Thanksgiving Recap 2014

If you missed it, in my last post I listed out some of the recipes that had caught my eye for the Thanksgiving holiday.  I obviously couldn't make them all, but they are all appropriate even after the holiday has passed, so check out this post if you are looking for some fall recipe inspiration.

Here's what I ended up making for Thanksgiving this year - a few things from the list, and a few things from my head.

- Saweet! Potato Casserole with Crunchy Nut Crumble - This was by far my most favorite thing that I made.  The sweetness of the sweet potatoes was highlighted by a touch of maple syrup, cinnamon, and coconut oil, and the crunchy nut crumble made this seem like a dessert to me. There is no doubt in my mind that I will be making this again, soon.

- Kale Salad with Pomegranate Seeds and Fresh Tarragon - I started with this salad recipe, and added a LOT more lemon juice, pomegranate seeds, and a ton of fresh tarragon.  I had never tried fresh tarragon before - it was a great addition to this salad, making it more interesting than your average kale salad.  And pomegranate seeds are always a festive and delicious choice.

- Fall Quinoa with Spinach and Mushrooms - Super simple, super quick vegetarian protein dish.  Here's what I did: Saute in coconut oil a package of mushrooms (white, baby bella, etc) with 1/2 white onion. Season with salt, pepper, and dried thyme.  Once the mushrooms are cooked and the onion is translucent, add about 1 lb of spinach and cover so that the spinach wilts.  Remove from heat.  Cook 2 cups of quinoa according to the package instructions.  Once quinoa is done, combine in a large bowl with with the mushroom mix and add the juice of one lemon.  These are all rough measurements, so taste, and adjust your seasonings accordingly. Then eat.

- Raw Vegan Pecan Pie - A winner again this year.  Healthy enough for breakfast, decadent enough for dessert. YUM.

- Chocolate Goji Almond clusters - This is my newest favorite dessert - recipe to come soon.

Besides all the delicious (and mostly healthy) food,  my Thanksgiving was filled with wonderful family and friends.  Some big changes are going on in my life right now, and I could not be more thankful for the incredible support I've received so far from these people. 

How did you celebrate the holiday? Any favorite dishes or moments you'd like to share?

Thanksgiving Round Up - 2014

It's that time of year again - the holidays.  If you are still scrambling for what to make for your celebration, here are a few ideas (all whole foods, plant based, crowd pleasers!).

Sides:

Blood Orange and Kale Salad with Almonds from Choosing Raw

Farro Salad with Oven Roasted Grapes and Autumn Greens from Martha Stewart

Saweet! Potato Casserole with Crunchy Nut Crumble from Oh She Glows

Rainbow Roasted Miso-Maple Root Veggies from Clean Food Dirty City

Mains:

Maple Hazelnut Crusted Tempeh Cutlets from Keepin it Kind

One Hour Vegan Fall Pot Pies from Minimalist Baker

Vegan Harvest Vegetable Tart from Whole Foods Market

Butternut Squash Fennel and Apple Tart from Nutrition Stripped

Desserts:

Raw Caramel Apple Pie Bars from Choosing Raw

Raw Vegan Pecan Pie from Gena Hemshaw on Food52 - I made this last year and it was such a hit I will definitely be making it again!

Pecan Truffles from Clean Food Dirty City

Vegan Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie from Minimalist Baker

Sweet Potato Pecan Pie from Nutrition Stripped

Other:

Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Roll Loaf from Oh Ladycakes

One Bowl Pumpkin Bread (V & GF) from Minimalist Baker


Wishing you a happy and healthy Thanksgiving!

Review: Dimes NYC

Do you ever get stuck in a restaurant rut? By that I mean you go to the same place every weekend, order the same thing, with (usually) the same people?  I know I do.  Sometimes it's good to have your "old faithful," but part of the fun of living in a big city like NYC (for me at least) is exploring the food scene.  Recently I came to the realization that the key to trying new places is to plan ahead!  There's a much better chance I'm willing to venture to a new neighborhood and try a new spot if I've already made a reservation or promised to meet friends there.

So, in an effort to try new places, the BF and I made plans with another couple to get dinner this past Friday night in Manhattan.  There was a little last minute back and forth as to where we should go, but in the end we decided on Dimes NYC.  I'm so glad that our friend suggested this place because I had heard about it and wanted to check it out, but for some reason it fell off my radar.

Dimes is typical NYC eatery- small and narrow.  It definitely felt small, but cosy, not claustrophobic or crowded.  We ordered wine, which I didn't really care for, and an appetizer - roasted fingerling potatoes with plums and crispy sage.  What really elevated this dish were the plums - I would never think to pair these things together, but it was quite special and I hope to recreate this dish at home.

For dinner, we all ordered different dishes, which was great because we got to try a few things.  I got the Big Salad which was exactly what the name promised, big and hearty and everything I love in a salad.  My only compliant was that the grapes in the salad had seeds!  I ended up not eating too many because it was a pain, and not very polite, to spit out the seeds.

The other dishes we ordered were the Black Rice Bowl, Harissa Salmon, and Lamb Meatballs.  Obviously, I did not try the salmon or the meatballs, but both were beautifully presented and everyone else enjoyed them.  I did try the black rice bowl and it was delicious - hearty, like my salad, but not heavy.

And although we were all very full, dessert happened.  And it was absolutely divine.  I am normally not a fruit + chocolate person (unless its chocolate covered bananas), but the chocolate sorbet with berry compote was out of this world.  The sorbet was very rich and creamy, but not overly sweet and beautifully complemented by the tartness of the berries.  Yum.  We left very full and very satisfied.

A few practical items to note about Dimes NYC: As I mentioned, it is a small place, so not so good for large groups.  They are happy to accommodate dietary restrictions/preferences - there are plenty of things on the menu for vegans and omnivores alike, but I always think it's nice to know the kitchen is open to adapting dishes for their customers.  As far as price, Dimes is definitely not cheap, but I think that for the quality of food and the atmosphere, it is a fair deal.  I can't wait to visit again - maybe next time for breakfast, I've heard the acai bowls are killer.

Until next time!

Good Morning Green Juice

It's a fact: I LOVE me some fresh green juice.  However, I have been neglecting my juicer the past few months and instead have been frequenting Organic Avenue and Juice Press for a daily hit of fresh pressed fruits and veggies. While this allows me to experiment with flavors and ingredients I don't normally have at home, buying at $10+ juice every day is just not in my budget.  Now that I am back in NYC with no big trips, I am making a conscious effort to juice at home more.  This is my go-to green juice combination - slightly sweet, slightly tart, and easy on the digestive system, this juice gives me a nice kick of energy first thing in the morning, without the headache or stomachache that comes with coffee and sugar-filled breakfasts.

This recipe make one extra large or two regular servings.  It is best enjoyed immediately, but will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge.

Good Morning Green Juice
2 Granny Smith Apples
2 medium cucumbers
10-12 kale leaves
1/2 inch knob of ginger
Optional: small knob of turmeric, handful of herbs (mint and cilantro are my favorites), squeeze of lemon

Juice and enjoy!

Urban Backpacker Travels: London and Beyond

The whole purpose of our epic Europe adventure was this...

Visiting our best friend Karie and her sweet new baby Morgan.  They live about an hour and a half outside of London, so most of our time in England was spent snuggling with the baby on the couch, drinking wine together, and watching re-runs of Sex and the City.  And it was perfect - a nice break from all the touristy craziness that was the rest of our trip.

One day, Kate and I made the trip into the city - we had never been and figured we should at least check out London while we were so close.  It ended up being the most beautiful day and we got to see a lot in a short amount of time.

We navigated the underground...

Window shopped on Regent street...

Saw Green Park (en route to Buckingham Palace for changing of the guards)...

Took selfies with Big Ben...

And drank champagne on the London Eye.

All in all, it was quite a fabulous quick trip and made me realize that London is someplace I would really like to explore more.  Karie, hope you are ready for another visit soon!

Urban Backpacker Travels - REYKJAVIK

Our epic Euro-adventure ended with a quick stopover in Reykjavik, Iceland.  A really amazing place to visit if you ever have the opportunity - I know I found myself wishing we had extended our stopover longer than just the 2 days we planned for.

We landed in Iceland on Saturday afternoon and immediately hopped in a cab to the Blue Lagoon, one of Iceland's most popular geothermal hot springs.  The first thing we noticed when we arrived was the eggy smell - the whole country is filled with geothermal hot springs, so there is a lot of sulfur in the air.  Then we took in the beauty of this place - steaming aqua-blue water set against dark volcanic rock - a really unique and amazing sight.

Ladies relaxing at the Blue Lagoon

After we were sufficiently pruned and relaxed, we showered and took the bus to Reykjavik, the country's capital.  We found our AirBnB (thanks to a helpful cab driver), which was incredibly cute and very Scandanvian, and then headed out to explore the town.  We grabbed some sushi and then checked out a bar with local beers.  Supposedly the weekend nightlife in Reykjavik is poppin, but we were pretty beat so called it a night early.

Checking out some local brews at Kaldi bar

Sunday I woke up super early (what's new?) so went for a run to see the city by daylight.  I'd read that Sundays were quite in Iceland, which turned out to be very true - I didn't see anyone up at all, except for a few young folks who looked like they were still out from the night before.  Post run I grabbed some goodies from a bakery that our AirBnB host had recommended - a traditional Icelandic donut to share with the girls and some seedy rye bread.

street art

city sights

big church

Once the ladies were up we set out on foot to explore a little and maybe find some coffee.  We stumbled upon a vegetarian cafe that was run by an ex-NYCer (hence by I <3 NYC mug in the picture below), which we ended up going back to later in the day for a delicious lunch of hearty chili, grilled paninis, and chocolate chip cookies the size of my head.  If you ever find yourself in Reykjavik, check out Cafe Babalu, if not for the yummy food than at least for the crazy Star Wars bathroom.

I love NY... in Iceland!

Cafe Babalu

Selfie in the Star Wars bathroom

Since a lot of shops were closed on Sunday, we decided to take a tour of the Golden Circle - Iceland's most popular loop of attractions: National Park, Waterfall, and geysers!  I'm glad we did this because not only did we get to see some of the country, but during our bus ride our tour guide provided us with a lot of history and interesting information about the country.  Our tour guide was actually an author and had written a book about traditional Icelandic foods, so she shared a lot of that information which was very interesting to me.  Since Iceland is such an isolated country, their traditional cuisine is foods which they could produce themselves - fish, seafood, meats, berries, vegetables, and dairy.

Geyser - there she blows!

National Park

Amazing waterfall

We got back to Reykjavik and I convinced the girls to check out a healthy spot I had read about - Glo.  Glo is not strictly vegetarian - there is one chicken dish on the menu, everything else is vegan except the desserts - which made it perfect for us.  This was hands down the best food I had all trip.  I got the large vegetable plate which came with 5 choices of sides (you could also choose to get an entree and sides, but all the sides looked so good I wanted to try as many as I could).  I got salad, roasted potatoes, creamy carrot slaw, orange fennel salad, and a shaved beet and carrot dish.  Plus, they had this ridiculously good mustard dressing which I poured over everything, and homemade hummus which was also amazing.  It was so refreshing to have such an abundant, healthy meal after a trip filled with one (or five) too many baguettes and way too much wine.  I got a second plate of food to go to bring with me on the plane the next day.

Really really ridiculously good eats at Glo

After dinner we hopped around a few bars.  Even though it was Sunday night, there were still quite a few places open and happening.  I tried an Icelandic liquor - Birkir - which is flavored with birch.  Very different, but I liked it!  Sadly, we headed home before too late since we had early flights to catch in the morning.

Flying home we passed over Greenland, which was a truly incredible site - snow covered mountains, glaciers, and no civilization in sight.  Iceland was an amazing end to an amazing trip, and, while I never dreamed of visiting these places before, this trip got me itching to check out more of Scandinavia and beyond.

Urban Backpacker Travels: PARIS

I arrived in Paris at 6AM on Saturday morning!  Although exhausted and groggy, I was able to navigate the train/subway systems and found my way to the apartment we rented through AirBnB.  Our host and his fiancé took me out for breakfast, coffee and a baguette, at a nearby cafe. They were so kind and gave me tips on what to do before my friends arrived that afternoon.   

After breakfast, I set off on foot to see the city.  I was pretty out of it, so after a little wandering, I made my way back to the apartment for a quick nap.  

I awoke a new person to greet my two friends, Kate and Katie, and we set off: first stop, the grocery store and bakery for wine and a baguette, which we enjoyed in the sun under the Eiffel Tower.

  We then proceeded to walk along the river and made our way to Champs Eylsees to see all the high end stores and then to the Arc de Triomphe. 

After a short trip back to the apartment to freshen up, we ventured to a different area of the city for dinner at Bistro de Henri.  We were nestled in a small corner table, and promptly set up with house wine.  Although we did not order escargot, duck, or any of the other typical specialities, the food and atmosphere did not dissapoint.  After dinner, we decided to find a cafe to sit at for another glass of wine and people watching.  Almost all of the cafés in Paris have outdoor seating, with chairs facing the street, perfect for sitting and drinking and people watching.  The area we were in was quite happening, with a band and people dancing in the street. It was the perfect way to spent our first night in the city. 

Sunday I woke up early and decided to go for a run.  Many people run along the river, so that's what I did, making my way all the way to the Louvre for an early morning, crowd free visit. Talk about destination run!

Back and showered, we headed out for the day.  We decided to head to Rue Mouffetard to check out the area and the open air market.  We got breakfast - the most amazing figs and a delicious sweet baguette with figs and macadamia nuts.  I'm not a huge bread person, but this baguette was unreal. So fresh, crunchy on the outside and super soft and airy on the inside.  Plus a huge amount of flavor from the lightly toasted nuts and gooey figs.

After eating, we made our way to Luxemborg Gardens.  The weather was perfect, and the gardens were so beautiful! We soaked it all in for a while.  Definitely a place I would love to spend an afternoon reading. 

We then hopped on the subway to see some art.  On the first Sunday of every month there are a ton of galleries and museums that are free.  We took advantage of this and went to the Musee L'Orangerie (impressionist art) and the Centre Pompidou (modern art).  So much amazing art, so little time!

After we had our share of art, we decided to check out a vegetarian restaurant near Notre Dame.  On the way there we saw the famous lock bridge (or so we thought, until later when we saw many other lock filled bridges...and questioned if the first one we saw was the famous lock bridge, or an imposter).

We had dinner at Le Grenier de Notre Dame.  It was such a cute place, decorated with lots of green and plants.  I went with the macrobiotic plate - miso soup, brown rice, steamed tofu, black beans, and veggies.  We also had wine (we loved the rose in Paris!) and dessert. Overall, good food, but nothing great. 

After dinner, we went back to Notre Dame to take a few pictures.  We then proceeded to drink a bit too much rose before calling it a night.  An incredibly long, but incredibly amazing day.

Monday! Our last full day in Paris.  The ladies really wanted to go all the way up the Eiffel Tower, so we grabbed a baguette (me) and croissants (them) and began our journey.  Three lines and two elevators later, we made it.  The views were stunning, to say the least.

Next on our list: the Sacre Couer.  This beautiful basilica sits atop a hill in the Montmartre area of Paris, providing more gorgeous views of the city.  The basilica itself was incredibly breathtaking- white stone with gorgeous stained glass windows.

We wandered around the neighborhood a little while longer, making our way back down the hill toward the river.   On the way, we found ourselves at Un Monde Vegan - a vegan grocery store!  Boy did I have a field day.  I ended up with some Vegusto herbed cheese (um, yum!), Wheaty veg salami, and an assortment of raw chocolates.   I'm so happy I got a chance to stop here!

For our final night in Paris, we decided to take some wine, the goodies from the vegan store, and some other snacks for a picnic under the Eiffel Tower before we set off on a boat cruise down the river.  What a perfect end to the trip!

Tuesday morning we woke up early to get in one (or two) more baked treats before hopping on the train.  AU REVOIR PARIS!  I hope to be back again soon.