Red Bamboo

I realized it has been almost an entire year since I last wrote! It’s crazy to think of how fast time flies. Last night I finally ventured all the way downtown to hit up Red Bamboo; a modest vegan joint in the heart of NYU and Washington Sq. Park. I’ve been meaning to check out ‘Bamboo since I first heard of it….which seems like forever ago.

We started off the meal with several appetizers:

The Roti dish was good, I tasted some of the curry sauce, nice mild spice but big flavor.
The BBQ wings were decent, I feel they could have made a better bbq sauce.
My favorite appetizer was  the seoul chicken, perfect crunchy peppery outside with soft delicious marinated seitan inside.

For the main entree my brother got the salmon, which he claims is very good, I sided with the Philly Cheesesteak which was good but lacking a bit in the “meat” department.

For dessert we had the chocolate covered strawberry shortcake. Personally, this was my favourite part of the meal. The cake is from Vegan Treats, a popular bakery which makes classic junk-good like cakes located in PA.  A friend who was also dining with us (and a severe carnivoire) said her mint-chocolate chip boston was a delicious shake.

Overall for the price of $100, we managed to get 4 apps, 3 entrees, 3 glasses of wine, 1 beer and 3 desserts, for these prices and the good food served up, not to mention the fast service, I will definatly be going back!

Recommendations: Organico

Recently I had the privilege of stumbling upon a cute little store in Ramsey, NJ called Organico. It’s very close to  where I am currently working and I was craving a nice warm hot healthy meal one day so I decided to check it out. I treated myself to a bowl of Vegetarian Asparagus and Brie soup and an Avocado and Kale Sandwich, as well as an Oskri Coconut Bar. The total of my lunch came to $10, not bad at all considering I got a size-able portion and a dessert.  The other day, feeling under the weather I stopped by to pick up one of their “warm smoothies”. It’s soy milk, milled grains, cinnamon and honey and absolutely deliscious. I don’t frequently buy organic smoothies so I am not sure of the price comparison to other places of this sort, a small will run you $6, and a medium $7. But in my opinion it’s totally worth it to splurge on such delicious foods.Each day they have an Organico Special  they include; special rices, vegetarian sushi on thursday, coconut rice on friday among others. Also daily they have one vegetarian soup and at least one vegan sandwich (most popular: tofu / avacado).  Check it out, and also check out their good size selection of fresh produce, packaged goods, etc.   Rating: 4 stars from TUM!   495 North Franklin Turnpike, Suite #1Ramsey, NJ 07446Phone: 201-934-5511Fax: 201-236-3674  http://organicoramsey.com/forms/contactus.asp

Bad Dawgs: Reccomendation

This past weekend I visited a friend at a  little town up north called Plymouth, NH. Going new places, as you may know as a vegetarian/vegan is always hard because you aren’t sure what food they have in the area. If the town isn’t mentioned on HappyCow, it’s hard not to go into a brief panic. Thankgoodness due to the increase of organic food eaters and veggies such as ourselves, wholesome, deliscious, healthy products are stocked in most  towns.

 After a nice little hike in the woods we stopped by a new place in town called Bad Dawgs. We heard there were veggie dogs and being starving we made a beeline to the menu. Any of their pre-set choices are avaliable with either regular, turkey, or veggie dogs, OR on a baked potato. We instantly fell in love – not one but TWO veggie options! I got the “Norman Dog” with cheddar cheese (you can also make any combination out of their 30 + topping choices)…the dog also had grey poupon, saurkraut and red pepper relish. It was fabulous.

I would reccomend this place to anyone veggie or not, for their amount of choices, quality of food, and extremley affordable pricing…dogs range from ($2-$3) each, thats with several toppings. They also have a good variety of natural iced teas. The only problem I would have with the store was the usage of styrafoam take away containers and the amount of time it took us to get our dogs, it took about 5-10 minutes to order and another 10 to get our three hot dogs.

I give this place a three and a half out of five- it’s not gourmet, it’s not fancy, but it puts in the effort to offer veggie options and it certainly hits the spot.

BAD DAWGS

Restaurant Review : GOBO

A pan-Asian vegetarian / vegan restaurant located on 401 avenue of Americas, brings unique Asian flair to the table.

I started the meal out with a Sake infused Mojito - a little bit sour, but
perfect for cleansing the palette, this drink went wonderfully with anything
on the menu.

For an appetizer I had the scallion pancakes
with mango salsa. The sweetness of the salsa really brought out the rich
buttery flavor of the pancakes. I also tried the New England rolls, a crunchy
outside bursting with flavor of mushrooms on the inside.

For an entree I had the grilled asparagus with oyster mushrooms and a
sweet mustard dipping sauce, multigrain coconut flavored rice with raisins
on the side. Absolutely Delicious.

Dessert was also very good. I didn’t find it as good as the main food but
it was still good in a unique way. I had a large slice of tofu chocolate cake
which was less chocolaty and more tofu-y, it was however very
refreshing and didn’t give you a ”i hate too much” feeling. I also had
a cup of decaf-Brazilian coffee - soy creamer of course.

I would recommend this place to anyone, non-meat eater or not,  the
ambiance is laid back, romantic - perfect for a date. There is a good selection
of organic wines, beers, mixed drinks and champagne. Everything is very
moderately priced in comparison to other places of the sort. Drinks cost an
average of $7 while appetizers run $5-$8 and entrees $9-$21.

Plus side:

All of their coffees are fair trade.
They only use soy milk in their cooking - no real dairy.
Easy walk from Washington Sq. Park.
Good service, great food, wonderful atmosphere.

A four out of five stars from tumaliscious!

link: Gobo

Reccomendation

Sorry! Literally haven’t had time to make a good recipe! Please check out Moonlight Cafe in New Paltz, NY for your favorite Mediterranean and American Cuisine. Also, check out nearby Lake Minnewaska for some great hiking! 

Scones

Perfect for those chilly August days with a nice cup of green tea.

2 cups flour
2 tbps sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbps baking powder

1 egg
1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix dry ingredients together. Make a well. Stir in egg and milk with fork, mix well. Gently knead. Shape dough into two even discs, cut into fourths.

Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown on top. Serve warm!

*chocolate chips optional, just a handful into dough and knead lightly.

Stuffed Peppers

 

Vegan, Serves 4

 

4 peppers
1 1/2 cup rice
4 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 fresh basil leaves, minced
1 package of mushrooms, diced
1 large can fire roasted tomato

 

 

Cook 1 1/2 cup rice according to directions.

In a large frying pan add the onion, and garlic. Sautee until onion is translucent.
Add the mushrooms and cook until dark in color and tender.
Add the basil and fire roasted tomatoes.

When this mixture is done stir it with the rice. Stuff the peppers and bake for 30-40 minutes in a 350 degree oven. You want parts of the peppers to start turning slightly black, as an option you can add grated cheddar cheese throughout the layers of the pepper.

 

 

 

 

 

Twice Baked Dill Mashed Potatoes

Vegan, Serves 4

1 (1 lb) bag of small potatoes
1/2 cup soy milk
4 tablespoons soy butter
1 1/2 tablespoons finely minced dill

*optional cheddar cheese

Boil the potatoes for 20-25 minutes until you can stick a fork almost completly through.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Place potatoes in a medium sized bowl and wait a few minutes until the steam subsides. With a potato masher mash the potatoes. I like to keep the skin on because it gives it that nice hearty taste.

Add 1/4 cup of the soy milk and blend with a mixer. Add 2 tablespoons butter and continue to blend adding in the additional soy milk and butter. Feel free to add more milk or butter at this point, if you want extra creamy add more butter.

Now add the dill and whip until completely blended.

Fill four medium sized ramequins with the potatoes and optionally top with fresh grated cheese. Bake for 25 minutes.

Grilled Rosemary Tempeh

Vegan.

I got the inspiration for this recipe when on my Mother’s Birthday I made her Rosemary Grilled chicken. The only thing I had laying around that I could make for myself would be tempeh. So I tried it out and it came out delicious, and way better than I had expected. You can either grill or saute the tempeh. 

This recipe is based on making an entire block of tempeh. I prefer the soy boy five grain

3 – 4 tablespoons fresh rosemary, diced

1 lemon

6tablespoons olive oil

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 block tempeh

salt and pepper for taste

Squeeze 1/4th of a lemon and mix with the olive oil in a shallow pan or bowl. Add garlic and 1/2 of the rosemary. Place tempeh in pan. Cover in remaining rosemary, and squeeze another quarter of lemon on top. Marinate 10 minutes. Grill or sautee. 

*If you grill the tempeh, place into an aluminum foil pocket for 10 minutes. 

Favourite Things: Basil

I have always enjoyed Basil and recently took it upon myself to purchase a nice plant from the local Farmers Market. My skills in the garden pale in comparison to those in the kitchen, subsequently I  often find maintaining a plant to be a challenge…

I whole-heartedly recommend purchasing a plant, if you can do so. But first do some research on if your living arrangements are suitable for a plant, before you make the investment. 

This advice was taken from CookingVegetarian.com

• Basil is an annual for colder climates and likes at least 5 hours of sun a day and plenty of water.
• Be sure to pinch back the top and cut off any flower spikes. This will encourage more growth and keep the plant producing until the first frost.
• You can grow basil inside as long as it gets enough light. If you have central heating make sure to water the plant frequently and spray with water.

Have fun with your basil!