First Days and Sugar Houses

March 27, 2010 by Lindsay Ingalls Leave a Comment

Yesterday was my first day of work and it was great! I was super nervous at first and a bit overwhelmed but by the end of the day I was feeling comfortable with the position and I am excited to go back to work next week. My second day I have to travel for a meeting which is fun so we will see how that goes but so far I am loving it (haha okay it’s been one day). Also did I mention that I get to have an iphone for work! Hello colour me pumped!

After work hubby and I decided to stop and get a beer to celebrate my successful first day of work. Since it was dinner time we decided to go out (again) for dinner. I don’t know what is up with us we never go out to eat this much, usually only once every 10 or so days but this week we have been bad about it- I blame the awkward days, poor planning and no real grocery shopping. However this week will be filled with lots of home cooked meals as I went to the market yesterday and picked up lots of yummy produce. Anyways we stopped at The Alchemist but it was packed and there was a 45 minute wait for a table so we left and walked next door to The Reservoir where we had some yummy beers, a huge plate of hummus, salad and grilled bread and a housemade tofu/bean burger YUM!

I was pretty tired out after my first day back in the working world so we spent the rest of the night home hanging out on the couch watching a little L&O. Since we ate dinner so early we were hungry later on in the evening and decided to munch on some Veggie Medley Straws that I was sent to sample from The Mediterranean Snack Food Co. and they were super yummy! I also had another Inko’s White Tea this time Original.

Now I need to get myself in the kitchen and make breakfast and do some dishes before G-Ma and the ‘rents get here so we can go and see all the open sugar houses. Each year on this weekend the Vermont sugar houses are open for the public to come and visit and try their maple syrup and have sugar on snow with a pickle (to cut the sweetness) and a cider donut. It’s a been a tradition with my family to go and visit the sugar houses however since I haven’t been home for many Springs we haven’t all been out together. Neil and I went last year to the sugar house near our house but it was pouring and cold booo!

Last year wet and cold at Morse Farms

Hubby With his New Friend at Morse Farms 2009

Is there a family tradition that you do each Spring?

Our Hike/Walk Loop & Dining Adventures

March 22, 2010 by Lindsay Ingalls 2 Comments

Yesterday morning my hubby and I got up relatively early and headed out to make our 3+ mile loop up through Hubbard Park prior to having breakfast challenge #3. It was freezing out yesterday morning especially after our warm spell so we bundled up and got on our way. We have been loving this loop because we start up this huge hill that basically goes straight up and then we walk the trails at the top of the hill through parts of Hubbard Park and then loop back down the otherside and sometimes add additional streets depending on how much time we have. I attempted to document our hike/walk (and by hike I mean it was tougher than a normal walk) however I am not sure that my pictures do it justice; Neil suggested that I get the video camera out and walk the loop with it and post a video.

View from Half Way to the Top

At the top of the hill we always share a coconut water and then make our way through the wooded paths at Hubbard Park and down the otherside. When we arrived home we were hungry and ready to make our Breakfast Challenge #3 which was oatmeal. Now as most of you know this is my go to food so I was really excited about it. In our oatmeal went:

Serves 2: 1 cup multigrain oatmeal, 1 cup unsweetened almond milk, 3/4 cup water, 1T flax meal, 1T chia seeds and on top of each: 1 packet of stevia, 1/2 sliced banana and 1/2T sunbutter

Oh! and a big dash of cinnamon while it is cooking!

We then headed out to spend the day with the ‘rents and G-Ma as well as have lunch. We headed out on a ride on the back roads of Vermont (a favorite past time of my parents) in hopes of having lunch at Bailey and Burke’s in East Burke. When we finally arrived to East Burke we came to find that restaurant was closed. Across the street was River Garden Cafe which according to the menu had a veggie burger and black bean chili so we decided since at this point it was almost 1pm we would try it out. To our disappointment the veggie burger was made in house and included eggs BOO! So hubby and I decided to go with the fruit cup to share and each ordered a bowl of the chili without the cheese and sour cream. The fruit cup was okay nothing special for $5. The chili came and I was so hungry I couldn’t wait to dive in but after a few bites I decided it was just not good enough to eat and hubby felt the same way. I’m not often one to just not eat what I ordered at a restaurant especially when I’m going to have to pay for it and in this case we both were really hungry but it was just awful. As my hubby would describe it “it taste like crushed tomatoes with 5 or 6 black beans” this “hearty” black bean chili was awful so we went without.

Being in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont it’s hard to find much in the way of vegan eats so we decided to hold off and we ended up stopping at the Buffalo Mountain Co-op in Hardwick and found some really interesting kombu and wakame seaweeds from Maine as well as a package of vegan teriyaki jerky that we snacked on. After returning to our car at 4:15pm we decided it was time to get on the road home and find something to eat. We had decided to stop into our old favorite The Bee’s Knees in Morrisville but when we arrived and took a look at their menu for the day we noticed that their prices had gone up- $13 for a veggie burger! We decided that it wasn’t worth spending that much so we headed on our way and decided to stop in Waterbury at Ocha the thai restaurant. Unfortunately I didn’t get any photos of our food as we basically inhaled it as it came out since all we had eaten since our oatmeal at 8:30am was a small fruit bowl and package of vegan jerky. However it was delicious we got fresh rolls, vegan pad kee mao and vegan tofu and broccoli with black pepper garlic sauce.

At least on our adventures through backwoods VT we got to stop into this ridiculously entertaining trading post which also serves as the:

JUST KIDDING!

Question: Have you ever not liked your meal so much that you just didn’t eat it while out at a restaurant? Did the restaurant still make you pay for it? That’s the one thing that bothered me – I know that we ordered it and you take the chance of not liking something but we had like 4-5 bites of our food and then told the waitress we didn’t like it and to take it away. She still had us pay for it and the only thing she said was “oh well I guess it’s not your cup of tea.”

Boston Restaurant: Myers & Chang

March 10, 2010 by Lindsay Ingalls 2 Comments

On our last night in Boston we decided to make a last minute reservation at Myers & Chang located in the South End. Like Grezzo we have wanted to visit Myers & Chang on our many past trips to Boston but had never really been in the area. However, this time our hotel was only a 20 minute walk from the restaurant so we decided to go, and boy were we glad we did.

The atmosphere of Myers & Chang reminds me of something I’ve seen on an episode of Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations in Toyko or Beijing; it is very loud & high paced with low lighting and hip-hop playing over the speakers. The food is served family style which is my favorite way to eat because dishes come out as they are ready so if you’re lucky you get to enjoy each dish as a separate “course”.

Since the husband had been making comments all weekend about trying a Scorpion Bowl we decided that since there was one on the drink menu that we must start with it. For those of you who don’t know a Scorpion Bowl is generally filled with some sort of variation of 3 different kinds of rum, gin, vodka, orange juice, pineapple juice and grenadine- basically it taste like a tropical vacation.

Hubz trying out the Scorpion Bowl

For our dinner we decided to go with four dishes- 2 snacks, a noodle and a green. One of the great features to the vegetarian menu (oh don’t forget to ask them for one when you arrive) is that all vegan dishes are marked with (v) so that they are easily identifiable. For our dishes we went with:

edamame and celery slaw with sesame oil & candied lemon

grilled 5-spice tofu buns-bao, brandied hoisin, house pickles

spicy brussels sprouts

vegetarian wok-charred udon noodles, tofu, baby bok choy

Since the place was packed and we made a super last minute reservation we were stuck at probably the worst table in the house, you know the one right next to the kitchen where servers hustle in and out. We were however sitting close enough to the open kitchen that we could see the chefs cook up the meals and the huge flames which gave all the food this great barbeque/charred flavor. All of the food was amazing and I would order everything again.

Since we were craving something sweet we decided to see if there were any vegan dessert options. Our waiter came back to let us know that there was an orange granita or a chocolate mousse that both were vegan. We decided to go with the chocolate mousse which was whipped tofu, vanilla and dark chocolate.

If you are vegetarian this usually comes with 5-spiced homemade marshmallows

New Restaurant: Mint

March 3, 2010 by Lindsay Ingalls 3 Comments

The hubz took me out for a spontaneous date night to the new vegetarian restaurant and tea lounge Mint in Waitsfield, VT. The small restaurant is all vegetarian and focus primarily on natural, organic whole foods and ingredients. They try to source all of their ingredients locally when possible and are 95% organic. The restaurant is quaint and has a really relaxing atmosphere. The food menu is small but has a number of really tasty sounding dishes. Although their food menu is small their tea list is extensive and is even broken down into types of teas such as dessert and evening teas. We opted for a glass of organic wine instead of tea but I’d like to try one of their teas on our next visit.

After spending awhile looking over the menu hubz and I finally decided on what we would order. I ordered the Sproutada:

Sproutada: toasted corn tortilla with brown rice, black turtle beans, chili sauce, soy mozzarella, topped with tahini dressed greens, snowpea sprouts, shredded carrots, fresh avocado and homemade salsa

and the Hubz ordered the Flavors of Mint Special:

Flavors of Mint Daily Special: roasted tempeh and asparagus over citrus braised greens and a peanut dipping sauce (their description was a little better but I forget what is actually said)

The food was delicious! Although the prices were slightly high you are paying for what you get which is not only delicious organic & local whole foods but a great experience. I also must say that although the plates looked small the food was filling and we left satisfied with our meal. We can’t wait to go back!

Also don’t forget to enter the Bodum French Press giveaway that ends March 5, 2010 at 8am.

'SNice- Vegan Breakfast in NYC

February 18, 2010 by Lindsay Ingalls 4 Comments

This past weekend while we were visiting the Big Apple my hubby and I met up with some of my girlfriends for breakfast at ‘SNice in Chelsea. To our disappointment we were unable to get sandwiches (which all sounded amazing) until 11am and we were too hungry to wait an hour so we decided to start with some lattes. After sipping on our lattes for a while hubz and I decided to split the tofu scramble wrap which was not bad and pretty filling. The GF’s went with a bagel with cream cheese and the other granola with fruit, yogurt and honey.

Everything at ‘SNice is vegetarian and all vegan options are marked accordingly. The menu is mostly that of salads and sandwiches with bagels and breakfast sandwiches in the morning. The place was pretty quiet for the sit in crowd until around 11am however there was always a line at the counter for take out bagels and coffee. I really would like to return during lunch ours to try one of their yummy salads or sandwiches. There is also a location in Brooklyn which I understand has a similar menu.

Delicious Soy Latte

Tofu Scramble Wrap

Miya's Sushi- New Haven, CT

February 17, 2010 by Lindsay Ingalls 2 Comments

Friday night my husband and I had one of the most amazing meals of our lives. It was one of those meals that not only had amazing food but was topped off with the best service and experience at a restaurant that we have ever had. Prior to our trip away I had contacted Bun the owner of Miya’s Sushi about the vegan options as well as what was included in a vegan platter. He quickly responded back to me to give him to tell him how much we would like to spend and that he would put together a great vegan spread for us. Before we left he followed up on our reservation and told me to just let one of the guys know when we got there that we had a special vegan meal waiting for us. Much to our delight we were seated, ordered our drinks and then the food just started to come out. It was the best feeling to just sit down and not have to worry about what we were going to order and it was an exciting adventure to see what dish would be coming out next. Below are photos with descriptions of all of our dishes we had (we had 8 samples of vegan sushi rolls and I can’t remember what they all were):

sweet mother’s milk: a whole steamed artichoke served with our sauce made from spicy homemade middle eastern pureed jalapeno makdoos.

A vegan version of: tokyo fro- hip hop is the most popular music of japanese youth & has made the afro tokyo's most popular hairstyle; to have japanese hair processed into an afro costs over a thousand dollars at a trendy hair stylist. this recipe was inspired by the afro; it looks & tastes exactly like a japanese processed fro, drizzled with a delicious chef secret sauce.

Vegan version of Tokyo Fro: hip hop is the most popular music of japanese youth & has made the afro tokyo's most popular hairstyle; to have japanese hair processed into an afro costs over a thousand dollars at a trendy hair stylist. this recipe was inspired by the afro; it looks & tastes exactly like a japanese processed fro, drizzled with a delicious chef secret sauce.

Deep Fried Spinach

An assortment of amazing veggie sushi rolls - I think there were 8

A tasting of 8 vegan sushi rolls

Overall the food was amazing, the atmosphere was fun and the staff were great. Although Bun was not he created a magical experience for the two of us and I can’t wait to return for some more sushi.