i ate meat

friday night, my boss gave us a certificate for a free dinner for two at fogo de chao (brazilian steakhouse - http://www.fogodechao.com/). we went for dinner on friday night - it was a date! it was a fun new way to dine. the first course is the salad bar, which was a large spread of all things salad. yummy! when you finish your salad, you then flip over you token from the red side to the green side which indicates, "bring on the meat gauchos!" the gauchos walk up to the table with the huge skewers of meat and offer you their choice of meat. the meat eater in me (who is not completely dead) got very excited by this. i got a few pieces of filet mignon and went to town. my tastes buds were instantly excited and my teeth did a happy dance as they tore through the muscle. it was a treat! about 10 minutes later i had to put my fork down. not from being full, but because i was so nauseous. as much as i enjoyed tasting the meat, digesting the meat was a different ball game. luckily, the wine was still edible :-)

recipe: vegan mac and no cheese

this is one of the best recipes i have stumble upon since becoming vegetarian/almost vegan. it really does taste and smell like cheese. it is very filling.

vegan mac and no cheese (from all recipes.com)

INGREDIENTS
1 (8 ounce) package uncooked elbow macaroni
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 half medium onion, chopped
1 cup cashews
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 1/3 cups water
salt to taste
1/3 cup canola oil
4 ounces roasted red peppers, drained
6 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder

DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add macaroni, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain. Transfer to a medium baking dish.

- Heat vegetable oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in onion, and cook until tender and lightly browned. Gently mix with the macaroni.

- In a blender or food processor, mix cashews, lemon juice, water, and salt. Gradually blend in canola oil, roasted red peppers, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, and onion powder. Blend until smooth. Thoroughly mix with the macaroni and onions.

- Bake 45 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly browned. Cool 10 to 15 minutes before serving.