Sunday Hotcakes

This sunday was a weird one as I watched under one game of football, but stranger things have happened. I did get a nice little brunch in though! I made some mint chocolate chip pancakes up, which involved subbing half the vanilla extract for peppermint extract in a basic pancake recipe and adding choc chips. Nice and easy. Topped that all off with a little celestial cream from Dreena Burton's Eat, Drink & Be Vegan
This brunch was the fuel for a sunday morning recording of the Hotcakes podcast. I will apologize right this minute for the picture quality. Why? Well, when I was half way to the studio I remembered that I forgot my camera at home and wasn't about to turn around for it so we'll all have to enjoy the wonderful picture taking abilities of the blackberry once again.

October Is Upon Us.

and that means the same thing that happened last year is going to happen this year...
I have been so busy with everything that kitchen time etc has been at a minimum but luckily I had a photo of something I made recently that I saved!!! Here we go with some black bean and chorizo enchiladas with mozza teese, salsa verde and avocadoThis one was just thrown together haphazardly and I will give you a quick guide to whipping this up for yourself.

Enchilada shell. Mix some maseca flour and lukewarm water together until it feels like it is a bit too wet to use. You won't want to use more than a cup of flour for this. Then flatten them out into the disc size you want to use and make them quite thin. Fry them in shallow oil in a pan and that part is done.

Black bean chorizo topping. Sautee some onions, garlic and jalapenos together and when softened add salt, pepper, chili powder and cumin. Cook down for a minute or two and then add some black beans and allow to cook for a bit. Add some water so that you have a bit of sauciness when you are done cooking the beans. When the beans are pretty much ready add the chorizo of your choice, whether it be homemade or store bought, and cook for a few more minutes. Check for seasoning and finish off with some fresh cilantro.

Salsa verde. Jacked from here

As soon as I took the enchilada shells out of the oil I put the teese on them and then covered them with the black bean chorizo to aid in the melt. Top with salsa verde, some fresh avocado and enjoy.

Now let's get ready for a month of deliciousness all over the internetz.

Thanksgiving Delights, VeganMoFo

A little earlier than our neighbors to the south, but never too early for deliciousness, Thanksgiving was upon us today. After a great brunch with a friends, an evening meal of epic proportions was in order. First off, all the shine goes to this dish. Anyone who tries them loves them. Beet leaf holopchi in a dill cream sauce.
Don't knock em until you have at them at least once. I will say my "I'm sorry" for this blurry ass picture in advance. I will give you the rundown of the meal though. Started off with a little "chicken" and wild rice soup (not pictured). What's on the plate now. Clockwise starting with garlic lover's green beans, chickpea cutlets and mushroom gravy (v'con), homemade tofurky, wild rice stuffing, roasted sweet potatoes, beet leaf holopchi and mashed potatoes with fried leeks. That was followed up by a little pumpkin pie with coconut whipped cream
and apple plum crisp with vanilla soy ice cream.
You're gonna have to forgive me for presenting the desserts on "dirty" plates. There wasn't exactly a ton of plates where the meal happened and I thought I would just go for it dad style. You know what I mean, guaranteed your old man would just plop the dessert right onto his plate regardless of if there was gravies or anything on there. Fun fact right there. If I told you I wasn't stuffed from the meal and had trouble making it home I wouldn't be lying. A big thanks to all the contributors to the meal. I need some sleep so I can attempt to make other tasty treats. Goodnight. Caught up official.

Suitable For Vegans, VeganMoFo

That phrase or any other phrase similar or the little "V" symbol with certified vegan written around it. Tiny little things that make all the difference. Any company that takes the time to put that on their product gets some cred in my book. You know how it is, sometimes it's the little things that count. Sorry for the picture free post. I just saw that on something I bought today and thought it would fit the profile for this particular month of posting. Hopefully more pleasing things to the eyes soon. Done.

Delicious Vegetarian, VeganMoFo

Don't let the name fool you since it is the name of one of the few strictly vegan restaurants in Winnipeg. It's been around for as long as I've been here and has some delectable treats and the luxury of being able to pick anything on the menu. That is a small thing that is almost immeasurable. I was at the grocery store buying ingredients for the last post and I got a call and supper at home got canceled and I was off to Delicious Vegetarian for an easy, and pardon the pun, delicious meal. I can't start a meal off any other way than with the hot n sour soup. This is the best one I have had and from my many travels that is saying quite a bit.
Since the soup is so good, why not have a little fun?
Next up was the spring roll that isn't pictured and once again they are the best spring rolls ever. End of story. Another DV classic are the deep fried mushrooms with spicy salt.
Sometimes you get good company for a nice meal and sometimes the mushrooms take the place of an eye.
Here is the tofu with lemongrass, the saucy version. Another treat.
Not pictured was the deep fried tofu with broccoli and satay sauce. Apparently you have to have a charged battery to take pictures. That is a lesson I learned the hard way during the meal. I'll know better for next time. ha. Another dish that didn't happen during this visit was the spicy peanut noodle soup. That is the kinda thing that you get some tofu added to it and you have yourself a one bowl meal at it's finest. The lunch special is second to none as well. $10 tip in and you get soup, spring roll, a dish and your choice of rice, fried rice or chow mien. Enough of me praising this place for now, if you're ever in Winnipeg check it out. Still sick and that is making getting into the kitchen a little harder. That will all change in a day or two. Take care.

Peanut Butter Cookies n Creme, VeganMoFo

Well leave it up to me to get real sick during this month of culinary greatness. I feel like an utter bag of trash today. Luckily I got these little guys made last night since I don't feel like doing anything today. Playin around with recipes is always fun and I decided to try using peanut butter sandwich cookies instead of the classic oreos in our cookies n creme cupcake recipe and the results blew my mind. The batter tasted like Reese's Pieces and it's been over a decade since I've tried that! Here is a look at one and forgive since I took the picture today and just wanted to get to bed.
That is enough time on the computer for now. Have a good one.

Roasted Potato Salad, VeganMoFo

Well here we go with an actual food post! This one is gonna be quick since I haven't had the luxury of sleeping much lately and that is what's on the menu at the moment. Back to the topic at hand. At almost every family event or BBQ someone brings the potato salad and I have never liked the stuff. I decided that it was time to try make one that isn't creamy and caters more to my tastes. HOWEVER, I have seen one creamy potato salad that intrigues me thanks to Isa and I guess I'll have to play the waiting game. In the meantime I will indulge in this little treat. A roasted potato salad with kiwi lime dressing.
The potatoes are dressed when they come out of the oven and the rest of the veggies are then added. Other than waiting for the potatoes to roast, this is a quick and simple recipe. It has a brighter and lighter feel to it than other potato salads. I'm also falling asleep while typing this so we'll get back on the grind tomorrow. Keep cookin up magic this month. Goodnight.

October, Vegan, Go.

It has arrived and I'm excited to be a part of it. Pardon me for this first text only post. I heard about this little event on
The PPK and I was intrigued. I figure it's gonna get my creative juices flowing and motivate me in general. I have all sorts of plans, that may or may not have come from the above link, like my own creations, gadgets that I can't live without and some of the best spots to eat certain things in good ol Winnipeg.

At the moment I have a bounty of produce in my kitchen. I whipped up an on the spot apple crisp, no pics but there are more apples so no worries there, and it turned out fantastic. There are sweet potatoes around for gnocchi and other things that will happen in the month to come. There might be a few rogue non food related posts this month but bear with me since it will be more than worth it. Peep the links on The PPK vegan mofo for other tasty blogs n such.

That's it for now, hopefully this made the cut off for October 1st so I can start this thing out on the right foot!