Easy-Peasy Butterbean-y Soup

There are rules in our kitchen, folks. Since I started this blog, the number one rule is we don't eat anything unless it's been photographed step-by-step. That way, if we make a winner, I have the blog post halfway done before we even eat. My ex-husband didn't always follow this rule. When he cooked, he was cooking to eat, not document all the steps along the way for Vegerrific. In his defense, before we "vegged" out, he usually cooked more than I did. Since our change to a vegetarian lifestyle, however, he was often relegated to the taster role. He never complained, but I know he still loves to cook, and he's really good at it. One...

Read more »

Tossed Tempeh Salad with "Creamy" Italian Dressing

Truth is, I could live on tempeh. That's not quite an exaggeration. I love the darn stuff, and I never would have tried it had I not given up meat. When I first started cooking tempeh I followed the advice of many food bloggers to steam or simmer it to remove its "bitterness." I still occasionally go through the steaming or simmering, but I've grown to love the way it tastes as is. My taste buds truly have changed. I have also found that tempeh does help me lose weight. When I eat plain old tempeh a few times a week, the scale always stays the same or goes down. This is my experience, and I'm basing it on nothing other than my scale....

Read more »

Gardein Cutlets with Roasted Asparagus, Savory Amaranth and Cashew Cream

It is going to take longer to type this post than it took to cook this meal! When I was originally stocking my pantry for my venture into vegetarianism, I dedicated an entire shelf to grains of all kinds. Most of my collection has been used multiple times in the past year (even teff, which I had never even heard of and now use often). I've had one package of amaranth sitting on that shelf, and had only used it once or twice for bread. Amaranth seems to be used quite often as a hot cereal. It cooks up a lot like Cream of Wheat, with a very similar texture. Problem is, I'm not much of a "cereal for breakfast" kind of gal. So- there...

Read more »

Tofu Scramble (with Saffron, Because I'm Worth It!)

I'm in love with my new Tofu Presser, and to celebrate I made a tofu scramble just for little old me. It was my first time making one on my own. Now, to all the experienced vegans out there that's about the equivalent of saying to a non-veg that you scrambled an egg for the first time. It's not exactly the hardest dish to prepare. Even so, I decided to make a scramble that I thought was blog-worthy. As I opened my spice cabinet to grab the tumeric, I noticed my bottle of saffron right next to it. "A bottle of saffron" is an inaccurate description. What I had was an empty bottle save one wee little pinch of incredibly-expensive red filaments....

Read more »

Among the Things I'd Grab in a Fire: My New Tofu Presser

People- my laziness knows no bounds. For instance, I love tofu, but rarely ate it because I didn't feel like doing the whole pressing-between-two-plates business. I'd make my husband press it, then secretly think mean thoughts if it wasn't "wrung out" to my liking (lazy AND passive-aggressive: that's me!). So soon into the veg transformation, I went looking for a press that satisfied my needs and let my poor man off the hook. Enter the Tofu Xpress Gourmet Food Press. It was my first post-veg gadget purchase, and I loved it. And, like many first loves, I fell quickly and passionately. Also like many first loves (mine, at least), it left...

Read more »

On the Shore of Lake Michigan with Collene's Summer Salsa

Recently I had the pleasure of spending a weekend at the home of my very close friends, Collene and Jeff. They live on the west side of the state, and we spent the days lazing away in Lake Michigan, riding the waves and soaking up the sun. One night after the beach, Collene threw together some salsa for the quesadillas she had on the menu. Their quesadillas included chicken and cheese, but she made a veganized one for me, filled and topped with her beautiful salsa. I took pictures as she whipped up dinner and planned to write out the recipe, though with the colors of the ingredients and Collene's delicate hands, I felt the pictures were...

Read more »