October 14, 2023
Cat sitting this guy, I was relaxing on Long Island’s North Shore. So I started each morning with a bite and coffee from the area’s high quality coffee shops… This guy made sure I was up early. A latte from Southdown Coffee in Glen Cove… just perfection. $14 for one Read more…
October 13, 2023
With plans to catch up with some old friends, I headed to Manhattan’s East Village, my old stomping ground. It’s always nice to walk these streets–monitor the changes, assess the level of its downfall. A Buffalo bar I was excited to learn that Seasoned Vegan, which had recently closed after Read more…
After an uneventful drive back into the NYC area, some sustenance before meeting up with some old work friends. The outstanding Earthen would do the trick. Some wine to get things started… What was I craving? The Sweet & Spicy Chick’n Sandwich is fried mushroom in a sweet chili sauce, Read more…
October 12, 2023
Now that I live here, I am establishing food routines. Though cooking and baking a lot more than when I used to visit, here are some recent vegan bites from the very vegan friendly city! Red Fern, the area’s only all-vegan restaurant really, has become an easy go-to for delivery. Read more…
Since beginning Hello Fresh a few weeks back, a service that had once made me scoff “Just go to the grocery store!”, I’ve come to see the value of it. Not only are the portioned kits and illustrated recipe cards are perfect for my guy’s son’s entry into the world Read more…
Using the last of the store-bought puff pastry, these very easy apple pop tarts. The apple stash is dwindling! I do believe I will meet my goal of using all the apples we picked. Many recipes have these made with honey, but I just used maple syrup. The pastry dough Read more…
October 10, 2023
Now back to apples! This recipe was the reason I wanted to make apple butter… Cinnamon buns made with apple butter both in the dough and the filling. After a huge mess up with the recipe the day before, day two I was back for the attack. [If you must Read more…
October 9, 2023
Officially obsessed, I head to Allegany State Park in spite of some humdrum weather in hopes of capturing more gorgeous foliage. Though some of my favorite shops were on the way near Gillies Hill State Forest, the trip was quick recon to see what the park had in store for Read more…
October 8, 2023
Yes, I coated a perfectly sweet and wholesome apple with a sticky candy coating. I am guilty. And once they were made, I basked in their candy apple red but had no desire to eat ’em. So let’s just look and save ourselves a trip to the dentist.
October 7, 2023
This autumn I was bit by the leaf peeping bug early on. Perhaps because I was finally closer to nature as I had hoped I’d be for quite some time. Here is to the beauty that is now so close to home. I hope you are finding the place you Read more…
October 6, 2023
After receiving a bunch of tomatoes from my guy’s dad’s garden, I put them all to good use, making pasta sauce in the slow cooker… so I can do other things with apples. Have you ever made tomato sauce in a slow cooker? Did I commit some kind of sacrilege? Read more…
October 5, 2023
Here, look at how beautiful this place is, one of my new favorite places in New York.
October 4, 2023
Every apple haul needs to include a batch of applesauce, the O.G. apple dish with deep nostalgic ties. Considering I wanted to get way more creative with my apples, I opted for a small portion with the goal of eating with some yummy vegan pierogis from Polska Chata. First I Read more…
Making apple butter would use a whopping 5 1/2 pounds of apples! No peeling, no hands on work at all until after many hours of baking in the slow cooker. This recipe was easy peasy… The fresh apples ready for their fate Spiced and sugared After the overnight… zombie apples! Read more…
October 3, 2023
With an unseasonable heatwave hitting us for several days, a spontaneous trip to Ontario Beach Park would prove to usher back all that indescribable summer magic. First a walk down the long pier to work up a sweat. We saw tremendous fish off the side of the pier! Into Lake Read more…
These Apple Rose tarts might be the easiest and prettiest of apple baking. All you need are some strips of pastry dough. You can purchase premade for an extremely easy endeavor or make your own! Pepperidge Farms puff pastry dough is vegan, though pumped with garbagey stuff. I would use Read more…
October 1, 2023
Since moving out of New York City, I have been surrounding myself with the beauty of Western New York, with fervor. Perhaps in an attempt to undo all the unnaturalness of my physical existence in one of the largest cities in the country, I hunt for landmarks of a different Read more…
September 30, 2023
Now that I can so easily access peak foliage in the great outdoors, unobstructed by manmade distractions, a photo dump of some gorgeous autumn color. I can’t believe how beautiful my life is now.
I have likely said this before… but I’ll say it again. Discovering a place to explore by happenstance is always very exciting. I drove by some railroad tracks and did my usual (lifted my feet and made a wish. But in the corner of my eye, the colorful view of Read more…
September 29, 2023
For my second usage of our haul of apples, a shockingly easy vegan apple strudel! The recipe from Connoisseurus Veg utilizes store-bought puff pastry dough and a delicious filling mixture of apples, sugar, raisins, pecans, rum, cinnamon, vanilla and lemon juice. I sliced them thin on the mandoline, though you Read more…
September 28, 2023
Rochester has so many vegan options to try. And I keep stumbling upon menus with amazing dishes to try purely by chance. In this latest case, it is Lento Restaurant. I found this dreamy vegan option when I tried to find a place that had deep-fried squash blossoms for my Read more…
Another full moon on the porch in Rochester, NY. This one, September’s Harvest Moon. Regretfully, I took these shots using the auto-focus. I am now realizing it isn’t as sharp as when I use the manual focus. A lovely mistake to learn. Next full moon will be in October! Oh, Read more…
September 25, 2023
Now that I have a slew of apples to use, my first undertaking would be from Rainbow Nourishment, one of my favorite vegan blogs to hunt for recipes. It starts with a quick crust in the food processor. I made two tarts. This is the first, the circle. As a Read more…
September 24, 2023
My guy’s son is a budding chef! So he’s started to try his skills on some Hello Fresh meals. Because he is a very sweet boy, he includes vegan meals for me to enjoy too. But this first go I would try to replicate his non-vegan meal as a vegan Read more…
What is Fall without apple picking? Now that I am not stuck in a grimy metropolis, it would be easier to embrace this autumn tradition. So we packed the gang to pick a massive haul of apples from Wickham Farms. Don’t waste time with the low hanging fruit! The Gala Read more…
September 23, 2023
Tonight’s date night was The Sheffield… because I just happened to stumble upon their menu and discovered an exciting vegan option: The CLT. But first, a drink! Here it is… the CLT: Smoked crispy coconut bacon on sour dough with tomato, lettuce & vegan aioli Wowzer, would you look at Read more…