The Vegan Experiment. All or Nothing Vegan?

Today I made a conscious decision that I will be mostly vegan. For most things food and drink related I am an “all or nothing” kind of gal. Before last weekend I thought I had been doing fairly well with my vegan diet (5 months and counting). I’ve consciously cheated here or there, either when out of town or when drinking.Which leads me to the issue at heart; I swear I did not know that most beer and wine is not vegan.

A very helpful, friendly (insert mild sarcasm here) server at Dickson Wine Bar on U St pointed this out after Chaosgal and I inquired about the vegan food options. How could I miss this? Chaosgal and I decided that night that we would "pretend" we did not hear this disclosure.

That night (while tipsy from non-vegan wine) I frantically surfed the internet. Sure enough. Through the filtering process, before bottling, a wine may be put through a number of different things, including isinglass (from fish bladder,) gelatin, egg whites, and sea shells. I also reread The Kind Diet. Note to Alicia Silverstone: You failed to mention the non-veganism of alcohol!!

Today, while happily browsing through the aisles of Whole Foods wine department I decided I find too much joy from the process of choosing a good bottle of wine. There are vegan options out there. But let me tell you, they are not easy to find. I will make my vegan wine transition slowly. I have discovered a very helpful website www.barnivore.com. Maybe, one day, I will decide to go all out. Until then, CHEERS!... and Chaosgal, please rename my blog entries “Mostly Vegan”.

Tonight's Specials Are...

Stuffed Salmon & Grilled Asparagus and Melon Salad

... and a little BirdMan Wine!
Who needs a restaurant when you have your house?
What a yummy dinner on my patio. After several hours of yard work, it was a perfect dinner outside. Plus, I got to test out the salad recipe that I will use on the Graduation Luau Menu.

With a mix of cantaloupe and prosciutto, the salad was sweet and savory... add some green (asparagus) and white (Parmesano reggianno) and the dish was beautiful.

I found some amazingly pink wild sockeye salmon at the grocery store and stuffed with goat cheese, sun dried tomatoes and served with a garlic spinach.

No Cupcake Wine at the store so I chose BirdMan that was very earthy with grapefruit undertones... very good but if I were choosing for this dish again I would pick the Cupcake... A girl does love her Cupcake.

At the end of the night I had a surprise visit from my good friend, LB... celebrating her birthday with neighborhood visits. You know if I would have known she was coming I would have had cake. Cheesecake. Oh no... now I want cheesecake. I guess I will have my share at the Luau Party.

Grilled Asparagus and Melon Salad
2 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto
1 pound asparagus, trimmed
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 small melon (about 12 ounces), peeled, seeded and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
Shaved Parmesean
Directions

Place an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the prosciutto in a
single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes
until crispy. Drain on paper towels. Chop the prosciutto into 1/4-inch
pieces.

Place a grill pan over medium-high heat or preheat a gas or charcoal
grill. In a medium bowl, toss together the asparagus and 2 teaspoons
olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Grill for 2 to 3 minutes each
side until crisp-tender. Cut into 1/2 inch sections on an angle

In a medium bowl, combine the lemon juice and 2 tablespoons olive oil.
Whisk until combined. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add the
melon, asparagus and Parmesan cheese and toss until all ingredients are
combined.Drizzle any remaining vinaigrette over the top. Sprinkle the prosciutto.

*See previous entry for salmon*

Cupcake Wine? Wine in your Cupcakes? I am Sold!

When discussing Dirty Vodka Martinis, a friend told me that he did not like food in his drink... but what about drink in your food?

Last night I enjoyed a glass (or two) of Sauvingnon Blanc wine from the Cupcake Vineyard. It is crisp and has the zest that I love on a summer night... even if it was cold and raining last night, I am still in summer mode. I had originally bought it for the label (you know I do love a cupcake) but it was really good.

Today I found a recipe from a fellow blogger- Vanilla Garlic that infuses the Cupcake Wine into a cupcake... I cannot wait to try it.

She describes them as:
"Well, when wine and olive oil are combined in baking they produce a subtle, almost ethereal, fruity flavor. The orange oil from the zest permeates the entire cake. The sugar crusts on top during baking and maintains it's snowy sparkle. You can't help but imagine eating them with slices of ripe orange and a glass of white wine, which consequently is how I suggest you eat them. You can't help but close your eyes and imagine eating them at a wrought iron table over looking a tuscan vineyard in the afternoon sun. Due to the cornmeal they're very dense too, so one cupcake is the perfect serving (as opposed to five)."

White Wine Cornmeal Cupcakes

What You'll Need...
1/2 cup of olive or sunflower oil
2 large eggs at room temperature
1 cup of sugar, plus 1/4 cup for topping
1/2 cup of dry white wine
1 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour
1/2 cup of yellow cornmeal
1 teaspoon of salt
2 teaspoons of baking powderFinely grated zest of one orange
4 strawberries, sliced thinly

What You'll Do...
1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2) In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, eggs, sugar, and wine until smooth. Add the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and the zest; whisk together gently.

3) Line a cupcake pan with paper and brush with olive oil. Pour in the cake batter and arrange sliced strawberries on top. Sprinkle with remaining sugar.

4) Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. Allow to cool on wire rack.

PS- I made the Margarita Cake last night and we have not eaten it yet but I did taste the batter, YUM!, and also the crust, nice mix of savory and sweet! I added 1/2 cup plain yogurt to make more rich! I cannot wait to eat a piece tonight!