Sassy & the Aussie

my funny valentine…

(Source: butthorn)

la sunset…

xmas in beverly hills…

tis the season…

somewhere over the rainbow…

LA bbq…

tulips…

moon @ hollywood forever…

spinning some fleetwood mac vinyl…

banksy, art in the streets…

double feature…

100 years of the palace theater…

two major accomplishments happened yesterday: same-sex marriage was legalized in my home state of new york, and trevor & i completed our vegan challenge…hooray!! we were struggling all week on when to finish our experiment. originally it was going to be today, since we were having friends over for dinner.  and then we were going to push it till sunday to make it an even 3 weeks from when we started. but we finally concluded to end it last night since we had dinner plans with our mates, and it just seemed fitting. we had initially chosen to eat at akasha in culver city, since they have a great overall menu which includes a few vegan options, and not to mention a fab location. upon arrival, trevor & i agreed to order whatever we wanted and to just have fun. so of course we both got steak, haha! it was a real struggle for us to do give up what we had grown accustomed to over the past few weeks. after our first bite, we both looked at each other with such guilt, like we had committed adultery.  i even got a little choked up because i felt like i was doing something so terribly wrong. needless to say, the food was amazing and everyone had a blast.  however, i did end up getting sick later in the night, but i think it was more due to the 2 mixed berry mojitos i drank, heehee.  this morning we woke up feeling rather gross - not sure if it’s our systems rejecting what we ate, or just the booze creeping up on us.  

this has really been a true eye-opening experience for us. we’ve learned so much, not just about veganism, but about ourselves and our will. we both doubted we’d be able to survive this long, but we pushed & supported each other. i’m so proud of us! i also have a newfound respect for vegans. i used to never be able to fully understand how people can live like this, but now i see the effects it has on your mind, body, & spirit. it truly does transform you. i mean, yes there’s the benefits of weight loss - we each shed a few pounds - but you also feel healthier as a whole. i felt like i was more focused and energized. of course there were times when i was starving and delirious, and was very tempted to stray, but i knew it would just make me feel worse. it definitely is not an easy lifestyle - we had to plan out all our meals everyday, and make sure we were prepared with snacks when going out. socializing was really difficult - we’d either check out places beforehand or look up stuff on our phones to see if they were safe to eat/drink.  

however, trevor & i enjoyed trying out new vegan recipes and restaurants.  i realized most vegan dishes do not consist of just salad - there’s such a wide array and many variations. i thought i would be hungry constantly, but that was rarely the case - we were always full! yet, we don’t think we’d be able to be vegan in some of america’s smaller cities. there are just so many options here in la - i can’t believe it’s only the #8 most vegan city. there’s still a lot of restaurants here that i’d like to try, and it will be good when our vegan friends come to visit, because now we have a huge list of places to take them. i’d have say flore is definitely our favorite, although the others we went to were pretty great.  we cooked a bunch of impressive meals, with the pizza and the pad thai being at the top. as far as cravings, i found myself wanting dairy more than meat - i really missed cheese, like a big hunk of mozzarella, mmm. yet i was still able to find a new appreciation for soy, daiya, & cashew cheeses. trevor missed being able to go to in & out at any time for a double double - veggie burgers just didn’t cut it sometimes. 

unfortunately, we won’t remain vegans permanently, even though we’re somewhat debating after last night’s meat fest, haha. but i totally want to do this once or twice a year - i think it’s a great cleanse/detox for us both. and we’ll definitely try to eat a lot better - maybe do a couple vegan/vegatarian days during the week, like “meatless mondays.” we just need to be more conscious of what we’re eating/drinking. sometimes it’s not so bad to order the veggie dish instead when at a restaurant. also, i want to be more educated next time i do this - i really enjoyed talking to people about what we were doing, but i would find myself not knowing all the answers, which would frustrate me. i really admire people who have made this their lifestyle, whether it be for animal rights or health purposes. i’m sorry i won’t be joining your forces full time, but it was a pleasure being a brief member. 

till we meet again…

chickpea piccata…

we’re almost at the end of our 3rd and final week of veganism.  we actually considered going one more week to make it a full month, but we have too much going on. so it looks like tomorrow is the finale. {sad tuba}

this past weekend we hit up another weird al recommendation, cafe gratitude in larchmont village. we had actually walked by this place once en route to osteria mamma (best italian in LA, btw), and almost went in since it looked good…but i’m sure we would’ve turned around and left once we learned it was vegan, heehee. it’s a rather spiritual joint, with each menu item named after a self-proclamation (“i am…”) and our server left us to ponder the question of the day: “what do we love most about our fathers?” (it was father’s day.) we started off with some vino & guacamole, and then i got the “i am warm hearted” (grilled polenta) and trevor had the “i am transformed” (tacos.) everything was delicious! def another place i would recommend to non-vegans as well.

this week’s cooking consisted of another shamere-inspired recipe (vegan burritos) and 2 recipes from isa chandra moskowitz’s amazing cookbook, appetite for reduction. i made her chickpea piccata over arugula, and pasta con broccoli - both were yummy. last night i somehow conjured up enough energy to make vegan banana oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, courtesy of bethenny frankel. again, her measurements were off & i ended up having to add more oil, but they came out pretty decent. 

and as promised, here is trevor’s pizza recipe (all of the ingredients were purchased at trader joe’s):

4 regular size tortillas (we used brown rice tortillas)

1 package Tofurkey Italian Sausage

1 can yellow corn, drained

1 jalapeno, diced

2 cups shredded soy mozzarella (any kind of vegan cheese will do)

Fat free tomato pizza sauce

1 package fresh kale

Salt & pepper for taste

Preheat your broiler.  Saute the sausage in a pan with cooking spray for about 5 minutes, until brown.  Saute kale in another pan with olive oil, 1 clove of minced garlic, and a pinch of red pepper flakes/salt/pepper, for a few minutes until bright green. Put a big spoonful of sauce on each tortilla.  Next, put a handful of sausage on each, followed by kale, corn, jalapeno, & cheese.  Make sure you evenly distribute all the ingredients.  We sliced our pizzas into 4 pieces before cooking, since it would be difficult to do once cooked. Place the pizzas onto 2 baking sheets (2 per sheet) and put under broiler (you may have to do one sheet at a time.) Keep an eye on them to make sure they don’t burn - about 5-7 minutes - once the cheese has melted & everything else is heated through. Let sit for a couple minutes, and then plate. Feel free to add or subtract any ingredients, but this combo really worked - and we topped it off with some tapatio for an extra kick. Well done, Trev!

the end is nigh…