Random Shizz

A few random photos of goings on in Velovegan world lately:

1. New haircut
2. Vintage bracelet & cheapo ring I bought
3. The Long Hall - a place I love to drink
4. Meat is Murder
5. Valentine's gifts from The Boy <3
6. Adventures with Lollipops

Yes, things have been quiet. We are planning to have regular music, games (Sega Megadrive, Xbox, arcade emulators projected onto the studio wall from the PC) and movie nights with friends soon to save money and have something to look forward to mid-week. Time to break out the vegan snacks.... popcorn, crisps, raw veggies with salsa and hummus.

It's getting near to the time that Gerry's large bag of Red Mills is going to be replaced with Yarrah Bio-Vegetarian dog food. Updates will follow!

My father is coming to visit at the end of March for a few days. I'm super excited. Lots of nice vegan meals out... and probably many home-cooking disasters, as I always try to re-create my favourite dishes when he's over and somehow end up messing them up completely and scarring him for life.

I am meeting my friends from Kildare on Saturday, one of whom is a vegetarian. We'll be going for a birthday meal with her and checking out a couple of art galleries. Doin all dem kultural fings, loike.

Other than that, life has been peaceful. Well, actually, two very good and spontaneous drunken nights the past 2 weekends, but quieter than usual.

How is everyone?

Dada Moroccan Restaurant

The boy and I had a lovely meal the other night, to celebrate 7 years of eachother's wonderful company. I'd never been to Dada before but love Moroccan food so I knew it was going to be good. This restaurant is situated at the top end of South William Street, just down from Dunnes Stores and around the corner from the Hairy Lemon pub.

For starter I had fried spinach with olives and spices. It was so tasty, with a salty flavour and subtle spices. It came with a small side salad and three small slivers of pitta bread, which were soft and delicious - although this wasn't really enough bread for the amount of spinach to be honest. The boy had the harira, a soup made with lots of different beans, chickpeas and vermicelli noodles. This came with pitta as well and he enjoyed it very much, saying it was a warm, hearty starter that he would definitely order again.

Our food was served promptly, which was good, as we hate waiting ages between courses. The starters were not very large so they left us with a real appetite for what was to come! I ordered the pumpkin and carrot tagine with lentils and I really wasn't disappointed - to look at, it wasn't very exciting, just three slices of carrot and three slices of pumpkin with a tomatoey lentil stodge surrounding it. However, once I tucked in, I was really impressed at how tender and tasty the pumpkin and carrot were, and when cut up into smaller chunks and mixed in with the rest of the tagine there was a lot more carrot and pumpkin than I originally thought there was. It certainly was very good and I think it was actually a really healthy option too. The flavours were simple, not at all spicy, but went well together. Sometimes I think simple, healthy food works best, instead of those dishes with too much going on that confuse your palate. The boy got chicken cous cous with sultanas and caramelised onions, which he said was also quite plain but with a nice sweet kick to it. We also had a lot of lovely homemade bread with the meal, which was brought out to us after I'd finished the three small pieces that came with my tagine. Three pieces definitely weren't enough, so it was a nice gesture of the waiter to bring out more. I only asked for a couple extra but he brought out a whole small loaf, which was warm and freshly baked!

After our meal we were brought some traditional Moroccan mint tea, which was delicious. The boy isn't a big tea drinker but even he was dismayed when he finished the small shot glass and would have had more if he could!

I will definitely be coming here again. The two course early bird menu for €19.90 is pretty decent value, and with the bill we got a stamped menu offering us a complimentary glass of wine with our next early bird meal. The staff were very welcoming, friendly and attentive. Oh and I almost forgot to mention the décor! It was very traditional with lots of plush, velvety cushions. We had a corner table which was very comfortable indeed and it was nice to lay back and relax and have a chat after we'd finished. The Moroccan lanterns made fantastic patterns on the ceiling of the dimly-lit restaurant, and there were dried chillies and bottles of wine lining the walls above our heads. I'm going to bring my father here when he visits next month and try the seven vegetables tagine for my main with the Zaaluk for starter (here's a recipe, how good and easy does this sound?!) with a selection of Moroccan dips and breads to share. NYOM!

An Award!

Wowzers! I was awarded the Stylish Blogger Award over at Tea & Sympatico and have to post 7 random facts about myself and re-award 7 more bloggers. So... here goes!

1. I only work part time and hardly have any money as a result, but keep putting off finding a new job because I love having so much spare time. It's far more important to me, to be doing the things I love, than to be working and earning money! Then again... some things I love are impossible to do without money. It's a Catch-22.

2. I am always hungry. I'm never satisfied. I always think about food. This is not a good thing when you're trying to stay slim!!!

3. There are very few people in this world who I can tolerate without getting majorly pissed off with after about a day. I can imagine I am a really annoying person too though. As a result I have very few close friends! I think I prefer my dog to most people.

4. My new love is my iPhone, I am just obsessed with the Instagram and Hipstamatic photo apps. I adore photography and have an account over at Redbubble which is really good fun. Although lately I'm using my iPhone way more than my Nikon D80, just for the fact that I take my phone everywhere I go and hardly ever have my big camera on me. Or maybe it's pure laziness...

5. Which brings me nicely to the fact that I am probably the laziest person I know. I can procrastinate all day, I could sleep all day. I start things and never finish them - especially when reading books, trying to follow up on ideas, or trying to keep up with a blog. However, that said, I am an extremely productive person when I do get my ass in gear. I'm excellent at organising and prioritising, so am a real quick worker when I need to be and always finish tasks super quick and super thoroughly when I put my mind to it.

6. There's nothing better than discovering new, amazing music. My new favourite band has to be Health, and my other favourites of all time have to be Black Dice, Holy Fuck, and Liars. I hate questions in quizzes like "what song sums up your life?", "what lyrics best describe you?" or "what is your favourite song of all time?". How are you meant to choose? That is ridiculous. The reason I never got an iPhone in the past was that they didn't make one large enough to contain all my favourite music - so how do you expect me to choose one?!

7. I have a few fears: Earwigs creep the hell out of me, I am extremely scared of dying before I get to do and say everything I want to do and say, and I get very panicked if my routine is disrupted in any form. Yes I'm rather OCD, I like to plan, I like to know what I'm doing, where I'm going, who I'll be with and what I'm eating well in advance of whatever occurrence is approaching... it's just one of my many idiosyncrasies!

I tag:

Identity V
Pixie Rose Dresses
Vegan Crunk
Maple Spice
Tofu Vegan Zombie
Vegan In Brighton
Vegan But Not Scary

Although I can imagine you guys have already done it...
I have done a similar one in the past too, but hey they are FUN!

Valentines Day, Pies, And Stuffing Kongs!

Just two more days to go til Valentine's Day! I'm not really a big fan of this over-hyped and overly-commercialised event and would never bother going for a meal out - but hey it's an excuse to spoil my Gerryboy and have fun making homemade cards. I really couldn't wait until Monday to give Gerry his treats, so I gave them to him today as he was such a good boy and because we are going out later to celebrate two family members' birthdays so I thought it would be a nice idea to leave him with some gifts.

Here he is totally enjoying his new LOVE pillow in fine greyhound style!

And his other Valentine's treat is a new Kong toy:

Er, yes, you non-doggie people must be thinking "what the HECK IS THAT"... yup, it does look a bit freaky/weird/dubious/scary... but I can assure you, it is the best present he could ever wish for! Kongs keep doggies entertained for hours. You stuff them with whatever food you want and it keeps them busy for ages trying to get at the food while they chew on the rubber and clean their teeth and gums!

Now, Gerry had a Kong ages ago, but it was a knock-off unbranded version and it slowly started to fall apart under the constant pressure from his greedy jaws, so I decided to go all-out and spend €14.99 on a super extreme strong Kong. I'd never really known what to stuff it with before, peanut butter was the only vegan thing that came to mind and that I'd heard worked well in a Kong, but with more research (namely THIS page) I have become really inspired to make Kongs Gerry's new vegan heaven! I have so many ideas.

Tonight his Kong is going to be stuffed with a frozen mixture of Mashed Banana, Peanut Butter and "The Organic Pet" Mini Biscuits.

Other ideas include:

- Mashed Peas, Broccoli & Potatoes
- Cooked Pasta & Mixed Beans
- Frozen Banana & Plain Soya Yoghurt
- Chopped Apples & Peanut Butter
- Frozen Oatmeal & Unsweetened Apple Sauce
- Chopped Carrots & Celery with Kibble

Yes, you read that right... Celery. He goes bloomin' mad for the stuff!! Is there anything my Gerry won't eat?! ;)

Anyway, What about human food for once?, I hear you cry! Well ok then, here's a few pics of things I've eaten recently.

First off, a bloody amazing pie the Boyfriend cooked for me - Curried Chickpea & Lentil. HELL-OH...!! SO GOOD! Mmmm - just fry some onions and garlic in a pan until browned, throw in a can of chopped tomatoes and loads of pulses and coriander, cook them for a while with some chana massala spice powder until some of the liquid has been absorbed, line a pie dish with pastry, pour in the yummy mixture, cover the top with more pastry and let the oven do it's magic:

(Yes The Boy was even artistic on the top, EXTRA KUDOS!!)

And here is my variation on the Veganomicon's Pineapple & Cashew Nut Quinoa. I used red quinoa and served it over a grilled portabello mushroom. I am a huge fan of pineapple in cooking (much to the disgust of many friends and the boyfriend), so this was right up my street. It's cooked in pineapple juice too which gives it a lovely sweet flavour, and the cashew nuts go so well with it and lend it a nice, crunchy texture. I will definitely be making this one again!

I'm going for an Indian meal tonight at the Royal Tandoori in Terenure. Pretty excited to try their Chana Massala and Mushroom Bhaji. They also have Chana Rice and Mushroom Rice... NOM! I'll be posting pictures! Then we're having a Chinese takeaway for Valentine's Day (Sczechuan Tofu here I come!) and going for a meal in a Moroccan restaurant in town on Wednesday which I'm particularly interested to try out - their Pumpkin, Carrot and Lentil Tagine sounds divine as does their Seven Vegetable Cous Cous. So look out for my next blog entry!! :D

I Love You, Gremlindog!

So it's been 4 months since I got my Lurcher pup Gerry. Wow he's grown, I didn't really realise how much till I was looking at some old photos of him today.

He's such a handsome lad now, and since cutting down his meat intake his skin has improved tremendously and he's so full of energy and is fighting fit. He's such a cheeky little lad, he makes me laugh so much... he spontaneously leaps in the lake to run after swans, he pulls this funny little gremlin face in the mornings when he stretches, he puts his head under the duvet in the morning and nibbles my toes to wake me up, and he'll chase me for miles on my bike. I'm also constantly amazed at how obedient he is... he woofs, twirls around and hi-5's on command, he always comes when he's called, he never does anything naughty around the house, and he is so good around other dogs and people. I just love him to bits and couldn't imagine being without him!

The only meat in his diet now is in his Red Mills kibble - and that is only a small percentage of Irish reared, organic chicken. Everything else he eats is vegan. I'm so glad I changed his diet and got rid of any indecent meat derivatives: the next order I'll be making is for Yarrah Vegetarian kibble at the end of March. Then in April, when he reaches a year old, he will be making his first trip to the vet to have a health check and get his boosters. Hopefully they will look at him and tell me what I already know - that he's on top form and that I'm doing well with him :)

iPhone U, uPhone Me

Just a little update. Not a food related one, unfortunately, but I thought I'd share some photos I took with my iphone. I am TOTALLY IN LOVE with it! The lomo, instagram and hipstamatic apps that enable you to take vintage inspired photos are just so lovely and I'm addicted to them... so here are a few snaps:

I really wish I had something interesting to blog about... tonight my boy is making us a vegan pie containing curried chickpeas, lentils, onions and garden peas. I really can't WAIT to get home and try it! I'll take a photo of it, but it's so simple - and just pretty experimental on his part - so I don't think there will be any need for a recipe ;) If I had my way there would be spinach in there too...

February also brings with it Valentine's Day and our 7 year Anniversary, so I'll be sure to blog about the nice meals we'll be making or having out :)

You Can't Beat the Beatty!

[Picture has disappeared?!! No idea where it went!! It was here for weeks!!]

So a friend and I went to the Chester Beatty Library in town today and decided to try out the Silk Road Café in the building. The staff were quite helpful when I mentioned I was a vegan and told me that the Falafel Sandwich and the Salads were fine for me to eat. I ended up getting a lovely big plate of mixed bean and chickpea salad, roasted vegetables, lettuce and different types of olives. It was a little pricey at just over €8.00, but it did taste very good! My friend is a vegetarian and he chose a puff pastry covered spinach pie. I'm not sure what was in it that made it unsuitable for vegans as I didn't ask - all I could really identify as unsuitable was a tiny cube of feta cheese on the top. I'd definitely eat there again if I was at the gallery but wouldn't go out of my way especially to eat there again, even though the atmosphere is pleasant and there is free guest wifi.

More Cheap Eats, Fun & Friends

I went to Govinda's again last night... yes I know what you're thinking, I'm addicted. You'd be right too, I really am - what do they put in their food? I swear there's some sort of narcotic in there that keeps drawing me back in!

I met with my good friends from Kildare, Rob and Katie. They are not vegan, but love veggie and vegan food. Katie has successfully been a vegetarian now for the last 6 months and admitted to being surprised that she hasn't missed meat one bit. She is an excellent cook so I'm not surprised! It was the first time I'd seen my friends since Christmas so we exchanged gifts over a lovely meal. They gave me a book you're all probably quite familiar with called Vegonomicon, which I was ecstatic about! I've never managed to obtain a copy and have only heard good things about it - it's meant to be the Bible of vegan cookery books and I can't wait to start trying out the recipes.

As for the meal - Govinda's impressed me as always. I got Sweet & Sour Veg, Cous Cous, Broccoli & Carrot, Beetroot, and Chickpea Salad. OMGosh it was good. My friends also got the Vegetarian Lasagne and the Paneer dishes, which they said were really tasty. Here's a picture of my plate, the Broccoli & Carrot mix was actually my favourite part. I have no idea how they managed to make it taste so amazing, but it really was! The Sweet & Sour was not like the conventional type of Chinese Sweet & Sour that immediately springs to mind when you think of that kind of dish, but had a more subtle "curry-esque" flavour which was neither too sweet nor too sour. Perfect!

Give Me Govindas!

I've been to Govinda's a few times recently while out and about in Dublin doing some shopping in the sales. I'm even due to go AGAIN tonight to meet a couple of friends. Here's a photo of a typical plate, costing €8.50 - a bargain if you ask me - Spinach & Butterbean Bake, Curried Chickpeas and two salads. The bake was utterly delicious, with its creamy butterbeans blended with wholesome spinach and topped with crispy breadcrumbs. The curried chickpeas were nice and rather like a mild chana massala, but kinda average, a dish I could easily cook at home... not that that's a complaint, it's a compliment seeing as it's hard to get a meal when you're out and about that is healthy, hearty and has that homecooked feel about it. The salads were a nice accompaniment as they were very fresh tasting and provided an excellent palate cleanser when alternating between the two dishes.

I've had a couple of mouthwatering soups there too in the recent past - including Garden Pea soup, and Lentil soup. The lentil was quite salty and they warned me of this beforehand and offered me a taster before ordering it, but I love salty things so it went down well with me. It was very comforting, warming food. A dish I've sampled there recently that I also do not have a photo of is their Vegan Shepherd's Pie, made with lentils, which was definitely another hit.

Pop along to the Govinda's on Abbey Street if you get the chance - I really do prefer it now to the one on Aungier Street which I always used to go to. They always seem to have a better selection of food, the staff are lovely, it isn't overly busy (maybe a forgotten gem?), and their seating arrangement is far nicer with little booths or alcoves made with back-to-back sofa type seats, which makes it much more intimate. If I worked in town I'd eat here all the time as it's always super tasty and you get a good variety of food on a huge plate, at an astounding price.

Apologies!

Sorry I've been so bad with the updates... I've been working extra days recently, and of course have lots of things to do as Christmas is approaching.We had a Christmas party last weekend and things got pretty mad, which was quite unexpected seeing as it was meant to be just a few people over for a couple of drinks... but that's the way we roll! ;-)

Here's myself and the G-dog. He's dressed in his little Christmas jumper ready for the party, with his little elf-booties. I know, I know, I'm really mean to him, right? C'mon though, it's Christmas, and he'll be getting a stocking full of lovely treats to make up for it!

Here's a photo of what I'm putting in his stocking: a little kitty toy from Ikea, a new lead, some vegetable based toothbrush shaped chews, and my father sent over three packs of "Organic Pet" vegetarian mini biscuits in three different flavours (mint, sundried tomato & spinach, and banana). They aren't exactly vegan as they have honey in them - but they are healthy treats for him so I'm sure he'll be very happy!

Human food-wise, here's a photo of two new packets of soup I found in Aldi, by Soupreme. The vegetable and minestrone ones are vegan - you have to cook them up in a pot with some boiling water, and they are essentially just a big cuppa soup, nothing special and certainly not very healthy... but they are good for a quick snack with some barley, rice and lentil "soup mix" added into them to add some substance. The other packet is a fake chorizo tortilla flavouring from Aldi, which you are meant to add into an egg tortilla - I was thinking it's probably possible to make a tofu-based tortilla, so I'll be giving that a go soon :)

So anyway, I'm sorry for the lack of proper vegan cooking in this update, as always recently, I am way too busy to be experimenting in the kitchen and have just been sticking to making things I've always made: bolognaise, thai curries, pasta and rice dishes, veggie sausages with beans and waffles, etc. I've been trying to get back into eating salad a bit more too.

Hope you are all well and looking forward to the Christmas holidays!

Snow Days

Not much going on in the Velovegan household at the moment. It's been snowing for 2 days, so I thought I'd share some lovely pictures of what we've been up to recently...

Ikea Goodies!

We went to Ikea today, to get a few Christmas presents, some of their adorable wrapping paper and gift bags, as well as some food. Here's a picture of my haul:

















From the left, clockwise:

Elderflower Cordial - I love Elderflower and it's normally so expensive to buy the cordial, so this decent sized bottle at under €3.00 was a steal.

Applecider Vinegar with Lingonberries - I've never actually used applecider vinegar. Does anyone have any ideas what I can do with it? It looked really nice and was only about €1.25 if I remember correctly.

Oat Biscuits & Cappuccino Thins - I've had the spiced orange version of these so I expect they will be just as yummy. The Oat biscuits are gorgeously crumbly and very moreish. They are quite rusk-like and not too sweet, and I tried them with some jam spread on top of them - delish!

Sour Cream and Onion Kettle Crisps - These are vegan despite the "cream" mentioned in the title. They are so good, really crunchy and crispy. I've had the ready salted version of them too, in smaller packets from their canteen.

Filter Coffee - For only €2.00 I couldn't really resist buying some.

Mustard Dressing with Dill - Surprisingly vegan, this is usually served over smoked salmon. I love it so much, it's so tangy and sharp, with a sweet mustardy taste. I'm not sure what I'll do with it, maybe use it as a raw vegetable dip or a salad dressing.

Dark Chocolate - The usual Ikea favourite, I can't not get one at only 45c a bar!

Strawberry Laces - My German friend, if you remember, sent me the toffee version of these and I hadn't seen them in Ikea before, but they were there this time so I decided to try a different flavour.

And below is a Non-Alcoholic Mulled Wine and some Blackcurrant and Raspberry Jam. The wine can be mixed with vodka and served hot with raisins and almonds... can't wait to try this traditional Swedish drink!









































And guess who couldn't stop looking at me as I ate my oatie biscuits with blueberry and raspberry jam??? YES... GERRY. He had a taster and give it the Gerry Seal of Approval (the GSA).

Here he is in his new little Christmas jumper! ^_^
He doesn't look impressed...

Field and Vine Salad Bar

I went to sample the salad bar at Field and Vine that I blogged about here a while back. It was sooooo good! Not that expensive either. I was quite cautious at how much I put in to the tub at first, but it only came to €2.50... so next time I filled a medium sized tub and it came to just over €3.00 which was still decent enough. Their chickpea salad is gorgeous, it comes with roasted red peppers, mint and parsley (from what I can deduce), and the tabbouleh is really nice too.

Gerry's Diet Update

Since swapping Gerry onto Connolly's Red Mills Junior complete dog food he's been doing really well. As I mentioned before, it is made from pretty simple, organic, pure ingredients sourced in Ireland, with hypoallergenic qualities. The chicken in it is the only 'meat' he gets at the moment, and since stopping feeding him treats with any dairy or any cheap animal derivatives in them, his skin has improved greatly. I have read up extensively on vegetarian and vegan diets for dogs with skin disorders, and think that after Christmas has been and gone I will be swapping him onto Yarrah complete dog food which I have heard works wonders with dogs with food allergies. Originally I thought it was quite expensive, but I've come to realise that you have to pay more to get any decent quality dog food, and it works out the same as the Red Mills if I buy in bulk. I am also aware that some dogs can be allergic to soy however, so his transition onto Yarrah will have to be rethought if this is the case.

At the moment, although he is still on a meat based kibble, he is extremely happy with all his vegan treats that I have managed to find in local pet shops and over the internet - these range from dried sweet potatoes, to toughened rice bones, to vegetable based crunchy biscuits to chewy dental stars. He goes crazy for them! I'm still mixing some rice, beans and peas into his Red Mills as well. He's one happy, bright, sparky doggie! :)

Stuffed Courgettes (Zucchini)

I love courgettes so much, as you know from my last entry. Best of all I love them steamed with a bit of butter, you really can't get any better than that... but of course that wouldn't make for a very exciting entry... so tonight I decided to have a baked courgette stuffed with a mixture of puy lentils, tomatoes, onions, garlic and salt & pepper to season. One if the halves is pictured below, and I made so much of the filling that I'll be serving the rest of the mixture with some yummy brown spaghetti tomorrow. Happy Days! :)