MoFo Day 16: Breakfast

Witches' Brew (aka mocha oatmeal)

Halloween is almost here!  Chocolate and pumpkins and haunted houses and candy apples and trick-or-treating and costume parties and all that fun!  As you might have guessed, I love Halloween so this week my recipes will all have a Halloween component.

When I saw Vegan Yack Attack's recipe for mocha oatmeal, I knew I had to try it.  Caffeinated oatmeal?  Sign me up!  I used a scant 1 Tbsp of agave plus a scant 1 Tbsp of brown sugar for the sweetener.  This would also be awesome with some cinnamon in it.

MoFo Day 1: Breakfast #1

Breakfast burrito

Most mornings I don't want something sweet for breakfast, and I'm not a morning person so it needs to be quick and easy.  What could be easier than reheating some tofu scramble and wrapping it in a tortilla?  I usually make a batch of tofu scramble during my weekend, then use it throughout the week - over toast, on a bagel with cream cheez, in a burrito, etc.  My tofu scramble recipe is based off Vegan Dad's, with a few changes to suit my tastes.

Basic Tofu Scramble

1 Tbsp oil

1 lb firm or extra firm tofu, drained, pressed & crumbled

¼ c diced onion (or ½ tsp onion powder)

2-3 cloves minced garlic

¼ tsp turmeric

1 Tbsp soy sauce, or more to taste

¼ c nutritional yeast

½ Tbsp Dijon mustard

1 Tbsp nondairy creamer or milk, unflavored

salt & pepper, to taste

1. Heat the oil in a skillet over med-high heat.
2. Saute onions until softened; add garlic and saute until fragrant.
3. Add the remaining ingredients (except the creamer/milk, salt, and pepper) and mix well.
4. Stir often, lowering the heat if the tofu begins to stick.
5. Cook 10-15 minutes more, or until most of the liquid released by the tofu has evaporated and the tofu firms up.
6. Add the creamer/milk and mix well. Allow some of the liquid to evaporate, then remove from the heat.
7. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Variations (use one or mix and match several or all!):

• Mushroom-spinach: Add 1 c thinly sliced cremini mushrooms and 1 c baby spinach leaves when adding the garlic in step 2.
• Bac'n: Add 3-4 strips chopped cooked bac'n when adding the ingredients in step 3.
• Salsa: Add 2-4 Tbsp prepared salsa (or more to taste) and ¼ c (or more to taste) chopped cilantro when adding the ingredients in step 3.

The pictured scramble has mushroom, spinach, and bac'n - tofu scramble is pretty versatile, so don't be afraid to make changes and try whatever sounds good to you.

Happy MoFo!

Pancakes and a homemade card

 I woke up this morning feeling like cooking (which is usually how I wake up on Sundays, now that I think about it).  After browsing through a few of my cookbooks, I settled on Coconut Pancakes with Pineapple Sauce from Vegan with a Vengeance : Over 150 Delicious, Cheap, Animal-Free Recipes That Rock.  Delicious!  I'm not a fan of traditional pancakes slathered with maple syrup, at least not for breakfast.  I just don't like that much sugar to start my morning.  These were perfect, though; the tart pineapple cut some of the sweetness and the batter was just right.  The only thing that could make it better would be eating it on a beach somewhere tropical and warm.  :)

I've been meaning to post this, but just keep forgetting.  I made a Thank You card for the lady who watched my pets while I was gone over Thanksgiving.  Pretty simple layout.  I just a patterned piece of paper 1" smaller all around than the card (so for my 4x6 card, I cut the patterned paper to 3x5).  The strip is 1" thick and also paper, but you could use ribbon instead.  I combined 2 stamps (thank goodness for clear stamps!) - the cat was from a 4-pack by Studio G, and the Thank You was an Archiver's Snag 'em Stamp Duos (appropriately named the Thank You Combo).  I traced the You with glitter pen and used foam adhesive squares to pop up the stamped part.