Exhaustion

Due to simple exhaustion my blog has fallen silent. When there are a million other things happening in life, it feels like blogging is the farthest thing from my 'to do' list (with sleeping, napping, laying on the couch and watching Frasier all taking priority). It's a funny thing, blogging. It is such a wonderful expression of who you are and what your life is about, but being a presentation of those things, there is a great deal of effort dedicated to making it look just so. To perhaps maintain a more steady flow of posts, I've decided to change the tone a bit here - out with the fancy food blog and in with the post whatever I want blog. iPhone photos will replace fancy camera photos. Fancy styled shots of food will now be replaced with what the food actually looks like as it sits in my bowl, right before I eat it. Reality. Ya dig?

So here we go, life at the moment...

I landed a new job! With over five years working in the nonprofit industry, I am excited to challenge myself and push my career forward by moving into the public sector. The process of making this move has been dominating my brain space over the last few months so it's quite exciting to have found and accepted a fantastic new opportunity. At the moment I am busy finishing out my last few days where I am now and also preparing myself for my first day at my new job. There have been a number of sleepless nights - I'm nervous, a bit stressed, but super excited.

Friday nights spent on the balcony with a glass of wine, taking the busy week off.

We are still waiting for our Greyhound, but with updates to keep us excited. The rescue group has located our girl and is going to West Virginia this long weekend to bring her to Canada. She will be in her transition home (helping her learn the life of a pet versus a race dog) the weeks following, so we should have her by the end of September. I have also crossed a career goal off of the list by joining the rescue group's Board of Directors, so that is pretty neat too.

We got excited and bought all of the grey's supplies way too early. Zooey's pretty pleased.

This has been a busy summer with most weekends being dedicated to some pretty exciting events, including a wedding and a wedding shower, a bachelorette, a few 30th birthday parties... and the list goes on. It's been a lot of fun. Celebrating with my best friend as she gets ready to become a Mrs. is pretty darn exciting. I am however looking forward to this long weekend as it should be blissfully low maintenance - sleeping in, laying by the pool with a book... yes please.

Lindsay's bachelorette. An awesome night.

When it comes to cooking, I am still going strong. I recently found out I have an allergy to gluten which has made things a bit more complicated, but not impossible. Many of my favourite vegan blogs offer gluten free options which is handy. Hoping to post a few more recipes here soon.

Anyway, that is all for now. Busy, but I'm back!

A Day at the Beach

Have you ever been to Long Point? It's absolutely beautiful. It's about an hour and a half away, but the drive is part of the fun - it's so scenic and peaceful. Rolling countryside, yellow and green fields, windmills, country houses... sigh. Growing up in Norfolk, the drive is totally lost on Jon, but as we went along he pointed out landmarks from his childhood, 'this is where we got our eggs, this is where we bought our bread...' Driving through small towns like that feels like something out of a movie, so quaint and charming. Jon's childhood sounds idyllic.

Long Point itself is perfection (these photos have not been photoshopped - this Fiji-esque looking beach exists right here in Ontario!) Because it is a bit out of the way and requires the purchase of a day pass, it's never as busy as some of the other beaches in the area which makes it even more enjoyable. When we went it was so empty we didn't have anyone beside us or behind us, a rarity when at the beach.

We read, drank margaritas, ate sandwiches, napped, swam (even though the water was frigid) and enjoyed a chance to spend some time together relaxing. Truly the perfect afternoon.

A Bridal Shower + an Intermediate Vegan Appetizer: Six Layer Dip

This weekend was my beautiful best friend, Lindsay's wedding shower. It was an afternoon spent with over 20 women celebrating the bride-to-be and this next chapter of her life. It's all very exciting.

I have learned when notifying the host or hostess of a party that I'm vegan, to also offer to make something myself to bring along. Vegan is a pretty daunting concept for some, especially older folks who were raised on 'meat and potatoes.' For this party I decided to make a six layer dip - black beans, spinach, guacamole, 'sour cream', pico de gallo and green onions.

I've labelled this as 'intermediate,' only because it is quite labour intensive, however I can assure you it is worth it - I received many compliments and interest in the recipe and a few gluten free folks welcomed another option at the table.

Step 1: Pico de Gallo
3 large tomatoes
1 large bunch of Cilantro, thick stems removed, roughly chopped
1 large sweet onion
1 lime
1 yellow hot pepper, finely chopped
Salt, to taste

Finely chop the onion, tomatoes, and yellow pepper (you can use a jalapeno, but because I was serving this at a party, I didn't want to make it too hot). Remove thick stems of the cilantro and then roughly chop. Mix the onion, tomato, hot pepper, and cilantro in a bowl and squeeze fresh lime juice on top. Stir well and then season with kosher salt to taste.

Step 2: Easy Guacamole
4 ripe avocados
2 cup of pico de gallo
Pinch of garlic powder

Roughly chop the avocados and add the already prepared pico de gallo.

Step 3: Black Beans
1 can of black beans, rinsed
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp cumin
Salt, to taste

Using a hand blender or masher, gently blend all ingredients together to create a smooth, but still chunky texture.

Step 4: Spinach
Dice 2 cups fresh spinach.

Step 5: 'Sour Cream'
Mix together entire container of Soy Sour Cream (I used yoso Sour Dip, but I have heard great things about Tofutti Dairy Free Sour Cream) with entire package of taco seasoning (I used reduced salt).

Step 6: Assemble
I used a glass bowl to show off all of the layers and began with the black bean mixture, followed by the chopped spinach, guacamole, sour cream, pico de gallo and finished with 1/2 cup of chopped green onions. Serve with tortillas and provide a large serving spoon so guests can reach each layer.

Easy Vegan Dinner: Red Curry Vegetable Soup

I love soup. Jon says I am the queen of soup and I wear the crown proudly. I also love curry, et voilà, curry soup. This recipe is a cinch and super tasty.

Ingredients
1 tbsp coconut oil
3 cups cauliflower, cut into 1-inch florets
4 large green onions, thinly sliced, white and green parts separated
2 tbsp Thai red curry paste
4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
1 15-oz. can diced tomatoes
3/4 cup coconut milk (the recipe called for light coconut milk, but I really find the light version lacks flavour)
2 cups green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 tbsp lime juice

Directions
Heat oil in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add cauliflower and white parts of green onions; sauté 5 minutes, or until vegetables begin to brown. Add curry paste and sauté 1 minute more.

Add broth and tomatoes with their juice. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 10 minutes. Add coconut milk and green beans, and simmer 5 minutes, or until beans are tender.

Stir in lime juice and remaining green onions. Season with salt and pepper.

Intermediate Vegan Dinner: Raw Taco Salad

This recipe is fairly straight forward, but it does involve a number of steps to assemble items separately and then bring them together.

I found this recipe on Oh She Glows - a go to resource for vegans (so I've learned). I'll be posting another recipe that I've made from there soon (although that one will definitely be filed under the 'Advanced Vegan Dinner' heading; difficult, but worth it!)

This was my first time making 'fake meat' (using walnuts) and I was quite impressed. It didn't look all that convincing while it was in the preparation stages, but it came together nicely once layered on the salad and the taste was great. Most meat substitutes found at the grocery store are overly processed and leave me feeling pretty crummy afterwards so I was happy to make a substitute at home using simple, whole ingredients. I'll need more practice until I'm confident serving it to anyone other than Jon (he's such a good sport), but it hits the spot until then.

Walnut Taco Meat
1/2 cup walnuts, soaked for 2-8 hours
1 & 1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin powder
salt, to taste
cayenne pepper, to taste (optional)

In a food processor (or by hand), pulse (or chop) the ingredients until combined. Make sure to leave the walnuts chunky. Remove and set aside.

Cashew Cream
1 cup cashews, soaked in water for 2-8 hours
6 tbsp water
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
salt, to taste

Drain and rinse the soaked cashews. Add them into a processor and process. Stream in about 1/2 cup water and a couple tbsp of lemon juice. Add more water as needed to achieve your desired consistency. The nut sauce should be super smooth and not grainy. Add salt to taste.

3-Minute Guacamole
1 large ripe avocado
1/4 cup red onion, chopped
1/2 small tomato, chopped
1/2 tsp ground cumin
2 tbsp fresh lime juice
1/4 tsp salt
Itty bitty splash of tequila

In a medium-sized bowl, mash the avocado flesh with a fork, leaving some chunks. Stir in the chopped tomato, red onion, lime juice, and seasonings to taste.

Other salad ingredients
greens of choice
salsa
green onion
crackers or tortilla chips

To assemble (per bowl) 
Add a hefty base of greens in a large bowl followed by a heaping scoop of guacamole in the middle. Spoon on 2 tbsp of salsa over the greens followed by half of the taco meat. Drizzle with cream sauce and garnish with a chopped green onion and leftover chopped tomato and red onion. Place a few crackers into the salad before serving.

Easy Vegan Dinner: Fajitas

Ingredients
1 can chickpeas
1 can black beans
2 bell peppers, seeds removed and thinly sliced
1 jalapeño, seeds removed and thinly sliced
1 yellow or white onion, cut into long thin slices
juice of 1/2 lime
1 tsp cumin
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp minced garlic
6 small flour or corn tortillas
Optional: salsa, guacamole (recipe included below)

Directions
In a large pan, add 1 tsp of coconut oil, followed by the onions, minced garlic and peppers. Rinse chickpeas and beans and add to pan after five minutes. Season with lime juice, cumin and chili powder (you may want to add more of each for more flavour).

While the bean filling cooks in the pan for roughly 10 to 15 minutes, prepare the guacamole by adding two avocados to a bowl, mash with a masher or fork, add juice from the other half of the lime, one minced garlic clove, 1/4 cup of sweet or red onion, fresh cilantro and salt and pepper to taste. Feel free to add a splash of tequila if you're feeling feisty. Set aside.

Once the bean filling is cooked, warm tortillas and assemble.

This is a very simple recipe that is uber filling and healthy. Enjoy!

Approved!

I've been waiting to share this news until Jon and I received the official stamp of approval and happily - we have!

So here it is - we are adopting a greyhound!

We completed our written application a little over a month ago and after a home visit from the rescue group and calls to all of our references, we have been officially approved to adopt.

We are working with the greyhound rescue group, Greyhound Lovers of Hamilton-Wentworth (GLOHW), a nonprofit organization that has been in action since 1997. The group aids in the adoption of retired racing greyhounds, finding families for nearly 500 greyhounds over the last 17 years - an astounding accomplishment. Run entirely by volunteers, the group has a unique approach to adoption - instead of families picking out which dog they want - they pick the dog for the family.

Here's how it works: the rescue group assesses your application, visits your house to get to know you and your home and what you are looking for in a dog. Then, with all of that information they put together a profile of the ideal dog, considering your home, lifestyle, energy levels, etc. They send that profile down to West Virginia (where they rescue the dogs) and the group that they work with there seeks out the right dog for you. From there, GLOHW volunteers drive down to West Virginia to pick up the dogs, drive back, foster them for two weeks to get to know them better and then you get your dog! You don't find out which one is your dog until about a week before the actual adoption as they use the time while they are in foster homes in Canada to get to know the dog and ensure it is the right fit.

It's a huge process, but it's actually something we find comforting. The volunteers (holy moly are they special people) do everything they can to ensure the adoption will work well for all involved, especially considering the work that goes into rescuing the dogs and what the dogs have been through up to this point.

Which leads us to the most important part in all of this and our motivation behind it all - the dogs.

Jon has always wanted a greyhound and I have always wanted all the dogs, so we did our research on the breed and were sold.

Greyhounds are so majestic and regal - they can reach 72 km in three seconds (whaaaat?) - but interestingly enough, they are incredibly lazy and love to sleep! They are sweet, mild natured and physically so impressive.

The majority of racing greyhounds (our dog) spend 90% of their lives in a crate (21 hours a day) and the rest on the track (on average racing twice a week). Crates are stacked on top of each other and are lined with shredded paper. The dogs are kept and raced until they are no longer profitable and are 'retired', usually around the age of three. Many dogs are given steroids (and cocaine shockingly enough), are plagued with injuries (including broken legs, heat stroke, heart attacks), severely abused and are often euthanized (or sold for lab testing) after retirement. Dog racing is absolutely disgusting yet still legal in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Texas, and West Virginia and it is entirely down to money. In West Virginia alone, two dog tracks made over $15,000,000 last year.

I made the mistake of researching greyhound racing one afternoon and was in tears instantly. You cannot imagine the things that happen to these dogs. Truly. I promised myself to never look into it again and I won't share anything else, because it doesn't take much information (or imagination) to understand the importance of rescuing these animals. I think it's appropriate here to give another shout out to the volunteers at GLOHW. You all rock.

At this point, it's also important to focus on the positive. Jon and I are going to give one of these dogs a second chance at life and that is flippin amazing.

When we adopt our greyhound, she won't know how to walk up stairs or know what our glass windows and doors are, so we will have to put masking-tape (temporarily!) on the windows and doors and introduce her to walks slowly because her paws will be bright pink like a puppies from never being outside... and lots of other little things that, but it doesn't intimidate us at all. It's going to be a whole new world for our pup and I am excited to for us to be able to show it to her.

Because of the lengthy process, it may take anywhere from three to six months until we have our dog in our home with Zoe, but that will give us time to do some reading on training and to get all of the things we need.

I'll be providing updates as they happen, but until then... I'M EXCITED.