vegoftheweek

Inside The Oven: Why a leek’s bite is better than its bark. Week Links: Black Owned Restaurants Go Vegan In South L.A. Our very first vegetarian spider.

Fresh is always better, right? Actually, not always. Take tomatoes, for example. Research shows canned varieties contain more of the antioxidant, lycopene. And lycopene has been shown to reduce the risk of all sorts of maladies, including cancers and macular degenerative disease.

While I like to think of the many benefits of lycopene being the reason behind me buying canned tomatoes for cooking, usually I’m just plain lazy and don’t want to bother chopping and dicing. Of course, there’s also the bonus of buying them already seasoned. I don’t know how many recipes have called for garlic or basil and I’ve easily grabbed a can of Muir Glen versus attempting the mountainous and annoying task of peeling garlic. Yes, I know there are gadgets for that, but I’m convinced that any pain involving using whole garlic cannot be eased with something from Kitchen Contraptions.

To me, leeks are like big dogs with no bark or bite. Get recipe for Canned Tomato Leek Couscous and find out why leeks don’t bite after the break… (more…)

PETA likes to have a lot of contests, including sexiest celebrity male and female vegetarian and Cutest Vegetarian. Leonard Sun, a sophomore going into Film Studies at the University of Colorado Boulder, decided on a whim to find out how cute he was. After over 3,500 entries and 50,000 votes, Sun was crowned the cutest male.

VOTW: On PETA’s website, you said that all you really need to be happy are “some tunes, a cup of coffee, and a good book. Can you name some books you like, what kind of coffee you drink, and what you’ve read lately.

Sun: There’s a band called Fear Before The March of Flames and I think they’re heavily underrated for how long they’ve been around. Ore Ska Band-they’re an all girl ska band from Japan…Right now I’m reading a book called, “You Suck,” by Christopher Moore. It’s about a conflicting love story about this guy whose girlfriend turns into a vampire. And then there’s a book called “Choke,” by Chuck Palahniuk. He’s basically goes to fancy restaurants and chokes himself. (And for coffee) Allegro Brand Coffee. It’s fair trade certified, organic. It tastes pretty good.

On Vegetarian fare on and around The University of Colorado Campus:
The dorms, depending on which one you go to, they’ll have vegan pizza and you can get pasta. They’ll have a random vegan dish everyday. Sometimes it’ll be like some tofu dish. They always have Gardenburgers available, which are vegan. And there’s always a salad bar. There’s a vegan fast food restaurant (off campus), which is pretty cool. It’s called V.G. Burgers.

What he’s eaten for the week:
I made spaghetti with a whole bunch of vegetables in it. I made these vegan chocolate chip cookies, which my friends thought were pretty good. I make a lot of fruit smoothie things. And cereal.

Learn what Leonard is addicted to and whether he prefers tofu or tempeh after the break…

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Inside The Oven: When is it okay to trust bears? Week Links: Paul McCartney surrounded by leather-no, it’s not what it sounds like. And vegan dog that finds other pets tasty.

A little note of excitement. We have been widgeterized!

No, that doesn’t mean that I or anyone else who reads this blog for that matter, will received a free wand complete with sparkle dust, shiny gown, and goofy looking cone hat. Although that would be an interesting giveaway if I become rich like Oprah and am able to give my audience cars and things of that sort. Which would you prefer? A Honda or Wizard powers?

What I meant was that I have taken advantage of some widgets in WordPress and now have the “Recent Comments” showing in the sidebar. Now, it’s easier than ever to find out what Joe just said about his vegan mac and cheese and for you to bicker among yourselves about the best substitute for Kudzu root starch. Go ahead, make a comment. Start a revolution, an argument, or at least some interesting discussion.

Zen Soy vegan pudding makes me want to cuddle up with panda bears. This may seem like a bad idea at first because panda bears are…well, bears! But if one were offering me some of Zen Soy’s pudding, I might just have to get friendly with it. Learn why Zen Soy is great vegan pudding after the break… (more…)

Inside The Oven: What To Do With That Tempeh You Made 3 Months Ago. Week Links: Crab-Less Crab Cake Helped Citizens Bank Park Earn Most Veg Friendly Sports Venue Title.

Ahh…What to do with that tempeh you made 3 months ago.

While trying to think of a title for this creation, I switched between Seedy Avocado Tempeh Temptation and Sunflower Avocado Tempeh Temptation. I needed to find the right name to capture the meaning of the recipe. So I thought for awhile and asked myself questions such as, “What does it mean to be a “sunflower” sandwich? Where do you get a “seedy” sandwich? From a deli in a rough part of town? (Where there are establishments designed to bring on…ahem..temptation?) I hope you appreciate my deep philosophical efforts as much as my cooking ones.

I decided on Sunflower Avocado Tempeh because “sun” gives connotations of happiness (emotions you’ll feel when eating this), and summertime (August is hot isn’t it?). It’s also what my focus group decided on. I won’t tell you all the demographics of my focus group, but one member is a cat…who loves carbs…more on that for another post.

So you probably remember the story of how my friend and I decided on a restaurant that would suit both her carnivorous and my veg desires (well, mainly mine, but it always looks good to pretend to compromise). I told  you I found an eatery with marinated tempeh on a sandwich, but I only gave you the recipe for the marinated tempeh. It’s part of my suspense tactic. Get recipe for Sunflower Avocado Tempeh after the break… (more…)