Friday, December 31, 2010

2010 Airport Food Review

I travel a lot.

This year alone it was 60,000 km from Canada to Namibia, to South Africa, to Thailand to Vietnam to Hong Kong and a few more in between for good measure.

I have spent my fare share of time in airports, both domestic and international, attempting to source out vegan foods to keep me going. More often than not it ends up being coffee, crackers, chips, nuts and if I am super lucky a week old fruit bowl of some kind.

Which is why this article on US Airport food caught my attention.


Its a neat read and its interesting to see who comes out on top. I have to say, I was surprised.

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Peaceful Prairie Sanctuary Bus Ads



I have seen a few of these over the last little while and today I saw the Milk one. I got a few looks as I was taking a snap of it with my BB, but shit, who cares. I am so impressed that TransLink has posted these. Way to go guys!

Friday, December 10, 2010

Have They No Souls?

KFC, Coca-Cola and Walmart, that's who.

Why?

Just read this and you will find you head a shakin':KFC aims to double revenue in Africa by 2012. The colonel would be proud. - CSMonitor.com

After spending time in Africa this year, this is the LAST thing people need over there.

Clean water, education and health care is what most people need. Not deep fried battery chickens, high fructose corn syrup and other high processed foods.

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Why "exergames" Are A Crock

What's an "exergame"?

Wii Fit, Xbox Kinectis and PlayStation Move are all considered exergames.

And according to this article, unless you are elderly, you ain't getting fit using them.

“At this point, there is little scientific evidence to suggest that exergames can be used alone to meet current guidelines for physical activity in young people,” said Elaine Biddiss, Ph.D.

Read More Here: Why Wii Fit is Best for Grandparents - NYTimes.com

Human Decapitation in Chicken Factory Accident

Where do I even start with this.

Yes, it is horrible and saddening that this event has occurred.

However, it is even more distressing to think that most people will read this and not for even split second think of the animals that suffer this end each and every day. Most will focus will be on the human element, for this is what they can relate to more.

If this does not cause you to stop and think I don't know what will.

Ask yourself this: Why is it more horrific for a human be decapitated then a chicken?

Indian migrant Sarel Singh decapitated in chicken factory accident in Australia | Mail Online

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Adventures in Bread

Never, has it ever crossed my mind to make my own bread.

A few times I may have had a fleeting thought about getting one of those fancy bread makers, but nothing has ever come of this idea.

But for whatever reason, last week while I was out shopping I stopped in front of the baking section and the yeast packages started to stare at me. I never really noticed them before, but today they were all I could see.

I took this to be a sign, grabbed a few and checked out.

Back at home I grabbed my trusty La Dolce Vegan and flipped through until I found this: Easy French Bread.  It seemed really straight forward, with a long, but not overly involved process.

So I jumped in and was up to my wrists in bread dough before I knew it. It was so enjoyable to see it come together and start to resemble ... bread.

After letting it rise, pounding the crap out of it again and then shaping it, it was time for the oven. The oven
scared me the most since mine is beyond temperamental. I kept a close eye on the bread at the last 10 minutes or so, not wanting to burn it at the very end.


Time for the oven!


What came out was a stunning, crispy on the outside, soft (but a bit gummy and dense, so I clearly have work to do on my skills) on the inside. It was awesome. I was so proud of my self. I made bread from scratch. Gold Star for Me

Once I perfect the Easy French Bread I want to move onto raisin and pumpernickel ... and maybe eventually rye.

Ooooooh let the adventures in bread begin!


Freshly Baked

I Had to Use a Steak Knife ...

Who would have thought I would ever say that again? 

Chickpea Cutlets: I know these have been blogged about and posted to death, but last night was my first foray into the vital wheat gluten world and I was both pumped and sceptical.

I had been reading about these for ages on numerous blogs and in my trusty, messy and well used copy of Veganomicon and seeing that there was a massive lack of food in my once crazy stocked freezer I stopped off at Whole Foods on the way home, grabbed me some Bob’s Red Mill Vital Wheat Gluten and headed home in the cold and snow (yes, we here in Vancouver are having a massive snowfall. It’s so pretty and makes me want to curl up on the couch with my flannel pants on and a warm blanket, a hot cup of tea and a good book, but I digress …)

Once home I got to work. I thought that these babies were going to take me ages to make, like my first attempt at Whole Wheat French Bread ended up being, but this recipe was fast and darn easy.

The recipe says you can get 8 pieces out of a doubled batch, but I ended up with at least 12 good sized cutlets.

I also opted to not float my cutlets in a sea of oil to cook, and since I was too damn lazy to get the oven going I simply brushed each cutlet with some canola oil before popping them into the pan, and again when I flipped them and they came out nicely browned and crunchy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside.

In a word: Delish.

Over all they ended up being far superior to what I had imagined and will for sure be a new addition to my manic Sunday cooking sprees.

Since I had so many, I chose to freeze most of them and keep only a few in the fridge for the next few days.

In closing, there are a few things that I wanted to note about cooking adventure:


  1. ·         Waiting for the cutlets to cool, not only avoids the mouth burning issues, but also makes them a bit chewier and tougher which really gives them a ”meaty” texture.
  2. ·         While I was making them I kind of got a bit grossed out. Why? Because when the gluten strands started coming together it reminded me of chicken and I only then realized just how OFF meat and dairy I really am. Even the “fake” stuff makes me queasy now. Interesting …



Chickpea Cutlet w Tiny's BIG Salad

Tiny's BIG Salad


If can I squeeze in a Seinfeld clip, know that I always will.


I made this when I realized that I had a bunch of odds and ends in my pantry. I was inspired by all the fantastic salads that I grab from from Whole Foods now and then (they have a lentil one that is unreal).

With that in mind, I decided to toss together a salad that turned out quite well. It needed a bit of a kick so I added a few red pepper flakes at the end, and think that after it sleeps in the fridge overnight the favours will pull together.

This BIG Salad is very filling, chock-a-block full of fibre and protein and big on taste.

Enjoy!

TINYs BIG SALAD: Mixed Bean & Quinoa Salad

2 cups mixed dried beans (I used kidney black, pinto and black-eyed)
1 cup frozen peas
1 cup frozen corn nibblets
2 cups Quinoa
Water

Soak beans in cold water over night, rinse well

In crock pot add beans and enough water to cover them
Cook for 2 hours on low heat
Drain beans and set aside

Cook Quinoa according to directions and set aside

Steam peas and corn and set aside

Combine beans, peas, corn and tossing in dressing
Add Quinoa and incorporate into bean mixture
Add Sale & Pepper to taste

DRESSING

I make a bunch of this at once and keep the leftovers in a jar in the fridge. It settles after a while so make sure you give it a good shake.

½ cup olive oil
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp red pepper flakes
1 tbsp lemon pepper mix

Add ingredients together in glass jar and shake!