Happy Thanksgiv-Ming

Nothing says Thanksgiving like Ming Tsai, Ocean Spray and Tropical Fruit.

The cooking philosophy of world-renowned chef Ming Tsai centers on the use of
master recipes to give traditional meals a boost of East-West excitement.

While Ocean Spray shouldn't be faulted for including Ming in their Holiday celebration, didn't the pilgrims travel from west to east? Ming is likely a good dude. However, he has been on my hit list for over 5 years. He served a five course course meal/presentation at my hotel in Hawaii when I was there on my honeymoon. There was no vegetarian alternative so we were shut out.

Oh man. Just when I was giving Ocean Spray a break I did a search of their site for 'vegetarian'. The single hit has the following user-submitted vegetarian "basting"

Tofurkey!As a new vegetarian, I was determined to create a
veggie-friendly meal for my meat-eating clan. What a fiasco! "What the H*LL is
that?" muttered my dad. "Tofurkey!" I announced ... To-tasteless" snarled my teenage son who was highly annoyed. At least I was sane enough to not mess with the cranberry sauce!

Oh thank goodness! Ocean Spray saved Thanksgiving. That lady doesn't need a new turkey, she needs a new family with some manners.

Now say Grace.

Vegan-gate or is it Ve-gate

Vegetarian cook books are a dime a dozen. Nonetheless, I was reading a review of a few vegetarian cookbooks and enjoying the write up when I noticed something. Jennifer Cornbleet and Sarah Kramer look a lot alike. Too alike, if you ask me, to be a coincidence.

So I did a search for the two of them on Google trying to find a picture of them together and no results.

So, they are obviously the same person. I bet the raw movement doesn't dig when one of their pundits cooks vegan food. She must be in the raw movement relocation program. Oh man. I just totally outed Jennifer Cornbleet-Kramer. Call the special prosecutor!

Ps. My trick for evaluating a vegetarian cookbook is to look up the Veggie Chili recipe. If the recipe contains one new ingredient or different twist on veggie chili, then consider buying it. Else, it will just be "vegetarain lazagna with mixed vegetables" from cover to cover.

Review: V-Dog Veggie Dog food

The original vegetarian dog food, Happidog from England, is now available
in the USA as V-dog. ...V-dog is a complete high protein, nutritionally balanced food providing all the natural goodness a pet needs in an appetizing and easily digestible form. The
carefully selected ingredients used in V-dog provide a healthy alternative to
meat-based pet foods.

I'm just kidding about the review. I'm not going to eat the stuff.

I don't have a strong opinion one way or another about having a veggie or non-veggie dog. I did browse the health benefits section of the v-dog site.
"A meat free diet can help in cases of sensitive digestions, skin problems and suspected allergies to meat."

Only three possible health benefits.? Dogs seem to really like meat. A lot. A whole bunch. That's a pretty thin lists of reasons to take a dog off meat.

The grenhouse series: new home

The greenhouse series has moved. You can find it here (http://pvcgreenhouse.blogspot.com/).

I should have some good progress on my own greenhouse contruction after this weekend. I should also be able to focus some attention on the dreadlobster veggie-eats content.

BTW, I was in Vermont this weekned for a wedding. We were visiting my inlaws on their Dairy Farm. Vermont is total cow-ville and very veggie unfriendly. We have to haul in all our own tofu and mock meat if we expect to get any protein (that is not in cheese form)

Also, it snowed 5 inches!!!

The Greenhouse Series: Pre-game

COME ALL, COME ALL, SEE HERE THE START OF THE AMAZING GRANDIOSE STUPENDOUS ALL PVC ROOF DECK GREENHOUSE!!!!!


Last year I overwintered my trees and shrubs by simply packing them with additional mulch and pushing them against the building where there was a slight overhang. They didn't do too well.

Pictured here is the start of my Greenhouse. I am planning a 6' x 8' A-Frame that will be about 9' high at its peak. It will have a door at one end that will be hinged at the top and open like a garage door. It is based on the plans for this wood/pvc combo greenhouse. I've adapted that in-garden design for my own all-pvc roof deck concept.

I have 270 feet of PVC pipe, about 50 pipe fittings (elbows, tees, crosses) for the joints, metals screws, some wire ties, and PVC pipe glue ready to go.

The goal is to have a sturdy structure, that is light weight, as air-tight as possible, that can be broken down in the spring and stored behind the fence out of view.

Updates soon

Tags: greenhouse, pvc, roof deck

October is be nice to froggie month

As if you could even consider taking a scalpel to one of these cute little froggies...

October is Peta's "Cut Out Dissection" month. Peta is encouraging kids to "Cut class, not frogs" in a campaign to raise awareness and end Bio-lab frog dissecting. It is apparently so popular with the kids that PETA cannot distribute campaign promotional stickers to kids fast enough.

While I wouldn't have needed an extra reason to cut class in high school, this seems like a pretty good idea. Fortunately for our high schools, they are not trying to combine their anti-fur campaign with this pro-frog movement: "I'd rather go naked than dissect that frog"

Tags: vegetarian, PETA, peta2

Phoenix walks the line "cruelty-free"

Phoenix has big shoes to fill in his role as Johnny Cash. However, msnbc.com reports that when he fills those shoes he will do so "cruelty-free"

When Joaquin Phoenix walks the line in a Johnny Cash biopic, it will be in plastic cowboy boots. The moody actor is a staunch animal-rights supporter, and drove the wardrobe folks a little batty by insisting on wearing an entirely "cruelty-free"wardrobe, says a source.

Review: Red Bamboo

Red Bamboo is a fine vegan restaurant in New York City. It was recommended to me for it s nice array faux meats. This place did not disappoint. Everything was very good and some of our selections were excellent.

I am keeping this review brief because it is really just for my NY City readers and I don't want to be unfair to my national audience.

I can say that
1) It is small so make reservations
2) They could use a better offering of cocktails
3) A few non-vegan entries (clearly identified)
4) I liked the Grilled Bourbon Chicken particularly

You should try it.


Red Bamboo
140 W 4th StNew York, NY 10012
(212) 260-1212
Cross Street: Avenue of the Americas

Review: Adams Rib

I have been way to slow getting the good word out about Gardenburger. They created this scrumptious fake meat product that is hearty and flavorful. Riblets come two to a box and are individually wrapped. You pierce the plastic wrapper and shove the whole thing in the microwave. Two minutes later you have a big chunk of 'Riblet' in a better that good sauce. The Riblet itself pulls apart like its meat cousin. They really nailed the texture. The sauce it good and smoky. Unlike other fake rib or spare rib product Riblets have no hint of bone-like matter. There's no bone, no fake bone, no molded bone, no picture of a bone and no bone replication.

Riblets are found in the freezer section with about 8 to 10 other similar Gardenburger products. This series is all quite good but all have the same flaws: A bit pricey, too much packaging, and small portions. Nonetheless, I would say you should still sample this product at least once. I don't think it will be on your weekly list but I don;t think you might crave it once and while and bring it home as a treat. I know I do.



Meatless Riblet (Soy Protein Concentrate-Hydrated, Wheat Gluten-Hydrated, Canola Oil, Natural Hickory Smoke Flavor, Yeast Extract, Isolated Soy Protein, Vegetable Gum, Salt, Corn Grits, Malted Barley, Sunflower Oil, Natural Flavors, Caramel Color, Water), Barbecue Sauce (High Fructose Corn Syrup, Water, Tomato Puree, Molasses, Distilled Vinegar, Salt, Modified Food Starch, Natural Smoke Flavor, Spices, Dried Onion, Dried Garlic, Cayenne Pepper).

• Overall Rating: 4
• Similarity to meat (but in a good way): 5
• Similarity to actual food described: 4
• "Worth it?" Rating: 3
• "Would I get them again?": 4
  This product contains corn, soy, sunflower and wheat.
  
  
  
  
  Meatless Riblets
  Serving Size 1 Riblet with sauce (142g)
  Calories 160
  Calories from Fat 45
  Total Fat 5g
  Saturated Fat 0g
  Trans Fat 0g
  Cholesterol 0mg
  Sodium 720mg
  Total Carbohydrate 11g
  Dietary Fiber 4g
  Sugars 7g
  Protein 17g

Vegetarian? Phuket!!!

Thai news reports:

During October 3rd to 11th the whole island of Phuket will covered with
mostly yellow flags, and local people in white clothes, symbolizing the ancient
vegetarian festival which has been practiced for almost two hundred years.

Chairing a press conference held last Friday at the Navamin square in Phuket City, Governor of Phuket, Udomsak Uswarangkura reaffirmed that the island is ready to welcome participants and tourists, both Thais and foreigners, to join in the ceremonial festival, with ample security and facilities.

Wow, what a nice statement from Governor U. Phuket. Phuket's cultural ambassador Holly Cheet added "If you are going to Phuket for the festival you'll surely leave with a smile' and "bring your mother to Phuket"

Mitt Romney and me

Redstate.org reports

Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney likes to tell conservative audiences that
being a conservative Republican in Massachusetts is like being a cattle rancher
at a vegetarian convention.

Of course, the article is rather crtiitical of Mitt but...

Oh, poor victimized conservative republican. It must hurt to be in the minority on all political and social issues including vegetarianism...oh wait, that's me. I'm in the minority.

Poor me.

September is National Chicken Month!

September is National Chicken Month! There is no better way to celebrate Chicken Month than by visiting Eatchicken.com. It is a site created and sponsored by "individuals in the chicken business".

My favorite feature on the site is the 'advanced' chicken search. It is so advanced that it needed a 'tips'' section so that they could explain to the audience the eatchicken.com advancements in chicken search.

"All recipes have been categorized by the chicken part used to prepare the dish. Some recipes use more than one chicken part and are categorize as such. To search for recipes based on chicken part, you can select one or more of the listed parts. Selecting more than one chicken part will not find recipes that contain all of the parts selected.

If more than one part is selected, the results list will include recipes that contain any of the selected parts. For instance, if "Leg" and "Whole" are selected, the ingredients of the resulting list of recipes will include either leg meat or a whole chicken, not necessarily both."

Wow, that is advanced. You need a chicken-parts degree from chicken university to figure out the logic of their search. The sad thing is that I did an advanced chicken parts search on "beaks" and only got one recipe...for Chicken McNuggets (just kidding)

The really suprising thing about eatchicken.com is that it is sponsored by U.S. Poultry & Egg Associations. Don't you think those two assoictions would actally be mortal enemies. Isn't the egg asocition like a Pro-life group and the chicken association more like Pro-choice?

Oh parody namesake! How you disappoint.

I browsed over to the red lobster site just for giggles today. They have the most bizarre flash movie running. It is a 360 degree panoramic view of a Maine-like scene. To view all three degree you have to mouse over the left or right side. I'm not sure how most users would know to do that. There are no instruction what so ever.

In fact when it first start moving I though it was rocking like a boat. I thought I was sea sick.

(also, turn on you sound for ocean and seagull sounds. Do you think seagull is on the menu this week?)

Review: Stonewall's Jerquee

This is just a quick "thumbs up" review for a product I have enjoyed for years. Stonewall's vegetarian Jerquee comes in 8 flavors and I like seven of them ( I've never had the Cajun Bacon). Some are spicy and some like the "wild" and some are almost sweet like the "Terriyaki".

I grabbed a bag at a local store this weekend and munched in the checkout line. This reminded me how much I like the product and that I owed it a review.

The bag contains little round pieces of flavored jerky that you pop into your mount. You will be denied the "tear" and "chew" that you get from veggie jerky sticks or strips. Nonetheless, this is great line of products.

Try 'em. I used to order box loads online.

Hot Salami!!

It seemed like it was high time to review some new faux deli slices. So the next time I was browsing the virtual aisles of Fresh Direct I added Yves Veggie Salami Slices. The folks at Yves make a really good veggie Turkey slice so I was really interested to see if their whole deli counter held up.

The Yves Veggie Salami Slice is, in a word, spicy!! The texture is really good and taste is a very close match for actual salami. But then the spicy back end kicks in an whoa boy. I am in no way squeamish when it comes to spicy food. I've review a few spicy products and I continue to search for great veggie buffalo wings. I like spicy salsa and spicy veggie jerky. However, this Salami packs an unexpected kick that is a bit unsettling. It is no way the spiciest thing you'll ever eat. You won't be running to the sink and drinking from the faucet to quench the heat. However, these slices are bit on the wild side. The heat come from a lot of black pepper (or the like) in the slice.

Overall, this is a good product. I'll have this in the fridge now and then. It makes a nice sandwich and Yves continues to be a vegetarian's friend with this item. It isn't the most exciting product but it adds variety to the Yves line.

• Overall Rating: 3
• Similarity to meat (but in a good way): 4
• Similarity to actual food described: 4
• "Worth it?" Rating: 3
• "Would I get them again?": 3

Ingredients:
water, vital wheat gluten, isolated soy protein, tofu (water, soybeans, magnesium chloride), spices, salt, wheat starch, natural flavor, organic evaporated cane juice, yeast extract, beet root powder, garlic powder, onion powder, natural liquid smoke, carrageenan (from seaweed), vitamins & minerals (vitamin B1(thiamine hydrochloride), vitamin B12 (cyanocobalamin),pantothenic acid (calcium pantothenate), iron oxide, iron (ferric orthophosphate), zinc (zinc oxide), magnesium (dimagnesium phosphate), potassium (dipotassium phosphate)).

PETA's Golden Bun Awards

Peta rated and ranked restaurant and chain veggie faux-meats and such awarding top products their Golden Bun Award. They did a pretty good job giving high marks to some of my favorite brands such as Boca, Gardenburger and Yves.

Bad call on the Veggie sausage from Lightlife. I guess they missed my review

I'll have to get me some Tofurky sausage

Animal lovers group want vegetarian mayor

"The animal-loving PETA folks are hoping to convince Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino to stabilize his fluctuating waistline by going vegetarian.
He's a good mayor and a good man, but he could stand to lose some weight"

That's funny

http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=101718

The truth about "The Shire"

Well, it is no secret that most Worcestershire sauces are non-vegetarian. Lea & Perins Worcestershire sauce is no exception. Their FAQ contains the details. Their honest statement in the FAQ is in clear and unambiguous. Always appreciated. Their unwillingness to create a vegetarian version, less so.

Here's the relevant FAQ:

"Do you make a vegetarian version of Worcestershire Sauce? No. Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce is made to the original recipe created in 1837 and contains anchovies - a type of fish. We believe that altering the recipe to exclude a key ingredient such as anchovies would mean that Lea & Perrins would no longer be the 'original and genuine' Worcestershire Sauce, as claimed on the bottle. "

Worcestershire and anchovies are big Vegetarian 'gotchas' for folks looking for off the shelf barbecue or hot sauce in the average grocery. Many sauces throw in tiny bits of them in rendering useless for the watchful vegetarian.

For those interested Annie's Natural makes a Veggie version of Worcestershire. I've never tried this brand but have found other brands to be perfectly good for the home kitchen. (Should it get one of those 'oh so catchy' veggie names like Best-o-shire)(maybe not)

Review: Breakstone's Sour Cream Fat Free

Breakstone's Sour Cream Fat Free...What would I do without you?


Anyone who has followed my reviews knows full well I am a card carrying ovo lacto vegetarian but not a vegan. In case I have not been fully outed as a non-vegan, this post will leave no doubt. I am about to extol the virtues of Breakstone's Sour Cream Fat Free.

Generally speaking, Mexican cuisine lends itself very nicely to a vegetarian lifestyle. Beans, rice, tortillas and cheese can be combined, mixed and matched into all sorts of concoctions. This fare get even better when spiced up with good old salsa or some other sauce. Here's where we get to the sour cream.

Sour cream on top of cheesy spicy hearty fare really adds contrast and coolness. Real sour cream also adds tons of fat.

I find the BreakStone's Fate Free Sour Cream to be a truly great substitute for its fatty cousin. You get all the flavor and coolness without the fat and guilt. You may not end up like me, but I have come to prefer the fat free variety over the real thing. Real sour cream just seems too heavy to use. It is so thick and so rich it is almost feels like butter now. It overwhelms the food rather than just complimenting it.

I have tried a few different fat free sour creams and Breakstone's stands out. It is thick and creamy and, again, without the fatty weight or real sour cream. Some other brands run a little like Yogurt. The Breakstone's can really stand up on a spoon. The 'sour' comes through and provides the flavor contrast to your meals when desired.

So while this is not strictly a vegetarian product, it is quite yummy and useful

• Overall Rating: 4
• Similarity to meat (but in a good way): n/a
• Similarity to actual food described: 4
• "Worth it?" Rating: 5
• "Would I get them again?": 5

Ingredients: CULTURED PASTEURIZED GRADE A NONFAT MILK, DRIED CORN SYRUP, FOOD STARCH-MODIFIED, CREAM, LESS THAN 2% OF STARCH, ARTIFICIAL COLOR, MALTODEXTRIN, XANTHAN GUM, NATURAL FLAVOR, VITAMIN A PALMITATE.

Serving Size 32g Servings per package 14
Amount Per Serving
Calories
30
Calories from Fat
0
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g

0 %
Saturated Fat 0g

0 %
Cholesterol 5mg

1 %
Sodium 25mg

1 %
Total Carbohydrate 5g

2 %
Dietary Fiber 0g

0 %
Sugars 2g

Protein 1g

Vitamin A 4 %
Vitamin C 0 %
Calcium 4 %
Iron 0 %

Review: Gimme Lean! Sausage Style

From our friends at LiteLife comes their Gimme Lean: Sausage Style. This impressive packaged faux meat is truly loaded with "Style". I like the sausage casing-like wrapper, the density and weight of the unit, and the very fashionable strawberries flanking the sausage patties on the design. This is a faux meat that is ready to go out on the town.

Unfortunately, I don't find this to be the best tasting veggie sausage around. I've had this product in my house numeorus time. I use it mainly for breakfast sausages. It could be that it has other, better, uses than as a breakfast sausage (maybe the strawberries are trying to tell us that this is more of a dessert sausage).

The sausage flavor is too subtle and the main flavors that come through seem to be salt and pepper alone. I prefer other patty style sausage like the ones from Boca or Morning Star. Additionally, with those two brands the patties are made for you. The Gimme Lean is pretty inconvenient and has nether a patty or link version of their product

The first few times I sampled Gimme Lean: Sausage Style, I made the mistake of opening up the whole casing and making patties like one would make hamburgers. Don't bother. If you do like Gimme lean, let me suggest that you take a sharp serated knife and cut into the wrapped sausage hunk and pre-make patties that way. (see image below)It was much easier and saves you the trouble of dealing with patty formation early in the morning.

• Overall Rating: 2
• Similarity to meat (but in a good way): 3
• Similarity to actual food described: 2
• "Worth it?" Rating: 2
• "Would I get them again?": 2

About these ratings

Nutrition Facts
Per Single Serving
Serving Size 2 oz. 57g

Calories 50 Fat 0g Saturated Fat 0g Cholesterol 0mg Sodium 330mg Carbohydrate 4g Fiber 2g Sugar 1g Protein 8g Soy Protein 7g

Ingredients
Made from water, soy protein concentrate, tapioca starch, soy sauce (water, soybeans, wheat, salt), soy protein isolate, wheat gluten, malt extract, evaporated cane juice, beet powder, spices, natural flavors (from vegetable sources), vegetable gum. No nitrites. No MSG.