What to buy your cook friend for a gift.

No this is not angling for someone to buy me some of these items. However, I frequently get complaints from friends who like to cook. They go something like this:

"Hey Dino, my birthday's coming up!"
"That's great, (friend)! I hope you have a good time when your family and friends come over."
Fast forward to a few weeks later.
"Hey Dino. The birthday was a lot of fun, but now I have a whole bunch of garbage I have to get rid of somehow."
"Huh? Didn't you ask people not to bring gifts?"
"Yes, but my (well-meaning relative/friend) knows I love to cook, so they got me _________."

Here are some examples of the _________ that said friend of mine (or I) would find utterly useless:
- Electronic gadgets of all shapes and stripes that take up counter space, unless you know that the person specifically wanted that specific thing that you bought. This means that those electric ______ cookers are likely to be garbage. If it's an electric "sandwich cooker", an electric "pancake cooker", electric "cupcake maker" (no I'm serious; this is actually a thing), electric "doughnut maker", or other such thing which is basically two surfaces that get hot, it's likely going to end up in the closet, gathering dust. There are rare (very rare) exceptions to this rule, which I will go over.

- Knife sets. These are not only a waste of perfectly good steel on something that will promptly go dull in five minutes flat, but also a waste of money. A good cook will use maybe two knives at the most. One will be the chef's knife, which gets used all the time. One will be a serrated knife, which gets pulled out to cut bread. Aside from that, the paring knives, the vegetable knives, and all the other random knives that come in a set rarely get used. In my years of cooking, I've reached for a paring knife all of once, and that was to cut open a box. Avoid them like the plague.

- Cookware sets, UNLESS you know that the person specifically wants it. Anyone who likes cooking will have specific needs for their cookware. For me, I like relatively heavy bottomed pots, because most of my cooking involves things that can stick to the bottom. I don't make a lot of pasta or noodles, where the thinner stock pots with much larger sizes are good, because they boil the water much faster than my heavy pots. I've got my pressure cooker for heavy duty jobs, and I tend to use small pots for the rest of it. The total amount of pots and pans I use on a regular basis is 4: 1 cast iron skillet, 1 pressure cooker, 1 wok, 1 saucepan. Aside from that, I like having access to (but don't require) a stock pot as well. Even then, I can use my pressure cooker as a stock pot. If you get me cookware, I likely won't have space for it, and won't be able to use it.

- While I'm here, let me just discourage any kind of gadget that's meant to solve a problem that doesn't really exist. Those little mini choppers? They're useless, because anything that needs to be chopped in that quantity can be handled with a knife. An electric can opener is a bacterial disaster waiting to happen. Those pressing chopper things are equally garbage. The blades bend, and the thing becomes useless after the first time.

So what DO you get your cooking friend (aside from that Cusinart food processor, Kitchenaid stand mixer, or Vita-Mix blender)? Hopefully the following list will help guide you in shopping for a friend who enjoys cooking. This is NOT a comprehensive list. Let me know if you see something you would like that would fit this theme.

Silicon Baking Mats Anyone who cooks, even people who don't bake, loves the silicon baking mats, because they are durable, useful, and very easy to clean. You line your baking sheet with it, and your vegetables, cookies, or whatever else you want will lift right off of it without adding extra fat to the mats! They last for years, but do get discoloured and ugly, so people who know about them love them, and those who don't grow to love them.

Wooden Spoon but only this kind. Avoid the flimsy ones. They break, and get thrown away. You want this heavy duty kind, because wooden spoons are a pleasure to use when cooking. Unlike metal, which gets hot, wood can rest in the pot, and be OK.

Silicon Heat-Resistant Spatulas I reach for these almost every day, if not every day. They're inexpensive, and the shape of the head is such that it will reach all the way to the bottom of your dish that you're trying to scrape out. I've managed to get the last bits of peanut butter out of the jar with this spatula. My spice mixes never sit in the pan when I use this. It gets out every bit of oil, spice, and everything else. It's heat-resistant, so I can use it with my nonstick cookware to stir, or to flip pancakes and the like. I will always be happy to get these, because I love them so.

Amco Swing-Away Can Opener The absolute best can opener I have ever used. It opens cans, and can be put in the dishwasher with no trouble. Really, this is all you need. Even if someone has a can opener like this one, it will be loved to have a backup.

The Last Peeler You'll Buy Not really. They do go blunt after about four years or so, but for the price, they're well worth it. Something about using a brand new OXO peeler is just a pleasure. It makes you want to go out and peel things just because you can. It glides right through the skin, and you're left with perfectly peeled fruit or vegetables. Every other peeler I've used has been shoddily made, and dulls rather quickly. This is the only one I like.

Scissors Always handy to have around, even outside of the kitchen, and this particular brand is very sharp and long-lasting.

Side Towels These are useful, and can be endlessly customisable. You can get as nice or as inexpensive as you want, and they're something that really helps out around the kitchen.

Tongs But this particular set. So many are hard on the hands, and a pain to use. These are a dream.

Microplane This is one of those tools that every cook likes to have at least one of, because they're so useful for so many things. Nothing grates nutmeg quite so nicely. Ginger goes through very finely, and with no fibrous strings. Garlic comes out in delicate threads that disappear within a dressing. Chocolate comes out as these fine thin shavings that float atop your desserts. When you zest a citrus fruit, run the microplane over the fruit, and not the other way around. It'll go much more quickly. They also go dull after about a year or so of use, so having a fresh sharp one is always handy.

Winco Whisks Best I've ever used, and ever so handy to have around in all different sizes.

Slightly more expensive gifts 
Anti Fatigue Mats Nobody whom I've known who owns a set of these goes a day without using them. They make your back feel so much nicer when standing on them versus on the bare floor.

Waffle Iron/Griddle This is the one exception to the "don't buy a thing with two hot surfaces that meet to make a random thing" rule. Why? Because it's really small, can double as a panini press, a griddle upon which to make pancakes, and the plates reverse to make waffles. EVEN THEN, I would still strongly suggest you ask the person if they'd like something like it, because chances are that they already have a favourite pan that they'd use for those same purposes.

Peugeot Pepper Mill Literally the best pepper mill I've ever used. The grind size is very easy to set, and the filling mechanism is a magnet that locks onto the top of it. Nothing has done such a good job as this one, and I've tried them all.

Allergens

When I started working at the restaurant, I began noticing that in nearly every item on the menu, there were little symbols, like "gf", or "ns", or "sf". Bossman and I talked about it, and I mentioned how amazing I thought that the convention of marking clearly on the menu what is and isn't safe for the big allergens was. It's the same reason that we get the restaurant Kosher. Same reason that we try to aim for making specials that are safe for as many people as possible: it's just good hospitality.

My mother has been cooking for years. She's been cooking for so long that she does little things without even realising that she does it. For example, when it's a new person coming to her house, she quickly assesses who they are, where they're from, what kinds of things they may enjoy, and their level of spice tolerance. She'll still make one or two things suited to the rest of the family. However, for the guest, she'll make sure that the food is accessible to as many people as possible. She won't use the weird, bitter, or strangely textured vegetables. She'll avoid anything too spicy, or too difficult to wrangle. She'll stick with things that have excellent flavour, but don't have loads of hot peppers or black pepper.

Then, once the person has come over a few times, she'll adjust as necessary. However, for large groups of people, such as when she makes food for the temple potlucks, or for large gatherings of friends, she'll still stick to those basic rules: no major allergens (dairy, gluten, soy), no challenging flavours (very bitter, or very hot and spicy), and lots of flavour.

So when I came to Chow, it was like coming home. When I have guests coming over, I do the same thing. I'll ensure that I make something that everyone can enjoy. If a friend of mine is gluten intolerant, I don't make just one thing for that person. I'll try to make the whole meal gluten free. Why? Because to see that look of happiness when they can eat (almost) everything on the very well-filled table is gratifying. You feel good, knowing that you've made that person feel special. Meanwhile, the people who aren't gluten intolerant can still enjoy gluten free food! Everyone wins!

When you do have a friend with a* diet issue, please just challenge yourself to do everything in your power to cater to that person, and have the whole meal follow that plan. At the end of the day, what does it hurt to just try it out for a bit, and see where it leads you?

*Notice the "a" diet issue. I'm not asking you to turn into a hospital, where folks who are deathly allergic to soy, gluten, nuts, grains, raw vegetables, coconut, spices, oil, and herbs ALL AT THE SAME TIME feel like they need to have you jumping through hoops. There comes a point where someone just starts making stuff up, or where you're just not able to accommodate them. If your body hates you that much, I can't really help you. I'm willing to learn, of course. So if you are one of these folks, let me know what you eat, and I'll see what I can do.

Veganacious Interview

A few weeks ago, the lovely Barbara Degrande asked me to be on her show, Veganacious. We didn't strictly talk about food (although there was gratuitous food chat going on). She had to spend a fair bit of time editing the thing, because we both got so caught up in having our conversation, that we lost track of time, and the thing ended up rambling and roaming a lot.
Download here!

Tradition!

I was having a discussion with my friend Kate when she was over here enjoying some food I had just cooked. She mentioned that even though she is vegan, she still has a soft spot for those things that she enjoyed eating when she was growing up. Food has powerful connections to it, above and beyond nourishment. Those foods you ate as a child that gave you comfort will hold a powerful connection for you. However, as Kate mentioned so eloquently, "Just because I want to still enjoy that food doesn't mean that someone else should have to suffer for it." Well put, Kate. So she, in her home, tends to actively seek out omni subs all the time, and is on a quest to recreate those memories, textures, tastes, and feelings while still holding true to her moral convictions.

Mind you, Kate isn't "one of those". Her spice cabinet is very well stocked. Her mind (and mouth) are both open to new experiences. When she was here, I was cranking out random weird South Indian dishes that most people hadn't heard of before (because most Indian restaurants focus on North Indian dishes), and she was cheerfully eating them. She absolutely loves vegetables of every shape and size. She takes genuine pleasure in all foods, be they the memories of yesterday, or experiments of the present and future. 

I said all that to share this story with you. My friend Joanna's husband Mark comes from a very large family in upstate New York. They're a rather close-knit family, headed by one of the sweetest matriarchs you could ever hope to meet. I would like to introduce you to the gentle, the kind, the ever-patient Suzanne. She sent me a message on 25 March. I'll let her say it in her own words. 

Hi, Dino. Mark's mom here. I have a vegan cooking question, and thought you might be able to help me. For years I have made a pineapple torte for our Easter dinner. The recipe uses gelatin, but now that we have several vegan/vegetarian family members, I'm trying to find an alternative that will still set nicely while not compromising the convictions of my loved ones. Any suggestions? Thanks so much in advance for any assistance you can give me. I hope we'll able to meet both you and Stephen on one of our next visits to Mark and Joanna.

I got a little misty-eyed, but was overall rather touched by her desire to respect the morals of her children. I thought that was a wonderful thought.

Hi Suzanne, Clearly, you are even more compassionate and kind than even your wonderful sons and daughter-in-law have mentioned! What a lovely way to continue traditions, but make everyone feel included! I have such an incredible amount of respect and warm feelings towards you and your family, because of the love that you all share with each other, and this is just one more example of that love. Thank you for reaching out to me. Mark and Joanna talk about you all the time, and about how what a pleasure it is to be in your presence. I hope to some day share in that too! 

I have found that agar tends to replace gelatine quite closely, though not exactly. It'll get very close, though. The Japanese have a long tradition of making vegan gelatine desserts, which they call Kanten. It seems like it's fairly pricey (and it is), but a little goes a long way. At work, we buy the stuff by the pound, and it lasts a long time. 

The beauty of agar is that if it ends up too firm (as it will do the first time you use it), you can melt it down and it sets right up again! I was so amazed by this that I thought that my boss was pulling a cheat on me somehow, but sure enough, it worked out when I tried it myself too! Who knew, right? As with anything where you're working with new ingredients, experiment with a little bit first, to see how the stuff behaves. 

Most of the Internet swears up and down that you can use it interchangeably with the amounts you'd use for gelatine, but I don't think that's the case, from how we've used it at work. I've found it especially effective in baking, when I want a bit of firming up, without adding cornstarch, and keeping the gel jewel-clear. For example, when making the cherry topping for the vegan cheesecakes we make at work, agar makes the fruit stay put. When you have finished setting up the agar (it sets up at room temperature, for the record, so no need to refrigerate unless you want to hurry it along), it'll stay solid for a long time. I remember using agar when I was running gel electrophoresis in genetics lab. It was endlessly amusing to see how the stuff held its shape no matter what you threw at it! Hope this helps a bit in your cooking adventures!
Dino

It had taken me a day or so to respond, because I had to double-check with my boss if pineapple would inhibit the setting up of agar, as it does when you put it into a cheesecake. Apparently, it doesn't.

Thanks, Dino, for your gracious reply. I really appreciate the time you gave to my question. Daniel located some agar in Rochester , and it will be a family experience making the torte together this year. (We live in a very rural area, and ingredient choices are not very broad here.) My husband has been very unwell, as you may know, and is facing his first of five surgeries this coming Monday. I'm so thankful that all of the children can cook, as I will be arriving very late the night before Easter. We'll all put the dessert together as soon as I arrive. Just gotta keep those traditions going! Thanks for helping us to do just that. Take care, Suzanne

I didn't realise what a rough time her family was going through. It was even more poignant that she was still thinking about everyone's comfort, in spite of having so much on her mind already.

So then, I rambled back, to maybe help take her mind off of things for a bit. Also, I kind of wanted to keep the correspondence going, because I wanted to know if the dessert worked out well for everyone.

Sounds good, Suzanne! Please let me know how it all turns out. Also, please have Daniel do a test run to make sure that the whole thing does set up. Few things are quite as disappointing as the grand finale being anything but. If it doesn't work, I can email Daniel something vegan that he can knock up quickly. I've had to do the same to gallop in and save dessert on more times than I care to remember. Seriously, there have been some nights.  

Like the one time that I had my dear friend Ricardo coming over for dinner, and he asked if he could bring a friend. No harm, no foul, right? I just add more water into the pasta pot, ready to feed both of 'em. About 20 minutes before arrival, Ricardo lets me know she's gluten free. D'oh! Thankfully, I had the rice pasta from Chinatown in my pantry, and I figured that today was the day to use the thing. 

Or the many times I've been to Joanna and Mark's house, and got a request for dessert. I'm not a baker, y'see. I just know a couple of recipes that're fool proof, that I keep in the back of my brain, in case of dessert emergencies. Like the apple lingonberry crisp I made for those two when I think Daniel and Andrew were visiting. That came out fantastic. Or the Lemon Poppyseed cake. Man, was that good! 

Funny story about the lemon poppyseed cake. I was flat on my back, having over-indulged the night before (in an effort to keep Mark at home, so that Joanna could go to the store to "get more beer" [when she was really going to pick up Daniel and Andrew]). I basically dictated the recipe, and the specific instructions to the gang, while running an online interview that I'd promised to do months before. It was the most hilarious thing (looking back), because there I am, hollering highly specific instructions to the kitchen, while trying to type to my interviewer at the same time. For the record, the cake was delicious. Thanks again for reaching out. I appreciate getting to know the families of my friends better. I wish your husband a speedy recovery. Dino

It took a while, because that was around when Easter hit, and things got crazy busy for everyone. However, I got back some very good news when the dust all settled on both sides.

So, Dino, the torte was perfect! Thanks so much for your assistance. I was sooo happy that everyone in the family could continue to enjoy one of our holiday traditions. You're the best! PS...Mark, Joanna, Drew, and Daniel have had amazing things to say about the food you've cooked for them, as well as good things to share about you and Steven. Seems like you have a knack for multitasking.

Score! The point is, to this whole long rambling tale, that we do still have those foods that mean more to us than the specific ingredients in them. There are traditions, there are memories, and there are all kinds of other things tied into those things. When you start on a vegan lifestyle, you sometimes have to tweak those traditions, and make them into new traditions, so that you still connect with your family and friends over those things, while still holding true to your moral convictions.

Again, to reiterate: it's not fair to judge everyone who tries a mock meat thing, or an omnisub thing as "one of those lazy vegans who just lives off of boxed food". Daniel and Drew were quite adventurous eaters too. When they were visiting Mark and Joanna, I made all kinds of varied things, which they eat with great gusto. They're both capable of cooking, and cooking well.

But sometimes, they just want a little taste of home, mom, and pineapple torte.

The sun will come out! Tomorrow!

And today, too. It was so beautiful today that I got in a good two or three hours of basking in the gorgeous sun. I made adai for my friend who's staying with me until Monday, and a very fast curry of yucca, green beans, and tomato. We all ate until we were filled, and then finished it off with a bit of green oolong tea, from Sullivan Street Tea & Spices. They sell loose tea by the ounce, which means that I can buy just a little bit at a time, and use it up, and then go back for more.

I got some lovely messages of encouragement and hope, which really did help my mood tremendously. Also, I cooked for my friends yesterday night, which made it even nicer. It's such a nice day that I don't even mind opening the window and letting a bit of fresh air in.

I could certainly get used to this!

One of the ladies who came over for lunch took a picture of her plate of food so you could all see it too: http://instagr.am/p/ISL5sOk6f9/

Pretty, isn't it? The white stuff is my own coconut & soy milk yoghurt that I make. Isn't it so nice and thick? We ate the adai with the curried veg, the yoghurt, and some lime pickle that I'd made earlier last year. It's gotten this lovely tartness, mellowed out by a mild bitterness. It came out better than I expected. Thanks for teaching me how to make pickles, Amma. It's come in handy big time.

Here's a picture of two very happy vegans after eating all that food:

Starstruck

World renowned cookbook author and chef Dreena Burton is quite a kitchen alchemist. She can spin gold from pretty much any dietary need, be it wheat free, gluten free, sugar free, soy free, or just free. She really knows her stuff, and I'd definitely suggest that you ask your local libraries to stock her books, so that everyone can share in her talent.

Guess what? She emailed me! I couldn't believe it when I saw it, but apparently, she tried my black eyed peas daal, and enjoyed it! I'm still trying to process it all, and get over my fanboy-ness, but there it is.

Got the photos up (Finally!)

As I mentioned in my last entry, Thanksgiving was a wonderful, outstanding weekend for me; more so than ever before. In the past, it'd always be with my family that was living in the same house, because it really wasn't a huge deal for us. We'd certainly cook, but never anything special. This year, however, was different. My friend came in from the city, and we hung out here in Brooklyn. We cooked quite a few dishes (most of which I don't even remember).

Then, of course, Sunday the 25th was that day in Jersey, where we started cooking things at like 2:00, and wound up around 9 or 10. And I'm talking nonstop cooking. Something was always going down in the kitchen, and although quite a few people helped, there was a core group who was curious about how everything goes together, and I really had fun showing them all how the food was made.

For anyone who's curious, there's photos of it on my Photobucket page. Feel free to browse through them! Of course, the kitchen with the white walls is the kitchen in my house, and the one with the brown walls is the kitchen in New Jersey.

Cooking in New York City, Baby! and other stuff.

While listening to the beautiful, intelligent, well spoken and talented Ms Colleen Patrick Goudreau (and if you haven't done so yet, go out and subscribe to her podcast via iTunes now, please), I jumped on the L train headed to Manhattan. I disembarked from the train, and tried to locate the #@$#ing knife sharpening store that I had located on the Googles. As has been the case this entire day, the search was utterly fruitless, and it was only because of Ms Colleen's voice that I kept from swearing loudly and colourfully.

But that's neither here nor there. No, the purpose of the story is to update you all on my adventures in New York City. Anycow, I was wandering the streets, and finally made it into Sacred Chow, on Sullivan Street in Greenwich Village. It took me an hour to find it, because I kept going in the wrong direction. According to the pedometer on my phone, I walked around 20.2 km yesterday, and a goodly 15.1 km today. New Yorkers really walk everywhere, and it looks like I've become accustomed to this new way of thinking.

Just one more minor digression, and we'll be back to today's updates. Yesterday, we hung out at two vegan lesbians' house and cooked at the end of the day. What an outstanding way to spend spare time! We had so much fun hammering out a meagre 4 dishes (which I made in large quantity to make up for the lack of variety), chatting, laughing, joking, and all the requisite things that good friends can do together. The funny thing is that this was the fist time we'd met! I encourage all you vegans to get into each other's homes, and cook together. Sharing that meal makes the eating an event, rather than a regular daily occurrence, even if that meal is simple (like the one we shared last night). We made a lentil soup, a vegetable soup, some Unslaw (from the cookbook), and Indian roasted potatoes. There was also some rice, of course.

So I made it to Sacred Chow for my ... Wait for it ... Wait for it: Interview.

Which I thought would be for a server position (I would do anything to get my foot in the door of a vegan restaurant).

But the owner wants me cooking.

We chatted for the better part of an hour and forty five minutes. We chatted about food, cooking philosophy, my getting over my fear of omni subs and trying out new things (because they were yummy), my mother, my mother's influence on my cooking, my mother's legacy to me (the love of cooking). We talked about events that we could have at the restaurant, about work schedules on busy days and empty days, about ideas that I had for new recipes, new presentations, new ways of getting bodies into our seats.

We talked about his beautiful son (he's 5). About his son's cavities. About his lack of cavities. We talked about Steve, and how much Steve supports me in every way, every day, and makes me utterly revel in creation, rather than living each day. We spoke about having respect for all life, and reflecting one's daily journey in that respect.

We joked about the heat of the summer causing us to want to shed the clothes and go back to nature. We discussed Ethiopian food. We talked South Indian fusion food (which I love to make of course). I told him about cooking with my friends in Jersey, and how I plan on going back to do so on the 25th of this month. I told him my dreams, my hopes, my desires to be a vegan chef. He told me of his vision for the place, of his hopes, his dreams, his desires.

In short, rather than having an interview, I feel that I have made a friend. It is my sincerest desire that I get to work there as the fantabulous vegan chef that I have waiting to come out and play. That being said, I think it's even more important that I met such a compassionate, kind, loving soul, and made a connection with a like-minded being. It was such a revelation of what a job should be like.

After that, feeling fairly giddy on the wings of having met a new friend, I wandered off to seek yet another store that was supposed to be able to sharpen the knives. No luck again. I walked up a few blocks to yet ANOTHER place. Nothing. I'm going to have to try my luck tomorrow at the Chelsea Market, and hope for the best. This severely sucks.

It can't however, take away my elation at the thought of being a vegan chef! There would have been hundreds of people who apply to get in to work at Sacred Chow, but I got it! I feel like I've truly arrived in the city now, and that I have a life here.

NYC, here we came.

We finally made it into the City on Saturday at 4:20 PM. The flight was delayed, and I was, understandably, swearing proficiently and colourfully under and over my breath. But, we made it in, and I took some pictures of our new home.

The picture below is how you see our bedroom as soon as you enter it. The fireplace doesn't connect to anything.


This is our palatial kitchen. It's freaking HUGE. It's also really pretty. It's granite floors, and marble counters. That's a hardwood table, and the appliances and utensils are all top of the line. I love my land lady.


To christen our kitchen with my mark, I created a few new dishes, and cooked. This one here is whole potatoes, tossed with some oil, and then combined with diced tomatoes, and sliced onions. I baked it at 350º until the potatoes were tender. They got crispy on the outside, and nobody needed margarine, because the oil and tomatoes and onions provided lots of flavour.


This is a dish of plantains, with the typical spices that I used to make Indian roasted potatoes, but I added crushed peanuts at the last five minutes of cooking. Very yummy, and the skins got all crispy, so the two textures of the plantains were cleanly balanced.

While I was waiting for the plantains and potatoes to cook in the oven, I dashed off and snagged a picture of Steve on the bed, checking his email and my blog.

On the way out, I snagged a quick picture of all of our luggage. To imagine that we managed to make the move with only five pieces of luggage in total is pretty darned good, I think. No need to tell you that the red suitcases are mine, as well my red purse. I hope you're all taking notes, so that you know what colour of stuff to get me!

I found some tinned beans, so I made a really quick bean soup with adobo seasoning.

I used the same adobo seasoning to give the rice a yellow tint, but then I thought it looked too boring. I quickly deep fried some onions to get them dark brown. It was still lacking. So, I sliced up a couple of carrots in thin slices, and deep fried them as well. I think it came out rather pretty. The sweetness of the carrots and onions offset the dark, earthy adobo seasonings in the rice. Quite yummy.

My landlady seems to enjoy my cooking quite a lot, and has been eating vegan since I arrived. It is her house, so I'm not going to make a fuss if she has animal products, but I think it's very sweet of her to be so accommodating. Dinner that first night gave us leftovers for a while. I froze half of the soup. In fact, I froze a lot of the leftovers, so that we don't get bored.

Now I need to figure out what to make for tomorrow!

Massive Food Update

Two weeks ago, I went to the beautiful home of my friend Erica to cook with her and her daughter. Ever since Karen (her daughter) found out that her mom works with a guy that does Indian cooking, she's been bugging her mom to call me over to have us all cook together. Finally, now that I'm leaving town, Erica decided to get this thing off of the ground. She called me and Steve to come over that Saturday, and see what we could see.

We arrived bright and early at 11:30 AM, and went shopping at this fruit and vegetable store near her house. They had such an enormous variety that I was squealing in excited glee, and grabbing everything I could find. The entire trolley was overflowing with a cornucopia of colours. Erica could barely name half the stuff I was flinging into the trolley, but was happy that I was at least having a good time. $50 later, the car was loaded up, and we were ready to roll. We made a quick run to my parents' house to grab some curry leaves (again, which Erica had never heard of before!) and get things started.

Karen is an eager and talented cook. She knows her way around the kitchen, and is comfortable with pretty much anything you ask her to try. We chopped, peeled, and cooked. And cooked. And cooked some more. We started around noon, and rounded off the last dish around 4:00 PM. At the final count, we came up with 14 dishes. All of them were amazing. I decided to take some photographs of the event, but lost the camera that night. Steve found the camera, so I'm sharing now.


On the far left is lentil soup. It's a standard for me, and a crowd pleaser every time. In the centre is kale soup, with carrots. On the far right is kale and swiss chard soup. Yes, we had three soups to start.

On the left are plantains, done up like the Indian Roasted Potatoes from the cookbook. Since they were cooked in the oven, they all came out done all the way through. In the centre are roasted potatoes with whole cippoline onions. It was done in a cumin, sea salt, and turmeric base, in the oven. They came out tender on the inside, and crispy on the outside. The onions were sweet, and a little smoky from the cumin. Fabulous! On the right you see Karen, me, Erica, and Janice.


When Erica got back form Israel, she mentioned in passing that with every meal, they serve a chopped salad of cucumber, red onions, and tomatoes, tossed with parsley and lemon. Just by luck, the vegetable place had Israeli cucumbers, and good sweet plum tomatoes, so I couldn't resist! The only change I made was that I used shallots instead of onions, and cilantro instead of parsley. On the right is the Unslaw from the cookbook, with the addition of red peppers, and broccoli. I also added some hot Hungarian paprika to finish it off.


On the left is the unslaw, but without the broccoli or Hungarian paprika. I left out the broccoli, so that everyone could clearly see which one is hot, and which one isn't. In the middle are me and Steve. On the right is a blend of toasted ground cocoanut, with mixed nuts (also ground) that I seasoned with cinnamon, clove, fennel, and a bit of salt. We used it to sprinkle onto the soups, or salad, or rice, or whatever else we felt like eating it on!


On the left are red wine and brandy marinated beets (you can't see the nest of sautéed beet greens underneath, but they're there). On the right are the Indian aubergines from the cookbook.


No party is complete without silly poses after the cooking. I submit to you mine for that night.


This is what the spread looked like before everything came out. There's still a few dishes missing.


That's me and Erica in the kitchen, ready to break open the cocoanut with a hammer.

I'm sorry that it took so long to post the updates (which is why it's coming all at once!), but better late than never, eh?

Saturday Cooking

On Saturday, a friend of mine (Erica) called me over to her house to get together to cook. This is probably going to be the only chance I'll get to go over there before I move next Saturday, so I figured it'd be a great opportunity to show her and her daughter how to get down the basics of cooking for vegans. Their food is mostly centred around a meat main dish, and a couple of sides, so I don't know what they expected when Steve and I came over!

We got in, and I immediately set a pot of lentils to start simmering, so that by the time we got back from the store, they'd be at least mostly done. We went to this place called the Fruit Emporium, where they had so many different kinds of fruits and vegetables, that I was running around like a kid opening presents on the day of his birthday. Kale, collard and beet greens, swiss chard, bok choy, cabbages as big as your head, cocoanut, yams, tiny little baby potatoes, yucca, cassava, pumpkin, butternut squash, eggplant (both Japanese and Italian), and so many others that I can't even remember them all. We piled the trolley full of vegetables, and went to pay.

Everything totalled up to $50.

She was quite shocked at that, because she's used to paying so much more for her weekly grocery bill. We lugged everything to her house, and started cooking. I showed her daughter how to do everything, from start a fresh soup to roasting vegetables in the oven with a spice rub. I kept the steps really simple, so that she could come back and try things out on her own.

All in all, we turned out 14 dishes. 3 of them were soups, there were four varieties of oven roasted vegetables, and the rest were random sides we composed on the stove top. Our friends who came over to help us eat all that food were raving about how it was so much fun to try out the different things we came up with, and enjoy everything so much! The star of the programme, however, was the lentil soup. For some reason, no matter how many times I make them, they always get big raves from the people who eat it.

Unfortunately, we lost our camera, so I can't upload pictures of all the food. :( I'm sure it'll turn up at some point when we get everything set up at home to move.

I'll be moving from Florida to New York city really soon. If anyone would mind having a couple of cute vegan boys who will cook and clean for you for a few days in exchange for couch space, let me know.

Speaking of cooking, my friend Dana (I mentioned her a lot in the book) invited me over to come cook with her. She wanted to get in a couple more sessions before I leave the state, and I was more than happy to oblige her, because I enjoy being with her so much! And, you, my lovely readers, can enjoy the pictures of the food.


This is bajji. The larger pieces are actually bread that we used to use up the last of the batter. It was delicious. I was bursting with pride, because Dana managed this batch herself with no prompting from me at all. In the time I've known her, we've only made it a couple of times, because it isn't exactly healthy, and it uses up a fair bit of oil, and makes an enormous mess. So to have seen her triumphing over the recipe (from MEMORY, no less!) was a wonderful parting gift.


This is one of Steve and Dana's favourites: aubergine. I made version 2 from the book, with lots of whole cloves of garlic. It was another moment of pride, because as I was cooking in, Dana's daughter Noodle walked by, and asked "Did you just add cinnamon to something?" We were both shocked that this little five year old was able to correctly identify a spice by smell alone. We're making a future chef!


Wine, of course. The glasses looked really pretty, so I wanted a picture of them.


Courgettes and Squash. VERY yummy, with lots of basil, oregano, rosemary, and curry leaves. Piles and piles of curry leaves.


Saffron and cashew rice Basmati rice. Extremely yummy all by itself.


This stuff makes me ill to think about, but Steve and Dana POUNCE at it every time I make it. It's that okra buried treasure from the book. It's another of Dana's favourites, so she specifically got okra so that I'd make it for her. The things you do for friends!


Indian roasted potatoes with onions.

We had a really good time, cooking, talking, gossiping; all the regular stuff that we do when you get that many vegans in a room together. The food came out very well, and the house smelled divine for hours afterwards!

Friday on the way in

I fortunately managed to find a ride to the airport, and it wasn't that difficult at all, once I got there. It was more or less an issue of getting through security, and getting a bit of tranquilising stuff into me. Unfortunately, I was too keyed up all day to eat much of anything, so I'd been downing a few cups of coffee instead, and not quite enough of anything else. Of course, what ended up happening then was that my nerves were shot to heck, and I was a twitch (hah!) jittery.

Fortunately, I asked Steve to snag some nuts ahead of time, and we managed to snack a bit before heading onto the aeroplane. The flight took off on time, and is hopefully going to land a bit early. I'm definitely looking forward to getting off the plane, as flying makes me ridiculously nervous.

God bless Jet Blue airlines. They have very generous leg room, as well as individual television sets in the backs of the seats in front of you. Quite fun. Of all the trips that I've taken to New York, I'd have to say that tonight's flight was the absolute best of them. It took off and arrived exactly on time, and the flight crew was friendly and attentive.

In spite of the multiple times that I've gotten lost in the past trying to find her house, I managed to make it to my friend J's house without even calling her once for clarification on directions. I think that having the cheat sheet in front of me (thank you, Google maps) and poking at her guy earlier in the day helped matters tremendously.

Of course, as soon as we got in, Steve was hungry, and I expected as much. We'd both had a long day in getting to the airport (what with the rain, and traffic delays and such), and I was in the mood to throw together something quick. My friend had bought some wonderful rustic bread with a chewy texture, and thick hearty crust. I threw together a quick bruschetta. Here's what I did.

First, I sliced up the bread into thick~ish slices. Then, I combined:
- 2 medium sized tomatoes, finely diced
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1 clove of garlic, finely minced
- 1 TB minced fresh basil
- 1 TB minced fresh rosemary
- Splash of balsamic vinegar
- Splash of olive oil
- 8 oz tinned red beans, drained well

I tossed all the ingredients together in a bowl, and ground up a bit of sea salt and black pepper to round things out. Once the bread got toasty and crusty, I removed it from the oven, and let everyone pile on the toppings to her or his own liking. They enjoyed tremendously, because the bread was fresh, and the topping was that perfect blend of tart, sweet, salty, and peppery. The herbs provided a wonderful counterpoint to the strength of the garlic, and the olive oil took the edge off of everything. Quite a success, if I do say so myself.

More to come as the weekend progresses.

Updates and the like

As I'd hoped, the VeganFAQ project is coming along swimmingly. I've got quite a few people on board, who are happy to share their wisdom, their humour, and their venting, all at the same time. It's very interesting to read people's take on various aspects of vegan life. If you're up to join in, leave a comment on here with your email address (so that it gets emailed to me), and delete the comment after doing so (so that nobody else gets it!) and I'll see what I can do.

Hopefully, on Wednesday, I'll have another segment on the Vegan Freaks podcast. If any of you have questions for me to cover, please leave a comment here, and I'll try to include them (as long as I haven't covered the information before). Barring that, it should be an interesting podcast and Cooking With Dino segment.

Steve and I leave for New York on Friday night, and will be back Monday afternoon. I probably will not get a chance to update here too much until I get home, but I'll try to remember to take pictures of our visit. We're staying with a friend, which means that I'll be cooking, and sharing photos, of course. After having been as many times as I have, I have a pretty good idea of what I'm looking to check out. I'll let you all know how it goes, of course.

My new iPod 160 GB came in today, and I couldn't be happier to have it. I finally have a large hard disk drive for backups. It's been such a pain working off the tiny 30 GB HDD on my little iBook G4, and this will be quite nice to have. Since it doesn't require an external power source, like my backup drive does, life will be far simpler this way.

I've been sitting on a minor case of writer's block again, so that's why this post utterly sucks.

These things have a way for making it even more memorable.

A few months back, my friend J and I decided to make a trip out to Tampa for a party that was going on that we both wanted to hit up. I called my other friend M in New York, and told her that she had to come down for it, and that we'd all have a blast. We would get together, and book a hotel in Tampa, then grab a quick bite to eat at Grass Root Organic Restaurant before coming back to get ready at the hotel room for the party. Then, after getting back to the room, we'd crash for a bit, and sleep off the long drive and long party. On Sunday, we would drive back to Ft. Lauderdale. We would have dinner at Sublime, and wrap up the weekend that way. On Monday, we'd drop M off at the airport, and get back in to work, business as usual.

If you ever want to hear the Gods laugh, tell them your plans.

At the last minute (aroundabouts of this past Monday), J had to cancel her part of the trip, because something came up that she couldn't anticipate. There went the idea of taking her car. Instead, we'd have to rent a car, and drive up with two, not three drivers. We'd also have one fewer person to rent the hotel room. Fortunately, it wasn't a problem, because everything was reasonably priced.

I met K on a vegan forum, and contacted him to let him know that me, Steve, and M would all be driving up to his neck of the woods. He gave me his phone number, and we made plans to meet at Grass Root. Apparently, I hadn't learned my lesson about making plans quite well enough the first time around! The sensible thing to do would have been to meet K in his town of St. Petersberg, and follow him in to Tampa to get to the hotel. We'd check in, and drop off our stuff. From the hotel, we'd take one car, and go to Grass Root together. Then, we'd figure out where to go from that point onwards.

Sensible wasn't my strong point this weekend.

I told K that we'd meet him at Grass Root, and that it should take us about four hours to get from Fort Lauderdale to Tampa. What I didn't count on was the rain. From the time we hit Naples (or thereabouts), sheets of rain began to slam down on the car, and reduce the visibility to nil. We were able to see the lights of the car directly in front of us, and nothing more. This meant that we were crawling along at close to twenty miles per hour, and making horrible time. Instead of the anticipated four hours, we ended up spending more like seven hours of time getting to Tampa.

Because of the rainy conditions, and our timings being wrecked, we decided to relax our attitudes on the way up. We pulled over at a rest area that looked interesting, and had a little picnic under one of the shelters. We took our time to look at the stunning rivers and lakes that we passed by. We stopped by a Target (to grab some shoe laces), and the three of us lingered over a cup of coffee, while the rain raged on outside. When it let up, we made a mad dash for the car to get back onto the highway!

We switched drivers whenever one would get tired. I burned CDs on the road, so that the music choices changed with each CD that my computer made. We sang along to the songs, and ate the bajji that I'd made that morning. We chattered on about nothing and everything, taking time to enjoy the stories we told each other. We reminisced about the music we listened to when we were younger. It was so nice to have a trip where we could kick back and take it easy.

All this time, poor K is wondering what's taking us so long. He ended up having to wait for us at Grass Root for about an hour. Lucky for him, the place has a cool reading section, where they have all sorts of interesting books. They also have a little gift shop set up against the left hand wall, with interesting pieces from all over the world. There was a beautiful Mayan calendar, made of what looked like aged copper, set on wood (if I recall correctly). Because of this, K was pretty relaxed when me, Steve and M showed up at the place. The three of us, however, looked like we'd been dragged through a few sets of rollers in a printing press, then shaken about in water. It wasn't a pleasant sight.

The restaurant, however, was a delight! We sat around talking for about two or three hours, while the food just kept coming. There are quite a few raw dishes, all of which make you feel so alive! The chef understands how to balance flavours, textures, and colours very well. It's a feast for the eyes and the stomach.

After eating, we planned (oh, what fools these mortals be!) to head back to the hotel, mooch around for a bit, grab a shower, and part ways with K while me, M, and Steve headed out to the party. Again, we were shown the folly of making plans! K had accidentally locked his keys in his car. Looks like we'd be here a bit longer. He called a locksmith, who said that it would take forty five minutes to arrive.

This meant that we had to chill at the restaurant until the locksmith arrived. I went to the car, and grabbed the three branches of curry leaves I'd brought with me. I was originally going to give them to K, but I decided on the spot that I'd rather give them to the chef who worked at Grass Root. He and his mother were such nice people, and I figured they'd appreciate trying something new and interesting. (K doesn't cook very much!) I signed a copy of my book for K. The chef saw the book, and the two of us had a long, rambling conversation about religion, and cooking, and family, and everything else under the sun. It was so nice to find such wonderful people so far from home! Although we tremendously enjoyed the food, I personally enjoyed the time I got to spend with the new friends I met there.

Finally, the locksmith came out and retrieved the keys from K's car. K made a split second decision that he was having too much fun with the first vegans he'd ever met in person, and that he'd prefer to join us to go to the party, rather than go home from the restaurant. I was only too happy to oblige, because we had the ticket already, and had space in the room, since J cancelled. K had to dash off and grab an outfit, so the three of us stayed behind at the hotel room, and got a chance to just relax for a bit after all our adventures. Steve caught a quick nap, and M and I chattered on at each other while we got dressed and primped.

K got back and the three of us headed out to the front desk to call a taxi. We'd be out late, and there's no sense in having someone drive in a strange new city when he's half asleep. Rather than risk it, we stuck with the cab. We got to the party, and had a good time dancing and wandering around the rooms for a few hours. Tampa shuts down at 3 AM. We headed back to the hotel room, and settled down for the night.

However, both M and I are used to going out much later than that, and Steve was running on quite a few cups of coffee by that point. K was excited to hang out with vegans, and was also wired. Rather than sleep, we stayed up for a few more hours, talking about everything from the profound to the mundane. We've definitely made fast friends with K. It was so much fun to be with vegans for a weekend.

It's like every kink that got thrown our way came with a new and interesting adventure for us to enjoy. It's almost as if something out there is letting me know that although I may think I know what I'll enjoy, I should really just keep myself open to new possibilities. Freaking out when things don't go just so is a short cut to the Emergency Room. Because we were willing to roll with the waves, we had a kick-behind weekend, and made new friends, and have memories to treasure forever.

It's kind of like when I'm cooking. I'll be standing there, watching the dish unfold, and reveal itself to me. I never know what I'm making until after it's made, because I like to let the ingredients guide me, rather than having a specific plan to start. By doing this, I don't feel disappointed when things don't turn out perfectly. Rather, I feel excited by finding out all the new ways I can serve something. People who have watched me in the kitchen can verify this. I'll start with a stack of ingredients in front of me, and think out loud when it comes to what I'll be making. Many times, about half way in, I'll change the course of things, and come out with something different. It doesn't matter if (for example) while I'm chopping vegetables, I end up making them larger than I expected. Rather than freaking out that it's not perfect, I'll make the dish into something different from what I'd originally planned.

Now that I've had this experience, I know that my attitude was just right. It was a fun weekend, and I look forward to more adventures in the future.

How is the Book Doing?

Many of my friends have been asking me how the book is doing. In fact, my family asks as well. In fact, more or less anyone who's in my circle of acquaintances wants to know how the book is doing. Often, the person really means "How many copies have you sold?" Honestly, I don't know the answer to that question in particular. As for how the book is doing, however, that's a different story.

I'm getting feedback from the people who have bought it, and tried out some of the food in there. People are getting back into their kitchens. They're shopping for cheap ingredients that are readily available anywhere. They're telling me that they're becoming confident in the kitchen. I remember addressing that issue on the Animal Voices interview. Lauren had asked me what I thought of people simply thinking they're poor cooks. To be honest, it's fear. I'm helping people get past their fears of preparing filling foods for themselves and their loved ones.

"I love that I've been given permission to mess around with the recipes and try shit out. It also means I'll cook something from the book even if I don't have all the ingredients, because now I know I can replace/omit/add whatever, whenever."

YES! Exactly! I want you to fuss around with what I've given you, and make it work in your kitchen. I've not only given you permission to do so, I'm outright encouraging you to do so! And this person loved it! S/he made the dressing from the Mixed Greens Composed Salad, and subbed out one nut for another, and it still came out fantastic!

"OK, I made the dry chickpeas and as I was nearing the end of cooking them I started laughing outloud cause it was clear it was going to taste so good. Wow did it ever."

"I made the Basic Kale Soup last night which was super easy and so frickin' yummy! I added chickpeas to it and a lot of parsley...Mmmm."

"Oh my god! Oh my god! I made the Lentils and Chickpeas and I am sitting here eating them cold right now. I added some PB when it was cooking and subbed out some vermouth for the vodka.
Oh my god! Oh my god!
Okay, I feel better."

"Dino, your Quick Garbanzo Soup is a godsend to a sick lazy vegan! It is so good and so easy and the only thing I needed that I couldn't find in the pantry was an onion, which was easy enough to sweet-talk someone into picking up for me. I am sitting here smugly enjoying my delicious meal whilst all the omnis I gave my bug to are choking down cans of vile processed Campbell's crap."

"Dino what I am loving most about is that your basic recipes are actually basic. Sometimes I can handle more complicated recipes, but sometimes I can't. Often as a fairly new cook, when I see the ingredients list and it has 20 items, I immediately feel overwhelmed. My kitchen isn't super well organized either, so I am never sure what I have, or I always forget an ingredient when I am shopping, even when I have the list.
Even I can't mess up the basic recipes. Yum and thanks!"

"Today we made That One Soup Dino Makes, but I had to take it off of the stove just as I got the potatoes added because my partner arranged a surprise picnic party for my birthday. So, hours later I finished the soup, but I didn’t have anything to add to it because I played instead of going shopping. The soup was really extravagant without any additions though. I wasn’t all that hungry after party food that included black bean burgers, strawberry shortcake, and potato salad - I thought I was just going to taste it, but I had a huge bowl.
And I have a lot of leftovers to play with. We froze half of the leftover soup and Tuesday we will add chopped tomatoes, corn, and black beans to the rest of the leftover soup and serve it with lime wedges, and avocado on top -- if I can keep my partner out of it until Tuesday.
It will make great quick dinners after work. I am determined not to eat any fast food type frozen foods or any other fast food during the week. We both work 10 – 12 hour days or longer with our commutes and it is pretty daunting to come home and make dinner after that. But the fast food has too much salt and sugar and other stuff we don't want to eat. We love the cookbook because a lot of the recipes are so easy, and they taste great too!!
We are trying Vizza tomorrow.
Truffle oil is my secret love. I am embarrassed to tell people how much I love it because it seems so extravagant, but Vizza has a truffle oil option. I am so excited."

"I love that the fast and easy recipes are actually fast and easy. I have been crazy-busy but I have still churned out some awesome food in the past few days. If not for this book I would probably be eating ramen for lunch today instead of this awesome cauliflower thing."

In other words, the book is a smashing, resounding success.