Hail vs. My Garden - Round 1

June 22nd, 2008 by VeganSapien | Posted in gardening, my life | No Comments »

Out of the blue yesterday(and I really mean out of blue…it was sunny and beautiful, but then…the sky turned black….) we had an unexpected hail storm!

It only lasted about 5 minutes before turning to heavy rain, but those 5 minutes did some serious damage to my beautiful plants…

Now, I don’t see hail very often and I admit I was not prepared. I knew there was a chance of rain, but I honestly would’ve been more proactive had the weatherman mentioned there would be ninja-quality ice daggers shooting out of the sky! (actually, I don’t know what I would have done…maybe convinced my neighbors to gather their umbrellas and stand vigil in my garden?)

All I could do is stand at the window and watch(and wince) as the hail stones pummeled my plants…

I’ve decided I should stop complaining about this because it could have been worse…much worse.

The damage here was minimal and was nothing like the hail storm we had last June. I saw a video from somewhere in Akron of that one….

Luckily, my plants seem to have weathered the storm just fine(give or take a few shredded leaves here and there…)

My flowers have perked back up and the zucchini forges on, holes and all!

How to build a raised bed the lazy, slacker way!

June 22nd, 2008 by VeganSapien | Posted in gardening | No Comments »

Last year, I attempted “square foot” gardening for the first time. I had recently moved and didn’t have time to get started until mid June, but I was determined to get a garden going regardless. I did manage to nail some boards together, fill them with dirt, throw in some seedlings and basically ignore them… surprisingly, my little neglected garden flourished! I started to think that there must be something to this raised bed method after all!

I decided to go all out this year. I have lots of charts, diagrams and seed catalogs to prove my enthusiasm. I decided I was going to build three new raised beds. Being the impatient and somewhat lazy gardener that I am, I didn’t want to waste time trying to single-handedly, yet perfectly, align those boards to create beautifully perpendicular corners. Fortunately, I found a quick and easy way to assemble the beds. Here goes:

The Quick and Easy Slacker Way to Build a Raised Bed

 

1) Decide on the size you want your bed to be. Really, the options are endless. (well, you don’t want to make it too big, cuz you will never safely make it to the middle without squishing something precious….) I made mine 5′ by 10′.

2)(just so you know, this is the slacker part…) Order some “raised bed corners”. I got mine for a good price from Gardener’s Supply. But feel free to shop around.

3)Get your lumber….have them cut it for you at the store…slacker!

4)Bring home lumber. Attach corners. Almost done…

5)Place bed in an area with good exposure.

6)Fill will good quality dirt. I use a 3 part mix of peat moss, vermiculite and compost(mine is a custom blend of doodoo from some carefully chosen ponies, llamas and goats… ;))

 

 

 

There, you did it! Your bed is ready to go!

 

Here is the Easy Slacker Way to take care of it:

 

 

1)Toss in some seeds/seedlings and add water.

2)Proceed with your summer as planned.

3)Check back in couple of weeks to clip some lettuce for dinner and maybe look for a weed or two.

4)Enjoy your status as a talented gardener!

For more information about growing a successful raised bed garden, I highly recommend “All New Square Foot Gardening” by Mel Bartholomew. It is extremely helpful and one of my favorite beginning gardening books.

The prune…not just an oversized raisin.

June 16th, 2008 by VeganSapien | Posted in fave recipes(links), other | 5 Comments »

When I think of prunes I think fondly of my grandfather and not so fondly of his continual intestinal distress…these thoughts do very little to whet my appetite. However, all of that has changed this week with the discovery of a vegan chocolate cake called “Devil Made Me Do It”. With a name like that, I knew I had to try it. Surprisingly, at the top of the list of ingredients was a whole cup of prunes! I was shocked, how could such a fabulous sounding cake consist of prunes? I mean, I have nothing against dried fruits. I love me some raisins. They can be glamorously tossed into salads or mixed into cookies. But prunes? Aren’t they most commonly force fed to geriatrics in hopes of achieving a quality “movement”.

View recipe for Devil Made Me Do It cake.

Needless to say, I was intrigued. I dutifully went out and bought some prunes for the cake. During the process of whipping things together, the prune packaging caught my eye. Right there in front of my face was a chart explaining how healthy those little guys are! Prunes have over 4 times the amount of antioxidants as strawberries and over 6 times as much as oranges. Gasp! This information was exciting. I started wondering what else there was to know about the misunderstood prune.

I found this chart that illustrates the many health benefits of prunes.

In short, prunes are full of Phenols. Phenols are antioxidants proven to prevent free radical damage. Prunes also contain Beta-Carotene and lots of dietary fiber. They also help give you a “full” feeling and would make a nutritious portable snack.

If you find yourself dreading the thought of prunes, don’t despair. There are new varieties with special natural flavors added. My fave are the “orange essence” kind. I dare say they are quite yummy!

Random acts of lawn ornament theft!

June 3rd, 2008 by VeganSapien | Posted in gardening, my life | No Comments »

Ok, here goes, this is a rather strange and perplexing occurrence. I was upstairs this morning getting ready. On my way back down the steps, I paused on the landing to look out my window. I was just standing there looking out at my garden, kinda having a peaceful moment…when out of the blue some teenage boy runs into my garden and grabs my ceramic bunny statue! I yelled at him and he freaked and started bookin it down the street.

By the time I got down the steps and outside he was already down around the corner…..

Is that crazy or what?

I just don’t understand his motivation…he was completely alone…maybe it was a dare or something…or maybe he was a confused member of The Garden Gnome Liberation Front …who knows. I’m not sure how to feel about all of this. He broke off a bunch of flowers and now bunny(a statue) is gone. And I thought I lived in a really boring neighborhood…

The above picture is the scene of the “crime“.

After some consideration, I realized that this strangeness has actually brightened my day….the whole occurrence keeps popping in and out of my mind and every time I just start cracking up! I have been telling everyone I see and they all think it is just completely random and hilarious .

I admit I was kinda pissed at first, but now I just keep laughing about it. I hope the “villains” decide to return him sometime. It makes me think of all the crazy things I did back in highschool….

However, I’m still seriously considering posting “lost bunny” posters…

In closing, if you feel you may become a victim of lawn ornament theft, here are some tips for keeping your loved decorations safe.

Best wishes, Michelle

Totally Awesome Tacos

June 2nd, 2008 by VeganSapien | Posted in my Recipes | No Comments »

I love me some tacos. I’ve been experimenting in the kitch recently to make the perfect bean based filling. The following recipe is what I came up with. It is very simple and quick and features my favorite bean…kidney! Its so good, I sometimes just eat it out of the pan by the spoonful. It also makes a tasty chip dip or nacho base.

Totally Awesome Tacos

• 1/2 cup onion, chopped
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup green bell pepper, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 15oz can kidney beans, drained
• 2/3 cup water
• packet of taco seasoning
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast

Directions:

1. Saute onion in med-large skillet til golden brown.
2. Add salt and bell pepper. Saute a few minutes til pepper is softened.
3. Add garlic and saute a few minutes more.
4. Add kidney beans, water and taco seasoning.
5. Let simmer, stirring occasionally. I like to use a potato masher to smash up the beans.
6. Once the mixture has cooked down some, add nutritional yeast. Simmer until thick as you like.
7. Serve in hard or soft shells. Or use as a base for a dip or nachos. Yum!

Flickr Photos

May 22nd, 2008 by VeganSapien | Posted in my life | No Comments »

Like Photography? Visit me on Flickr…

http://www.flickr.com/photos/14776405@N05/sets/72157605190271088

Testing yummy recipes!

May 3rd, 2008 by VeganSapien | Posted in book reviews, fave recipes(links), veganism | No Comments »

For the past month or so, I have been “secretly” testing recipes for a new and awesome vegan cookbook. The wonderful recipes were created by Quintessence Challis of Tess’ Organic Catering. She just happened to be featured recently on vegcooking.com.

I have been taking lots of pics and loving all the recipes I have tried. I will let you know when the cookbook is released. You are gonna want a copy!

Here are some pics of my faves:

Lowfat Basil Linguine

Luscious Lemon Bars

I’m drooling just remembering how good those were…

Out, out ganglion cyst!

May 3rd, 2008 by VeganSapien | Posted in other | No Comments »

Finally! Finally! After almost a year of baby-ing my scrawny, puny, irrationally sensitive wrist, I have seen noticeable improvement in my ganglion cyst.

Never heard of a ganglion cyst? Good for you, because they are torture. A ganglion cyst is defined as “a swelling that often appears on or around joints and tendons in the hand or foot. The size of the cyst can vary over time, often becoming more inflamed if irritated. It is most frequently located around the wrist and on the fingers.” In other words, a pain in the tucus…er wrist…

I searched the web for a home remedy but surprisingly found none. I spoke to my family doctor and she referred me to a specialist who could fix the bump with injections or surgery. Neither of these seemed all that pleasant to me. So, I decided to find my own answer.

Wanna hear my brilliant solution? Get ready, here it is: I quit drinking coffee…seriously. After about 6 weeks of caffeine free mornings, the cyst is considerably smaller and I have begun to bear weight on it without extreme pain.

Unfortunately, I can’t locate any conclusive evidence that caffeine consumption is directly related to ganglion cysts. In my personal experience, it would appear to be. I would say giving up caffeine is worth a try if you are experiencing cyst trouble or just hoping to improve your overall joint and bone health. If you know of any other ways to naturally heal ganglion cysts, I would love to hear!

Now, if you please excuse me, I am going to have some caffeine free tea.

Best wishes, Michelle

You like me, you really, really like me! Well, at least 6 of you do…

April 3rd, 2008 by VeganSapien | Posted in my Recipes, my life | No Comments »

I was very surprised and honored to find out that my recipe won the Vegan Chef Battle for March! How awesome!

You may be asking yourself, “So what exactly is a Vegan Chef Battle?”. Well, it is a cool little contest started over at VegWeb and now open to the world (well, to the world of vegans, that is). Each month contributors create a recipe based on that month’s theme ingredient. At the end of the month, viewers can vote for their favorite. Fun!

The Battle is open to anyone anywhere. So if you like to cook, eat, vote, lurk around or create new vegan recipes then hop on over and check it out!

Here is my winning Cabbage recipe.

Super Hoagies!

Oh gosh, where to begin? I was inspired to make these hoagies one day while daydreaming about my very first job ….. a waitress(of course) at a little dive restaurant in a super small town. The only good thing about that job was unlimited access to the sundae machine and a fabulous hoagie that inspired these tasty sandwiches.

Hope you enjoy!

 

1)First off you are going to want to whip up some coleslaw…

 

 

Sweet Poppyseed! Coleslaw

 

6-8 cups(loosely) shredded cabbage

1 cup of vegan mayo (my fave is Nasoya-Original.)

1/4-1/3 cup sugar

2 TBS lemon juice

1 teaspoon poppy seeds

Pinch of salt

Splash of soymilk

 

Ok, ready. Put everything in a big bowl and stir it up. All done!

Place in the fridge for an hour before serving.

 

2)Then you will need a patty…..

 

 

Smokin’ Oat ‘n Bean Patties

 

White kidney beans(cannellini beans) could possibly be my favorite bean. They have a wonderful flavor that makes a quick and easy patty.

 

1 15oz can cannellini beans, drained

1 TBS dried onion

1 TBS dried parsley

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 cup quick oats

 

1)Empty beans into medium glass bowl. Use masher or fork to smash until mostly smooth.

2)Mix in salt, pepper, dried onion, and dried parsley. Heat mixture in microwave 1 min.

3)Stir in oats. Heat an additional minute in microwave.

4)Let mixture sit a couple of minutes while you heat the griddle or oven.

5)Form into patties and cook on oiled skillet for about 5 minutes each side. Turn gently. (You can also bake these at 350 for about 25 minutes. I’ve put them into greased muffin tins and made tiny little loaves.)

 

 

 

Finally, you will need to assemble you Super Hoagie! Take a pumpernickel hoagie roll, slice it in half, add a piece of vegan mozz or swiss. Heat in microwave about 30 seconds to slightly melt cheese. Add tomato slices, then patties. And the best part of all, top it with a huge helping of coleslaw. Now, do your very best to shove it all in your mouth, its worth it!

 

My babies are growing!

March 21st, 2008 by VeganSapien | Posted in gardening | No Comments »

Finally, I have growth activity…and lots of it! So far I have brussel sprouts, squash, melons, pumpkins, tomatoes, chard, broccoli and lots of basil. I am eagerly awaiting the birth of my peppers. However, I have yet to see any sign of life from of them…bullets!

I love starting seeds. It is truly amazing. Every time I start, I can’t help but think “This can’t possibly grow…it just a tiny little seed and some dirt…” But they always do. It is a miracle!

My favorite part is checking on the seeds every morning and evening. You will be amazed at how quickly a microscopic hint of something can suddenly burst forth into a true seedling in just a matter of hours.

Even if you don’t have room for much, I suggest you try starting just a few seeds in a pot on a windowsill. You will be amazed at how interesting it is to watch them grow. Plants that are easy to grow in a windowsill garden include small lettuces, flowers, basil and other herbs. Have fun!