Restaurant Review: The Lunch Room

A couple weeks ago I was able to visit the famed restaurant "The Lunch Room" in Ann Arbor, MI. I had heard really good things about the place and was excited to try it out. It did not disappoint. The decor was awesome and our server was even wearing a paper crown over her blue hair.

The collage above has everything we ate - the top left corner is the Southwestern Salad that came with vegan ranch. Moving clockwise is an almond vanilla cream cupcake (yum!). The middle left picture is the red pepper mac and cheese which was good and creamy - but I wish I had gotten the chili mac (same thing but topped with chili). The bottom picture was our appetizer plate - a variety of breads with olive tapenade and cashew cheese. All in all it was a great lunch spot, and located in a really cute building full of other awesome shops. I recommend the stationary store in the building - I found some awesome prints to frame as poster art.

The Lunch Room courtyard entrance

Thanksliving

I had a terrific Thanks-living this year. I was having a lot of anxiety about the holiday in general because I do not want to put anyone out with my "special needs" but at the same time, I want to feast! So this year I had the best of both worlds: I was able to run a 5k with my man in the morning, have an early (and quiet) T-day spread, then hit the road for some family time in the afternoon. It was perfect!

This is our second vegan Thanksgiving and we tried a Tofurky holiday roast for the first time. My husband seemed to love it, I would give it a 5/10. However, the roast came with the most delicious gravy I have had (even better than the meat based kind!). So that ups the rating to at least an 8/10. I found it for about $10 at Target. 

We also made Mac and Teese (amazing stuff, if you haven't tried Teese yet... you must!), mashed potatoes, corn, rolls, and a really yummy balsamic vinaigrette/cashew/dried cranberries/croutons/spinach salad. Top it off with a little wine and cookies for dessert = the perfect combination! My only regret is all the yellow on our plate - green beans might have been a better aesthetic choice (over corn). 

  

What was your favorite part of Thanks-living this year? 

Recipe Review: Cheezy Broccoli Orzo

Time and again I have been disappointed by "cheezy" sauce recipes or mixes or jars. I am happy to announce that today I finally made one that is as good as it looks! I made just a few slight variations to this recipe which can be found posted publicly here on My Vegan Cookbook or pinned to my Vegan Recipe Pinterest board here.

First, I omitted onion powder because we didn't have any, second, I added a squirt of Dijon mustard and third, I cut the amount of nutritional yeast in half (because I'm not a huge nooch fan!). I also steamed (instead of boiled) extra broccoli because I love love broccoli!

I give this recipe a 10/10. It is so creamy and comforting. I hope it heats up well... I'll get back to you on that. I think this would make a really great side dish or even an entree. I ate it by itself for lunch today. It reminds me a lot of non-vegan broccoli rice casserole but even better.

P.S. Isn't orzo amazing?

Zucchini Pasta and Homemade Marinara Sauce

My spiralizer arrived! And it is as amazing as I was promised it would be. Check out this beautiful zucchini pasta:

I also made a sauce from scratch to go with the veggie pasta for a super healthy dish. I used the recipe in the Vegan Stoner Cookbook and actually made it a few days ahead of time when I already had the tomatoes and cutting board out and the kitchen was a mess. It takes about an hour on the stove so it is a good weekend project.

Overall I would give the marinara recipe a 6/10. It was pretty good. A little on the sweet side and time consuming. It felt much healthier than Prego out of the jar though!

Veggie Lasagna Recipe

Look at these veggies! I scored big at the farmer's market today. Check out that beautiful eggplant and round zucchini! I knew I needed to make a delicious lasagna. Bonus: this recipe is low-calorie.

 Veggie Lasagna
10 lasagna noodles
1.5 cups pasta sauce
1 large tomato
1 eggplant
1 large zucchini
1 cup spinach
1 cup tofu ricotta (see recipe below)

Boil a big pot of water and add the 10 lasagna noodles. Then get chopping! Slice the eggplant, zucchini and tomato pretty thin, about 1/4 inch.

 Before you start assembling, make the tofu ricotta.

 Tofu Ricotta
1/2 block extra firm tofu
1 large garlic clove
1 Tbl olive oil
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp salt
375 degrees for 45 minutes

I like to use the Ninja - does anybody out there have one of these? It is amazing! My sister got it for me for Christmas and it is like a blender and food processor all in one.

Throw in the tofu ricotta ingredients, then chop with the Ninja! 

Next is a whole lot of layering. 3 noodles in the bottom first, then tomato sauce and a couple spoonfuls of ricotta. Then add in a layer of sliced veggies and spinach. Top with more noodles and do it all again. The top layer should have just tomato sauce and ricotta but a few slices of tomato would be really pretty too! 

Bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes at 375 degrees until veggies are tender. Enjoy with some fresh french bread!