Friday, March 30, 2012

Twin Oaks Tofu quesadilla with Bangarang! salsa

Twin Oaks Tofu vegan sausage quesadilla and homemade Bangarang! salsa
I haven't bought groceries in a few days.  Usually I go to the market almost every other day, but this week, I've been gardening so much, I haven't had time or made time, more like.  So after looting a very boring pantry and fridge, I found enough booty to make a fabulous quesadilla with homemade salsa. Here's the recipe for your treasure chest, I mean recipe box. ;)

Quesadilla

1 Burrito Sized Tortilla
Earth Balance Vegan Butter
1/4 cup sweet onion, sliced or diced
1/4 cup mushrooms, sliced or diced
1/4 cup Twin Oaks Tofu Vegan Sausage, crumbled
1/4 cup Diaya vegan cheese, I use mozzarella
1 Tbsp, chopped fresh cilantro

In a small skillet, saute onion, mushrooms and sausage in a little bit of vegan butter until the onions are translucent.

In a large skillet place a teaspoon of butter in the pan and heat on medium heat until melted.  Place your tortilla down and sprinkle on cheese and cilantro.  Let the cheese melt a bit maybe a minute or two and then spread the veggie saute on one side.  Fold over flap.  Place on a plate with a wide spatula.  Cut in four wedges and serve with your favorite dip, dressing or salsa.  I made my salsa from scratch too. Well, I had to because I didn't have any in the house, but I did have a can of tomato sauce and a can of diced green chili's and voila!

Salsa
1 (15 oz.) can of tomato sauce
1 small can, like 3 or 4 oz., of diced green chili's
1/2 tsp. Bangarang!
2 Tbsp. Apple cider vinegar
1/4 to 1/2 cup red onion, diced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, diced

Mix it all together and you got it.

Gar! Argh! Ahoy! Sea dog! Land lubber! Scalliwag! just getting it all out of my system! BOOTY!!! and I'm spent. :)

MOCHI!!!

Reginalds PB and MOCHI!!!
Last growing season, I was setting up my table and treats for the Whole Foods farmers market at Whole Foods Market in Short Pump, RVA.  I got there late, of course, because it is so hard to find a sitter, get the sitter to come on time, while I pack up my truck by 2:30 to make it to market by 3:30 and magically set up by 4 pm. And then, I just can't help it, I usually talk for a good 15 minutes to all of my great friends and forget entirely, what the heck I am there for.  Then there is the mad scramble.  Everyone helps me unload, unless they have a customer at their table, and then it is showtime.

Well, I was at the end of the row, as usual. Late, as usual, or later than the early bird vendors.  But, someone came later.  This cool kid from Pakistan who was taking a class on agriculture at a nearby community college.  He was so stoked about the growing season, and had a few berry bushes with him and handed out cards to the patrons, saying that if they wanted to plant an edible garden, to give him a call in the fall.  This kid was on FIRE!  I mean, he was so super energetic and passionate about plants, that it was so much fun to be beside him.  He and his propped up crates of repotted plants and his wonky sign, chattering like crazy and sweating profusely in the hot sun. His completely spastic behavior was marvelous and refreshing! This guy gets it! He reminded me of my childhood friend Sanjeeve who was the coolest and most energetic kid, besides Brad Sanders, in our little 5th grade class at St. Lukes school.  Hopping from here to over there and running in circles with his arms stiff as a board like a robot gone haywire.  It was the 80's, lots of silly robots were featured in almost EVERY movie and TV show and it was the trickle down effect. So of course, we could all act like robots, make robot shifting noises, and talk in a monotone and, of course, play Bricks on our personal computers all afternoon long (or Where in the World is Carmen San Diego). We were super cool kids.

After the market was over and he talked my ear off about his passion for plants, we all went inside for our dinner and groceries, which is half the fun of being a vendor at the Whole Foods market.  I bumped into him again when I was looking for Earth Balance butter when he screamed "MOCHI!!!!!".

"MOCHI!!!! They have MOCHI!!!  I used to eat this all of the time when I was in Japan!!!!"

I look at the tile of food he has in his hands and ask, "is it good?"

"This stuff is awesome!  You bake it and it fluffs up.  Then you can fill it with anything! MOCHI!!!!"

Reminds me of the movie Fried Green Tomatoes where Kathy Bates would knock down walls with a sledge hammer and scream, "TAWANDA!!!!"

MOCHI and Reg's PB!!!
Of course now I will have to scream, "MOCHI!!!!" when I'm lifting huge wheelbarrows  full of gravel for now on.  Last year my word was "DRAGO!!!" from Rocky IV when I was giving it all I've got.  My neighbors are really going to think I'm from a different planet entirely.  They can't see me through the pine blind but they can hear me yell the random, KEMPER!!! or PELHAM!!! or DRAGO!!!! and now I will add  MOCHI!!!! to my list of expletives! haha!!

So, it's a few months later and every time I am at Whole Foods, I see this MOCHI!!! and I'm reminded of the exuberant guy beside me at market that I have never seen since.  Last month I bought some, and now I'm completely hooked.  Not only is it super fun to eat, you get to fill it with all sorts of deliciousnessiosity. :)

Today I filled it with equal parts: Reginald's Peanut Butter, VA sorghum molasses (honey, maple or agave works well too), and vegan cream cheese.

Cut Mochi Squares
All you do is cut your MOCHI!!! tile into 1 inch by 1 inch pieces and bake it in a 450 degree oven for 10 minutes.  Pull it out.  Give a minute to cool, and slit open one of the sides and fill it with a tsp. of whatever you like.

MOCHI!!!!!

DRAGO!!!

KEMPER!!!!

PELHAM!!!!

MOCHI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Monday, March 19, 2012

Peanut Butter and Strawberry Confections

Strawberries with Reg's PB and Confectioners Sugar
I just have to share with you one of my favorite new snacks.  I thought of it yesterday and wondered why on earth I hadn't done it before.  I love peanut butter and strawberry jam sandwiches.   And, when I was a child one of my favorite food memories was at bible camp at Culpeper United Methodist Church.  Blanche Malenowski, spelled phonetically of course, was our camp volunteer and she had thought up the most fantastic treat for our vacation bible school. She broadened our minds with a weeks worth of playing pretend at traveling abroad.

We took our Polaroid pictures and made a passport in class.  Then each day at camp, we went up to Blanche, she rubber stamped them, and we pretended to board a plane but really we just went inside our classroom and sat around in plastic orange and red chairs lined with an aisle down the center while watching a documentary on France. Afterwards, for our snack we gathered around our tables to eat strawberries dipped in confectioners sugar, naan or some other delight.

That week we visited the Pyramids, she had slides from her and Mal's trip to Egypt, the Eiffel Tower and all sorts of other exotic places.  I wish I still had my little, play passport.  What a clever way to introduce a bunch of Culpeper kids to something that was beyond our borders.  Thank you Blanche.  You really made an impression on this kid.

So, I love strawberries dipped in confectioners sugar since my visit to the Eiffel Tower during vacation bible school, and I love peanut butter.  Why not combine all three of my favorites into a tasty treat?  Well, alright then!!!

And, BTW, this is my new go to snack.  Perfect for after school or pre-workout, I think.

All you need are these:

A pint or so of strawberries, washed
Reginald's Original Peanut Butter, Virginia's Finest of course
Confectioners sugar, or powdered sugar

Dip strawberries into PB or use a spoon or knife and spread it on.  Then dip the tip into confectioners sugar.  And as the French say, Bon Appetit!

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

Stuffed Vegan Cabbage Rolls
This morning I was taking a peek at the Whole Foods Short Pump website.  I was actually looking for me, but no mention of GreenHearts Farm stuff was on there. HA!  I'm so silly.  But, I am a dreamer.  And, I found that Jesse (from WF) was on our local news channel making stuffed cabbage.  So cool!  I immediately watched it, since it is St. Patty's day and I wanted to make something awesome to go with my Guinness.  Yes, I do love Guinness but I really only drink it a few times a year.  I just wonder what movie to watch with it.  When I was younger, I used to watch Boondock Saints on St. Patty's Day every year, but I don't know.  I think the older I get, the more I want something like a romantic comedy or something really rawther BBC related or masterpiece theater to lighten my spirits.  I know, a complete 180 from my terribly-terrific-tantrum filled teen years. One word to describe the Jen of Then:  rebel--without-a-clue.  That is one word right?

So I haven't quite figured out what movie to go with this but I'm kinda thinking something like the old John Candy movie where he falls in love and he's an Irish cop in Boston, maybe.  Thank goodness for Google.  So he was a cop in Chicago with on overbearing Irish mother.  Do you remember the name?  Only the Lonely!  That was it.  I watched it when I was about 10 years old.  Two decades ago.  Sheesh.  No wonder I couldn't remember the name.  

Oh my goodness, I almost forgot about Far and Away!  I think I have that one too in our extensive collection of movies.  Who knows if it is in the case though.  Drat.  We have loads of DVD's but we are not very good at putting them back in the case.  

If I can find it, I'm so going to watch Far and Away tonight.  So romantic. And there's boxing.  Momma loves a fighter.  I feel like women can identify with boxers, or at least this woman can.  You have to fight to the death for everything you want, and you just keep getting a right hook that you didn't see coming or that jab that stings your nose, but you have to have endurance and finally you get that pep talk in the corner, just when you think you can't take another hit, and then you make a last stand and bring in a victory!  My version of life.  

BTW, I would like to remove a four letter word my family's vocabulary and just wipe it out of my existence, maybe.  The word FAIR. Agh!  I hear it all day long from Pelham, and then I poked fun of my husband saying that me downloading a book on my kindle for 5 minutes (which didn't load since he drove away from the Caroline Library after his patience was up) wasn't fair because I said it would take 2 minutes.  Let me ask you.  When you say something will take 2 minutes, that's a figure of speech right?  It never just takes 2 minutes.  So don't hold a person literally to 2 minutes.  Aaagh.  And then, I caught myself saying that something wasn't FAIR 5 minutes later, and Chris mocked me.  Which I totally deserved.  And then we had a  laugh and held hands.  All is FAIR in love and war. There's that word again.

So I have my movie figured out.  Far and Away and now it is on to dinner. 

My sister, Julie, and I are always thinking up a dinner and a movie kind of theme.  And for some odd reason, I love to sit down with my dinner and watch a movie while I eat.  I get so much pleasure out of it.  

Without further ado, I give you:

St. Patty's Day Cabbage Rolls

Ingredients:
1 head of cabbage, remove outer leaves and discard, then peel off each leaf, try to keep intact. I start from the stem and pull up

2 lbs. potatoes, peeled and quartered
2 Tbsp. Earth Balance butter
2 Tbsp. fresh herbs, chopped (I used dill, parsley and chives with a little bit of thyme)

1 Tbsp. prepared mustard
1/2 tsp. bangarang!signature seasoning
1 package of Tofurky Roast Beef vegan deli slices, sliced thinly and then in half, to look like shredded
1 1/2 cup boiling water

1 Tbsp. Earth Balance vegan butter
1/2 of a sweet yellow onion, sliced thinly
1/2 of a yellow pepper, sliced thinly
1/2 cup matchstick carrots
1/2 of a red pepper, sliced thinly
1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced thinly and then again, to resemble matchsticks

Directions
In a large stock pot, boil cabbage leaves, three at a time for about 3-5 minutes.  Remove from boiling water and place in a colander.  Continue with all of the leaves.  After you are finished, you can carefully place your quartered potatoes in the boiling water and boil for 15 minutes until a fork can easily pierce.  Remove cabbage leaves from colander and set on your working surface for later.  Drain potatoes in the colander.

In a mixing bowl.  Place boiled potatoes and 2 T. butter.  Using a hand mixer, beat until smooth.  I cooled them for a bit in the fridge and then added the fresh herbs and S and P to my liking.

In a large skillet, heat 1 T. Earth balance butter, add onions and garlic. Saute, stirring twice in 5 minutes.  Add peppers and carrots. Saute for a bit.  Add mushrooms.  Saute 1 to 2 minutes longer.  Add 1 1/2 cups water, mustard and bangarang! Bring to a simmer with the veggies.  Toss in the sliced vegan roast beef and simmer a couple of minutes.  Remove the veggies mix and save the juice.

Line out your ingredients for the rolls on your working surface.  Cabbage leaves.  Mashed potatoes. Veggie Mix. 
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  

Grab a casserole dish to bake your rolls in and place it beside your work station.

Take one cabbage leave and place 1/4 cup of mashed potatoes on the spine.  Followed by 1/4 of a cup veggie mix.  Fold the left and right sides of the leaf to the center to cover up the veggies and mash.  Moving from the bottom of the spine, roll up to the top.  Place the cabbage roll with the seam side down in your casserole dish.  Continue with as as many cabbage rolls as can fit the casserole dish comfortably.  

Grab your cup of veggie and spice drippings and pour them into the dish.  Cover with foil and bake for 35 minutes.  Remove from the oven and enjoy piping hot.  

I think I will be serving them with a side of my favorite dips drizzled on top.

Drizzle fo' cabbage shizzle:

mix together:
1/4 cup prepared mustard
1/4 cup Follow Your Heart Veganaise
1/4 cup prepared vegan BBQ sauce
1/4 cup agave syrup or maple syrup

I think I'm going to serve it with Fried Apples and a wedge of my famous cornbread since that is easy-peasy and I don't have an Irish Soda Bread prepped for tonight.  

I will submit a picture later.  No SD card for my Android.  Long, stupid story there.  Have fun Verizon, looking at my thousands of photos that I sent to you with my broken phone.  Wish you would have told me to remove it before I dropped it off at FedEx.  There goes a year of my life. 

That's not FAIR!!! hahahah! :)





Friday, March 16, 2012

Vegan TVP Salad

Jen's Vegan Chik'n Salad
I just made the best homemade vegan chik'n salad ever! and I have to share the recipe with you all. It was so easy.  So very, very easy.  I've become quite the vegan chik'n salad (VCS) expert over the past decade and I have loved and enjoyed copious amounts of Whole Foods VCS and buy it in the pint sized containers.  That pint lasts maybe two days in this household with three boys and me, an iron pumping (as of today), hoe swinging, knife wielding Momma. I'm hungry ALL the time. So I need a staple VCS to whip up at home.

I've tried Ellwood's of RVA's VCS and it is a very tasty recipe that closely resembles WF.  It seems to be an easy recipe, you just have to be able to get your hands on a lot of vegan chik'n cutlets and vegenaise from one of the big health food grocery distributing companies.  So it was very good there. $$$ too.

I've had Good Food groceries of RVA's VCS and I like it.  It tastes heavy on the celery salt though and it's made of TVP instead of the cutlets (cutlets are not gluten-free). TVP is gluten free. I like it, okay, just needs different fresh herbs and seasoning.  But, way healthier than the deep fried cutlets.  Which, I'm 99% sure that they deep fry the cutlets, like when they are making the Vegan General Tsoa's, and then chop them up. But, I really could be mistaken because I've deep fried the Morning Star vegan chik'n cutlets to make the salad and it has an entirely different texture. It is safe to say that I am a bit obsessed with food.

Also, I really enjoyed the Ellwood's vegan mac and cheese.  They made a whitesauce out of soymilk like I do, and that's why I like theirs.  Good job Ell.  Very nice. Just wish it was gluten-fee.  I have no sensitivities. Just a preference.  But it was cute, they packed the noodles in muffin tray and topped with vegan buttered bread crumbs for some texture, refrigerated them and popped them out like muffins for the deli display.

So back in the kitchen.  I want a non-fried, TVP non-GMO, chock full of veggies, spiced right, herbed up, VCS.  And, I think I nailed. Pretty dang good and pretty good for you too.  Especially after pumping iron until the hands are shaking kind of day.  I LOVE THOSE DAYS btw.  I called my hubby after I left the Spotsy YMCA today just to say that I just wrecked my body and I feel better than ever. Aaaah. Bliss.  (I was a personal trainer and aerobics instructor for nearly a decade, I got preggors with Kemper and I have not lifted weights in 3 years until today, I'm on a high for sure).

THE salad

1 cup water
1/2 tsp. or less Bangarang! signature seasoning
1 cup TVP (soy flour textured veggie protein)

1/4 cup carrots, diced
1/4 cup red onion, diced
1/4 cup celery, diced
1/4 cup sweet cubed pickle relish, farmer's market fresh
1/4 cup Follow Your Heart Vegan Mayo or Veganaise
2-4 sprigs of each: parsley, thyme, rosemary, dill and chives, minced
juice of one wedge of lemon

In a small saucepan, heat water and Bangarang! to a boil.  Turn off heat. Add TVP and stir until well combine. Cover and rest for 5 minutes.

In a bowl combine all of the other ingredients.  When TVP has cooled toss it in and stir to coat.  Refrigerate for a half hour (or you can do what I did- put it in a bowl and put it in the freezer.  Stir every 2 minutes until chilled to your liking which takes about 5 for me).  Season with more Bang! or black pepper.

YUMM-O But, feel free to make yours even better. :)

You can put this over bread and then slap on some vegan mozzarella, toast it up for a bit, add some tomato slices and some lettuce and another slab of bread, and voila.  A pretty tasty lunch or toss it on top of salad or serve with your favorite cracker.  You just can't go wrong.

Friday, March 2, 2012

Oh my gosh....YUM!

The Sammich
I just had an OMG...YUM moment.  I made the most fabulous Sammich I've ever, ever eaten for lunch. EVER!  It totally trumps my favorite vegan chicken salad sandwich that everyone knows that I ardently adore.  Oh, what a pretty name, Arden.  I have a friend named Arden, and for now on I will think of her as "a beautiful forest".  I just had to look up what the name means in the English language, as far as names go.  Very nice.

A bit better than "white wave" or whatever my name means now.

So, this morning I was researching anti-cancer foods because I would really, really, like to go forward from this moment on and try to prevent cancer as much as possible.  I was first reading all of the give-cancer-the-finger-foods (I hate cancer it has robbed me of my loved ones and family) and then one thing led to another and I'm at Dr. Oz's site researching the most aggressive cancers and then my throat started to feel really sore.
Esophageal cancer is always in the back of my consciousness and I try and stuff it down with healing thoughts and foods and diversions, just anything, and prayer. Loads of prayer.

Dr. Oz said that you are at risk for esophageal cancer if you have more than one alcoholic drink in one sitting.  Whowhat? Come again.  Doc.  Where were you in my early 20's? Why am I in my 30's reading this for the first time.  Sure, I thought it was binge drinking that got you there, and we all know it's considered a binge after 4 drinks. But after one?! Come on Doc.  Give a gal a break! Only thing to do is to learn from knowledge and not reflect on the past mistakes. They are done.  Just do the best you can with what you've got. And that will have to be enough.

Last time I was at the dentist, there was an understudy or someone in there with him that he was explaining everything that he was doing during a patients routine visit.  He grasped my tongue and pulled it down and peered down my throat, and said "normal".  And I immediately flicked my tongue away and said, "what are you looking for?  Is it cancer?"  He immediately started to laugh and said that when his father was in Dental College that he would routinely fall symptomatic to whatever infection or illness he was studying at the time.  And said that his father was a hypochondriac for many years, just like me.  Then I asked what are you looking for, lesions, redness and swelling, can I look myself? and so on.

I have had a tickle in my throat for a few days now, and have decided to I read something about esophageal cancer and now I'm on the war path, or quest to quell the cancer that may or may not be there.  And, in my mornings research, (I really should try to sleep in so I do not poison my brain for the day), I read that some of the best foods are beans, grains, soy, cabbage, garlic among other great things like berries and flaxseed.  I'm not much of a fruit person though.  My blood sugar gets really spiked if I eat too much fruit in one sitting and I'm irritable and highly irrational.  Do not, I repeat, do not engage in conversation with me or make eye contact when I'm crashing after eating a banana or two. You wouldn't dance with a grizzly, would you?  I didn't think so.

I've been up since 4 so it's about 10:30 and I need lunch.  Blood sugar thing and being a Brooks.  We are unpredictable if we are hungry.  Best to go ahead and eat.

I want to incorporate all of the lovely foods that are anti-cancer in one big ol' sammich.  So this is what I did and BTW it was fabu-X-2. Fabu! Fabu! Uh! Uh!

The Sammich

2 slices of your favorite multigrain bread, I got mine from Flour Garden, in RVA
3-5 slices peppered Tofurky deli slices
1 cup cabbage, thinly sliced
1 shallot, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp. olive oil
1 dash of Bangarang! signature seasoning, Virginia's Finest Woot!
1-2 Tbsp. vegan rice cheese I use the mozzarella, I love Galaxy Nutritional Foods brand
1 handful of spring mix greens
1 Tbsp. cilantro, chopped
1 Tbsp. veganaise, I love Follow Your Heart brand
1 Tbsp. Hot Pepper Jelly, I use Graves Mountain Lodge, Virginia's Finest Woot!

In a skillet, bring your oil to medium heat and toss in shallots and garlic, let sizzle for a minute or two then toss in the cabbage.  Let it get a little golden with a few minutes heat before stirring.  Sprinkle on a dash of Bangarang! Toss to coat.
Toast the two slices of bread.  Put veganaise on the bottom slice.  Top with spiced cabbage, then cilantro.  Place your tofurky deli slices on top, then your vegan cheese.  Then top with spring greens.  Lastly, spread the Hot Pepper Jelly on the top slice of bread and slap on top. Cut into wedges and serve warm.

My, I hate Cancer, Sammich:
Mutligrain, check!
Soy, tofurky, and veganaise check!
Cruciferous veggie, cabbage, check!
olive oil, check!
garlic, check!
check!
Check!
CHECK!

and Woot!

It is OMG...Yum or Fabu! Fabu! For those with flair!

Thursday, March 1, 2012

What a treat!!!!

Sticky Fingers' Cowvin Cookies
VEGAN!
Okay, so last week, or was it this week.  Okay, this week (it's been a busy week), we were dog sitting over at the Aunt and Uncle's house and I was flipping through the Southern Living magazine.  I have no idea what month it was but they were showcasing the best of the best, the creme de la creme of the bakers, cookie makers and so on.  I love these issues.  I should say that they seem to be a bit biased in their decisions and there is no way for them to taste everything that is fabulous out there, even the little folks, but, I enjoy the read and in this case, they were right on the money.

It's so cool to see what other artists are doing and what flavor combinations they are playing with to excite the folks tucking into their pastries. I like to look at the glossy pics. Salivate for a bit, uncontrollably and wonder could I make a vegan version? Then, I read that there was a favorite cookie from none other than a vegan bakery.  NO WAY!  Everyone knows I have a ginormous sweet tooth and that's why I don't bake.  I just love the crispness and sweetness of the cookie. I love when they throw in some oats for a bit more texture and add another layer of food memento in my brain, an imprint that lasts decades.

I confess, I read the article, thought about its awesomenish and flipped through the rest.  It began to bug me as I was picking up after ourselves to head back home, I just had to know the bakery. So I went back to the magazine and tore it out.  Sticky Fingers of DC. BING!

I know. I know. Wrong-O. Or in the words of Mr. Darling, from Peter Pan, "mea culpa, mea culpa". I thought I could remember it, but I didn't want to sell myself short, and I can be a bit hyperfocused on my work and leave the rest to scatterbrain-Jane (or in this case Jen).

Rip. Fold. Stash.

Today, I was at Whole Foods getting my ridiculously-colossal-vegan-chicken-sandwich on, which all of the deli ladies and gents can't stand my sandwich request.  It's like salad sandwich. You can't stack it. You can hardly cut it, and to lift it up to box it, forget it.  They probably look at me and say to themselves, why don't you get your bubble butt over to the trough, and get your salad, and then come back over here and get your 8 oz. container of vegan chicken salad.  But, I don't want to go home and build it.  I like it all together in between two slices of multigrain bread.  Nummmm.  It's my little piece of vegan sunshine in a box.  It's all worth it to eat like a Vegan Diva.  Plus, it's a whole lot cheaper this way. Thank you very much.  I know what I'm doing here. ;)

So I'm waiting at least 5 minutes for the colossus (I don't mind at all) in the bakery section doing figure eights around the baked goods and watching the steady stream of people haunt the hot trough and the cold trough.  I have a thing about open food in a buffet.  I just can't do it.  All of the dander, hair, sneezes, mixed up spoons, who knows. Who knows?  I'd rather have the gloved and hatted professionals putting together the masterpiece, that serves as lunch and second lunch (I'm part hobbit on my mother's side).  I eat half in the demi booth with Kemper, who is constantly getting the best bites, while he has his favorite 'Za in front of him, and then I eat the other half an hour or two later. Savor the flavor. Stay hungry my friends.  It's the only way to really enjoy your food.  

And, GUESS WHAT, on my third or fourth figure eight, I look down at the cookies and I see STICKY FINGERS! dah da duh DAH!!  VEGAN!  Oh my goodness, or should I say in the most Southern of expressions, Oh my Stars!  There were like three or four different varieties that must have just arrived this week, just for me!  I looked them all over.  I'm not really a chocolate person today so I went with the Cowvin Cookie.  They reminded me of the Little Debbie creme filled cookies I filched from my friends snack cabinets when I was a child, we hardly had such garbage in my house growing up.  It's a good thing too, because I was A-Dict-Ted to sweets as a child.

Funny story, when I was in fourth grade, I did one of those chocolate fundraisers, got all of the Aunts and Uncles to buy some chocolate turtles for my school.  When the turtles came in, I stuffed them into the bottom of my dresser drawers, and ate them all in secret.  No one ever asked me about them either. But, to this day, I still feel completely guilty.  SO SORRY.

I paid $6 for 2 vegan cookies today. It is a double cookie with creme in the middle. Two vegan (really 4 cookies with creme) cookies from Sticky Fingers (DC) that traveled hundreds of miles to make it to my tastebuds in their full vegan glory.  And, oh my goodness, it was worth every penny.  Chris scarfed his down immediately.  I still have mines.  I cut it into wedges and I have been going back to the pantry for tastes throughout the evening.

Thank you Sticky Fingers.  Thanks for being you.