Vegan Brunch at Mandala

Serena, Sharon O'Shea, Patty (the plant-based diet teacher at Chez Nous), Wendy, KC, Gerry and I enjoyed brunch yesterday at the Mandala Tea Room. They had an assortment of scrambled tofu dishes with various types such as Italian, Mexican, Ex-Ranch (with tempeh bacon), and curry as well as soup, waffles, and blue corn cakes. While I appreciated the variety of tofu "egg" dishes, I was disappointed with my selection of the curry -- definitely the blandest of any of the ones we tried as a group. I probably would have preferred one of their lunch entrees which wasn't available during the "brunch" time. Next time we'll go for lunch instead. It was an experience though, and enjoyed meeting Patty. We babysat KC last night and plan to get together with Ken & Wendy for brunch today.

Mandala Tea Room

A group of us are planning to go to Mandala Tea Room (link is in the title of this post) this Saturday for lunch. MV - hope you aren't too jealous. Maybe we can go next time you come to Arizona.

Tainted muffins

JK Serena! The muffin was only tainted with those evil artificially colored m&m's. I found the lone remaining muffin from the ones Serena shared with us at Coco's lo those many weeks ago. Fortunately I found it in the freezer so upon thawing it was quite tasty. Thanks again, Serena. And if you ever make another batch of the vegan ones I'd love to try them. Wondering if Sid ever heard from his Doctor today and hope the news was positive! Roberta, are you and Sid entered in the Trail of Two Cities Glendale/Peoria bike ride or is that also this weekend? Wendy, how was the Dr. appointment today?

Go Raw Cafe

Catherine,

Have you eaten here? It sounds interesting. I found it thanks to the post you sent me about Luby's - I went and looked at the Disease Proof website - very interesting.

Although it is rather far to go just for lunch or supper. Perhaps when the Newark Uibles and the Crowsons come to visit . . . ?!

Home Sweet Home

As much as we enjoyed visiting Mom & Dad, as well as John, Julie, Kate & Andrew, we are happy to return to our humble abode here in Glendale where everything seems exactly as we left it. Thanks to Wendy for picking us up at the airport. My goal now is to stay up until at least 9pm to try to readjust to Mountain Standard Time. I need to work until 9pm tomorrow night so don't want to be falling asleep on the job. Looking forward to Wendy's baby shower coming up this weekend. Gerry just talked to Dee and she and family are coming over Friday for the weekend so they will be here for the big event. John, congratulations on your post! Thanks to Julie for the great vegan dinner last night. Mother & Dad, thanks for all your hospitality and meals out.

These are the healthy muffins - they can be made vegan by leaving out the egg whites and substituting soy flour and liquid.

They are from the King Arthur Flour site - which I highly recommend.

Priscilla's Muffins:

Priscilla's Muffins

INTRO

Priscilla Wyland is Brinna's aunt, a woman who hasn't changed a bit in all the years she's known her. Priscilla, who happens to be 84 at the moment, is one of those people who has never, and is not about to, let anyone tell her how to run her life (a clear asset at any point!) These muffins are what Priscilla starts her day with. She's been playing with the recipe for years and, per Brinna's last conversation with her, has more ideas in the offing. (Even wrestling with a muffin recipe gives you a sense of control!) Not long ago, Priscilla's grandson, MacKenzie Davis, as large as she is petite (he plays football for Brown University) said to her, "Not enough bananas." So she added more and we've captured her recipe at this evolutionary juncture, complete with rum for added punch. At this point they are one of the best nutritional bets around. Her recipe makes 12 muffins with enough batter left over to make a tiny loaf (or 3 more muffins). And each muffin checks in at only about 130 calories.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour (or 1 cup King Arthur Traditional Whole Wheat Flour)
1 cup uncooked oatmeal
1 cup unprocessed bran
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional; Priscilla leaves it out since she wants to keep her sodium intake to a minimum)
1/3 cup nonfat dry milk (optional, but in combination with the wheat, boosts the protein level)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 large or 3 medium bananas (about 1 cup mashed)
2 egg whites (no yolks, no cholesterol!)
3 to 4 tablespoons honey, molasses or maple syrup (no white sugar)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil (this can be eliminated for completely fat-free muffins)
1 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons dark rum (contributes flavor only)

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat your oven to 400°F.

Combine the dry ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl. In a larger bowl, mash the bananas and beat in the egg whites until the mixture is light and frothy. Blend in the honey (or other sweetener), vegetable oil, orange juice and rum.

Sprinkle in the dry ingredients and blend until just combined. Lightly grease muffin cups and fill two-thirds full. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes.

These muffins won't rise up in the middle because there is such a small percentage of flour in relation to the oatmeal and bran. But because of the banana, they are delicious, moist and chewy, a great way to start a healthy day!

Update from Catherine and Gerry

We are in sunny Central Oregon where the weather may be cooler but the traffic seems FAR worse than our local Glendale neighborhood. Have had nice visits with our friends in The Dalles, where we spent the first night; Madras, the second two nights, and now in Redmond until Tuesday morning when we head for Oregon Caves for two nights. Weather has been down in the 40s at night (like winter in AZ) but today is supposed to be up in the 90s. Haven't found too much good vegan food but we are surviving. Madras, actually has a health food store/cafe where I had a good salad. And yesterday we had lunch with our friends from Sisters at the Pine Tavern in Bend. Mom and Dad may remember we ate there on January 29, 1979, in honor of my 30th. Glad it was warm enough yesterday to sit out on the patio. We do NOT plan to visit here in the winter ever again so will have to find somewhere else to celebrate in 2009. Thanks for the updates email and blogs! We'll be home again on Friday and back to work for me (and Gerry too probably) on Saturday!