That Was Vegan?

When I first moved in with my (now ex) husband and suddenly started cooking a real dinner each night, I was kind of at a loss. I had no idea what to cook really, and so most of our dinners were probably quite boring. The one dish I did excel at, and enjoyed the most, was meatloaf. I used a Betty Crocker recipe, breadcrumbs instead of crackers, and ALWAYS topped it with tons of ketchup. I truly cannot get enough ketchup. I’m a weirdo, I know.

After going vegetarian in 2008 and then vegan in 2010 there was no more meatloaf. I tried my hand at a few lentil loafs over the years, and they were okay, but… not the same. Not what I was craving. I did make and blog about Vegan Meatloaf Cupcakes back in 2014, which were really delicious. They were still made with lentils and tofu though, so they didn’t really scratch that itch. I guess I was looking for something more authentic.

Then along came Beyond and Impossible! Beyond is what I used in this recipe, but Impossible would work just as well (I know a lot of people have very strong preferences between the two). I also want to try it with Simple Truth’s new vegan “burger”, but it was out when I went to the store that day.

So. Good. Spices, peppers, and onions… all the deliciousness. I served it up with mashed potatoes and frozen peas because A.) nostalgia, and B.) ongoing pandemic.

Sidenote: Am I the only one who has really learned to embrace frozen veggies during this mess?

And of course, the aforementioned KETCHUP, which is really what makes a meatloaf killer.

Other than the Beyond meat, all the ingredients were things I had on hand so I think this counts as a #PantryMeal. And if not, it can still claim #ComfortFood, that’s for sure.

If you’re not a fan of the new generation of plant meats, or if your local grocery is just sold out, definitely check out my meatloaf cupcakes for an entirely different version!

I love eating lunch alone, at the bar, with a beer (or glass of wine) and a book. It’s kind of my “me time”. One of my favorite places to partake in this little ritual is Tap & Burger, a VERY vegan-friendly local chain with three locations around Denver Metro. With a full bar and a big menu, it’s the perfect place to bring omni friends and family, because there truly is something for everyone. They have locations in DTC, Highland, and Sloan’s Lake.

I’m still eating my way through the very clearly-marked plant-based options on their menu, and wanted to share a few of my favorite things with you guys.

First up, the Impossible Tacos made with crumbled Impossible burger, guacamole, and pico verde.

So tasty! I’m a big fan of Impossible, and absolutely loved these. They’re listed on the menu under “Sharing”, which is sort of an appetizer section, but these three little tacos along with a glass of wine were the perfect size for lunch.

And speaking of Impossible… look at this beautiful Impossible Burger, with a side of sweet potato tots:

Yes, you do see potato chips on there! This burger comes with roasted tomatoes, green goddess aioli, sea salt & vinegar chips (!), lettuce, onion, and cheese. I think cheese used to be an add-on, which is why it isn’t pictured here. But now it appears to be part of the regular burger, per the menu. Anyway, it was perfect! I love the addition of the crunchy chips, and you’ll never get me to stop loving sweet tater tots.

If Impossible isn’t your thing (my mom doesn’t like it, she thinks it’s too realistic) they also have the Mile Highlander which is a smoked portabella mushroom, although I haven’t tried that. They also have a black bean patty, but it is vegetarian, not vegan.

Lest you think all they offer is bar food… they have a great Greens section on their menu as well.

This is the Winter Chopped Salad, with mixed greens, maple roasted sweet potato, radish, red onion, apple, carrot, puffed grains and a lavender sage cider vinaigrette:

Hearty and satisfying, but not at all heavy. The only thing I might change about this salad would be to make the pieces of onion a little smaller, but other than that – DELICIOUS!

Last, but not least, this is the Red Curry Quinoa Salad, with mixed greens, smoked carrot, tomato, red pepper, crispy onions, cucumber, and cilantro:

So much flavor packed into this salad, and so healthy! This was my mom’s choice when we had lunch there once and she really enjoyed it.

There are other items on the menu I really want to try, like the Southwest Chili (made with Impossible) and the Roasted Cauliflower and Brussels Sprout Salad, so you know I’ll be heading back to T&B soon!

Want more Denver-area restaurant reviews? Check out my Mile High Vegan Eats page!

*This post may contain affiliate links.

I am so sick of Dry January. I want it to be over.

It’s not that I need to drink, or even that I want to get drunk. I just want to be able to have a cocktail at brunch or enjoy a glass of wine while making dinner.

Do you know what it really is? It’s the idea of deprivation. This is why I’ve never had luck with diets. As soon as there is something I cannot have, it’s all I want.

Also? I am craving soda really badly. Mostly I’m sticking to my fizzy waters, but I have indulged in that sugary goodness badness a few times this month, which is a lot more than usual.

Highlights:

• Still sleeping really well! Sleep score is up to 89, and my resting heart rate is down to 60.
• I’ve lost 10 lbs!

I am happy with the weight loss but other than that I am counting down the days until next Saturday. Is anyone else still sticking with this terrible experiment? 😉

*This post may contain affiliate links.

Well, I’m still on the wagon… although I will admit I came thisclose to opening a bottle of wine the day Frankie passed away. I’m glad I stuck with it though.

I’m almost halfway through the month, and most days I don’t even think about drinking. It’s just become normal to me that I don’t.

Highlights:

• Sleeping even better! According to my Fitbit, my average sleep score for the past week is 87, compared to 83 before I started this experiment. Now, I don’t know exactly what this means, because I haven’t paid for Fitbit premium… but it seems like a good thing.
• My resting heart rate is down more, to 63! Last week it was 68, and the week before that it was 69.
• I lost 2 more pounds, for a total of 7 over the last 2 weeks. It wasn’t the main intention of Dryuary, but hey I’ll take it.

Want to start from the beginning of this experiment?

*This post may contain affiliate links.

My darling Frankie went to the Rainbow Bridge yesterday. It was completely unexpected and I didn’t see it coming at all, which makes it that much harder.

Some of you may remember I took Frankie in as a foster last Spring. She needed 30 days of seizure watch, and she was severely emaciated. She was also going through heat (even though she had been spayed after giving birth), so there was that. I was just starting my second cookbook and wasn’t looking for a new foster, but after the 3rd email the foster team at Dumb Friends League sent out with her adorable face, I went for it.

She quickly because best friends with Elmer and I fell right in love with her. Although I couldn’t officially adopt her until the seizure watch was over, I knew within the first few days that this girl was mine.

Look how sweetly she snuggled with Elmer! (And note the silly t-shirt diaper I made her wear while she was in heat lol)

Frankie was sweet and smart and also that rare dog who didn’t mind being dressed up!

She was obsessed with squirrels (that’s what she’s looking at so intently in the picture above) but she was also crazy about chasing beams of light, very much like a cat. That’s what she’s doing here, as she perches precariously on the edge of the couch.

She didn’t seem to understand that Elmer’s dog bed was too small for her… but this picture really sums up her personality: Happy and silly!

She definitely knew all the toys were for her…

And the couch. The was absolutely for her!

This dog was all about love. She loved her people fiercely, and I was lucky enough to be her #1. She had a rough start in life when her first family left her at the shelter, but I tried to make up for that. I told her all the time how much I loved her, and she returned it. Not with words of course, but with kisses and by burrowing under the blankets to keep me warm at night, and by being so excited to see me when I got home from work that she would pee a little 🙂

She was only 2 1/2 years old and I thought I had so much time left with her. She had her first (with me) seizures in September and I put her on medication and I hoped she would continue to live a long healthy life, as many dogs with seizures do. Unfortunately, they took her from me yesterday, after only 8 months together.

My heart is broken but I’m so grateful for that time with her. She loved me with her whole heart, and I loved her the same. She was my ride or die and I will miss that sweet little pibbleface forever.

Goodbye Frankie, and rest peacefully. You were more loved than you could ever know.

*This post may contain affiliate links.

I’ve made it six days so far, including one long weekend (I am on a flex schedule, and get every other Friday off. This past weekend was one of my 3-day weekends) and I’m feeling good!

Highlights:

• I’m sleeping better! It took a while, but the last two nights have been wonderful. Last night especially, I slept for a solid six hours before waking up for the first time, and then I quickly fell back to sleep.
• Per my Fitbit, my resting heart rate is down to 68 BPM (from 69 last week… not sure how meaningful of a change that is?)
• And… I’ve lost 5 lbs! Now, we have to keep in mind that some of that is just water weight (thanks for all that bloat, alcohol!), and I’ve also been a bit more physically active this week. In my mind, the biggest contributing factor is that when I drink I become a mindless eater. Or perhaps mindless hoover is more accurate because I will inhale anything that isn’t nailed down. So in addition to the alcohol calories, I’m also avoiding those eating-after-I’m-already-stuffed calories.

My final tally at the grocery store this week was also a lot lower, with no wine or bourbon in my cart, haha!

Issues:

I don’t want to say these are problems but there are some things I’m having to get used to. One thing is that, without alcohol, I find TV really boring! Again, not a bad thing… leaves more time to be productive or work on other hobbies. I have a ton of things around the house to get done (I’m almost done painting, woot!), and I read AN ENTIRE STEPHEN KING NOVEL this weekend. The Institute was really good! Not one of his longest, but all of his books are pretty long, so it feels like an accomplishment.

I still have quite a bit of post-remodel organizing that I want to get done and I think this will be the month to do it. Wish me luck!

And how about YOU! If you’re doing Dryuary (or Drynuary or Dry January) let us know how you’re doing so far!

*This post may contain affiliate links.

What is Dryuary?

Dryuary (also called Drynuary or Dry January) is the decision to give up drinking for the entire month of January. It’s been around for a while now, and judging from my twitter and facebook feeds, quite a few people are into it!

I’ve decided to take the Dryuary challenge for a couple of reasons. One is that I really want to focus more on my health this year, and I think a month without alcohol would be a great jumpstart. The other is that I haven’t been sleeping well lately, and alcohol is a very likely culprit.

I’m not a heavy drinker, and tend to abstain on most weeknights anyway… but I do love my wine! And I know that alcohol I consume on the weekends could still be affecting my sleeping during the week.

So here we are! Starting at midnight on December 31st I will be officially undertaking the Dryuary Challenge, and although part of me is dreading it (no glass of cabernet while cooking?) part of me is looking forward to sleeping better and feeling better.

I’ll be blogging about it weekly as a way to hold myself accountable because I know willpower is not always my strong suit.

You can track my progress throughout the month:

• Day Six
• Day 13

Are any of you doing Dryuary, or another health challenge in the new year?

*This post may contain affiliate links.

Every morning on the way to work my bus takes me on a tour up Lincoln, and for months I saw Anise Modern Vietnamese Eatery and wondered “Hmmm I wonder if they have vegan options?” before finally going online to check… and they do! Plenty of them, in fact!

I think I’ve tried everything vegan on their menu (it is all very clearly marked), and I’m happy to finally be sharing them with you. It’s been too long! (Spoiler alert, I loved EVERYTHING!)

Anise has a small, simple menu and you can tell they’re focusing on doing a handful of things right, rather than offering a ton of dishes that are just meh. Their flavors are all light and bright, and everything seemed so fresh!

Appetizers

There are three vegan appetizers, and I’ve tried two of them. My favorite is the Crispy Tofu. You know how tofu described as crispy on the menu usually isn’t? Well not here. It is truly crispy on the outside, and pillowy soft on the inside. The dipping sauce is delicious! My one warning to you will be that the inside of the tofu bites will be volcanically hot, so be careful.

I really enjoyed the lightly pickled veggies that come on the side- crispy and sweet.

On another visit, we ordered the Vegan Spring Rolls as well. Thai basil, rice noodles, tofu… the usual, but the flavor was very fresh.

Pho

The manager (owner?) spent quite a bit of time chatting with me on my first visit, and we talked a lot about Pho. I told him of my trip to Vietnam where I ate pho twice a day, sometimes even for breakfast. We also discussed other pho restaurants in the area. You see, Anise doesn’t specialize in pho and it isn’t what they’re known for (as opposed to, say, Phonatic).

Their pho was very different from any I’ve had before, either here in the US or in Vietnam. I’m not saying it’s not authentic, just that they went for a different flavor profile than I’m used to. It was really delicious, very rich and savory. Personally, I love mushrooms, but if you don’t love them, this might be a bit too mushroomy for you.

Entrees

Anise offers two different entrees that are vegan, and both are great! Here’s the Tofu Fried Rice, full of tofu and big chunks of veggies. Delicious, but not too heavy. It didn’t feel very oily at all.

My favorite entree was definitely the Tofu Lemon Grass Noodles.

The noodles are hidden (you have to stir up the bowl), and the tofu was so crispy! It’s also full of the lightly pickled carrots and daikon that I loved so much in the appetizers.

Anise is definitely a win, and with all their vegan (and non-vegan) options, I think any group would be happy dining here.

Want more Denver-area restaurant reviews? Check out my Mile High Vegan Eats page!

*This post may contain affiliate links.

Whoa, I haven’t done one of these since July! I actually have a ton of random meals to share, so I’m going to split this into two posts for more yummy goodness. Here goes!

Let’s start with Thanksgiving because it was delicious af. My mom and brother came over and I did all the cooking (mom brought the wine and the crescent rolls and brother brought the peanut butter whiskey (yes that is a thing!))

I made:

• Spinach dip for snacking
• TWO vegan roasts (Gardein and Trader Joe’s)
• Sweet Corn
• Candied Carrots
• Green Bean Casserole
• Brandied Sweet Potato Casserole
• New England Style Stuffing
• Mashed Potatoes
• Sweet Potato Biscuits
• Crescent Rolls
• Cranberry Sauce
• Apple pie (storebought but it was vegan!)
• Cherry pie (same)
• Pumpkin Cheesecake
• Ice cream and coco whip for the desserts

Green Bean Casserole, covered in crispy onions of course:

NE Style Stuffing with apples and celery and cranberries YUM! (and other veg in the background):

Brandied Sweet Potato Casserole – my first time making this but I really intend to blog the recipe:

The roasts! Gardein is still my favorite, but the TJ’s plant-based roast was really good too.

And finally… my plate. Thanksgiving is crazy because you spend days preparing and cooking… and then you eat for like 20 minutes and are done.

Way too much for three people? Yes. But my friend Jamie and her daughter were maybe going to join us and I wanted everyone to be able to take leftovers. Jame and Em couldn’t make it at the last minute but I went ahead and made everything anyway. The three of us just had to eat leftovers for every meal for a week!

I also recently tried the PLANT BASED CORNED BEEF at Quiznos! They’re testing it in the Denver market and I want to do my part to make sure it is a success and they roll it out everywhere.

The plant-based meat is from Mrs. Goldfarb’s Unreal Deli and it is everything. I’ve never had “real” corned beef so I can’t compare it, but it was full of flavor with a bit of pepper. Quiznos toasts their subs so the edges sticking out from the bread were all crispy and extra good. The sub is supposed to come with sauerkraut but they were out so I added extra pickles plus some banana peppers. I definitely plan to go back and try it again.

Impossible Whopper, I just can’t quit you. BK was my favorite fast food as a (non-vegan) child. Grandma Josie would take my brother and me there every weekend and I’d always get the same thing: a whopper jr. with cheese and no onions, with onion rings instead of fries. Why did I like onions on the side but not on the sandwich? Why did I insist on eating this meal while going through a car wash? These are questions with no answers BUT Grandma always had a clean car 🙂

I have discovered the key to maximum Impossible Whopper enjoyment is to bring it home and add some vegan mayo… although I did eat it in my car once and just added ketchup which was pretty good too. I realize it isn’t super healthy but damn its a nice treat once in a while, and I’m just glad we have the option now.

I’ve blogged about Sputnik quite a few times, and it’s still one of my very favorite spots in Denver. According to the pictures on my iphone I’ve eaten there three times recently, so clearly I love it. Actually make that four times- my bestie Eric took me there for a birthday lunch and the sandwich was made wrong and it was sad so I didn’t take a pic.

This was the White BBQ Sandwich with smoked tempeh, topped with cabbage, carrots, onion, and pickles doused in house-made Alabama White BBQ sauce. I ordered a half-side of sweet potato fries and spicy habanero jam for dipping. And beer. This is currently my favorite sandwich there!

Next up is the Bahn Mi which USED TO BE my favorite sandwich but they either changed the recipe or the day of my birthday lunch the kitchen crew forgot how to make it, but it was sad. I was sad. Hopefully it was a one-time thing because their original recipe (pictured here) was to die for. Tofu, pickled carrots and daikon, cucumber, cilantro and vegan Fresno mayo. Pretty sure, looking at this picture, that I accidentally ordered a full side of fries that day. Oops. Also looks like I went with wine that day.

Last, but not least, is a Cashew “Chicken” Salad that isn’t currently on their menu (I think they only have it during spring/summer/fall). It was messy but tasty and I’ll for sure order it again next year if they bring it back.

And finally (for this first half-post)… Piante Pizzaria in Breckenridge! This was there Margherita Pizza made with house-made organic San Marzano tomato red sauce, Piante mozzarella blend, and basil. They make all their own vegan cheese and I love everything I’ve ever tried there. Amazing. So gooey and hot and stretchy – everything you want the cheese on your pizza to be!

Okay, I’ll be back next week with the rest of the random pics!

*This post may contain affiliate links.