Enjoy~ Happy Baking~

Haitian Pikliz

If there is one thing I love that I have gotten addicted to eating from working with an office with people predominately from the Caribbean, is this magical pickled cabbage called Pikliz (picklese). Pikliz, as described by one of my good friends, who happens to be Haitian, is picked cabbage or Haitian Coleslaw. Whenever anyone in the office goes to the Haitian restaurant down the street, we all have one huge request, bring back the pikliz and lots!

It all started about 5 days ago in the kitchen when I went to the store and got several scotch bonnet peppers, I got the urge to try my art at pikliz. I already had broccoli slaw in the fridge at home and figured it would work as an okay substitute. Well, my dear friend I mention above probably rolled her eyes at me when I told her on the phone I made it without cabbage. I am happy to report after 5 days in the fridge, it turned out amazing. Below is the recipe I followed. I used actually 1 whole lime instead of half. I just love lime. Here's how I used the pikliz for my lunch today. I had rice and peas with jerked tofu, topped with the pikliz and a diced tomato.  Enjoy!

How to make Haitian Pikliz
Link to the blog entry on how to make pikliz from the Caribbean Pot

DIY Wreaths

I love DIY projects and easy DIY projects. One thing ever since we bought and moved into our first home (well it's a townhouse-still counts), I have wanted a wreath. I wanted a wreath that I could change out with the seasons or have a standard wreath that I leave up most of the year. I blame Pinterest and Etsy that sparked this whole idea of a burlap wreath. If you do a quick search on Etsy, you will find tons of wonderful sellers with burlap wreaths ranging from $50-$110. Wow! I was hoping to get away with $25-$30 plus shipping.

Well fast forward, I began looking on Pinterest and found several great idea on how to make your own burlap wreaths. Since I made my first St. Patrick's Day wreath, I have made my Summer Patriotic wreath, and a Monogram wreath for my dear friend. I can tell you, I have brought all supplies when I have a coupon at Michaels 40% of one item and others to help save big money. The most I have spent is $25 in supplies. I also do check the Dollar Tree for holiday specific themed ribbons for $1 compare to Michaels, which those can run around $3-$5 and more.

I am still planning to make a fall wreath and a Christmas wreath. Plus, I have a few special request from my friends and family and I will post pictures when those are done. Who knows, maybe one day I will even sell them online via Etsy or at a Farmer's Market. Below are a link and video I found helpful when I was making them. Be creative and embrace the process. What I love about these wreaths is that there is no right or wrong way to lay/string the ribbons and burlap. Happy crafting!! 

Youtube video about how to make them
Great step by step guide to make one

Vegan Veggie Ramen

I loved ramen growing up. Actually, at one point in my life, I would have instant ramen for breakfast. Yup, no joke either. It was a phase!

A few weeks back, the Monster and I went to Yakko-Sans for dinner with our friends and had an awesome Veggie Udon dish. Any who, let's fast forward, I was shopping at one of the Asian Markets by our home a few weeks ago and saw ramen noddles. I had already picked up udon noddles to make that for dinner, but I found ramen noodles-yes the noodles by themselves to cook. Well, needless to say, last week one night, I wanted a quick and easy meal and I whipped it together. When I made this, I didn't have radishs or tofu, but, I were to make it again I would add them to it.  Dinner was a hit to say the least and a request to have again! I present to you my recipe. Feel free to modify to your taste or preference.

Vegan Veggie Ramen

• 2 packets of the ramen noodles
• 1 box of Swanson's Thai Ginger Broth, or Vegetable Broth
• 1 container of mushrooms, either baby Bella or if you live by a Publix grab their gourmet mushroom blend. 
• Dash of ground ginger
• Limes
• Lemongrass stalk 
• Cilantro
• Green Onions, diced
• 2 Carrots, diced
• Radishs, diced
• Tofu, pressed and diced into cubes.
• Sriracha or your choice of chili hot sauce (optional)
• Soy Sauce, Liquid Aminos , or Ponzu (optional)

First, get your pot screaming hot and once it's hot, add your mushrooms and season with the ginger. If they begin to stick add a small amount of the broth. After they begin to reduce and cook, add the box of the broth first, then add diced carrots, lemongrass stalk, tofu, and the noodles. Follow the directions on the package of the noodles but bring this all to a boil. Cook for 5-10 mintues, until noodles are soft. Once done, serve the ramen into bowls. Garnish with cilantro, green onions, lime, and radishs. Tops off with your favorite hot sauce and/or soy sauce.  ~Enjoy and happy eating~

Black Bean pasta in Red Curry Sauce

Prior to going away on my Labor Day vacation, I made this yummy dish that had Black Bean pasta in it. Monster found this at Costco. I've never heard of black bean pasta until then. It's vegan and gluten free. Plus, it is also organic. Wow, this has to be too good to be true. 

The box featured two recipes on it and I decided to try to make one of them that was a curry sauce. I love Thai curries. Red curry is my favorite other that Massaman curry and of course, for those who know me well, know I love my curry spicy. One of my favorite Veg/Vegan friendly Thai restaurants will add fresh chilies in their curry and I go crazy for that. Monster and I could probably live on various kinds and styles of curry for a few weeks before we got tired of it. 

Here's the recipe from the box and their website:

You will need...

• 1 package Explore Asian of black bean spaghetti

• 1 can coconut cream (400g)

• 2 tablespoons Red Curry Paste 

• 2 tablespoons grated Ginger 

• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro 

• 2 tablespoons Olive oil

• Black pepper

• Salt

• Parmesan cheese (optional)

• 1 red or yellow pepper

Om Nom Nom 

Now, when I made this I only had coconut milk, left out the olive oil, salt and cheese. I didn't have fresh ginger and used ground ginger. The cilantro was not good that I had, so I threw in green onions. Plus, I had miniature peppers in the fridge I had to use so I didn't use a whole large bell pepper. I also added curry powder to it as well with the juice of a lime. While making the sauce, I did not have enough red curry paste and had to use massaman curry paste. Honestly,with all the substitutions and additions I made to this, I was impressed at how great this sauce turned out. Monster loved it! Next time we make this, we will have it with the addition of tofu, mushrooms, bean spouts, and avocados. I actually loved the sauce that I would serve it over rice if I didn't have the noodles.
So in summary, yes, I would make this again. Don't scared and jump in and try something new. 

Labor Day Weekend

I have always love this weekend, even as a child. To me, it is the last weekend of Summer. Fall is just around the corner on September 23rd. Fall is my favorite season, which I mention before. Labor Day weekend to me, is a big deal in the Midwest. It the end of summer nights and weekends at the Lake. It is the brace yourself for cold temperatures and snow in two months. It's that last weekend to sun bathe before they shut down all pools. It is also if you are in Kansas City, the first weekend to get Boulevard's Bob's 47-their Oktoberfest beer, which is amazing. I have such great memories sitting with my friends at the Foundry. This place is freaking amazing. Also has great vegetarian and vegan options. Just saying, their Vegan BLT is pretty amazing.  Down in Florida, to me, it more like OMG thank you...it's Football season!

Labor Day weekend is also a weekend that I would watch the Jerry Lewis Telethon. This year they are teaming up with ABC and it should be amazing. This is something that I hold near and dear because I know of someone was affected and help by this telethon.

Labor Day weekend in my family is my Sister-in-laws birthday, usually, since her birthday usually falls in that time. It is also my late Grandfather's as well.

So as you can, see Labor Day weekend means many things to me. What am I doing this weekend. Well, there is one thing for such I will be doing this weekend, and it is relaxing. With that being said, I leave you with my favorite clip from the movie Frozen. I just love Olaf!!!

Be Safe and have a great weekend folks. I will be back soon with something food relate from my holiday weekend.

"Beefy" BBQ

That's right, you heard me correctly. I love BBQ! It's complete comfort food for me. For me, it's the flavors. After living in the Kansas City (a.k.a KC) Metro for a few years, I really began to appreciate good BBQ. In KC, you have so many wonderful legendary BBQ places and to name just a few Gates BBQ, Arthur Bryant's, Oklahoma Joe's, and Jack Stack BBQ. (Also, there are many more great bbq places in KC. These are just a few that happen to be the most popular ones. If you want, do a quick Google search and you will find many more.) For more information about Kansas City BBQ and Style of BBQ, click here.

Well, I felt inspired to try to make a vegan BBQ while shopping recently at Publix. After experience KC BBQ, I found myself a bit frustrated that I couldn't find any KC brands or style BBQ sauce. I even talked out loud to myself staying, "What, no Kansas City style BBQ sauces...Where's the Gates or Arthur Bryant's..." Little did I realize, there was a Publix employee there stocking a shelf who suggested KC Masterpiece. Nothing against KC Masterpiece, but it does not hold a flame close to some of my favorite local BBQ sauce. (Yes, KC Masterpiece was found in KC over 30 years ago, but I am comparing it to other KC local sauces that are my PERSONAL favorite.) 

I was in produce and looked at the baby Bella mushrooms they had in the store. That's when the light bulb went off. "Beefy" BBQ with mushrooms! Well, ladies and gentlemen. I shall let you fan yourselves and clutch your pearls. Scandals, I know! How do you even get close to that BBQ flare, well, check out this recipe below.


"Beefy" BBQ with Mushrooms

1 package of baby bella mushrooms; can buy pre-cut to save time
1 package of Boca crumbles or other fake meat crumbles of choice. You will use half of the bag.
1 bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce
Garlic powder
Onion, or if out of fresh, use onion powder
Pinch of salt
Your favorite bbq blend of seasoning -I used a few Penzeys spices I have
Liquid Smoke, several good dashes (yes it's vegan)
Your favorite hamburger buns, toppings your like on your bbq such as pickles, onions, french fries even.
 

First, get your saute pan/pot HOT!!! Yes, I said hot. We are cooking this with no oil....SAY WHAT! Fact, one tablespoon of oil equals 120 calories of pure fat. It is possible to cook all food without oil. Here's a great video from Youtube, on how to do this without oil. Meanwhile waiting for your hot pan, dice your mushrooms if you did not buy them pre-cut. After you get your pan hot and mushrooms diced, you can test the heat level out by dropping a little water into it. If the water quickly sizzles up, it's ready. Add your mushrooms into your pan and season your mushrooms. This is when you add several dashes of liquid smoke. It's what kicks it up a notch. Make sure you stir it up little bit to help it cook even.

Your mushrooms naturally release water while they are cooking, but if they begin to stick, add a small amount of water to the pan to prevent the sticking. Cook and stir the mushrooms for minimum 5 minutes. You are watching for the water to release and the mushrooms to cook down. Once they have reduced, add the Boca crumbles. You are going to use about half of the bag. After about a minute or so, add your BBQ sauce and stir.
After this point your want to start warming up your hamburger buns. I usually warm mine up in the toaster oven for a small amount of time to just warm the bread. I don't want it to be toast. After the "beefy"mushroom mix has had a chance to warm all the way through, plate and enjoy your yummy creation. I plated mine below with homemade french fries and a pickle. Yum, Yum!

I hope you have enjoy this yummy food post. Please comment if you tried this out. I loved to get your feed back on this. 

For the love of Football

If there is one thing I look forward to in the fall season is football. I was brought up by my parents to love all things that is holy for the love of the Super Bowl and the Heisman Trophy. Lets start off with College Football and end with yummy food. 

I love college football for rivalry. Growing up in Florida, I was raised to be a Gator girl. I also neglected to mention previously, I love UM-GO Blue because my family in Michigan. I looked forward to every November when it would be UF vs. FSU. I can recall the glory days in the early 2000s when we had Rex Grossman for QB and Todd Johnson on defense. Those were glorious days for UF. Now in 2010, Monster and I relocated from sunny Florida to the Midwest, Kansas City to be exact, for his job.  There living in a boarder city to boarder states did I get to really experience college sports rivalry. KU vs. Mizzou....Oh the rivalry; the Boarder Wars game was one of the oldest rival games that ran from 1891 until 2011. I recall shopping in Hy-Vee and seeing the isles filled with so many thing geared to either University of Kansas or University of Missouri. I worked in one of the malls there in Kansas City when we first moved there and every Saturday I worked, hundreds of people wore their college shirts proudly. KU, Mizzou, Huskers, Hogs, Sooners, the Hawkeyes, and more. It is this pride and sense of loyalty I love about college football. So why the Jayhawks? Simply, my co-worker at the mall job goes to KU and after taking a tour of the campus, I fell in love with the school. Lawerence, KS is an awesome town and I wish my college town was that cool...but it wasn't. 

Pro football is pride for your city if you have a team there or the closest one to you. So let's knock out the obvious reason why I will root for the Kansas City Chiefs....because I lived there for a few years. Now I am sure you can guess why I also cheer on the Lions, because of my family ties to Detroit. It is religion in my house to always watch on Thanksgiving the Lions play...even if they lose the game, you must watch it. With the track record they have, I am a sad fan at times. I was not always a Miami Dolphins fan. You can thank my Monster for that. Growing up, for me, my family would cheer the Bucs on if they were winning. After Tony Dungy left, I stopped watching them as close. After Monster and I were married, I became a Dolphins fans for good reasons. Sunday football is like breathing and religion for my soul. I look forward to sitting in front of the T.V and watching my games. My goal this year is to teach my nephew who is 14 months to say, "Go Dolphins", by the end of the season. We'll see how that goes. 

But what makes football and football season better than beer...FOOD!!! Food is so pivotal. We as a nation center so many things around food. Who says you cannot have a sporting game and have healthy and tasty vegan and plant strong food? On Sundays, I'm always in the kitchen trying to make new recipes to enjoy. I'm lucky that my Monster and my brother-in-law are always up to try my latest creations. Some of my favorite things to eat are dips. I love hummus! We always have it in our house. Last year, I made several dips that went over well. Black bean hummus, edamame hummus, and vegan spinach artichoke dip. Below are links different recipes you might want to give a try. I found my edamame hummus recipe last year on Buzzfeed. Also, please don't hesitate to modify these recipes to your taste. I'm not a fan of Dayia cheese or other imitation fake cheese and will normally omit them from all recipes. If you are short on time and don't want to cook, don't forget the classic chips and salsa, hummus and pretzels, and guacamole...or sub sandwich run. 

~With love, Bunny_Pops~

20 vegan recipes from PETA

25 vegan football season recipes from Buzzfeed

Bunny takes over the World

Welcome to Bunny takes over the World!! I am your author host, Bunny_Pop. For quite some time, I have been encourage to blog about my life. Let's start...here I will set the stage....

I follow a plant strong diet...in simple terms, yes...I am a vegan. Three years ago, I was obese. My BMI was almost 40%! Yikes!!! I was knocking on the door for diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and other possible diet related health issues such as cancer. I was leaving LAX from a great Memorial Day vacation with my husband and I could barely buckle the seat belt on the airplane. It was embarrassing. Prior to this trip, my primary care and I had a talk about if I wanted to have children one day, I was doom for a high risk pregnancy.

After I got back from this trip, I started dieting, but it was still like a yo-yo. I lost 30lbs by September 2011, but started putting the weight back on. April 2012, my husband (who I will refer to as Monster) and I watched Forks Over Knives. We didn't know what this was about, but we wanted to educate ourselves. After we watched that documentary, we took the 30 day challenge to be plant strong. In those first 30 days, I lost 10-15lbs and Monster lost 20-25lbs.

Fast Forward 2 years later, here we are still plant strong. I have lost almost 90lbs! I have gone from a size 22/24 pants to wearing 12/14 pants depending the cut. Monster has lost over 130lbs!!! We both regularly workout 5-6 times a week doing cardio, strength training, and yoga. Our Saturday workout treat is Orange theory. Now folks, this is another tangent that I will save for another day. I am still not done with my weight loss and have 19lbs to go until I hit my desire weight. One thing you will never hear from me is shamming. I will not put anyone down. I am Social Worker by day, and am an empathetical person. Yay for Social Work!!

With my plant strong life style, I can tell you food never gets boring for me. I am always looking for new recipes and ideas for cooking. Some of my favorites types of food to eat are Indian, Thai, and Mexican. One of my favorite things to get since I live in South Florida, is Jamaican Patties! Love my Soya andVeggie Patties from the Golden Krust! Plus there are great vegan food vendors at farmer's Markets, such as Via Vegan, who make some of the best veggie Roti I have had! Oh man, now I'm craving that...

So Folks, stay tune to this blog. At times, it will be more food base but I will throw in others delights from time to time. Hey, football season is right around the corner and I will be cheering on my teams. Yes I said teams; I am a Dolphins, Lions, and Chiefs fan. I will explain later how I can be a fan of all three. Plus, don't forget college football. Go Gators and Rock Chalk Jayhawk!

~With love Bunny_Pop~