Vegan Power Food in Rittenhouse Square.

We were dogsitting this week for my in-laws and their neighbors, so the easiest solution was to have a Rittenhouse Staycation at their place. They have a wonderful home that has everything we could possibly need for a few days, and is convenient to my usual hits: Le Pain Quotidien, Elixr Coffee, Lithe Method Rittenhouse, Barney's Co-op, Di Bruno Bros, and Nook Coffee.

A vegan left to their own devices in another person's kitchen...I was up for the challenge and cooked a few excellent meals during our stay. They happen to have an amazing kitchen with multiple workstations, organized ingredients, and double sinks, so it is always a breeze to cook there.

We began the day with some Vegan Pumpkin Pancakes (by far, my best pumpkin pancakes yet) that I made up on the spot, after locating flaxmeal and whole wheat flour, plus a can of pumpkin, in the cupboard.

Josh's mom had the Power Foods Cookbook on the counter, so I poked through to find plenty of vegan recipes and lots of my favorite things...I am certainly picking up a copy.

I decided to try a few of the recipes first.

I was inspired  by two different recipes, one for a Yellow Pepper Soup and another for a Spicy Sweet Potato Soup, so of course, I combined the two, which resulted in this bowl of brilliance. I tucked in some bits of kale, also.

For dessert, I wanted to try the Lemon Cream, a tofu pudding that was a snap to blend together. It was a light and tangy cream topped with blackberries that soothed  my hectic day. I cannot wait to make this again closer to spring.

Power Foods are so important to me, and clearly to this little lady as well: