I've been going to stumbleupon.com when I have a few free moments at work. Here is a page I saw on there, and it made me laugh. It's also informational!

I found out about stumble upon from O Magazine.

I've also seen this.

And this.

Enjoy!

Table of Condiments
That Periodically Go Bad

1 My Mayonnaise 3 months

2 S Salt N/A

3 H Hollandaise 1 day

4 B Butter 1.5 months

5 Mw Miracle Whip 3 months

6 Hu Hummus 1 week

7 Od Onion Dip 2 weeks

8 Tt Tartar Sauce 3 months

9 V Vinegar 3-5 years

10 M Mustard 6-8 months

11 K Ketsup 5 months

12 P Pepper 4 years

13 Be Bernaise 2 days

14 Ga Garlic Sauce 1 day

15 Cc Cream Cheese 2 weeks

16 Ti Tahini Sauce 1 month

17 Bl Bleu Cheese 2 months

18 R Ranch 2 months

19 Pb Peanut Butter 4 months

20 Lx Lox 2 weeks

21 Pi Pickles 6 months

22 Po Pearl Onion 8 months

23 Cr Croutons 2 months

24 Cs Cocktail Sauce 6-8 months

25 Fi Fish Sauce 5 months

26 Ym Yellow Mustard 6-8 months

27 Ci Chili Sauce 6-8 months

28 Sg Sugar 2 years

29 Gc Guacamole 2 days

30 Ws White Sauce 2 days

31 Sc Sour Cream 3 weeks

32 Th Special Sauce 2 months

32A Th 1,000 Island 2 months

33 Ma Marmalade 2 months

34 V Vegemite 2 months

35 Sy Syrup 8 months

36 Re Relish 6 months

37 Go Green Olive 9 months

38 Ln Lemon 2 months

39 Gs Green Salsa 2 months

40 Sw Sweet n Sour 4-5 months

41 Gm Germ. Mustard 6-8 months

42 Ss Steak Sauce 1 year

43 Nu Aspartame N/A

44 G Gravy 3 days

45 Ch Cheese Sauce 1 week

46 Wc Whipped Cream 2 weeks

47 Vg Vinaigrette 2 months

48 F French 2 months

49 J Jelly 4-5 months

50 Nt Nutella 4 months

51 Fu Fudge Sauce 6-8 months

52 Hr Horseradish 6-8 months

53 Jñ Jalapeño 6 months

54 Oo Olive Oil 6 months

55 Rs Red Sauce 2 months

56 Sf Stir-Fry Sauce 8 months

57 Dj Dijonnaise 6-8 months

58 Ts Taco Sauce 2 years

59 Xx Saccharin N/A

60 Au Au Jus 3 days

61 Cz Cheese Wiz N/A

62 Mg Margarine 6 months

63 Ch Chutney 5 months

64 Hm Honey Mustard 2 months

65 H Honey 8 months

66 Pe Peanut Sauce 8 months

67 Cp Choc. Syrup 6-8 months

68 Bo Baco Bits N/A

69 Pm Pimento 9 months

70 Ds Duck Sauce 4-5 months

71 Wu Worcestershire 1 year

72 So Soy Sauce 1 year

73 Bq BBQ Sauce 6-8 months

74 Ta Tabasco 2-5 years

75 X Maraschino N/A

Vegan Spanikopita

I LOOOVVEEE spanikopita. But, because it has cheese and butter in it, I can't eat it. So, I made a vegan version with soy feta cheese and Earth Balance butter. The filo pastry I used was made with oil, not butter, which was awesome! I found it at Sobey's. Here is the recipe:

8 cups spinach - no stems

1/2 cup parsley

1/2 cup dill

2 cups green onions

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 cup olive oil

3 cups onions

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 cup feta cheese, crumbled into small pieces

14 filo sheets

3/4 cup butter, melted

1. Shred spinach. (I sat in front of the tv and used scissors) Combine it with parsley, dill, green onions and salt. Let it sit for 15 mins, then press out any liquid that forms.

2. Heat olive oil in skillet. Add onions until transparent. Add spinach mixture. Saute for a few minutes. Add feta and pepper.

3. Place 7 filo sheets in a buttered 10x17x2 pan, brushing in between each sheet with melted butter. Add spinach mixture. Add remaining sheets on top, layering with butter.

4. Cut it into pieces before you bake at 375* for 30 mins.

An Homage to Cheese

I can't break it. There is always cheese on EVERYTHING.

At most mainstream restaurants I go to - and even independently owned ones, there is cheese on everything. And if it's not cheese, it's meat. And often both.

So, I haven't been able to go one week as a true vegan because I eat out at least twice a week with friends, family, or the new bf. It's hard to go to places (especially with a bf who doesn't eat spicy food, enjoys eating meat, and doesn't tell me where he wants to eat EVER, just that he doesn't want to eat THERE.)

So, I'm settling. I'm eating cheese if I must, and never eating meat. That's what I've chosen, and I'm okay with it. Because cheese is f-ing good, and it's not a lot. And I know I'm not supposed to be eating it because it's made from milk that is taken from cows and goats that are being harmed, but sometimes I just need to eat cheese.

And I'm okay with that.

Falafel Burger

These are a favourite of mine from Rachael Ray. They are so yummy and so good for you! I love putting cucumbers on them, especially the ones I got this Saturday at the farmer's market - 6 for $1.00. Hello! I love a good deal!

Instead of the sauce that Rach uses, I just use hummus. Today I used red pepper hummus from The Happy Camel, which has a store in Edmonton, but is also found at the St. Albert Farmer's Market.

Try the recipe - it's quick and tasty.

Secret Daughter

I just finished reading Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda. The style is similar to other popular fiction out today where each chapter goes back and forth between characters. I like this style, as I find it is easy to follow and I always want to know how the last events in that chapter are affecting the character coming up in the next chapter.
I am not sure if that made sense.
This book was a page turner and a really good story with themes about what constitutes a family, sacrifice, and coming into one's self.
The characters are charming and real. I tried to think of who my favourite character is, but I can't even decide. I love one of the main characters, Asha who is trying to find her identity as an adopted Indian girl in an American family. I also love her mother, Somer, who doesn't relate to the Indian world at all, as a white American woman, and feels like she is losing her daughter who moves to India for a year and reconnects with her father's Indian relatives. I am finding it particularly poignant at this time in my life as I am having discussions about having children, which I have NEVER wanted to do. But, now I am considering it as my boyfriend wants to have 5. He think we should compromise and go between my 0 and his 5 and have 3. That is a far cry from my absolute certainty that I would have none. I think my biggest fear with having children (besides the obvious pain - which I honestly don't know if I can bear) is that I will fail them, be a bad mother, or they will end up abandoning me at 14 to do drugs in the back of a warehouse somewhere. I don't know if I could handle that. Everyone says I'll be a good mother, which I don't doubt at all, but that doesn't mean I will do it, just because I'm good at it.
Irregardless, my fears of becoming a mother having nothing to do with this book.
Please read Secret Daughter!

Thai Peanut Salad Wraps Unwrapped

So tonight I tried a new recipe. I made Thai Peanut Salad Wraps. I think they would be really tasty, but I'm not a huge fan of peanut sauce. But, I did eat most of it. I bought some unsalted organic peanut butter today because my doc wants me to cut out more salt and because it's just pure peanuts. It's good - probably better with jam.

I liked the salad wraps because they were light, but filing. They are great for summer. I put some whole grain basmati rice beside it. I need to eat more whole grains.

My good friend, Heather, wants me to have a vegan dinner party. If I do, I think that will be definitely be on the menu.

Vegan BBQ

Tonight I did a vegan BBQ. For the most part it turned out great. I made potato salad with Veganaise and no egg. While the potatoes were boiling, I BBQed a veggie dog and a veggie skewer. It looked really nice on the plate, but . . . .

the veggie dog was disgusting. Looks like I won't be eating any more of those.

Then I made banana blueberry raspberry (fresh from the garden) muffins. I just took them out of the oven. They smell really good.

New Rules

Alright. I'm sure some of you saw this coming. I have to make new rules for myself before I seclude myself from my friends. I need to be able to eat cheese at restaurants. Last night, Saba invited me out to eat here, but everything on the menu either had meat or cheese. Honestly, I couldn't have eaten anything there. And, since I won't eat meat (a. because I usually never ordered meat anyways as restos and b. because I haven't eaten meat in about a month so I will get sick if I eat it) I had to go with the cheese option. I ordered the portabello and eta pasta. I'm not going to lie, that salty cheese tasted good. Could I have ordered it without cheese? Yes. But, I am not the type of person who likes to make a lot of changes with the waiter. I don't like to cause a problem.
So, I've decided that if I can't get anything on the menu that is vegan, I will opt for the cheese option, still having no other dairy or meat.
The last thing I want to do is tell people I can't go out with them because I might not be able to eat. I have decided that when at home and cooking for myself, I will stay strictly vegan as I have been. But, when out, I will opt for cheese. Not purposefully, just if I'm forced, you know, by my 4'11 friend Saba.

The Gentle Barn

I learned something new today. Horses can be rehabilitated with deep tissue massage. Who knew? Apparently the folks at The Gentle Barn did. I went here to find out more about it. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on Virtual Barn. You can read about all the animals and how they've been rescued and cured. It's really neat.
I learned about The Gentle Barn from Ellen Degeneres. We're like this. The great thing about The Gentle Barn is that they also have people with special needs at the farm to become close with animals that will be gentle with them They can touch the animals and feed them, which can be very healing to people with special needs.
Here, you can also read about why Ellen when vegan.

Sick

It recently came to my attention here that an Ohio dairy farm, Conklin Dairy Farm to be exact is treating the cows in a disgusting manner. Often chaining the cows to fences and beating them with crowbars, or stomping on their heads.
I know this is in Ohio, and likely that the milk we drink here in Edmonton isn't from there. But this was an undercover work at the farm who captured that video. Just because it hasn't been captured on film, doesn't men it isn't happening from the place where YOUR milk is produced.
Giving up dairy has been really hard for me, but this has made it really easy for me to stop drinking milk. I would never want any animal whose products I'm consuming going through something like that. It's bad enough that they are killed for their meat, but hurting them like that for no reason is unacceptable.
If you go to the above link, you can watch the video (it's really disgusting so be careful) and take action through various suggested forms.
For other dairy options, check out soy milk or almond milk (which is what I drink). You can find these products at any grocery store. I also eat soy cheese. I have been able to find these products at Planet Organic, Superstore, and Sobey's so far. You can feel good knowing that none of the products used to make these items were severely beaten or treated inhumanely.

Homemade

I love to cook. Now that I am vegan, I have to do way more cooking, which is really nice. I love being back in the kitchen.

Lately, I've been finding it hard to eat beans every day. I should really be doing it twice a day. To get by, I eat a lot of hummos. Today, I tried to think of bean dishes that I like, and instantly thought of my homemade minestrone soup. So good.

I take some onion, grated carrot, and grated zucchini and throw it in a big pot with olive oil to soften. I add a clove or two of garlic. Then I add a whole box of vegetable broth, bring it to a boil. Then I add some whole wheat macaroni. That cooks until the macaroni is el dante. Then I add a can of whole tomatoes and a can of navy beans. That cooks for just a few mins. Then I wilt in some spinach (or in today's case, swiss chard) and some parsley. Done.

So easy, and so delish. It really fills you up too. Looking forward to lunch tomorrow!

Celebration

Today is a day I will never forget. It's the day that Miss G's family became whole again: her dad and brother arrived from Jamaica to live here permanently. I will be heading to the airport later tonight to great them, along with some other friends of the family. I can't wait for them to be a full fledged family doing things together!
On a foody type note . . .
I went to Planet Organic after work today - but this time, the south side location, which I forgot was much bigger than the one downtown. It has way more variety! I was so pleased, and I realised something: Everything is going to be okay. I have been having a bit of anxiety (shocking) over eating vegan. But now I know things taste good - samples of So Good chocolate ice cream were helpful - and I can eat most of the same things, just prepared in a different way. My biggest food phobias are things with weird names and things that look like they have a texture I couldn't handle in my mouth. Tofu and tempeh - two of the biggest vegan stables totally turn me off (at this point). But, I am trudging onwards in hopes for a healthier lifestyle.
I came home and made vegan cream of potato soup with potatoes from the farmer's market. I also made a recipe of Garden Green Goddess Dip. The recipe can be found here. http://www.veganchef.com/ It's really tasty and will be good with veggies, pitas, and chips. Yum!
One of my favourite things to do in the whole world is cook. So, having to cook a lot of my meals again has been making me really happy. Especially when they are new and taste good. I can't wait for supper tomorrow to eat my potato soup!

You win some, you lose some

Last night was my friend Jen's stagette. She's getting married this coming Saturday on her acreage - which I'm totally excited for. The stagette theme and events were kept secret until we got to our first destination. The theme was Jen's Amazing Race to the Altar. Yes ladies and gentlemen, a city wide scavenger hunt requiring many wedding type situations and photos of strangers. Our final destination was The Common (101024 124 St) which was a really cozy and cute bar. Except one thing - nothing on the menu was even close to being vegan. So this is the part where I lose some. I opted for the mushroom tart which was delicious, but had goat cheese and I'm sure phyllo pastry isn't vegan either. (Sometimes taking one for the team is a tasty adventure.) In retrospect, I could have ordered the pear and goat cheese salad and asked for no cheese. But I didn't think about it that much.

So, today is when I win some. This morning for breakfast I had a rye bread sandwich with hummos on both sides and tomato and lettuce in between. I love sandwiches for breakfast, and this one fit the bill. Simple, but delicious.

For lunch I made vegan mac and cheese (a recipe I made on the fly - same as normal but with soy cheese, ww pasta, ww flour and almond milk). It didn't look too pretty, but it tasted so good.

Supper consisted of 3 things I've had in mind to make for a while. First I wanted to try a vegan caesar salad dressing that I've wanted to try. With fresh lettuce from the garden - it tasted so light and delicious. Often caesar salad can be very heavy due to the dressing, but this was light. Recipe can be found here. http://vegetarian.about.com/od/saladdressings/r/vegancaesar.htm

Then I made some roasted baby potatoes because I bought some at the farmer's market yesterday. I just coated them with olive oil and put them in the oven for about 40 mins.

And then I made a black bean and quinoa salad. I am supposed to eat beans with a whole grain to get the complete protein. This is hard for me, but I'm getting better.

Attached are some pictures of the food I made today.

Here's hoping for a good week!

Pizza

This morning I had it all planned out - home made pizza for supper. This is something I'm pretty famous for, with my pizza stone from Pampered Chef. However, this time I had to do it vegan. Except, when I got home, the dough hadn't mixed in the bread maker. (I was using my mom's - so maybe that's why.) I was a tad heartbroken. But, I went off to Safeway and bought Amy's Soy Cheese Pizza as a base and then put my own toppings on (with more cheese). It was delicious!

I was worried about two things - veggie pepperoni and soy mozzarella. Verdict = both were awesome. The pepperoni was hidden amongst all the vegetables, so I couldn't really taste it. (I might leave it off next time). And, the mozzarella melted wonderfully and tasted exactly the same as regular mozzarella. Success!!

I can envision many more vegan pizzas in the future.

Here's a pic of the leftovers. (I know I mentioned a pizza stone and this is on a normal cookie sheet. I used the pizza stone for the one I made for the rest of the fam - non vegan.)

Taco Thursday

Well I did a bad thing today and although I brought my lunch to work, I didn't feel like eating it and bought something at the cafeteria instead. I ended up with a grilled cheese sandwich and poutine. Good Lord. I think that's a vegan's worst nightmare. But it was so gooooooood. Reminded me of the days at AOL eating lunch with AM.

So this evening, I knew I had to be super good. On the way home I stopped at SuperStore and made up this meal in my head (thank you very much.) I made vegan tacos and Mexican rice. It was really simple, honestly it took less than 5 mins. The tacos were shells with lettuce on the bottom and then a mixture of salsa, black beans, and corn. The rice was Uncle Ben's brown rice that you cook in the microwave with taco seasoning. It was simple, and so good. I could have put some soy cheddar on it, but if you read my last post, you know I'm not such a huge fan.

Tomorrow I'm making my very first vegan pizza. I love my pizza stone and have been dying to use it since I moved back home (cringe). I'm making my own vegan pizza, and then one for the rest of the fam.

I hope veggie pepperoni tastes good.

Cravings

Lately I've been craving a big hunk of cheddar cheese and also bread. I've heard that the number one thing that vegans crave is bacon. I often think of how easy it would be on the way to work to drive thru McDonald's and have a bacon and egg breakfast bagel which would be delicious, but make me feel awful.

So, for now I think about the wedding I'm going to in a week and half and how much better I'll look in pictures and the dress if I don't eat such horrible food.

Also, to get the bread-iness out of the way I made these delicious vegan banana chocolate chip muffins. I found them on this website http://www.veganchef.com/ along with many other delicious recipes which I can't wait to try. I added carob chocolate chips to fulfill my daily chocolate cravings.

This is a pic of the muffins from last night, and then what I had for breakfast today. I haven't been able to find something to crave my cheddar craving. The soy cheese I've bought looks too oily, like something I couldn't want to eat on it's own. I put it on top of a Mexican type dip which people enjoyed.

Any suggestions?

1/2 Way Through

I'm half way through Good to a Fault by Alberta author Marina Endicott. The story is about a single woman in her 40's who is driving and hits a van with a family inside. As the story unfolds, the reader learns that the family lives in the van and was travelling to Fort McMurray to re-locate and find work.
The main character, Clara, takes in the family as the mother goes into the hospital, later diagnosed with cancer, and the father skips town. She tries to take care of the children, their grandmother, and the mother in the hospital, slowly dying. Dealing with guilt is a major theme of this book. How far is going too far? It reminds me of Will Smith's movie, Seven Pounds. If you haven't seen it, you should.
Good to a Fault is a book club read and so far people are loving it. I'm about half way through right now, and left wondering what is happening between Clara and her Priest, as well as with Uncle Darwin.
I'll let you know . . .

Indulgence on two levels

So, I went to see Eclipse tonight with some friends from book club. We never read the Twilight series for book club (we have standards) but most of us read it on our own. As I was indulging in the meaty flesh of Taylor Lautner on screen, I had to indulge in some movie popcorn. I know - so not vegan. But sometimes you have to go bad to know what's good.

This is a pic of my breakfast. It's 8 grain organic cereal with strawberry soy yogurt. OJ and banana make it complete.

Tomorrow I am going to a Turkish restaurant for supper. I wonder what I will find there!

Emotionally Unstable

Every Wednesday in the summer, the church (http://www.stalbertunited.ca/) I belong to hosts Sundaes on Wednesdays (get it?) where we have a bit of a spiritual gathering and then enjoy ice cream sundaes afterwords. It changes every week. Usually we learn something new about another faith expression. (I skip the ice cream as I'm going vegan now.) This evening, an Anglican minister who is Cree came to do an Aboriginal smudge and prayer circle. At one point he sent a bowl of water around to say a prayer into. First of all, it started with the lady beside me so I was next, which I wasn't prepared for! Then, I said two names of family members who are sick in the hospital, one being my grandfather who was recently diagnosed with lung cancer, dying, and not taking any treatment.

I immediately burst into tears and cried for the rest of the night. At one point, the minister doing the ceremony came over to me and did a special blessing and hugged me because I kept crying. Then afterwards, when it was all over, I tried to escape to the bathroom, but people kept coming up to me and asking me what was wrong - which enhanced the crying.

I bet part of the reason is this going vegan thing is taking a toll on my system. My body is going through detox right now of built up sugars and "nasty foods" in my body. I am feeling hungrier today than I have been in the last few days, but not giving in to temptation. (Although the soy peanut butter chocolate non- dairy ice cream I bought the other day and tried last night was DISGUSTING. I'm basically going to have to throw out $8 worth of fake ice cream)I might have a bit of something tonight that will help my sweet tooth. I haven't made it out again to a grocery store to buy some vegan friendly chocolate.

Comforting myself with food? Shocking.