He gave me a dark look, patted his pockets like men do, just to make sure they have everything. It was an oddly human gesture, and it touched me in a way I couldn't even describe to myself.
- Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris
Yep, there are three things to 'yay' about in this post...well, for me anyway.
Number One
I used to have a favourite burger to order when heading out with friends to our favourite burger chain, Burger Fuel (they had 4 vegetarian burgers, one specifically vegan even and the buns are wholemeal...crazy!). Anyway, it was called the Combustion Tofu Burger. Just ditch the aioli and you're good to go.
Tragically it dropped off the menu a while ago (so long ago I don't even remember) and I'd had to resort to eating lesser burgers! Because we live in crazy times, there are in fact, 2 groups on Facebook dedicated to bringing back this clearly quite popular burger: here and here. Madness!
Anyway, the night I was enjoying my satay tofu burger down in Queenstown, The Chef was enjoying a satay tofu burger up in Auckland which mystified me...'cause where were you supposed to get one of those these days since they took it off the menu at Burger Fuel? When I asked, it turns out it's back on the menu again in Auckland (I'm pretty sure it's just at the Auckland joints but I could be wrong)...temporarily.
So I'm sure you all can guess what I had for lunch the next day...
...oh yes! I have to admit I had fairly high expectations (it had been built up pretty high in my imagination) and unfortunately didn't quite live up to them but hey, it's back!!!
Number Two
I got sent cookies! Who knew boys could bake (well, obviously The Chef can...but he's a chef funnily enough so I'm not sure he counts)? M sent me a batch of chocolate cookies with a cool peanut buttery filling. Awesome! I am predictably easy to please!
They kind of stuck together in transportation but really that doesn't matter when they taste as good as they do (which is super delicious). I guess this means I have to bake something equally delicious for my team for the race next weekend as payback.
Number Three
I'm off on the plane tonight to good old Christchurch for good food, awesome friends, challenging rock climbing and crazy racing (24 hours!!!). It's going to be one hell of a weekend!
He had raised taxes and burned a few villages on general principles, just to show everyone who they were dealing with. It didn't seem to have any effect.
- Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett
Yeah well, sometimes (always?) I'm not too good at this blogging thing! I am getting really good at forgetting to take my camera along when I go and eat awesome food. Take today for example. My lovely cousin D and I went out for lunch at Kokako today and I had a really delicious tofu scramble...and it looked really beautiful too. The light coming through the window in the cafe was perfect as well so it would have been a great photo. But I didn't have my camera so you'll just have to imagine it...even though I haven't exactly been very descriptive of it either. I guess you'll need some imagination (make it up, it's okay...pretend it's the tofu scramble of your dreams. It wasn't but that would make for a more exciting story).
Anyway, I do have some food photos so all is not totally lost!
A few weeks (months?) ago the Safe store on K'Rd started selling the Go Max vegan chocolate bars everyone's been talking about (everyone being a very loose term). Anyway, they were heinously expensive so I just picked 2 to try.
I ended up picking the Twilight and the Jokerz (can't pass up something with peanuts!) but decided I'd wait to try them until I really felt like one rather than just because they were there. Of course, I never felt like one when they were around but I craved them at times when I was away from home (mostly when I was in Otago in the cold and in need of chocolate to warm myself up!) so they sat around for, um, ages?!
Anyway, I thoughtfully packed one for my recent trip to Queenstown and low and behold, those chocolate cravings came so I finally got to try one!
The Twilight bar is supposed to be like a vegan version of the Milky Way bar or something like that. I wouldn't know. It was good as far as a super sweet chocolate bar goes but it appears my taste buds aren't such fans anymore which was a bit disappointing. I found it so sweet that it felt like it'd crack my teeth.
So yeah, I'd give you my view on the other Jokerz bar but I suspect it might sit around for a little while yet before I feel like a sugar hit to break your teeth on.
But food that I have enjoyed (I can't believe I'm implying that I didn't enjoy a chocolate bar - what's with that?!)...
Now that we've made it to winter, Blue Bird has started serving up soup again. I am a real sucker for a good, thick soup when it's cold outside.
I can't remember what kind this one was (split pea and something maybe?) but it was delicious. Yep, that's a rather ridiculous amount of olivani they gave me for the bread!
They also sometimes have my favourite...the tofu, spinach and kumara chip pie (or whatever it's supposed to be called). I keep promising to make this myself (we have a couple of their cookbooks lying around our flat that have the recipe) but I'm slack. So I get all excited when I see this pie sitting in the cabinet waiting for me.
This time it was the last one left...clearly my lucky night. I do think I repeat myself sometimes...I'm sure I've blogged about this pie (among many other things) over and over again. Guess that means I must really like it!
And they served my tea in the most adorable cup ever...it even has a lid on it to keep it nice and hot and I liked how they left the tea bag in...'cause I like my herbal teas really strong!
And to finish up ('cause I still had a sweet tooth craving something...), a ginormous piece of vegan chocolate cake.
They served it with vegan vanilla ice cream on the side which was a bit of an overkill really (I mean look at the size of that thing) but it was very sweet of them since I couldn't have the cream they normally serve it with. My stomach survived.
Now, moving on to other food (I love Blue Bird but you can't eat there all the time)...how about a delicious vegan wrap/sandwich thingy from Harvest Wholefoods? I can't remember what was in it except for yummy things like hummus, roast pumpkin, baby spinach and sunflower seeds but I do remember that it was wickedly delicious.
But I'm also quite capable of making my own awesome sandwich...
Fuel after racing...hummus, avocado, tempeh (marinated and fried), grated carrot and tomato all inside an organic spelt bagel from the bakery next door to Harvest. So, so good (there is something about homemade sandwiches that I can't describe. I like them...which probably went without saying!).
I think I might have had a bit too much sugar in my drink with lunch...feeling a tad hyperactive and scatterbrained. Oh dear! Anyway, that is all for today.
But stop, stop your iron pelt of words, lest you flay us all alive, and yourself too!
- Orlando by Virginia Woolf
So, it didn't flood while I was in Queenstown. In fact the weather was pretty amazing (well, it was freezing but it is basically winter so you can't have everything). The lake levels were definitely up (some of the trees on the lake edge were under water) and buildings on the waterfront were barricaded with sandbags but the rain had stopped by the time I arrived. Below is the view from the deck of the apartment (I got a similar view from my bedroom on the floor below). We were working up here too so when things got too stressful I snuck a peak out the window and it was quite refreshing.
As far as food went, we ate out every dinner but I was mostly out with my boss so I wasn't in picture-taking mode (he thinks I'm weird enough as it is I think!). But I did get one night to myself...no trip to Queenstown is complete without a visit to FergBurger. This is the Holier Than Thou burger which is tempured tofu with a spicy satay, coconut, coriander sauce, lettuce, tomato, red onion and alfalfa (it also comes with aioli but I got them to ditch that).
Yes, the burger is massive...that is a dinner plate it is sitting on. I'm not sure what possessed me to order chips since they give you enough to feed a small army (I ate quite a bit more than what is pictured and still hadn't made it through half). This time I couldn't even finish all the burger. I got about three quarters of the way through before giving up and just eating the filling. I was so full I could barely move (I swear I cannot eat the amount that I could not that long ago...it's weird).
Anyway, to avoid this post being devoid of much food (and just generally lacking!), I will present you with food I've eaten since getting back from Queenstown!
My mate B was up from Christchurch for the weekend so I dragged him over for dinner on Saturday along with The Chef. While I made satay tofu...my way (there was a debate about this at the supermarket), the boys prepared dessert. Anyway, my satay tofu on brown rice is quite possibly one of my favourite meals ever and definitely my favourite pre-race meal (I had a race on Sunday morning) so I made a huge batch which gave me leftovers to have cold for lunch the next day.
Dessert was gluten-free crumble as The Chef was on the last couple of days of his diet thingy. While B peeled the 5 apples (there was a funny debate about whether to have 4 or 5 apples at the supermarket too!), The Chef whipped up an awesome topping. I think it was made from buckwheat flour, chopped almonds, coconut, brown sugar, cinnamon and oliviani...but I can't really remember). Once the apples were all chopped, they added frozen blueberries and a truck-load of sugar (no wonder crumbles taste so sweat and delicious in restaurants!) and chucked it in the oven while we ate dinner.
SO good!
Sunday was Mother's Day so after a day of orienteering (my parents both compete too sometimes) and a quick blat round the mountain bike park my brother and I trouped off to my parents' house for dinner. Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie and salad...awesome winter comfort food.
I was going to make a fancy dessert (I really want to try and make sweet potato (kumara) pie with maple syrup) but time was never going to be on my side so instead I made crumble...yep, crumble 2 nights in a row!
Apple and berry crumble with a crumble topping made with rolled oats, wholemeal flour, chopped almonds, coconut, dark brown sugar, cinnamon, and olivani. So good! And Mum sent me home with leftovers which I ended up eating for breakfast the next day (she also sent me home with homemade bread she had in the freezer so I didn't have to worry about lunch)!
Ah, mothers, what would we do without them?! ☺
'We guesses, precious, only guesses. We can't know till we find the nassty creature and squeezes it. But it doesn't know what the present can do, does it? It'll just keep it in its pocketses. It doesn't know, and it can't go far. It's lost itself, the nassty nosey thing. It doesn't know the way out. It said so.'
- Th Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
Right, this is going to be a bit all over the place...which is a bit like my brain right now as I attempt to pack in a record amount of time before my shuttle arrives. I'm off to Queenstown today for work and from what I've heard the weather is so bad that it's even been flooding. Fun times!
Firstly, if anyone is interested about whatever mad adventures I get up to, you can read all that here. This is mainly so my family can keep track of me but you're welcome to visit too ☺
Next, good food...
The Chef cooked up the most delicious dinner the other night (oh, and last night but I forgot my camera so I don't have a photo which is disappointing because it was very pretty)...
Roasted pumpkin, capsicum and mushroom topped with slices of tofu baked with lemon, a giant falafel and homemade tomato sauce with steamed broccoli on the side.
Then, because I am special (!), he'd got me a slice of vegan chocolate cake from Blue Bird because I'd really wanted one the other night but had decided to go for the crumble instead (but still wanted the chocolate cake even after I'd eaten crumble!!).
Chocolate craving successfully satisfied (and stomach successfully over-full)!
And lastly, because I know you all want it, here it is...the recipe for Maple Syrup Tofu!!
I didn't want to post it until I'd actually had a chance to make it...but that hasn't happened yet so leg me know how it goes if you do make it! Hopefully when I get back from Queenstown I'll whip up a batch.
Ingredients
3 Tbsp oil
300g tofu cubed into 2 cm pieces
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1/4 cup soy or tamari
1 Tbsp minced ginger
juice of half a lemon
1 Tbsp maple syrup
1 Tbsp minced herbs (e.g. corrander,basil, mint)
Saute the garlic,ginger, and herbs in olive oil for 1 minute then add the cubed tofu and coat all the pieces.
Pour soy or tamari over and stir. Saute for 2-3 minutes. Add lemon juice and maple syrup. At this stage the mixture will be quite watery.
Saute until the tofu had absorbed all the liquid, about 4-5 minutes or longer if you like a crunchy texture.
What is any ocean but a multitude of drops?
- Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
Don't worry people, the maple syrup tofu recipe is coming!!!
Anyway, welcome to my new favourite dinner. It's so good that Keisha stole half of one of my tofu sausages while I was getting a drink and then sat next to me giving me that look that only dogs can do! It is also so good that I'd already started eating it before I remembered to take a picture.
So, we've got steamed broccoli, raw carrot with hummus, fried mushrooms, tofu sausages and awesome Maori potatoes that The Chef got me from work boiled and then lightly tossed in some olive oil and salt. I want it now!
Other cool stuff coming out of my kitchen was this wicked lasagne. The Chef is on a no gluten, no dairy, no raw fruit or veggies diet for a month so instead of pasta we baked large slices of kumara and layered it with slices of courgette and a 'mince' mixture made from Tonzu tofu mince, black beans, a tin of tomatoes, onion, carrot and mushrooms. All topped off with a white/cheesy sauce and a sprinkling of pumpkin seeds then chucked in the oven.
We ate the leftover kumara slices with maple syrup while waiting for the lasagne to cook!!
It kind of fell apart when we served it but it still tasted really good. Once it had cooled though it held together quite well and tasted even better for my lunch the next day.
As usual there has been plenty of action going on round here (other than in my kitchen of course). On Saturday I had a mountain bike race out at Riverhead...notorious for being a mudbath when it's been wet. So naturally it was raining that morning! Who could expect anything less?!
It took me an hour to clean the bike once I got home and another half an hour to get the clay off the soles of my bike shoes. Seriously.
I was starving after all that so whipped up a toasted sandwich with hummus, spinach, grated carrot, tofu sausages and melty Cheezly vegan cheese. Lightly toast the bread, chuck in all your fillings and then brown over the frying pan on each side.
Hit the spot perfectly.
Oh yeah, and I also scored a mammoth bag of feijoas off a mate's tree. Awesome!
'You are a strange young man,' said Juno. 'I can't quote make you out. Sometimes I wonder why I take so much trouble over you, dear. But then of course I know, a moment later, that I have no choice. Now have I? You touch me so, my cruel one. You know it, don't you?'
- Titus Alone by Mervyn Peake
It was beans overload day recently as I met my friend L for lunch found the only thing I could eat on the menu was baked beans on toast. Not a problem since I like baked beans but I'd forgotten I'd requested a bean dish for dinner at the parents that same night!
I think she used the usual kidney bean filling she uses for her vegetarian shepherds pie (which I'm pretty sure is from Simon and Alison Holst's Meals Without Meat) and the scone topping was another Alison Holst recipe made into pinwheels with chutney in the middle. I ate heaps and it was delicious (perfect for the slow descent into winter we're having here) so clearly having beans for 2 meals in one day is not a problem!
Clearly on the beans roll (yeah, it really is lucky I like beans) a couple of nights later The Chef cooked up some beans for tea a couple of nights later served in a sort of nacho-like way.
With the beans (and copious amounts of corn chips...we polished off the whole bag through the course of the evening) we also had (mostly) crispy potato and kumara chips.
The big black-looking thing in the centre of the photo is actually a purple Maori potato. It's not burnt, just looks like it 'cause of my terrible photography skills! It's actually a beautiful purple colour all the way through. I have never been a big fan of potato (but I love kumara) but I am so in love with Maori potatoes...it's making my mouth water just thinking about them!
This last meal does not involve beans (although, if you think about it, tempeh is fermented soy beans so I guess it does fit the theme!), but going along with the theme of the purple potatoes we had purple carrots the following night which we'd picked up at the Parnell market.
Um, yeah I should have used the flash but I was lazy so imagine beautiful purple carrots instead of almost black, burnt-looking things! They were lightly steamed and tasted really delicious and sweet (and have a thin strip of white inside up the middle). There was also tempeh baked with chutney, and we scored roast veggies, peas and beans off The Chef's parents. Yum!
