Vegan MoFo Survey

Lauren at Whoa Wren posted this survey to kick off MoFo and it feels like a right of passage to answer it.


1. Favorite non-dairy milk?
I don't particularly have a favorite yet. I honestly don't care - I have never been one to drink milk plain and I rarely eat cereal, so really milk is just used as an ingredient in other things, so don't really taste the flavor at all. I do use soy creamer in my coffee (Trader Joe's brand when I feel like going there to get it, Silk from my regular grocery store when I don't). I do like the idea of using hemp, almond, or rice milk since, while I don't think soy is evil or anything, I believe having diversity is a good thing. As a vegan, I eat soy in a lot of other forms so when I have the choice not to, I think it's a good idea to choose that. All that said, what I currently have on hand is a big case of Costco brand vanilla soymilk. When that's gone, though, I plan to get some almond. Or maybe make my own if I'm feeling ambitious.

2. What are the top 3 dishes/recipes you are planning to cook?
I haven't really thought about this yet. Seitan in some form, a birthday cake for myself (possibly something pumpkin flavored?), and apple belgian waffles for my son.

3. Topping of choice for popcorn?
Earth's Balance (eek!) and salt.

4. Most disastrous recipe/meal failure?
I tried to make the Julie Hasson seitan sausages and they were not very good. Very spongy and totally lacking in flavor. My husband actually spit his out. That was my VERY FIRST (and only) time making seitan in any form, so I really want to try them again to see if my technique can be improved. I think I was out of a couple of the spices too, or was trying to not make them too spicy for my toddler, so I'm sure that contributed to the flavorlessness.

5. Favorite pickled item?
ew. I can't think of any.

6. How do you organize your recipes?
My cookbooks are all on the little cart next to my kitchen. Some of them have little post-it flags on recipes I want to try, but most of the time I just flip through them. It's not very efficient. I much prefer finding recipes online, because then I email them to my special Gmail account I have set up just for recipes (and, now, this blog). Using the "email" option in my Google Reader makes this step even easier. Once they're in my recipes email inbox, I can tag them with all sorts of labels - beans, dinner, breakfast, crockpot, fast, eggplant, cookies - that make things easier to find. Plus I can just do a search if I know more specifically what I'm looking for.

7. Compost, trash, or garbage disposal?
A little bit of each

8. If you were stranded on an island and could only bring 3 foods...what would they be (don't worry about how you'll cook them)?
pesto, coffee, black beans

9. Fondest food memory from your childhood?
My mom making us pancakes on our birthdays in the shape of the number of whatever age we were turning.

10. Favorite vegan ice cream?
I haven't tried any non-dairy ice creams yet, I tend to just go for the fruit (especially lime) sorbets.

11. Most loved kitchen appliance?
my Belgian waffle iron

12. Spice/herb you would die without?
Salt

13. Cookbook you have owned for the longest time?
lordy, I have no idea. Maybe my Cooking Light Five Star Recipes, which has a fair number of vegan or vegan-adaptable recipes.

14. Favorite flavor of jam/jelly?
blackberry

15. Favorite vegan recipe to serve to an omni friend?
Isa's Chickpea Cutlets

16. Seitan, tofu, or tempeh?
I like tempeh a lot. Haven't had much experience with seitan yet.

17. Favorite meal to cook (or time of day to cook)?
Hmm. I hate the rush of cooking dinner, scrambling to get it on the table in time, but rarely cook lunch either. Therein lies my whole problem. I guess lunch on the weekends, when we do tend to do lunch up bigger and have a small dinner.

18. What is sitting on top of your refrigerator?
mixing bowls

19. Name 3 items in your freezer without looking.
Peas, Trader Joe's meatless corn dogs (my toddler's favorite food ever), and strawberries

20. What's on your grocery list?
Right now? Vanilla extract and dijon mustard to replenish staples. Haven't done my menu planning/grocery list for the week yet, though.

21. Favorite grocery store?
I have different things that I get at different places. I do most of my shopping at the Giant that's a mile away. Then there's things that I go out of my way to Trader Joe's to get. Most staples (and a lot of produce) I get in bulk at Costco. Then there's the "International Foods Market" that has really cheap tofu. And Whole Foods for whatever other hippie things I can't find elsewhere (would love to shop there exclusively, but, eek, the prices). I just learned there's a health food co-op nearby with bulk grains and legumes so I'm going to check that out soon.

22. Name a recipe you'd love to veganize, but haven't yet.
an ice box pie that's been tempting me for years.

23. Food blog you read the most (besides Isa's because I know you check it everyday). Or maybe the top 3?
Vegandad, Fatfree Vegan, and Vegan Yogini

24. Favorite vegan candy/chocolate?
Mint Newman-O's

25. Most extravagant food item purchased lately?
some agave nectar. Haven't tried it yet!

26. Ingredients you are scared to work with?
Any sort of fake cheese