Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Dining on the run; Frozen Yogurt, Circus Demos, Donuts, & a Potluck!

Please head over to my new blog at TheUrbanHousewife.com, where you'll find this post & more!

Life has been busy lately & it seems like I've been everywhere but home! Last week, I headed down to Palo Alto to have a meetup at Fraiche, home of my favorite vegan frozen yogurt. It was a small group of Ladybros, but the attendees included Megan from Say It's Not Soy, Jordan from Too Vegan to Function, Erika from Strange & Violent Creations, & Jennifer who may be the only vegan on earth without a blog! You may also recognize Jordan & Erika from their podcast The Cosmopolitan Hour! I can be heard babbling on Episode 21 & a few other episodes, so you should listen in! Back to the frozen yogurt, did I mention I'm obsessed? It's plain & tangy yogurt topped in your choice of toppings. I went with Mango & Apricot this time & was saddened to find out they've discontinued Pineapple, my topping of choice. Rumor has it, San Francisco gets a Fraiche location a mere 6 blocks from my house in 2 weeks. Oh man, I'm in trouble! Delicious, delicious trouble.

Recently, I've been down in San Jose with Citizens for Cruelty-Free Entertainment to pass out fliers to circus-goers to let them know Ringling Circus abuses their animals & animals should not be used for entertainment. It's always an interesting time, as reactions vary wildly, but ultimately if you change the minds of a few people, it is completely worthwhile. If you're in the Sacramento area, Born Free USA will be at the Arco Arena leafleting Thursday, August 27th through Sunday, August 30th & volunteers are always welcome. I'm going to try to make it out there Friday & Saturday. Not in the area? Born Free USA has circus & other animal related literature to hand out in your own area.

While in the South Bay, I had the chance to check out Psycho Donuts in Campbell & bring back some donuts for the circus volunteers. While I'm not the biggest fan of their shtick (mental illness isn't funny), I AM a big fan of their "We Been Vegan" donut. A donut covered in Cinnamon & Sugar may not sound like much with all their other over-the-top offerings, but this old fashioned cake donut was fluffy & moist with just the right amount of sweetness & spice from the coating. There's rumor of the vegan options expanding & I hope that's the case!

Over the weekend, I went to a housewarming party for two of my favorite gals, Meg & Kelly from The Sisters Vegan. It was a potluck, of course, & the theme was Middle School Foods. I made some Coconut Cake Balls, which didn't quite fit the theme, but I also made mini Bagel Pizzas, ala Bagel Bites! I took the highbrow route & made them Garlic & Heirloom Tomato with a blend of Italian & Cheddar Daiya Cheese. I have to say, they were pretty darn good & I wouldn't turn down another chance to eat them! The potluck spread was pretty tasty, Erin from Vegan Homemade made an awesome Potato Salad & there was everything from TWO types of Corn Dogs to Peanut Butter Cups, Cookies, & Box-style frosted Brownies. Do I even need to say we were stuffed?!

On a final note, did anyone else celebrate National Waffle Day yesterday? We had vegan Cheddar & Green Chile Waffles with Roasted Brussels Sprouts last night & I had hoped to bring you a recipe today, but those little buggers wouldn't stop sticking! They were tasty though! I think my waffle iron may be on its way out, so I may get a new one & try them again, so I can share the wealth!

35 comments:

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

Great adventures, experiences, and eats!! You always have the best travel recap posts :)

And "holy yum" shout-out to the brussels sprouts and waffles you had!!

quarrygirl said...

i think it's so great you are getting involved in the cause against the circus. that's so the kind of thing i want to/should be doing. great job. :)

and as always, ALL that food looks delicious.

OH BTW i don't believe you. there is no way you met a vegan without a blog. there is no such thing!

Marijke said...

Protesting the circus is one part of today's heroism!
It was so nice too see a new pic of Erika, such a long time ago since I saw her the last time.
And although I now have a blog, I started it five years after becoming vegan. But I'm German and German Vegans don't have blogs... ;)

Alyssa Franchetti said...

Props for protesting the circus!!!

Anonymous said...

That yogurt was off the hook. I lovedlovedloved it and am going to eat myself into financial ruin once it pops up in SF!

Good job on the circus protest too!

Lisa said...

vegan cheddar and green chile waffles? That just might make me buy a waffle iron!

x said...

Good work on the circus demonstrations, I am sure you made an impact!

vegan.in.brighton said...

Nice work with the protesting dude.

Also, bagel pizzas? I know what I'm having for lunch!

Hannah said...

Vegan frozen yogurt, too cool! (literally!) I was too young to ever appreciate the trend before going vegan, and I've actually never had it in an ice cream/frozen yogurt parlor. I didn't even know that a commercially prepared vegan version existed... They need to expand and build a branch over here, asap!

Liz Ranger (Bubble Tea for Dinner) said...

oh no waffle day! I can't believe i missed it! it's never too late to make more though...

and I love that middle school potluck theme, I miss bagel bites (and fruit roll ups and tater tots) so much!

Sal - AlienOnToast said...

good work on the protesting.

i really really want a donut now.

Megan (sayitsnotsoy) said...

Fun times! Can't wait to show you what I have been working on.

Penny said...

I love the middle school theme, I made your ambrosia salad for a similar potluck and it was a hit!

PB and Jess said...

Ohhh...my sister is moving to Palo Alto, so I'll have to keep that place in mind! I've never had vegan fro-yo.

I just had some donuts at Ronald's in Vegas and they were soo good! Cinnamon sugar sounds perfect to me, that was always my fav kind of soft pretzel too!

I'm sad that I missed waffle day, but it's not too late to make up for it...right? :)

TB said...

Fraiche's vegan fro yo is so good it's insane. I literally couldn't believe it the first time I had it. The homemade aspect means there is so much fantastic and gourmet-seeming yogurty flavor!

I have done a few circus protests in the past, and they're probably the most rewarding protesting I've ever done because people actually almost universally think what's done to the animals is horrible once they find out. You've inspired me to look at the circus schedule and see whether it's coming to my area so that I can be sure to protest it if so.

Awesome post, as always!

Meg said...

YES PLZ to donuts!! And thanks for featuring the potluck! :D

Anonymous said...

Well, I missed Waffle Day so I'm feeling slightly miffed...but I'm dreaming of delicious cake donuts. I think they were my favourite "forbidden food" when I was a kid.

bazu said...

I missed national waffle day! D'OH! I'd like to think that at my house, almost every day is waffle day! =) Everything looks so gooooood...

Bethany said...

my hope is that someday circus entertainment only includes the human variety. circe du soleil has set such a great example.

middle school food, sounds good to me - well veganized. I still remember the mimeographed lunch calendars. ok, that might date me a bit.

Kris said...

I love the potluck theme! Middle school food... I'm jealous of your frozen yogurt availability. We have softserve, but no fruit to be seen.

Erin said...

Cinnamon sugar cake donuts may be just what I need in my life. Oh, and your bagel bites were super awesome!

dreaminitvegan said...

Bummer, I missed the waffle thing. Love em though!

Yay for you going to the circus and letting people know what really happens to those animals.

BTW my family and I stopped off at Sweet Earth Chocolates(YUM!) and I mentioned to the older gal there that you blogged about the store. She smiled and said how much she liked you and your boyfriend.

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