i survived the blizzzzzard

the blizzard was ridiculous here in IL. i just got my car unburied today.

the following are the remainder of lemon poppy seed cupcakes with a maple glaze. i made the cupcakes for a bake sale my colleagues had; it was to fund their trip to san antonio for a conference. this wasn't too bad i suppose b/c i ate it in about one day.


over the blizzard days, i ate a 1lb bag of animal crackers. those little devils have high fructose corn syrup in them && that is why i blame them for fostering addiction.


of course, i had to eat some w. peanut butter...


the tomato soup i ate frequently last year also made an appearance. i ate a 3.5 serving can in a matter of hours. those blizzards! i had nothing else to do so i ate && ate && ate.


today, i decided to finish the last PBR with some homemade chilli && a mound of nutritional yeast. i was so satisfied after this meal. you have no idea.


i had some leftover mushroom spaghetti sauce && i ate that w. some rice && corn. it was delicious!


i also ate at chipotle yesterday && it was delicious as always.

nothing too exciting here

decided to try almond milk b/c it was on sale!


this is what was leftover of my black bean burger at lunch the other day. my mom and i decided to try a little restaurant i'd been wanting to check out. the burger was a bit spicy, but i like that. i definitely want to go back not only for this, but also to try a few of their other options.


upon sorting the goods in the freezer my mom found some chili from i have no idea when. i thought it would be okay to eat though so i made one of those 'hot dogs' i got the other day. the hot dog was okay, i don't really miss meat so it wasn't anything super special that i would buy again. but it was delightfully smokey tasting.


i made this sandwich last night for dinner and today for lunch. the key ingredients are onion, cucumber, and tomato from my dad's garden. i spread half an avocado on it and toasted it. DELICIOUS! those tomatoes are absolutely divine and i don't think i could ever buy another from the store.

it's getting warmer here and i make...

CHILI?!



i had to. i'm using up as much as i can so that i won't have to bring it home. i had a lot of canned goods b/c of their storage capacity. but now, it's time to use them up. this actually has two cans of black beans, a can of corn, some onions that were in the freezer, some spaghetti sauce [also frozen && leftover], and frozen hashbrowns [about half the bag!]. some liquid smoke piled in with those ingredients and it is to die for. i always end up eating wayyyy too much b/c i love the combo.

i am stillllll working on those oats and that last bit of syrup.

i do have tons of bananas which i am happy about. i had one today for lunch while sitting on a bench on the quad. it was almost overripe and that is my favorite.

and raisins have been a part of my intake lately...they are yummy!

what i'm really craving is more apples.

and much, much, much more oranges.

hopefully, next week the chili will be gone.

also! i am going to a dinner/silent auction for the YMCA on friday [i'm the president of one of their student programs] and the vegan option is stuffed eggplant! oh, and there is a lunch on saturday, but i'm not sure what the vegan option will be. i'll let you know how it was!

a love letter to liquid smoke

i am absolutely amazed at liquid smoke. it is glorious! i am such a fan of the smokey flavor that it provides and it has become an addiction for me. i want to put it in every single thing i make. i feel craZy.

i made baked beans the other night. i contemplated baking them, but ended up just heating them on the stove top. i put a couple pinches [actually too many pinches] of brown sugar and then added the mesquite liquid smoke. oh so delicious!

last night, i made chili. i used WAY too much liquid smoke in that. it was a bit salty. but smokey and spicy which are two perfectly delightful flavors for chili. i made it for some non-vegan friends...hope they liked it....

i couldn't stop eating it regardless of its slightly salty taste.

also, on the menu today was sugar free rockstar [disgusting might i add?]. i thought it would help motivate me to get all the school work i needed to do this week finished. not so much even if i did get some important work out of the way...

regardless, liquid smoke...i need to stay away from youuuuuuu b/c you make everything much too delightful.

i am returned!

i cannot believe how quickly this year is progressing! thanksgiving break seems to pass more quickly every year. sad, really.

i made a bread bowl this t-giving and placed chili inside of it. it was delicious!

there were also cookies, of course! oatmeal pumpkin. they were extremely moist. but they definitely should have had chocolate chips added in to make them sweeter.

FINALLY

finally, i have begun to take photos of my food again!

i cut up some potatoes and seasoned them and baked them. and they were delicious. i ate them for dinner and then lunch the next day.

i used the rest of the chili in the freezer as a comfort few days of food. it was just as scrumptious as the day i made it. i think that is going to be my thanksgiving meal of choice this year.

i finished off the spaghetti sauce from pizzas last weekend with kidney beans and rice noodles. nothing exciting, but it was enjoyable.

lastly, i made homemade marinara sauce. it was a garlic and white wine sauce and i'm just going to say that it was fabulous. i wasn't sure what to expect b/c i'd never made sauce before. it blew my mind. i am proud of this particular concoction even if it was simple. i just used white wine, one onion, 5 garlic cloves, tomato paste, and a can of diced tomatoes. it was sooooo good! also, i would just like to post this pumpkin ale picture from buffalo bill's brewery. it wasn't yummy. it was not good at all. i am highly disappointed b/c there was absolutely NO pumpkin taste and the spices were too little to count. boo buffalo bill.

FALL IS HERE.

the weather is getting colder and you know what that means! FALL is here. it is my absolute favorite time of year. the crisp air makes you want to get all cozy and warm. i decided to make chili the other day and it was DELICIOUS.

i used broccoli, corn, kidney beans, black beans, green bell peppers, and onions. for seasoning i used cayenne pepper, oregano, garlic powder, onion salt, parsley, cilantro, tasbasco sauce, and paprika. i also used chardonnay and brown sugar. YUM.