Vegan in Sacramento, Farm Sanctuary's Walk for Farm Animals, & Austin bound!

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

A few weeks ago I found myself in Sacramento, once again informing people about circus cruelty, & took the chance to check out some local vegan dining options!

An inexpensive & tasty option is Mati's Indian Express in Natomas. Mati's has a great selection of vegan options that are clearly marked, including the elusive vegan Naan! I opted to share two combo platters with friends, which contain your any choice of two items with rice & naan, for only $5. We had the Channa Masala, Mix Veggie Curry, Aloo Gobhi, & Eggplant Curry, which all hit the spot. While it's not the most epic Indian food I've had, I would totally grab a bite here again if I was in the area.

After hearing about Sunflower Natural Restaurant, the vegetarian drive in that's been around since 1978, I had to check it out. People warned me it was far off the beaten path in Fair Oaks, but I ignored them & pressed on. With the very awesome Honor by my side, we rolled up to this little stand & ordered the classic Nutburger. Dang, not bad! A flavorful patty in a whole wheat bun smothered in creamy sauce with lots of veggies is likely not what you would expect from a natural foods joint, but it is certainly what I got! In addition to the tasty food, there's chickens hanging out while you eat! Apparently, they live in the neighborhood & come over to eat people's scraps. After my meal, I headed over to the park where they hang out & even made a friend when I saw kids harrassing a little chicken & brought her back to hang with her chicken homies. Too cute!

It was a sweltering 105 when I was in Sacramento, so I was thrilled to find Here's The Scoop! has a fair amount of vegan options. They serve up 4 flavors of Soy Cream by Double Rainbow, one of my favorite vegan ice creams out there, as well as soy bon bons & Gunther's Fruit Freezes. With Soy Cream being readily available in my area, I opted for a Fruit Freeze with Strawberry Banana & Orange flavors. Oh MAN, I could eat these everyday! Made from fruit juice, they totally quench your thirst & quell your ice cream cravings at the same time. I hope I get a chance to have them again soon!

While there are a fair amount of vegan options in Sacramento, I was happy with what I opted for & would recommend these places to others!

The Farm Sanctuary Walk for Farm Animals is coming to a town near you! This event is a great way to raise money for the animals, but it's also an opportunity to inform the public about animal cruelty. San Francisco's Walk is on October 24th, which I'll sadly be out of town for, but Megan & Kelly from The Sisters Vegan will be there walking & Sugar Beat Sweets has donated a prize, so I I suppose I'll be there in spirit. Participants get a rad shirt, designed by Herbivore Clothing! If you can't walk, consider making a donation to someone walking! (maybe Megan & Kelly?!)

I'll be in Austin in ONE WEEK! I'm excited to check out the local vegan scene, nervous it's going to be hotter than Hades, & ready to stuff myself silly! Crystal & Chris from Vegan Explosion are kind enough to be putting me up & we'll be having a potluck, so PLEASE get in touch if you want to meet up!

Farm Sanctuary FOR the Turkeys (with video) & a Sweets Swap!

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

Recently, friends & I attend the 9th annual FOR the Turkeys Celebration at Farm Sanctuary in Orland. It's always an amazing time being surrounded by like-minded people, but the best part is always the animals! It was a bright beautiful day, despite previous day being less than stellar. I had been looking forward to feeding turkeys ever since my last visit to the farm for the Hoe Down & I was not disappointed.

In addition to shelter time, we had a Thanksgiving inspired meal with hundreds of other animal lovers in the People Barn. Tofurkey & gravy, cranberry sauce, apple kale salad, & sweet potatoes, were just some of the dishes available, plus a choice of Apple or Pumpkin pie. I chose the apple & was very happy with my sweet selection!

The speakers included Gene Baur of Farm Sanctuary, Emily Deschanel of Bones, & Josh Hooten of Herbivore Clothing Company & Store in Portland, OR. I found myself especially inspired by Josh's talk on activism & it was the push I needed to stop resting on the laurels of Prop 2 passing & get back to action for the animals!


Lately, I've been having fun taking video at events, so I threw together a little segment on the day. This was shot with my little Canon Powershot & edited in Windows Movie Maker, so please bear with my amateur status. Enjoy!


This weekend we had the 2nd annual PPK Cookie Swap, although this time it included a few other sweets. I made a crazy layered dessert that was most recently called a "Peanut Butter Mousse, Custard, Whipped Cream, Chick-O-Stick, Brownie Trifle", so I'll roll with that. Yes, it was as insane & rich as it sounds! I also made an option for our gluten free attendees, Pumpkin Chocolate Chip, with both white & dark chips. They were very cakey & fluffy, not something I had expected for my 1st foray in to gluten free baking!

There were lots of treats to choose from like Crunchy Oat Cookies & Snickerdoodles from the Sisters Vegan, Fudge, Peanut Butter Cups, White Chocolate Macadamia cookies, Rum Balls, Caramel Popcorn Balls, Truffles, Butterscotch Oatmeal cookies sandwiched with Rum ice cream, Rice Krispie treats- oof! I have to stop, my tummy hurts all over again thinking about it! Needless to say, I consumed FAR too much & now find myself on a sugar detox. That being said, I'll always look forward to next year!

Portland, here I come & Gibelle the turkey!

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

I'm off to the vegan mecca, aka Portland! Look for many photos in the near future from mini mall trips to restaurant excursions. I'm still looking for activities to do from dancing to karaoke to art, so if you have suggestions, send them my way! Also, if you live in Portland & want to hang out, get in touch! I'll be around through Wednesday the 4th. melisser AT theurbanhousewife.com

In the meantime, enjoy this little video I took of Gibelle the turkey at the Farm Sanctuary Hoe Down. I was told if you say his name in a high pitched voice, he'll talk back to you. Watch what happens..


I assure you my voice is not that.. intense. Isn't he great though?!
Until next time! xo.

Farm Sanctuary Hoe Down, my 1st garden, & Jessie Steele aprons!

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

Beware the lack of food in this post! While there's a plethora of adorable animals ahead, there's no food, as we all know animals are not for eating. I hope you can overlook the lack of edibles in lieu of the cuteness that abounds.


I was lucky enough to have the chance to attend the annual Farm Sanctuary Hoe Down this year. It was an amazing day of speakers, food, fun & amazing animals! There's not much to say besides if you get a chance to check out the farm, DO IT! I'll let some the photos speak for themselves..

Go check out more photos from my day HERE!

On Mother's Day, my family & I attended a wonderful mother's day brunch at Millennium! We never once told our party of 8 that the food was all vegan & everyone enjoyed their food immensely! How great is that?! Once we returned to my home, I was lucky enough to have my mother, a woman with a very green thumb, help me plant my first garden on my patio. My grandfather built a planter & gave it so me & I couldn't wait to fill it up! Tomatoes, Cilantro, Basil, Yellow Wax Beans, Haricot Verts, Walla Walla Onions, & Kale, all organic, of course, were planted & I'm looking forward to their yield! We had our 1st visitor right after we finished planting, a lovely lady bug!


Finally, I have a gorgeous new apron by the producers of the hottest aprons, Jessie Steele! My fairy apron-mother Leigh Poindexter sent me this loveliness with matching mitts, when she heard it was a favorite design of mine due my engagement in Paris. As you can see, I salute Jessie Steele's adorable aprons & Beamish cat has an appreciation for them as well!

Life has been insanely busy around here & right now I have two house guests, Jess from The Domestic Vegan & her boyfriend Nick. Next week I'm headed to Portland for the 1st time & will be a house guest of Jess from Get Sconed! I'm excited to explore the foods there, as I know there's many wonderful vegan options, especially desserts! Let's hope life will slow down a bit for me soon & I can get back to the FOOD!