Spring mushrooms

A few weeks ago I got the urge to hunt morels.  People were posting pictures on Facebook left and right, raving about their delicious, meaty un-meat meals.  I wanted to find a morel.  A few friends wanted to go disc golfing at a local course a few days later, and one had seen morels on his last trip there. 

I was going to find a morel.

While they played, I tromped through the woods, determined to find some glorious mushrooms.  Let's be honest, I had no idea what I was doing.  (Something about looking for dead trees, I think?)  Needless to say, I wound up with mosquito bites, and no mushrooms. 

I joined back up with my group and shortly after, my friend Molly spotted a morel, in plain view, directly off a path near a fairway.  It was kind of like a scene from a movie where a beam of light lands on a treasure chest- just a mushroom popping out of the green in plain view of anyone who'd walk by. 

We investigated the area with our group of five and scrounged up over twenty mushrooms!  Behold:

We looked around through the rest of walk, but only found one more mushroom.  At the end of it all, we split the morels two ways (one of our friends already had a bunch at home that needed to be eaten) between two couples.  Mark and I cooked them up with butter and garlic.  OMG.  One of the best things I've ever eaten.  I get it.  I get the hunt (for vegetarians!), the scarcity... the free (delicious!) food!!  I think our morel season is over now, but I'm anxious to try again next year!

Home meals of the week #4

Nothing too fancy this week, but the weather has been gorgeous, so cooking wasn't my first priority. So here are some simple spring meals that I enjoyed in addition to the weather:

#1: Veggie egg white omelet.


Filled with avocado, feta, onions, carrots, and arugula. Toast with honey on the side. Mmmm!



#2: Spring rolls with peanut dipping sauce and a fruit smoothie.


Rice paper wraps with spinach, avocado, ginger, mint, lime juice, garlic, and habanero. I definitely recommend spring rolls as a great way to eat fresh, raw veggies and herbs. The avocado is a great "paste" to hold everything together. All you need to do is mix everything in a bowl and roll in the rice papers after they've been soaked in water. Yum!

The fruit smoothie was made with banana, pineapple, mango, and a dash of granola. I do not like banana (and that's an understatement) but it's an inexpensive nutritious filler in smoothies, and I almost don't taste it with the other ingredients.

Another bonus: eating outside on the stoop!


#3: Veggie sandwich.


Carrots, sprouts, arugula, cucumber, avocado, and onion on toast. I think it's fun to experiment with veggies you enjoy and toast the bread for a nice tasty sandwich.



#4: Rice and beans.


We sauteed onions and added them to vegetarian baked beans with corn. Served it over rice with steamed spinach and bread on the side.

What do you like to eat as spring begins?

A little bit o' green.

I live down the road from one of the biggest Irish bars of the city, but when it came down to it, I decided to keep St. Patty's low-key and simple. It was a lovely (80 degree!) day, so we went to a local restaurant with tables outside and got a great vegan dinner.


No, your eyes are not deceiving you: it's a green burger. A green falafel burger with cucumber dipping sauce, garlic hummus, and sweet potato fries. Yum!!

I followed up dinner with a few beers in the backyard with the other tenants in my building. Simple & green: the way I like it.

Comfort food.

A gift. Perhaps the most Karen-tastic gift I have ever received. Too wonderful.




In other news, I haven't been crafting a terrible amount lately, but my cooking has been impeccable! Soon I'm trying a recipe for butternut squash ravioli with maple cream sauce. Mmmmm! It sounds awesome, so I hope it works out. Also, need to decide on a good entree for Thanksgiving dinner for the non-meat-eaters in the family. In other words, just for me, but hopefully good enough that others will try it.

I've been doing some pretty decent dining out lately. I think it's better as a vegetarian. I try things I never would have pre-veggie.

Ok, that's it for now. I'm going to try to do a little crafting before I go to bed!