Salt Lake City 10/10

Last weekend I visited Salt Lake City to surprise my mom for her 40th birthday!
It was a success and I'm glad that everyone involved could keep it a surprise!



While I was there, I had to hit up my absolute favorite vegan restaurant, Sages!
(previously blogged about here)

This time we went for lunch. My two Jen's got philly cheese steak subs with tempeh
and I got a grilled chick'n pesto sub. Of course to top it off, the best slice of tiramisu!







Later we attended a cookie party and it was so much fun!

my cookies:



Jen's cookies:





The night before I left, my family got together to carve pumpkins!





My favorite part of fall is fresh baked (and salted!) pumpkin seeds, mmm...

Chick'n & Rice

Hi guys! I've been waiting to share with you another awesome step-by-step. When I have the time, chick'n & rice is one of my favorite dishes to make! This is a recipe that can be made with either fake or real chicken. Enjoy!

You will need:

1 stick butter (melted)
1 can cream of mushroom
1 can cream of celery
1 can cream of chicken*
1 cup water
1 cup rice
seasoned salt to taste
4 pieces defrosted chicken/chick'n

*cream of chicken substitute: artificial chicken flavor/powder
(stir together 2 1/2 cup water + 2 1/2 tsp powder)



Directions:
1. Preheat oven at 375 degrees

2. Pour melted butter in pan



3. Pour cream of mushroom + cream of celery
(you can also use 2 cans of each rather than mix, depending on your preference)



4. Pour cream of chicken or cream of chicken substitute, stir

5. Pour 1 cup water, stir

6. Pour 1 cup rice, stir

7. Add chicken/chick'n

8. Add seasoned salt to top



9. Bake for 1 hour

boxed mac n cheese

I love macaroni and cheese! When I don't have time to make it from scratch or want a cheap, fast and yummy dinner, boxed macaroni... with shapes... it is! (I use a little less soy milk in place of recommended milk, and it's just as good, if not better!)


my favs!


love halloween!

Trader Joe's french onion soup

In regard to my last post, Trader Joe's has a frozen french onion soup that is vegetarian!



Microwave: for 7-9 minutes... I was too excited to wait for the oven!
Verdict: I must say it wasn't as good as the fresh stuff (as nothing is), but not bad for a microwavable treat or side dish.

Oven: 400degrees for 30-40 minutes
Verdict: MAKE SURE to cook these bad boys in the oven, it makes 100% difference. I now cannot get enough of these!

Babbo Grande

Upon visiting Babbo Grande for their Nutella crepes, I stumbled across vegetarian french onion soup on their menu! This pleases me since I have been searching for a restaurant that has vegetarian french onion soup (as it is normally made with beef broth), and let me tell you, it was all I remember and more!

Babbo Grande has a very wide range of food options from sandwiches, pasta and wonderful appetizers, to a plethora of savory and sweet crepes, frittatas and even a full vegetarian menu!

First we started with fresh mozzarella caprese, then french onion soup, shortly after pesto pasta, and of course, the Nutella crepe!


click photos to make bigger!


I like my caprese with a lot of oil and vinegar


The wonderful French Onion Soup


Pesto Pasta


Nutella crepe

Location: 1731 University Avenue San Diego, California 92103
Hillcrest

Basket of Artichokes Cake

I need this cake (or a very similar one) in my life! Whoever made this is a genius!






photos via jmc custom cakes


Each artichoke is hand cut and created then surrounded in a buttercream bed of "packing straw". The basket is completely edible and finished in panels of wood grained fondant complete with wood knots, scars and tack marks (handles are wire).

Can you imagine an artichoke red velvet cake? YUM, perfection!

Hash House pt. 2

Instead of neglecting my poor journal out of busyness, I will occasionally be posting shorter entries. Of course I will still continue writing reviews and step-by-step recipes!


Previously I posted an entry about Hash House, one of my favorite go-to breakfast places, and here I am again. This time I added smoked mozzarella to my artichoke hash and tried the caramel apple pancakes! Delish!



artichoke hash: crispy potatoes, artichoke hearts, mushrooms, spinach, sun dried tomatoes, smoked mozzarella and a fresh biscuit with fruit!



apple pancake with caramel syrup, whipped cream and fruit!