We arrived quite late on Thursday night – the Winter Solstice. Too late for dinner or even a snack, we were just in time to write out a wish on a scrap of paper and throw it into the dying fire. Then, with Pagan rituals out of the way, we were off to bed.



The next few days were overflowing with festive foods and lots of fun, like this:

Fresh-baked bread, raw granola, clementines. Almond milk for Waits, coffee for me.

Damian’s stepfather, Lee, is a master goldsmith. And although he no longer makes jewelry professionally, he still keeps a workshop. Coolest computer case EVER? Methinks yes . . .

Lee is also an accomplished bread-baker, so there were plenty of homemade loafs:

His sourdough starter, which “went vegan” a few months after we did. It hasn’t had any milk in years, which means it makes the most amazing vegan artisan breads. Lee gave me a jar of this to take home, and I plan on delving into the world of bread baking this winter, yipee!

Potato caraway sourdough, on the rise . . .

. . . and rising . . .

. . . and baked! This was for Christmas dinner, so good!

Just a few sweet slices of the soured multigrain loaf we were snacking on all week.

Speaking of snacking, there was plenty of that as well:

Hummus for writing time.

Tea for two.

Coffee and good ol’ apple pie

Nuts from our stockings on Christmas morning.

And this gorgeous spread on Christmas afternoon.

Which featured my homemade cultured cashew cheese dip with chives, sun-dried tomatoes, and spinach. HELLO! (recipe to come soon!)

Lillejuleaften



Damian’s family always celebrates Lillejuleaften, which means “Little Yule Eve”, which is basically Christmas Eve Eve. We lit a candle and set it in the window, built up a big roaring fire, and feasted. I cooked!

Giant salad with romaine, bell pepper, carrots, and homemade noochy vinaigrette.

Giant bowl of pasta! Rice pasta, extra virgin olive oil, peppers and onions sautéed with a little liquid smoke, Field Roast apple smoked sage sausages, and a liberal sprinkling of pepper jack Daiya. Mmmhmm.

We’d picked up this salted caramel apple pie on our way out of town, from our favorite bakery.

Christmas Eve




On Christmas Eve we made another delicious vegan feast, but this one was a joint endeavor. Pizza! With veggie sausage, fresh tomatoes, black olives, Daiya cheddar, and all laid out on a homemade sourdough crust. Damian’s grandmother declared this [vegan!] pizza “the best pizza she’s ever had”. Spectacular, right? Oh, and I agreed!

Another enormous salad with all the fixin’s.

♥ A family of jewelers, can you tell? ♥

A-Mazing!

♥ Opening gifts on Christmas Eve ♥

Christmas!



Christmas was wonderful, the morning so full of joy and love! Christmas with a child is a whole different experience, and I’m happy to say that I think I’m officially retiring my Grinch hat. This shit is just too much fun! Waits was adorable and gleeful and sort of loved the bags more than the toys, except he’s pretty super stoked on his brand new baby guitar. Thank you Grandma!!!

Christmas dinner was so lovely, and I used it to break in my favorite gift: my very first cast iron! I actually teared up with excitement when I unwrapped this, because I am that much of a geek.

Caramelizing leeks to break in the skillet.

And searing the sprouts.

Christmas dinner: mashed potatoes with gravy, homemade bread, braised brussels sprouts with caramelized leeks, and Field Roast’s “Celebration Roast”. PERFECT HOLIDAY MEAL!

For dessert I made a raw Chai Cheesecake (recipe by the wonderful Natalia KW). It was the perfect rich, spicy topper to a perfect winter meal.

Off camera outtake, haha

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

~~~

So I seriously spent the four days away almost entirely in my pajamas. Yeah! But, we did venture out to the market on Christmas day, and I did wear my special Christmas socks:



Waits was super stylin’ in his Christmas moose onesie, padded vest, and red fleece earflap cap:




I hope that you all had an amazing weekend, whether you were celebrating or not. Much love to you all, from all of us!

I was super stumped for the longest time, days actually, but I was having fun pondering. I would think of a food, and then imagine how that food made me feel. That’s how it finally came to me.

There is nothing, not even close, nothing else in this world, that gives me the same warm-and-fuzzy safe-at-home comforting feeling, as my OtherMother’s homemade chicken and matzo ball soup. Hot, salty broth (with plenty of parsley), generous pieces of fork-tender carrots and celery. And of course, those delicate, fluffy, oh-so-soft dough balls.

That is my dying wish of a meal.

And so I set about recreating it – veganized of course! – just in time for Hanukkah. I know that matzo ball soup is more often eaten for Passover, but I really associate it with this holiday. If you’re more of a traditionalist, just bookmark the recipe for spring.

Also, I know that there’s quite a few vegan matzo ball recipes floating around the Internet. I know because I’ve tried most of them over the years, and unfortunately, I’ve had nothing but failures. My matzo balls always disintegrate into matzo fluff! Figuring out an egg-free matzo ball was not an easy task, but I finally did it, and these babies are well-bound. They’ll stay together, I promise!



Ingredients:
1 cup matzo meal (matzo ball soup mix is pictured, but I recommend buying plain matzo meal)
3 egg replacer “eggs” (flax eggs work, but will change the flavor)
6 oz silken tofu (1/2 package)
1 tablespoon neutral vegetable oil, like canola

16 cups vegetable broth, either homemade or salted bouillon cubes (NOT boxed broth)
medium yellow onion, chopped large
3-5 carrots, cut into thirds
3-5 ribs celery, cut into thirds
oil for sautéing
small bunch parsley, diced (a few sprigs reserved for garnish)

1 cup soy curls
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning, 21-seasoning salute, Spike, or other similar spice blend



Instructions:

The night before or morning of: Make your “eggs” according to instructions on the package (for flax eggs see here) and place in the refrigerator to set up. In the meantime, place the tofu and oil in a food processor and combine until smooth. Add the matzo meal and “eggs” and blend completely. Place this mixture in a bowl, cover, and refrigerate for at least 6 hours.

To make the soup: Line a cookie sheet or baking pan with parchment paper. Using water-wet hands, form the chilled matzo dough into balls, roughly 1-2 inches in diameter. Pace them on the parchment paper-lined tray, then put the tray in the refrigerator to keep the matzo balls chilled.

In a big soup pot, heat the vegetable broth, bringing to a boil then reducing to a slow simmer. Meanwhile, set a large skillet over medium heat. Add oil for sautéing, then add the onion. Sauté until glassy. Add the carrots and celery and continue cooking, but be careful not to burn the onions. Reduce heat if necessary. When the carrots have brightened nicely, transfer the entire contents to the soup pot. Stir in the parsley as well.

Place the dehydrated soy curls in a big bowl. Ladle some of the hot broth into the bowl, enough to cover. Allow the soy curls to rehydrate for a few minutes, and get the sauté pan hot again. Add the olive oil, allow it to head up, and then transfer the soy curls (not the broth) to the hot pan. Add the spice mix and stir frequently. The leftover broth can go back into the soup pot. When the soy curls are nicely browned you can remove the pan from the heat.

While the soy curls are cooking, remove the matzo balls from the fridge. Drop them one by one into the soup pot. It is very important to keep a LOW simmer. If there’s too much action the matzo balls won’t make it, so no rolling boil! Once all the matzo balls are in, cover the pot and keep that lid tight for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes, remove the lid, add the soy curls, stir, and serve. Garnish with a bit of parsley.




This recipe is a *spot on* recreation of my OtherMother’s chicken and matzo ball soup, which I used to eat and eat and eat until I had to unbutton my pants. Comfort food at it’s absolute finest, as far as I’m concerned. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

What would your “last meal” be?

Have you started making your holiday gifts yet? What?! It’s already that time of year again? I know, I know . . .

This is a project that i’ve been meaning to do for years – yes, literally years – but it takes a few weeks to complete, and I’d never had my act together far enough in advance. But this year . . . this year I remembered! And I took myself and my baby to the liquor store, and we got us some vodka, and we went to the herb shoppe, and we got us some vanilla beans, and we got this project started a whole whopping 6 weeks ahead of deadline. Woo-hoo!

And now you, dear friends, have 5 weeks, which is plenty of time to make your own lovely, handcrafted, better-than-anything-you-could-ever-buy, delicious vanilla extract. Such a sweet and simple gift; both practical and charming (the best kind!)

But don’t wait on this one! 4 weeks is really the minimum amount of time required. Here’s what you’ll need:



- Vodka (you can use this website to determine which brands are vegan!)
- Vanilla beans
- Lime (for the cocktail, obvi)

* Note: I used 4 vanilla beans in a standard 750 ml bottle. Adjust the amount of beans to suit the volume of vodka you use; err on the side of extra beans.


To make your extract, begin by pouring off about 2 shots worth of vodka. Maybe pour them over ice into a swanky lowball (or small mason jar if you’re a hippie like me). Maybe add some lime soda and a liberal splash of lime. Maybe . . . wait what? Oh yes, the extract.

Cut the vanilla beans into pieces. Drop them in the vodka.



Out of sight, out of mind. Put the bottle away for 4-6 weeks. When you pull it out again, it will be a dark amber color (I’ll show you mine when it’s done!)

Pour the solution through a mesh strainer or cheesecloth, then transfer to small bottles. Pretty bottles work well if you’re gifting. If you’re just making this for yourself (it’s significantly cheaper than buying real vanilla extract), you can simply use old maple syrup bottles, old salad dressing bottles, or even old mason jars. The end, so easy.

Now, about that cocktail . . .



Here’s some light reading material to keep you and your cocktail company – a little list of past “Homemade Holidays” projects:

Vegan Taxidermy
Vanilla Bean Sugar
Reusable “Java Jackets”
Crock Pot Candles
Custom Tea Bags

Thanksgiving has always, always been my favorite holiday. It’s one of the few that’s not steeped in religion, that’s not hyped with commercialism. Thanksgiving is just about good people coming together, and good food on the table, and stopping to give a little gratitude. Of course it’s my favorite!

But as a vegan, Thanksgiving – as most people celebrate it – can also be difficult. It can be a sad season, for sure. This year I’m looking forward to exploring some of these issues here on Bonzai, and this, my friends, is a spectacular place to start.




You may remember from past reviews (omg, I forgot about those pictures of Waits! dying!), that I’m a super huge fan of Nathalie VanBalen (author of Garlic-Onion-Beet-Spinach-Mango-Carrot-Grapefruit Juice). So when Nathalie emailed me about her new coloring zine, you better believe I was excited! Nathalie wrote:

Last week I had one of those cartoon light bulbs appear above my head: “Aha! The world needs a vegan Thanksgiving coloring zine!” So I wrote a celebratory, rhyming poem called Happy Thanksliving!, cancelled my weekend plans, and have been drawing drawing drawing . . . The zine is lively and upbeat, while raising some good questions about turkeys, American Indians, and more. It celebrates fall produce in all of its glory. Here’s an excerpt:


There isn’t a turkey on our table
and we’re happy to tell you why-
because turkeys are friends (like cats and dogs)
and feathered friends must fly!

Potatoes, pumpkins, carrots, CRUNCH!
Greens & beans, oh my-
Thank you thank you apple tree,
tonight we’re having pie!




LOVE! So good, right?!

I’ve read this to Waits over and over, and he just adores it. The rhymes are clever, the message is subtle and sweet and totally positive, and the whole thing reads like a true celebration of compassion.

Plus, you know, COLORING! So fun.

My little turkey . . .

The details:

-zines cost $5 each (this includes shipping within the U.S.)
-20 pages, black and white, printed on 100% post-consumer recycled paper
-bound with thread rather than staples for the safety of little ones
-coloring fun for people of all ages! (Sayward’s note – I can attest to this!)


You can order your copy of Happy Thanksliving here, and I really hope that you will! You’ll be supporting an incredible self-funded artist and an all-around wonderful lady. And of course, you’ll also be helping to spread a message of compassion for this holiday season!

And with that, I leave you with an outtake. What a turkey! (and I mean that as the highest of compliments, of course!)

• Recipes! That tahini dip I’m addicted to? yup. Those pulp crackers I’m always on about. Uh-huh. xGFx sugar-free pumpkin muffins??? err, not yet . . .
• Photos from the Farmer’s Market (done and done)
• Photos from my garden & the 2011 micro-farm (check!)
• A series of essays explaining the food experiments I’ve been conducting on myself this year, as well as a discussion of self-experimentation in general, and potentially touching on disordered eating/orthorexia in the food blogging world. (off to a great start, and excited to continue!)
• Answering your questions – so please ask them! Are you curious about anything vegan- or raw-related? Lay it on me, and I may just feature it in a post! (This didn’t really go as planned; no “question posts”)
• Pictures of vegan kids enjoying vegan eats. (yes, lots and lots and birthdays even!)

Plus there was so much more! So now I’d love to hear from YOU! What did you think of MoFo? Which topics did you like best, and which were not your cup of tea? Did you enjoy the daily posting, or too much? Any complaints? Suggestions? Lay it on me!

I’m going to take it reeeal easy on blogging this week, as I try to catch my breath and work to tame this mountain of email. Oof . . . wish me luck!

and I’d already witnessed your unconditional love
when you became my husband

but seeing you as a father
shine love so blindingly, brilliantly bright
inspires me to be a better person
like you always do

Happy Father’s Day

Happy Mothers Day

Bonzai Moms

(and aspiring moms!)

love,
Waits

So here’s what I do to ensure I’m keeping my nutrients up – my tried and true and time-tested vegan tips for travel:


Number 1

Get Groceries. Whether you’re staying in a home or a hotel, the very first thing you should do is stockpile basics. This way no matter what, you’ll always have a fallback and you won’t have to fight a blood sugar crash.

Your options will, of course, depend on where you’re visiting. If you can find a Whole Foods, a Trader Joe’s, or a smaller health food store, then you’re pretty much stoked. Use Happy Cow to find vegan-friendly grocers. But if all you can manage is a standard supermarket, you’re still okay. Focus on protein sources since those are hardest to find in a non-veg setting.

For everyone and at any market, especially if you don’t have access to a fridge: peanut butter, a vegan loaf of bread, a bunch of apples/bananas/other fruit that pairs with pb, oranges/other vitamin-C rich fruits (traveling is hard on your immune system!), oats, nuts, dried fruit, tortilla chips, canned beans to eat with the chips (if you packed a can opener – pack a can opener!)

At the bare minimum, grab peanut butter, bread, and apples. This is our go-to road-trip food. Easy to eat in the car and it covers all the macronutrients! Also, if you forgot to pack them, grab a few knives and napkins from the deli counter.

For lucky ducks who have access to a fridge: hummus and carrots/celery/other ‘dip’ veggies, alt milk for your coffee/cereal, salsa for those chips, jam, tofu

For the super luckies who have access to a fridge AND a real health food store: you’re set dude, go wild. Snag the alt butter, get easy grab-n-go goodies like dolmas, shelled edamame, fancy veggies, fancy dips, and why not stock up on dessert too, right? You’re on vacation!


Number 2

Dining Out: Un-American Activities. When choosing a restaurant there’s no better bet than an ‘ethnic’ spot – as seen in the remains of that fabulous Pho up there (whoops, too excited by the food to photograph it). On this last trip we enjoyed this Vietnamese meal with an old pal, I had a Thai feast with my father, Damian did a bro-date over Japanese fare, and I met a group of friends for an Indian lunch buffet! Other excellent options include Ethiopian, Chinese, Mexican, Middle Eastern, and Mediterranean.

Each of these cuisines offers a number of already vegan, or easily vegan-izable, entrées. However it does help to know the region-specific ingredient risks – those sneaky animal products that are employed by each country. So! At Vietnamese and Chinese be wary of fish sauce, oyster sauce, and random unexpected egg. At Thai you’ll need to avoid fish sauce or shrimp paste in your curries and egg in your noodles or rice. When eating Japanese ask about egg in the tempura and bonito (fish flakes) in the miso soup. At Indian and Ethiopian just make sure your food isn’t cooked in ghee. Unfortunately the naan is most likely off-limits – but the injera is probably safe! Mmm, teff . . . Okay, moving on, Mexican is pretty safe as long as the beans aren’t flavored with lard and the rice isn’t made in chicken broth. Mediterranean and Middle eastern both run the regular gamut of sneaky animal ingredients. Pay special attention for hidden dairy – butter in the baklava and feta in the fatoush.


Numbers 3 and 4

Be Like Autumn Squirrel – Always Foraging. Keep your eyes peeled and your vegan radar on, even if you aren’t currently hungry. You never know when you just may come across some unexpected delight – which you can always save for later. Seize these opportunities like a good little squirrel, and store your treasures away until you want them.

Be Like Spring Cow – Always Grazing. Keep snacking throughout the day. Yes, keep eating! Yay to that advice, right? But really, if you can keep your blood sugar steady, you wont risk getting that ‘rabid hunger’ that drives you to desperation . . . and Doritos (yes, some of them are vegan – no, none of them are worth eating!)


Number 5

Choose Nutrient Density. Let’s face it, you’re on vacation and you have less control over where and what you eat – that most likely means more sugar, more salt, and more greasy goodness. And that’s fine if it’s fun for you to splurge once in a while! But what’s not fun is running yourself ragged ’cause your body’s in nutritional shock. So, if the opportunity for a really healthy meal comes along? Take It! When I spotted goji berries on my godparent’s counter, I knew I had to use them. Along with raw almond butter and coconut cream, that bowl of kasha up there was a seriously abundant breakfast. Other powerful players to watch for: kale, lentils, spinach, raw veggies, seaweeds, and smoothies. Yum!


Number 6

Peanut Butter Is Mana. I said it before but I really feel like it needs it’s own number. Peanut butter is travel gold! It’s got protein and good fats to keep you full, it’s delicious and always satisfies, it’s available literally everywhere, and best of all, it’s versatile as all get out. Slather it on fruit for a healthy and filling breakfast. Spread it onto bread, with jam or nanners or romaine (try it!), and you’ve got yourself a quick lunch. Toss it with noodles and steamed veggies and voila! Dinner! Seriously, it’s a travelers best friend. It’s portable, non-perishable, and always palatable!

Remember though, not all pb is created equal. Always read the ingredients and watch out for added sugar (so totally unnecessary), added oil (makes no sense) and added dairy (milk fat, milk solids, whey) (WHY??! WTF WHY?) Also, you know, natural is better and organic if you can!


Number 7

Travel Is Full Of Surprises. Vegan donut holes what? Well yes then, yes I don’t mind if I do!

You’re on vacation and you never know what you’re going to stumble across. Carpe diem! Seize that shit!

Sucking down coffee while playing with Waits on the airport floor, early o’clock.

It’s not too hard to find vegan food while traveling, but finding good vegan food . . . well, that’s another matter altogether. Leave it up to the fates and you’re at the will and whim of the airport – or worse yet the gas station – gods. You’ll most likely find yourself dining on french fries and iceberg ‘salad’. Just a little planning goes a long way towards keeping you healthy and happy through the turmoils of modern travel. Here’s how I approached my most recent day of transit:

The Night Before

Travel days will always be nutritionally compromised, no matter how well you prepare. So I make sure my meals the day before are packing a powerful punch. This dinner was all about the mighty pile of swiss chard, accompanied by a hearty chili and some gluten-free cornbread. YUM


Brekkies

I made a jar of overnight oats for some super easy grab-and-go eats. This fills all three travel criteria: effortless, filling, and nutritious. Oh, and it’s also really yummy! Eaten on the way to the airport.


Caffeine

Fact: Airport coffee is better than no coffee at all. I even found some soy milk!


Fast
It’s not so easy on digestion to be under cabin pressure, so I try to avoid eating while in the air. This is why an awesome early breakfast is especially important.


Lunch

Once our rental car was secured and we were on the road (with a 2 hour drive ahead of us), I busted out the pb & j sammies I’d packed. English muffin bread for the win!


Caffeine

Somewhere along the coast, a necessary refueling. Love it or hate it at least Starbucks offers up consistency.


Refresher!

We hit up the fruitbowl as soon as we reached our destination. After a day of tan-colored carbohydrates, some bright and hydrating fruit was just what we needed to tide us over till dinner.


Feast




A fabulous home cooked dinner. Fennel polenta with marinara and cashew cream. A badass salad. Wine. The perfect healthy cap to a very long day!


Coming soon: tips for vegan vacationing! Also, this post has been brought to you from the lap of a very adept Japanese massage chair. Please excuse any typing errors . . . this thing is throwing me around!

But I grew up in California, where “seasons” meant a change of 20º in either direction. Here in the pacific northwest the summer really means something, and the winter is all-consuming. My life is guided by “light” in a way that that I’d never understood before. And for every blissful moment of sundown-at-ten midsummer madness, there’s a difficult, up-before-dawn and wind-in-your-bones winter counterpart.

Damian and I celebrating our first Winter Solstice together, circa 2006.

Tomorrow, 21 December, is the shortest day of the year. Ever since the Autumn Equinox, the days have been shorter than the nights – and getting shorter, shorter, shorter. Tomorrow marks the height of darkness. The following day the light begins to grow again.

The Winter Solstice is celebrated worldwide and across all cultures. We are all tied to the earth and her seasons; we are all affected by light. And this shortest day of the year offers a unique opportunity for reflection. It’s a chance to examine our own relationship with the darknesses of the world. A time to hold space for our own dark thoughts.

Back home the Solstice was a favorite holiday. It meant reuniting with lifelong companions, it was deeply steeped in tradition. There was a shared and sacred sunset, and the ritual making of fire. There was the rock labyrinth; there was feast and drink. There was always the circle for sharing. And, there was always the reading of this poem:

“WILD GEESE”
by Mary Oliver

You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about your despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting –
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.

Blessings for your Solstice,