Post-Valentine's Day Crepes with Nutella

 

I had meant to post this on February 15th, when I made these crepes, but I never got around to it. I'm not much of a Valentine's Day person. I neither love nor hate it; for me, it really just seems like any other day, only with a better excuse for eating large quantities of chocolate (shout out to my lovely mother for buying me a chocolate bar on Thursday!). My Valentine's Day consisted of chocolate, a seitan roast, and a Lost marathon. Not too bad in my opinion! 

 

But the next day, I decided to make something sort of Valentine's-ish, and made some crepes. Actually, these crepes are really Ployes, which are a type of pancake. It comes as a pancake flour mix (the only ingredients are buckwheat flour, wheat flour, baking powder, and salt), sort of like much healthier version of Bisquick. To make the pancakes, all you do is mix in some water (no eggs or milk required!), and cook in a pan for a minute or two. It's almost ridiculous how simple they are to make. You don't even need to flip them while cooking! They're surprisingly low in calories, with three 5" pancakes equaling only 95 calores. Ployes are fantastic, not just for dessert, but for dinner too. I often serve them with curry dishes, as they soak up the flavors so well.  Anyway, to make the crepes, I added just a tiny bit of sugar to the batter, cooked them, and served them with raspberry jelly and some vegan Nutella, which I made using this delicious recipe by Chocolate Covered Katie (actually, I used a mix of pecans and cashews because, let's be honest, no one just happens to have hazelnuts on hand). Ployes are made by a local company and probably can't be found outside of New England, but if you ever happen to come across some, I'd really recommend buying a bag (or order it online here).

VeganMoFo Day Eleven: Pumpkin Whoopie Pies

I finally had to give in to my cravings and make something using actual sugar. Even though I got a stomach ache (only because I don't handle sugar well, not because of the recipe!), these were completely worth it. I guess when I read the recipe, I missed the note at the beginning saying these are not similar to traditional whoopie pies, and are more like cookies than cakes; I was a bit surprised (especially growing up in New England where whoopie pies are one of the main food groups at all major events), however, these are completely fantastic just the way they are. The only adjustments I made were non-hydrogenated margarine instead of shortening because I never seem to have shortening on hand, and an extra cup of powdered sugar because it was too liquidy without it.

RECIPE HERE

Also, just an update from yesterday, I tried my Daysoft contacts today, and I love them. They are just as comfortable as my last brand, if not better, and I can see perfectly with them. For sure changing to this brand permanently!

VeganMoFo Day Ten

Well, yet again, I don't really have anything worthwhile to post. I've been so busy lately, especially with driver's ed interfering with when I would be cooking. So for dinner today I just threw together a bunch of things (pasta, tomato sauce, tomatoes, garlic, onion, pepper, kalamata olives, pine nuts, and spinach), and it turned out pretty well. I was super hungry though and didn't take a picture.

I went to an acupuncturist for the first time today (actually, I've had acupuncture twice before, but only through a place I had physical therapy, not an actual appointment), and hopefully it should help my psoriasis. I've always had such better results in health problems through naturopathy than western medicine, so I'm interested to see if this works for me.

Today I also received a bunch of mail-order items I've been waiting for! First, I got Animal Liberation, and I don't know if I'll get around to reading it soon, but I mostly got it because it seems like it's a book all vegans read at some point.

Second, a month's supply of Daysoft contact lenses. I researched for a while, and as far as I can tell, they're the only contact brand that doesn't test on animals. I hate wearing glasses (convenience reasons, not vanity), but I hate buying contacts that I know animals have needlessly suffered for, so I am overjoyed to find this brand. There's more pros to Daysoft too, like they're remarkably inexpensive (I'll be saving about $75 or more compared to my old brand for a three-month supply). The lenses themselves are in more efficient packages, so there's a lot less waste involved. This brand really seems like a godsend - now I just have to wait to try them out tomorrow and see if they even work with my eyes. [update: I tried the contacts and love them! They are so much more comfortable than my old brand and easier to put in. And they don't dry out, even if I accidentally fall asleep wearing them. I am definitely going to continue purchasing my lenses from Daysoft.]

And lastly, I received some makeup I ordered from e.l.f., another cruelty-free brand. I've pretty much always buy Almay products, because they're sold everywhere and apparently don't test on animals, but they still include various animal ingredients so I decided it was time for a change. E.l.f.'s website states, "We do NOT test on animals or endorse such practices. Our products do not contain animal derived ingredients. Beeswax has been replaced by synthetic beeswax and lanolin has been replaced by Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladinpale-2." Their prices are also fantastic ($1 mascara?!), and a quick Google search should be able to provide you with a coupon code for 50% off or free shipping. I tried some of it out, and like it all for the most part. My only complaint would be that it's lighter than I had expected. Like, the eyeliner I usually use shows up as a deep brown, but this was really pale (it still looks nice, and works well, just not what I wanted); I will probably try black eyeliner instead next time. The waterproof mascara applies wonderfully! As does the concealer. I didn't order any eyeshadow because I already have an overabundance of eyeshadow at home, but I'll try it someday!

Well, considering I didn't even have a recipe to post, this has turned out much longer than I thought it would.