Excuse Me, Where do I find Tamarind? And no, I don't know what it is...

Vegan cooking is nothing like omnivore cooking. I have quickly learned there is a big upfront investment when changing eating habits and cooking differently. I spent a lot of money to start "eating clean" and I am spending even more going vegetarian. I went to Whole Foods/Trader Joes/Giant almost on a daily basis when I first started, in order to find a new ingredient that were called for in my vegan cookbooks. And unfortunately for me, I am the type of person who must have every ingredient I come across in a cookbook that I plan to make in the future. I still have a bag of unopened millet, various oils (opened Avocado Oil for the first time tonight since buying it forever ago), etc., that I have not used yet but bought b/c who knows when I might need it!

So, along with my habit of buying every ingredient, I also must by every Vegan cookbook! Since starting this whole process last month I am not the proud owner of seven vegan cookbooks and a magazine subscription to Vegetarian Times. I have made a few recipes out of Veganomicon and they have turned out so fantastic I had to buy Vegan with a Vengeance and Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, and then I read more reviews and bough the other three. I have made a few items out of Appetite for Reduction and have not been as pleased, but they were still good.

 So, first two reviews of food...

I made a Lemon-Coconut Bundt cake from Veganomicon and it was delicious!!! I took it to my future in laws and they really liked it. I had to go to a yoga event on Saturday and I made a poppy seed version of it and it was a hit. So, instead of eggs and milk, it had Coconut (lite) milk and soy milk. I used evaporated cane sugar and regular all purpose flour as the recipe called for. I would like to start experimenting with healthier flours, but in both situation I was limited on time and it had to turn out perfect! The cake actually tasted the same, if not better than if it was cooked "the old way". Also, it was very moist. This is why I immediately bought Vegan Cupcakes and already found a couple recipes to try on my FH, the ultimate critic.

This is the first time it came perfectly out of the pan!!!

The other day when I was working from home, my FH wanted tomato soup and grilled cheese. He is a meat eater through and through, by the way. We didn't have any, and I couldn't bear the thought of him going to 7-11 to get canned soup and white bread as he would normally do. So, I went through the three cookbooks I had at the time and found a creamy tomato soup from Veganomicon. Once again, couldn't believe it had no dairy in it. The secret was boiling potatoes and sun-dried tomatoes and then adding fresh chopped tomatoes and then processioning the hell out of it. I was not going to eat grilled cheese with velveeta singles, so I was eating the soup by itself until I remembered I had just cooked quinoa and it was in the fridge! I dumped a bunch in the soup and made Qunioa-Os! It was like eating spaghettios, but less crap...and amazing. 

Not a pretty picture, I know. I had to reheat the soup to warm the quinoa. 

Well, that is all that I have for now in  reviews. I am on day one of a three day fruit fast for 40 Days to Personal Revolution by Baron Baptiste which I am participating in at my yoga studio. I am currently in a 200 hr RYT teacher training program with a focus in the Baptiste style of yoga.  I will most likely talk about yoga in this blog as it has recently changed my life. I have had a lot of issues with food, and yoga has allowed me to acknowledge them and move on, which is one of the major reasons why I have done a complete overhaul of my diet. But, anyways... I just got my new cookbooks tonight and it was such a tease to read and not be able to cook! I am especially looking forward to the The 30 Minute Vegan's Taste of the East!