Tasty Testing, Ambrosia Salad, & upcoming trips!

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

Thank you everyone for the well wishes on my last post. I am finally feeling better, I'm back in the kitchen & ready to share my culinary adventures! Lately, I have been devoting time to recipe testing for two of my favorite people, superstar cookbook authors, Isa & Terry! I've mentioned the upcoming Vegan Latina book from Terry before & trust me, it's going to be phenomenal (check out The Sisters Vegan post), but did you know Isa has another book coming up as well? Hot off the heels of Vegan Brunch, will be a whole foods, weight conscious cookbook, low on fat, but high on flavor! I've made quite a few dishes already like the Caribbean Black Eyed Pea Curry with Plantains, a Potato & Corn Salad that gets a kick from Chipotle Peppers & other dishes all varied & delicious! In the photos are a Quinoa Salad with beans, veggies, & toasted Cumin Seeds, plus some chewy & delicious Scarlet Barley topped in Mushroom & Cannelini Paprikas! Trust me, you would never know this was a low-fat book, everything has been fabulous!

In a previous post, I mentioned I had made vegan Ambrosia Salad for a potluck at my house. Well, based on the comments & emails it seems people want to make this trashy treat for themselves! There's not much of a recipe, much like the original, it's all about opening processed food containers & pouring them in to a bowl, but hey, you asked for it, so you get it! I used organic canned fruit, but if you want to stick to the classic version, go for syrupy fruit cocktail & maraschino cherries!

Vegan Ambrosia Salad
1 box of Soyatoo Whipped Cream
1 Vanilla Bean or Vanilla extract (optional)
1 can of Fruit Cocktail, drained
1 jar or can of Cherries, drained & sliced
1 bag of Dandies Vegan Marshmallows
1 cup of shredded coconut (optional, I served mine on the side, as an add-in.)

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine Soyatoo Whipped Cream & vanilla. Whip for a few minutes, until it reaches a fluffy consistency.
Combine the fruit in a large bowl, fold in the whipped cream mixture, then the marshmallows & coconut (if using).
Chill for at least 2 hours before serving. (Yes, it's that easy.)

In travel news, Ryan, Strummer, & I are off to Southern California this weekend to see relatives. Hopefully, I'll have some tasty food to report on when I get back! Also, in late September, I'm headed to Austin, TX & would love to meet up with my Texas vegan pals, so get in touch!

In uber exciting news.. we're going (back) to JAPAN! Ryan & I recently celebrated 11 years as a couple & to reward ourselves, we booked a flight to Tokyo in October. Calling all vegans in Japan! We want to meet you! Of course, suggestions on where to go are very much welcome. We went to Japan on our honeymoon 4 years ago in October, as you can see in the photo from a Purikura booth, but we'd like to see new things this time. We will likely be in Tokyo, Kyoto, & Nara, but are open to suggestions! Bring 'em on!

Summer Potluck Season; currently in full swing!

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

It's been a whirlwind start to summer & although San Francisco's temperatures are their typically chilly selves, we're still celebrating with all sorts of food & fun! It seems like my social calendar has an Eat-A-Thon scheduled for just about every weekend until the end of time, but I don't mind, it gives me more to share with others!

A few weeks ago, Ryan, Strummer, & myself headed down to sunny Santa Cruz for a PPK potluck hosted by Amey from Vegan Eats & Treats. The weather was perfect & we stuffed ourselves with savories like Empanadas, Stuffed Mushrooms, homemade Bagels, Broccoli Quiche, Spring Rolls, Macaroni Salad, & more! Avocado Key Lime Pie, Rice Krispie Treats, Coffee Cake, & Banana Pudding made up some of the sweets, plus I made a Chocolate Butterscotch Chip Cookie Cinnamon Swirl Cake Pie with toasted Marshmallow Meringue. Yes, you read that right. Inspired by Jessie at Cakespy, I made a pie crust, chocolate butterscotch chip cookie dough, & cinnamon swirl cake batter, layered & baked them together, then topped it with Julie Hasson's Marshmallow Meringue from Everyday Dish TV. The most fun of this dish was busting out the kitchen torch & toasting the delicious fluffy topping, yum!

City from New Zealand, aka the NZ Cupcake Queen recently made her way through the United States & we were lucky enough to have her here in San Francisco! We had a great time showing her & husband Chris the sights of the city, but we also had to have a proper American cookout (all vegan, of course), as they were here for the 4th of July! We deemed the day the "Sausage Fest", as we had at least 6 types of veggie dogs & sausages to grill up. Erika made adorable Onigiri with Nori faces, while the rest of us seemed to fill the table with sugary confections from cookies to Lemon Bars. Thanks to Dandies Marshmallows, I was able to make a proper Ambrosia Salad, so the Kiwis could taste the classic potluck dish loved & feared by many!

Speaking of sausages, inspiration struck recently & I decided to make Pretzel Dogs! I started with a homemade seitan hot dog recipe, then made soft pretzel dough. After the dogs were steamed, I wrapped them in the pretzel dough, baked them golden, & boy, was this gluten wrapped gluten delish, ha! I made some classic soft pretzels as well, which were also a hit, & I can see these being a repeat offender in our household.

This weekend a milestone birthday occurred & friends Gina & Adam from the PPK were in town, so of course, an epic celebration with lots of food was in order. Since our friend Nate turned 40, his wife Jen threw the party, which was a surprise for the birthday boy! We had a good potluck assortment with dishes like Quinoa Salad & Pav Bhaji, then also fired up my chocolate fountain with an awesome spread of dippables like fresh fruit, Dandies Vegan Marshmallows, Chocolate Cake Truffles, Pound Cake & pretzels. As if that wasn't enough sweetness, Jen, Jordan, Erika, & I decided to construct the most metal cake around! Chocolate cake & chocolate frosting with oozing strawberry "blood" inside & out, we wrapped the cake in over-the-top marzipan decor & a decapitated groom to honor "40 Years of Brutality"! Not a bad way to celebrate a birthday, eh?!

By the way, voting is winding down for the 2009 Veggie Awards by VegNews Magazine & all votes must be in by July 31st. The Urban Housewife is nominated for "Favorite Blog" & you can win fabulous prizes, just by voting! Get to it already!