Falafel Enchiladas

Ingredients:

Falafel mix (I used one by Al Fex Authentic Middle Eastern Cuisine)

3/4 cup rice (dry, uncooked)

1 1/2 cups water

1 pinch saffron threads

1 pinch powdered ginger

1 pinch garlic powder

1 Tbsp olive oil or butter

1 avocado

1 can vegetarian refried beans

1 can garlic & oil petite diced tomatoes

1 can enchilada sauce

1/2 cup grated Colby cheese

6-8 burritos

Instructions:

1. Use falafel mix as directed.
2. While the falafel is cooking, put the rice, water, saffron, ginger, garlic and oil/butter in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, then turn down the heat and allow rice to steam for about half an hour.
3. Mash the avocado and mix it with the refried beans.
4. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.
5. When the falafel and rice are done, layer the bean/avocado mix, rice, drained petite tomatoes, and 2-3 pieces of falafel on each burrito.
6. Wrap the enchiladas and place in 9x13 pan. Pour enchilada sauce over them and cover with shredded cheese.
7. Cook the enchiladas 20 minutes or until cheese has all melted.

Wine of the Week - Bosco 2007 Russian River Syrah

Great wine for a great cause.  Carivintas Winery supports animal rescue charities, and their wines happen to be good too.  It's a win-win.
This syrah is rich and leaves a pleasant coat on your mouth, with a great flowering finish.  Enjoy as a treat, not with a meal.
13.8% alcohol

(Indoor) Picnic Birthday Party!

My baby is 1! We through her a big birthday party in her grandma & grandpa’s backayard with a picnic style lunch. Simple munchies to start – tortilla chips, salsa, pita chips, veggies and hummus. An assortment of salads: simple green, potato, and pasta. For the main event, we catered wraps, because I am not super mom and had to farm out some of the work. It’s good to admit when we’re not perfect. Dessert: Blondies (because she got her daddy’s hair. If my genes had been stronger we would’ve had brownies), made by my fantastic-best-friend-since-4^th-grade, Ariel, fruit salad, and a home-made and –decorated birthday cake. It was the largest party I’ve ever organized and hosted. And it was fantastic!

And now for the recipes:

A mega batch of Picnic Potato Salad (I used 9 lbs of potatoes, so 6 times that recipe!)

Pasta Salad (my mother-in-law’s recipe):

1 package of pasta (we used rotini)

Chopped celery, green onion, red pepper, zucchini and broccoli (wing it, keep chopping until it looks like a good amount!)

For the dressing, we mixed together red wine vinegar and olive oil (I wish I could remember the amounts, but I don't! I'm sure you could wing it and figure it out to taste), plus 1/2 tsp of oregano, basil and garlic powder. Salt & pepper to taste and add a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. It tastes best after at least a night in the fridge.

Kid’s pasta salad:

Frozen Mediterrenean Veggie blend from Whole Foods (zucchini, yellow squash, red pepper, onion, green bean..) steamed, chopped into baby-sized bits, mixed with orzo, topped with a splash of orzo and a sprinkle of dried basil and oregano.

Fruit salad (a bit of everything that looked good at the market - strawberries, blueberries, kiwi, grapes, and peaches)

Blondies (recipe from Smitten Kitten, with chocolate chips added because chocolate chips are delicious)

Birthday Cake (Lemony Vanilla variation of the basic vanilla cupcakes in Vegan Cupcakes take over the World, multiplied by 8, with vanilla buttercream from the same book, covered with Wilton fondant) 

Finished product

Being enjoyed by one of our little guests

For the love of Strawberries - Cookies

Happy July! My favorite month - Independence Day, ComicCon, and of course, my birthday! To celebrate this special month, I'm dedicating this month's post to the perfect summer fruit - Strawberries!

The first strawberry post is a really yummy and semi-healthy dessert. Once I saw this recipe from AllRecipes.com I knew I had to try it, and it was a hit!



Of course, I veganized it - using flaxseed instead of eggs - and no one knew the difference. I also only used about a cup of sugar and the strawberries were sweet enough!

Wine of the Week - Sort This Out 2009 Grenache

The most cleverly named line of wines from Sort This Out is their Oh My Gosh! Grenache.  The 2009 is an aggressive little number.  Hot.  Very hot.  The high alcohol content is the most present detail you'll taste.  I won't lie: this wine got me drunker than a wine should, and it did it fast.  Basically the exact opposite of last week's wine.
Overall, the 2009 Grenache is plenty drinkable.  If you're having a louder party, this is the way to go.  But if you're focusing on taste or trying to have a mellow evening, be sure to avoid this one.