Currently viewing the tag: "raw"
I made beautiful pumpkin spiced cupcakes and a pastry bag of vanilla buttercream for my classroom party. Luckily I made enough to have a bunch to take back home. The kids didn’t know what to make of cupcakes that were not chocolate or vanilla.
After a light sprinkling of Madecasse madagascar vanilla cane sugar. See those beautiful umber specs? Real vanilla bean.
Let’s just keep on looking at those luscious pipings of sweet vanilla buttercream. This is a new tip I tried out: Ateco‘s 888.
On another sweet tip, The Electrician was working close to Chelsea Market in Manhattan the past few weeks. He picked me up some delicious sweet treats from One Lucky Duck, making me one lucky duck.
The beloved raw Mallomar and a bag of chocolate macaroons.
The Blue Firmament Holistic Centre in Rockville Centre, Long Island is a source for mind, body, and spiritual sustenance. It is also home to Maggie’s Raw Love Cafe, Nassau County’s only raw eatery.
The inviting cafe takes up a large space in the center’s main floor. Plenty of tables are available for dining in. The counterperson was warm and patient– but of course. The entire center beams positive energy after all. You can certainly feel the “raw love.”
A must are their mango lassi’s. They’re thick and creamy–so much that you’ll want to ask for a spoon when you get to the bottom of the cup. I am not all too sure what was blended up with the mango. I tend to turn off my food inquisition a bit when “all-vegan” rears its head.
Starving, I had to start off with one of their chocolate macaroons. It was a delicious coconut-filled bite, as they always are. Have you ever had a bad raw coconut macaroon? I’m not sure they exist.
I opted for the spaghetti and meatballs, yellow squash “noodles”, a thick marinara and ground flax meat balls. Mmm, ground flax balls. They were a bit smokey and paired well with fragrant basil. The squash noodles’ texture took away from the dish a bit.
My friend’s plate of sweet potato puttanesca.
This is their banana cheesecake. It was divine–one of the best raw cheesecakes I’ve ever tried. There is not a bite of grittiness in this smooth creamy cheesecake. So often with raw desserts you get a pile of heavy ground nuts. This was delicate and oh-so delicious. The crust, perfect.
I was impressed with Maggie’s raw spread. Finally, Nassau County has an all-vegan option! Please support Maggie. Whether with a bite of raw cheesecake… or a stiletto pole dancing class.
Follow Your Heart, a natural foods market and brand of dairy substitutes, has a cafe offering traditional vegetarian fare in Canoga Park. The natural food store has been around since the 70′s. The shelves are thoroughly stocked with a ton of great products but is welcoming and accessible. The cafe opens bright and early for breakfast so we started our first day in Los Angeles with a hearty one before hitting the beach in record heat.
The Tofu Benedict is much like the Tempeh Reuben, I can’t really resist ordering it if it is on the menu. Their version was a poached tofu and tomato on a homemade English muffin smothered with a Hollandaise sauce and served with a side of potatoes. Though the dish was very substancial, the flavor was a bit lacking.
Behold the entire stock of Follow Your Heart products!
After reading Sage Organic Vegan Bistro‘s menu a while back, I knew it would easily be a prominent highlight of a trip to Los Angeles. It was time. We strolled in during the busy lunch rush to experience their drool-inspiring for reals.
First, something from the fryer. Sage’s mozzarella sticks made from heart of palm with ranch and marinara dipping sauce. Hearts. Of. Palm. Deep-fried. These “mozzarella sticks” are not made with packaged, processed vegan cheese, no. They are tubes of fibrous hearts of palm, batter-dipped and fried to perfection. Let’s look closer.
These were fantastic. Mind-blowing even. Place four of these wonders on a bed or arugula, even better!
The vegan ranch dipping sauce was a great addition. I want to eat more of these.
Sage had already blown my mind before we were even seated, the perfect appetizer sealed the deal. But the main course was yet to come: The Bistro Po’Boy… breaded seitan, organic tomatoes, deep fried cabbage, homemade dill pickles and lettuce on grilled olive rosemary bread with caramelized onion barbecue sauce. Eating this ridiculously delicious sandwich was a sloppy ordeal. And though it was knocking my socks off, perhaps with one too many flavorful additions, I needed to leave room… drumroll…
The beautiful banana split from KindKreme was spectacular. KindKreme, a gourmet/vegan/raw/organic ice creamery has multiple locations in the Los Angeles area, one being inside Sage Vegan Bistro. I love me a fancied up banana split, although I am strictly vanilla when it comes to my ice cream choice. I like vanilla. After hearing my wishes for a traditional split with the standard vanilla, the charming Sage employee allowed me to sample several flavors, helping to construct what would be an amazing ice cream treat.
Banana and ice cream are great together. My scoops–almond butter, Mexican chocolate, and strawberry–were so flavorful. They were topped with salted caramel sauce and chopped almonds. Heaven.
I spent 5 years of my life working across the street from Chelsea Market, a unique indoor market of some of New York City’s finest culinary upstarts and the homebase of the ubiquitous Food Network. It has been quite some time since I checked Chelsea Market out; I discovered that it had grown quite a bit. A large space that used to be a single store has been converted into several wondrous booths, a sort of “foodie” food court. The court is home to my lunch and dessert destination: Bar Suzette, a crêperie with a vegan/gluten-free batter option, and One Lucky Duck, takeaway raw from the people of Pure Food and Wine. A kind of fantastic way to spend $20.
At Bar Suzette you get to watch your crêpe be assembled. I watched as the man smeared black truffle hummus on a thin crêpe, topped that with some shredded market veggies and drizzled it with truffle oil before folding the light, magnifiscent crêpe about it. These are true crêpes, ladies and gentlemen, and not thick and pancake-like some other vegan crêpes (by name only) I’ve tried. Very well done.
This savory crêpe was so satisfying. The truffle oil pushed me over the edge. I stared into its innards lovingly as a devoured it slowly, barely breaking for sips of my Boylan.
Shredded delight. So flavorful. Bar Suzette offered the vegan batter for any of its savory or sweet varieties. On this, my first visit, I kept it simple and tried their designated vegan Truffled Hummus crêpe.
Next, dessert. The One Lucky Duck Mallomar is probably in the top 25 best treats I ever ate. Raw chocolate-coated grounded pecan wafer with a huge, pillowy dollop of vanilla cream drizzled seductively with chocolate. Phew. I’m going to tease you first with the packaging.
There she is, glistening.
I love me some visible vanilla beans. 
A little chocolate in the corner of my mouth… “Raw Mallomar was here”
I have to give props to Vegguide‘s community members. This guide is so robust with locations offering options for vegetarians and vegans. Whether it’s a completely vegan restaurant or an omnivorous place with a single veg-friendly dish, the community covers the entire world (yes, all 7 continents!) and it is the first place I go to research options to report on. That being said, given the amount of time I spend on Long Island, I have checked in on their L.I. listings many, many times. But with The Electrician‘s car at my disposal for the day, it was time for me to taste what L.I. had to offer!
I was ready to go but, while reading Yelp reviews, I found another option to hit! And I could squeeze Granny’s in Commack into my itinerary easily. Granny’s is an unassuming ice cream and frozen yogurt shop in a strip mall… but, for some odd reason, it is also a retail outlet for a large selection of Stogo (reported on here) dairy-free ice cream. Seems kind of random and all the more appealing given its unlikeliness. I found the ice cream parlor without a problem, thanks to the v-bomb in the signage.
I got a small cone with sugar cookie dough ice cream, though the parlor offered a great deal of flavors to choose from.
What a delight to have a cone on a hot summer day.
Pictured here is the designated scooper. What a welcome sight!
From Granny’s it was time to move on to get a proper lunch. It was time to visit Feelgoods Cafe… finally. I have looked at this St. James eatery’s menu many times, wondering about their food. It is hard to tell by a menu if a place uses packaged or frozen products. And nothing is more elusive than a menu’s “veggie burger.” It can be frozen or packaged. It can have dairy and egg unbeknowst to the staff. It can contain lima beans and peas. In short, it’s a crapshoot. I was relieved to see that on FeelGoods Cafe’s new menu they drop the V-bomb, labeling which of their award-winning “EdgyBurgers”, which have their own online storefront for delivery throughout the country, are vegan. I was ready to try an EdgyBurger!
I was very impressed by the service at FeelGoods right off the bat. I needed some advice on which of the vegan burgers to try. It was an important decision that was taken seriously by counterperson. I appreciated that as I often fumble under a daunting food decision and take a risk that I wind up regretting. I chose the “fan favorite,” the portobello black bean panini-style and topped with southwestern flare. I was very impressed with my choice. It was very tasty! 
And you can see why I was overwhelmed with the decision. There are so many vegan burgers to choose from! I wish I was a cow with several stomachs to sample another few burgers during my visit. Butternut squash & quinoa; eggplant, sun-dried tomato & basil; ginger-lime, chickpea & edamame; and sunflower, sesame & kidney bean just to name a few. See full variety here. I may have to order the vegan variety pack for delivery to sample some of the other EdgyBurgers. 
Next, it was time for dessert: Azure Chocolat, a delicious chocolate shop in Greenlawn’s downtown strip. Azure offers gorgeous high-end truffles, barks, and other assorted confections that are all natural and gluten-free. I called in advance to see if they had any of their vegan truffles on hand and got an affirmative. I was happy to finally have the opportunity to stop in! 
The vegan truffle selection for the day included the Mexican Rose–dark chocolate, coffee, rose water and cinnamon rolled in dark chocolate and topped with a rose petal–and the Wild Orchid–dark chocolate, vanilla beans, almond milk and vanilla vodka, rolled in dark chocolate and topped with vanilla-infused raw sugar. Several of the ship’s barks are also vegan, including Provencal Almond Bark (roasted almonds in Belgium dark chocolate with Provencal lavendar oil and a little grey sea salt), Beauty Bark (Belgium dark chocolate, walnuts, wild blueberries, cocoa nibs, golden flax, and sea salt), and Orange Peel Bark (Italian candied organe peel in Belgium dark chocolate). 
Ok, so I read the menu’s description of their delicious chocolates, but allow me to use my own words: holy moly! These chocolates are mind-blowing. Rich, flavorful, clean–everything chocolate should be. Want more? The warm and welcoming chocolatier and owner let me sample and snap pictures of her beautiful shop freely.
And beautiful. Inside and outside.
The last stop on my tour: Live Island Cafe, a raw foods counter spot in Huntington Village. Still full from my VedgyBurger, I picked up a sampling of Live Island Cafe’s selections for eating later. Although I was losing a bit of energy from the day of driving in the blazing sun, I was so glad that I decided to stop by. I had attempted a trip to the cafe before when a friend had bought a Groupon offer, but we got lost and the new cafe seemed to be still working out the kinks, closing earlier than their posted hours. But all’s well that ends well, I found Live Island and left with a sampler that was well worth the wait.
The place has limited seating, however there is a nice table set up outside, surrounded by plants. The display case had all of the day’s offering. In the muted light, they didn’t appear as fresh and scrumptious-looking as they were… see below…
I chose a sampler with an entree and two sides and, boy, I type this now feeling quite energized and invigorating. This fantastic feeling started on my taste buds, which are still tingling. I have had raw food many places, but none quite as flavorful and diverse in texture as this. Wow. Texture is a huge thing for me (see my previous post) and I shy away from raw as it is often ground up wet globs. But Live Island’s Pizza of the Day (a flax and almond crust, marinara and nut cheese) and Abundance Burger (walnut, portobello wrapped in greens) had such a pleasing texture… mostly because there were many. Crisp veggies, sprouts, and perfectly seasoned and sauced ground nut created several layers of moisture and flavor. Spectacular, in a word.
Also spot-on, the greens. I could eat a whole plate of them. 
What an awesome day of eating! It is nice to know the Island is filled with so many great eats. I am now motivated to find more. Let this be a warning… if you have a vegan eat hidden away on Long Island, I’m coming for you. Armed with my camera and one enormous appetite.
xo, V.V.
Life is like a…
(box of vegan chocolates) You never know what you’re gonna get.
Back at the amazing Divine Treasures in Manchester, Connecticut, CandyPenny and I had a breakfast of chocolate. This vegan gem of a chocolate shop sandwiched between the Chinese take-out and the tobacco shop in an unsuspecting strip mall in Manchester Township would likely make my top 10 vegan spots in the country. The chocolate, the caramel, the selection, the exquisite soft-serve… they’re all very much worth the trip on their own. But they’re all there. And they’re all unbelievably delicious.
For a ton of other pictures of Divine Treasure goodies, check this post from last summer.
One of their best sellers, the caramel cashew is the best of everything: texture, taste and the lingering exit of sea salt. The salt taps each taste bud on the shoulder, asking each “Are ya getting all this flavor?”
Of course, the cross-section shot. Spectacular.
The soft serve is the best vegan ice cream I’ve ever eaten. Yes, thinking back I can to say that with confidence. And it’s covered in real, warm hot fudge. Both things are difficult vegan feats. 1, vegan soft serve is often not creamy nor rich with flavor. It often turns to half milky soup in barely a few minutes. This is not true of Divine Treasures soft serve. And the hot fudge is fudgey and hot, not simply dark brown and sweet. Its texture responds to the cold soft serve like I remember as a kid.
I’ve got my box of chocolates and my vanilla soft serve with hot fudge. They ought to set up some tables outside so the tobacco shop employees don’t need to worry about loitering vegans.
Another familiar spot in Connecticut, Shoreline Diner in Guilford, Connecticut. With easy-on, easy-off via I-95, I have visited this “vegetarian enclave” several times in the past couple of years. It’s hard not to. They have a billboard off the interstate that drops the v-bomb. Even if I’m not hungry, it seems worth the stop. 
Since my first stop with The Electrician in 2010, the area surrounding the diner seems to be catching on with the veg craze. A Mexican joint up the street totes a banner announcing its vegetarian friendliness, while Food-Works‘ parking lot is bustling. The Shoreline offerings are a cut above vegan comfort food classics that often rely too much on packaged and/or frozen foods. They make their own patties and meatballs. 
I had the Southwestern Frittata. A tofu frittata with veggies and fresh avocado. It hit the spot though binding and moisture created a bit of a texture issue. The avocado was so perfect that I would have eaten a shoe sole with it. And a homefries or other potato side would have been a million times better than the chips. But isn’t that always true.
And now, the reason for our excursion: G-Zen in Bradford, Connecticut. G-zen is a vegan eatery with a scrumptious variety of vegan and raw options. The restaurant is a peaceful and gorgeous space, more akin to dining at a fancy-pants friend’s house. The decor and ambiance beams positivity. The communal feel of the space is welcoming, however being amidst the staff’s personal conversations was a bit unnerving (the counter and register are very close to tables.) The service was a bit abrupt, though knowledgable, and tad lacking grace… with every visit she bumped into adjacent tables and shuffled our placemats with everything she set down. We enjoyed the food a great deal, so let’s talk about that.
For an appetizer, we got the Sufi Kiss: marinated artichoke and Kalamata olives wrapped in filo and served with a smoked paprika aioli over organic greens. With a squeeze of lemon, this appetizer hit all the right notes. The delicate layered filo added a perfect texture to the warm salty artichoke and olive blend.
After taking a bite of CandyPenny‘s reuben at the Shoreline Diner, I decided that I wanted a reuben! G-Zen‘s reuben is sublime. Made with my favorite bread (a bread that’s pan-fried,) the house-made kraut was in balance perfectly with the marinated tempeh. Too add another layer of kick, the mustard and Russian dressing wake up all taste buds for the party. Add some sweet potato fries to the side and, bingo bango, there’s a perfect lunch. 
For dessert I got the Coconut Creme Custard. The bowl of custard was a bit overwhelming in size. I can’t see how anyone could finish such a huge bowl of tapioca after a meal. The custard was subtle; it tasted a bit more like a breakfast oatmeal than a dessert. CP got the Lemon Tart, which was delicate and divine on its ground almond crust.
After my visit, I had a few issues with some of the claims on the website. One being “everything is thoughtfully prepared from scratch.” This is a bold claim. And my only complaints just happen to align with how this claim is not true. Dishes at higher-end eateries like G-Zen are knocked down several notches when they rely on things like Daiya cheese and Soyatoo as ingredients. Although vegan, these are processed foods. Processed foods are neither sustainable in their production nor made from scratch. The restaurant also describes itself as organic, which neither of these products are. Please, G-Zen, ditch these products! Your chef/s are clearly capable and needn’t take these shortcuts. And a restaurant with a very vegan menu ought not to have peacock feathers in their bathroom.
Rawvolution in New York City’s East Village is the baby of raw chef and author Matt Amsden. The small counter cafe serves up delicious raw foods for the price-savvy. And with its food delivery service, Rawvolution provides accessible and healthful food for all.
After CP shared the lead a few weeks back, it was time to give it a try because, let’s be honest… real good vegan options are hard to find in the East Village. [I mean, there are ok vegan food options (like the brunch-y Organic Grill and Kate's Joint, a nostalgic favorite with its hit-or-miss waitstaff) but the characteristically bad service (Angelica Kitchen, Caravan of Dreams and the now-defunct Counter), cramped space, stunted veg food craft (Atlas) and annoying clientele of the East Village make it a good option for newbie vegetarians with considerably lower standards than a mature vegan foodie.] Considering, we were delighted to find great service and well-done raw options!
To wet the appetite, a sweet bite: Rawvolution’s Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ball. This very delicious ball of maca, raw chocolate chips and the unmistakably scrumptious taste of coconut-sweetened oil was a perfect couple of bites.
My tasty sandwich, the Cocophoria: curried coconut jerky, cashew mayo, onions and tomato on their own delicious “bread” made of flax and dehydrated onion. This sandwich is flavor-packed thanks to the amazing “bread” and the curried coconut strips, balanced by cool tomatoes and mayo. My only critique is to leave out the onion out because, paired with the mostly onion bread, it is a little too dominant. But an A+!
Here’s a cross-section of the sandwich showing off the goods: the curried coconut strips. Nevermind that thumb, battered and unkempt from putting together my classroom.
A final sweet (a Chocolate Haystack: chocolate and coconut mound of love) and on the house (!) because the new cafe is still working out the kinks. A kind gesture on top of an already great experience.
Organic Village‘s Shiitake-Veg “Burger”. Quite good for a raw version of a burger, however, after horrendous service I’ll likely not return to this place. We ate in the car so to escape the mess of stress within the tiny restaurant.
Finally tried Dunwell Donuts at Champs Family Bakery, which is now home to Bone Shakers too. Yes, the Kingsland location is no longer. We were pleased to find pleasant service and an offer of free cupcakes. I tried Dunwell’s jelly donut and coconut-glazed. They were yummy but a bit dry. Of course.. once you go Mighty, your standard is way high.
With the weather finally cooperating, we had grilled eggplant sandwiches for a lazy day lunch. Scrumptious marinated sweet onion and sliced eggplant discs atop grilled under Mr. Blue Sky and onto toasted Italian. Then I ate a mango.
I spent the week at an island retreat. Not an exotic island by any means. I have lived on this geographic island for 97% of my life [fraction to decimal conversion: 32/33 = 0.96969697], the latter 9 in Brooklyn proper, its western tip. But with a warm and cozy home to station at, time and possibilities were bountiful. I spent the week traversing all major highways fulfilling whims, mainly related to food and thriftshopping. Days began with coffee, hearty breakfasts and WQXR, which soothes the kitties in The Electrician‘s absence.
Long Island is home to some good thriftshopping. As long as I can remember it has been the only shopping I can really get into. I try to shop retail but find no pleasure in it. Given my pledge of quality items in 2011 [Thing #6], I must treat thrifting as supplemental. After a lifetime of bag sales and whim-based thrift purchases, I am more discerning as a thrifter now. So though I appreciate the crushed pink velvet chair I don’t buy it. Grudgingly. A day of LI thrifting usually includes: Island Thrift, Selden Thrift and Babylon’s Salvation Army. These are my go-to’s.
Being “with car”, I knew I needed to check off some items off my “To Go & Eat” list. Knish Nosh, in Forest Hills, Queens, was one such destination. I have wanted to check out their hand-rolled knishes out for some time now, especially after reading this post by the now-defunct blog Veganfriendly.com. I got the sweet potato knish and found it good considering the following… it presented poorly, the thin knish skin was very moist from being microwaved and the wax paper it was wrapped in while it was microwaved peeled off much of the skin when I took it off. Yes, it was good–sweet and spiced sweet potato saved the day. I can only imagine how much better it would be fresh, but I doubt I’d make it back there any time soon.
My island excursion had me all the way east, back into the NYC area in Queens and around the western perimeter of the island to wrap me into Red Hook, Brooklyn for … Fairway: the must-stop when you have a car at your disposal. This market truly is like no other. And this location is truly like no other of Fairway‘s locations. The hype is justified. I love this place. Thinking ahead, I purchased my groceries for the coming week–local wild greens, organic rainbow carrots, organic daikon, Minneola tangelos, Bosc pears, crimson raisins, handmade tofu, etc…
Stopping at my neglected apartment to freshen up the place and drop off my goodies, I just had to snap a picture of the beautiful bouquet of produce. Just gorgeous. As a young vegan I often spoke whimsically of a bouquet of root vegetables instead of flowers come that special day. [Just like the teenager dreams of Doc Marten-ed bridesmaids. Ah what society does to the little girl and, later, the woman] Though this is by no means an innovative idea– I’ve silently grunted others sharing their view of the same– it has real functional merit: the veggie bouquets being used for the dinner contributes to the zero waste impact.
Ok, brace for some seriously delicious eats. A bit off the beaten path, near Middle Village, Queens, is a gem of vegan eatery… a delicious discovery of fresh and live food that rivals raw fare from that outer-borough Manhattan. Organic Village has been open for about a year but lived only a few weeks on my radar. Again, with the car, I knew I had to check it out. I was so glad I dropped in. I got the royal treatment from Erin, the sister of the creator, who gave me decadent samples and free-range with my camera. I knew I had stumbled upon something special [like that place in Oklahoma] after trying my first sample [above], their wonderful chili.
Their fridge was stocked with yummy desserts. Raw chocolate bars, three kinds of pie and chia seed and chocolate mousse puddings. Erin let me sample the puddings and they were absolutely mind-blowing. Superb texture and amazing taste–no graininess, not chalkiness–just smooth, clean pleasure in a scoop. I also sampled the coconut cream pie, pictured in the rear right. But allow me to build up to that…
There were also some nutty bon-bon-y type balls I did not try… but will. I am planning to return with CandyPenny soon to relive the magic. So, until then you bon-bons. It is really important to spread the word about a place like this: amazing food, stellar service, no pretention and a commitment to ethical and healthful food values.
How lovely! My lunch! The burrito: Macadamia nuts, Serrano chili, sun-dried tomatoes, Pine nuts, chipotle powder, cashew wrapped in Collard Greens with sunflower sprouts, lime, green cabbage and red cabbage, avocado and a vibrant pico de gallo. The burrito floored me. Fresh and alive, it made you feel the same. I also loved the spiced flax crackers. Next time I have to try their burger.
The final sample Erin bestowed upon me was the kicker. Their coconut cream pie. All raw but no nuts! This is exciting to me because I find nut-based raw desserts very heavy. This piece of pie was unbelievable… smooth, creamy, delicate like a dessert should be. It’s sweetened only by dates and has minimal ingredients. Two words: coconut meat. The difference is their coconut meat is imported from Thailand, shipped frozen. This is a must-taste. And I’ll now be dreaming about often. Organic Village is superb. Get there soon!
Call me nutty but I went ahead and bought myself baby food as a snack, Happy Baby Food. It was 75 cents! And it is 100% pureed mango! I want to eat that too. It’s a great buy for roadtrips: wholesome, nonperishable and easy to suck down while driving. Next time I hit the road I will stock up. Plus, it’s all organic, uses non-GMO fruits and veggies, works directly with farmers and gives back to communities with children in need. That works for me. Call me a big baby.
So Oklahoma City, yeah. This trip has officially come full-circle. We passed through Oklahoma at the start of our trip 12 days ago but did not stop. Even though I had discovered the raw restaurant 105 Degrees via ye olde google search, time was not on our side and we’d have to waste a good deal of time to try it out. We pledged to come back on the return trip. I mean, c’mon… gourmet vegan dining in Oklahoma City?! We needed to get to the bottom of this.
As it turns out, 105 Degrees’s menu was is created by New York City’s Pure Food and Wine‘s Matthew Kenney. The space houses a living cuisine academy and boutique, another unique destination on our vegan roadtrip. Starting our day with some thrifting we worked up an appetite that grew through our attempt at finding the restaurant’s space. But it was well worth the wait and folly. I started with a first course of kimchee dumplings in a pool of sea foam and sprinkle of black sesame seeds. The dumplings were amply stuffed with a delicious kimchee medley.
My main course was their Arrabiata, a potato gnocchi in a hot chili-tomato sauce around a bed of wilted spinach and some dollops of aged raw chevre. The portion was heated (not above 105 degrees!) and the perfect portion to leave a spot for one of their yummy desserts.
That dessert, a citrus poppy seed cake with vanilla bean cream frosting topped with a blueberry compote. It was the perfect end of a very impressive meal. Here I am below with a cheek full of the cake’s delicately-texture “cake”. I couldn’t put my finger on what the base of this dessert was. I stopped trying to figure it out and quickly became a member of the clean plate club. Check CandyPenny’s blog for details on her special raw Oklahoma City meal.
After lunch we headed back towards Texas. On the way we spied a billboard for The Toy and Action Figure Museum in Paul’s Valley, OK. Another exciting and interesting road find, we had to check it out. The museum was home to local artist and collector Kevin Stark’s personal collection. It exhibited over 10,000 pieces including a very extensive bat cave jam-packed with a ton of Batman artifacts. This was the most impressive and extensive exhibit. There were also showcases of DC, Marvel and WWF (WWE?) action figures, a GI Joe section and a relatively small Star Wars wall.
The museum also had a display of Alternative Baking Company‘s vegan cookies! Here the friendly museum employee poses with the cookies. Best action figure museum snack ever.
Oklahoma soon gave way to the Lone Star state. The end. I’ll have one more day in Austin before heading back home to my life, sans car. But not without a few more vegan eats inland…
I prefer to shop in musky, dank barns; I like the effort and reward of the hunt. A rack of all of the same thing is very unappealing to me. This is why I have thrift shopped since I was old enough to make my own money. Unfortunately the state of thrifting for apparel these days is sorry. Across the country consignment shops and eBay sellers have long claimed the majority of vintage wear as the passing of time renews stock with the characterless styles of the 80s and 90s. Luckily bric-a-brac turnover is far less sudden. There are still trinkets and thingamajigs worth the hunt, worth the walk to the back. While in Kansas, I caught the bug for antiquing, which works the same muscles as thrifting but is a little more “hit” than “miss” (though with a price) and a little more “adult”. But antiquing in Kansas is like thrifting in New York, price-wise. The I-70 offered a huge selection of antique shops, each with a personality all its own. With many limitations (discretionary spending, living space, checked bag limit for flight home, etc), I only picked up a few little things but plan to return to the hunt when one or more of these limitations alleviate. 
It was time to eat. We had made it through the length of Kansas to arrive in Kansas City, Missouri just in time for lunch. We dined at Füd, an intimate vegan restaurant on KC’s west side that sources organic and local foods to create pretty amazing dishes. Peruse their sample menu and you’ll get the idea loud and clear: clean, fresh and delicious. We had been chasing the clock to squeeze in for Saturday brunch before their 3:30 close time. Once Chef Heidi carefully and passionately described her dishes’ ingredients I knew… the way you know about a good melon… this was a special place to dine. And speaking of melon, fresh-cut complimentary organic watermelon refills? Pinch me.
Behold: the Jackphish Chalupa! Jack for the Jackfruit, a texturous fruit from SE Asia {included in my Thailand Foodie blog post from abroad} and phish for the ocean-y seasonings the chef-couple incorporated to deliver a sort of tuna-like feel and flavor to the fruit. The ground jackfruit could have been the only contents of the delicately fried tortilla case but no! This wonderful handheld marvel had a tangy cashew cheddar– like nacho cheese, cashew sour cream, chopped tomato, guacamole and a spicy cocoa-infused mole to heat things up. It was spectacular. All house-made and mostly local and organic. Probably the best thus far.
Füd didn’t stop there. Vegan soft serve. I repeat: Vegan. Soft. Serve. These folks don’t dollop a scoop of some national brand non-dairy ice cream on a plate and charge $5 (or $7.50! I’m talking to you Vertical Diner)… they make there own creamy cashew-based agave-sweetened version from scratch and throw on raw cacao sauce, superfood caramel sauce, raw cacao nibs and pecans. I devoured my sundae quickly and partook in a mutual momentary lapse in conversation that ended with the clank of the spoon in the empty glass bowl. What were we saying?
And dinner. Eden Alley Vegetarian Cafe is housed in the basement of Unity Temple, a non-denominational church in the Plaza section of Kansas City. 
I chose the Tasting Triplet, a sampling of 3 dishes of my choice from their regular and specials menu. It was a little on the costly side but hey, this tour of vegan eateries is winding down and I will likely not be in Missouri any time soon. So yes, the grub: soft bread spread with an agave-sweetened Earth Balance, 1) the super-fresh and delicious Avocado Vera Cruz [avocado served on brown rice stuffed with mung bean and zucchini Pico de Gallo with mixed greens, cherry tomato, carrots, and cucumbers topped with chili cumin aioli and mustard seed dressing], 2) Heavenly BBQ Seitan [seitan drenched in their house-made barbecue sauce with tomatoes, beets, spices, onion and garlic topped with sautéed with onions and minced mushroom over creamy mashed potatoes and black turtle beans plus a pickle] and 3) the Grilled Tofu Ruelke sandwich [grilled garlic, local sour dough bread with hummus, pickles, tomatoes, greens, and grilled organic central soy tofu encrusted in spiced nutritional yeast]. How’s that for a mouthful?! So like the descriptions hints, all dishes were bursting with flavor and freshness. 
And because they had vegan dessert available, I had to partake. After all, I’ll have time to work off this spare tire when the majority of my day is not spent in an automobile. I chose the chocolate cake with coconut vanilla icing. Darn track lighting doesn’t do it justice…
There is still some leads in KC to look into but for now… a SNL re-run on the hotel television.
Though we’d left TX behind spent the evening just west of Oklahoma City, we needed to drive through the panhandle to reach our next destination, Santa Fe, New Mexico. A good 7 to 8 hours drive from where we had woken up, we pit-stopped in Amarillo, Texas at Eat-Rite, a 19,000 square feet “health promotion center” which housed a natural food grocer, vitamin shop, cage and juice bar. In need of some fresh and healthy fare and not wanting to spoil our appetites too much, we entered the huge health center in its strip mall home with high hopes. The cafe had a limited selection of sandwiches and other uninspired vegan choices (hummus and veggies, veggie chili, etc). We stuck to the salad bar buffet, which was a bit costly at $7.99 per pound but included a great selection of seasonal fresh veggies, some fruit, Anne‘s natural dressings and some great salad texturizers (rice and sesame sticks, nuts, cranberries, seeds, etc).
The decor at Eat Rite was like a lot of Texas, murals everywhere. It was charming. Though I would have preferred to pay half of what I did for my salad and apple-ginger juice, it was a great find for a wayward traveler passing through Texas with a craving for fresh.
So it was onward to New Mexico. The change of topography and weather was a welcome change. We had been escaping from the rain of Texas who was under the pressure of Hurricane Alex. We paused for a picture because, thus far, most of our shots were of… food. 
Traveling on the historic Route 66 was a lot of fun. The dive rest stops, which were far and few between, had a lot of local color and catered to the roadtripper. But we soon were in Sante Fe’s city limits tracking down Body Cafe, part of a fancy-pants new-age health conglomerate that included a yoga studio, raw dessert bar/truffle shoppe, a boutique of organic, fair-trade and sustainable clothing, accessories, books and home goods and childcare center. Their cafe looked very promising and its menu had been lingering in my mind through the many hours of driving. Admittedly after 7-8 hours of being built up in my mind the chances of the cafe meeting my fantasies were slim. But Body Cafe impressed and satiated. Below, my dunch: vegan quesadilla, veggies and nut cheese cooked between two whole wheat tortillas with a side of black beans, brown rice and salsa fresco.
For an appetizer, fresh spring rolls: shredded cucumber, carrot, cabbage and vermicelli wrapped in rice paper.
For dessert, a raw vanilla cheesecake with raspberry compote and a dusting of cocoa. Very, very good. I also ordered a raw chocolate heart which the waiter for got. That worked out because I couldn’t eat one more bite of food!
Below is the truffle showcase, a good amount of which were vegan, including almond coconut, peanut butter and almond better truffles.
Rest came finally… after the terrible rain storm (below) and passing through countless towns with less than satisfactory motels we found an adorable little motor inn with petite retro rooms and Jetsream trailers. Perfect for a night of restorative yoga and shut eye.
Vegan Reporting By Location
