Vegan MoFo Day 11: Restaurant Review Chutney Villa

I've been to Chutney Villa on Broadway once before for Dine Out Vancouver last year and really enjoyed it. My friend Sean and I have been meaning to go back for months but there are so much good food in Vancouver it can be a little tough. We made it though! And it did not disappoint. Serving sizes were much larger than for dine out. 

Aachi Varuval

Crispy cauliflower that is super yummy! I love all the chutney's they give you (below). They go awesome with the cauliflower. Good advice from our lovely server, don't eat ALL of the appetizer as the meal serving sizes are quite large. Tis true my friends. Tis true.

Paruppu Oorundai

I got the paruppu oorundai which are lentil dumplings soaked in a South Indian curry and I have to say this is seriously delicious. SO yummy! It was just fantastic. I love Indian food and eating South Indian is something new to me. Even though there are so many similarities, the differences are noticeable. I find there is less oil and there are differences in the spices. Also, do you see that little donut looking thing? DELISH! The meal did come with a yogurt sauce (I did not eat it), veggies, soups and a dessert type thing. It was gelatinous. I did not like it at all. I have never enjoyed Indian desserts. It was just like gelatinous sugar with seeds. 

Chutney

Look at all the chutney's! Love them. To be honest, I never know what kind they are. All I ask is if there is dairy in them. If not I'm good. Both times I've been here the chutney's have been different. YUM.

Go check them out! They are on Broadway and Main. Great service, great food.

Peace

xoxo

K

Vegan MoFo Day 9: Tabbouleh

I have never been a big fan of tabbouleh before as I'm not into parsley very much. Parsley and cilantro have an intense flavour BUT are super good for you. So I now force myself to eat and cook with it as they add awesome notes and vitamins to a dish. A couple weeks back it was my good friend Eduardo's birthday and my friend Dean thew a surprise birthday for him. He made a gorgeous spread of appetizers which I'm pretty pissed that I didn't take a snap shot of that cuz seriously it was rather impressive. Dean was so sweet and made sure there were some vegan items on the table so that I could snack as well. 

Like I said, tabbouleh was never a fave but Dean's looked so good and it was all homemade so I HAD to try it. OMG. Best tabbouleh. Hands down. I told him immediately that I need to have the recipe. 

Tabbouleh

Ingredients

1 cup Bulgar wheat, cooked and chilled

1 cup lemon juice (abt 3 lemons)

1 bunch parsley

4 medium tomatoes, diced

1/4 cup olive oil

salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Mince the parsley in a food processor.

2. Combine all ingredients in bowl, season to taste

3. ENJOY!

Dean's tabbouleh

I have to say, it was freaking delish! It was my first time ever making tabbouleh but I think I did a pretty good job but Dean's was still way better. I really want him to try it and give me some pointers. He has mastered it for sure. :)

Birthday cake

The coolest birthday cake I've ever seen! 

Birthday man, Eduardo

Oh Eduardo, so gorgeous. He's also a chef. I'm hoping we can get in the kitchen and make some magic together......I meant cooking you perverts! lol We plan on making some cactus tacos! YUM! I've never had cactus before. I'm pretty much game to try almost anything once! Sounds cool.

Peace

xoxo

K

Vegan MoFo Day 3: Restaurant Review: Acorn

When I first heard about Acorn opening up in Vancouver I was super excited. There are not many vegetarian fine dining restaurants in Vancouver so whenever something a little nicer than the Naam opens up I'm super excited. It's great to have a nicer spot for a celebration dinner or a date perhaps. 

Acorn has vegetarian, vegan, raw, and gluten free dishes! BOOM. Speaking my language. They mark every item on the menu with codes to indicate if there are vegan, raw or gluten free options but all are vegetarian. Whenever I go to a restaurant where I can eat everything or almost everything on the menu its super hard to choose. LOL It's like Christmas!  Thankfully I went with 3 girlfriends, one of whom is vegan and 2 that are semi-vegetarian. So we all agreed to order different items and share. MY FAVE! I love trying as many items as I can off a new menu. So here goes it:

Ladies night!

Apple

I didn't try these delicious looking balls (shocking I know) but they have cheese inside. I know I know, its VEGAN month of food, but I had to show the picture. They looked wonderful and the plating is beautiful. And the comments from my non-vegan friends were awesome. 

Artichoke

This was tasty. Kind of like a hummus but with artichokes. It does not come with enough croustini's but they will give you extra. The pate was light but flavourful. 

Beet

In terms of plating, this one is my fave! Looks SO gorgeous. I love the red and yellow contrasting colours. I love nut cheese so the addition of macadamia nut cheese is to die for, along with an odd pairing with grapefruit sorel was WONDERFUL! I loved that. I love combining ingredients that are unusual. It worked very well in this dish and the cider glaze was like icing on the cake.

Zucchini

Again, plating in this place is just fantastic! Every dish is so beautiful. The colours are vibrant and contrasting to make them pleasing to the eye. I quite enjoyed this dish as well. The sauce was a cashew rose sauce which really complimented the zucchini noodles. It was rich enough to add a lot of flavour but not so much that it overpowers everything else. I'm not a fan of olives, but not a big deal.

The special (potato salad)

I liked the use of the different types of potatoes in this dish. It also had avocado which I love. Super colourful and a nice spin on a potato salad. It wasn't homely which is what I think of potato salad. Its usually all mayo and egg but this was nothing like that. It was good but not a dish that stood out for me.

Mushroom

This was my fave entree of the night. When I saw king oyster mushrooms on the menu, it didn't even matter what else was with the dish. I LOVE oyster mushrooms and they are not utilized enough. It says spelt on the menu but mine was done with quinoa. The peppercorn sauce was SO yummy!!! I didn't waste one drop. lol It was powerful and complimented everything else. Freaking fantastic.

Rhubarb

My first choice for dessert was obviously chocolate and peanut cuz that is one of the best combo's ever but I still wanted to try another dessert. The other vegan option was the rhubarb so my friend Marina and I shared both. And to my surprise, the rhubarb was my fave. I didn't even think I liked rhubarb but apparently I do. The sorbet and rhubarb combo was so satisfying. The tartness of the sorbet went amazingly well with the rhubarb. I ate it all. lol

Peanut

This was obviously good but not awesome. Basically anything with chocolate is good. It gets me every time. Its hard to complain when ur eating chocolate. But it was not what I was expecting. It was a little hard and not as flavourful as I expected. Kind of light in terms of both chocolate and peanut. The coconut whip was delish though. But the dessert itself was kinda just average. 

So overall I liked Acorn a lot. The food is REALLY good. Like I said, if you have a celebration or need to take a date somewhere a little nicer that a burrito joint than here it is. But don't think you're going to get great service. That is my one complaint. Service was crappy. I almost wanted to strangle the bartender. He was not nice. Not friendly at all. The server was a little better but still attitude was really lacking there all around. As long as ur ok with some average at best service but some good food then you'll be fine. 

Oh yah, no reservations which is kinda typical these days in Vancouver but also, they won't seat you till your whole party arrives. I think that is total BS. Its one of those places. 

Peace

xoxo

K

Vegan MoFo Day 1: Restaurant Review: Hell Pizza

It's that time of year again!!! Vegan Month of Food. This will be my second time participating in MoFo and I'm really excited to see what will come of it. I'm gonna start Vegan MoFo off with a restaurant review. Its not a full vegan restaurant but they have vegan options. 

 

I heard about Hell Pizza from my friend Oli. It's great pizza with cool names. The coolest part is they have a vegan pizza on the menu! It's called Sinister and has refried beans, avocado, onions, salsa, green peppers and jalapenos. YUMMMM. Omg you had me at refried beans. They also have daiya and will use that if you ask for it, but if you don't, then its just sans cheese. So keep that in mind if you're really into daiya.

I love the addition of refried beans. I never thought of that! Adds some necessary protein and bulk to a vegan meal. Not that pizza usually needs more bulk. LOL I just love refried beans so much. It makes the pizza juicy, tasty and filling. 

Sinister - vegan w/ Daiya

Cool box!

If you haven't had this pizza, I highly suggest that you do. The names are cool, the options are endless and they can make any pizza vegan! Obviously not the meat pizzas but any of the veggie options can be done vegan and I'm sure you can create your own. I love pizza shops that have daiya. Ordering a pizza to be delivered to my couch is a luxury I took advantage of when I wasn't vegan. LOL

ALSO, you can place your order online! Love that. If you wanna pick them up and are in the West End, check them out at 1074 Davie Street. Tell Steve I say what up.

Peace

xoxo

K

Vegan MoFo is Over: Vegan Junk Food

This is it, Vegan MoFo is over. Last night I was craving some Vegan junk food. A fellow vegan friend has been talking about Tofurkey pizza and I just wanted something that would satisfy my craving for cheeziness. I didn't want to get a whole pizza because, well that's a little much and plus I wanted some other bad snacks like chips and Halloween candy. Yah, I went over board.

YUM!! All my ingredients to make my junk food. Its actually not that bad considering I got the vegan, gluten and soy free Penne and Chreese. I also have soy free earth balance and used lots of veggies in it also. 

Looks kinda like hamburger helper sans hamburger. Lol. Got some broccoli, onions and roasted delicata squash in my junk food. Maybe its not all that junky...? THe ingredient list on the mac and chreese is actually pretty small. And I think it was no msg too. BONUS!

NOW that my junk food craving is gone. Its back to health. I have a new challenge that I'm starting. Sorta today but since I had leftover mac and chreese I kinda had to half ass it today. But don't fret, It starts in full force tomorrow. I'll do a separate post for it so you know what it is and if you wanna join in, DO IT!

So, in regards to my junk food. To make it less guilt inducing I added broccoli, onion, roasted delicata squash, jalapeno and low fat almond breeze milk. The seasonings I added were chili flakes, garlic powder and 1/4 tsp sea salt. Not bad at all.

Peace MoFo's. That's my last MoFo for the year.

That being said, Happy World Vegan Day!!!! Its the 67th Birthday of the term vegan. YAHHHH!

xoxo

K

Vegan MoFo Day 31: Happy Halloween!

So MoFO's its the last day of Vegan MoFo. Although my posts won't be labelled it don't mean I'm quitting! It was Halloween this weekend, obviously. So there wasn't a whole lot of cooking. And my Internet is STILL down at home, grrrrrrrrrr. Ask me how happy that makes? I dare you. Lol

On Friday, I had my good pal Jimmy over for dinner and a scary movie night. I didn't do anything fancy but I made a stirfry with panko tofu.

It was delish! I made the panko tofu before. You can find it here. For the stirfry I did this:

1 head broccoli

3 stalks kale, leaves removed

3 pieces green swiss chard

1 bunch spinach, chopped

2 carrots, sliced

soy sauce

Thai sweet soy sauce

Garlic chili sauce

I just put all the veggies in a wok, steam with a little bit of water, like less than a 1/4 cup. Once cooked, added the sauces to my taste and voila! Serve over top brown rice, sprinkle a handful of panko tofu and you've got a tasty meal right there. The tofu is baked FYI so no guilt!

On Saturday I dressed up in the BEST costume I've ever made. I seriously loved it. I was famous. Everywhere I went people were shouting "Srirachaaaaaaaaaaa" and just loving it. Especially the Asians. Lol we have that sauce in our blood, that and soy sauce. lol (ps I'm half Japanese, not racist) One guy called me Tabasco, which I promptly corrected him. But same family I guess. I was in so many random photos. Got so many compliments and jokes and was squeezed multiple times. LOL

Sriracha

SRIRACHA HOT CHILI SAUCE!

1920s Paper Boy and Sriracha

Well, its quite boring to be in my regular clothes now. But the carbs I ate yesterday sure were amazing. Had a fam thing so I ate the ish outta that sushi. Mmmmm rice. How I've missed you. But now to get back on track. I'm gonna wash that white paint off the dress and wear it in Vegas for my friends stagette! FUN!

Peace out MoFo's!

xoxo

K

Vegan MoFo Day 28: Homemade Granola and Edamame Guacamole

I decided to take matters into my own hands and make my own granola. I'm pretty tired of searching through the bags and bags of granola at the grocery stores looking for one without sugar (that's also not $16). Its quite easy to make. I'd add a couple extra ingredients next time but for a first round.....I'll take it.

Banana Granola


Ingredients:
2 tbsp flax seeds
1 carrot
2 ripe bananas
1/2 cup water
2 tsp vanilla
4 cups rolled oats
4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 trail mix
3 tbsp agave nectar
1/4 cup coconut meat
Sprinkle hemp

Directions:
1. Add Carrot and flax seeds to blender or food processor and blend until finely chopped. Add banana's and water and process until smooth.
2. Mix all remaining ingredients in a large bowl and spread over a lightly greased baking sheet.
3. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. ENJOY!

Notes: next time I would add a 1/2 cup apple sauce and 1 tsp nutmeg.

I added it to my Coconut yogurt this morning and it was yummy!!

I have been wanting to make Edamame Hummus for a while now but I keep forgetting. Last night I combined 2 of my favorite dips into one awesome dip with a twist.

Edamame Guacamole
1 avocado
1 cup edamame
2 handfuls spinach
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup water
1/2 lemon
pepper to taste
2 tbsp chili flakes
1 tbsp garlic powder

Directions:
1. Add all ingredients to a blender or food processor and process until smooth

Note: I used mine as a sauce so I added 1/4 cup more water to make it more liquidy.

Crazy green colour! Love green food!

Then I mixed it with quinoa and the TruRoots Organic Sprouted Bean Trio and voila!

Yummy! Nutritious salad for lunch. This was good hot and cold actually.

Well its Halloween weekend. I hope everyone is up to no good, I know I am. Lol. I didn't get much done on my costume last night as planned. A gf came over and I got distracted. I did have another go at the painting and hat part. The hat looks ok but not good enough, so I'm gonna try to finish it tonight or tomorrow day time. I can't stop painting the rooster big. Lol. I like big..............I won't finish that sentence. Keep it PG13. ;)

Peace MoFo's!!!

xoxo

K

Vegan MoFo Day 27: Delicata Squash

I was introduced to Delicata Squash 2 or 3 weeks ago by a friend at work. It is nicknamed Sweet Potato Squash because, well, it tastes like sweet potatoes. Its pretty much the most amazing squash I have ever tasted. I'm a big fan of Butternut and Acorn (fave). Its now replaced Acorn Squash as my fave. Sorry bout that. lol

Its pretty hard to find Delicata. I've been looking for 2 or 3 weeks now to no avail. BUT I got lucky last night when I decided to go into Safeway. I almost gasped I was so excited when I saw them. AND bonus these are organic. I heard from my friend that they can be expensive so I only bought 2. They only came to $5.20 so I'm going to buy them out tonight after my work out.

All ready for me to roast! I just cut them in half, scraped out the seeds and put them inside down. Keeps steam in there making it nice and soft. That way you don't need to add oil or anything. This squash needs no seasoning. Seriously. It tastes so amazing all by itself. But it ain't lonely. Don't you worry.

OH yah! I took one with me to work today to share (which I now regret....kidding!) and I left the other one at home so I can make something delicious with it tonight. And its already roasted and ready to be devoured. 

I looked up some nutritional information on the squash, and like other squashes packs a good punch in terms of nutrients and also is very low on the calorie front making them a good weight loss food. 3/4 of a cup of this amazing vegetable has 30 calories, 7 grams of carbs, 3/4 of your RDI of vit A, 15% of vit C and has iron and calcium all with NO fat. YAH! 

And don't think that it isn't tasty because it is. It tastes like sweet potatoes but doesn't have nearly as many calories or carbs. So go for it! 

Vegan MoFo is almost done! I can't believe I've almost finished my first MoFo. What will I ever do without it? Lol 

Peace MoFo's

xoxo

K

Vegan MoFo Day 26: Obsession

My obsession with Coconut Yogurt continues. I didn't make dinner last night because all I wanted was this coconut yogurt. lol So I went to the store and got some fresh raspberries again and went to town. To make it more filling I used quick oats, hemp seeds, trail mix, raspberries and the yogurt.

Oh yah, I also sprinkled some coconut meat on it...........I think I might have to go into detox. I had it for breaky this morn and there's coconut milk in my soup too. LOL

Tonight I'm not cooking either, Kevin is cooking. I MIGHT make the granola tonight though. I really want to cuz I'm so curious to see if it works out and is tasty. I also have been wanting to make an Edamame hummus. I have all the parts so we'll see when I can get that done.

Peace MoFo's

xoxo

K

Vegan MoFo Day 25: Ode to the Coconut

I am a big fan of Coconut. I make a lot of curry in my place so I use a lot of coconut milk. It adds such flavour! I always use the low fat version though FYI. I've always just used shredded coconut or coconut milk. I've never dabbled any further into the wonders of coconut. I knew about the water being filled with electrolytes but I'm not one to buy into any fads like that. So I haven't run out to buy a case of it. (Not to say its not good, I'm just not that into it).

My friend Natasha introduced me to Coconut ice cream. And for that I'm forever in her debt. I didn't go with her recommendation on the flavour or brand, I went with Larry & Luna's Coconut Bliss. It really is blissful. Its sweetened with Agave Nectar instead of cane sugar. That's what sold me. There's only like 5 ingredients, and I know every one of them. 

There's a little visual for yah. I believe I have already blogged about my bliss when eating this delicious ice cream. Which by the way is vegan, gluten free and soy free. Coconut Bliss check it out there.

Now onto my current explorations into the good ole Coconut. My friend Jessica over at The Vegan Project mentioned Coconut Yogurt!!! She even went so far as to say it is a "game changer". Let me tell you, it is. Plain and simple. Coconut ice cream is yummy. I got the vanilla flavour and put it on top of some fresh raspberries and topped it with hemp seeds. YUMMMMMM

Holy Moly ppl! So yummy! Check out all the flavours they have. I only saw 2 kinds at Choices. But I'm sure there are others out there. So Delicious really is So Delicious.

Doesn't that look tasty? I really wanted to have that this morning for breakfast with granola but they always put sugar in it. And I'm not into eating cane sugar very often or lots of it. There is some in the yogurt already so more is not necessary. SO that being said, I'm going to make my own granola!!! I have some ideas on what to use. I'm pretty stoked about it to be honest. Too bad I'm busy till Thursday!!! Maybe I can prep it before I go out tonight.........................hmmmmmm.

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed my Ode to the Coconut. Its useful to note that Coconut is high in saturated fats so don't go crazy with it. For milk, get the low fat version. It still has lots of flavour. Everything in moderation I always say.

Vegan MoFo Day 24: Thai Carrot Soup

I have never made or been interested in carrot soup but I kinda craved it this weekend and thought I'd give it a go. To my surprise and luck, carrots were on sale at my fave grocery store, No Frills. 2lbs for $1.00!!!! I've bought 2 so far, I think I'm going back for another. My Internet at home is down. Since yesterday. I was pretty bummed about this since I'm pretty sure I just came up with the BEST soup I've ever made. And I make a lot of soup. Good soup.

Thai Carrot Soup

Ingredients

10 carrots

1 ½ cups yellow mung beans

2 royal gala apples, chopped and deseeded

3 roma tomatoes

6 garlic cloves

4 tsp Vegeta

8 cups water

6 red Thai chilies

½ onion

2 lemongrass stalks

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 can low fat coconut milk

Directions:

1.       Put all ingredients except for coconut milk into a crockpot and cook on high for 4 hours.

2.       Remove lemongrass stalks and put in coconut milk

3.       Use a hand mixer or blender to blend until smooth.

Notes: Yellow split peas, red or yellow lentils would work just as great. I wouldn’t use green as it will change the color of the soup.

Believe me when I say this soup is delicious. Its pretty damn amazing. I was shocked at the deliciousness of it. Its got just the right amount of heat for a cold fall/winter day and is hearty enough to keep you full. Give it a go. NOW. lol

So tasty. GET SOME!!

I also made a coconut curry with Butternut Squash. I wanted to blog about it on Saturday and enter the Vegan MoFo Iron Chef challenge but I ran out of time that day and my Internet has been down since. Sucky. 

On the weekends I like to make my own juice and smoothies. I was too lazy on the juicing front but I had just bought some almond milk so I used that instead. This has 1 cup mixed berries, 1 banana, 1/2 cup water, 3/4 cup almond milk, 1/2 cup quick oats, 2 tsp peanut butter, 2 tsp chia seeds, 2 tsp hemp seeds and 1/2 scoop of the berry flavour Whole Health Optimizer by VEGA.

Fueled me for the day and nourished my body. Chia seeds are really great to add to a smoothie as they expand and take on so much liquid. This makes them more substantial which will keep you full longer. They are also packed with vitamins and minerals plus protein.