While one of the new multigrain Pringles flavors is called ‘Truly Original‘, I doubt that the founding fathers of potato chippery ever grew their own supplies of triglycerol mono-oleate. Yup, it’s still junk food but with the appreciable removal of dairy products and that annoying MSG these new chips finally give us an excuse to Pop the Top. Whatta ya mean, they don’t say that anymore? That was the last time I ate a Pringle!

The look of these chips is decidedly multigrain with little seedy things and a slightly browner color but the crunch and flavor is pretty authentic to my mouth memory. Salty, crispy,  kind of oily and hard to put a lid on. I’m glad that Pringles finally came around and offered a tube of snacks without MSG coating its shiny innards but for the same price nowadays you can get a bag of infinitely more wholesome chips like almost anything from Garden of Eatin’ or Kettle Foods.

I’m sure there are years of embarrassing hand-in-tube rescue scenarios ahead for me but I’d be much more supportive of Pringles if they’d done this ages ago instead of hopping on the eco-green HealthWagon like everyone else.

I could tell you about how much I used to love macaroni and cheese but this is America and I don’t think there’s anyone who doesn’t also love the stuff! So going vegan was tough because I, first, assumed there was no alternative and, later, found all the alternatives to be pretty unfaithful… and gross. But leave it to the wonderful folks at Amy’s Kitchen to team up with the equally-glorious gang at Daiya Foods to make an all-vegan, gluten and soy-free mac and “cheeze” that tastes splendid!

For you non-vegan types I’m sure it’s still pretty gross. The cheeze has the right melt and gooey consistency of real cheese but the flavor still isn’t (and probably shouldn’t ever be) spot-on cheddar. It also seems to give Katy a stomach ache but, to me, it’s a great tasting “side dish” that I have quickly come to love as a work-time entree all on its own. A little pepper and a few minutes in the microwave instantly make my day better!

You can click the image above and read the Wikipedia page about broccolini but my math is all you need to know. The tender, slender form of asparagus combined with a slightly subtler flavor of broccoli equals my new favorite veggie! I was hoping that it would make every dish delectable but our second recipe turned out only “pretty good”. The best thing we’ve done so far was to simply blanch for a few minutes to get it nice and green (and hot) and then cover with salt, pepper, “butter” and a little lemon juice. Delicious all on its own!

It looks like broccolini has been around in the States since the mid-90′s but I’d only heard of it recently. It also doesn’t help that broccolini is a trademarked name and most grocers label it generically as “baby broccoli”. But whatever you want to call it, try it!

So first step was googling since I was at work, I also checked one of my Korean cookbooks when I got home, but I ended up sticking with the one I found online for a reason i have since forgotten.  I have made a cabbage kimchi before and this was a lot easier in my opinion.

Cucumber Kimchi recipe

What I did differently

• used non-Asian cucumbers
• Let them sit out with salt longer just because I didn’t get back around to them when they specified
• cut the green onion up thinly instead of big pieces like the recipe photos show
• I missed the part about letting the jar sit out 24 hours before refrigerating until I reread it as I made this post. oops! still yummy!

If you make some please share!  I plan to make more tomorrow!

1. To save the lives and well-being of animals.  Our animal friends are treated like pieces of meat in most slaughterhouses.  Animals have souls.  There were over 9 BILLION chickens slaughtered in the US in 2008.  Along with over 35 million cattle, 116 million pigs and over 270 million turkey.  source

2. Lower your risk for cancers.  It is widely accepted in the scientific community that a diet high in meat consumption helps develop certain cancers.  On the flip side, if you do not eat meat, you automatically reduce your risk by 64% of developing stomach cancer and lower your risk by 53% for bladder cancer.  source

Please visit the original post for the rest of the reasons, but feel free to comment here about the nice changes you’ve experienced since cutting out meat.

The only real changes we made were maybe not using enough eggplant or peppers (we had a green pepper) and using store bought Tofutti sour cream.  As we made it I worried it wasn’t going to turn out right, but in the end it was really delicious!

I have leftovers for lunch and I can’t wait!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  No really, I mean that!

Her recipe can be found at the above link with a yummy looking photo, but this is what she has (please still see her site, lots of great recipes!)

Eggplant Paprikash by fatfreevegan.com

1 large onion, halved and cut into thin wedges
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tbsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. red pepper (optional)
1 tsp. salt (optional)
1 1/2 – 2 lbs. eggplant (about 2 medium) cut into 1-inch cubes
2 bell peppers, any color, sliced (I used red and yellow)
1 cup vegetable broth
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes (I used Muir Glen Fire Roasted)
1/8 tsp. Liquid Smoke flavoring
1/2 cup tofu sour cream (see below)

Tofu Sour Cream:

1/2 package (about 6 ounces) lite silken tofu
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tbsp. cashew butter or tahini
1/4 tsp. salt (optional)

Blend all the ingredients for the tofu sour cream until completely smooth, and set aside in the refrigerator until needed.

In a large, non-stick saucepan, sauté the onion in a small amount of water until it begins to brown, about 5-8 minutes. Add the garlic, paprika, and red pepper (optional), and stir for one minute. Add the salt, eggplant, peppers, vegetable broth, and tomatoes. Cover and simmer until the eggplant is tender, about 15-20 minutes.

When the eggplant is done, check the seasonings and add more salt if necessary. Stir in the Liquid Smoke (optional) and the sour cream, and cook for another minute, until warmed through. Serve over pasta (I used Tinkyada Pasta Joy brown rice noodles) or rice. Serves 4.

By the time we met up with our friend after work and got downtown it was going on eight o’clock. I don’t know if that’s early or late by weeknight downtown standards but we found Mr. Sushi at light capacity, with only a few tables of hipsters at the front making a ruckus. We’d heard that the service was slow but were surprised that both our appetizer of vegetable tempura and our combo plate of sushi came out quickly. Maybe it was the right time of day or that our sushi didn’t require any special handling like an exotic dead-fish roll.

The tempura veggies were a little pricey at $5 and there wasn’t as much as I would’ve expected but what we got was a tasty mix of deep fried peppers, onion, carrot and zucchini. Pretty typical stuff but good. The Vegetable Roll Combination on their web menu is a little different than what we had. Ours was an AAC (Avocado, Asparagus, Cucumber) roll, a Vegetable (Carrot, Avocado, Cucumber) roll and Inari for $13. Both are pretty typical rolls but Mr. Sushi’s had a sweeter flavor that I think of fondly as I type this and the Inari, of course, were scrumptious; a little small but well packed with tasty rice, nice and cold.

The only downside, really, is that Mr. Sushi is downtown but for the crowd who live, work, and play down there on a daily basis it’s well worth stopping in. They’re maybe a little pricier than some of the nearby alternatives but not by much!

Here’s the recipe

Guacamole
Yield: 1 1/2 cups (360 g)

Speed: Variable
Time: 15-20 seconds

Ingredients

2 ripe avocados, peeled, pitted
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons (30 ml) lemon juice
1/4 cup (40 g) chopped onion
1 medium tomato, halved
1/2 cup (10 g) fresh cilantro leaves

1. Place all ingredients into the Vitamix container in the order listed and secure lid.
2. Select Variable 1.
3. Turn machine on and quickly increase speed to 3.
4. Blend for 15-20 seconds, using the tamper to press the ingredients into the blades.
5. You may need to stop the machine and run a spatula around the inside of the container to integrate ingredients.
6. Do not over mix. Leave chunky. Serve with tortilla chips.

Optional:Garnish with diced tomatoes and parsley.
Health Classification: Diabetic Friendly, Low Carb, Low Cholesterol, Heart Healthy, Gluten-Free, Vegetarian, Vegan, Raw
Meal Type: Appetizers