Vegetarian BBQ in New Mexico

Well, I took myself a little vacation last week, (and obviously neglected the whole blogging thing...).

I was lucky enough to spend a few relaxing (but VERY HOT) days in sunny New Mexico visiting friends and family who live in the area, including my good friend Shaun.

I'll share some highlights and (because I'm single-minded like that) mainly yummy food pictures from Santa Fe, Taos and Albuquerque over the next few posts...

OK, so Shaun (aka 'Froggy') is the organizer/head of "ABQ-Veg", the Albuquerque Vegan-and-Vegetarian Meetup Group.

He organised and planned the most AWESOME Picnic/BBQ Meetup for his group and anyone else who wanted to come. (Like me!). I was pretty proud of him, he heads a large group and this was a lot of work.
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I brought my standard picnic macaroni salad and Shaun made his own secret-recipe baked-beans and also supplied the burgers, and pineapple - which was just INCREDIBLE when done on the grill!!! The boy has such creative 'Vegan-Grilling' ideas!
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Other members brought tofu-and-veggie kabobs, dips, chips, bread, salads, veggies and such.


I actually helped out with the grilling a good part of the time, along with the Meet-Up's assistant organizer, Josh. I wouldn't say we knew exactly what we were doing when we started, we developed mad skilz on the BBQ quite quickly!!
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It really was a lot of fun, despite the fact that I was sure I would die from the heat.

Lots of fun meeting vegans and vegetarians from another part of the country too!

Grandma's Birthday and Chunky Vegetable Dip

Happy Weekend all! School's out for those of us here in the Pacific Northwest who seem to attend later in the year than most areas. Despite our questionable weather, summer has officially started.

My Grandma celebrated her 85th birthday (doesn't she look GREAT!?!) and a bunch of us (including some of my cousins I don't often get to see) threw her a great little party.

I was the only vegetarian in attendance but there were plenty of good eats for me provided by thoughtful family. Portabellos on the grill, several salads, baked beans and even appetizers!

Grandma was very proud of the Hawaiian "Luau" theme, she's so cute...

OK, so I brought the baked beans (VERY boring, from a can, but I had to travel and didn't have room for much.)

I also made this dip which was a HUGE hit and NO ONE asked if it had creepy vegan ingredients. Try it. Seriously.

Chunky Veggie Dip

1 cup (8 ounces) Tofutti vegan "sour cream"
1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise

1/4 cup finely chopped seeded cucumber (I use the English cucumbers that don't need to be peeled)
1/4 cup finely chopped jarred roasted red pepper (or pimentos)

1/4 cup chopped green onions

1/4 cup finely chopped radishes

1 to 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 garlic cloves, pressed or minced very fine
2 Tbsp. minced fresh parsley
2 Tbsp minced fresh dill (or 1 tsp. dry)

1/4 teaspoon prepared horseradish
1/4 teaspoon salt or to taste
1/4 tsp pepper, or to taste

Directions: In a bowl, combine the ingredients; mix well. Cover and refrigerate. Serve with vegetables for dipping. Yield: 1-1/2 cups.

I served it with raw veggies, pretzels and crackers.

Vegan Weddings are the Best!

Congrats Anthony and Suzanne!

No recipes today; we just got back from a truly beautiful wedding, and I thought I'd share some pics.

I originally met Anthony (the groom) on my favorite message-board, VeggieBoards which I've probably only mentioned a thousand times.

Since he was also from the Seattle-ish area we got to meet in real life as well. You find a lot of good people on VeggieBoards!

Anyway, Anthony was a huge support when I was struggling with those first few months of going vegan and put up with a lot of Instant Messenger whining and griping from me too!
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So, fast forward a few years and here he is getting married! Awwww....
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His lovely bride, Suzanne is also vegan. How lucky two people are when they find someone compatible like that! I'm so happy for them!

The wedding was held at a beautiful farm with gardens, grounds and banquet facilities that just seemed perfect for a vegan wedding.
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Food was catered by Araya's Thai Place and it was simply amazing - all sorts of unique dishes including a couple I'd never had.

It was all arranged so beautifully! Of course I had to take pictures!

Avocado curry, fresh spring rolls, fried spring rolls (pic), Tofu Satay on rosemary skewers (pic) Japanese pumpkin curry, pineapple fried rice...

My favorite discovery was this beautiful dish called Mieng Kahm.
I had to look it up when we got home. It's traditional Thai "street vendor" snack food and wow... soooooo good!

The idea is you build your own appetizers from the little green Bai Cha Plu (or betel) leaves that you wrap around your choice of fillings and pop in your mouth; toasted fresh coconut, fresh ginger, red onions, Thai chili, lime, peanuts and a palm sugar sauce. (Non veg restaurants will also have dried shrimp, just a heads-up). Each filled leaf is an intense bite-sized explosion of Thai flavors. I can't say enough about how yummy this was!!

Wedding cupcakes were from VCTOTW. Suzanne, the beautiful bride, made them herself and they were delicious!! I'm totally smitten with the whole "cupcakes-for-weddings" trend. Such a cute idea!


My youngest Sprout loved the scary-green Jones Soda, (the adults had wonderful organic, vegan wines) and cleaned out the supply of fried spring rolls (thanks for ordering extra, Anthony!).


Then, somewhat bored with the reception festivities, she found friends to play a mean game of football with on the farm's lawn, until it got dark. So lady-like.

A good time was definitely had by all.

Cabbage and Sausage

Oh man, this is the best "super-quick" supper ever!! (Steaming food makes for blurry pictures, sorry!)
Now, I realize opinons about cooked cabbage my not be as enthusiastic as mine, but if you haven't had it in a while, try it again.
Just cook until tender-crisp, not soggy. And understand, I grew up eating my German/Polish Grandparent's cooking, so anything with cabbage is gonna be a hit.
Sauteed with some Field Roast sausage (my favorite "faux sausage" in the world, but use whatever you like) and really, how can you go wrong?

This hardly needs a recipe but:

4 cups coarsely chopped cabbage
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 Apple-Sage style Field Roast sausages, sliced
wee bit of olive oil
splash of cider vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Sautee Field Roast sausage slices with onion over med. heat until they start to brown. Add cabbage and cook, stirring frequently, until cabbage is done. Sprinkle with vinegar, salt and pepper to taste.