A Little Bit Crazy!

Sorry for the long absence! Things have been positively crazy for me lately, and I don't even have the time for a proper post for you today. However, I will share a little bit of photo fun from last night's sugar cookie decorating extravaganza. 

A Rainbow of Frosting!

For those of you who have placed orders recently, thank you so much! It's my first real Holiday Rush. And quite a rush it is! I'll be baking every night this week, and all weekend too. Seriously cool. 

For more information on Augusta Vegan Bakery's holiday offerings, check out my Etsy site. Hope you are all enjoying the holiday season!

Beverly Hills Farmers Market

Though it's really hard to put up with sometimes, L.A. really is a great place to live. We are hugely fortunate for all the wonderful vegan options available to us, as well as an abundance of delicious, local produce. There are loads of farmer's markets around the area to choose from, and most of them operate year-round. Though we normally visit the Hollywood Farmer's Market, a few weekends ago Fiancé and I decided to branch out and visit the Beverly Hills Farmers' Market. It is definitely smaller than the one in Hollywood, but the quality of produce was stellar, and it was way less crowded. Here are some shots from our trip.

A sign leading us in

As you can see, not very crowded, but lots of booths

Capay Organic booth. They offer home delivery as well,
which I'm seriously considering!

Beautiful carrots at the Capay booth

Wheatgrass! We bought two of these. Sooo pretty.

It was snack time, and this hummus was delicious. Great ingredients!

Lemon flavored pita chips. They were fresh and delicious.

The artichoke hummus was amazing, and we ate it all. 

The bounty we brought home: tons of greens, daikon,
carrots, apples, & wheatgrass.

Beautiful golden apples (they tasted great in juice)

Rainbow Chard and Kale

If you live in L.A., or come for a visit, make sure you don't miss out on some of its awesome farmers markets. There is a great list here. You can learn more about the Beverly Hills Farmers' Market by visiting their website. They operate every Sunday, rain or shine, from 9 am - 1 pm. Yummy!

The Buffet at the Wynn

As odd as it may sound, a large part of my Thanksgiving vacation was spent cavorting around Las Vegas, Nevada. My parents had never before visited, and as they were coming west anyway, we thought this trip might be a good opportunity. Lucky for Fiancé and me, things are now a little bit easier for vegans visiting Vegas. If you haven't heard, Steve Wynn (owner of the Wynn and Encore Hotels) now requires that each and every restaurant in his hotels offers vegan selections. Thanks to a tip from Alix and Shawn, we were all over this awesomeness.

To kick off the vegan fun, we headed to The Buffet and proceeded to stuff ourselves silly. Yay!

The Buffet!

One thing you can say for the place is that they have pretty wacky décor.

The pasta was awesome. They have a chef there to cook it up for you, and
you can add whatever you want! I had mushrooms with vegan pesto. 

Here was my plate of joy. Curried chickpeas, baba ganouj, and
quinoa cakes were among the feast. Yum!

My favorite part may have been that everything was clearly labeled. Wynn Win!

Honestly, we only scratched the surface when it came to vegan food at the Wynn. I hear they have some pretty amazing upscale eats, including a tasting menu at one of the more swanky restaurants. Exciting! I can't wait to go back and stay at the Wynn so we can eat decadently, all the time. I'm going to have to save up for that one, though, 'cause these things don't run cheap. But that's the way all of Vegas is, really, so it's not surprising. Anyway, next time you're in Vegas, stop by the Wynn and speak to the concierge. They'll show you their binder full of vegan options, and you won't be disappointed! It's really quite something.

Thanksgiving Roundup

I am a very lucky girl. As many of you probably know, Thanksgiving can be really hard for a vegan who has a non-vegan family. It's tough to sit there and nosh on salad while the rest of the family gobbles up turkey, milky mashed potatoes, and stuffing made with sausage. I've met vegans who just plain hate Thanksgiving for this reason! I think that's sad, but like I said, I'm a very lucky girl. I'm blessed with a really tolerant and understanding immediate family, and a set of soon-to-be-in-laws who downright embrace vegan eating when Fiancé and I are around. This Thanksgiving, my parents came to visit, and joined the huge party that my soon-to-be-in-laws threw. We probably had 40 people there celebrating with us, and everyone had a great time! Fiancé's mom made us a ton of vegan dishes, and veganized a lot of the classics for us (without informing the rest of the group -- no one noticed). We had a huge spread!

Slicing up the Tofurkey

The Spread

Roasted Butternut Squash, Beets, & Onions

 Mushroom Gravy, from Veganomicon

Mashed Potatoes

Roasted Yams

Vegan Stuffing

Steamed Veggies with Vinaigrette

The Tofurkey with fresh sage

We are still working on the leftovers, and let me tell you, it's a treat! Everything was so delicious, and my omnivorous parents even liked the Tofurkey. All in all, a wonderful vegan Thanksgiving success. What did you have for Thanksgiving?