Newly Vegan

At Starbucks and McDonald's, they have oatmeal. I don't think that you can get the McDonald's one vegan, but I think it's possible to get the Starbucks one made that way. Either way, they seem so expensive for what it is. It's a bowl of oatmeal. It takes 10 minutes. I mean, if you buy the quick-cooking version, it's like 1-3 minutes. This is just not something I would pay for outside my house. Plus there's all that crap in there. Mark Bittman wrote about the McDonald's version and said: "Yet in typical McDonald’s fashion, the company is doing everything it can to turn oatmeal into yet another bad choice. (Not only that, they’ve made it more expensive than a double-cheeseburger: $2.38 per serving in New York.) 'Cream' (which contains seven ingredients, two of them actual dairy) is automatically added; brown sugar is ostensibly optional, but it’s also added routinely unless a customer specifically requests otherwise. There are also

This recipe is like the cabbage they make at a restaurant called Luby's here in Texas. They way they make it there, however, is not even remotely vegan. 1 head of cabbage (about 2 pounds) cut into 1-inch pieces 1 can diced tomatoes, drained, or 2 diced romas 3 tablespoons Earth Balance buttery spread 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon pepper Fake bacon of your choice, optional Boil cabbage for about 4-5 minutes in a large pot, just until tender. Drain. In a large skillet, heat Earth Balance and saute tomatoes with the spices for several minutes. Add drained cabbage, keep cooking and stir occasionally until the cabbage is done to your liking. Garnish with fake bacon if desired. Recipe notes: Use a can of Ro*tel tomatoes for some extra spice or add 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes.

We're having a cool day and night today, so I thought I'd make a bean soup while I still have the chance. I know that 100+ degree days will be here before I know it. Plus, I'm looking forward to them lasting as leftovers through at least one round of lunches. 1 pound dry navy beans, soaked overnight, then drained and rinsed 6 cups water 1 can diced tomatoes 1/2 onion, chopped 2 stalks celery, chopped 4 carrots, chopped 3 cloves garlic, minced "Chicken" bouillon Vegetable bouillon 1 1/2 tablespoons vegan Worcestershire sauce 1 bay leaf handful of fresh parsley or 1 tablespoon dried 3/4 teaspoon black pepper 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika tiny pinch baking soda Combine all ingredients in slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-5. Add more water if necessary during cooking. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve over cornbread with a side of Southern Fried Cabbage or greens. Some recipe notes: I buy navy beans in bulk when I can, so I just weigh

My Walmart has a pico de gallo station... This week, boyfriend did the shopping with a list I made. He did a pretty good job and is way better than I am at sticking to the list. And he went to Walmart (because he needed dental floss) which is about his least favorite place on Earth. It was sort of like I was there since we were being nerdy with the phones. He sent me pictures of labels so I could check for vegan or otherwise undesirable ingredients (did you know that Walmart corn tortillas have methylparaben and propylparaben in them? Bleck!). And when he shops we also text back and forth about price fluctuations (Coffee's gone up $3 this week, WTF? Abort! Abort! I'll just drink tea!).

Recipe from Vegan with a Vengeance . See more Wordless Wednesday .

I bought a ton of strawberries two weeks ago. Four pounds. They've been holding up incredibly well. I've been snacking on them, eating them with breakfast cereal and slicing them up for my son any time he wants a snack. This weekend I made some muffins using my regular blueberry muffin recipe with some adaptations. I was able to cut the sugar quite a bit and probably could have cut even more if I'd given these just a tiny sprinkle of powdered sugar afterward. Something about that tiny bit hitting your tongue is really deceptive. Works for brownies, too. I posted the recipe to my work site. I think they'll make a pretty good breakfast or snack for the wee tots.

I'm not really sure where I went wrong here. The red seitan from Viva Vegan turned out great. Not rubbery, not dry, not weird tasting. And so, I thought I'd give the more chicken-like version ("Steamed White Seitan") a go. I followed all the directions and made up some sausages and a cutlet or two.

Lucky week 13 here. Sorry I'm late this week but better late than never. Again, I'm really enjoying moving along without planning a menu. Who knew? I think I'm getting better at cooking vegan food and throwing things together plus, it's taco season, so I see that becoming a more-than-once-a-week affair through the spring and summer months. All that fresh produce and abundance of tomatoes and avocados has me really feelin' it.