Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Watermelon Gazpacho and Appreciating Myself


Watermelon Gazpacho

Happy New Year my dah-lings! :)

I know, I know, we're almost a month into 2014. But I've been so busy that I barely noticed January zipping by. There's been *so much* to do on various fronts, not the least of which is my job at our local vegan restaurant. I've turned into one of those people who need to make task lists and spreadsheets to keep track of things. Sheesh!

I've come to realise that there's a sore need for me to compartmentalise my time and leave chunks of breathing space, just to relax and reset. It's also extremely important that I periodically reflect on what I've accomplished and achieved. Otherwise it feels like I'm only doing, doing, doing things with a lot more to do but not taking note of and appreciating how much is getting done.

Most people who know me, especially those who follow and participate in the "I am thankful..." posts on my Art by Susmitha page on Facebook, know that I'm a huge believer in the power of Gratitude and that I make it a point to consciously give thanks for all the wonderful things in my life. From now on, I'm adding the practice of Conscious Self-Appreciation to my daily, or at least weekly, habits too.

It goes something like this:

- I rode my bicycle all the way from home to work this weekend. I'm freaking awesome!
- I created a twitter account for Carrots last weekend and live-tweeted photographs throughout the Portuguese Vegan Cooking Demo by Chef Nandan. How very cool and hip of me. :P
- I changed sheets, vacuumed, did laundry, washed vessels, scrubbed the bathroom walls and generally got a bunch of household chores out of the way this week. Freaking super woman, eh?!
- I took the lead on organising and pulling off a nice candle light dinner event at the restaurant for a really sweet, young couple. Aww I'm such a sappy, romantic. ;)
- I got a jewellery order package mailed out. Yay me!
- I took a proper, full day off from work, without even checking my email or social media pages no matter how tempted I was to do so. Brownie points for self-care.
- I'm getting this blog post done right now. Yeah! I kickass. :D

This is so much fun! By the end of this short list I'm feeling super good about myself. I invite you to try it too. It'll be quite addictive.

Go ahead, leave a comment and proudly tell me all the things you feel awesome about accomplishing recently. :)

Meanwhile, here's another thing I'm proud of - a delicious, refereshing Watermelon Gazpacho!

I created it for our Vegan Bangalore monthly potluck last weekend. The gorgeous red-pink colour makes it look like I whizzed some rubies together in my mixie. :P It's so pretty, and yummy that I had to take pictures and share the recipe with you.

Watermelon Gazpacho

Apart from all the fruit and veggie chopping work, this cold soup is super easy to prepare. Here is how you do it:

- Blend together:
1 3/4 small Watermelons
1/4 Beet
1 Red Carrot (Gajad)
4 small Tomatoes
1 Ripe Chilli (green chilli that's turned red but hasn't dried yet)
8 cloves of Garlic
2 T Lime Juice
1 tsp Raspberry Wine Vinegar (Balsamic can be used instead)
2 T Nutritional Yeast (optional)
Salt (to taste)

- Stir in:
1/4 Watermelon - chopped
10 Strawberries - sliced
1 small Red Onion - chopped finely
Thyme - lightly crushed
Rosemary - lightly crushed
Pepper - crushed well

- Taste and adjust the flavours.
- Pour into a vessel/container, cover and chill in the fridge for 1-2 hours.
- Slurp and Enjoy! :)

Have a wonderful 2014, filled with an abundance of gratitude, love, laughter and joy! I love you all. *hugs* :)

Sunday, December 22, 2013

VGF, Carrots, VVP - updates from my yummilicious vegan life! :)


I've been MIA from my blog for over a month now because a lot has been happening in my life. All good things. :) So thought I'd give you all a quick update with lots of pictures.

In November, hubby and I organized VGF once again. This was the second time we did VGF (the first one was in Feb). It involved a lot of planning and work but in the end, it was totally worth it! :)

This article in The Hindu Metroplus clearly explains what VGF is all about.

Here are a some photos from the event:

The Food
VGF Food

The Sellers
VGF Sellers

The Demo and Visitors
VGF People

And here's the poster we created for VGF:

VGF 24 Nov 2013 Poster

We plan to have VGF a few times a year. Follow our VGF Facebook Page for more pictures and information.

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In other news, my Tropical Garnet Cocktail/Mocktail won the best beverage prize in the Virtual Vegan Potluck that was held in November. Yay! This is the second time my beverage has won a VVP prize, the first was my Hot Spiced Masala Chai last November. :)

Virtual Vegan Potluck Winner Badge

Check out this cool video announcing all the winners in the various categories on the VVP website.

I'll share pics of all the prize goodies once they arrive. :)

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Finally, I've been saving the best for last. From the beginning of December, I've started working at our local vegan restaurant, Carrots. After much thought, my hubbs came up with a designation name for me which encapsulates the various roles I've taken on at Carrots - Countess of Cuisine and Jollification. Yes, that's my official designation and will be on my business cards too. :D

I'm at the restaurant a few days a week and I'm totally loving it so far. The job, the environment, the people, the YUMMMM food! It's all awesome!!! :)

My first pet project as soon as I started at Carrots has been to work with Chefs Gurung and Ram to create a fantastic vegan buffet for New Year's Eve. I'm really proud of all the dishes we've come up with. If you're in Bangalore, this is a must-taste vegan spread! The full menu will be announced tomorrow on the Facebook Event Page.

Meanwhile, I'll leave you with photos of some of the dishes to drool over. :)

Almond Jowar Cookies
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Avial
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Cannelloni
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Cinnamon Rolls
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Grilled Tofu with Super Spicy Sweet Sauce
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Hot Chocolate
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Leek and Ginger Soup
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Obsessive Chocolative Disorder
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Cowboy Pepper Salad
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Raw Orange Ginger Tarts
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Garlicky Pesto Rolls
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Potatoes with Jamaican Sweet Sauce
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Roasted Peanut and Red Wine Vinegar Dipping Sauce
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Walnut Waldorf Salad
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Spaghetti Rolls
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Sweet Potato Pie
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

Tiramisu Cupcakes
Carrots New Year's Eve Buffet Spread

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Wish you all a wonderful Holiday Season and a fantastic 2014! See you all here next year. :)

*Hugs*

Saturday, November 16, 2013

Tropical Garnet Cocktail or Mocktail - Virtual Vegan Potluck November 2013


VVP Logo

Aaaargh! I'm totally kicking myself right now!!! After all the effort and time Annie and the VVP gang has put into coordinating The Virtual Vegan Potluck, I totally screwed up and got my date wrong. I forgot that the post had to go live this morning at 9:31 a.m. my time and kept thinking it has to go up tomorrow. Now I see all these VVP post links being shared online and I'm feeling so guilty!

Thankfully, I have my recipe created and pictures clicked already, so even though my post is going up at the wrong time, I'm hoping it's not too terribly late since it's still early in the potluck day for most people.

Tropical Garnet Cocktail or Mocktail - Virtual Vegan Potluck November 2013

This the the 3rd time I'm participating in the VVP. My first two posts were Hot Spiced Cashew-Sesame Mylk Chai and Rice Mylk Majjige. They were both beverages and this one is too. I believe beverages will be my forever VVP tradition. That is, if I don't get banned from participating in the next round. :P

Seriously, I'm really really sorry Annie. :(

Ok, without further delay, here goes my recipe for Tropical Garnet Cocktail or Mocktail

Tropical Garnet Cocktail or Mocktail - Virtual Vegan Potluck November 2013

The only difference between the Cocktail and Mocktail is the booze. One has the awesomeness of Coconut Malibu in it and the other just skips it (but is awesome nonetheless).

For the Tropical Garnet Base Mix:
2 Beets - scrubbed well and washed
1 C Coconut Mylk
1 C Seltzer Water (Plain Drinking Soda)

* Cut off both the ends of the beets but don't peel them
* Chop them up roughly and grind in a blender jar until they're as fine as possible
* Add coconut mylk and blend well
* Add seltzer and pulse a few times to let the coconut and beet flavours get infused into each other
* Transfer to an airtight jar and store in the fridge

Tropical Garnet Cocktail or Mocktail - Virtual Vegan Potluck November 2013

For the Cocktail/Mocktail:
Garnet Base Mix
Coconut Malibu (only for cocktail)
Seltzer Water

* Put a few spoonfuls of the garnet base mix in a glass
* Add a splash of the Coconut Malibu (if using)
* Pour seltzer water over everything
* Enjoy your fizzy cocktail/mocktail! :)

Tropical Garnet Cocktail or Mocktail - Virtual Vegan Potluck November 2013

The VVP is an event where various blogs from the world participate and share a recipe at the same time. Each blog is linked to the next to form a circle, like a warm, delicious hug. :) You can find the whole list of participating blogs at the host site, Vegan Bloggers Unite.

The blog before mine shares a delicious beverage - Chocolate Protein Tonic from The Veggie Nook (do note that the honey mentioned in the recipe isn't vegan though)
to previous VVP post

The blog after mine shares a yummy bread - Garden Harvest Cornbread from Sift, Stir and Savour
to next VVP post

Thanks for dropping by. Have a fun Virtual Vegan Potluck! :)