Saturday, September 27, 2008

mexi night and farmers market

Last night, Michael was in the mood for a meximeal. However, we didn't have the ingredients on hand for our usual quickfix of nachos... So we got creative! A lot of chilies were involved in the making of this nicely spicy meal.
stoplight chilies

Since we didn't have any 'meat' crumbles or tvp on hand, we gave some tofu a quick marinade of hot sauce, lemon juice, rice vinegar, cumin, and smoked paprika. It was then pan seared on the lovely cast iron skillet. The tofu we used was different from our usual brand, and it was delicious! The tofu only sat in the marinade for about 5 minutes, so the flavors were very light, but spicy, but the tofu itself had a really nice, smooth flavor unlike any tofu I'd had before, so it turned out very nice.
sizzle sizzle

I made a mexi-style couscous with a can of diced tomatoes, chilies, scallions, chili pepper and cumin. Again, the flavors were subtle, but very fresh.
lovely fluffy couscous

For a nice edible garnish, I whipped up a quick and inauthentic pico de gallo. I cubed up some red and yellow tomatoes, added some chilies, sliced scallions, and parsley, then finished with a squeeze or two of lime and a pinch of salt.
yummy fresh delicious

All this came together with some toasted whole wheat tortillas and some clover sprouts for a nice, earthy crunch. Hot sauce for added awesomeness points.
michael's plate... he's so good at presentation :)

This morning we went to the dwindling farmers market. There are less and less vendors and the veggies get less and less interesting... But we still managed to get a good haul!
like 5 different types of peppers, october beans, yellow cherry tomatoes

Teehee...Michael went a little nuts with the hot and sweet peppers while I was off searching for sweet potatoes. I think we might have to eat chili for the rest of the month to use all these up!
cabbage, sunflower head, new potatoes, turnips, sweet potatoes, apples, sweet potato squash, and an apple gourd

Right now, we are a tad obsessed with silly looking gourds. They're so funny looking and fun... Michael saw this apple gourd and couldn't resist, and I have to agree that it was too silly to pass up. I'm not sure about that sweet potato squash, I've never heard of that before, but... We'll cook it up and see what happens. I'm into new stuff. I've never cooked turnips before, either, but there ya go.

After a nap, we woke up and had some more apple pancakes. Those farmers market apples are so good as a warm, sweet topping for pancakes.
yumtastic fall breakfast

Off now to do laundry. Big Saturday cleaning fest today, wooo...

10 comments:

Bex said...

wowie I forget just how huge sunflowers can get! That's quite a haul.

Anonymous said...

Everything looks so yummy, but I am just swooning over those pancakes! And the apples...yum!

Anonymous said...

Warm apples on pancakes? Oh that sounds perfect! I love fall, and local apples are pretty much the best ever. Your pancakes look super fluffy. I bet they were delicious.

Today is a cleaning fest for me too! I just cleaned the fridge, cupboards, shelves... mopping and dusting are next.

Vegan_Noodle said...

That does look like the perfect meximeal. My tummy is now grumbling...

jessy said...

i'm so excited it's finally apple season! i'm going apple picking next weekend and i can't wait to grab a million of 'em and start making fall yummies. i'm totally gonna have to put some apples on my pancakes, yours look awesome!

oh man, i see that sweet potato squash - mmmmmmm! we just picked one up today! YAY! they call them "delicata" squash down here, but they're one of my absolute FAVORITES! i love to roast them and eat them with a little margarine + sea salt. omg, they're so goooooooood! :D pulpy, buttery, delicate deliciousnesses! yay!

your farmer's market haul = the best! what'cha gonna do with those turnips!? mmmmmm! and with all those bell peppers?! oooooooooh!

your meximeal look fantastical! fresh and yummy as hell! i really love the fluffy couscous! and the pico de gallo - hot damn, it looks rock'n!

it all looks glorious!

allularpunk said...

bex - i know! it resulted in a whole pan of roasted sunflower seeds - michael's favorite.

shelly - apples on pancakes are the besssst. i just cook em in a little EB, some brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. mucho yummo.

vegan addict - oh man, cleaning sucks. i actually only got laundry done today...it took me 3 hours at the laundromat, guh!

vegan noodle - meximeals are so good...they're always a recipe for tummy rumblies.

jessy - as usual your enthusiasm is so awesome :) i'm excited to try the squash, it sounds good from what you say! i'm not sure about those turnips yet... i was thinking of maybe mashing them. i'm sure i'll blog about it, haha...

Anonymous said...

I love your meximeal - I never thought of making mexican coucous but it looks so good!

tofufreak said...

wow your meximeal looks so good!

i love your produce! haha especially the peppers lol. your second pic of produce screams FALL! to me! and that makes me super excited! hehehehe

I CANNOT BELIEVE HOW GOOD YOUR PANCAKE BREAKFAST LOOKS. =D

Red said...

We had stove top quesadillas tonight. they were stove top and not vegan...AND my daughter made them and my oh my they came out fan-flipping-tastic.

I like homemade Mexican food, not that crap you eat in restaurants. Yours looks really yummy/

allularpunk said...

nikki - mexi is good with any grain. i've done brown rice, millet, and bulgur this way before. quinoa would be yummy too. although technically couscous isn't a grain...it does act like one.

tofufreak - we actually separated the produce out like that on purpose. i was in charge of the fall arrangement, and michael arranged his peppers.

red - mexican food in restaurants is bogus. homemade is the way to go for sure.