Sunny Pineapple Tempeh.

I've never been sold on the idea of flavored vinegar. Until, well, a few days ago. It was just one of those things that I like as is. Coffee. Whiskey. Balsamic Vinegar. After sampling my way around F. Oliver's (new location in the Commons in Ithaca), I became so drunk and happy on infused oils and vinegars that I turned to Mr. Vedge and said "The pineapple one. Dinner. Let's."

Sure enough, the Sunny Pineapple Vinegar made a case for itself on some marinated Cayuga Tempeh and sauteed red peppers. It boosted a simple tomato, basil, and cashew cheese caprese to heights uncharted. How many ways can you use such a specific flavor? I'm about to find out.

Note: You'd do well to marinate the tempeh with freshly juiced pineapple and balsamic, and totally one-up me with your anti-consumerism. When I'm in a sunny mood and a bottle calls out to me, I have trouble.

Pineapple not for you? The Coconut vinegar was an almost-buy for me, and if you're sticking to the simple straight-up oils and vinegars, F. Oliver's has some quite tasty options. Everything in the store is $14.95, except for a few of the aged and specialty oils/vinegars, which still ring in at a totally reasonable $16.95.

More London Leftovers: Vegan Tea, English Breakfast, & Manna

A few more moments in London...when we returned from our trip we were thrust into a flurry of packing and moving and settling, but here are a few notable eats:

We called in advance for a vegan high tea at the Langham Hotel, where we were assured that all was vegan, although I spied what appeared to be brioche on the tea sandwich plate so we picked around those. The sweets were fun, but as you can imagine, we skipped the little glass full of colored sugar. The scones were buttery and soft, I prefer them crumbly, and served with a vegan butter spread instead of curd.

The tea itself was the best part and while I don't think we'd do tea again, namely because it's expensive, it was something I had always wanted to do. I know it's not exactly easy to prepare several vegan items for a table of 3 when you are preparing batches of dozens for the regular folks, so I do appreciate the effort. I thought it was important to share this because when I searched for a place to have vegan high tea in London, I had a difficult time finding any blog posts on the subject.  

Beyond the brioche-gate, I'm not entirely sure that everything else was vegan. It was hard to tell and I asked as many questions as I could. I was told that our pudding was made with coconut milk, and the sandwich fillings were hummus, pesto avocado, and other veggies. 

Dinner at Manna, one of the oldest vegetarian restaurants in London, was one of the more romantic restaurants that we dined at, in Primrose Hill. We ordered 75% of the menu between the four of us. 

I was ravenous and over-ordered, then quickly realized I could have died happy after my appetizers:

Greek Salad with Cashew Feta!!! and quinoa: My favorite foods all on one plate? Plus Savoy Cabbage Spring Rolls with tempeh. Pure pleasure...

Our table also took on the Basil & Cashew Cheese Croquettes and Jerk Tofu Kebabs:

For mains, the Organic Bangers & Mash, my Mushroom & Walnut Pate Ravioli, the Spring Thali Plate, and a Lasagna special:

The portions were generous and the flavors reminded me of Blossom or Candle 79 in NYC, though I wished that they were a bit more refined. We didn't love everything, but were mostly satisfied. I would easily come back for the salad and spring rolls.

I was curious enough to order dessert. The Chocolate Tahini Pot de Creme was unlike any other pot de creme I'd had, but interesting enough. The Coconut Cheesecake was so-so, but it was the Banoffee Trifle that most tickled my fancy and drove me immediately into the I-ate-too-much zone.

Now I get why trifle is so special: layers of rich chocolate cake, sliced bananas, custard & toffee sauce topped with whipped cream & toasted almonds.


I'll leave you with some full vegan English breakfast at Inspiral Lounge near Camden Market.

Fresh Air Full Circle Compost Bin

I'm new to the world of composting. We now live in a compost-friendly building with several large bins outside in a city that composts pretty much everything. No excuse for me not to do it at home. I wanted a bin that I could keep under the sink next to the trash can, which would be convenient enough to drop off outside every few days.

I first saw the Full Circle compost bin from Fresh Air on OpenSky. It's easily the most modern-looking of the compost bins out there, which is why it caught my eye. I figured it would be the most savvy of the options after reading some reviews. There were a few complaints about the compost bags that it comes with, so I picked up a different brand of bags just in case.

Pros:  The Full Circle is stylish and doesn't take up much space. I know it really doesn't matter what your compost bin looks like, but it makes me design-happy. Because it's small, we have been filling it at least every two days, which is fine because you don't want to keep waste around for much longer than that. Any bigger and I'd worry about attracting fruit flies.

It's odor-free. The bin allows air to flow through for "aerobic breakdown" of your compost. Many bins are sealed tightly and break down the waste more quickly, which translates to a smellier situation.

It's comparable in price ($29.99 at Bed Bath & Beyond) to other bins, but has smarter design.

It's simple to use and is dishwasher-safe. The lid pops open with a touch and the bags are easy to remove.

Cons: The bags they provide are not great. It says to change them every few days, and I don't think you can go more than two days without the bag threatening to rip when you remove it. Our bag was full after two days with coffee grounds and fruit/veggie scraps and I had to double it with another bag because it started to tear. It only comes with 5 bags, however, so you have to buy a new package of bags. Try BioBags, they're much stronger.

Again, it is small, which I consider a pro because it fits neatly underneath my sink. But if you drink a lot of coffee or have a lot of veggie scraps, or a bigger household, you'll need to empty it daily. That said, it is an ideal size for apartment living. If you have outdoor space, you might want to invest in an outdoor bin that is larger.

Get it: If you want to check it out in person, we found ours at Bed Bath & Beyond after researching it on Amazon and OpenSky.  It also comes in Black/Green.

Matcha Made in Heaven: My Take on the Matcha-tini.

It's no secret how I feel about wine. How I love to roll it around in my...OKAY.  I stick to a few glasses a week and I like to reassure myself that so many studies lean in red wine's favor, that yes, I will have another. It's mystifying, relaxing, it it pairs so well with food. Cocktails are a little more challenging to pair, and a lot easier to fuck up. I don't often drink a cocktail out, but if I do, it's an aperitif.

That said, cocktails are certainly a fun time, and when I am feeling FUN FUN FUN, I still don't stray too far from my wine preference and tend to go for wine-based cocktails. My regular drink is a Vermouth Cocktail, equal parts dry and sweet vermouth and 2 dashes of angostura. I'm also a big fan of anything with citrus, and my take on the Master Cleanse Cocktail, as seen here, is a crowd-pleaser. 

In keeping with my wino tendencies, this matcha cocktail has a base of Cocchi Americano, an aperitif wine that I recently tasted after we picked up a bottle. I've had cocchi in drinks and could never quite pick it out because I had no clue what exactly it was. 1) It's amazing on its own. 2) It doesn't keep long so I was trying to think of a way to use it before it turned. 

Fun Fact: Because Cocchi is made with cinchona bark, the original source of quinine, drinking it can protect you from malaria. Hello summer.

Matcha-tini? I was inspired by a recent post on Matthew Kenney OKC's Facebook. It sounded delightful, and they were using sake, so I thought, okay? I tinkered around with it and decided that cocchi would be just lovely. It's sweet enough to balance out the bitter matcha and it has some citrus to it that would be nice with some orange bitters.

Matcha Made in Heaven

2 oz Cocchi Americano

2 oz almond milk

1/2 tsp matcha powder

couple of dashes of orange bitters (almond or vanilla bitters would also be nice)

Shake with ice and double strain. 

Makes 1.

It's lightly sweet, earthy, slightly grassy, and in case it helps, somewhat healthy. I wasn't expecting it to be so delicious, but the combination really works. If you like green tea lattes or sake-based cocktails, this will rock your world. 

Pimp My College Kitchen

Our ideal kitchen is still a few years away, but we've been pretty spoiled the past couple of years with a sweet kitchen that was able to A) Store our obsessive collection of appliances B) Provide necessary counter space for all of our juicing/dehydrating/cocktailing/dinner partying C) Seduce us with high-quality appliances and finishings.

Back to our sobering college lifestyle here in Ithaca...which means, a more industrial kitchen. It's bigger and LEED-certified with rubber flooring. Totally utilitarian, and not pretty or stylish. We humored it for a few days, but we had to replace the sink faucet immediately. Luckily, one of us is a handy plumber type.

As far as storage, there just wasn't enough. Most of it is too high for me to reach, so we're picking up a folding stool called the Skinny Mini (that's a Lithe Method class!). We purchased some industrial restaurant-style shelving (super cheap storage and doesn't look terrible) along with some shelf liners to keep bottles and smaller items secure and neat. We decided to display spices, flours and everyday items, along with our dinnerware and major appliances. Things that we don't use often are tucked away in the harder-to-access shelves.

Kitchen BEFORE:

There was very little in the way counter space, and no island for entertaining and prepping. Cooking is usually a joint effort here, so we both like to have our own space for a cutting board so that we are able to cook together without bumping elbows. The solution? We invested in two stainless steel counter tables, and we have tons of room. Which lets us keep the juicer out for once (more motivation to juice) so that I may actually use it more often.

The other shelf acts as the liquor library, with a smaller adjusted shelf for bitters, syrups, and glassware. Our apartment came with a wooden counter table that is very similar to the metal ones and right now, we're using it for miscellaneous barware. Perhaps it will be my dehydrating station?

We turned what was a basic kitchen into a place that is more functional and reflective of our interests: a true workspace for all things food and drink. It pleases me to be able to see all of my tools at the ready, no straining to find a particular pan or appliance that is hidden behind a medley of other things. With spices and major ingredients out in the open, it's much easier to see what I have and just cook from there.

How have you tricked out your less-than-ideal kitchen?

Now to properly stock the fridge and pantry...right now the fridge contains cashew cheese, too much vermouth, and Lulu's Chocolate.

The raw chocolate company is new to me, as I've heard of it but was always so fixated on Fine & Raw and Gnosis, my go-to raw chocolate sources, that I'd never tried a bar.

As neither of my favorites are available here, I picked up two flavors of Lulu's the other day: Chocolate Maca Chunk and Smoked Sea Salt Almond There are a couple of other raw chocolate brands that I want to try here but Lulu's looked the most appealing. It's sweetened with coconut sugar (I prefer this over cane sugar or agave for flavor, texture, and nutritional reasons) and it also cost less, at $4.49 a bar.

Does it  melt my face off? Yes, we're happy together. It's no Fine & Raw, but that's because it's thinner and not as fudgy. It's crisper and it is the perfect size - one smallish bar is the ideal fix - not too much and not too little.

Also of chocoholic note, I highly recommend Emmy's Super-Fudge. Because Emmy's is made here in Ithaca, it's everywhere, and every flavor of Super-Fudge is available in the pastry case at the Greenstar Co-op West End. I've tried the Goji and Peppermint, and I am very near in love of this low-sugar wonder.

Sunny Lemon Dill Hummus

Spring to me means dill, and right now, I cannot get enough of this herb. Chopped into salads and grain dishes, on roasted potatoes, or even infused into cocktails, this flavorful herb is making my May.


Dill is the star of this light and spring-y hummus recipe, which also gets a hand from sunflower seed butter and lemon. Why the sunflower? Our tahini did not make the move to Ithaca with us and it's on my shopping list, but I knew that sunflower butter would provide the richness that this hummus recipe needed. The result? A suitable stand-in, should you ever find yourself tahini-less, too.

Sunny Lemon Dill Hummus

2 cups chickpeas + 3 tbsp reserved chickpea liquid

2 tbsp sunflower seed butter

Juice of 1 lemon

1/3 cup chopped dill

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp paprika

Combine all ingredients in food processor.


Garnish will more dill, olive oil, and lemon slices if you'd like.


This is going to make its way into some collard wraps with pea shoots and peppers and perhaps some tea sandwiches. 

White Chia Pudding...& Macro Eats!

Looking for a new spin on chia pudding? Try white chia seeds. I found these at my local Wegmans here in Ithaca. They are from a great company called Living Intentions that also makes a sprouted white chia flour and some incredible sprouted nuts. I just killed off a bag of the Tamari Almonds this afternoon.

What's the difference? I couldn't taste much of one, but visually, I found the white seeds more appealing. They also had a more delicate "chew". While chia seeds are predominantly black, both varieties have similar nutritional value and benefits. In your basic chia pudding recipe, the color will be slightly lighter.

I upped the vanilla and added cacao chips to my pudding for a refreshing crunch. I went a little heavy on the oats here, but that's just how I prefer it: 2 tbsp chia + 3 tbsp oats.

Have you tried white chia seeds? I plan on adding them to smoothies next.

Other local finds...


I've been lucky to have 2 amazing co-ops within walking distance, Greenstar Oasis, which is 2 blocks away,  and the West-End Greenstar, which is about a mile, in addition to Wegmans. I've been living off of the Ithaca Soy tofu, which is easily the best textured tofu I've ever had access to, and Oatmeal Date Bars from Blue Wave Pastry. Along with plenty of salads from the Co-op salad bars, Dr. Cow Cashew Cheese (so happy to not have to travel to NYC to find it!), and macrobiotic loveliness from Macro Mamas:

Macro Mamas appears at the Ithaca Farmer's Market every Saturday and the line is by far the longest at the market. They have platters starting at $8, their special Peanut Lime Noodles, and an abundance of vegan desserts (some gluten-free, also). It doesn't even matter how healthy this food is, it is so flavorful that people just line up for it and rave about it. They also sell platters at the Co-op, and this will probably be my lunch for the rest of the year. And every Saturday. Committed.

This Macro Mamas dessert was a Strawberry, Lemon, Coconut Cream Parfait. Tart and luscious, 100% summer. In a compostable container, natch.

More Farmer's Market pics:

Live from Ithaca

If you've been following me on Twitter at all, you know I've adjusted, um, quite well, to Ithaca after the move earlier this week. It's like a San Francisco (one of the cities that is most dear to me) that's cheating on the West Coast. Same laidback, hyper-granola everybody-composts vibe, slightly less giant hills (OH how my thighs ache), and some seductive summer-like weather with clean breezes.

Just walking around randomly here, you're likely to bump into a store that sells hemp products, a waffle house that serves vegan waffles with Earth Balance, a tea apothecary that has a raw foods demo going on inside, and animal rights activists doing their thing at Cornell. It's the greenest city I've ever been to, and I feel relaxed for the first time in months, even with the stress of living out of a suitcase for the past few weeks because of the move and London trip.

I'm having an interesting week...but I couldn't be more excited to unpack and immerse myself in the culture here.

Here's a peek at our new place. The view is what sold us on it. It overlooks a creek and I have taken to perching on the wooden ledge and gazing out like there's nothing better. We had some difficulty finding a modern space that was available here and took this apartment without driving up to see it first. We looked at photos, and were relieved when we finally saw it in person. It's bright, open, and waiting for furniture.

The kitchen, which is obviously a big deal to this couple, doesn't really compare to the old kitchen in Northern Liberties, but there's always the view and the fact that it's pretty open. We'll be adding in more counter tables and a shelf for the bar.

Overall, we have more space, and our LEED-certified building is quickly feeling like home. Compost downstairs, plus a big emphasis on recycling which was always lacking in building management in Philadelphia. Lots of green space and sculptures outside, too, and a baby waterfall a few feet away. Exterior therapy...

I'm almost ready to cook again (still unpacking) and I have been trying some amazing products that I found here in Ithaca which I'll be posting about soon. I'll ache for you at times, Philly, but this year will be good for me. And us. Go Flyers!