vegan

Friday Roundup: Vest in Progress, Lots of Cooking

What I’m Knitting

Remember the mystery cabled strip from last week? Here’s the big reveal:

I loved the sideways, pick up stitches construction of my Keelback Hat, so I wanted to try a garment this way. I like it so far! The band is sticking out from the stockinette fabric a bit too far for my taste, but blocking will almost certainly solve that. Just the armhole edgings to go, so I should have an FO to show off next week!

What I’m Cooking

I was busy this week! We went to a Talk Like a Pirate Day party on Saturday (so fun! And if you ever want to see a roomful of grown people squeal, bring a one-year-old to a party in full pirate costume). I made potato boats to fit the theme (vegan, of course) and even managed to make up a few sails. They were a hit!

I plowed through three more recipes on the cookbook challenge, too!

Chana Saag over rice (yummy!):

Sushi roll salad (not so yummy… actually, I’m counting this as my first real fail from this cookbook. The hubby and I didn’t really like it, and it was SUPER fiddly to make. Think I’ll just stick with real sushi rolls in the future. But hey, at least it’s pretty…)

And roasted red pepper/tomato soup with sweet potato biscuits. My son LOVED the biscuits—I think they’re his new favorite food.

For my Wednesday dinner-for-a-crowd meal, I made quinoa-stuffed peppers. OMG, these were amazing. Somehow the quinoa, black bean, and corn filling with Mexican spices managed to be almost ground-beef like. I’d make these all the time, but it gets a little expensive with the peppers. I’ll have to keep an eye out for sales!

What I’m Reading

I finished the next two books in the Tiffany Aching series, Wintersmith and I Shall Wear Midnight. They were so good! This series, unlike so many others, gets better and better with each book. I can’t wait to read the new one, the last in the series.

Friday Roundup: Birthday Edition

What I’m Knitting:

I still need to block the colorwork mitt from last week, but I started another project! Remember the little nautical sweater that I blogged about last month? I was really unhappy with the way the topmost white stripe on the body was pulling up, and there were a few other things I didn’t like about it, like the way the bottom flared out a bit and the bordering-on-too-tight neck opening.

Here’s the pic—see what I mean?

So when I heard Knit Picks had a new easy-care yarn out, I figured I could kill two birds with one stone—try out the yarn and reknit the sample with some changes. I’m through the yoke and rolling along on the stripes for the body:

It’s the same general concept, as you can see, but there will be some other changes (more stripes on the sleeves, for one). Hopefully I’ll have some decent progress to show off next week.

What I’m Cooking

My birthday was this week, and a good friend had a birthday a few days later. I made a dinner of shepherd’s pie (with lentils standing in for the meat) for our little party and baked a chocolate cake for afterwards! It was delicious. I actually think vegan cakes taste better. You don’t get that eggy taste, and they’re not so rich that you can’t finish a piece. Even the omni guests said it was one of the better cakes they’d had.

We were low on birthday candles, so there’s one for each of us!

I’m still working on my Appetite for Reduction cookbook challenge! This week, the recipes on deck were fusilli with roasted veggies:

Lentil soup with lots of veggies (so good!):

And two things I never would have made without this challenge, shaved Brussels sprouts and oven-baked onion rings! The onion rings in particular were an experience, what with the battering and breading. But they were really good! Not greasy like fried ones, just crunchy and salty. I’ll definitely be making them again. We had them with some pre-marinated tofu:

What I’m Reading:

Although I managed to get a decent amount of cooking and knitting in this week, my reading time suffered. So I’m still working on A Hat Full of Sky, although I’m hurrying to get through so I can read a writer friend’s manuscript!

Friday Roundup #3

What I’m Knitting

I finished the secret bulky vest, yay! Now I just need to block it and sew on buttons, and then it’s time to schedule a photo shoot with my little model. We may have to sponge him off first.

I also took a few hours today to do my biannual needles, leftover yarn, WIPs, and notions roundup. This is the haul from the three different locations in my house where I usually knit (note kitty helper):

What I’m Cooking:

Pad Thai with tofu: I’ve made this dish several times now and it gets more delicious every time. One of my favorites.

Chickpea curry: This one was just okay. Not a huge fan, so I probably won’t make it again. I’m still on the hunt for a good vegan curry recipe.

Vegan mini omelets: This is the second time I’ve made these, and they were just as good this time. This recipe uses garbanzo flour and tofu with some carefully chosen spices to stand in for the eggs. I added a bunch of veggies (which I’m going to incorporate better next time). I want to try one of these in a breakfast sandwich, mmmm….

Lentil-A-Roni: This recipe uses lentils, pasta, and creamy sauce to mimic junky Chef Boyardee canned food, and it does a pretty good job! I added spinach because I’m apparently incapable of cooking anything without adding some extra greens.

What I’m Reading:

I finished The Winter of the Robots last night and am currently between books. But I just placed an order with Barnes and Noble and should have a couple more winging their way to me in the next few days (free express member shipping, baby!).

The Great Blog Reboot of 2015

Hello out there! Blog posts have been rare around here since my son was born back in July, but I miss blogging regularly and interacting with other bloggers and crafters. So I made a resolution (about a week late, but hey…) to get back to regular blogging in 2015.

Here’s how I’m going to do it: every Friday, I’ll post a weekly update like the one below. To solve my ever-present problem of working on secret knitting projects that I’m not allowed to blog about, I’m branching out a bit. I don’t know if I’ve ever mentioned it here on the blog before, but my household is about 90% vegan (no meat or dairy products). Another one of my resolutions is to cook healthy meals instead of eating mostly frozen and pre-made entrees, so I’ll be sharing new recipes I’m trying. It should be fun!

I’m also going to be sharing books I’m reading, since I’m still working on getting books published and it’s important to keep reading in the genre that I’m writing. I’m hoping a weekly check-in will motivate me to plow through some titles on my to-read list.

Without further ado, here’s my first new post! :-)

What I’m Knitting

I’m working on secret projects. Quelle surprise. But there are a lot of them this time. I’m doing a baby/child collection for a yarn company which is going to include two hats, two sets of mittens, a scarf, and a vest. The yarn is hand-dyed and scrumptious. I can’t wait to show these off. I have all the samples knit except the vest, which is in progress. Bulky yarn + hand-dyed goodness = fun to knit.

Here’s a teeny little preview of one of the hats (really just an excuse to show off my adorable son):

What I’m Cooking

Here’s something that probably won’t surprise you: cooking interesting, healthy vegan meals day after day is hard. But I got this amazing new cookbook as a Christmas present:

This is the absolute best cookbook I’ve ever had, vegan or not. I’ve made something like 15 recipes from it since Christmas, and everything has been good. When does that ever happen?

I used to use internet recipes much more than cookbooks, but there’s something oddly satisfying about flipping to a recipe in a big, thick cookbook and consulting it as you go. Maybe that’s just me.

I didn’t think to take pictures of anything I made last week, so my foray into the world of food photography will have to wait until next week.

What I’m Reading

Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins.

This is kind of cheating, because I’m writing middle grade fiction (for ages 8-12), so I really shouldn’t be reading young adult. But I gave myself permission to cheat. I loved this author’s first two books (Anna and the French Kiss & Lola and the Boy Next Door), so I have high hopes for this one.