Restaurant Worthy Hot & Sour Soup

If you like hot and sour soup. This is the real deal. No restaurant necessary. 

I wouldn't joke about this. I take my restaurant-worthy dishes very seriously.

This soup made me dance on my little tippy toes around the kitchen. Seriously. I've never been a particularly fervent hot and sour soup fan though, I always went the egg drop soup route. I loved me some egg drop soup. Nevermore! This soup is the bees knees. 

So hot and sour! Well...kind of hot. I'm a bit of a wimp when it comes to spicy foods. Unless we're talking ginger or wasabi. I'm all about that type of spicy! When I get sushi, I dip the pickled ginger into the wasabi and eat it plain, okay? You're impressed. I know. Watch out, BA comin' though. 

Feel free to add as much ground fresh chili paste as you'd like to this soup. I stuck with 1/2 tsp. because, like I said, a bit of a wimp here. I've made my peace with it. I just have dainty taste buds, okay?

Restaurant Worthy Hot & Sour Soup

Serves 4-6

• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 Tbsp. fresh ginger, peeled and minced
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced
• 8 oz. cubed seitan, chopped (or ground plant-based meat)
• 2 cups water
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 lb. firm tofu, cubed small
• 10 cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 2/3 cup rice vinegar
• 3 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. sesame oil
• 1 tsp. vegan sugar
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. ground fresh chili paste, to taste
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 2 handfuls of fresh spinach, torn (optional)

Notes: I added a bit of spinach, because that's how I roll but feel free to omit it if you like. 

In a large soup pot, heat the oil over medium-low. Add the garlic, ginger, green onions, and seitan. Saute for about 5 minutes, until fragrant and the seitan begins to brown.

(Do you like the repurpose of egg holder? It's a garlic holder now!) Add the water and the vegetable broth and bring to a simmer. Now, add the remaining ingredients, excluding the cornstarch and the spinach and stir well. 

In a small bowl, add about 1/2 cup of the soup broth. Whisk in the cornstarch until clump-free. Stir the mixture back into the soup to thicken it. 

Add the torn spinach and continue to simmer until the spinach has wilted and the soup has thickened slightly from the cornstarch. 

Remove from heat. Let the soup rest for a few minutes before serving.

Serve hot. 

Jammin' along to Josh Rouse – It's Good To Have You

"Coffee and a toast and a peppermint tea It's a little too cold to go outside  Wonder what would happen if you lived with me,  Oh oh, I got the feeling that it'd turn out nice Oh oh, it feels good to have you in my life."

German Word of The Day: Worthy --> Würdig (pronounced: ver-dich)

Good Deed of The Day: Sometimes I really hate our species. Sign this petition and help the Defenders of Wildlife tell the US Government to stop using your tax money to kill coyotes from planes. For real. I'm not onboard with that. 

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Avocado-Cilantro Cream Angel Hair

This is such a delightful spring dish. It also happens to be counting as my "green" today. If you follow me on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram you know that my morning was pretttty shitttty. Needless to say, I completely forgot it was St. Patrick's Day and ran out of the house thankful to be on time for work (breastases aren't going to be mammogramin' themselves you know), let alone wearing green. Lucky for me (I'm part Irish), not a single person pinched me today. Whew! 

If you happen to be one of those poor souls who hates cilantro (I hear it's genetic...no, seriously) stay far, far away from this dish. Same goes if you strongly dislike avocados. However, I have yet to meet such a person and will totally notify you if I ever do. Who hates avocados?

This is one luxurious dish. Angel hair pasta bathes in a light and dreamy avocado-cilantro cream sauce. It's a bit sweet, with a hint of ginger and zesty lime. Barring any anger towards cilantro or avocado...you're going to love it. You'll also love that it's done in the time it takes to boil up some pasta! And that's something we can all be thankful for. 

Side Note: It's weird to me now that I used to make pasta sauces sans veggies. Like non-vegan, traditional mac & cheese and alfredo sauce. My vegan mac & cheese is made with sweet potato and my alfredo sauce with cashews and cauliflower. Then there's this delicious cream sauce with cilantro and avocado. Ponderous. How sad and boring (not to mention lacking some superfly nutrients) it must be for people to make traditional pasta sauces. They don't know what they're missing...and that makes my heart all glum. 

Avocado-Cilantro Cream Angel Hair

Serves 6

Notes: The pasta should be done at the same time, or just after the sauce. You don't want it to sit cooked. 

• 16 oz. angel hair pasta, dry
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 6 large garlic cloves, sliced
• 2 large ripe avocados, pitted
• 1 large bunch of cilantro (stems and all)
• 3 limes, juiced
• 1 small knob of fresh ginger, peeled and rough chopped
• 1/2 cup plain non-dairy milk
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 Tbsp. agave nectar or maple syrup
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil for the pasta. When boiling, cook according to package which is usually about five minutes. Drain and return to pot. 

Meanwhile, heat the 1 tsp. of olive oil in a small saute pan. Add the garlic and saute for a few minutes, until browned and fragrant. Remove from heat. 

In a food processor, add the remaining ingredients including the sauteed garlic. Process until smooth and creamy. 

Add the sauce to the cooked and drained pasta, stir well to coat. 

Serve hot. 

Careful not to break your juicer! Todd doesn't know his own strength...

Oh dear. 

Listening to Yuna – Someone Who Can

Good Deed of The Day: Don't even get me started on the parents that buy little chicks and baby bunnies for their kids on Easter, let alone if they're dyed. I'm going to just stop right there. Sign this petition to help Julie Burge, the director of Burge Bird Rescue, stop the selling of baby chicks, ducks, and bunnies for Easter. It only takes 5 seconds. You'll find my signature there! 

German Word of The Day: Cream (with regards to food) --> Sahne (pronounced: Zahn-neh)  - Remember, I am not German...regardless of how much I might pretend. I am learning the language though! If you ever see that I am wrong *gasp* or just have something to add, please do! We're all learning together and I love the additions!Be Recipe Card

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Salted Oatmeal Chocolate Chip & Cherry Cookies

Yesterday, after work, Todd spent a few hours visiting with his cousin that just came back into the big city. Todd also happens to have his lunch taken care of today. Do you know what this means? This means that I didn't have to make dinner yesterday! Which means, ultimately, that I was blessed with the freedom to make whateeeeeeever I wanted to stuff my face with for dinner. Oh yes.  Welcome to a glimpse of what my life would be like if I weren't married. It's cookies. Just cookies. Cookies. All. The. Time. Cookies for breakfast, for lunch, and for dinner, obviously. At least I went quasi-healthy with these cookies and packed them full of oats, cherries, and nuts.

This recipe is based off a recipe my mom used to make. I don't know what recipe it is or where she got it from, but she used to make them all the time. Everyone loved these cookies and I haven't had them in many, many years. So, knowing that her's weren't remotely vegan, I thought I would try to recreate them for myself, and for you!

Chocolate chip oatmeal cookies, speckled with tart cherries and nuts. They're sprinkled with a little flake salt for good measure. Crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside, these are delectable!

Salted Oatmeal Chocolate Chip & Cherry Cookies 

Makes 20 cookies

Notes: I like unrefined coconut oil for that coconutty taste, but refined will work too. If you don't have dried cherries, cranberries will work as well. Feel free to use your favorite nuts or omit completely! The dough will be a bit crumbly, but if it seems too dry add milk or water 1 Tbsp. at a time. 

• Flax Egg:
• 1 Tbsp. ground flax seed
• 3 Tbsp. water
• Wet:
• 1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp. unrefined coconut oil, solid
• 2/3 cup dark brown sugar, packed
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• Dry:
• 3/4 cup whole wheat white flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• Add-Ins:
• 1 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats, dry
• 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup dried tart cherries, chopped
• 1/4 cup walnuts, chopped
• 1/4 cup pecans, chopped
• Topping:
• flake salt (or kosher salt)

In a small bowl, mix together the ground flax seed and the water. Place in the fridge to cool until ready to use. 

In a large mixing bowl, beat the wet ingredients together until smooth and all the solid oil clumps are gone. Now, add the flax egg and beat again until combined.

In a separate large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. Add the dry ingredients slowly to the wet ingredients and beat until almost combined. 

Slowly incorporate the add-ins to the dough, until just combined. 

Cover the dough and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 350 F and coat a baking sheet with a nonstick cooking spray. 

Form about 1 1/2 Tbsp. dough balls with your hands and flatten just a bit. The dough won't spread out much at all in the oven, so how they are shaped is pretty much how they'll look when they're done. Sprinkle with flake salt and continue with the remaining dough. 

(No, that baking sheet IS NOT a prop. I won't apologize for the shameful state of it. I know I'm a monster and I'm okay with it.)

Bake at 350 F for 13 minutes or until the edges of the cookies turn golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to rest on the baking sheet for a few minutes to firm up before transferring to a wire cooling rack. 

Once cool, store in an airtight container. 

Don't look ay my veiny hands or my chipping nail polish, 'k? I guess I'm a bit insecure today or something...Be sure no little doggy snouts get too close. "Please, Mom. I just want one!" Aw, look at that pleading face you guys!

PSA: You don't need eggs in cookies. Surprise! Stop using eggs in cookies. Use flax seed instead. That is all.  

Listening to: Big Fox – Shadows

"There’s a time for the shadows There’s a time for the fight But I’ve learned that truth’s gonna find you no matter how you hide Cause the words are there Yeah they fill the room long before you know Cause the words are there, just a silent tune but it’s gonna grow" 

German Word of The Day: Cookies --> Gebäck (pronounced: geh-beck). I also found Keks for cookie and Kekse for cookies. I think Gebäck might refer more towards pastries and Kekse more towards biscuity type of cookies. Can any German speakers shed light on Gebäck versus Kekse? I know I have a few German speaking readers! 

Good Deed of The Day: Feeling better about yourself today only takes 5 seconds. Help The Center for Biological Diversity by signing this petition to stop coyote-killing contests in Washington. Belch! This made me wrinkle my nose in disgust. A contest for killing? I know I shouldn't be surprised but somehow I am. Just disgraceful. 

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