My New Obsession...

It is green.
People waste it far to often as just garnish.
It is a really strong plant that does not mess around.

KALE

Kale is sort of the "it" vegetable right now. People are always talking about juicing it or just eating it raw. There are always lovely kale salad recipes online. It is SUPER healthy. Plus, my farmers market always has the best varieties of organic kale for super cheap!

When I visited Mecca a few months ago I had a kale and avocado salad that was to die for.

Kale is also very common in Portuguese cooking. Since I was born in a Portuguese community with a Portuguese grandfather, one would think I had tons of kale growing up. Wrong.

I feel like I have rediscovered a vegetable. Don't you love that? My new favorite way of eating kale is about as simple as it comes. Ready for it?

My insanely simple kale recipe, after the jump.


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A Little Trip to Georgia

Once upon a time I was a Chubby Vegetarian, who lived in Georgia.

Imagine that, a New England boy living in the South! I had never met anyone who went to a mega church or didn’t believe in evolution. Nope. Never.

So moving to Georgia was a major adjustment for me. When I told people that I was moving there they assumed I would be killed because I was gay, outspoken, and fill in the ___. Thankfully, I wasn’t. Plus one for me!

I ruffled a couple of feathers in Georgia but I wouldn’t take the experience back for a second. I grew tremendously as a person and met some really amazing people.

Husband, although born in Pittsburgh, spent the majority of his formative years in Georgia and we get back to Bulldog country as much as we can.

My favorite restaurant on the planet, The Grit, is in Athens, GA. I get the same thing every time and it never disappoints. Sadly, it was super dark in the restaurant and I couldn’t take any good pictures. So use your imagination:

The Golden Bowl = Fried tofu in oil and soy sauce, coated with nutritional yeast, layered over brown rice, and a bunch of vegetables. Cover it in some Frank’s hot sauce with a cold beer. *I just fainted*

If you ever have the chance, please go to The Grit and tell them Chubby Vegan sent you. Make sure to get dessert too! 

While we were there we also got to try out a new(er) place called Mama’s Boy for brunch. It was just lovely and they made a tofu stir fry strangely reminiscent of my favorite food from The Grit. Theirs came with toast and an incredible raspberry jelly.

This was their only vegan friendly brunch option but it was delicious so I still give them a Chubby Vegan Stamp of Approval. I was a member of the clean plate club that day!

Whoever said chicken & waffles and barbecue is all you can eat in Georgia? 

Click "Read More" for a few more pictures...

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Vegan Shepherd's Pie

I don’t like being negative.

In fact, I think being a positive vegan is one of the best things we can do. With so much anger pointed towards us by meat loving omnivores, it is nice to be positive in return. I firmly believe this is the best way to spread the love and message of veganism.

I think this is especially true when it comes to food. I talk about how awesome vegan food is so much that I am sure people are sick of hearing about it. “Yes, we know fried tofu with nutritional yeast is the best thing ever… We get it!”

When it comes to vegan recipes I have been pretty lucky. There are so many creative vegans out there coming up with really clever concepts and twists on old classics. I bow to these people because I am totally unable to be as creative as these folks. Maybe someday I will. But, until then just talk about others stuff. Which, I am perfectly okay with.

So, my latest attempt it a definite twist on old classic, shepherds pie. If you have never had it, it is basically a bowl of stuff mixed together, add gravy, and cover it in potatoes. Umm, awesome! So when I saw this super easy recipe for vegan shepherds pie, I had to try it!

Sadly, this just did not live up to my expectations. It was just okay. When you cover something in mashed potatoes, there is no excuse for it not to be at least okay. Alas, you can judge for yourself. I have included some extra special thoughts, along with the recipe, after the jump.

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Whole Foods Austin (Day 3)

It has been almost a month since my trip to Austin, but I have one more post that I needed to share.

What visit to Austin would be complete without a trip to Mecca? Wait, you say, Mecca is not in Austin, TX? Oh but it is, oh but it is.

Whole Foods World Headquarters and flagship store is in Downtown Austin. It is a sight to behold. Beautiful. It almost brought tears to my chubby face.

First of all, the store is huge. The whole place was spotless clean, bright, and surprisingly easy to get around. I actually went a couple of times while I was there, once for brunch and once to pick up some things for a party.

I have so much to say about this store, but I don’t want to bore you or make you too jealous of the smart people who have moved to Austin. Here is my brief summary….

There is a (almost totally) raw bar that was delightful. The staff members who worked there were so amazingly friendly and they let me try all sorts of delicious raw items, including a Kale and Avocado salad which was outstanding.

The beer and wine section was enormous with very nice guys who led me to an organic wine section that made me gush. I love organic wine!

My friend Erica and I enjoyed, quite possibly, the best tofu tacos I have ever had. I got 3, which for the record is way too many, that had all sorts of delicious toppings on them including guacamole, daiya, beans, and vegan sausage. We topped it off with a peanut butter pie (don’t hate, it was brunch), which was incredible. Sadly, my chubby stomach was pretty full after devouring 3 tacos so I wasn’t able to finish it. Imagine, not being able to finish a dessert!

Overall, I was most impressed with the amazingly friendly staff. Whole Foods in Pittsburgh is great, but the employees in Austin were almost Disney like in their friendliness and service level. That is the best compliment anyone can ever get from me.

I have an unhealthy obsession with customer service and seeing it done so well made me just want to be a part of the team at Whole Foods. So if you are reading this Whole Foods management, I am willing to move to Austin. Email me… *wink wink*

If you are ever in Austin, please make sure you stop into the Whole Foods flagship; it is an absolute must see!

I took a bazillion pictures in the store and I added more of them after the jump. 

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Stuffed Shells

Do you ever notice how people always speak for their kids?

“Oh, Billy won’t eat that. He only likes chicken nuggets and McDonalds. He despises vegetables.”

“No I will never get Jane to eat that, she is so picky!”

I don’t have children, so I will never try and act like I know what it is like to have kids. But whenever I see people making excuses for feeding their kids a poor diet it just makes me wonder if it is just purely a societal expectation that children will only eat chicken nuggets and fries, food marketing, availability, cost, ignorance, or just a combination of all of it.

I can’t consciously remember what its like to be 4 years old, so I don’t know if most kids really don’t like vegetables or if advertisers have made everyone think that kids will only eat processed crap.

 

I have a lot to say about this issue, but I will step of my soapbox for now. Really, it is my long way of getting to pictures of an adorable baby eating tofu.

I had the chance to go to a first birthday party for an amazing little boy a few weeks ago. I brought some cashew ricotta stuffed shells and they were a big hit, especially with the one-year-old crowd! Whoever said babies won’t eat tofu?

Recipe and more pictures after the jump…

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Austin Day Two

I think I made a mistake; I probably should have stayed in Austin.

If the weather alone isn’t enough to make you want to live in Austin, the beautiful people and amazing
food just puts you right over the edge. I have been looking at pictures of my trip and it makes me very
nostalgic. It also makes me hungry, but that’s another story.

I am going to take some liberties and break apart “Austin Day 2” into what is more like days 2-4.
There are so many great places to talk about, but I don’t want to be like Aunt Edna showing you slides
from her trip to Niagara Falls.

So, shall we?

Counter Culture

Austin is known for their food carts. There are quite a few of them around town and there are at least
three that are exclusively vegan. I really love the idea of a food cart; a basic menu, a couple of specials,
outdoor seating, and the ability to pick up and carry your restaurant to a new location. Awesome!

I only got the chance to eat at one food cart in Austin, but it was pretty amazing. It’s in the parking lot of a convenience store, which in itself is so punk rock I can’t even stand it. The owner, chef, and all around cool chick (Sue) was there and we chatted about all things vegan and Austin. I love meeting new vegans, especially adorable food cart vegans.

My friend Erica and I split three things at Counter Culture:

Red Lentil & Celery Root Loaf Sandwich (made from sweet potato, bread crumbs & spices served with
organic lettuce, tomato, ketchup & mustard)

Philly Seitan (w/ cashew cheese, onions, and pepper)

Raw Doughnut Hole / Brownie

All of it was excellent! Hard to believe such perfection can come out of a little truck in front of a
convenience store. I feel like I should open up a food truck. Do you think I can do that in cold and snowy Pittsburgh?

More vegan Austin, after the jump…

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Baked Tofu with Asian Peanut Sauce

I am about to rock your world. Are you ready?

Take out a block of tofu, shake off the water, put it in a plastic baggie, and put it in the freezer.

GASP!

Say what?!?!

What do you mean I don’t have to spend 12-18 hours pressing the hell out of a block of tofu to get the water out? That is the only way to do it right?

Now I know some people don’t love this method of preparing tofu, but I have found it to be pretty great. Before I tried this, baking tofu just never worked for me. It never had the “fried-like” consistency that I love. 

Since I am not trying not to be a super chub and fry tofu every time I make it, I use this method and it works pretty well for me.

I have been making tofu this way, almost exclusively, for about a month and I am a big fan. When it’s done it has a really good "meaty" consistency and  you can add pretty much any sauce to it. I made this particular version with a super easy peanut sauce.

Recipe and more photos, after the jump…

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