Experimental Biscotti...

Ever since the veganism began, I've missed my biscotti along side my coffee at Starbucks. Inspired by a delicious spiced one from Sweets From the Earth, a vegan bakery here in T.O, I found a recipe on the net and went to work. The recipe called for applesauce, but after discovering my applesauce had mold in it (sadness), I used the closest thing - apple butter.

Biscotti certainly wasn't the easiest kitchen creation i've attempted, Almonds were flying in all directions across my apartment.

It turned out quite well, slightly gooeyer than I was hoping for, but after dipping it in chocolate I was impressed!

Saucey goodness!

It's the weekend (thank goodness) and that means many hours slaving away in the kitchen. Tonight's menu consisted of my first attempt at lasagna. I used the recipe from "How it All.." but added some chopped shrooms and sprinkled parm, which I believe only enhanced the succulence of this recipe. I had a little trouble with the rice noodles - the sticky bastards - so it turned out quite sloppy but nevertheless absolutely delicious!

I had tons of leftover noodle bits and thought, while tossing them in the garbage, they would be good for a vegan version of "hamburger helper."
Oh well, another time.

Getting Creative

Since I have perpetually forgotten to take photos of the burritos i've been gorging on for the last week (apparently I love refried beans) I decided to post this little number.
After craving the Sandwich Box's delightful grilled veggie sandwich I had two weeks ago and denying myself the indulgence, I threw this together hoping it would somewhat resemble a SB menu item.

I have to admit it's not too shabby. More fillings (i.e sweet onions) would have improved the flavour, but it served it's purpose. If you're curious to test it out (and possibly create your own variations) i'll post the recipe seeing as how I didn't steal it from a cookbook.

To roast the red pepper and portabello shrooms, cover whole vegetables in olive oil (or whichever oil you prefer) and place under the broiler, turning every few minutes. Keep your eye on these bad boys because they can burn fast if you leave them too long. The red pepper took approx. 5-10 minutes longer and I eventually ended up slicing it into strips to speed up the process. I used a George Foreman grill for grilling the sandwich, but i'm sure you could use other varieties of grilling devices.

• Mash avocado (I used 1/2 for one sandwich)
• Spread dijon mustard and vegan mayo on 1 slice of bread (as much as you'd like).
• Spread avocado on other slice
• Toss a little sprinkling of chopped garlic into the avocado
• Thinly slice vegan cheese of your choice (I used rice mozza) and place on top of avocado
• Throw on a small handful of arugula
• Slice and lay 1/2 a roasted portabello on top on arugula
• Slice 1/3 of the roasted red pepper into strips and place on top of portabello
• Drizzle tiny amount of oil onto both sides of grill
• Sandwich goes onto the grill for about 5 minutes, depending on the type of grill you're using.
• Remove and devour

Let me know if any variations of this recipe turn out spectacularly!