Leek and Asparagus Stir-Fry with Mushrooms

I learned a very important lesson recently.

You know those lessons that you'll never forget because they were so embarrassing to learn?  Yep, it was one of those.

Lucky for you that I'm going to share it with you so that you will never have to learn this the hard way: when you are signing one of those slightly awkward cards being passed around your office (you know those cards from everyone for someone's birthday, departure, or a general congratulations, etc...), make sure to double check who the card is for.

I mean, you wouldn't want to be the one who wrote "best of luck at your new job!" to someone who's supposed to be getting a "congratulations" card for starting their family, would you?

That's just awkward. Don't be that person.

But, if you do happen to be that person, here are a few options:

Option #1: White it out. However, this only works if the card is white and those tricky Hallmark folks love those fun colors...

Option #2: Cover it up with stickers. Of course, that is assuming that you are an adult who happens to carry stickers around. Unfortunately, (or perhaps, fortunately), I'm not that person.

Option #3: Own it. Just admit that, yes, you are that person who wrote the weird message in someone's card and there is no taking it back now.

Ohh if only cards were as easy as stir-fries... 

See, with stir-fries, there are no mistakes, no awkwardness. You can always alter ingredients or change things up as needed. They're impossible to mess up. And they work for any occasion.

So, I guess the lesson I learned is really this: sign less cards and make more stir-fries. I think that's my new motto.

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Delicata Squash Rings with Cashews and Sweet Mustard

I really think it's time that Pinterest instituted a curfew.  If Pinterest had a curfew, I would get exactly 1.08 hours more sleep per night.  If this keeps up at its current rate, by next month, I will need to use all of the beauty tips I've been pinning to get rid of my dark eye circles...

(And if you don't know what Pinterest is, all you need to know is that it's essentially an online bulletin board. It may sound silly, but once you use it, I promise you'll be hooked.  And now you've been warned!)

Speaking of Pinterest, I have been obsessed with all of the amazing recipes people have been making with fall squash lately.  I'm a big delicata squash fan and last year I loved stuffing it with different legumes and grains. But this year? This year is all about the delicata squash rings.  Pin away...

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Basil Cashew Mayo

I have this habit of leaving my gym bag pockets unzipped.  It's partly because I'm lazy, but it's also partly because I have never had anything fall out so I never had incentive to zip them up.  Well, that was until two weeks ago when I lost my eyeliner.  And since it was a bit pricey, I am sure you can imagine how excited I was when I found it in my yard a few days ago.  Even though it was a bit weathered and the brand name had been rubbed off, it still worked great.

However, this morning upon closer inspection of the weathered brand name, I discovered that this was not actually my eyeliner.  Lesson learned: zip your gym bag and don't use eyeliner you find in your yard. 

Another important lesson I learned this week is how to make amazingly creamy mayo -- without the eggs or added oils!  So let's get to work!

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Mizuna Salad with Roasted Cherries and Balsamic Glaze

Once in awhile a recipe comes along that changes my world.  This happened a few months ago when I discovered the beauty that is pineapple fried quinoa.  As a result of this discovery I think I ate enough pineapples over the winter to feed a small island.  And then there was this tahini broccoli salad with cashews.    After this my fridge has always been stocked with tahini, broccoli, and red onions.  Always.

But then I recently discovered that you can roast cherries.  And when cherries are roasted, their juices condense into the most intensely flavorful, sweet, cherry goodness that you can possibly imagine.  It is utterly indescribable.  If you are not a cherry person, I don't know what to tell you to convince you otherwise. But if you are?  This recipe is mandatory.

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Dreamsicle Smoothie

If you think it's hard to be a food blogger, I promise you that it's harder to live with one.  We food bloggers are a rare breed of creativity and crazy in the kitchen, but those that love us and have to put up with us on a daily basis are really the ones that deserve the credit.  This post is dedicated to all the significant others of food bloggers who have ever had to hear these words... probably repeatedly.

Don't eat that!  That's not for you, that's for the blog.

Don't touch that!  I haven't taken a picture yet!

No, I can't right now.  I have ten minutes of light left and I need to get these pictures taken.

Get out of the kitchen, I'm blogging.  Take the cats.

Can you edit this for me?  No, you can't wait until you finish that level on your video game.

Not yet.  I have to tweet, facebook, post this on foodgawker, tastespotting, finding vegan, healthy aperature, and.... I'll be there in a minute honey.

Thank you dear partner for all your patience and support.  I think it might be time to celebrate you.  How about a dreamsicle smoothie?

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Raw Carrot Cake Cupcakes

Without fail, there is always one weeknight when I don't feel like cooking.  Even though I have a stash of quick dinners handy, I will find myself staring into the fridge and thinking that nothing sounds good.  My back-up plan in this unfortunate situation is to walk down to my local co-op and grab two slices of their vegan pesto pizza.  Not only is it the best pizza I've ever tasted, but it's covered with veggies -- totally my style.

Every time this happens, the same pizza guy is standing behind the counter, ready to serve me my usual order of two slices of vegan pesto.  The awkward thing about this situation is that the pizza guy kinda looks like JT.  No, really.  If you have ever wanted to to experience a hippier version of Justin Timberlake serving you pizza, your dream can come true right here in Seattle.  The truly awkward part though isn't that he looks like JT. The awkward part is how he flashes the peace sign at you as you take your slices of pizza and I can't but help imagine JT with pizza singing "Cry me A River."

Just as I'm leaving on my way out of the co-op, usually embarrassed and laughing at myself, I am invariably tempted by the most amazing vegan carrot cupcakes made fresh in their bakery.  If I have been craving something sweet, I already know upon seeing those cupcakes that I am done for.  And even if I haven't been thinking about dessert, who can resist moist, sweet carrot cake with a dense and creamy frosting? 

I decided this week that it was time to recreate those amazing cupcakes at home.  The result?  A moist, sweet carrot cake with dense and creamy frosting... but this version relies on raw ingredients like fresh carrots, coconut, dates, and nuts for a delightful treat that you can feel good about eating.  

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Kale Caesar Salad

I think my apartment is haunted. Some of my things have been showing up in really weird places lately and last night my bathroom light turned on by itself.  I'm not kidding.  I know that you will try and talk me into thinking that I just left the light on accidentally or that maybe my cat somehow learned to flip the switch.  No way Jose.  I'm not convinced.

In my ghost-paranoid sleep I got exactly 2.3 hours of sleep.  It was a bit of a rough night.  In order to keep myself from completely freaking out I decided to stay up the rest of the night and hide out in my kitchen.  Naturally, this led to me trying to figure out what to do with a loaf of day-old bread from the local bakery that was too amazing to toss out. What else can you do with day-old bread at 4 am than make warm, toasty croutons fresh from the oven?  These disappeared a little too quickly for my comfort, but luckily that was my fault and nothing paranormal.

So, my apartment is haunted.  And I learned to make croutons.  What is new in your world?

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Tahini Broccoli Salad with Cashews

Do you have a special video gamer in your life?  I do.  And because of this relationship, I am always the first one to know about new video games, new video game accessories, and what's happening with Angry Birds. This kind of information isn't my cup of tea.  I couldn't tell you the difference between a PlayStation or an Xbox to save my life.  (And please, whatever you do, don't explain it to me... again.)

I recently learned that they are now making iPhone games with zombies chasing you to encourage people to run.  The funny thing is that they are hoping it will specifically encourage video gamers to be more active. Wouldn't it be easier just to go for a jog... without the app?  Don't get me wrong, I'm all for helping anyone to be more active and have a healthier lifestyle.  I just have to shake my head at the fact that zombies are the new fitness motivation.  I mean, if we have to make an app, wouldn't it be scarier for you to have to outrun Richard Simmons?  That guy is fast.

To be completely honest, I'm a little scared of what they will think of next.  I have a feeling it will be a game where you have to eat your broccoli before the zombies eat you.  But, don't worry.  I've got you covered.  Just make this salad, offer them a bite, and the undead will realize that between you and the broccoli, they'd rather take the broccoli.  (I hope.)

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Thai Quinoa Salad

You know those nights when you wake up at 2 am and are unable to fall back to sleep?  Maybe because you are obsessing over your to-do list for the next day.  Or maybe because you started thinking about spring and that led to thoughts of everything that you can't wait to do when the weather starts getting nice again.  Or, perhaps, you are unable to fall back to sleep because you cannot get Bennie and the Jetts to stop playing on repeat in your brain.  Has Elton John ever prevented you from sleeping?  It must just be me.

I discovered last night that it is hard to cure the Bennie-and-the-Jetts-Elton-John-2 am brain.  I tried getting up and reading.  I tried drinking a warm glass of almond milk.  Then I tried making this.  Apparently there might be a 2 am cure.  And it involves quinoa.

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