A {Vegan} Love Letter to LA in Two Parts

As a New Yorker it’s become apparent that I’m not supposed to fall in love with, or even really like, Los Angeles. Bestowing any type of warmth on LA beyond a stoic eye-roll is tantamount to declaring a fatwa on the crowded, filthy, noisy city that I call home. I mean, there’s a reason why the East Coast/West Coast Biggie/2Pac feud raged so hard during my youth, right? Even Chloe Sevigny agrees.

Nonetheless, at the risk of sounding like I’m betraying The City of Dreams, I’m gonna go out on a limb here and declare that I love Los Angeles. Like, seriously, LOVE it. Not enough to consider leaving NYC, mind you (even after being hit by a car!), but enough to wax poetic about it for at least two very long blog posts…

Buckle up.

Smoothies 101

This post is lovingly dedicated to my dad, who hasn't stopped asking me smoothie-related questions for approximately 6 months. Dad, if the recipe isn't provided here/your query isn't answered in this post... well then, God love ya!

It's that time of year again: the sun is starting to shine and the heat is picking up a bit (every few days, anyway!), which means that cool, fruit- and veggie-filled smoothies are cropping up almost everywhere.

So, what's a thirsty guy/girl to do? Should you succumb to the temptation of Jamba Juice, or even Dunkin' Donuts? Should you give that old 7-11 gas station "smoothie" a try? Should you buy one of those instant-smoothie mixes from your local grocery store? Or, should you take a chance and try making a scrumptious, healthy drink all by yourself?

Summery Strawberry Salad + Peanut Butter Coconut Ice Cream

Alright, so maybe these two recipes don't exactly combine to make the perfect meal, but peanut butter and strawberries do go together, right?!

No matter, I guess, because each of these dishes is delicious in its own right.

First, there's the refreshing Summery Strawberry Salad, which is the ultimate meal after a long, hot day in the summer sun. Then, there's the Peanut Butter Coconut ice cream, whose delectable sweetness makes it the perfect end (or beginning) to almost any day!

Vegan Puppy Chow

image borrowed from Pug Blog

Ah, yes, Puppy Chow...

It seems like the perfect "olive branch" to extend as my apology for being blog-sent (absent) for so long. And truthfully, while it has only been about 2 weeks since my last post, it feels more like an eternity.

Since my Jan. 8th (birthday!) blog entry, Winter Break has ended and I've returned to school. In fact, Monday marked the beginning of my last semester of law school, which means that the pressure is officially on. (Not as if it were ever "off" to begin with!)

Peanut Butter Cookies

As promised in my accompanying post, I'm going to keep this short and sweet.

Below is an excellent vegan peanut butter cookie recipe. My only tip is to make sure that you actually sift the flour, as called for in the recipe. Unfortunately, I underestimated the sifter's importance (and didn't have one) so I attempted to "sift" the flour by using a mesh wire strainer.