Vote for My Cookbook Cover!

October 13, 2015 Kathleen Henry

Hey there! How have you been? I've been super busy with the building of our house and the cookbook, but I have some great posts lined up for the next couple weeks, so never fear! Don't put out a missing person report just quite yet.

In the meantime I thought it would be fun to give you the option of being a part of the cookbook; helping me decide which cover to use! As you know, I like to try to include you all in the cookbook and I thought this would be a good chance! Decisions, decisions...

Hurry to get your vote in as it ends 9pm AKST (1AM EST).

*** The voting is now closed, thank you for your help!!***

Tempeh BLTs + Nom Yourself Cookbook Review

September 24, 2015 Kathleen Henry

A scrumptious nod to the conventional BLT, but cruelty-free! Marinated strips of tempeh are fried in a cast-iron skillet forming a bacon-like, caramelized outside. Bacon flavored mayo enforces that mouth-watering flavor with zero cholesterol and 100% plant-based. Who needs any more reasons to make the switch to this compassionate sandwich?

Produce On Parade - Tempeh BLTs - A scrumptious nod to the conventional BLT, but cruelty-free! Marinated strips of tempeh are fried in a cast-iron skillet forming a bacon-like, caramelized outside. Bacon flavored mayo enforces that mouth-watering fl…

I'm excited to share this new BLT recipe with you all but first...you guys, my cookbook collection is getting out-of-control. I'm doing all these reviews for you; you're welcome. Let's add one more to the stack real quick then shall we?

The book review de la semaine is on Mary Mattern's just released 100% vegan cookbook, Nom Yourself. I received an advance uncorrected proof from the publisher, Avery Books, so I don't feel qualified to comment on the photos (as the copy is in black and white) or the quality and feel of the book.

If you've never cooked before, Mary's chapter "The Essentials" should be of great assistance. She covers everything from baking powder to ground black pepper to avocado oil. She also covers mixing bowls and spatulas (in case the impending cook isn't sure what either of those are), along with a variety of other, commonplace kitchen utensils. Besides the plainly obvious, Mary features a quip about plating which I thought was pretty neat. Plating might not be something the average home cook thinks about, so I imagine many would find this bit at the very least interesting if not helpful.

Nom Yourself is filled with recipes for homemade staples like almond milk and cashew cream, sauces such as pesto and tartar sauce, breakfasts like blueberry oatmeal squares and tempeh bacon spinach quiche, appetizers such as pie wheels and fried eggplant sticks, soups and salads like sweet sensation salad and kale noodle soup, and there's even a chapter devoted to sandwiches where she features her deviled eggless salad sandwich and shiitake mushroom po'boy with remoulade. Of course the pasta chapter has a baked macaroni and cheese recipe and cauliflower ricotta stuffed shells, entrees include sesame tofu tacos and mushroom chia risotto, sides like drunken potatoes and buttermilk biscuits caught my attention, and delicious desserts like whisky lady cupcakes and double trouble brownies scream, "Make me!" Most recipes include a full page photo, except the sauces and homemade staples.

Her collection of recipes is filled with both the heavy (fried guacamole) and the light (balsamic garlic portobello chop). There seems to be a recipe fit for everyone and I think folks will appreciate her down-to-earth and easy narration. There's vegan renditions of classic favorites like french toast and burgers as well as more unique dishes like pickled beet stems and stuffed artichokes. Most Mary's recipes are straight-forward and simple, with a few more complex ones thrown in. Overall, I think this would be a very pleasing book to a variety of diets as well as cooking abilities. Plus, you know everything in it is vegan so no substituting which can sometimes feel overwhelming and daunting. Find the brand-spankin' new Nom Yourself on Amazon.com and learn more about Mary on her blog at www.nomyourself.com.

I decided to make Mary's tempeh bacon for three reasons: it made an appearance in several of her recipes, I had never before made tempeh bacon, and I was craving BLTs. It appeared as if fate was on my side. A word of caution, especially to carnivorous folks out there. Tempeh bacon isn't bacon; so don't go in expecting a perfect bacon replica. As Todd put it, "It's kind of like a bacon patty." ...tastes baconish but the texture, obviously, isn't the same...all in all though, it's incredibly delicious and I highly recommend it.

Tempeh BLTs

Recipe by Kathleen Henry @ Produce On Parade

Yield: 3 sandwiches

Ingredients

1 8 oz package of tempeh
pure maple syrup
apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp liquid smoke
ground cumin
dash of kosher salt
6 slices of your favorite sandwich bread
1 large tomato, sliced
handful of lettuce or spinach
3 tbsp vegan mayonnaise
3 tbsp coconut bacon (optional)

Cooking Directions

Cut the tempeh into 6 strips, then cut those in half to make 12 strips. Whisk together the maple syrup through the salt in a liquid measuring cup. Pour the marinade into a 8x8 inch baking dish or large shallow bowl and submerge the strips in an single layer. Allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, slice the tomato and prep a handful of greens.
Once the tempeh is done marinating, reserve 2 tbsp of the sauce in a small bowl. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tempeh strips in a single layer and fry for 4 minutes, then flip and continue to cook another 4 minutes. The strips should develop a crunchy layer on the outside. Remove from heat.
Whisk the mayo into the reserve marinade. Toast the bread and assemble into 3 sandwiches, each with 4 strips of bacon, greens, and tomato. Add a bit of coconut bacon in there for some crunch if you like. Serve warm.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

*DISCLAIMER* PRODUCE ON PARADE IS A PERSONAL BLOG WRITTEN AND EDITED BY MYSELF ONLY, UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED. MY REVIEWS ARE COMPLETELY BASED ON MY OWN OPINION OF THE PRODUCT REVIEWED. THESE PRODUCTS WERE SUPPLIED TO ME AS GIFTS TO TEST AND REVIEW. OTHERWISE, IF I MENTION A COMPANY BY NAME AND THERE IS NO DISCLAIMER AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST, I AM MERELY WRITING ABOUT SOMETHING I LIKE, PURCHASE AND/OR USE. THE FACT THAT I DO RECEIVE A PRODUCT AS A GIFT TO TEST AND REVIEW, WILL NEVER POSITIVELY INFLUENCE THE CONTENT MADE IN THIS POST.

Beets BLU Bluetooth Smart Scale Review

September 11, 2015 Kathleen Henry

Bathroom scales are hardly a thing of beauty, nor are they usually high tech. Never something I'd look at and think, "Yeah, I like that square thing taking up valuable space in my tiny bathroom."

I confess I didn't grow up with a scale in our house for most of my life. Later in my high school years, I vaguely remember some kind of body fat measuring scale that terrified me. You had to enter in your height and age and create a "profile" for it. There were only two profiles allowed to my knowledge and so I never messed with the thing, scared of screwing up my parents statistics. My best friend's family had a scale, but the mother is a doctor and so of course their scale was one of those monstrous, overwhelming medical ones that you had to click the little bars across to find your weight. I only remember playing with it as a child. Suffice to say I rarely weighed myself. Why would I want or need to?

In college I bought my first scale. Being poor and paying my own way, I splurged for the cheapest one I could find at the grocery store. It was a tiny, off-white, horrid little thing with the typical red arrow that pointed to what my self-esteem would be for the day or the week. That scale was not my friend. I left it at college after my first year, 25 lbs lighter than when I came. Once back home, I inherited my parents' old and clunky Weight Watchers scale. Up until a couple weeks ago, that was my scale; laid on it's side, wedged between the wall and dryer. It mostly collected dust and dryer lint except when I would pull it out, my curiosity overthrowing my better judgement, "What do I weight now that I ate my weight in oreos?"

When Beets Blu contacted me about gifting Todd and I a scale in exchange for a review, I was hesitant for many reasons. I already had a perfectly functioning scale! Not to mention that I try not to weigh myself too often and we don't really have space for such a thing to permanently make residence on our already cramped bathroom floor. I pondered how "cool" this thing could really be. It's a scale for goodness sake and I don't write reviews for things I'm less than thrilled about (unless obligated to write a review whether it's a good review or a bad one). I actually drafted a "Thank you so much for thinking of me but..." However, I did end up agreeding...solely on it's appearance.

The Beets Blu Smart Scale is sleek. It's thin and flat and glossy black with silver metal rectangles that measure my body fat, muscle, and water percentage when my feet make contact with them. It has a digital display that is backlighted by a fancy blue hue. I had to download the corresponding app and enter in my gender, birthday, and height. I also had to enter whether or not I had an "athletic body composition" (something I am still unsure of...I chose that, no, I did not) as well as whether I wanted to "Lose/Maintain" or "Gain".

The app instructs me each time I open it to weigh in the morning. Take off all my clothes, be sure my feet are bare, use the toilet, etc. just in case I forget I suppose. Once I have the app open (it must be open on your smartphone to record) I pad my right foot firmly on the scale. It flashes "0.0" and I step up. The scale makes an initial beep with my weight then after a few seconds a second beep that signals it's measured my body composition and is sending the information to my phone. I step off.

What I didn't know is that if my phone is not on vibrate, a robotic lady voice loudly announces my weight and measurements. The first time this happened I almost jumped out of my own skin! Wide-eyed, I embarrassedly glanced around to see if by chance anyone else was in the bathroom with me and almost collapsed in a fit of laughter, stark naked, and alone. I pretty much always have my phone on vibrate so the first time this happened was about one week into using the scale. I did not know this was a feature. I do not like this feature. It's happened twice now, the second time as horrifying as the first.

The app on the smartphone charts muscle, fat, water, and bmi by default but can also include lean body mass and bones. It can arrange the information by days, weeks, or months and I can look up my stats by month, then by day. It's very comprehensive. It shows a green arrow for good events (like losing fat and gaining muscle) and red for bad events (the opposite). I imagine if I had it set to "gain" these would be reversed. Each person in your house can download the app and have their own profile. If you don't want the app to record your stats then just hop on the scale and it will show you your weight, without recording anything. Good for the inquisitive guest.

The only thing I don't like about this scale? I now feel compelled to weigh myself daily (you can even weigh twice a day as it specifies a "morning" and "night" weigh-in.....*cue eye-roll*), which I don't like, but man, the graphs are addictive you guys!

This scale, at your own risk, is available at Amazon.com and retails for $74.95. Find out more at