Meatless Monday - Betty Goes Vegan

by Dianne Wenz in


The vegan community has been eagerly awaiting the arrival of Betty Goes Vegan by Annie and Dan Shannon, and happily it hit bookshelves last week. The Shannons' veganization of the classic 1950s red Betty Crocker cookbook has been wildly popular on the couple's Meet the Shannons website, and they were recently featured in a spread in Vegetarian Times magazine. The even made an appearance on the Today Show last week, cooking up vegan dishes with Kathy Lee and Hoda.
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Meatless Monday at Trend Coffee and Tea House

by Dianne Wenz in ,


While I don’t make it down to the east end of Bloomfield Avenue very often, it seems every time I have been down in that direction Trend Coffee and Tea House has had a “closed for renovations” sign in the window. With no indication that anything was actually going on inside, I was sure they had closed their doors for good. (In fact their page on Yelp says it has closed.) A friend’s recent Facebook post cued me in to the fact that they had reopened, so I decided to check it out.
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Meatless Monday - Guaca-Verde-Mole

by Dianne Wenz in ,


I'm not really into sports, but I've been told that Superbowl Sunday takes place this coming weekend. I recently read that about 53 million pounds of avocados are consumed on this one particular Sunday annually. While I'm not really a fan of football, I am a big fan of avocados. In this recipe, I've altered everyone's favorite guacamole dip but crossing it with salsa verde and coming up with a salsa-guacamole hybrid. Despite the two jalapenos, this salsa-mole doesn’t have much heat to it, so if you like things spicy, add more of them, or use something hotter, like habanero peppers. This recipe makes a lot of dip, so there will be plenty for all of your friends at your Superbowl Party this Sunday.
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Meatless Monday at Red Eye Cafe

by Dianne Wenz in ,


Over the weekend Veggieguy and I were talking about how we wished there was a place we could have simple no-fuss vegan sandwiches for lunch. Cinanci on Church Street used to be our favorite lunch spot, but sadly it closed its doors a while ago. I suddenly remembered that a few people had recommended Red Eye Café to me, so we decided to give it a try. I know, I know… Red Eye Café opened last May, how has it taken me this long to try it? I really have no excuse.
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Meatless Monday - True North Inspired Brussels Sprouts

by Dianne Wenz in ,


I was quite upset to see John Lee report that True North Osteria had closed it’s doors last weekend. It was one of my favorite places for vegan dining in New Jersey and it was home to Montclair’s famous life changing grilled pizza. One of True North’s best dishes was their Pan Seared Brussels Sprouts with Shallots and Pistachios – a dish that surely changed diners’ opinions on the much maligned vegetable. Since I can no longer order this tasty dish out in the restaurant world, I set about recreating it in my own kitchen, and I was quite pleased with the results.
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