Goodbye, Already?!?!

I know you just began following me here, and for that I love you all!  But I have begun to contribute to a blog called "The City That Feeds," which is run by a person that actually knows something about blogs.  (Refer to the first post here on BVS.)  Even though it is a Baltimore food blog, and not a vegan blog, I think this will be a great chance to possibly get some people out there a tad more interested in veg food.  And I'm interested to see if we can make this website great!

And so, I have decided to put all my extra-time efforts into The City That Feeds.  Please think about checking me out over there!  I will try and figure out a way to get links to my posts on Facebook to remind you ;)  I consider Baltimore Vegan Slop to have been good practice for what I'm about to get into, and I hope to keep offering vegan slop pictures for people everywhere!

Thank you,
Laura

Snackies

I was grateful to be able to come up with some snacks for the past few days because I was studying for exams and putting off grocery shopping.  Sometimes I am able to find something fairly healthy in the kitchen, and other times, well, you know how it goes.  I won't deny putting peanut butter and jelly in a tortilla, or putting Daiya cheese and mustard in a tortilla, in those times of need.  I heart tortillas.

Spike Popcorn

Popcorn might be the best snack ever.  But I have heard, and not thoroughly researched, that microwave popcorn is pretty awful stuff for you.  It tastes great and is super easy, but it makes sense to me that it would have to have lots of added chemicals to be microwaveable and have uniform, flawless taste.  So Spike Popcorn is mostly J's invention, since I was an avid microwave popcorn eater up until recently.  

I am still trying to perfect the art of popcorn, but I do have a few tips.  A super hot pot or pan is helpful to start - one that has a lid!  We then use peanut oil because it tastes good and handles high heat well.  Use just enough to coat the kernels.  And use only about 1/4 cup or less of kernels!  I always pour too many kernels, because I think it's not enough, and I'm always surprised at how much popcorn it ends up making.  I wonder when I'll catch on.  

When it starts to pop, I think it's helpful to shake the pan over the heat and keep moving it so nothing burns.  And then, like microwave popcorn, I listen for the pops to slow down and remove from heat.  I use SPRAY canola oil, BUTTER flavor (vegan), and Spike seasoning and shake it all around while keeping the lid on.  This, I believe, is what makes popcorn amazing.  Spike is basically salt and spices and dehydrated vegetables, and it tastes good on everything.  

I've tried nutritional yeast on popcorn, and I'm not a fan.  I would inhale it, literally, and it makes for an unpleasant eating experience.  Anyway, popcorn goes well with movies.  It also goes well with funny little novellas about zombie apocalypses, where vegans have conquered the Earth because they didn't eat the meat that contained the virus.

Tofu "Egg" Salad

Yay for tofu egg salad!  I used to be hooked on Tofu Inc. Tofu Egg Salad and traveled far and wide to get to it, as it would be in select health food stores in my sales territory (when I was in sales).  But this version has nothing to do with that, since I got this basic recipe out of Naturally Thin.

Mainly, this recipe is about vegan mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, and Spike (see above).  I also like to add turmeric, dill, pepper, and black salt, which has a sulphuric egg-y taste about it.  Go easy on the salt, though! Especially if you are eating with salty crackers.  The Spike adds a bit of salt and sneaks up on you.  

Also, tofu egg salad is a whole lotta tofu protein, and it's easy to eat, so you may ingest a half or whole block of tofu before you know it!  (Better to spread it out over a few days, and saves well.)  I will sometimes add celery to bulk up the recipe and get those veggies in there.  

"Peanut Fruit"

I sort of invented this on the fly, since I loves peanut butter but it's not the healthiest thing that ever happened to me.  When I do eat it, I tend to eat a lot at one sitting, and then I feel a bit of guilt.  To tone down the fat and calories a bit, I thought to add applesauce, and I tried this concoction on celery.  I just put one spoonful of peanut butter together with one spoonful of applesauce and mixed it well.  

Don't think of peanut butter if you try this!  That will ruin it for you because it is not the salty you are expecting, and it is not the creamy you are expecting (if you eat creamy).  Applesauce makes it sweeter and gives it sort of a strange texture, but I think it tastes pretty decent.  I had to make up a name so that I don't think of peanut butter while eating it.  If you try this out and come up with a better name than "peanut fruit," then please help.

Black Bean Brownies

I had such high hopes for these things!  Maybe that is what made them horrible for me.  Got this recipe out of Happy Herbivore and she built them up quite a bit.  Basically these are black beans, banana, agave, and oats.  They seemed to be done after baking, but they were so mushy when I cut into them.  So I baked them more, and it didn't really help.  I'm refrigerating some, which helps a little, but there is also too much cinnamon in these for my liking.  

This is the healthiest brownie recipe I've ever seen, so I'm determined to make this recipe work.  I'd like to keep it gluten-free, so I was thinking about adding some more oats and maybe oat flour.  Also, it won't be as super-low-fat, but this stuff is screaming for some walnuts.  If I can make it right, then I will post my version of the recipe.  To be continued!