what can be made into a pancake?

if it can be pureed and made into batter, i will make a pancake out of it! these are just a few of my IVOP (international vegan house of pancake) faves. featured above is my most recent experiment from xmas: roasted butternut squash and apple pancakes. this was a nice seasonal pancake. i'll post the recipe once i tweak it a bit.
these were the stuffed ones from vegan MOFO 2010. the one above was filled with cinnamon struesel.
also stuffed from vegan mofo 2010. i filled that one with a nice quincey kitchen sink compotey thing. there is definitely a learning curve to stuffed pancakes. i'll have to do a vlog on that sometime. once i find the damned video camera!
let us not forget my own creation: the magic cookie bar pancake. i entered this one in a contest and lost. i was robbed, i tell you--ROBBED! one bite of these pancakes and you'll be doing commercials for diabetic supplies right along with wilford brimley.
i made these when i first went vegan. i think maybe the recipe was from VWAV? i thought, hey--do peaches and chocolate go together? yep.
coconut pancakes with pineapple sauce from VWAV during my first year as a vegan.

dueling rancheros

i like a good mash up: take someone's take on something or another and play with it. sure, sure food is great as pictured in a cook book; however, i just can't resist messing with perfection. 'tis the way of a wacky artist. this is a post of two rancheros--two must enter, one must leave. pray tell, who will win?

the one above is my regular scramble topped with tamasin's ranchero sauce from american vegan kitchen mixed with pinto beans. i love tami, but like my scramble better. ((((whispering "don't hate me, tami!"))))) i also like the ranchero sauce with beans in it rather than in the scramble itself. the fun don't stop there, because i topped that mountain off with some fresh guac, cilantro, and a lime wedge to keep it classy. rancheros wouldn't be rancheros without a tortilla too, so you can well put that in your burrito and eat it. actually you eat this with a knife and fork. no burrito rolling actually takes place.
here's my version of the butternut rancheros from isa's blog. it's not as pretty as hers. i still used tami's sauce instead of isa's. the recipe makes a bucket load of it and i was too hungry to make anything else. besides i'm not isa, and isa ain't me and the world still goes round and round you see. i served mine over bulghur. the photo is not blurry, that's some serious steam you be lookin' at.

so, which one won?

while the scramble pleasantly sat on the gut for most of my saturday, i'll have to say that i really enjoyed the butternut version better. it was filling and a nice mix of sweet and savory. both are great ways to have brunch, but i think the butternut rancheros make a better dinner.

verdict? go nuts for the butternut. sometimes you just need a break from scrambles.

losing my cookies, um i mean my mind.

family favorites from VCIYCJ: sugar cookies decorated by blasto, chocolate crinkles, and ginger snaps. anyone notice my lovable gay rights gingersnap all the way to the right?

here's the thing: i've been trying to write this entry for a @#%*&ng week. a week! i had it all planned out, i'd blather in my daria-esque meets martha stewart voice about all the great stuff i got for x-mas, how much fun i had making cookies out of vegan cookies invade your cookie jar with my son, and how santa had a jolly good time eating said cookies.

pictured above: close up of ginger snaps and chocolate crinkle cookies

then life happened. someone got sick in our house again-(pink eye part 1), again-(pink eye part 2/stomach flu part 2), and again-(sinusy sort of mcdeathy thingamabob). mr. j and i have figured that someone in our house has been sick for the past 3.5-4 months. we don't even know where one sickness ended and the other one began! we're avid hand washers and everyone received flu shots this year. fess up: who made the voodoo dolls of me and the fam? boo! did i mention we have our house on the market so i've had to make it look 'presentable' at all times? yeah--i'm having a blast.

then i had other stuff to do because i haven't figured out how to clone myself and put my clones to work so i can sit around in my underwear all day cooking, reading, and playing with my children.

the chocolate crinkles are my absolute fave. it's like a gooey chocolate cookie and a brownie did it and had cookie babies!

i'm at 85% health now and have been putzing around in the kitchen. coming up will be a smash up on a couple of rancheros recipes, an ode to pancakes, and some more cookie shots from the vegan cookie connoisseur.

oh yeah, i can't forget about appetite for reduction! i'll probably talk about that too. fat activists, it ain't whatchoo think so don't get stabby and think that isa has sold out. hardly the case. this is an amazing whole foods cookbook. i've tried a few recipes and enjoy them quite a bit.

keep visiting and eat well!