This wonderful sandwich, which features roasted organic beets, baby lettuce, sweet potato creme, and red pepper is served with banana bread, which I made from scratch. It is one of the new sandwiches for my upcoming book, and one of the dishes for the meal service. Today and yesterday I also made two salads, two soups, another sandwich, a stir fry, hummus, and the banana bread. I am also making all the food for our game tomorrow, and I will get pictures for that, too. Hope this makes you hungry!

My Saturday Update

Today I have just been working on the meal service! I am making 8 dishes for that, and getting working on a few new sandwiches. I got inspired by beautiful organic beets at the market, so I am roasting those tonight. I will update with pictures and such tomorrow.

The Mama Book

When I decided to start writing about things and people that inspire me, I knew that one book jumped to mind. I call it “the Mama Book” my loving name for Good Housekeeping’s 1963 Cookbook. My grandmother have my mom a copy of this book when mom was still in her teens (16, I think) and that is the book my mom used while I was growing up. Her copy had creases and stains, and was stuffed with handwritten slips of paper, or quick handwritten recipes placed there more because that was the page that had space, instead of the recipe actually belonging there.

Like other kids, we moved a lot. My mom got remarried and twice she had ex-husbands who threw away a lot of our stuff. Somehow, as if by miracle, the Mama Book survived. Mom can still make Mrs. Flores’ tortillas or Mrs. Dewit’s chiies. I can still taste my childhood.

Earlier this year, I found my own copy of Good Housekeeping 1963 edition at a used bookstore. It lacked all the family charm and character. This one hadn’t been marked and abused. It did not have Mrs. Flores’ tortilla recipe. I still happily spent my $8 to get it.

Inside, you’ll find a way to make everything. They didn’t play around in those days. If you wanted to make a cake, you broke out all the stuff and made it from scratch. You wanted pancakes? You didn’t run for Bisquick. You worked for it, measuring, mixing, waiting for the bubbles. If you want to see how they did it 50 years ago, this is a great way to do it. Yes, there are meat recipes, too. I look past those and see new (or old in this case) ways to prepare my seitan and tofu. It has inspired me to make cruelty free versions.

Someday, I will inherit the Mama Book, but not for decades. Still, without a childhood filled with it’s delicious wonders I would not have been inspired to be a chef when I grew up. All I have started with this old green and tan book, and the Mama that cooked everyday out of it.

Soups on!

Just got back from teaching at the Wellness Community! They are a wonderful organization, and I love my students. I also love all the delicious food we make there! This week we made three soups: Curry Coconut Soup, Miso Vegetable Soup, and the soup in the picture - Ginger Coconut Soup! It has ginger, chili arbol, seitan, plantain and sweet potato in a coconut broth. It was killer! We had people smelling it all over campus and coming in for a taste, even if they worked in another building. It was great!

Also, gearing up to make banana bread tonight for a new sandwich in my series. Good times over at the Wyrick-Pryor house.

When Inspiration Strikes

Today was an amazing day with my wonderful husband, Chef Jason Wyrick. We went out to two different restaurants, spent time with each other, and watched Cabin in the Woods, which was much better than expected. All the time of just being close to the one I loved inspired me to come up with a series of gourmet vegan sandwiches. Sandwiches are one of those magical things that can be very simple to make, or very complex. They can be simple like PB&J, or bring back a thousand memories of childhood like my ‘No Tuna Fish’ sandwich.

What sandwich combinations would you like to see? Do you have combinations you would like to see made? Let me know, and I’ll start posting pictures and descriptions of what I am working on.

Breakfast Time!!

I have a confession. I am the world's worst breakfast eater. I normally skip it and binge at night, which is VERY bad for you. I still do it more than I want to admit (although I guess I just did). I am doing a diet overhaul to prepare myself for my next lifestep and part of that is adding breakfast into the equation. I came up with this last night, ate it this morning, and I am very full 2 hours later!! I will be adding this fully into the breakfast rotation. Enjoy!

Soaked Oat Bran

Serves 1

1/3 cup raw oat bran

1 cup almond milk or other non-dairy milk
¼ teaspoon almond extract
2 large pinches of cinnamon
1 cup (or 5 oz) of pineapple bits

Mix everything together, and place in the refrigerator before bed. Wake up and enjoy your easy and filling breakfast!!

240 calories 10g Protein and 8G Fiber!!

No Egg Salad

Hi Everyone!! Happy Easter! This has always been one of my favorite holidays. I love the colors, the fact it celebrates life, and all the good food. As a kid, I loved to color eggs. I would crack my eggs on purpose before I colored the last batch so I would have colored egg salad sandwiches for lunch the following week. For those of you who miss those days, here is my husband's wonderful no egg salad recipe. This is from Jason's wonderful magazine www.veganculinaryexperience.com. If you haven't signed up yet, do so. It is full of recipes, articles, reviews, and wonder.

No Egg Salad Sandwich

Serves 4

14 oz. of extra firm tofu                                                                                                             

1/3 cup of Veganaise

1 stalk of celery, sliced                                                                                                  
1 tbsp. of fresh dill

½ tsp. of paprika                                                                                                              

 ½ tsp. of turmeric

½ tsp. of cayenne pepper                                                                                           

½ tsp. of ground yellow mustard

½ tsp. of freshly ground pepper                                                                                               

½ tsp. of salt

8 slices of bread                                                                                                               
Option:  1 lettuce leaf per sandwich

Drain and rinse the tofu and press it slightly to release more of the moisture. In a metal bowl, smash the tofu with a whisk until it is crumbly. Slice the celery. Mix in all ingredients except the bread. Separate the portions into fourths and make your sandwiches.