Memorial Day Weekend: Champs Family Bakery~Veggie Pride Parade~And More!

Hey everyone! Hope ya'll had a great Memorial Day weekend! I stayed in NYC and it was a busy, sweaty and incredibly fun time, chock-full of vegan-y shenanigans!

Me, Sophia and my cousin Sam

On Saturday night I sang with my band Koshka at Parkside Lounge in the Lower East Side, and my cousin Sam celebrated his 27th birthday with us that night.

Earlier in the day I went to Champs Family Bakery (located in Williamsburg) and got a dozen Chocolate Ganache Cheesecake Brownies for his party. They were a big hit and so delicious!

Along with my cousin's friends, a lot of my friends showed up as well. It was a great crowd! The show and party was so much fun and it was so good to see everyone!

Some of my vegan friends went out together after the show, but I stayed to celebrate with my cousin and caught up with them later on for dancing at Lit in the East Village. We tore the dance floor up and had a blast!

On Sunday, I went to the Veggie Pride Parade. What a great time it was!

The parade was led by Prom King David Karopkin and Prom Queen Rachel Kay. So proud!!

Honey La Bronx, last year's Prom Queen, was there leading chants and walked the whole parade in her heels. She's my hero-err.. I mean, heroine!

The energy of the event overall was great. There were drummers and people in creative, fun costumes.

Afterwards, we settled into the Union Square area where there were groups tabling, giving out pamphlets with info and giving out food. There was a stage area where some amazing speakers took the platform, such as super-activist Mickey Z, Jasmin Singer from Our Hen House, and vegan podcast dude Derek Goodwin.

I didn't stay out very long, though to hear everyone speak, because I was under the sun for a while and was in need of replenishment-fast! So my friends Kristy, Michelle, Bud and I went to Jivamuktea Cafe.

I ordered (along with a supergreen salad) a Love smoothie-made with almond milk, medjool dates, banana and spirulina powder, and it hit the spot!

Kristy got the Taco Toast-with tomato, avocado, vegan sour cream, black beans, salt, pepper and topped with chimichurri.

Michelle got a Yogi's Choice with spicy tempeh, steamed kale, quinoa and a double order of their tumeric tahini dressing-with nutritional yeast on top!

On Sunday, I went to Champs Family Bakery again- and this time I stayed for brunch with friends!

Rachel and I got their Awesome Bowl, with quinoa, tofu scramble, sautéed greens, mixed bells, garlic rosemary potatoes-and sriracha on top!

Michelle ordered their Biscuits and Gravy. Only available on weekends, it's a dish of house-made biscuits, soysage, gravy with salad.

Among other awesome things we had was their Tofu Benedict- grilled tofu and ham, fresh spinach, multigrain english muffin, hollandaise served with garlic rosemary potatoes and salad. Didn't get a pic, but it's one of the best things they serve at Champs and I highly recommend it!

Me and my friends, post-brunch.

After brunch, some of the girls and I went to Roebling Tea Room for some champagne cocktails. 'Cause as Rachel said, "It's not Memorial Day til I have a drink!" 

I had a great afternoon just eating, drinking, hanging out and chatting with my friends!

Whew! I think that about covers my (vegan) Memorial Day Weekend!

Till next time, folks! Have a great weekend.

xo,

Ellie

Recent Restaurant Visits Part II: Peacefood Cafe~Jivamuktea Cafe

Hey everyone! Here's Part II for my Recent Restaurant Visits post. The first stop is in the Upper West Side. I actually don't make it out to the Upper West Side very often, but there are definitely some vegan gems out there worth checking out. One of them, besides Cafe Blossom (drool) is Peacefood Cafe...

Earlier this month Michelle and I stopped in Peacefood to have din before going to our friend Andreas's birthday costume party.


One thing I love about Peacefood is that they have delectable baked and raw treats and offer different specials- like these!

Vegan "Pigs in a Blanket" (how adorable is that?!)

"No pigs were harmed in the making"!

Besides their baked goods, some other things I really enjoy at Peacefood are their The Other Caesar salad, their Tempeh Avocado sandwich, their Roasted Japanese Pumpkin sandwich, and their Fried Seitan Medallion panini. Did I mention they also have vegan mango lassis? Pretty cool.

That night we got the Chickpea Fries, Michelle ordered their Roasted Japanese Pumpkin Sandwich, and I ordered their Roasted Potatoes Pizze (with sauteed mushrooms, arugula, oil-cured olives, pesto and truffle oil).

Chickpea Fries

Roasted Potatoes Pizze

Roasted Pumpkin Sandwich

Next and last stop: Jiva!

I've been stopping in Jivamuktea Cafe lately when I'm in the Union Square area. Jivamuktea Cafe is located in the Jivamukti yoga studio, and their food is healthy and all vegan. I usually like to get their Yogi's Choice (choice of 3 items plus dressing), but at one of my most recent visits, I ordered their  Supergreen Salad.

Supergreen salad (spirulina millet and red cabbage coleslaw over greens) with tumeric tahini dressing

A colorful medley!

Phew! So that about covers just some of the places I've been to. If you haven't been to any of these places, I definitely recommend you check them out. Peacefood and Angelica Kitchen are my personal faves.

 Peace out cub scouts! At least for now,  I mean. Next post will be about what I've been up to this fine Memorial Day weekend, which isn't over yet!

xo,

Ellie

Recent Restaurant Visits Part I: Quintessence~Angelica Kitchen~Paulie Gee's

Hey everyone!

Today's post will be Part One for a Two-Parter on some of the restaurants I've been to in the last few weeks. These posts should give you all an overview of some of the places I like to go to here in NYC!

 So let's begin!- And start with raw restaurant Quintessence, located in the East Village..

Now, this may sound funny, but I love drinking the water at this spot. They serve water that's been triple filtered by reverse osmosis. Sound crazy? Yeah, crazy refreshing! Take a taste and see.

Some of the things I like to order when I go to Quintessence are their Peter's Pot Soup and their Italian Sausage Pizza.

I also like their rolls, so that day I got their Scallion Creme Cheese Roll lunch combo.

Their raw cashew creme cheese... is delish!

Next stop? Angelica Kitchen, also located in the East Village!
...My top fave dishes there are probably their Dashi Noodles (the broth is insane!) and their raw entree Thai Mee Up. My friend Michelle and I also really like their Dragon Bowls. Their food is healthy, and what I love about this place is that, along with their constantly changing entree specials, they also serve different dessert specials that are just soooo good!

The last time I went was with Michelle, and instead of her usual Dragon Bowl, she got a special that night. A yummy veggie patty dish (I know cause she let me take a bite)!

That pesto sauce on top? Yeah. Soooo good!

I ordered their Thai Mee Up, a raw "pasta" composed of strands of daikon, butternut squash and carrot, served with garlic-lemon marinated kale and a Thai tahini dressing. I love this dish.

 Note to self: Get. Better. Camera. Sorry!!

On a side note: Michelle and I were seated next to the lovely Blythe Ann Boyd, owner of the amazing Lula's Sweet Apothecary. She was there on a date with some lucky guy!

Okay, so the next and last stop for today is going to be at Greenpoint, Brooklyn-home to Paulie Gee's, where you can find some awesome pizzas, vegan or not!

Paulie Gee's has their own vegan section on the menu! They also have amazingly scrumptious house-made cashew ricotta cheese and house-made fennel "sausage".

My friend Arthur and I went together and ordered their Vegan Greenpointer (Baby Arugula, Olive Oil, Post-Oven Fresh Lemon Juice and Nutritional Yeast) as a refreshing balance to their hearty In Ricotta da Vegan (Italian Tomatoes, House-Made Vegan Fennel Sausage, House-Made Cashew Ricotta Dollops, Baby Arugula and Extra Virgin Olive Oil).

The Vegan Greenpointer

In Ricotta da Vegan-hands down my personal fave!

Arthur and I also ordered their The Gates of Eden salad (sorry, devoured before thinking to take a pic!). It's not vegan, but we subbed gorgonzola cheese with their cashew ricotta cheese, and we loved it. I must confess the idea was not mine, but the idea of a certain vegan guy I used to date. I'm glad he thought of it, 'cause the cashew ricotta actually works really nicely with this salad. Highly recommend!

So that's all for today! Very soon I will post again about Peacefood Cafe in the Upper West Side and Jivamuktea Cafe in Union Square. Till then!

xo, Ellie

Veggie Prom 2012

Last Friday I went to the third annual Veggie Prom for the very first time. I danced my caboose off and had an absolute blast!!

Now, you may be wondering: What is Veggie Prom?

...It's simply a prom-themed soiree for the veg*n and veg-curious community of New York City headed by event planner extraordinaire Jessica Mahady. Proceeds benefited animal rights organization Mercy for Animals, and it was held this year at Fontana's Bar in the Lower East Side.

Many awesome vegan companies donated food for the event. Some of these companies were Lula's, Raw Ice Cream Company and Regal Vegan. There was also a vegan nacho cheese pump!-But I didn't partake in any of this, because the beloved Cinnamon Snail food truck was parked outside the event! I got their raw pizza and smore donut-which I devoured too quickly to take a picture of (sorry!).
For more info about the event and its origins, check out this link:
http://www.cllctv.com/2012/05/18/jessica-mahady-veggie-prom-in-prom-we-trust/

I was so happy to see my friends and bestie Michelle was my date. I was also really happy to see my dear friends Rachel Kay and David Karopkin win the title of Prom Queen and Prom King. They do so much for animal activism and they truly deserved their recognition!!

So. Much. Fun.

xo....
Ellie

A Day in This Vegan Life...

Hey all! Today's post is about a random day in my life, as a vegan living in New York.

So let's start, and what better place to begin than breakfast?

A Quick Tartine for a Quick Breakfast:
On Wednesday I woke up late, feeling tired from recent excesses of drinking and socializing. So I made this tartine (aka open-faced sandwich) in a snap:

I spread some organic red pepper hummus from Yorgo's Foods on Ezekiel toast, then took two raw cauliflower florets and tore them with my hands into crumbly pieces, then tore some spinach leaves and sprinkled them on top with a squeeze of lemon and some cracked black pepper. An easy breakfast with no chopping!

I then headed off to work...Nothing remarkable to mention here (in terms of veganism), though I will have to post sometime about what I do for my midtown, midday lunches..

After work, I went to the Lower East Side to go to my show at Cakeshop with my band, Koshka. I hadn't eaten dinner yet and I was starving. Nearby Cakeshop is a spot called Tiengarden that I'd been meaning to try. So, I figured it was the perfect opportunity to go!

Dinner at Tiengarden:

I ordered the Stirfry Noodle dish, made with broccoli, carrot, cabbage, button mushrooms and veggie ham...

Now, this is not a health dish (though Tiengarden did have healthier choices on the menu), but if you want a flavorful Asian noodle fix, you can find it here. I washed it down with some oolong tea, Chinese style!

I also ordered their freshly made lemon coconut cupcake for dessert. They make their own desserts, and among the choices that night were mango tapioca pudding (with the tapoica just made, still warm), chocolate cake, cookies, and a banana walnut cupcake.

I would definitely come back. The service was very nice and they have root beer and ginger ale floats made with soy ice cream that I'd like to try next time!

After din, I dashed off to Cakeshop for the show..

I saw this sign just outside the door..Drinks, music, and vegan cake?! This is my kind of place!

Here is their cake display, right near the entrance. They also offer tea and other beverages to go with your treats.

The show was really great, and it was so good to see my friends! After the show I hung out a bit with Michelle and my cousin Sam, who enjoyed some cake with his friends. I managed to have a bite of what little was left by the time I sat down with him, and it was delish!

Me and Michelle after the show..

Me and my cousin Sam.

So that's all for now! I will be posting again soon about some other spots I've been to in the last few weeks, and about Veggie Prom, which is happening tonight!
xo,
Ellie

Savory Oatmeal with Shallots and Leeks

Hola! It's been a lil while since my last post (almost two weeks)! But I come now to the page bearing a breakfast recipe for ya'll.  

The other day my roomie Lauren and I were talking about veggies, and how underappreciated leeks are. She shared with me this recipe idea for oatmeal with leeks. I usually enjoy oatmeal with maple syrup, dried or fresh fruit/nuts, and some soy milk poured on top. It's so delish and like a sweet, nourishing sundae!-but being health-conscious, I'm careful not to overdo the sweet. Sooo.. this is a nice savory alternative.

Savory Oatmeal with Shallots and Leeks

Ingredients:

About 1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 shallot, chopped
1 leek (white part only), sliced into thin half moons
3/4 cup organic vegetable stock and 1/4 water
1 cup rolled oats
Sea salt and cracked black pepper, to taste
optional:1/4 teaspoon thyme (recommended!)
optional: sunflower seeds, sprinkled on top


Instructions:

• Heat the oil in a saucepan in medium/low heat
• Add the shallots and leeks
• Stir frequently, add salt and pepper, allow to cook for about 3 mins
• Add the stock and water, raise heat and bring to a simmer
• Add the rolled oats, allow to simmer, then slightly lower heat
• Cook for about 3 min ( or longer, depending on how soft or firm you prefer your oatmeal), adding a little water to keep a moist consistency
• Add salt and pepper to taste, if desired
• Remove from heat and optionally serve with thyme and/or sunflower seeds
• Enjoy!

xo,
Ellie