Black bean spreads are always yummy. I love the extra punch of color from the veggies on top.

The Everyday Vegan is a really good cookbook. I haven't made the carmel chip bars so I hope you make them and let everyone know how they are. I make the Maple Banana Bread from that cookbook all the time.

Oooh, Maple Banana Bread... yum. I have a bunch of ripe bananas to use up, too. My boyfriend is weird and doesn't like banana bread, though, so that would be all for me. I love caramel, so I think the bars are going to be it for today.

sandwiches look yummy. I haven't done black bean spread. Usually when I have them left over i make chili or vegetable soup (minestrone if I feel like adding pasta). I'll have to try that.

is the boy vegan too? if not then it is atleast cool that he eats all your vegan food. When my dad eats the food I make he always likes it- until I say it is vegan and I'm proud of it. Then he makes a face and just doesn't go back for seconds. Like it has cooties because it is vegan.

I was pretty surprised at how well this spread turned out... usually I'm not a fan of cold beans, but this was really yummy. I'll be making it again.

The boy is not vegan, but he did recently go vegetarian after leaning that way for a few years. He leans toward being vegan as well, actually; in fact just last night he got Silk creamer instead of his usual "non-dairy but still contains dairy" Coffeemate. I was so proud. :) I do all the cooking, so he eats totally vegan at home. He's pretty much the best boy ever.

My dad is the same way - it's like everything I make is tainted by the vegan label. I did get him to try some cake last time he was here, though, and he said it tasted just like regular cake and that he knows his phobia is kind of silly. HA! So there, dad.

Looks pretty special to me... I am a fan of black beans and love to use it on sandwiches. I do the same with hummus. Spreads make a nice "base"... and are less soggy than mustard!!

You're right about the sog factor. I hate soggy bread, so I usually shy away from anything liquidy on sandwiches. Spreads are perfect - I need to make more. Plus they're a great way to get in some beans.

TEV is an excellent book. If you're looking at desserts, the brownies went down very well with my (non-vegan) parents who couldn't believe they contain tofu. The Chewy Nutty Cereal Chip Squares (what a mouthful!) are now regularly made for my mum, who adores them. Oh and the Mushroom Pecan Burgers are awesome!

Thanks for the reply, vc, and i had to also add that i hope hope hope u make the caramel chip bars. I am a sucker for the sweet, sticky stuff too. Caramel is my favorite by far... way more than chocolate or vanilla. YUMMY!

I'm really big on sandwiches these days, particularly since it's so HOT and I don't want to cook. That sammie looks great, expecially with the spread and the crusty bread.

freedom - Thanks for the recommendations! I always like to know people's favorite recipes when I get a new cookbook. :)

kleo - The caramel chip bars will happen! And soon. I actually prefer both vanilla and caramel/butterscotch to chocolate when it comes to things like cake, ice cream, etc. I love chocolate on its own, though.

megan - Yeah, the heat is definitely making cooking a drag. I don't eat enough sandwiches, actually. I'm weird about cold food.

I especially love the "nothing special" posts from people, because that's the reality of eating and eating well. The ideas it gives people and the way to use ingredients wisely is a great thing... not to mention the food porn.

True. I always like seeing what people eat on a normal day, not just the fancy stuff.

Sammies are great in the heat! Looks great, esp with the toppings.

Actually, sammies are one of my favorite things.

It's official: I need to eat more sandwiches.

Yum, I love bean spreads. I like to make mine a little spicy/tangy with cayenne and lime juice. I have some leftover black beans from the 3 bean dal (which was awesome by the way!), maybe I’ll make some spread and roast the red pepper and eggplant I’ve got sitting in the fridge for a sandwich. Thanks, as always, for the inspiration.

I totally agree with Melody. A lot of the time most of us eat "nothing special", but it's those things that we eat over and over again. So, it's nice to get some ideas from others. Nothing wrong with sandwiches! I take sandwiches a lot if I've got a later shift at the wine store. We don't have a microwave or toaster oven, so sammiches are easy. As lame as it sounds, my favorite is still PB&J.

shananigans - Yay Three Bean Dal! I need to make that again... as soon as the heat lets up a bit. Ugh. Roasted red pepper and eggplant sounds awesome.

carrie - I love PB&J. I haven't had one in forever, though. I'm also a fan of the fluffernutter and anything involving cashew butter. Cashew butter and sliced apples is really tasty. Man, now I want a nut butter sandwich.

Yeah, the pasta was really good. I usually have a skewed pasta:veggie ratio because I really love steamed broccoli... a lot. The sauce was quick and easy, too:

Zesty Tomato Pesto

4 tomatoes, chopped
1 bunch of spinach, chopped
1/2 cup green onions, chopped
1/2 cup olive oil (I added less than this)
4 cloves garlic, minced
4-5 tsp fresh basil, chopped
salt (to taste)

Blend everything, add salt, and heat up in a saucepan on the stovetop or in the micro. Makes 2-4 servings. (recipe from How It All Vegan!)

As I said, mine was a bit watery, probably because I didn't add all the oil. Another option is roasting the tomatoes which would evaporate most of the water. I'm getting Dreena's book Vive Le Vegan in the mail soon; I can't wait. Everyone says it's just amazing; I bet TEV is the same.

Katherine

I'm not huge on sandwiches, either. Haven't been my whole life. It's weird. When I was a kid I'd skip the bread and just eat a spoonful of peanut butter. :)

Mmmm ... chipotles ...

Katherine - I love steamed broccoli as well. I put like 3 cups of it in my stir-fries. :) Thanks for the recipe! You're going to love Vive.

catherine - I love bread with a passion but try not to eat too much of it, hence the lack of sandwiches. I'm guilty of eating PB straight from the jar too.

brian - For real. They're my favorite pepper ever.

the sandwich looks great - i love the color on top. TEV is one of my favorite cookbooks - I'd love to see a photo of the caramel chip bars...

Thanks! You will definitely see a photo of the caramel chip bars. I'm just waiting until the time is right, aka it's not 100 degrees outside.

Ooh bunny cake! Yum. I'm not actually that smart, as I spent one of the hottest days of the year baking bread and cookies. I'll post about 'em once I get the pictures uploaded.

Midnight baking is a dangerous, dangerous concept.

hey, i really love the photos you take. keep blogging, i'm a devoted reader!
and hey, whereabouts in pa? i go to west chester.

Thanks! I'm in Lancaster. :)

Hey there,

Haven't stopped by in awhile. Your cakes look so good.

The minestrone soup looks so tasty and a black bean and veggie sandwich...yum!

It finally cooled off a bit here. Hopefully the weather is cooperating there too!

Thanks! It has cooled off a little here, so I'll actually have some things to post soon. :)