Blueberry Walnut Waffles

I recently acquired a vintage waffle iron courtesy of my lovely, encouraging mother. I don’t recall ever having waffles that didn’t come frozen in a box so, this is pretty exciting! This weekend my friend and I decided to put ye ol’ iron planks to good use. It was quite hilarious watching us trying to figure how to use the waffle iron to make the waffles “just right” and there were several attempts made before we finally got it right. When we did, the result was thick, toasty, delicious waffly goodness. The best part about waffles is that you can freeze them and eat them later! These are so delicious and convenient, I’ll be making a whole batch of these this weekend to take on my two week stay in Boston this month.

Plaintain and Avocado Rolls with Spicy Cilantro Dipping Sauce

Hello again, friends! Here’s a fun and easy little summer treat I like to call: tonight’s dinner. This one’s inspired by one of my favorite foods — plantains. No matter how they’re cooked, I love ’em! One of my favorite ways to eat them, however, is in the form of “mangú.” Yeah, yeah, I’m Dominican, can you tell? “Mangú” is basically mashed plantains, and nothing more. It’s traditionally served doused in fried onions and oil, with fried cheese and sauteed salami. Yeah, we won’t go there…yet. One day I’ll make all of that the vegan way. But for now, here’s a different, simple, delicious way to eat plantains. This was so easy to make; the most involved part was wrapping the plantains and that only took a few seconds. This is a really fun “finger” food that’s basic enough that you can substitute whatever favorite sauce or wrap you want. Try it on your next “Taco Tuesday,” you know, when you don’t feel like eating tacos but you want something just as easy and with a little spanish kick! PS: This is great beer food, just sayin’!

Herbed Mashed Potatoes with Teriyaki Gardein Beefless Tips

So I wasn’t going to post this one, but I figured, “What the heck? Why not?” This recipe isn’t involved, it isn’t fancy — basically, it isn’t time consuming. But it’s damn good. I have to admit, I didn’t measure anything out when I was making this so, bear with me. Also, I’ve been trying to stay away from using processed foods like grain meats and cheeses because they can be expensive, hard to find, and generally not as healthy as omitting them from your diet. But hey, for you beginner vegans, sometimes, this is the kind of stuff you want to eat, right? So, here’s something I cooked up one night when I was feeling super hungry and not entirely creative. It’s meat and potatoes, literally. All I need now is a beefcake vegan husband. God help me…