Restaurant Review: Cafe Hey!

Starting in January, Cafe Hey! started offering a "Not Just for Omnivore's Brunch" on the last Sunday of every month. My first reaction to this news? Hell yes! Sign me up! As a vegetarian who occasionally eats eggs, eating out for breakfast isn't really much of a challenge. But I know my good friend over at Vegan Pandamonium has told me on several occasions that one of the few things she misses since becoming vegan is being able to go out for breakfast. Well thank you Tampa, for continually trying to become more like Portland. One step at a time.

So our vegan breakfast options on the first brunch were: vegan donuts, sausage gravy over biscuits, and 2 types of tofu scramble: one standard, and one tex mex-ish with vegan chorizo. Among my party of three, we all decided we needed to try a vegan donut. There was only one flavor, which I took to be a lemon poppy seed flavor. The donuts were baked, not fried, but had an awesome fluffy texture on the inside. My criticism was: I wish it had some kind of glaze and had been served warm. But I ate the whole thing, casting my criticism aside. I ordered the biscuits and gravy, as this is something I never ate as an omni, but now love as a vegetarian. And I loved the biscuits and gravy at Cafe Hey. Again, only a few small things: I thought the scallion garnish was a little heavy, I ended up scraping most of it off. And my plate came out pretty much room temperature. And the other plates at the table showed up cold. I had bites of the tofu scramble, which were good, but nothing too exciting. Side note: why do restaurants that make tofu scramble not know about nutritional yeast?

That being said, this was their first brunch and they were slammed, I mean, crazy busy. The ran out of all the vegan options in 2 hours! I would definitely go back and probably order the same thing. And it's my understanding that they added vegan cinnamon buns and biscuits with strawberry compote to the menu. Even with the criticisms I had, I ate every last bite of my breakfast, it was crazy delicious. So yes, I will be back again. And again. And again. And if you're ever in Tampa on the last Sunday of the month, you should head to Cafe Hey! too.

Black Bean Burgers for the Coolest Class Ever

Yep, once again, I've been m.i.a. My last semester in college, finishing graduate school applications, and working 30 hours a week have not been conducive to updating the blog. I can't promise it'll get better, but I do have an awesome recipe for you and a few restaurant reviews coming soon.

And speaking of school, I'm taking an unbelievably cool class this semester called "The Ethics of Food Production". It's a fairly new class, but when I read about what it would consist of it sounded like someone had designed this course just for me. Planting a garden, cooking vegan organic food for the whole class, and just learning more about our food system in general? I couldn't sign up fast enough. We were split into groups of three at the beginning of the semester and each group has to make a vegan, organic meal for the entire class at some point in the semester. My group went first. And I have to say, I think we set a pretty good standard as far as the food was concerned. On our menu, a mixed vegetable salad, black bean burgers on homemade buns with a Cajun aioli (this was all me), and my chocolate silk pie. We had very few leftovers. The recipe for the homemade buns can be found here and my chocolate pie recipe can be found here. And now for the burger and aioli recipes.

Black Bean Burgers:

• 2 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/4 c silken tofu, pureed in a food processor OR 1 flax egg
  
• 1/2 c bell pepper, diced
• 1/4 c bread crumbs
• 1/4 c celery, diced
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp Cajun seasoning
  

Mash the beans with a potato masher. Add the pureed tofu/flax egg, bell pepper, bread crumbs, celery, garlic, and Cajun seasoning. Mix well. I recommend letting this mix rest for 30 minutes or so in the fridge, but this isn't a required step. Shape the burgers into 12 patties, about 1/2 an inch thick and 3 inches in diameter.

Lightly spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Place the burgers on the sheet, and put into a 350 degree oven. Bake for about 20 minutes. Flip over and bake for another ten. Serve on homemade burgers buns with Cajun aioli and preferred burger toppings.

Cajun aioli:

• 1 tsp Cajun seasoning
• 1/2 c vegenaise or preferred brand of vegan mayo

Mix Cajun seasoning and vegenaise. Spread liberally on your burger.

Baked Strawberry Oatmeal

I think I've mentioned previously that I participate in a local, organic produce buying club. It's one of my favorite things. About every other week, for $25, I purchase a 10-15 pound share of local, organic produce. I've tried so many different vegetables because of the club. The club is also partially responsible for my love affair with beets. Well, between the end of the semester, going out of town, and the holidays I haven't bought a share in a few weeks. But yesterday, I was able to pick up my first share in over a month, and oh my goodness is it amazing. Baby red chard, sweet orange peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, grapefruits, red kale, I could go on, but I'll end the list with strawberries.

Winter time in Florida means strawberry season. I knew I wanted to make something for breakfast. Something warm and comforting, because it's been pretty cold for my thin Florida blood the past few days. So I did some searching on the internet for baked oatmeal recipes. There were quite a few, but I ended up combining several to come up with my own. And it was fantastic.

Baked Strawberry Oatmeal:

• 1 1/2 c quick cooking oats (you can use rolled oats, but you'll need to increase the amount of milk in the recipe)
• 1/4 c brown sugar (or maple syrup or agave)
• 1/2 c soy/rice/almond milk, whatever you've got
• 1/4 c vegan margarine, melted
• 1/2 banana, mashed
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3/4 fresh, sliced strawberries

Preheat your oven to 350. Combine all ingredients. Spread into a greased baking dish. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the edges are golden brown. Serve immediately, and top with a few tablespoons of warm soy milk plus extra strawberries. Feast!

You could also assemble this ahead of time and bake the morning of. I would say it serves 4, except I ate two servings, so maybe it only serves two. Who knows. It's up to you if you want to share.

Making Gnocchi

As a senior in high school applying to various colleges, I fantasized about attending a small liberal arts school where I would get to know my professors on a personal level. They would find me so brilliant that they would invite me over for dinner and we would have deep, intellectual discussions. Obviously, I have super nerdy dreams. And it turns out that small liberal arts schools are incredibly expensive so I ended up at a public state university. But I've still gotten to know several professors. One of those professors was my professor for Spanish III and the program director for my study abroad trip to Costa Rica. A small group of us students, plus my professor, got to know each other fairly well during our month abroad. And we spent a lot of time talking about food. It turns out my professor knows how to make gnocchi and pasta, from scratch! She promised to teach us and this past Tuesday we were all finally able to get together. And now I know how to make gnocchi!

I know more of a method, than an exact recipe. But I had such a great time I thought I'd share it with you. So if you want to feed an army, you start out by boiling a 5 pound bag of peeled potatoes until tender. Drain the potatoes in a colander. Then use a potato ricer to rice all of your potatoes. You'll do this in batches, making several piles so the potatoes can cool.


Once all of your potatoes are riced you spread a whole bunch of flour onto your surface (we didn't measure, but I'd say at least 2 cups). Then you work together the potatoes and flour until they form a dough. When the dough gets sticky, just add more flour. And note, no eggs so this gnocchi is vegan friendly! (I specifically asked my professor/execute chef why no eggs, and she said that she thought they made the gnocchi more dense.)


Once the dough is formed you start pulling chunks to roll into thin rope strands. Once you have your strands, you cut your gnocchi with a regular kitchen knife. Once you cut your gnocchi press your thumb into it to make a little dent. Toss the gnocchi into the flour to keep them from getting sticky.


Once your gnocchi are formed, toss them into a pot of boiling water. You'll need to do this in batches because you'll have a ton of gnocchi. You know they're done cooking when they float to the top. It shouldn't take more than two minutes. Now after the gnocchi are cooked, it's really up to you. We put ours in a baking dish with liberal amounts of red sauce and cheese, then baked it in the oven for a few minutes. Served with garlic bread and salad in the company of great friends, it was a perfect meal.

Central Florida VegFest 2011

I think I'm very lucky to live in a region that's home to not one, but two, VegFests. Tampa's (home base) was October 15th this year and Central Florida (Orlando) was the following Saturday. Two Saturdays back to back filled with amazing food, beautiful animals, and great friends? Yeah, October was great. So what did I eat in Orlando this year?

I started out with a giant plate of vegan nachos. Oh my goodness, they were amazing. Blue corn chips topped with veggie chili and vegan queso. I split a plate with the boyfriend. Though we have a pretty great relationship, it got a little tense when there were only a few bites left. We worked it out, but maybe next year I'll just pig out with my own plate.

The nachos were just an appetizer there. I didn't drive all the way out to Orlando to stop with a plate of nachos. But there were just so many options! How's a girl to decide? Well, I just had to go with my gut, hehehe. And what really caught my eye was the "meatloaf" sandwich. This picture doesn't really do the sandwich justice. The meatloaf was wonderful, I'm pretty sure it was some kind of lentil loaf. It was smothered in ketchup and sandwiched between two slices of really good bread, served with a side a cole slaw. I really liked this sandwich, but I have some ideas for improving it at home. Mainly, making it an open faced sandwich and replacing the ketchup with...GRAVY!!! I'll keep you posted.

Other items our group of friends had were a veggie dog, a "philly" sub with portabello mushrooms, and a meatball sub. All were great (I stole bites, you know, to give a professional opinion) but I'm really glad I went with the meatloaf.

My only criticism of the Fest this year was the lack of dessert options. Granted, we waited awhile before searching for dessert, until around 3, but still. Cupcakes were the only option but I really wanted some ice cream or sorbet. The banana soft serve truck from Tampa needs to make it over to Orlando next year.

But all in all, it was a pretty great day. The weather was perfect, the company was awesome, and the food was fantastic. I'm not sure where I'll be next year, but hopefully in a town with a VegFest!

Vegan Breakfast Pizza

Oh. My. God. This pizza was INSANE!!! Gravy on pizza? Hell yes! I found this recipe on one of my many Food Gawking nights. I knew I just had to make it. And now that you all have the recipe you have to make it too.

Vegan Breakfast Pizza:

• 1 pizza crust, whatever your favorite is

For the gravy:

• 1/2 c coconut milk
• 1/2 c almond milk
• 3 tbsp flour
• Salt
• Pepper
• Garlic powder

For the tofu scramble:

• 1 package extra firm tofu, pressed, drained, and cubed
  
• 1/3 package gimme lean breakfast sausage, diced
• 1 onion, diced
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2-3 tbsp Earth balance
  
• 1/4-1/2 c Nutritional yeast
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• Dash of turmeric

Preheat the oven for the right temperature for your pizza crust. Start by browning the veggie sausage. When browned, place on a paper towel lined plate. In the same pan, saute the onions until soft. Add the garlic, tofu, and earth balance. Cook until the tofu is crispy and has absorbed all of the earth balance. Then add nutritional yeast, Italian seasoning, and turmeric. Add in browned sausage. Stir and lower heat until ready to serve.

While the tofu scramble is cooking start your gravy. In a pan heat the coconut milk until boiling. When boiling, add the salt, pepper, garlic powder, and flour and whisk. It will thicken up really quickly. Slowly add in the almond milk (or use more coconut milk) until the right consistency. Spread the gravy on your prepared pizza crust. Place pizza in the oven and cook until the crust is browned.

When the crust is ready, slice and spoon tofu scramble on top. Serve immediately. Devour. Most importantly, enjoy! Also, when I make this again I might make extra gravy to dip the crust in. Because gravy is awesome. I served mine with some fruit, but breakfast potatoes or hash browns would be good as well. Also feel free to add whatever veggies you have on hand to the tofu scramble.

Tampa Bay VegFest 2011

Last Saturday, October 15th, was the second annual Tampa Bay VegFest. I'm happy to say, this year's was bigger and better than last year. And unlike last year, I remembered to take pictures of the food I ate. Bonus.

The boyfriend and I started out by making a lap of all the booths. We ended up eating a ton of free samples that way. Gardein, Dandies vegan marshmellows, So Delicious vegan ice cream, Field Roast sausages, and more. It was pretty fantastic. So by the time we made our way over to the food vendors we weren't actually super hungry. So we both got a $3 veggie dog. Turned out to be a good choice. I had mine on a whole wheat bun with ketchup, onions, and relish. It was just the right amount of food after feasting on samples.

Of course, we couldn't skip dessert. One of the vendors was a vegan ice cream truck, selling soft serve style ice cream made from bananas. I ordered a medium with chocolate sauce and graham crackers. It was really, really good. The texture was spot on and the combination of banana, chocolate, and graham cracker is just about perfect.


I also made new friends at all the different animal rescue organizations. But my best friend, the one who tempted me the most to make an impulse adoption, was Myla. She's about 2.5 months old and a collie boxer mix. She was as sweet as can be. Many of the other dogs seemed pretty bored with being petted and adored, and pretty much ignored me when I pet them. But Myla kept licking me and nipping my fingers. Oh my goodness, I wanted her so bad. It was really hard for me to walk away. I mean, look at that face!


All in all, it was a successful VegFest. The weather was perfect, the food was great, and the animals were adorable (and not on the menu). I'm not sure if I'll still be living in Tampa this time next year, but if I am, I will certainly return for round 3. And this Saturday I'll be going to the Central Florida VegFest in Orlando. It's hard work, going to festivals made especially for me and eating all this food, but someone has to do it!