Baby Shower

Baby shower day arrived and was pretty much a success. Not without minor mishaps of course, but regardless it went well. The major stress point for me was that we were still getting things set up when the guests arrived, but I didn't have much time for set up and had to figure some things out with the church kitchen supplies etc. But all in all it was a good time.

Now on to the apple cup pies. I was going to attempt pie pops, but this was a much better choice for the event. If you want to make your own cup pies, just mix up a batch of your favorite pie crust (I used a recipe that used earth balance, flour, salt, and water). Chill the dough for a bit, roll out into small circles, and press them into lined cupcake pans.

Fill with your pie filling of choice. For my apple pies, I precooked the apples in a saucepan for a bit before filling the cup pies. This way everything would cook through as with the smaller crust, less baking time is required. Top the filling off with a crumble topping and bake for about 1/2 an hour. Let cool and enjoy. I was really impressed with how these turned out and will make them again.

Now onto the shower. Here is the lovely cake my friend made for the occasion. I love the deer - so sweet.

I made my favorite sandwich, and wrapped them up in parchment so they wouldn't disassemble. It worked out really well and looked really cute. Note the baked cup pie. I didn't remember to take an after baking picture, so here it is.

Here are some assorted other pictures.

Now I can relax as my party planning is done for now. This week Matt and I want to lay low and make a point to not be busy. Sounds lovely!

Day Out

We had a day out today. We grabbed some friends and drove 45 minutes to our favorite restaurant, Cerulean. The lunch menu is the best with a number of main course dishes to choose from along with a bunch of delicious sides. I chose the spicy veggie maki roll, asian noodles, mung bean salad, and seaweed salad. Mmmmm. Can't wait to go again!

The baby shower I have been planning is tomorrow. I've been busy tonight making some cup pies for the occasion. More to come on that tomorrow!

Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend!

Fridays

Friday's are for....

sleeping in,

an attempt at breakfast in bed, but failing miserably by dropping it on the bedroom floor,

moving breakfast to the couch,

catching up on laundry,

filling up a box for goodwill,

spending time with friends,

and

Sweet and Salty Roasted Squash.

Here is the recipe!

Cut a butternut squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Cut the squash into slices and place in a parchment paper lined baking dish. Add the following ingredients.

1 Tbs olive oil

2 Tbs maple syrup

1/2 to 1 teas. Tamari or Coconut Aminos

sprinkle with Cinnamon, salt, and pepper to taste

Mix everything together with a fork or use your hands (it's easier). Place in a oven preheated to 450 degrees. Bake for about half an hour or until browned and caramelized. Serve with rice that has allspice and currants added for a yummy fall dish.

Four Years

Today marks four years. Four years of being with my favorite person. We celebrated simply with dinner at The Loving Cafe. Unfortunately they were sold out of their raw cheesecake, so we picked up a sweet treat while running a few errands. I've never had Ritter Sport's marzipan flavor before. I like the almond flavor mixed with the dark chocolate - lovely.

Here's to another wonderful year!

Busy Day

Day Three of Vegan MoFo was not filled to the brim with glorious vegan food. Rather it was made up of quick salads, delightful cucumber water, and hemp protein smoothies. Not much to write about there. I spent a lot of time with my sewing machine finishing up some gifts. Then I pondered and plotted the baby shower I am throwing on Sunday. Let the stress begin! Don't let that statement worry you, I love party planning and party throwing. The fun of it gets mixed with my perfectionistic attitude, and can cause a bit of anxiety, but I have made my list, purchased some needed items, and am really looking forward to the event.

Perhaps I didn't spend the day cooking delicious food, but I did whip these goodies up at 9:00 pm (it's never to late to bake). They are brown sugar and currant scones based off of my favorite scone recipe from The Joy of Vegan Baking. Tomorrow is Matt and I's 4 year wedding anniversary. Part one of celebrating the occasion is breakfast.

On another note, I couldn't resist a bit of holiday cheer and strung up some christmas lights (a few weeks ago). I'll hold off on the rest of my decorating, I promise!

Pumpkin Pie Brownies

Here it is, Vegan MoFo day 2!

Tis the season for pumpkin! Pumpkin on my table and pumpkin in the pantry. What's a girl to do? Make Pumpkin Pie Brownies of course! I heard the calling and found a recipe in the book, Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar. Alternatively you can find the recipe at this site. I would highly recomend it!

You mix up the brownie base and the pumpkin pie filling seperately.

Spread the brownie mixture down into your pan and pour the pumpkin on top. Unfortunatly parchment paper does not make pictures very pretty, but fortunately it keeps my baking dish oh so clean.

Then let the beauties cool. Matt and I couldn't last for the full 1 hour and a half cooling time in the fridge, but here is a a picture of the brownies cooled to perfection. Delicious. Hope you try them!

Vegan Month of Food

November is the Vegan Month of Food (Vegan MoFo as it is fondly called) this year. Since I have been a horrible blogger and have been absent for 2 weeks, I have decided to take up the challenge and hopefully post some vegan food every day. It will be a feat if I accomplish this daily task, but I will try! For November 1st, I have a pantry challenge recipe that Matt and I deemed to be quite delicious. A pantry challenge recipe is a dish I make up using only ingredients I have on hand. I don't plan for these meals, and they are a really fun experiment

for me. It is also a lovely dish for a chilly fall day.

Butternut Squash Risotto with spicy vegan "sausage" - serves 4

2 cups cubed butternut squash (1 small squash works perfectly)

3/4 cup chopped leeks (or onion if that is what you have)

1/4 teas onion powder

1 teas garlic granules

1/2 teas Cajun seasoning (optional - I used it to compliment the spicy sausage, but if you are using a mild sausage, I would omit this spice)

1 teas dried rosemary

1 cup arborio rice

4 cups vegetable broth

1 Field Roast Grain Meat Co. Sausage (Mexican Chipotle flavor) sliced and halved

2 Tbs Nutritional Yeast

drizzle of olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

In a saucepan boil the butternut squash in water until tender. Meanwhile bring 4 cups of water to boil and dissolve 2 bouillon cubes. In a large saucepan or soup pot saute leeks in a bit of water until translucent. Stir in your spices and the rice and add some of the hot broth. Continue to add broth and stir as the rice absorbs the liquid. Be careful to not let the rice stick to the bottom of the pan and burn.

Once the squash is tender, drain and add it to the rice along with the rest of the broth.

Continue to stir the rice. While you are watching the rice, saute sausage slices in a bit of olive oil. Once hot, add them to the rice as well. Continue to stir until all the broth is absorbed. If your rice is still a bit crunchy just add water as needed and stir until it is soft.

Once it is cooked through add the nutritional yeast, olive oil, salt and pepper, and stir to combine. Enjoy!
Hope you like this delicious Fall dish. I am really looking forward to leftovers tomorrow!

Since I haven't posted in so long here are some highlights of the past couple weeks.

* The wedding was lovely! Congratulations again Em and Aaron!

* Celebrated my good friends birthday and watched the documentary Babies.

*Spent the weekend with my parents and gathered up my childhood belongings.

*Reminiscing over said belongings.

*Antiquing with my mom.

* The amazing pyrex bowls shown above. I've been searching for that 1958 Chip Dip set for a while now, and happened to stumble across the pair! I was pretty elated with the find.

*Being back with Matt after the long weekend away (He was out of town as well).

What are some of your past week highlights? I would love to hear from you!