Crescent Rolls

I dream of soft, fluffy rolls fresh from the oven that I can tear open with my fingers, watch as the smoke dissipates right before my eyes, slather with a dab of vegan butter and raspberry jelly, and then take a huge bite of...now doesn't that sound like heaven?

And after making these crescent rolls I definitely was in heaven. Because not only are they are easy to make and impossibly elegant to look at, they are, of course, 100 percent vegan.

As flaky as these rolls are, don't mistake them for their richer French cousins, the incredibly delicious croissants, which contain far more fat and are more puff-pastry-like in the way they're made. These are regular rolls that shaped like crescents and they are not just great for breakfast but great at just about any time of day.

Peas-Carrot Subzi with Rajasthani Spices and Missi Rotis

A reader had asked me (a while back, I admit) if I knew the recipe for a subzi he once tasted in Rajasthan. Gordon described it as an "amazing dry curry made with wonderful red carrots and green peas" that, he added, was very simple but so flavorful.

I will confess I am not an expert on Rajasthani cuisine. I had a school friend, Seema, whose family was Marwari and who'd often share her delicious lunches with me, but other than that my only exposure to food from this vibrant state was when I traveled to Jaipur a few years ago for a truly memorable and wonderful trip punctuated by some sad memories of elephants and camels carrying heavy loads of tourists up and down steep mountain roads.

But the idea of a peas-and-carrots curry flavored with Rajasthani spices stuck in my mind because it sounded so delicious, and I was eager to give it a try.

Wanted: A Home for Hunny

A distressed reader sent me this posting for a dog at a North Carolina shelter that needs a home urgently (like, in a day) before she gets euthanized, and I thought I'd put it up here as is, just in case it reaches someone who is willing to step up.

She is so adorable, isn't she? I didn't see a name in the listing, but I'd call her Hunny, after the sweetest dog I ever fostered and who had the same brindle coat and looked very much like this girl.

I hope this Hunny finds a home soon!

WHITEVILLE,NC. BEAUTIFUL PLOTT HOUND GIRL TO BE KILLED DEC 23 !!!

VERY SWEET GIRL THAT NEEDS ANOTHER CHANCE AT LIFE. PLEASE HELP HER!

Candidate for euthanasia 12/23
Plott Hound
Large Adult Female Dog


Contact: Columbus County Animal Control
288 Legion Drive
Whiteville, NC 28472
Phone: 910-641-3945 and Fax: (910) 640-1196

Hours of Operation:
Monday - Thursday: 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Friday 12 - 5 p.m.

Oh, those golden oldies...

I am back to say a quick hello and share with you a small piece of my great love: a melodious Hindi oldie.

Thanks to all those wonderful Indians who, like me, are hooked on these timeless songs from old Indian movies and who, unlike me, are proactive enough to post them on YouTube, I get to enjoy them any time I wish with a click of the keyboard. In fact, Desi and I sometimes make an evening of it watching the oldies -- I can't think of anything I love to do more.

But while revisiting those great songs-- most of which I'd only heard on radio growing up-- is fun, it can also sometimes be kinda anti-climactic. You'll have always loved this song and couldn't wait to see the video and when you do...heck, what were they thinking?

The song I wanted to share today does not suffer from that problem, though. In fact, I love the simplicity of this black-and-white video filmed in the stark stairwell of the Qutub Minar in Delhi, with a super-cute Dev Anand lip-syncing as he woos an equally cute Nutan.

But what lifts this song from beautiful to sublime, I believe, is the chocolate-silk voice of Mohammad Rafi, without a doubt the greatest singer I've ever heard. Rafi, one of India's most popular playback singers from the '50s all the way to the '80s when he died, could turn even the most mundane lyrics into a thing of beauty. In fact, and I doubt anyone would argue this, he emoted better with his voice than many actors in Bollywood ever have with their faces.

Here it is, then, and I hope it brightens up your day, as it always does mine! Enjoy!

IAVW: Chinese. The Roundup.

If you thought that you'd been there and eaten that when it came to Chinese food, this roundup of It's A Vegan World: Chinese is going to make you think again.

Here's an array of dishes so fabulous, so creative and so diverse, I challenge any one of you aficionados of Chinese food (and who isn't one?) to find something you've never had before-- and try it!

Thanks to all of you who cooked for this event. As some of you might have noticed, I did not announce a theme for this month, but that's because I am going to make IAVW an occasional event from now on instead of a monthly one. I'm too busy right now with a new job and I want to make sure I do justice to your hard work when I announce and put together these roundups. I also know that this event is a great resource for many vegans out there, so trust me, I'll be announcing a new theme in a month or two.

Mashed Orange Sweet Potatoes

If it seems like I've gone AWOL these past few days, it's only because I just started a new job and I've been really busy. But there's no way I would ignore you for any length of time, so here I am with yet another delicious recipe that's totally vegan and totally right for this time of year-- my Mashed Orange Sweet Potatoes.

The orange in the name refers not to the color but the fruit (although these are so prettily orange). The combination of orange and sweet potatoes is worth dying for, believe me, and it does away completely with any need for cream or creamers or any of those fattening things that usually go into making this recipe. I do add some vegan "butter" or margarine to give the potatoes a smoother texture.

Sweet potatoes are among the healthiest foods out there, and they are a great trade-off for potato lovers like myself because they pack much more nutrition and vitamins while delivering some of the same satisfaction one gets from eating those divine spuds.

Pumpkin Pie

I went traditional for Thanksgiving this year with a Pumpkin Pie. Of course, it was not all that traditional since it was completely eggless and dairy-free. Plus it tasted blissfully good and it was cruelty-free and it rounded out Thanksgiving at my house quite nicely, thank you.

I used tofu as an egg substitute in my pumpkin pie and it created a texture that was supremely silky. Trust me, once you try this vegan pumpkin pie, you'll never want to go back to the unhealthy one you were used to.

Creamy Tofu Kofta Curry

I've been incredibly busy these last few days as you may have guessed from my slower blogging schedule. As a result, I didn't have a chance to share my Thanksgiving recipes with you, but I did want to post this one dish I made-- and loved-- as fast as I could.

I first stumbled upon this recipe on Sanjeev Kapoor's Web site. I've written about this popular Indian chef before, and I am a huge fan of his recipes. I am also a huge fan of kofta curries-- Indian-style vegetable balls (they look like meatballs but taste better) floating in a spicy, often creamy sauce. So when I saw the words "Soya malai kofta" among Kapoor recipes, I couldn't wait for an occasion to make this delicious-sounding dish and Thanksgiving seemed perfect because the curry has a lovely, festive, orange color.