Market Haul, Falafel Factory, and Healthy Bites to Go

The Piazza Farmer's Market has relocated to Germantown behind the Piazza since that white stuff happened. I honestly hope it stays there. Going down the line is a better way to survey the goodness, as opposed to circling the vendors with no decisive start.

Wild Flour was at the ready with their Yards-infused breads. Now if only the Foodery had a stand there to get down to business with. We tasted a rye bread with IPA and a sweet bread that was jacked with Pale Ale, cardamom, chocolate, and orange zest.The one we took home was the Yards ESA Multi-Grain. Toasted with some almond butter, the sturdy slice had lots of malty flavor. Extra special? Yes.

Whole wheat tomato pie from Big Sky Bread was our final treat. The market connects the path from home to gym, and after an amazing workout, coming back to rutabagas and carrots is just the thing.

 

Post-denim shopping in Rittenhouse, where I normally lament the dining options because every restaubar there might as well be the same thing, we hit the new falafel outpost: Falafel Factory. Yes, it screamed chain and there were pictures on the menu, but that didn't stop us from trying the barbecue falafel. They only had fried because there weren't baked falafel left, which was a let-down. It was odd to have pickles, onions, and BBQ sauce on a falafel, but certainly not bad at all.  I wouldn't frequent this place if the carts were open, but it would do in a falafel emergency. 

A final venture this weekend brought me to Healthy Bites to Go, Katie Cavuto Boyle's delivery and health food takeout in Grays Ferry. Seating was tight in the small market, but the point is to grab your tasty, nutritious staples and meals and get back to your life. It's convenience in the most local, sensible way. There are a few vegetarian selections, though not as many as I thought there would be. For breakfast, there are egg paninis with kale pesto, a vegetarian frittata, quinoa breakfast cereal, Tofutti cream cheese bagels, and muffins from Wild Flour Bakery. Lunch means sandwiches with kalamata olive and thyme white bean spread or cheddar and apple. There is Zahav hummus for sale and some interesting side dishes. Delivery seems expensive if you already have the time to cook lunch/dinner. I was seriously happy with my quinoa cereal with cranberries, cinnamon, sliced almonds, and agave, and enjoyed it outside in yesterday's sunshine. Could I make the same thing at home? Easily, but Katie makes me want to, and if I lived in Grays Ferry, I could see myself heading there on quinoa-low mornings in search of a fix.

A Skinny Bitch is Coming

Skinny Bitch was not the finest piece of writing I've ever put my eyes on. Far from.

It was mildly entertaining enough that both the fiance and his best man had no shame in reading it. They even brought it up in conversation. So, yes, it sits on the cookbook shelf, along with Skinny Bitch in the Kitch, though many of the recipes in it are so basic that it reads like my diet at ages 15-20 (my first five years of veg).

I think of the book as a gateway read for anyone interested in cutting down on meat. It's not nearly as life-changing as Bittman's Food Matters. It's a quick read, witty enough, and the name just sells it. There's even a Skinny Bastard, too.

Eating reasonably for health, energy, and well-being doesn't make you a bitch. It makes the most sense. We see Alicia Silverstone spin it another way with The Kind Diet. I  like her approach better because it's less "Eat right or I'm going to slice off your tongue with my stiletto" and more "Let's fast tomorrow and give each other coconut oil massages".

Still, even brutality helps. If you like it rough, co-author Kim Barnouin will be at the Free Library next Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. to promote Skinny Couple in a Box.

Thoreau: Portion Disobedience & 8-Inch Sprigs of Rosemary

"Ready for your boxes?"

The server at Thoreau was right to expect that we'd be packing up the remaining 2/3 of our meal. All parties who left before us waddled out with doggie bags and signs of an oncoming food coma.

I felt like Alice in Wonderland from the start, slipping around the bulky dining furniture in a too-small theater. Plates the size of rounded chair bottoms came floating out, asserting themselves onto tables that were just large enough to accommodate.

The bread is the first impression you get of a new restaurant. I inquired about the flavorless focaccia, which the server said was not vegan. However, the pumpernickel was dairy-free. It was airy and fresh, a nice dark basic for the orange chili butter.

Be careful with the bread. You'll need all of the stomach real estate you can get at Philadelphia's newest vegetarian restaurant.

Excerpts from February: Sexy Food Shots

A word: Please practice sexy in moderation.

Buffalo Blue Blini, Thoreau

Vegan Treats Peanut Butter Bombe, Mugshots

Fried Green Tomato Eggs Benedict, A Full Plate Cafe

Quinoa & Cocktails: Potential Pet Names or Really Correct Way to Spend a Wednesday

If I do Wednesday right this week, I will myself to be at the next Vegan Cocktails mixer, in South Phillytown this time. Cantina Los Caballitos is my preferred cantina of this world, and I dearly miss it.


I even had my first vegan tacos there. Nostalgia-mole.

Last go, I whined about the grease. This time around, they've got some non-trashy options they're teasing, like an asparagus and quinoa salad with tempeh croutons. Because I'm obsessed with quinoa and I have a damaged relationship with my parents because they made me eat steak with a glass of Juicy Juice for dinner all those years ago (I said it, there I finally said it), I'll be there for my grains.

Part of the proceeds will be donated to P.A.W.S. Starts at 6 p.m.


Cantina Los Caballitos
1651 East Passyunk Avenue

Updates on Your Date Making

Updates on Hot but Not Heavy:

Kanella has a 4-course $60 option for vegetarians:  

1st Course

Saganaki: Fried Cheese with ouzo, lemon, fennel salad and rustic bread

2nd Course

Tabuleh: Lebanese salad of parsley, tomatoes, mint, onion and bulgur wheat
or
Horiatiki: Village salad of chopped vegetables

3rd Course 

 Lahanodolmades: Cabbage leaves stuffed with rice, sultanas, pine nutes, feta and dill - braised in tomato sauce and garnished with Greek yogurt

Dessert

 Warm open apple tart served with vanilla cream and fresh caramel 
or
Honey glazed poached pear with honey and thyme icecream
or
Chocolate marquise served with hazlenut icecream and chocolate sauce

Ekta's upstairs dining room is now open. The fire-tongue that Indian gives you is always romantic.

Thoreau will be serving Valentine's dinner.

And, what really matters, the chocolate nutmeg pots de creme from Vegetarian Times are smooth, light, and he begged me to make them again.

Another Post Concerning Coffee

New coffee walks into this place a lot. I'm always on the lookout for some insane offering from the many roasters that sell online. This year, I've been all over the Verve.

We happened to be in need of some new mugs for guests. When we inquired about the coffee mugs on their website, Verve informed us that they weren't selling any yet, but then offered to ship us a couple for free.

When the mugs finally arrived, there was a bag of Ethiopian Heirloom with them. Aw, you guys. We already love you and now I can't stop thinking about you. You really brightened up my long afternoon of editing with your sweet, sweet juice. The mugs are now for sale in their online shop.

If you're interested in checking out new roasters, add these guys to your list for some truly memorable, what-the-fuck ways to wake up.

Verve Roasters