this dish is the shiznat

c'mon--it's pizza! how hard is it to mess it up? as you can see from the scorching of the sun dried tomatoes, not very difficult in my kitchen. but that's neither here nor there--this was delicious pizza. i know it's easy to order delivery, but man-oh-man if you really want to stick it to the man, just make your own. it tastes better because it's made with love. seriously--have some friends over for a BYOT-(that's bring your own topping) pizza party. if glee ain't yer thing-(and boy howdy, it is SO not mine) you can nosh on your pies and watch rock n' roll high school. make a few batches of dough to have ready to go, you'll want to make it the morning of your shindig, or even the night before. i heartily endorse tami's book american vegan kitchen the chicago style deep dish crust is insanely delectable. i piled on my favorite toppings over my very own i wanna be your joey ramone pizza sauce. i caved and got some daiya cheese. it still would have been fine without it.

Chappy Christmachanakwanzikafestivus

yule LOVE this entry! get it, you'll/yule? HA! i sleigh me! so i'm a little late with the chanukkah, but that's okay. you can have my lazy assed latkes any time. not only are these easier to make, but they're a little lower in fat. i've never been a fan of those over fried bird's nests myself. they are usually too oily, the texture is all leathery, and they're cold by the time everyone is ready to eat.
these are inspired by the latkes i had growing up. because i came from an assimilated family, we didn't call them latkes, we called them potato pancakes. we religiously ate them every winter, but my mother didn't know why. isn't that funny?

to make the latkes, just get some day old mashed potatoes, mix in some panko bread crumbs, onions, and some fresh garlic. you know me--i don't know the measurements. just eyeball it for christmas sake. fry them in a non-stick pan with a little olive oil. you'll need to flip them back n' forth a while until you get the perfect golden brown color. preheat yer oven to 200 and keep 'em in there until everyone is ready to nosh. i like to serve mine with a little tofutti sour supreme and some dill. applesauce is good too, but i'm more of a savory gal when it comes to latkes. these would also be good with some gravy or sauteed veggies.
look at me! i'm sideways! i swear i wasn't drunk during this post. just full of holiday cheer. the kids are watching on as i light our play dough ball menorah. this year i scored a griddle, bundt cake pan, and a food processor from good ol' chanukkah harry.
speaking of balls, kittee's got 'em. they're tasty and huge. (((giggling like a 14 year old boy)))

these mildly obscene looking buckeye balls are from her zine papa tofu and are highly addictive, so much that they are illegal in 20+ states. the most omni of omnis love these and they're also gluten free! seriously, you can whip these up really fast and have them ready for the next holiday soiree you're attending. you'll also want to make a back up batch because you'll need some of these in the icebox to snack on between dysfunctional brawls when everyone comes over for festivus. everyone will think you slaved over them, but i know your dirty secret. so does santa.

i'm back from vacation!

actually, i didn't go anywhere but crazy! seriously folks, i needed a bit of a break after MOFO. i love all things blogging and really put my heart and soul in it this year. once the month was over, my brain was fried like a voodoo doughnut, and well--i ate that doughnut with some coffee and waited for a new brain to grow.

so what have i been up to? making holiday goodies. i shall post on those later--let's just say that balls are involved. tasty balls. (((giggling like beavis and butthead))) i didn't forget the latkes, either.

i've also been evaluating what i want to do as a blogger. i want to bring more readers to visit TPITA vegan and share cooking secrets, fun, and stories to vegans and non-vegans alike. one way i'm planning on doing this is by attending the VIDA VEGAN CONFERENCE out there in that holy land they call portland. i have no idea how i'll get the moulah to get there, but i'm so going to be there absorbing every morsel of wisdom excreted from talented vegans worldwide. won't you join me?

i still want to donate to mother hubbard's cupboard. i thought i had more than 17,000 hits, but it didn't end up being that much. my counter was wrong and i only had 4,000. my doll baby of a spouse matched this amount, so i donated a total of $30 to them. at the hub it takes $10 a day to feed someone, so with everyone's help, we managed to feed a person for 3 days! thanks so much. i hope to generate enough hits to make a donation of at least $10 a month to them. that's doable, right? this also means i'll blog more. now that i'm back, i'm making a personal goal of at least three posts a week.

i also want to think long-term goals as an aspiring vegan chef. i actually DON'T want to write a cook book. there are way too many out fabulous publications out there, and i want to share the magic of those books and the good times of being a vegan with others by cooking for people. i'd like to have my own personalized chef services available for the people of my community in 5 years. i KNOW i can do this. if anyone knows anyone who has done this or has done this themselves, drop me a line.


so what's the picture of? well that's the rare and beautiful black bean chili flower. see, you don't have to have mad chef skills to make a simple dinner beautiful. you just need some imagination. i dare you to try to have some fun with something simple and send me a picture of it. make a funny face sandwich. make a cupcake monster. go wild! i served some black bean chili with extra veggies over a bit of rice-(you can't see it), and i surrounded it with avocado slices to serve as the petals. the center of the flower is some salsa verde. i served this with some chips and watched true blood.