Welcome to my new blog!

Hello to anyone who happens upon my blog! This isn't the first time I've started a blog, not even the first time I've started a vegan blog. My first attempt at blogging didn't go so well. I started one to talk about all the science, psychology, nutrition and other knowledgey type things regarding veganism, but I found that I just didn't have the time to do the research. You see, I'm a graduate student, in biology, and I don't believe in talking about facts without solid references to back it up. As a result, each blog became like a mini research paper. So sadly, it fell by the wayside. Who knows, maybe someday, if I ever have "free time" again, I'll start it back up.

This brings me to my current blog. It occurred to me that not only do I love knowledge, but I also just love food in general. I am always reading vegan food blogs and trying new recipes I find, veganizing old favourites, or plain old experimenting with food. So I decided that perhaps a more holistic blog was in order that dealt with all of these things, including a little science sprinkled in.

To start things off, let's talk a bit about one of my favourite blogs: the Fatfree Vegan Kitchen. I adore this website for a number of reasons. First, not only is it vegan (obviously), but it also focuses on healthy vegan cooking. So many people assume that just because it's vegan, it MUST be healthy, which is just not so. The second thing I love about this blog is the beautiful photography. The only thing better than good food is good food that looks good too! But the most important thing about this blog is how reliably good the food is. I have never been disappointed, indeed things often surprise me at just how good they are. The ingredients are usually easy to come by at any well stocked supermarket or Bulk Barn (which is the best place on earth for you non-Canadians who may have never experienced it. All the things you would find in a health food store plus candy and chocolate and snacks. It's the bomb).

For dinner tonight I made one of her recipes. I made her Eggplant Pancakes Florentine and let me tell you, it was to die for. I like eggplant, but I firmly believe that eggplant haters would even like it, so if you're feeling a touch trepidacious, take that leap and give it a try. Not only was it delicious, it was surprisingly easy. Sure it looks snazzy, but it was so easy that I made this after coming home from an afternoon of rock climbing and never thought to myself "Ugh, I should have just grilled up a veggie burger".

One of my favourite parts about this recipe is that it was so easily made into a "for one" meal, which is a very important criteria for me since my cat doesn't like eggplant so much. I used a smallish eggplant, and half amounts of the other ingredients listed. To add to the speed of my meal I also cheated a little and instead of making the tomato sauce Susan posted, I opened a can of "Aylmer Accents Spicy Red Pepper" diced tomatoes and spooned it on top. I know that fresh is better, but this eliminated an extra step and an extra pan. As you can see, I served this with some steamed asparagus (fresh, local, and delightfully in season!).

Another thing I like about this recipe, is that it uses chickpea flour, which is a recent obsession of mine, but this is a subject for another day's post.