Alphabet Soup

Oyster Mushrooms, Thyme, Wild Arugula, Mozzarella, Parmesan Pizza
Alphabet Soup (provencal minestrone with pesto, parm. and homemade broth)

all mixed up

Floral California

The Bay Bridge

California has the best produce!!

Wild Arugula and Pear w/Pecans and Raspberry Vinaigrette

Fresh Pea and Pea Green Soup

Nasturtrium Butter, baby zuchinni/yellow squash with blossoms,tagliatelle
Lavender Lemonade Soda

Grilled Seitan, Jalapeno Cheddar Mac and Cheese, Citrus-Chilled Brocolli, Happy-Orange-Tea

Mac and Cheese:
Jalapeno,Cheddar,Parmesan,Cream (kinda heavy)

Citrus-Chilled Brocolli
Boiled (~1 min) Brocolli, chilled in a blend of lemon,lime,orange juices, basil, garlic and olive oil

Grilled Seitan
marinated in heinz 57 sauce and mustard

Happy Orange Tea
lemon and orange juice, cinnamon, happy honey, and black tea

Veggie Dog Sandwich, Roasted Tomato and Garlic Soup, Crinkle Cut Chips with Red Dipping Sauce and a Cherry Lime Ricky

Watercress w/creamy Jalapeno Dressing, Blackbean Pupusas with Habenero-carrot Salsa, Roasted chili-rubbed plantains, Saffron-Coconut Ice Cream

This dinner was mainly an attempt to use last nights salsa and the remaining cocunt milk I had but it is inspired by my recent trip to the east coast, it's a little native american and fancy as the New York restaurants I visited...

From Candle 79 I stole the idea of Jalapeno's and Water Cress which really go quite great together, a little salt goes a long way on these greens too:


Jalapeno dressing: Jalapeno, Garlic, Ground Cumin, Sour Cream

The black bean pupusas lend most of their flavor from homemade vegetable broth, I had a real hard time shaping and cooking these... I'm just not good at it yet. They are topped with Milleniums Carrot-Habenero Salsa which reminds me a great deal of Curtido except it's much more herby containing mint, oregano, and cilantro, along with red-onion, carrots, lime juice and of course a habenero pepper.

The roasted plantains was a guess, and it's concentrated sweetness probably could've been balanced out a bit better... i anticipated the issue and tried to correct it with red-chili powder. But it probably needed another sauce, or maybe just salt to make it a bit more savory, I still liked it a lot, it just didn't match quite right with the other two dishes.

Okay, coconut-saffron ice cream is amazing! I was a little worried when I saw the recipe called for no eggs... I thought it was a mistake and almost went ahead and added my own eggs. But... no mistake, coconut milk really thickens up as it heats up and a custard totally formed up full of saffron flavor. My roommate says the spicy dishes before totally set him up for the ice cream.

I was quite satisfied with this meal, I would re-work it and try it again.

Coconut Brown Rice, Baked Tofu w/Carrot Habenero Salsa and Gai-Lan

Gai-lan: just steamed and seasoned with olive oil and salt
Coconut Brown Rice: From Vegan Soul Kitchen
Baked Tofu: dipped and brushed with tamari(soy sauce) and maple syrup (Millenium)
Habero Salsa (Millenium)