Tag Archives: vegetarian

I’ve got the scoop – The Cinnamon Snail!

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Friends of the NYC Metro Area!

The Cinnamon Snail will debuting new menu items as of TOMORROW May 14. This is exciting news for all of us Snail lovers. Not because we dislike the other menu items, but more because we know how freaking delicious everything this truck puts out truly tastes! So, without further adieu, here is their official press release! Don’t forget Jersey City peeps – Snaily comes back to Chilltown starting this THURSDAY at the HDSID Farmer’s Market at the Grove St. PATH plaza.

Monday May 13
For Immediate Release:

It’s that time of year again! The Cinnamon Snail food truck is debuting a new menu TOMORROW (Tuesday May 14) in the Financial District on Wall St. and Water.
I am really confident about this incarnation of our menu, and I think this is going to be the best selection our truck has ever had.These new items are in addition to our really large breakfast and lunch menu. The full menu is available on our website www.cinnamonsnail.com

Here are the new menu items, donuts, and other special stuff:

NEW MENU ITEMS:

Thai BBQ tempeh with pickled onions and Thai basil, arugula, smoked chili roasted peanuts, and sriracha mayonnaise on grilled spelt bread

Red plum pancakes with chamomile blood orange syrup, cardamom butter, smoked almonds and candied lemon rind

Seitan al pastor with beer battered jalapeños, greens, grilled pineapple and chipotle mayonnaise on grilled baguette

Basil pesto grilled tofu with white truffle cashew cheese, kalamata olive tapenade, arugula, and caramelized onions on garlic grilled baguette

Fiery black sesame tempeh salad with kale, arugula, kimchi and spiced cashews

New Seasonal Donuts:

-Toasted pistachio donuts with cardamom glaze
-Coffee Ice cream Sunday Donuts (chocolate cake donut with coffee glaze, espresso beans, ground dark chocolate and smashed sugar cones)
-Meyer Lemon Twists
-Brown Sugar Beer Glazed

NEW ICED COFFEES:
Star anise coconut milk iced coffee
Salted caramel dutch cocoa iced coffee
EXCITING NEWS FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE AVOIDING GLUTEN:
We now offer really nice gluten-free millet-flax bread! The following sandwiches can be made completely gluten-free if you ask for them on the new bread: Creole grilled tofu, Thai bbq tempeh, maple mustard tempeh, and basil pesto tofu. Gluten free bread is available for an extra dollar.

GREAT NEWS FOR JERSEY CITY:
Starting this Thursday May 16, we will also be serving dinner every Thursday at the Grove St. Farmers Market in Jersey City.

OUR CURRENT SCHEDULE:
Mondays- 48th and 6th (but sometimes we visit Dumbo or Varick st. on this day)
Tuesdays- Wall st. and Water
Wednesdays- Broadway between 55th and 56th
Thursdays- 21st and 5th (11:00-3:00), Jersey City Farmers Market (4:00-8:00)
Fridays- Park ave. between 46th and 47th
Saturdays- Various Locations
Sundays- Red Bank, NJ

Fans track our daily location, specials, and event updates on twitter: @veganLunchTruck or on Facebook: www.facebook.com/theCinnamonSnail

Awards, Info and Accolades of the Cinnamon Snail:

We are the country’s first organic vegan food truck, started in February 2010.
The Cinnamon Snail won the 2012 People’s Choice Vendy Award
The Cinnamon Snail is a 2010, 2011, and 2012 Vendy award nominee
The Cinnamon Snail won the 2011 Vendy award for their vanilla bourbon creme brulee donuts
Listed in the New York Post’s top trends of 2012
Highly rated on the New York Magazine Approval Matrix
Full 5 star Yelp rating with over 400 reviews
Winner of Mobile Cuisine Magazine’s “America’s Favorite Vegetarian Food Truck” in 2012
Named “The Best Food Truck in NYC” by Gothamist
We were named the #1 vegetarian street food in America by PETA 2011
We were awarded a 2011 Libby award for best east coast food truck
Named as one of the top ten food trucks in the country by Yahoo.com in 2010
Winner of the 2012 VegNews Veggie Award for best vegetarian food truck in America
Featured on the Food Network, Cooking Channel, New York Times, Time Out NY, Vegetarian Times, Veg News, New York Magazine, and New York Post.

Make heed and get thee to the Snaily ASAP!

JCV blogs for the NYCVFF!

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Just a drive-by post…

I recently was asked to guest-blog for the NYC Vegetarian Food Festival!  Click the image below to check it out.

 

NYCVFF

 

I’ll be attending this year’s festival as well, volunteering for the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary‘s table.  Hope to see you there!

Jersey City Veggie Burgers

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Vegans and Vegetarians of Jersey City take note!  There’s a new veggie burger on the block.  And it’s goooooood.

Let me introduce you to Elizabeth (Liz) Migliore.

Liz is not vegan.  Liz is not vegetarian.  Her husband is vegetarian.  But she is not.  No matter, because she has created one of the most delicious veggie burgers I have ever tasted.  In fact, she started a company – Jersey City Veggie Burgers

I got to sit down with Liz over a cup of coffee to talk about this new endeavor.  She has always loved to cook (something she credits her father for teaching her).  Her husband, being a vegetarian, would quite often keep veggie burgers in the house (I know they are a staple in mine!).  However, she noticed all of the ingredients that are used in mass-produced veggie burgers and she thought to herself – I can do better.  And so the experimentation began.

While it wasn’t a conscious decision to make them vegan, these burgers are 100% vegan!  A year and a half of experimentation with one recipe and mastering that allowed her to open the doors to more flavors.  The original burger, Sweet Potato Collard Green, gets its flavors from African inspired spices and cooking techniques.  The second burger in the line is a White Bean Broccoli Rabe burger, which is more Italian influenced.  After taking some business classes with Rising Tide Capital, she was set to open her business.

While it is not a full-time job, she is hopeful that it is heading in that direction.  She currently sells her burgers at Hamilton Park Farmers Market, and will be at the Grove Street market starting next week.  She also has hopes to get her burgers in local restaurants, which I think is a great idea!  You can buy them for $9 for a pack of 4.

Liz was kind enough to bring me a sample pack of the Sweet Potato Collard Green burgers.  I asked if she had any preparation advice, and she recommended serving them on english muffins.  So that’s what we did!  We also used some delicious Vegenaise.  I must confess – I am not the biggest fan of veggie burgers that aren’t like a “beef-less” burger.  I quite often find them mushy.  But these totally have me sold.  The flavors are bold and delicious.

Book Review: The Lucky Ones

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It’s no secret that I am hopelessly devoted to Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary.  It is a magical place that changed my life.  I discovered it by chance, back in 2007.  Melissa and I were getting ready to celebrate our one year anniversary.  She had always wanted to take a class at The Center for Photography at Woodstock… so we ended up booking a weekend up in the area so she could take a class and we could spend some time away together.  Her course was two days long, during the daytime hours, so I was on my on for several hours during the day.  I knew the town of Woodstock was adorable, so I occupied myself discovering all the sweet shops and flea market on the first day up there.  While I was walking around town, I kept seeing posters for something called “The Blessing of the Animals” at a place called “The Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary”… I thought, oh, I love animals, this sounds right up my alley!  At the time, I was still eating meat and dairy full-time – the complete opposite of what I am now.  I even remember going to Woodstock Meats to buy some bacon!  Regardless, I decided to attend the Blessing ceremony, conducted by some peaceful Buddhist monks from the nearby monastery.  That was when the seed got planted.  I recall driving away from our rental cabin expressing feelings about wanting to give up eating animals.  I felt timid and overwhelmed at first, but knew that there was something to be said with that, and it was going to be the beginning of my journey.

Over the next few weeks, I had this nagging thought that was always in the back of my mind… I really don’t think I want to eat meat anymore.  It only took a few weeks before we took the plunge and gave up eating animals.  We made attending the Blessing a yearly anniversary tradition.  Each time I went, the nagging changed, and got louder and louder, urging me to go vegan.  Finally, last year we made the connection and went vegan.  And it’s all because of a woman named Jenny Brown, her husband Doug Abel and their magical farm sanctuary.

Jenny Brown’s journey was similar to mine in the fact that her enlightenment came in increments.  The path might have been different, but the final destination was the same.  And it is all recounted with joy, humor and honesty in her first book, The Lucky Ones: My Passionate Fight for Farm Animals.  Co-written by Gretchen Primack, Brown recounts her journey from a cancer-stricken 10-year-old amputee to her thriving career in film which led to passion projects for PETA and finally turned her into a full-time animal activist, hero and co-founder of the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary.

Interspersed with her personal journey, she includes mini-biographies of past and present residents of the farm.  She tells their story, as well as hers, in truth and with love.  She doesn’t shy away (nor does she ever) from exposing the truths of animal agriculture.  The key thing, though, is that she does so with such finesse that she leaves you willingly questioning your own contribution (read: consumption of animals) to the industry.  She makes you think.  She helps guide you to make that connection.  While she admits that she didn’t always have this knack of graceful truth-telling, it is something she can do now with ease.

This book was a pleasure to read.  It reminded me of my own journey, why we do what we do, and inspires me to continue in my own form of activism whatever it might end up looking like.  This world is a better place because of Jenny Brown, Doug Abel, and the other devoted animal caretakers and volunteers at Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary… and for that, I am grateful.

If you live in or close to the New York City area, there will be a party to celebrate the release of The Lucky Ones tomorrow night (August 7) at MooShoes.  Jenny will be there, signing and selling her books.  Stop on by for some vegan camaraderie and to celebrate the release of such a wonderful book.  Hope to see you there!

Vegan-ize It: Tofu Scallops

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Before I went vegan, I used to go crazy for a perfectly pan-seared sea scallop.  Anytime I went out to a restaurant and scallops were on the menu, I need not look any further.  My parents always had scallops for me when I would go visit.  I was the scallop girl!  I “Excuse-itarian’ed” (Colleen Patrick-Goudreau coined this term and I love it!) my way around consuming scallops for quite a while — “They don’t have a face!” was my perfect reasoning.  When I connected the dots about the problems with industrial fishing and factory fish farms, I preferred that those little tender fleshy morsels stayed in their cute little shells in the sea and not in my belly.  If you haven’t learned about the downside to the seafood industry, you can get a little snapshot about it here, here, and here.

My ever-creative amateur chef (and partner of 6 years) Melissa came up with a brilliant solution to satisfy my scallop cravings — make them out of tofu!  After all, it is the seasonings, sauces and marinades that have us so attached to eating flesh anyway.  We aren’t like tigers and lions who eat flesh raw, no problemo.  Here is her brilliant recipe… my mouth waters just thinking about it!

Tofu Scallops

Ingredients

  • 1 block extra firm tofu
  • 1 lemon
  • 2-4 tablespoons vegan butter (I recommend Earth Balance)
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon dried dill
  • 1 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
  • salt & pepper, to taste

Tools

  • Small cookie cutter or juice glass with a small diameter

Directions

    1. Press the tofu.  See Tofu Isn’t Scary for more detailed instructions on pressing tofu.
    2. Cut thickness of tofu in half.  
    3. Use cookie cutter or juice glass to cut circles out of tofu.  Season tofu scallops with the Old Bay and salt and pepper.
    4. Heat pan with 1 tbsp (approx.) of olive oil on medium/high heat.
    5. Place tofu scallops in pan, allowing them to get golden brown on each side.  Remove from pan and set tofu scallops aside.
    6. Turn heat to low and melt 2-4 tbsp of vegan butter in the pan.  Use more butter if you are making more scallops.
    7. Squeeze half the lemon into the pan with the melted butter, stir to incorporate.  Add dill.  Stir and turn heat off.
    8. Plate tofu scallops and drizzle/spoon lemon dill sauce over scallops.  Serve with your favorite veggies and sides.  Pictured with a mix of quinoa and kale.

I hope you enjoy this recipe — its one of my favorites!  Do you have a favorite vegan-ized recipe?

Tofu isn’t scary.

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dun…Dun… DUNNN!!!!! Tofu. So many folks get very nervous with the mere mention of it. Not to worry – I’m going to show you how AMAZING this protein is and how it is not scary at all!!!!

What is it? Simply, its soybean curd pressed into a block shape. It can often be fortified with calcium, making it a great source for the vital nutrient (as well as being a source of vitamin B and iron). It can come in different varieties – silken, soft, firm, extra firm – making it versatile to use in a wide array of recipes from smoothies to soups to stir-frys to bar-be-que’d on the grill.

Here’s my advice: extra-firm tofu and buy it in bulk. I’m lucky that my local bulk retailer offers a 2 pack of extra-firm tofu for four bucks. I pick up 2 packs of that per week. At least. You’re going to bake one for use in your salads, one will be your weekend tofu scramble, and two will be used as your protein for dinner a few nights.

Now, some commonly asked questions about tofu:

  • What do I do about all this water in the package?

Tofu is packed with water so it doesn’t dry out. This is remedied very simply. Got paper towels? Good. On a dinner plate, layer a few sheets of paper towel. Place your block of tofu on the plate. Layer a few more sheets of paper towel on top of the tofu. Now, put another dinner plate (or platter) on TOP of the tofu to create a make-shift press. Let it sit for about twenty minutes to drain. OR you can invest in a tofu press. They run about $40, but with the amount of tofu you’ll be eating, it will pay for itself within a month. Here’s the one I have and love it – Tofu Xpress.

  • Do I just cook it in this big block shape?

Sure! You can marinate the whole big block with some tamari or other favorite sauce and bake it in the oven. OR, you can cut it in half horizontally, so you have two rectangles, about a half inch high. Then, cut those rectangles in half diagonally, making two triangles. It should look something like this:

Something to look forward to: recipe for tofu parmesean! But also a great example of what tofu cutlets could look like.

Voila! Tofu Cutlets. OR, after cutting horizontally, cut them out into circles using a small juice glass upside-down…and Voila! Tofu Scallops. Your creativity is key. You can’t mess it up, so don’t be scared to experiment.

  • Tofu has no flavor! Why bother?

Wha-wha-wha-whaaaaaaa?! Stop the train. Tofu can be full of flavor — it all depends on what you to do it! You can marinate it, bread it, bake it, pan-sear it, bbq it. Seriously, whatever you did to your chicken, fish or steak, you can do to tofu. I’m not kidding! Tofu will take on any flavor you put on it. Sucks it right up like a sponge and is totally versatile.

  • Can you freeze tofu?

Yes! And please do. I’ll usually freeze a block every now and again. This will change the texture of it, making it a bit more chewy and a lot spongier (as in, will soak up even more of the flavors you use on it). Just freeze it directly in the container you purchase it in. When you’re ready to use it, set it out to defrost that morning, or run it under some water to soften it up. You can microwave it for three minutes on each side to assist if needed. And then drain it just like as described above. You’ll see that it drains a LOT more this way. So totally freeze some tofu every now and again and give yourself a texture shake-up.

So go forth to your organic grocer and pick up a nice extra-firm block of tofu for dinner tonight. Follow my tips, use your favorite marinade or sauce, and most of all, get creative and have fun. See?! Tofu TOTALLY isn’t scary.