Meat free since ’83

My dear friend, P, wrote a guest post on vegetarian cuisine for today.  I love reading about all Chicago has to offer on her blog, Law and Couture.  Stop by later this week for a salad linky party!  <3-Mads

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Here’s the post…

Greetings from the Windy City! I’m P over at Law and Couture. Mads and I are friends from college. Well, sisters to be exact. I thought I drop on by at La Petite Pancake to share with you life in Chicago.

Two weeks ago, my boyfriend and I, along with his brother, went to a vegetarian/vegan/gluten free restaurant in Lakeview (a neighborhood in Chicago), called Chicago Diner. There slogan is ‘meat free since ’83’. How clever! Since I have moved to Chicago, I’ve met quite a few people who partake in gluten free diets. I didn’t know much about being gluten free before I met these people (and I’m still trying to understand it).

This restaurant specializes in an all vegetarian menu with mostly vegan options and several gluten free items as well. I love me some meat but I was actually very surprised at how hard it was to make a selection on their menu. There were so many good options! I ended up going with the caprese sandwich, which was a grilled artisan ciabatta panini with chicken seitan, with cheese (there were a few different options but the majority of them included vegan and rGBH free/non-GMO options), tomatoes, fresh basil, and rosemary balsamic reduction. I wish I had a picture to share with you but I couldn’t wait to dive in. In addition to the sandwich, I got a chocolate chip cookie dough vegan shake which tasted amazing! See here…

 

The shake was a vegan shake made with beet sugar and no high fructose corn syrup. It tasted like the real deal! If you put a vegan shake and non-vegan shake in front of me, I doubt I could taste the difference.

This place is a gem- a cute little diner, on a corner in Lakeview. It is hard to miss because it isn’t that big and with that, there is a long wait. However, once you get in and see all the delicious options to choose from, the wait is worth it. Come visit Chicago sometime and I’ll take you there!

-P

A Welcome Distraction

Remember me?  I have been off the grid for over a month, so I’m sorry for my disappearance.  I’ll be posting with a little more frequency soon.  In the meantime, enjoy this guest post from my eloquent friend, Dik.  🙂  -Mads

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Friday evening. Barreling through the mountain ridge ten minutes west of Victorville, jettisoning past the smog and the fetid stench of the work week. Behind you, the sun quietly descending through the hills. A palpable sense of excitement seeps in through open windows. Wind in your hair, tickling the back of your neck. It feels good. And one word is on everyone’s tongue.

Vegas.

Whispered at first, it becomes kinetic as the excitement grows. The lights, the city – the feeling of unbridled recklessness. And then Tears for Fears plays on the radio. A moment passes. Furtive glances exchanged as no one touches the dial, each waiting for the other to start. Finally the car is filled with a chorus of jubilation: “…everybody wants to rule the world.” Grins become laughter and the first inside story is born.

Vegas is more than a place – its an idea. Its a tocsin that pierces the doldrums of a Wednesday afternoon with daydreams of possibility. You ask yourself: “It’s been too long, why haven’t we done this sooner?”

Each successive gas station has its own unique blend of charm – and Redbull – from the Shell in Barstow to the ARCO in Baker across from the giant thermometer. You feel the need to take pictures of it all- anything you can do to preserve the moment. Capture it. Hold on to that feeling – tonight is yours for the taking.

And just as the last vestiges of daylight slip away, a new dawn appears on the horizon. You can see it just as you pass Jean – that solitary beacon of light nearly forty miles away. The Luxor calls to you – it calls to everyone. All windows are down and the car is silent. Everyone lost in their own reveries – memories of past excess, hopes of future abandon.

And then you see the lights unfurl before you like Christmas. Turn off the GPS – its time to get lost…

A day in the life of a health food blogger

Obviously this has been a crazy week here on the beach.  I have tests, papers, sick puppies, and out-of-town guests up the wahzoo.  In an effort to remain sane, I’m reposting a guest post that did not receive nearly as much attention as it deserves.  Please join me as Kat recounts a day in the life of a health food blogger.  (Oh, and she actually finished a marathon a few days ago.  Pop on over for some really inspirational posts.)

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So you know, I woke up this morning, and I was so excited to find a new box of calcium supplements on my doorstep! Apparently the South Americans have been ingesting crushed lemur bones for years to make sure they’re getting the right minerals and I know I’ve been working really hard to find a natural way to fight osteoporosis at the age of 25.

Supplement problem solved!

Naturally I made a smoothie for breakfast with every vegetable I had in my kitchen. And some carob chips, just to you know, pretend that I can hide the flavor of the green. I used two scoops of the lemur bones and I was really impressed. There was only a slightly chalky aftertaste, but nothing that really overpowered the taste of the rest of the smoothie. Because I eat more calories in a day than the rest of you, I threw a couple spoonfuls of granola on top of the whole shebang too, just to make sure that I could eat as nutrient-dense of a morning-meal as possible.

Then I went to work, where I spend the majority of my day taking pictures of shit instead of actually doing it and bitching about the book deal I have and can’t find the time to write for, even though I spend the.entire.day.writing.

I was totally NOT hungry, but I needed to eat lunch. So, instead of eating a normal meal, I had some greek yogurt, topped with pumpkin butter, a couple of spoonfuls of almond butter (Read: 200-300 calories worth of nut butter) and I drizzled the shit out of it with Agave! I just love that stuff even though no other culture that traditionally incorporates agave into their meals consumes it in the vast quantities that we do. But I’m sure it’s totally healthy.

After work I ate a granola bar, that I made myself. No big deal. That’s only 450 calories of granola on the day.

But I needed something to hold me over because I was going for a nine mile run and then doing an hour of hot yoga before dinner!

For dinner, I had a Pom Spritzer (Pom and Sprite!), and my husband made us dinner! We did a raw food night where he whipped up a cubed-tofu salad with vinaigrette, mushrooms and kale and some sprouted rolls. **Insert picture of roll that looks like a dog-turd here**. I love him so much.

For dessert, I toasted a sandwich thin, spread it with peanut butter and sprinkled it with all-natural, organic, fair trade, vegan chocolate chips! Delish!
Perhaps next I could mix lemur bones, almond butter, flax, and chia seeds into a nummy cookie log! I’m also planning on making homemade all-organic fair trade and vegan dog treats for Max! isn’t he like the most adorable lhasa apso ever?!?

And naturally, because a giveaway is so necessary for you, readers. I have another jar of Lemur Bones! Just comment on how you think that they would improve your calcium needs! Let me tell you, they’re just fantastic. I’ll pick one lucky winner tomorrow!

See you all tomorrow! It’s going to be a big day!

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Do you read foodie blogs?  What are your favorite moments and what can constitute as crazy as lemur bones?

-Mads

Guest Post: A Furry Foodie

This post is brought to you by my big brother, Jason.  He’s not a blogger, nor do I think he reads my blog.  However, he shoots me ideas for posts every now and then.  When he gave me the idea for a furry foodie, I knew that I needed him as a guest-poster.  Enjoy!

-Mads

Last Thursday evening, I had the opportunity to partake in a bold and unique delicacy completely new to my palate.  As is typical with my finer banquets, it began with me hearing the pantry door open upstairs.  My ears picked up a crackle and crunch; a sound signifying guaranteed freshness (until the printed date).  The plastic bag exploded open and the air seemed to be filled with a bold scent.

It took all of my patience as I waited for my turn to taste this spicy treat.  The drool in the corners of my mouth built with the anticipation of my first taste.  The spittle hung from my mouth like shoelaces as I watched the amber and mahogany bag intently.  The remainder of the contents in the bag, which was now near empty, was mine.

A flick of the wrist and a golden flash in the air was all it took for me to launch myself skyward.  A flavorful powder, covering a small curled chip, hit my tongue like a shockwave.  Chili!  Cheese!  I have licked the bottom of a chili bowl from time to time.  Often, I will take medicine enveloped in a piece of Swiss or sharp cheddar.  But the combination – in the form of a bite-sized snack – was truly breathtaking; literally (my muscles tensed, my neck jutted out, and I began to froth, snort, and convulse). Together these powerful flavors coated the corn chip just as a hump-blanket covers one at night.  When my wheezing stopped, I awaited for my second helping to be thrown into the air.  Unfortunately, in my spasm, the bag was crumpled and tossed into the garbage bin.  Apparently to sniff the inside of the bag and lick the last flecks of flavor would be a vulgar sign of disrespect to the preparer of such a fine dish.

Before the door of the pantry closed, I noticed several other similarly-sized bags that were kept within: a black one with a handful of flat orange chips and a blue one with a triangle-shaped chip.  More blog entries to come!  In the meantime, I won’t tire of chicken liver flavoring lightly dusted over chicken by-product meal.

Weebay

-Jason

Guest Posting

I wrote a guest post over at Tenaciously Yours.

Feel free to check it out, unless you are sick of Josie posts.  😉  Actually, if you are sick of Josie posts, you probably left a long time ago.  So…enjoy!

-Mads