Moving On...

So the time has come for me to try a new platform. I will be at the following address from now on http://aninspiredvegan.wordpress.com. Just be patient with me as I figure out the ropes and get it going. Have a great week!

Warm Potato and Green Bean Salad with Summer Savory

This recipe, originally printed in the August 2003 issue of Sunset Magazine, was also already vegan. I adapted it a bit just to make it as nutritious as possible. It was delicious!

Warm Potato and Green Bean Salad and Summer Savory

8oz green beans, rinsed and ends snapped off (I thawed some frozen ones)

1 1/2 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, sliced 1/4 inch thick (I used sweet potatoes)

2 tablespoons minced shallots

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil (optional, I used a couple tablespoons of coconut oil)

2 tablespoons summer savory leaves, chopped (I used fresh basil and sage)

Salt and fresh-ground pepper

2T Capers (these were not in the original recipe but I like capers so much, and had some on hand, that I decided to toss them in as well.

1      In a 4- to 5-quart pan over high heat, bring 2 quarts water to a boil. Add green beans and cook until bright green and tender-crisp, 1 to 2 minutes. Drain well and rinse with cold water until cool (or plunge in ice water); drain again.

2      In same pan, bring 2 quarts water to a boil over high heat. Add potato slices and cook until tender when pierced, 10 to 12 minutes; drain well and transfer to a large bowl.

3    Meanwhile, in a 1-cup glass measure, combine shallots and vinegar. In a 1- to 1 1/2-quart pan over medium heat, combine olive oil and summer savory. Stir occasionally until savory is limp and slightly darker and oil is fragrant, 10 to 12 minutes. If oil sizzles, reduce heat slightly.

4    Pour half the oil mixture into vinegar mixture and stir to combine; season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour over warm potatoes and mix gently to coat. Top potatoes with green beans and drizzle remaining oil mixture over beans. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Tip of the Day!

I decided I might start a new series of small posts called Tip of the Day. Here is the first.

You know when you make a delicious collard, cannellini bean, and garbanzo bean soup and you eat it a few days, but then see you only have a bit left and it mostly looks like collards cause you have eaten most of the beans already. Well, blend it up and use it as a spread, kind of like hummus. Delicious, second life given to tasty soup. 

White Bean Soup with Collard Greens

This recipe, originally printed in the January 2005 issue of Vegetarian Times, was already vegan, so I just adapted it to exclude the olive oil since I do not cook with oil anymore. This soup was super easy, tasty, and when I got to the last cup or so of it I blended it up to make a delicious dip!

White Bean Soup with Collard Greens

Serves 4

• 2 Tbs. olive oil (optional, I usually use water instead of oil)
• 2 cups chopped onions (I used scallions/ green onions which are some of the most nutritious onions)
• 3 cups collard greens leaves, rinsed and finely chopped
• 1 tsp. dried tarragon
• 2 15-oz. cans great Northern beans, drained and rinsed

1. Heat water in saucepan over medium heat. Add onions and cook, stirring often, until lightly browned, about 7 minutes.
2. Add collard greens, tarragon, 2 cups water and 3/4 tsp. salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and cook 20 minutes, or until greens are tender.
3. Meanwhile, put 1 can beans and 1 cup water in food processor or blender, and process until puréed. Add purée and remaining can of beans to pan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until heated through. Season to taste with freshly ground black pepper.

Enjoy!

Libations!

Usually when I am not seeing live music, going to a party, attending some sort of other art or cultural event, or seeing a movie at Laurelhurst Theater I go out with friends and get some food or drinks. There are some tasty drinks to be had in Portland!

Vegan Piccata Sauce!

One of my favorite dishes before becoming vegan, and even pescotarian, was chicken piccata. I ate a lot of chicken, but I have always loved anything that includes capers. So, when I came across this recipe for Tempeh Triangles with Piccata Sauce, I had to try it. I decided to blend the tempeh and make a faux chicken salad with them instead, but I kept the piccata sauce and made a soy curl pasta with it. Here is the oh so easy piccata recipe. Enjoy!

Piccata Sauce

1 1/2 t minced garlic
1/2 c fresh lemon juice
2 c dry white wine
1 T capers, drained
1/2 t salt (capers are salty, so you could omit this if you wanted)
1/2 t black pepper
1 T cornstarch dissolved in 3 T water

Roast garlic in skillet over medium heat, 20 seconds or so. Add lemon juice, wine, capers, salt and pepper; cook about 10 minutes. Stir in cornstarch mixture; cook 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat, and set aside. Use as you wish- a topping for grilled "chicken", with the original recipes of tempeh triangles, or mixed in with pasta and soy curls.

The original recipe was taken from The Vegetarian Times, March 2005 issue

Delicious food I eat when I am not eating lettuce...

A couple of the most common questions I get when people find out I am vegan is "What do you eat?" or "So you just eat vegetables and stuff?" I have eaten more variety as a vegan than I ever had as a pescotarian or omnivore. I am really lucky to live in Portland where there are some amazing chefs and eateries creating new and exciting dishes. We also have amazing farmers markets and produce and berries are easily grown locally.

Butternut Squash Soup from Blossoming Lotus

Truffled Seitan Steak from Blossoming Lotus

Ginger Spice Cake from Blossoming Lotus

Vegan Platter from Queen of Sheba

BBQ Burger and Smoky Bacon Fries from Wayward Cafe (Seattle)

Shredded carrot salad from Cruz Room

Pickle Chips from Cruz Room

Mezza Platter from Nicholas' Restaurant

Falafel from Nicholas' Restaurant

End of Summer Pasta

Recently, I made an awesome dish that was prefect for bringing in the close of summer. I love pasta and eat it at least once a week. This dish combined pasta, some roasted veggies, and originally called for marinated chicken (I used soy curls instead). I have always sauteed soy curls, but this time I broiled them in a roasting pan with the marinade and it is my new favorite way to cook them. Here is the basic recipe of the marinade and I how I roasted the soy curls. Super easy and really tasty!

1 c olive oil (I haven't used oil for cooking in a year, so I used water)

1/3 c reduced sodium soy sauce

1/4 c balsamic vinegar

3 T mustard (I used my homemade stone ground mustard)

6 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced

2 1/2 cups of soy curls (or other chicken substitute)

Whisk marinade ingredients together. Rehydrate soy curls, drain excess liquid, and marinate soy curls in marinade, in the refrigerator, for 20-40 minutes. Pour marinade and soy curls out onto a roasting pan and broil for 20 minutes or so, turning the soy curls a couple of times until they reach desired consistency.

Here is the original recipe from Sunset Magazine, September 2005.

Show compassion this holiday!

The holidays are upon us and this year FARM is promoting Compassionate Holidays- a campaign dedicated to supporting people who want to have a vegan holiday this year. Like the World Day for Farmed Animals website, they will have a database listing Compassionate Holiday events happening in the United States, Canada, and beyond.  

If you are already hosting a Compassionate Holiday event, or would be interested in organizing one this holiday season, they would love to hear about it and have it listed on their website. Compassionate Holidays provide an opportunity to encourage alternatives to cruel turkey dinners. By demonstrating the great taste and health benefits of vegan cuisine, we can convince our friends, family, and community to leave the turkey off the table this holiday season. 

Registering your event allows them to send you materials and list your activities in the Compassionate Holidays events directory and provides others a way to get involved. Together, we can demonstrate the true meaning of compassion and the benefits of a vegan lifestyle.

For someone who doesn't have a sweet tooth...

I really don't crave sweets like some people do. I am a pasta and bread kind of girl. However, we are lucky enough here in Portland to have a few vegan bakeries, and restaurants and bars that serve smaller businesses goodies. My newest favorite is by a company called Rawdacious. Local, raw, all vegan, and probably the best cheesecake I have ever had. I am on a mission to meet the girl, Jen, behind this amazing creation.

Winter in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest

After having lived in warm weather for the first 18 years of my life, I have completely grown to love seasons. Portland, and the Pacific Northwest, provide some of the most vibrant seasonal changes I have ever experienced, anywhere. Here are some of my favorite photos of Oregon in Winter.

Holiday in Hawaii...

I grew up in Hawaii from the age of 10 until I graduated from high school and left for college. It was a lot of fun and lucky for me, my parents still live there. I go back every year during the holidays. I have brought a few friends home with me, and this past Christmas my very dear friend Chioma came home with me for about a week. We had a great time! It was her first time in Hawaii, so it was fun to show her some of my favorite spots while she was there. Can't believe it's almost been a year already!

Caramel filled apples- Part of Christmas Eve Dinner

Messin' with Bubba Gump stuff

We had to take turns trying on the shoes

Umrao and Leilani, and awesome vegan couple we met at Kua Bay.
We are still in touch!

Welcoming my brother, CJ, home from his travels and Peace Corps service

Lasagna cupcakes veganized- part of Christmas Eve dinner

Sitting at the beach, taking in the salty air and the warm weather

Hawaii's state flower, the hibiscus

My parents dog, Kiko

Chioma and I brushin' our teeth, gettin' ready for our day

The view from a boat on the ocean.
Days like this, so clear with the mountain fully visible, are rare.

By request from our family friends I made stuffed sweet potatoes again.
Part of Christmas Eve dinner. 

My Garden

I love where I live. I have a great deal on my rent and I have a yard space in front. Since I have lived here, I am in my third year, I have had a garden out front. It is mostly a summer garden but I have been working on finding things to grow and eat in the Fall and Winter. Here are a few photos of my garden from this past summer.

My Corn, Lettuce, and Broccoli starts

Corn, Cantaloupe, Cucumber

Just some non edible plants for decoration, like Tiger Lilies

                                            Front porch view: Starts, Basil, Mint, Tomatoes

World Day for Farmed Animals

A couple of months ago I was offered a position as the National Grassroots Organizer of FARM (Farm Animal Rights Movement). It has been a great experience, and I love my commute (working from home). Tomorrow commemorates one of our annual holidays, that is celebrating its 30th year.

World Day for Farmed Animals, on October 2nd, is an international holiday directed at bringing awareness, mourning, and apology to the 65 billion animals killed for food. A group of us are going up to Seattle, from Portland, tomorrow to participate in one of the events. There are events happening all over the world, some of which happened last weekend.

To see the complete and up to date list of events happening worldwide, head to our website at www.dayforanimals.org

For all sentient beings,

Deanna

Photo by Joanna McArthur, Design by Cara Frye

Silver Creek Falls State Park, Oregon

A place I love that I haven't been to in a while is Silver Creek Falls State Park. The hike around, to all the waterfalls, is a great one. The trail is called The Trail of Ten Falls, and is about 7-8 miles round trip if you take all of the side paths to some of the less visible waterfalls (which is totally worth it, by the way). I really need to make a trip down there (about an hour South of Portland), go camping, and do this hike again. It really is so lovely.