Well kids, today/last night I made my the first vegan cakes I've had any kind of success with, lol. I've always had the most horrendous time with vegan baking. Butter no problem; milk, no problem; eggs...problem, lol. Anyways, my cousin came to Vegas with some vegan friends who got married yesterday. Unbeknownst to them, I undertook a suprise wedding cake for them! =) It's en route to their hotel room now!

So, this is a vanilla-lemon cake with pomegranate/blood orange curd and buttercream layers, topped with lemon/blood orange buttercream frosting (tastes like a Dreamcicle!) The pink heart on top is actually cake wrapped with marzipan and I decorated it with organic edible flowers. The cake itself is pretty dense, partially owing to the fact that I got the wrong flour. D'oh! But that has pretty much been my experience baking vegan cakes. I've been desperately trying to track down the cake recipe for you guys, but no luck yet... The curd and buttercream recipes are here, though. I tried to make the cake recipe too, but that was a disaster. My bad though, lol. So, yeah...I'm not the most accomplished decorater, even at the best of times, but here ya go! =)[/unneccessarily long post]



( A few more behind here. They're a teensy bit dark =/... )

I'm looking to buy some fresh herbs (living, growing ones, that is), and have heard that they can be purchased online. I don't have very green thumbs, so growing from seed is possible, although not my preference.

Does anyone have any experience with this? Any sites to recommend? Would it just be better to go to the local nursery and buy some plants there?

Thanks!

(xposted to main journal)

An abundance of bananas led to the following cooking orgy.

( beware: simply looking at the pictures may cause cavities )

In response to requests for simple Chinese recipes using a minimum of ingredients, with emphasis on those which are available at most grocery stores, I have been working on a series of very simple stir fries. (Braised dishes and soups coming next...have no fear!)

This one is my answer to every lame version of Chicken with Broccoli or Lemon Chicken from bad Chinese take-out places which I have eaten.
The chicken is flavorful, the recipe is low in fat, (no deep frying) the flavors are bold and genuine (no yellow gloppy sauce) and lemon and broccoli are perfect together. The ginger and chile pepper just add glory to the mixture of flavors.

Anyway, photos and recipe are here.

I hope you enjoy it.

Open-Faced Sloppy Joes
2 pounds ground beef
4 onions, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 stalks celery, chopped into small pieces
2 15-oz. cans sweet corn, drained
1 15-oz. can black olives, drained (optional)
1 heaping teaspoon leaf oregano
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 TB Worcestershire sauce
2 15-oz cans tomato sauce
Sourdough bread, or bread rolls, split and toasted

Brown ground beef, onions, garlic and celery in a deep skillet until meat is cooked through and onions are tender (about 5-6 minutes). Add spices, Worcestershire, corn, olives and tomato sauce, stir well, and simmer until sauce reduces by about 1/3 (about 45 minutes), stirring occasionally. Spoon meat sauce over bread or rolls; eat with fork.

Should serve 4 to 6.

http://travel.discovery.com/tv/bizarre-foods/bizarre-foods.html

So this is not a recipe post, but this *is* food porn.
For all of you out there that have not watched Bizarre Foods.......do it tonight!!!
Its on at 9pm on the Travel Channel.....I will be tuned in with bags of chips and a barf bag.
Andrew Zimmern travels all over the world and partakes in some freaken weird food.
It is my porn, and I hope some of you out there will catch the show, its not for the weak
of stomach, he tries some nasty things, but sometimes he will eat something that looks DELICIOUS.
I play the *would you eat that?* game with my boyfriend, most of the time *I would not*
But its a history lesson as well, he does a great job describing the traditions and customs, and the visual is always almost amazing.
If you like things that are out of the ordinary, you should give this show a try.

The menu:
Sweet Potato - Chipotle Soup
Pear Salad with Gorgonzola and Cayenne Candied Pecans
Crab Cakes w/ Bearnaise Sauce
Rack of Pork, Stuffed with Chorizo and Wrapped in Bacon (urp!)
Sauteed Swiss Chard
Mashed Purple Fingerling Potatoes
French Bread

( Photos (by Mo) after the cut )

We had such great sun light yesterday I decided to play with some eggs and just bring it down to bare bones color.



Click to make bigger

( More )

I've had an impulse buy of frozen green garbanzos from Trader Joe's hanging out in my freezer for a while...does anyone have any bright ideas on what I can do with them? Much appreciated - sometimes I overestimate my creativity while grocery shopping :D