July 30, 2006

Chipotle Black Bean Sandwich Spread


For dinner tonight we had minestrone and sandwichy things. I had some black beans in the fridge that needed used up, so I threw together a little spread that's just basically black beans, garlic, scallions, chipotle pepper and hot sauce, and various spices. I think cumin, oregano, paprika, garlic and onion powders, salt, pepper, and Spike. Oh, and some nutritional yeast ("nooch"). And a little water to thin it out. It had a bit of heat, which was nice with the crunchy veggies. The bread is a sourdough loaf from Panera, because I'm lazy and we were nearby.

It's nothing special, but I thought I'd post it anyway. I think I'm making something from The Everyday Vegan tomorrow. It's my newest cookbook acquisition and I really need to break it in. I'm thinking about the caramel chip bars. I'm a sucker for caramel.

July 29, 2006

Kitchen Sink Minestrone

It's been a long day. I dragged my (decidedly not morning-oriented) butt out of bed at 6:45 to go running before it got too hot, then came home and did my strength training (except for the squats, because my thighs were weeping tears of pain). After cleaning myself up I walked down to the farmer's market to pick up a few things. It was crowded, so I tried to get in an out as quickly as possible, but I still came out with a pretty good haul: garlic, parsley, zucchini, red and green peppers, shallots, onions, green beans, dried basil and oregano, cherries, and strawberries. And then I had to carry all of this home. I don't live far from the market, but it's uphill coming home and being loaded down with bags in the heat makes for a somewhat unpleasant journey.

When I got home I put away what I didn't need and then assembled my ingredients, washing and chopping and draining and mixing. I fired up the stove, and less than an hour later I had...


A huge pot of minestrone! It made a lot more than I expected - 12 cups, in fact. I thought about freezing some, but I figure that Adam and I can probably get through it in a few days. Once things go into my freezer I tend to forget they exist. Here's a shot of the bowl I had for lunch, and a recipe:


Kitchen Sink Minestrone

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 zucchini, sliced into rounds or half-rounds depending on the size
2 large carrots, sliced into rounds
1 large bell pepper, chopped
1 large onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium red potato (6 oz), chopped
1 c green beans, cut into 1-1 1/2'' pieces
1 15 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 15 oz can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
1 8 oz can tomato sauce
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 cup (5 oz) ditalini or other small pasta
6 c vegetable stock
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp dried basil
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp Spike seasoning (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and bell pepper and saute until soft. Add the carrots, basil, oregano, and Spike (if using) and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes.

Add the zucchini, potatoes, green beans, kidney beans, chickpeas, and vegetable stock and cook, covered, for about 10 minutes. Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato paste, soy sauce, crushed red pepper, and salt and pepper to taste and cook, covered, for about 15 minutes. Stir occasionally. Add the pasta and cook, uncovered, for another 10 to 15 minutes, depending on how big your pasta is. Stir the soup a few times during all of these steps.

Garnish with parsley and eat.

Makes 12 cups.

Notes: Next time I think I'm going to add a can of crushed tomatoes in place of the tomato sauce and see if that gives me a thicker broth. I'll update the recipe if it works out well, but it's tasty this way too. You could use any kind of beans or vegetables in this, really - which is why I gave it the "kitchen sink" title. Spinach would be a nice addition. As for the salt, I probably used about a tsp. That's what I used when I calculated the nutritional info.

Nutritional Information: 163 calories, 2.2 g fat (.25 g sat fat), 496.4 mg sodium, 31 g carbs, 6.1 g fiber, 6 g sugar, 7.2 g protein, 37.5% vitamin A, 51.6% vitamin C, 6% calcium, and 10.5% iron @ 1 cup per serving.

This was an excellent lunch. And now I'm exhausted... just in time for work! Awesome.

July 27, 2006

Orange-Chocolate Chip Mini Cake

I have this problem with icing. I always make it too thin. Every time. This time it started out fine, then I refrigerated it until the cakes cooled, and then it seemed too hard so I added a little rice milk. It did not for a second occur to me that it was hard because it had been, oh, let's see... in the fridge? Man I'm smart. So that's why the icing looks all melty and weird here. In retrospect I could've just added some more powdered sugar, but apparently icing is my kryptonite so of course I didnd't think of that at the time.

Anyway. This is an orange-chocolate chip cake with orange marmalade between the layers and chocolate frosting. The cake was modified from this recipe, and the frosting was a slightly modified version of the one on the back of the Hershey's cocoa box. For the cake I reduced the sugar to 3/4 c, added about 1/4 c of extra flour, used whole wheat pastry flour, used 3 1/2 Tbsp of applesauce and 1 Tbsp of oil in place of the fat, orange juice in place of the water/soymilk, no almond extract, only 1 tsp of vanilla, and a little less than 1 Tbsp of orange extract. I also added about some orange zest to the mix, and of course mini chocolate chips - about 3 Tbsp. So including the marmalade, there are 4 types of orange flavoring at play here. It's orange overload!

Chocolate and orange is one my favorite flavor combinations, so I love this cake. The only problem I had was that I should've halved this recipe, because it made enough for 4 mini round cakes. I put the excess batter into my mini bear and bunny pans, and they stuck like a mofo. They stil taste good, though. The round pans stuck a bit as well, but I think that's my fault for not letting them cool completely. Plus the chocolate chips always make things a bit stickier.

Overall I'd call this experiment a success. The cake itself is really good, even without icing. The icing itself is the only part I'm not happy with, and that's just because it's ugly.

So there you have it.

Artistic Food Porn

Food porn of a different variety. I'm not actually crazy about the last one, but Blogger was being an asshole when I tried to center the 5th image by itself.





July 24, 2006

Chocolate Chip Pancakes, Mini Cake, and a Stir-Fry


Breakfast! Flax-Berry Pancakes from Vegan Planet (my regular recipe), minus the berries and with a Tbsp or so of mini chocolate chips mixed in. Sliced strawberries on the side, and a little dollop of Soy Whip on top. For as decadent as it looks/sounds, it was actually pretty healthy - whole wheat flour, no oil, etc. Tasty, too! The mini chips were the perfect size - regular ones would've been too much.

Look, Ma, a mini cake! I went to Kitchen Collections yesterday before work and picked up two round silicone mini pans, plus a set of mini bear and bunny pans. They're all adorable, but today I went with the round pans - and ended up with this little cake. It's Kittee's chai cake, the recipe for which you can find here, down in the comments. I changed a few things, though - I used whole wheat pastry flour instead of all-purpose and I used applesauce and 2 tsp of oil in place of the fat. I halved the recipe to make a single 8'' cake, and I had enough batter to make 3 mini round cakes. I whipped up a small batch of cream cheese frosting and made one mini layer cake, then just frosted the third one on its own. Each cake got a little sprinkle of cocoa powder (locally made!) and cinnamon on top. They're so cute! And delicious. We can't forget delicious.


And then we have dinner, which was just a big ole' stir-fry. Broccoli, green peppers, carrots, garlic, fresh corn cut off the cob, and lots of tempeh. Mmmmm tempeh. Nothing fancy, but it really hit the spot after a day in the kitchen.

July 22, 2006

Three-Bean Dal


Tonight's dinner was Three-Bean Dal from Vegan Planet. I really love this book, but I don't use it too often. I don't really know why. In any case, this recipe is definitely a keeper. It's very bean-heavy - I mean, it's basically just a combination of three beans and some spices - which I consider a positive thing since I don't think I eat enough beans most of the time. It's not exactly quick - it takes about 45 minutes, not including prep work. But it's a lot faster to make than the traditional dish it mimics (dal makhani), and it's really tasty. Plus it's really high in fiber and pretty good on protein as well, and therefore super filling.

I made a few substitutions, but it's nothing that should really make that big of a difference. I'm going to post the recipe as it's written in the book, and then my changes at the end.

Three-Bean Dal
from Vegan Planet by Robin Robertson

1/2 c dried yellow split peas
3 c water
1 tsp turmeric
1 1/2 c cooked black beans (or 1 15 oz can, drained and rinsed)
1 1/2 c cooked red kidney beans (or 1 15 oz can, drained and rinsed)
salt to taste
2 Tbsp corn oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 tsp peeled and minced fresh ginger
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, drained and finely chopped
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro for garnish

Put the peas and water in a large pot over medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Bring the heat down to low and stir in the turmeric, then simmer, partially covered, for about 20 minutes. Stir occasionally. After 20 minutes, add the black and red beans and salt to taste. Simmer, uncovered, until the pea "sauce" thickens and the beans are very soft, about another 20 minutes.

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat and saute the onion until soft. Add the garlic and ginger and cook, stirring, for about 30 seconds. Add the spices and tomatoes and cook, stirring, for another 30 seconds.

Add the contents of this pan to the pot of beans and stir to mix well. Garnish and eat.

My changes: I used 1 Tbsp of oil instead of 2, moong dal instead of split peas, 1/2 tsp of ground ginger in place of the fresh, only 1/4 tsp of cayenne, I didn't chop my diced tomatoes any further, and I didn't use any cilantro because I don't have any right now. Oh, and I cooked the spices and tomatoes for longer than 30 seconds. Maybe 2 minutes or so. In any case, it was yummy.

The book says this serves 6; I'd estimate we got about 5 servings. But then, it was oour entire meal. If you have this with other things then I can definitely see it serving 6 or even more.

July 21, 2006

Vegan Treats Rocky Road Brownie.


This little hunk of delicious is the third and final thing I brought home with me from Vegan Treats: a rocky road brownie. Marshamallows, chocolate, and what I assume is white chocolate top a fudgy frosting, which in turn tops a very tasy brownie. It was really good. So good that I meant to only eat half and save the rest for Adam, but then I ate the whole thing because I couldn't stop myself. I kind of felt bad for a minute, but then I remembered that he still eats eggs and junk and therefore can get his own damn brownie.

I really like the Vegan Treats brownies. They're pretty much what I think of as the elusive "perfect brownie." I'd love to know how to make them myself.

Oh, and they freeze well too. I popped this in the freezer when we got home from the bakery, and then just let it sit on the counter for 20 minutes before I ate it. So stocking up is an option. A very dangerous option.

July 19, 2006

Vegan Treats Coconut Cream Pie

This is the second thing I brought home from Vegan Treats - an individual coconut cream pie. Although in this case it was more like a 2-person coconut cream pie, since it took me two days to eat it. It was cocolicious, though! I am great lover of all things coconut, so this made me very happy. The big poof of whipped stuff on top was very rich, and the coconut filling was amazing - creamy and full of coconut flavor, but not too heavy. In fact I'd really like to know how to make it, because I'd eat bowls of it like pudding. I think the pie shell was lined with something on the inside, maybe a thin layer of white chocolate? There was definitely something there, but I don't really know what. The pie shell itself was good, pretty much what I expected from a pie shell. That's really all I can say regarding that aspect, because I'm no great connoisseur of pastry items.

The photo looks a bit blown out in the browser I'm using right now (Firefox), but it looks fine in the one I usually use (Shiira). I had to switch back over for a while because Shiira keeps crashing on me. Lame. I kind of hate Firefox because it displays my images wrong. It's like it doesn't read the color profile, even though it claims to. It's really frustrating. So I hope the picture looks better for you guys than it does for me.

July 17, 2006

Tofurky Italian Sausage + More Vegan Treats


Tonight we tried the Tofurky Italian Sausages. I sliced one up and browned it in a pan, and then we had it with whole wheat linguine. Obviously. It wasn't bad. I'm a pretty hard sell when it comes to mock meats, because usually I think they're either too close to the real thing and therefore nauseating, or too mushy/weird-tasting and therefore disgusting. So it's really a no-win situation. Rarely does a meat substitute get my stamp of approval. These don't have it yet, but they didn't ruin my pasta and they pack a heavy dose of protein (29 grams per sausage!), so I'll ry them again.


This little beauty is an orange creamsicle cake from Vegan Treats. It's a mini-cake, maybe 5" across - the perfect size, if you ask me. We've gotten 4 slices out of it so far, and there's enough left for another slice or two. It's two layers of vanilla cake with orange frosting, and little poofs of vanilla frosting on top. I believe the frosting has orange essence in it. It's really yummy, very rich and super sweet. So sweet that I actually scraped some off of my slice because it was a bit too much for me. It's funny; as a kid I would eat everyone else's leftover icing and I always wanted the piece with the most roses and blobs of icing on it. Now I find it sickeningly sweet at times, and definitely prefer a more modest amount. That's just me, though - the cake is really delicious. I'd love to try more of their cakes in the future, the coconut one especially.

Isn't this dramatically-lit photo amusing? I took a bunch and they all came out like this. It wasn't intentional - it's just the way the cake was sitting in its little to-go box.

Also, does anyone know where to get mini cake pans like this? I'm going to do a google search after I post this, but I thought I'd ask anyway. I want to make mini cakes.

July 16, 2006

The Vegan Treats Experience

Before I get started, I'd like to take say thanks to everyone who left birthday wishes in the comments. THANK YOU!!! Seriously, you guys are so awesome. My birthday is notoriously forgotten by my family and friends (this one was no exception), so to have so to get so many happy birthdays from people I've never actually met is really wonderful. And now, on to the goodies...

This is the storefront at Vegan Treats, an entirely vegan bakery located in Bethlehem, PA. It's a 75-miles drive from Lancaster, and I am here to tell you that it's worth every single mile. We stopped in on our way back from Bushkill Falls (pictures to come once I get them all sorted and processed), which is an additional 50 miles north. We got there around 2:30 in the afternoon, and the place was fairly full but emptied out a bit shortly after we arrived. It's a really cute place - lots of pink and black, with a checkerboard floor, polka dotted plates and adorable retro tables that I will covet in my dreams from now on, and a mural of pastries on the wall behind the display case. The girl working behind the counter noticed our shock and awe and came around to tell us what every item in the case was. That was awesome, because I honestly wouldn't have known where to start.


This is the display case. Cases of cinnamon buns, pecan rolls, and donuts; jars of huge cookies; and row upon row of cheesecakes, cakes, and brownies. You can see why we had a little trouble deciding.


This was my poison - a peanut butter bomb brownie. A big scoop of creamy peanut butter mousse plopped on top of a rich brownie, then covered in chocolate and drizzled with more peanut butter. It was seriously amazing. And huge! I'm kind of surprised that I managed to finish it. Okay, no I'm not.


Adam (aka The Boy) got a mini oreo cheesecake, which was good but not spectacular. We both found it a bit bland. I was never a huge fan of the New York-style cheesecakes pre-vegan, though, so I may be a bit biased. The texture of this was pretty spot-on, not at all runny or mushy like some vegan cheesecakes can be. The frosting on top was delicious, and the cheesecake really benefited from it. I think maybe the cake itself wasn't sweet enough for my taste.

I brought three more things home with me, which I'll post about as I eat them over the next few days. Overall I'd give Vegan Treats two thumbs up, but that's only because I don't have more thumbs to give. One a scale of one to awesome, this place rates right up there with unicorns and a vegan cheese that stretches like the real thing. Definitely plan a trip if you're anywhere close by.

July 15, 2006

So! Excited!

So tomorrow (Sunday) is my birthday, and The Boy and I are driving up to the Poconos to go hiking at Bushkill Falls. I love this place but haven't been there for a few years because it's like 130 miles away, so I'm excited about that. But I'm actually MORE excited about what we're doing on the way home - stopping in Bethlehem to visit Vegan Treats! A whole bakery full of vegan goodies! I think I may actually become so suffused with joy that I explode.


Rest assured, pictures will be taken. Expect an image-heavy post sometime tomorrow. I suspect these goodies will be too pretty not to share. (Plus there might be some trees and stuff too.)

July 14, 2006

Lunchbox Porn


The lunchbox (dinnerbox, actually) that I took to work yesterday. The log-shaped thing wrapped in plastic is half of a whole wheat tortilla stuffed with Curried Tempeh-Mango Salad from Vegan with a Vengeance and some sliced carrots. Next to it is a little pile of whole grain Wheat Thins. In the top left we have a mix of strawberries, blueberries, and a chopped nectarine. On the top right is the ever-present baby carrots.

If you're wondering why there's only half of a tempeh-mango wrap, it's because I ate the other half for lunch. That stuff is GOOD. I was skeptical, because truth be told the dressing smelled horrific, but in the end it was really tasty. It was a bit soggy for some reason, though, so next time I'll probably use less vinegar or something.

July 11, 2006

Chocolate Chip Cookies + Quesadillas


Last night I wanted cookies, but I didn't want anything too time-consuming and I definitely didn't want several dozen of them lying around. So I turned to Vive le Vegan, and made the Homestyle Chocolate Chip Cookies. The verdict? Yum! These are really good. They're nice and chewy on the outside, and soft in the center... plus the recipe only makes 10 or so cookies, so it's much more practical than most if you're only making them for one or two people. I'm sure they're just as good the next day, but unfortunately I can't say from experience... there aren't any left.


Quesadillas! Vegan Gourmet cheddar and sauteed onions, garlic, corn, broccoli, and black beans in a wheat tortilla. Super simple and really tasty. I had mine with ketchup for dipping (yes, I'm gross) and watermelon on the side. The Boy put some hot salsa in his and ate it that way.

I used to waitress at Friendly's back when I was in high school, and a lot of times people would mispronounce "quesadilla" when ordering them. Case-a-dilla was pretty common, as was keeza-dilla. One time I got queeza-dilla. They always emphasized that "dilla," though, pronouncing it just like it's spelled. So that's what I think of whenever I have quesadillas.

July 06, 2006

Ina Garten is Just! Like! You!

I'm watching Food Network right now, and Ina Garten (sp?) is making chicken with morels. She just added 8 oz of creme fraiche AND a cup (maybe 2) of heavy cream to the mix. Jesus. That is a motherload of dairy. And also fat. This woman puts dairy in everything. It's really bothersome. One one hand, I like her. She's chubby and seems a least a bit more sincere than your average Food Network host. On the other, she's schmaltzy and obsessed with cheese and cream and I can't stand the cutesy little segments that show her "working." Oh look, I'm just like you! I have a job! I don't just whip up gourmet food in my spacious kitchen all day! Oh, sure, I have an acre of fresh herbs growing in my huge, sun-dappled yard, but I have to go into the office for 10 minutes and discuss how awesome my recipes are with my perky assistant - just like you.

Okay, so maybe she annoys me a little. And that thing I said about her seeming sincere? Knock a few points off. "I'll call you for dinner!" "Great, lets!" I wonder if she's a bitchy kitchen diva in real life? Hmm. I still like that she's chubby, though.

At least she doesn't make me dry heave like Rachael Ray. She eats my soul, and yet I can't look away. I think she may have promised her firstborn to the devil in exchange for her evil powers. And that sweet-ass stove.

Anyway. I've been slacking off for the last two days, eating kind of badly and not exercising. Monday was fine, but then Tuesday was the 4th and I went straight from work in the morning to my brother's in the evening, and I came home with my 10-year old niece in tow. She spent the night and then we hung out on Wednesday; by the time I drove her home and got back to Lancaster it was almost 9 o' clock. Plus my period started yesterday, which of course makes just makes me want to sit around like a sloth and eat cupcakes all day. Awesome. But today has gotten largely back on track. I'm supposed to do strength training, but I haven't yet. I did take a walk, though. We'll see how the rest of the night goes.

Still watching Food Network, only now it's Sandra Lee. She's way too fucking perky, is really all I have to say about her. Plus she keeps giving the camera, and as an extension me, these seductive, half-lidded eyes. It's freaking me out a little bit. And she just used the work "fierce" in describing cupcakes. She seems so very pleased with herself. I kind of hate her.

I need to find something else to watch. An entire hour of Rachael Ray stands between me and my true love, Alton Brown. I'm not sure I can get through that without a priest.

July 03, 2006

Soft Cutout Cookies

Pre-vegan (and way pre-healthy eating!), I loved those big, iced smiley face cookies you can get at Eat 'n Park. They're soft and sweet and evil. I think the icing is actually just crack and powdered sugar. Of course it's been ages since I've had one - I haven't been there since high school, long before I went vegan and couldn't eat there even if I wanted to. Which I really don't, anymore. My tastes have definitely changed, but I still love the thought of those cookies. So when I found this recipe in my "Recipes To Try" bookmark folder, I figured I'd give it a shot.

With only one egg, it was a snap to veganize. I made two half-batches, because of confusion regarding how many cookies the recipe would yield. It states 4-5 dozen depending on cookie cutter size, but I used a large (but not huge) round cutter and only got 14 cookies from half the recipe. So I made half again to get a total of 28. I guess my cookie cutter is bigger than I thought. The difference in color is due to an ill-fated attempt to make pink cookies by coloring the dough with cherry juice. What I neglected to consider is that lovely red cherry juice turns quite quickly to a dull purple, thus leaving me with somewhat greyish cookies. They're not the prettiest things ever, but they still taste good. The second batch obviously didn't get colored at all.

These cookies aren't much by themselves - soft, but somewhat bland. It's the icing that makes them. I just used powdered sugar and a bit of vanilla soymilk, which was super sweet by itself but set off the cookies perfectly. They deifnitely satisfied my Eat 'n Park cookie cravings.

Soft Cutout Cookies
Recipe veganized from this recipe by Nic of bakingsheet

2 3/4 cups ap flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup margarine, very soft
1/2 cup soymilk, with 1/2 Tbsp vinegar mixed in (this mimics buttermilk)
2 tsp Ener-G egg replacer + 3 Tbsp warm water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In a large bowl, cream together sugar and margarine. Beat in soured soymilk, egg replacer, and extracts. With the mixer on low speed or by hand, add in the flour mixture, mixing until no flour remains.

Divide dough into two pieces. Wrap in plastic wrap and freeze for at least 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 375F.

Working with 1 piece of dough at a time, roll out to 1/4-inch thick on a lightly floured surface and use a floured cookie cutter to make desired shapes. Transfer cookies to a parchment lined baking sheet. Reroll remaing dough, chilling for a few minutes if it becomes too warm to handle easily. Repeat with second piece of dough.

Bake for 6-8 minutes at 375F, until the edges are slightly firm to the touch but cookies are not browned (The bottom of the cookies will be light brown). Cool completely on a wire rack before icing.

Makes 2 dozen or more, depending on cookie cutter size.

Simple Confectioner's Sugar Icing

Mix 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar with soymilk until it's thin but spreadable. Add food coloring if you want. Ice cookies as desired.

This mix makes enough to ice 28 large, round cookies.

Pancakes with Cherry Sauce


It's almost cliche to have pancakes on a Sunday morning, but The Boy and I both had the day off - which is cause for celebration if there ever was one. I used the Flax Berry Pancake recipe from Vegan Planet, minus the berries and with whole wheat pastry flour instead of white. The cherry sauce was just 1 cup of pitted cherries simmered with 1 Tbsp of sugar until saucy. I dissolved a little cornstarch in water and added that in because I wanted it a little thicker. I had watermelon and pineapple on the side, and it was a lovely start to what turned out to be quite a busy day.

And now I'm going to go finish up those cookies I promised you.

July 02, 2006

Peanut Noodles Save The Day


I had this whole big meal planned for tonight. It was slightly Mexican in terms of flavor, and it was going to be goooood. But then I came home from another day of retail slavery and worked out the logistics of it all, and of course it was going to require way too much cooking time and also some ingredients I didn't have. So I scrapped that (though I've filed the menu away for another day) and suddenly lost all motivation to cook. I'd been deflated. I contemplated going out to eat, but around here the pickings are pretty slim. Plus I really can't afford to go out. So I turned to an old standard: peanut noodles.

We're out of soba noodles right now, so I used whole wheat linguine. The veggies are grated carrots, steamed broccoli, and peas. I threw in some cilantro just because I love cilantro. I thinned the sauce out a bit too much, so it wasn't as thick and sticky as I usually like, but it tasted good nonetheless.

Obviously this isn't a new and exciting dish, but I thought the picture turned out well so I wanted to post it anyway.

Tomorrow: some very special sugar cookies. Hold onto your hats.