Dirty Squirrel Pictures And Some Big Buns

Okay..slightly misleading title here..he he he! Although snow hit us again on Monday and we're back to winter (brrr...14 degrees this morning vs. the 60 degree weather last week), a few days ago, spring was clearly on the way! Little green stubs from the bulbs we planted last year are starting to poke their way through the ground. The sun was shining. It seems like a dream compared to this week. Back to full winter gear. But that's New England for you. They say about our weather, "If you don't like it, wait a minute." So true. And they've predicted 50 and 60 degree weather for Friday and the weekend. Light coat? Heavy coat? Gloves? Hat? Eat muff? Flipflops? Yes, I seriously saw a woman walking in flip flops last week whereas this week, we are all bundled up from head to toe.

The squirrels, however, know the drill well and are right on track for spring. Squirrelly's summer babies have moved out (don't worry, they are old enough to fend for themselves!) and I believe she is pregnant again. No sign of who her boyfriend is though. She's staying in her nest a lot lately and when she comes out, she just hangs around her tree. The only way we'll know for sure is if in a few weeks, we see some little heads hanging popping out of the tree! Last week, however, when the weather was warmer, we got a little visit in during our lunch break. She didn't seem very hungry which is normal..when the snow is gone and the squirrels can dig, they can usually recover the nuts that they worked so hard to hide in the fall. So our treats to her were extra and into the ground they went. She came back from her first nut hiding, covered in mud. It was complete cuteness!

It's a mud-pack, okay? I MEANT to get this dirty!

Okay, enough of the picture taking..hand over the nuts!

Squirrelly and H shooting the breeze..

So the other big news this week..H had a BIG birthday this week! eh hem..fourtee..teenty..eh hem..we won't say exactly how old but I am grateful that he ventures into this new uncharted age territory a few years before yours truly! So this being a big year, something special was needed. Big Cinnamon Buns. Here they are in the buff (aka pre oven):

A surprise birthday breakfast complete with inflatable cake! The gift on the table was a copy of "Donkey" a very sweet, beautiful book about donkeys. H loves donkeys (almost as much as squirrels) and I hope we can make it to a donkey sanctuary this year. There are tons in the UK..actually aren't there are ton of sanctuaries for just about anything in the UK? How 'bout hedgehogs? Check! Love it..

The cinnybunnies! Recipe from The Joy of Vegan Baking. These buns are amazing and gigantic!

Oh..ah...they actually smell and taste better than they look if that was even possible! A day later and I'm still coming home to the smell of cinnamony goodness.

In other news, my animal rights study group is kicking my buns (sorry.couldn't help it!)..we met on Sunday afternoon at a vegan restaurant in downtown Chinatown in Boston. Everyone in the group is vegan so it's fun to hang out with other vegans. But as I said before, the material is tough. A few people have expressed some interest in learning about what we are reading..I will post soon a summary of the finer points (as I understand them so far). It's been really inspiring. That's it for now..I'll be back soon with a lentil salad recipe!

Do Squirrels Like Cupcakes?

First, before we get to the grey furries, some Asian food and an Asian-themed song that might hurt your teeth it's so sweet but I can't get it out of my head.

The Bird & The Bee - Love Letter To Japan


Before you become completely disgusted with my strange of late taste in music, I'm going to distract you with food pix and squirrel talk. ;) We've been eating lunch out a bit lately so not a lot cooking here (Why? Because it's that dreaded time of year..tax season..the nightmare of small business owners through the land..nooooo!!! okay, so I mean, I totally flaked out on matching up my receipts, reconciling statements, etc. since like July so I'm wallowing in self-pity right now..wah!! Okay..pity party is over..). I am finding some good vegan meals out though: here's a photo of Tofu Bi Bim Bob (or Bab or Bap or whatever variation you can find!) from today's lunch. It was super yum! We like this Thai restaurant in Inman Square in Cambridge..they are one of the few places that make this dish with a really savory sauce on the tofu and they never put egg on top so I don't have to remember to mention it. I love it. If you have a good recipe for this dish, please let me know..I'm looking!

Here's another recent lunch: Pho vegetable noodle soup from Le's in Harvard Square. Cheap, fast eats..H. gets what he calls soup belly from eating a big bowl of soup from this place but it's a good full feeling of warmness in the cold weather.


Finally, the one thing I did bake recently: chocolate raspberry fudgey brownies..dramatic display of my love for chocolate on Valentine's Day. Chocolate..my own true love...


Okay, that got old fast because H. isn't quite the chocolate fiend I am so the remaining four cupcakes I decided I just didn't want. So I thought: Do squirrels like cupcakes? Hum...

My first guess was yes. Rodents are actually just one family branch away from primates (that's us as you know) which is why labs use mice in drug testing experiments (sad..)..because they are so like us. So armed with this information and the following fact and by fact, I mean, my own observation that there are no humans alive who do not like cupcakes (well, at least I've never met one!), I concluded that yes, indeedy, squirrels do like cupcakes. Now to test my hypothesis, I went outside early in the morning (I was still in my jammies so dedicated I am to my squirrel research) , and hucked with those four chocolate cuppies into the backyard . I did two overhand pitches and two underhand..and I'm a lefty. Who throws with her right hand..go figure. Anyways, I cite these details only for the sake of science (ha!). What I didn't expect was the sound of little feet running from all directions. Yes, that's right..squirrels were literally coming from every direction! I counted four in a matter of seconds of those cuppies hitting the snow. Can you say cupcake feeding frenzy? And this time it wasn't even me eating the cupcakes (that was earlier in the week).

So my friend, I believe we can conclusively say, yes, squirrels DO like cupcakes. Note the cuppy on the right side below...this guy has already taken a bite:

I'm not sure how they manage to drag the cuppies up the tree since the treats are bigger than their heads but this little fluffernutter managed just fine!


Our squirrel research will continue and we will report back on the results of our scientifically based research methods coming to you live from the Squirrel Research Institute of Cambridge, MA (aka my apartment).

The Natural History of the Chicken


Have you seen this? I first saw it on PBS back in 2000 or so and LOVED it. Whoops..we have exposed another animal love of mine besides squirrels: Chickens. Please don't tell my squirrels! Bok bok!! Mouth-to-mouth chicken CPR, chickens watching TV, pet chickens and other funny stories (some true yet very unvegan stuff too but good for non-vegans to know)--this movie has it all.

Part 1 (sorry--can't figure out how to embed this particular video!)..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkxO91TLKVg

Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84vXdEdSJI4&feature=related

Part 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2C1E1_BN1Y&feature=related

Part 4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NaO1hDMgJsw&feature=related

Part 5
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJFU8mjMEK0&feature=related

Part 6
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXXUPK-OvtQ&feature=related

Bookworming My Way Through February

Ack! It's been forever since I've posted. What's really keeping me busy is that I joined a local vegan study group..we're reading up on animal rights. We're covering all the big names in animal rights literature. Peter Singer..vegan or not? We're debating. Francione I can deal with..easier read. Regan..good lord, we were all complaining up a storm of how complicated his writing is. I never took any philosophy course in college and now I can say I know why. There is something maddening about debating the philosophy of animal rights when you well, could just be out there actually saving animals! However, don't get me wrong..there is most certainly goodness in discussing different philosophies and how to apply them.

So why exactly am I doing this to myself? Well, I've been vegetarian for 16 years now (1993)! It's hard to believe even as I type this. 16 years? Am I really that old? I've been vegan for three years now. It's flown by. Yet in all this time I never once read up on vegan/vegetarian theory I'm embarrassed to say! So when the Vegan Society of Boston advertised a vegan animal rights study group, I decided, let's do it. Besides, it's research for my pending squirrel book..of which I hope to include a subtle (or not so subtle!) vegan message.

Now for "fun" reading, I picked up a very sweet read today: The Emotional Lives of Animals. Wow, this is a very powerful book. I've only read a little and I'm sucked in. If you love animals, please check this book out..you will not regret it!

So what are the squirrels up to? Well, they haven't really had much time for us lately. They are still very very fat. Not my fault. The little buggers are ignoring me because it seems that someone (or some "ones") in the apartment building across the street has noticed Squirrelly's nest and undoubtedly with coy glances from my squirrels, this person has been seduced into leaving snacks out for Squirrelly and her kids. Even the postman is onto it. H. was standing by the tree the other day looking for Squirrelly or the kids and the postman remarked to H. that there is a family of three squirrels living in the tree. H. of course had to correct him that it's actually four squirrels (that's a lot of fat squirrel stuffed into that tree!). My squirrels are like those well-connected people who know everyone. Well, everyone with snacks specifically!

Other than that, not much a-happening besides lots of vegan baking and cooking. So where's the pictures? I just got a new mac and I'm sort of in that uncomfortable place of using both the new and old computer at the same time...so pictures soon, I promise!

A Squirrel's Advice On What To Do When It's Cold Outside
You may have noticed that I'm rather fond of squirrels! I always have been but four and half years ago, I became particularly fond of them when H. and I found an orphaned baby squirrel on the sidewalk outside our house. Long story short (I'll blog about it another day), after finding only one shelter to take her and finding out that they would euthanize her because she had a broken leg AND after many unreturned calls to local wildlife rehabilitators, we realized we were on our own. So our squirrel family began. The bond between us and Squirrelly is amazingly intact after these 4 1/2 years. She recognizes us from afar and will sprint down the sidewalk to greet us. She answers to her name and will come running when she hears my voice or H's. We were always clear from the get-go that she was not a pet and she was never confined or caged. As a result, she is truly a wild animal..who just happens to think that her mom and dad are sort of non-grey big overgrown squirrels who don't look anything like her friends in the backyard. I was always cringe when people say she's tame or that she's a pet. This animal has a mind of her own! And smarts that put us humans to shame. For example: Here's some squirrel advice on how to make the most of your winter!

Stay inside!
This house is home to three squirrel kids and their mom, Squirrelly. We like to toss almonds in their doorway and hear them squeak and squawk as they all try to claim their gifts! It gets so loud that more than one passer-by has asked us what on earth is going on in that tree. Stay warm, conserve energy and stay inside!

Better yet, stay in bed...
This is Squirrelly as a baby under my pillow taking a nap. I'd put her in the little nest that we made for her but she'd always wiggle her way out. She'd make a beeline for our bed because she figured it was the family nest and that's where she should be. I can't describe how it broke our hearts to have to put her back in her nest for fear that we'd roll over and squish her in our sleep. But she'd come right back. We would repeat this exercise several times before she got tired of it. And usually by 2am or so, H. would be woken up by Squirrelly climbing under the sheets, nibbling on his toes. There was no arguing with that squirrel! Nowadays, when it's really cold out, our squirrels can't even be bothered to get out of bed. If we can get them to pop their heads out of the door, it's a big thing on a cold, snowy day.

Snuggle with your buddies...
Another Squirrelly baby picture. Since we don't know what happened to her siblings, we needed something to help socialize her to other animals her size. So that led to the introduction of "Purple Squirrel" who was actually just a Beanie Baby purple moose that we used as a puppet. She didn't mind. She had tons of fun wrestling with it. We brought it out several months after she moved outside and she still recognized it! In the winter, squirrels who may or may not be related will nest together to keep warm. They, like us, get a little irritated with such close contact with each other and it's not unusual to hear them bicker! Right now, Squirrelly has her summer babies with her who are now about six months old. Her spring babies from last year who were born mid to late March, live on the other side of our parking lot and the three of them are nesting together. By end of March, if Squirrelly is pregnant again, she'll send her summer babies packing to make room for her pending newborns.

Eat lots of yummy vegan snacks..
Is Squirrelly vegan? Well, she hated anything with dairy in it when she lived with us..so yeah, besides some possibility that she's eating something that I don't know about, Squirrelly is pretty much vegan. This one was what we called a "monkey biscuit"..special ordered from a zoo supply catalog. They are typically made for chimps but squirrels do quite well on them!

Build a snowfort!

Then when you're really bored, put on your snowsuit, build a snowfort and play til your toes get numb. This is an actual snowfort built by Squirrelly and/or her friends. She was proud as punch to show us the tunnels! I was told that rats also build tunnels in the snow. We couldn't really see the purpose to these tunnels except for the squirrels to have fun and they certainly did, sliding and popping in and out several sunny afternoons.

Now, don't you feel like snuggling into your nest?!

Processed People the Movie

Wow! Look what just came out: a new documentary featuring Drs. McDougall and Fuhrman as well as many other promoting a healthy vegan diet.

Main trailer:


Other trailer:

Winter Dreams And His & Her Quinoa
Today is very brrrr cold in Boston today..we are expecting to drop to zero degrees Fahrenheit tonight (is the Snowy Vegan giggling at our "warm weather"? She should!). That along with a silly little cold that I got last week and can't seem to shake, I'm feeling a little urge for a change of scenery, preferably something warmer. I don't know if that will happen soon but as it often does in the winter, this train of thought, led to a little travel dreaming! Two spots I'd really love to hit this spring/summer are:

Bleu Lavande (Blue Lavender) in the Eastern Townships of Québec in Canada is a lavender farm and production facility. H. and I passed through the Eastern Townships on our way to and from Toronto via Montreal via Ottawa two years ago and were delighted by what we saw. Unfortunately, we were on a tight schedule and had no time to stop at Bleu Lavande but vowed we'd save it for another year. I'd like this year to be that year. Driving around Québec is really a treat. Each region is so interesting and different from another. The Eastern Townships reminded me quite a bit of the small glimpse I got of Provence a few years back. It wasn't just the lavender, honest! Just a really beautiful farming area with nice, nice people. The Québécois, some who speak only French or very little English, have always been so patient with my high school/college French. I really appreciate it. Of course, being French Canadian on both sides of the family (Trombley/St. Jean with a little Irish/English/Native American mixed in there somewhere, somehow) and looking very much the part unintentionally, they literally thought I was one of theirs which undoubtedly helped. H. told me that the first time he met me he knew without asking that I was of French descent. That floored me because I've never really thought that my family looked anything more than, well, American! Funny, the things we discover when we travel. The people really do make the place, don't you think? Among our favorite places that we've traveled, Canada and Iceland are tops and coincidentally (or not!), the people we met there were so nice and welcoming.


Also most likely on our travel this year is a return to Germany, H's home country. I think H enjoys traveling with me because I get so excited about the smallest little things! Case in point: a visit to Wala's gardens. If you're not familiar with Wala, it is a large cosmetics and bodycare product company, all natural and herbal. They produce Wala products as well as the Dr. Hauschka line. I've loved them for years and always stock up when we visit (although lately I've switched most of my cosmetics/skincare over to two companies that sell certified vegan/animal products (not sure if all are vegan but quite a few): Lavera which is also German--order three free samples/postage costs $5-- and Mychelle, a company out of California). It's been a dream of mine for a while to visit the Wala gardens and today I received a newsletter from them telling us about a new web page that allows you to book a tour online. Yay!! I don't know exactly when the daydreaming started but for a few minutes this morning, my body was at work but my mind certainly wasn't!


When I travel, it is often the culinary specialities of that area and/or the botanical items that we encounter that really make the memories for me. Traveling in Italy and coming upon a field of artichokes, is one of my top memories. I don't think I'll ever stop thinking how cool that was to see them growing! Or bouncing around Iceland when we stopped for lunch at a vegan restaurant and got to chat with the owner. And then discovering that she had worked in the US for an Icelandic bakery cafe just two blocks from our apartment. Geez--you can't make this stuff up and I'm positive that you have your own stories like this too!


Okay, enough of my daydreaming..let's get to the food! First, a nice way to warm up my apartment in the winter when it's cold is to bake. I had tried Mihl's apple cranberry sheetcake but with plums before the New Year's. This time I made it straight to the recipe and it was delicious. There is something about the smell of cardamon baking! I learned something new when realizing that I am out of ground cardamon: you can grind the pods whole in your spice grinder (or in my case, a coffee grinder repurposed for this kind of thing). The shells will dissolve while baking. Cool!

Now on to the His & Hers Quinoa:

His: hot quinoa w/scallions, toasted almonds AND walnuts, dried cranberries


Hers: hot quinoa w/scallions, toasted almond slivers, and pomegranate seeds


Easy easy easy comfort food. I think we modified a recipe we found in a magazine two years ago and this is how it all started. The original called for pomegranate seeds. I thought, cool, I've never made anything with pomegranate, this should be fun. And it was. We both loved the dish but H. wanted to take it a bit further, "I bet it would taste great with cranberries," he said so I agree to try. I admit, it does taste great with the cranberries but I am so sold on the pomegranate seeds that we now do two version of this dish because H. liked the cranberry version better! Hence our His & Hers Quinoa!

• 1 cup of quinoa, rinsed a bit under the sink to remove the bitter sap on the outside of the grain
• 2 cups of water
• 1 vegan bouillon cube (I like Rapunzel brand)
• 1/2 cup almond slivers and/or chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries plumped up in hot water for 10-15 min. OR 1 cup pomegranate seeds (I don't mind a lot of pomegranate seeds but find more than 1/2 cup of cranberries to be overwhelming in this dish..feel free to adjust to your tastes!)
• 2 scallions cut up with scissors into small pieces

Toast your nuts in the oven, toaster or dry roast in a pan to slightly brown them. Set aside.

Put the water, quinoa and bouillon into a pot, bring to a boil. Cook at medium heat for 10-15 minutes until all the water is absorbed.

Toss the remaining ingredients into the pot. Mix with a fork to fluff up the quinoa. Serve hot!

Coconut Water Doesn't Cramp My Style, Man

It seems lately that whenever I mention a specific product it is related to coconut! Today is the same. I noticed this past year that a few brands of coconut water were appearing in local market as well as the smaller market I visit near my house. So after recovering from a nasty flu before the holidays, I picked one up hoping that it lived up to its promise of being a natural rehydrant. Am I the only person who thinks Gatorade looks disgusting? Yuck! And Mountain Dew? What's up with that?? Anyways, here's the brand I tried:
I was so surprised at how well it worked. I was rehydrated in no time and now H. is trying it out because he has trouble remembering to drink enough water and gets dehydrated frequently.

I did a little googling and found that wow, this stuff is quite miraculous! It can be used intravenously (not that I tried but how cool is that?) in a pinch/emergency. What interested me most though was that it is often used to combat muscle cramps. I've always gotten horrible leg cramps since I was a little kid (like three years old honestly!) especially when the weather is cold or I wear shorts in the summer and my legs get chilled. And of course, the random cramp that might come up during yoga class. So I started trying out the coconut water for that too. I'm so impressed with the result (no cramps!) that I am hooked on the stuff. It also can help alleviate menstrual cramps as well as calm down your gut if you have colitis, chrohn's or other intestinal problems. This stuff is miraculous.

The news keeps getting better: it's fat-free too! I don't know if I'd drink it for the flavor. It's not bad at all but just really mild. You can also buy it mixed with various juices. I prefer to think of this as a supplement and get mine straight w/o juice. Woo hoo!! I'm cramp-free to do as I please.

Um...

Okay, sorry about that..I seem to be stuck in a "song lyrics of the 80s" revival today and not doing it well..he he he! It will pass. Maybe the coconut water will cure that too.

PIF Winners and Have You Seen My Sweet Tooth?

Hello and Happy 2009! I am a bit behind in announcing my PIF winners but I'll explain why in a minute. Without anymore delay, here they are!

Jenn from "Vegan Dance If You Want To"
Tara from "The Snowy Vegan"
Guava from "For the Love of Guava"

I'm super excited because I follow these three bloggers and love to hear about Jenn's cooking adventures (plus she's a libra like me so I just know we'd hit it off!), Tara's blogging about her family/cats and her work in the shelter plus learning about life in Alaska is so fascinating, and the adorable Guava who I can't stop admiring, especially now that she's worm composting (oh Guava, you are SO brave!)

I'll be emailing my three winners soon and sometime in 2009 they will be receiving a homemade gifty surprise from me! And because I LOVE Seitan is My Motor, I will be dropping a vegan surprise in the mail to Mihl via Deutsche Post (isn't the German mail logo so cute? Geez, beats our Baldie the Eagle anyday!) whenever I find myself in Germany next. Understandably it's a strain on the ole budget for bloggers who want to PIF outside of North America to North America: $30-40 for a small package (um, tried so I know from experience unfortunately!) and I wanted Mihl to be able to join in the fun without burning a whole in the vegan wallet!

Now onto my holiday recap. Well, things didn't quite go as expected. I baked Veganomicon's chocolate chocolate chip walnut cookies for a potluck on Thursday the 18th of December. The cookies were a HIT! Seriously, one person sitting next to me, not knowing that I baked the cookies, said "these are just amazing." I was tickled pink! And the cider that I pre-mulled the night before (so it had time to cool to be transported yet would have all the yummy spiced flavor) was ALL gone. The entire gallon. And it gave the party the most delicious scent. Peeps were happy. My friends helped me pack up my crockpot and various items I had brought and we headed home, me being the car-pooler. I was feelin' fine!

One hour later, not so fine. Fast-forward to spare you the gorey details which included a 102 degree fever and the entire first season of Dead Like Me (it's really good!) that H. set me up with, finally by Christmas, a whole seven days later, I was back to eating normal food but very bland food. I couldn't even begin to look at my blogger friends' blogs because just the thought of food, especially sweet food, turned my poor tummy. So today, on January 7th, I am pretty much back to normal..except, still the aversion to sweet stuff. What the heck is this all about? I mean, I LOVE sweet stuff so this is surprising but I suppose it will return in time, right? I hope I haven't lost my sweet tooth forever. Has this ever happened to you?

Anyway, I am grateful to have had a wonderful holiday with my family, especially my dear Grandpa who hasn't had a Christmas north since 1977. And then New Year's eve in Boston with my favorite guy, H., who schlepped around in the 4 degree night for First Night without a complaint. I hope your holidays were good, everyone and now, back to blogging for me!

Pay It Forward And More Sugar!


Hey, it's PIF time! Now, it's my turn to send gifty goodness to three other bloggers. I figure by now you guys all know how this works. If not, here's how it goes..I don't know where this originated but I first saw it on Shellyfish's blog: the Pay It Forward challenge. So Cupcake Punk then did a PIF challenge and lo and behold, now it's my turn. We're all connected by 6 degrees of Kevin Tempeh Bacon, right? ;)

So if you'd like to participate, just leave a comment on this post that says "PIF" (don't be shy) by December 31st, 2008 and after that if I have more than three people who want to participate, I will randomly choose three people to, in the next 365 days, send a care package of homemade/handmade gifty goodness. The only catch is that you must have a blog and you must be willing to "pay it forward" by doing the same thing on your blog. Fair enough?!
Amended 12/21/08: Sorry, guys, totally forgot to mention that yes, non-North American bloggers are more than welcome to PIF too!

Speaking of fun stuff in the mail, we got a mysterious package in the mail last week..from Germany! With love from H.'s parents who had a bakery in Nüremburg, Germany send us a big box of cookies. My inlaws even noticed that we have two Klimt prints in our house and picked out a box to match. I am obviously very blessed in the inlaw department.


Inside the pretty box, behold the cookieness! Unfortunately, none are vegan..at least I thought...


Until one week later (today), when emptying the box so I could fill it with vegan cookies for a potluck tonight, I found: Spekulatius cookies and they ARE vegan. Yippee yay!

So now I can try out Mihl's marvelous spekulatius butter and truffles. I have to say that I am so incredibly grateful for VeganMoFo because without, I may have never found Mihl's blog (and so many others)..and my life would be sorely lacking. H. is not a vegan but mainly eats vegetarian food..he's been very accommodating to my switch over to veganism two years ago (after 13 years veg)..but it's hard sometimes to veganize some of his german family recipes. But I can show him Mihl's blog and he's like, oh yeah, I LOVE that stuff, let's make it all. It's really cool to see someone get excited about vegan recipes. Plus don't you just find that cooking without egg and milk is SOOO much easier? Everything is pretty much shelf-stable and give me some Ener-g egg replacer to whip up any day vs. cracking an egg anyday!

Speaking of H., here he is fixing my bookcase last week. Um..it seems that someone has a vegetarian cookbook problem..she..might..just..be..me! I guess I overstuffed the bookcase so much that it started to wiggle and lean to the side.

Evidence of my addiction...okay, not all are cookbooks. Maybe 1% are art books..he he he! Handy H. put a brace into the bookshelf and all is fine now.


And last but not least, the no-crust pumpkin pie from Lindsay's (Happy Herbivore) Pudge-free holiday recipes cookbook. Super yum! 2nd time making this and I love it! I topped it with a store-bought soy whipped cream.

Polar Bear "Protest," More DIY Links, Proxy the Squirrel, and A Jumble Of Randomness

This post might seems like a collection of rambling, jumbled thoughts instead of one cohesive post. That's because it is! I am completely addled brained right now trying to finish up work for the end of the year as well as do all my holiday shopping. While doing said holiday shopping, my sister's Snuffles bear (lower right bear) was spotted in Harvard Square last night by me. Michelle claims that he's in town doing work for a polar bear conservation group..she believes this photo is not a store window holiday display but a bear protest against global warming. Did you ever have a Gund Snuffles bear? There are blogs and web sites dedicated to the little guy. He'll take on a life of his own once he snuggles his way into your heart.

Second, the DIY links..they just keep flying into my inbox. Maybe it's because of the economy that everyone is so interested in DIY this year..dunno..but isn't it great? I just think of blister-pak free gifts and giggle. Seriously, who in their right mind invented blister-paks? You know that annoying plastic packaging that covers most things we buy? That's a blister-pak The kind that won't open without scissors and stabs your poor little hands with its jagged edges?

Anyway, without further delay, here are those DIY links!

• 9 Easy to Make and Edible Gifts (I think most can be easily veganized)
  
• Goddess Freya's Vegan Hot Cocoa Mix (thanks to Tara I checked this site out!)

Here's a shot of "Proxy" the Squirrel (short for "proximity")..he's one of Squirrelly's kids and has been clever enough to watch his mom and me interact. See that blue thing in the lefthand corner of the picture? That's my leg..that's how close he came. And look how he looked at the camera? Wild animals will rarely make eye contact with you unless they are challenging you or feeling really comfortable. I'm hoping Proxy feels the latter! I just couldn't believe how patiently he waited for me to fiddle around with my cellphone camera in order to take this shot. In a few minutes his mom came back. I was surprised that she didn't chase the hell out of him like she does to all other squirrels who come near me (she's made it clear that H. and I are her big not-so-furry squirrels). She did a half-hearted chase and then gave up and let Proxy hang out with us. A mother's love I guess ;) Yesterday, I found out that Squirrelly has been cheating on me..she has seduced many of my neighbors into giving her treats. I found a tower of peanuts outside her door. She looked at me to claim that she knew nothing about it but I didn't I see two women this past week stop to admire Squirrelly and offer her a nut?

Speaking of squirrels, did you know that there is an acorn shortage here on the east coast?
NPR story: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=97661116
CNN story: http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/12/12/acorn.shortage/index.html

So please, feed the fatties..they will love you for it. Besides, you can always get an immature giggle when leaving the house by telling your SO/husband/boyfriend/girlfriend/roommate, that you need to "grab your nuts" before leaving the house. Hee hee!

Sorry, no food pictures today but tomorrow I promise as well as finally posting my PIF link (Pay It Forward..I'll be sending gifty love by mail to three other bloggers randomly selected..more on that tomorrow!). I am one of three bloggers selected by the superbly talented Cupcake Punk's Jes (check out her award winning cake) for her PIF and it's my turn to send the love forward.

Just A Quick Post About More Gifty Ideas

I haven't had much time for making/baking/cooking this work week (and I'm too busy spying on squirrels..see above) unfortunately but saw that Whole Foods has a neat-o section of their holiday web site..all about homemade edible gifties. Yay!

Check out these guys with their own cute little gift tags. So cute..I can't stand it..I must make them all ;)

• Candied Lemon Peels: Recipe | Gift tag
• Candied Orange Peels: Recipe | Gift tag
• Chile Oil: Recipe | Gift tag
• Cinnamon Pancake Mix: Recipe | Gift tag
• Citrus Salt: Recipe | Gift tag
• Cranberry and Goji Berry Chutney: Recipe | Gift tag
• Herbes de Provence Salt: Recipe | Gift tag
• Sweet Spice Rub: Recipe | Gift tag
• Lavender Sugar: Recipe | Gift tag
• Maple Sugar Walnuts: Recipe | Gift tag
• Mulled Cider Spice Sachets: Recipe | Gift tag
• Preserved Lemons: Recipe | Gift tag
• Rosemary Olive Oil: Recipe | Gift tag
• Sugared Cranberries: Recipe | Gift tag
• Tangerine Sugar: Recipe | Gift tag
• Tarragon Vinegar: Recipe | Gift tag
• Vanilla Bean Sugar: Recipe | Gift tag

Holiday Gifty Idea #2: Candied Orange Peel
Look what was outside my window this morning! Our first real snow of the season. It was that really perfect, fluffy kind with the big flakes.


Of course, this meant that I didn't get out to visit my girl, Squirrelly, until later in the day. Here she's saying, "Didn't I order those nuts hours ago?!!" She and her babies got some corn chips, crackers, walnuts, almonds and their favorites: hazelnuts in the shell.


So, on to the gifties! It all started like this: H. was feeling a little sniffly this past week so I asked him if he wanted me to make some fresh orange juice . He was happy to get the juice and I *think* he started to feel better by yesterday because he's back to bouncing around the house with his various projects. But I was left with all these perfectly good orange halves from the juice making. So I thought, how hard could it be to make candied orange peel? I need some anyway for making two German holiday recipes later this month so instead of buying some, why not make it? I did my web research. I settled on this recipe because it made the most sense to me. I'll explain why in a sec!

I started by cutting the orange peel halves in half again. I then used a melon baller to scrap away most of the pith (whitish stuff). This worked fairly well but it was quite a bit of work. I then sliced the peel into longish slivers. Once I finished this, I put it all in a bowl, covered it with water and added a tbsp. of salt and left it out over night. I *think* this is the same reason that you'd do this with eggplant: to draw the bitter juices out but not certain.

The next morning (this morning), I drained the peel and washed it under running water to get rid of the salt. The next step is to place the peel in a pot and add a bit of water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, drain in a collander and then repeat this process two more time. This supposedly removes more of the bitter orange flavor too.

The recipe called for 1/2 cup of water and 2 cups of sugar. Honestly, I was loathe to give up 2 cups of my vegan sugar (call me the sugar grinch!) but after adding a cup and then 1/2 cup, I decided to do the whole amount. Remembering from my jam making that sugar binds up moisture, I thought that there may be a reason for this much sugar to help keep the shelf life of the candied orange peel. And the reason why I picked this recipe. So pour that sugar on!


Cook until the peel turns translucent..takes about 10-15 minutes on medium heat.


Put put the mixture in a collander which itself was in a bowl to collect the remaining syrup.
I then put the syrup in a bottle, added some of the orange peel and put it aside.


I put more of the sugar in a small bowl and then rolled the peel.


I then placed them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet..don't they look like gummy worms?!


The syrup in a bottle becomes an orange-flavored syrup, great for pancakes, tea, etc. It's a nice golden color and kinda reminds me of orange flower honey back in the pre-vegan days. But nicer!


The candied peel itself is nice for muffins, breads, cookies, whatever you want. I'll be giving out little bottles of it but for now, it's stored in a larger container.


And of course, chocolate-covered! I used unsweetened Scharffen Berger chocolate to counter the sweetness of the peel itself.


This was quite a project but I'd do it again because I got three gift ideas out of one plus plenty of candied peel for future baking projects. You can also save the sugar from the rolling step for any recipe that you want to add an orangy sweet flavor to.

Holiday Gifty Ideas #1: Vegan Peppermint Bark
Right now I'm in full production mode for holiday gifts. Here's the first: vegan peppermint bark! I got the idea when in Whole Foods the other day. Theirs is NOT vegan but I liked the idea of peppermint bark. I thought, well, I have all the ingredients and hey, wouldn't it make a great gift? I wasn't quite prepared for how well it turned out. I couldn't stop nibbling! And a recipe that calls for chocolate, mint, and smashing things with a hammer..well, that sounded like fun to me.

I improvised a bit..I had natural peppermints from WF that had no food coloring in them so they were a not so exciting off-white color. I added some swirls of organic food coloring to liven it up a bit. It seems that some peppermint bark is just with white chocolate but I really like it "livened" up with a layer of dark chocolate. I should warn you in advance that the only hard thing about this recipe is that vegan white chocolate chips are hard to find. Luckily I had picked up the last bag at the Boston Vegetarian Festival last month and had some on hand, otherwise, you can always make your own (they don't have to be in chip shape for this recipe). The key ingredient is really nice quality cocoa butter (food quality). Hannah from Bittersweet has the following recipe:
http://bittersweetblog.wordpress.com/2008/02/18/the-white-stuff/

What we are basically doing is tempering the chocolate by microwaving it..if you're not sure what tempering is all about this site explains all! If you're a pro at tempering and prefer to do it stove top, do it!

The recipe I more or less followed for the bark is this (my own modification from the variety of recipes out there):

2 cups vegan white chocolate chips
20-25 crushed peppermints or candy canes
1/2 tsp. peppermint extract OR 3-6 drops peppermint essential oil (taste to your preference)
1 cup vegan chocolate chips or chopped chocolate (I used unsweetened Scharffen Berger chocolate with a few squares of Equal Exchange's mint chocolate bar for sweetness..you can get creative here depending on how sweet you like your chocolate)

Line any size cookie sheet with parchment paper. Next, remove your peppermints from their wrappers (if in wrappers) and put into a mortar and pestle OR food processor and gently crush into small pieces..but not so small that you end up with peppermint dust!

Then take a microwave safe glass container and nuke your white chocolate chips 30 seconds at a time. Check at 30 seconds and see if they are melting. You want them partially melted..they should still retain some of their shape. If they are not at that state yet, nuke them another 30 seconds. I know the temptation to do more without checking but you're burn your chocolate if you do. Just keep doing 30 second increments until you get there. Every microwave is different of course..mine took four 30 second zaps.

When the white chocolate is partially melted, remove from microwave and stir with fork or spoon to slowly dissolve the remaining solid. Eventually everything should be melted. Add the crushed peppermints and extract or essential oil..mix. Optional: swirl in a few drops of red food coloring. Don't mix too much or it just turns pink..I was going for a sort of swirls of red look.

Next, working quickly spread the mixture out on your cookie sheet using a rubber spatula. Remember to inhibit any perfectionist tendencies (note to self!)..it's bark and it's supposed to look rough. It's okay if it doesn't make the corners of your cookie sheet. Just keep the mixture about 1/8 thick. Let cool at room temperature until solid.


After the white chocolate cools, melt your dark chocolate the same exact way as the white and gently stir the chocolate to a completely melted state. Pour/spread on top of your white chocolate mixture. Again, don't worry how it looks (should I tell you now that we've going to chop this up with a hammer so it really doesn't matter how it looks?). Let cool until solid.

Take the bark on the cookie sheet and put it in the freezer for 10 minutes to make it harder. Remove from the freezer and take another sheet of parchment paper and place on top of the bark. Using a small hammer gently break the bark into bite-size pieces.


Place into cute bags or containers and tie with a bow. I trimmed the tops of the bags with pinking shears. They make great holiday gifts. I've got some more gifty ideas coming soon--stay tuned!

And more vegan peppermint bark from other bloggers:
http://urbanvegan.net/2006/12/peppermint-bark.html
http://soychick.com/food/?p=165

A Bit of A Pretzel: What To Do When You Must Go To The Mall In December
What can you do? Sometimes stuff just breaks no matter how diligent and careful you were in selecting it and using it. Even no matter how hard you looked to find something that wasn't made in China. H. and I really like to buy stuff that lasts so we're willing to pay a little more for something whenever possible and budget permits. So we were sad this past week when Mr. Humidifier just stopped working. Okay, true, he had a good run for 7-8 winters (we're not sure exactly). Unlike our previous Britta humidifier which last exactly one winter, H. never once kicked Mr. H. and stubbed his toe it on the way to bed. Some toe stubbing law of physics that I have yet to understand caused H. to stub his toe on the Britta on a regular business. There is nothing quite like waking up to the big "thump" and your S.O. swearing like a sailor. Overtime, the Britta developed several cracks and it cracked so many times that it was a patchwork of superglue (we really truly tried to work it out with Britta but it just wasn't meant to be). And then there was the disaster of the one we purchased for our office last winter..sounded like a jet plane engine and stopped working after just one week. My point: it's very hard to find a good humidifier nowadays because well, everything is pretty much crapola with a few exceptions.

So we tried "fixin" Mr. H first. After searching Amazon for information (their customer comments are a great place to look to find out problems with specific products), I thought that maybe Mr. Humidifier's water sensor contacts were bad. Not being incredibly mechanical (I have trouble even getting screw tops on and off!), I called in H. who, lucky for me, is very talented in that area. He flipped Mr. H over on his backside, unscrewed his underbelly, popped off his feet, and looked inside the patient. Not good. Not good at all. Seriously, H. wondered that it was a miracle that I wasn't already electrocuted! Rusty badness all over. Oh, brother. Mr. H. could not be saved. The patient was dead. And the internal mechanics were such that the transformer was placed on the very bottom of the humidifier and with a small vent that could easily take in water, this, H., showed me, was very, very dangerous in a "shocking" sort of way. H. stressed that he did not recommend replacing Mr. H with the same brand.

So we looked at each other with horror because we knew what that meant. Research would need to be and would would have to go the Mall. Not the mall during December with all the crazed holiday shoppers! We could order online for sure but we really wanted to look/touch/feel our new machine before buying it. Maybe that makes us machinery perverts, I hope not, but I suppose we just want a tactile confirmation that it won't be a piece of junk. After all, Mr. H's plastic casing never once cracked. The only downside I can think of in regards to living right in metro Boston is that there just aren't any good places to buy something like Mr. H..sure you can find some things but the selection is crap. You gotta go to the 'burbs..to the malls, to really find a good selection.

So off we went: to Sears, off to Target, off to, well, whatever else we find. It turned out that there was a run on humidifiers so the shelves were almost empty but we did find a decent machine at Target. Somehow this particular Bionaire humidifier is not listed on the Target web site at all so that justified our visit we thought. Satisfied with our purchase, we then turned to the grumblies in our tummies. Luckily past research had been done.

What's a vegetarian/vegan to do if you are in an unfortunate situation aka at the mall and feeling a little hungry? Well, thanks to this great link, you do have options (and there are some horrible tidbits this author shares too..restaurants cooking in lard? Ugh...):
http://www.godsdirectcontact.com/vegetarian/abc/veganeatinginanyrestanrants.htm

Our latest fav is Pretzel Time. H. actually jumps at the thought of going to the mall if it includes a stop at Pretzel Time. They have many different flavors but vegans can choose the "plain" and be sure to request w/o butter. Sign up for their pretzel club and you'll get a coupon for a "2-fer" (buy one get one free) and that trip to the mall might be a little less painful! As for Mr. H, well, he's being recycled as we speak.

Fattie Squirrel, Princess Squirrellerina, and the Pretty Pink Cupcakes

Oh, it's fat squirrel season! My favorite time of year...I can't stop saying to H. "ohhhhh...look how FAT that one is." Totally inappropriate if talking about people. Totally appropriate if talking about squirrels. Look at this fattie who was watching me in the backyard today:


And of course, this is Princess Squirrellerina, Queen of the Backyard, and aka my squirrel (or should I say I am her human) aka Squirrelly, the baby squirrel we rescued from the sidewalk 4 long years ago.


I believe the fattie squirrel here is her baby..I've noticed that ""juvenile" squirrels in their first year tend to get really fat before their first winter. Squirrelly herself pudged out and was almost, hum, should I say, obese?? But now, she puts on a little weight but as you can see, nothing compared to her baby! At 4 1/2 years old she's an old hand (or paw) at making it through the winter.

Here's a sad, terrible fact though..most juvenile squirrels don't make it through their first winter. They starve to death. The second cause of death of a squirrel is human-related from cars to pesticides to just plain cruelty. City squirrels often fare better than country squirrels but either way, if you like squirrels, feed 'em! They will appreciate it..and you can consider them your own army of warm furry composters--they just love apple corns, corn cobs, etc.

Today I put out pumpkin and squash seeds from a bunch of stuff I roasted yesterday. This guy watched me put it next to the composter. He thought I just missed the composter but silly squirrel, I left it there for you!


Now in an ungraceful change of topic, let's talk about cupcakes. Seriously, squirrels and cupcakes in one post..I'm in heaven! Before T-day I purchased "Pudge-free Holiday Recipes" from Lindsay at the Happy Herbivore. She is a seriously talented veganista! Okay, I admit her "Peppermint Chocolate Cupcakes" were what inspired me to buy and were the first recipe I tried..wow, they did not disappoint. The amazing thing is that they are made with whole wheat pastry flour and applesauce to replace the fat yet so yummy. Imagine yummy chocolate cupcakey-ness with gooey chocolate chips slathered in a frosting that you would swear was creamy candy canes..soooooooo good! Yet almost guilt-free. My brain is confused now but my mouth is happy so whatever! My cuppycakies turned out a little different than Lindsay's because I ground up the white peppermints that I got from Whole Foods and "sprinkled" the cakes with a "snow" of peppermint. However, in hindsight, I should have just frosted them right before eating because the weather must have changed suddenly and my "snow" changed to "slush." So they weren't as pretty upon eating but just as tasty.