Brownie Hell

 I have returned to Columbus until the beginning of the new year, feeling better, and holding down a job at a local family-owned (not vegan)brownie shop. Allow me to rephrase: working my ass off at a local, family-owned brownie shop. Said shop does not run in shifts, instead each employee stays for however long he or she is available every day. That means that I work from 6:30AM to somewhere around 7:30PM Monday through Thursday, fewer hours on Friday, and not at all on Saturday or Sunday. This arrangement is only for the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve (Or, in my case, this past Monday to Christmas Eve) - when the shop needs help with their holiday rush.

I start my day, blinking and bleary at 6AM. Making my way up to the kitchen to grab my prepared lunch and a piece of fruit, I retrace my steps countless times to collect the daily necessities. I blast the heat in my mom's car to melt the ice off of the windshield and my ears. The shop is a 15 minute drive of dark solitude away from my parent's house.

The factory where the brownies are made is behind the storefront. We soldiers of the batter arm ourselves with caps, aprons, and rubber gloves to shield the onslaught of chocolate, cooking spray, and human flesh. (Okay, maybe not that last one. But seriously, vegans, they use around 1200 eggs a DAY. And so much butter. The company's contract with Sysco has got to be enough to feed a small country for life.

So why do I work there, you ask? I hang out with my friends all day, baking and making lots of money. I've worked there for a couple of seasons now. It's not a living, it's a way to make some much needed cash in college. Everyone has to choose their battles, and I've chosen mine. I wish I could save the world by being 'Super Vegan', but all I would accomplish is an empty bank account. There are no 100% ethical places to work that pay the bills.

I do love working at the Little Shop of Horrors. Although I stand for up to 13 hours a day, it keeps me occupied. It's fun to see all of the(literally 14,000) brownies go through the rotation every day. I could use the exercise, and I talk to the people I work with about veganism. It's cool. So that's been my life since my last post. I finished my Christmas shopping after work today and plan to do some Christmas baking with my mom. Each member of our family was to choose their favorite Christmas cookie, and I have yet to decide...

Sicky McSickerson

I've come down with something nasty (I think I'd have worse body aches if it were swine. I'm banking on bronchitis.) and I went to the store (Kroger) to find some natural cough drops - or any cough drops that were sugar-free. Since I was young my dad has maintained a theory on cough drops: they should always be sugar-free because the sugar feeds the bacteria in your throat, worsening the situation. My hopes were dashed when I found the only "natural" cough drops contained aspartame. I steered clear and purchased Traditional Medicinal's Throat Coat tea.

I know it seems dumb to run to Kroger in search of a natural product, but as it was 8 pm The Farmacy was closed. Also, the Kroger in Athens has the best natural/organic food/product section I've seen from the chain. They had all kinds of teas and remedies that I have heard have minimal effect and only produce "expensive urine", but no cough drops.

My question for you is, what do you do for cough and cold relief? Do you know of any brands of cough drops that are truely natural and also sugar free?

Shepard(less) Pie for the Family

After dinner with a friend at one of my favorite restaurants in Columbus, Banana Leaf, I spent the remainder of the evening slaving over a hot stove to prepare for a family gathering today. The omnis of the family (everyone except for me)will have lasagna, bread, and salad, but instead of making a veganized version, I decided to whip up a seasonally appropriate dish. I adapted happyveganface's recipe for shepard's pie to include lentils, broccoli, cauliflower, and cellery. I also used soymilk instead of rice and a completely differnt marinade - spice mustard, soy sauce and garlic - for the tempeh. I must admit it smelled amazing as I put the finishing touches on the dish. I left my camera in Athens for the weekend, but I'll take a picture on my phone or something.

As it is a birthday celebration, there will be cake. I'm trying to cut out a lot of refined sugars and grains, so I opted to make a fruit tart with wheat flour instead - an apple, rasin, walnut tart to be exact. It didn't work the way I wanted it to...I tried to leave it at home but my family is insistant that I bring it. The crust seems tough. The apples didn't let out any juices and just sort of dried up.

I wouldn't be embarassed or anything, but one of my aunts is a professional chef and specializes in amazing deserts. She once had a coniption fit when I was baking cookies at her house because my cousin and I decided to make "free form" cookies instead of perfectly round ones. She's rather judgemental. It's not like I put my heart and soul into the tart - it was an afterthought, really.

I'll just let them know to enter at their own risk and not think less of my cooking ability - or the tastiness of vegan deserts. I'll make something really awesome for Christmas. Any suggestions for a tried-and-true favorite?? I'm willing to go all out. This shepard's pie took me four hours. Not kidding. I cook slowly though.

Now I'm just on a roll

Check it: two posts, two days in a row. I'm on a roll.

I wanted to share with you the delicious breakfast I just threw together. I sliced a honeycrisp apple, warmed it in the microwave for about 20 seconds, topped it with cinnamon, and sprinkled a few walnut pieced on top. Hot green tea rounded out the meal and now I need to get my butt out the door to go give blood at noon.

This will be the second time I've given blood. The first time I watched a girl in front of me pass out and knock a bunch of shit over. I had been talking to her for about a half an hour before she went behind the little curtain thing to get her finger pricked. I was like "see ya!" after that, until the people next to me saw my expression and said "You look like you're freaking out. It's really not that bad! Awe are you a freshman??" (To which I replied either "Fuck no, are you chinese?! Didn't think so" or "No, I'm a junior", I can't remember which.) Somehow that was comforting and I stayed, gave blood like a champ, and sported the arm gauze for the rest of the day.

Wish me luck!!

Back to Reality

Please excuse my previous post, as it was incredibly sentimental and cheesy. Such ideas need to be written on paper and kept in a drawer, not posted on the internet. I apologize.

Now I want to focus on eating healthier. Because it's available at my parents' house, I've been eating conventional peanut butter and lots of processed foods and I can definitely feel the difference! Not only have I gained a lot of weight, I'm battling headaches and fatigue like crazy.

I'm going to the grocery store either today or tomorrow to pick up some fruits and veg. I'll probably get some quinoa and natural peanut butter (!). I'm definitely in a food rut and I could use some help.

I'm looking to eat a bit lighter and non-processed. Any tips? Also, do you make your own salad dressings or what do you put on your salads?

NYTimes Photo Essay

Perhaps even more than the message of this work, I love its composition. The photographs are stunning and it's easy to read. Nonetheless it held a choice thought around this gluttonous holiday that I took full part in, from cooking to eating. My favorite part of the article was when the author posed these questions:

"

Can giant agribusiness shrink while true organic farms grow? Can the elitism of a farmers market shift so that the organic farms can be subsidized and that prices are reasonable for all people? That would be the democracy of healthy eating."

What do you think?

My Thanksgiving was bittersweet this year. We're all aware this is the last holiday season for my mom's parents; even they know. My grandfather suffers from Parkinson's and my grandmother is addicted to pain pills. He lives at a rehab-to-assisted-living center and she lives alone in the hose they've shared for 50-plus years (at her choice). It's scary how quickly my grandpa went from coherent to comatose -- especially because I only saw him on holidays. Now my family has been given the opportunity to bond over their care. The ten of us first cousins are all right around college age and (almost) all of us are willing to stop by the center to feed him dinner and to hang out with him. If I lived in Columbus year-round I would definitely be there more often; as it is I go whenever I'm home for the weekend.

My grandpa knows it the end of his life. He's confident of where he's going afterward, but one thing holding him back is the well being of my grandmother. He worries who pays her bills and who waits on her hand-and-foot (as she has become accustomed to and now demands of the rest of the family). I love my mom's dad so much, and wish I could have been older to hear his stories and to learn from his experience.

Last night I realized that everything I know about him I've learned through other people. I do feel like he and I have an unspoken understanding, somehow. He fascinates me because he's such a strong and accomplished man. He's a WWII veteran, married for 59 years, raised four boys and one girl, provided for his family with a job as a airplane engeneer, and yet he has this peace about him. He is so incredibly loving, and from him and my dad I've obtained my view of God. I have those two men to thank for the life of peace and love that I am incredibly fortunate to experience. He's the only one of my grandparents I've really loved, because he's the only one of them I can respect.

I've never experienced the death of a family member -- or anyone closer than a high school friend. I'm just so thankful that I have such a supportive group of people! I saw last night that I can count on my mom's side of the family, who I've never had much of a relationship with before. Growing up my cousins were the "cool kids", they were intimidating and as much as a I loved them, I didn't dare trust them.

No more. My cousin Jen and I surrounded my grandma as her husband was ushered out of the house in a wheelchair. My cousin Ashley sat with one arm behind my aunt Melissa for nearly an hour as she composed herself after watching the scene. Earlier in the day, I sat with Ashley in her car for the same amount of time as she spilled her feelings about her parents' divorce -- the first in our big family. Even the three boys who are a year younger than me have become so warm and interesting. With a wiked sense of humor they round out the kind of people with whom I'm priveleged to share blood.

I could go on and on about how much I love my mom's side of the family. And like discovering a pearl in that old 'shell' you brought home from the beach, they've been on my dresser this whole time.

I'm Back!!

Hey y'all. My computer has been out-of-use for the past three weeks because my power cord broke. Right away I used my room mate's computer to order a new one on e-bay but, coming from Hong Kong, it took three weeks to get here. It arrived just a few hours ago, so I'm in the process of updating everything (including this blog).

Current food loves include the pumpkin bread my room mate adapted from AllRecipes. We baked four loaves and are on our last one. No one can eat just a slice! It's moist and deliciously spiced. Chocolate is great too. The Kroger value brand of chocolate chips don't have milk in them. Some carob chips are good too - but some are really gross - what's up with that??

Luckily I only have two exams this quarter, both next week, so I have very little to do this week. I'm trying to study some around working and babysitting. I'll be back in forth between Columbus and Athens for the next few weeks. I'm looking forward to the family time, and hopefully I'll have the time and motivation to try some new recipes! My mom is usually more cookbook-oriented than I and therefore I make legitamate meals when she's around. Otherwise I tend to bake squash, cook dried beans, and make things from boxes - none of which is interesting enough to publish online. I do have a few pictures for you. I'll publish them with my next post!