Hats Off To My Boyfriend!

This Saturday we will be in Sacramento - no not for home goods at Ikea or to hang out on the grid (however we are eating at Sugar Plum again!) but because my boyfriend's music video is being screened! My boyfriend Matt's video for Gabber Nullification Project's song "Sunday Sunday" will be screened at Sacramento's Film and Music Festival.


Congratulations Matthew. Mar and I love you and appreciate your talent!

If you want to check out the video please go watch it on his YouTube channel.

Setting Up For Craft Shows

I have been doing craft shows for a few years now. I usually stick to a card sized table for smaller events and go with something bigger for larger shows. I like using my card table the best because of the small space that forces me to have a clean layout - I am the type of person who can never have to many items sitting around.

I try to get my products situated the night before. I group items together and use drawstring bags to hold them in their groups. My business cards and fliers go in a box and if they are too big I paperclip them together. My tablecloth goes on top for extra protection. I use vintage suitcases to haul my stuff to events and then hide them under the table at the event. If I am doing baked goods I place everything in food storage boxes and stack them in the fridge until they are ready to go.
The day of the event I pack all my goods in neat stacks in the car. My boyfriend loads the trunk with our table and chairs. After leaving things behind before I have learned to double check before leaving. I also make a run to the bank for change - super important!

Always get to a show early, especially if tables are not assigned to a certain location. This can mean having a great spot or being stuck in the corner. Once at the show check in and then go get your stuff. If you can bring a friend to help with getting things ready, my boyfriend always helps and vends his stuff - I am lucky! Bring extra such as markers, tape (to hold down signs - if you are outdoors!)and a note book so you can take down any notes like low inventory, and you can always doodle in it if it gets slow!

I think having a routine is important and the longer you do shows the better you get at setting up. Also having a set up plan means less stress and less stress is always good!

Thank you amea - oddly romantic for the picture of my set up!

Turning 31!

I turned 31 on June 28th. I had a amazing 3 day birthday that involved coffee-walnut cupcakes and friends, San Francisco fun and good eats , a concert in Sacramento a more awesome food.

I decided to make two different cupcakes for my birthday. The one that had the most positive response was the coffee-walnut cupcakes with coffee butter cream frosting. This cupcake is super dense and rich and has loads of coffee flavor. The recipe is something I came up with after veganizing and reconstructing a few recipes. If you do not like StarBucks feel free to use a different brand of instant strong coffee.


Super Walnut Coffee Cupcakes + Coffee Butter Cream Frosting
[makes 12 standard sized cupcakes]

3/4 cup Earth Balance (room temp)
3/4 sugar
3 tbsp. of Egg Replacer with 9 generous tbsp water - mixed
1 1/4 cups ap flour
½ tsp. baking powder
½ cup walnut pieces
1 packet* of Via Instant coffee -Italian Roast- dissolved in 1 tbsp. of hot water

Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with liners.

Beat the Earth Balance and sugar together until creamy and then slowly add the Egg Replacer mixture. Sift in the flour and baking powder and then mix in. Fold in the walnuts (checking for big chunks, discard those). Divide the mixture between the cupcake liners evenly. Bake for 20-22 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

[Coffee Butter Cream Frosting]
2 tbsp. of plain soy milk
1* packet of Via Instant coffee -Italian Roast-
6 tbsp. of Earth Balance
1 1/4 cups of sifted powdered sugar
large walnut halves to decorate

Warm the soy milk in a pan (do not boil) add coffee and stir until dissolved. Let cool in a medium sized bowl till warm - not hot. Beat in the Earth Balance and frosting till creamy. Frost each cupcake and decorate with a walnut half.

*About 2 teaspoons



For my birthday we usually take a mini day trip, this year I really wanted to go to Japan Town in San Francisco with a few stops. We got off BART and went over to Westfield Mall to have lunch at Loving Hut. We both ordered combo plates. The food was good, I even got a mock beef dish and it was not to ‘beefy’ which is sometimes the case when using mock meats.




Once in Japan Town I went crazy with all of the cute toys in the mall. We had a blast taking photos and decorating them at Pika Pika. I walked out with lots of super cute stationery from Kinokuniya. I could spend all day and all my money in this mini mall. We went across the street to the New People store/mall and I fell in love with some of the goth lolita stuff on the upper level. I really liked Black Peace Now’s stuff!



We headed down Filmore and had soy yogurt at Fraiche Yogurt with lil pillows of mochi settled on the side. Then we walked down hill (later up hill - my poor feet!) To eat vegan Chicago deep dish pizza with loads of Dayia at Patxis Chicago Pizza. I was never a huge fan of ‘commercial’ pizza since I grew up with hand made pizza from a Sicilian grandma, then vegan options are usually not tasty. Patxis just rocked the taste buds that night and we were both amazed at how good it was.





The next day in Sacramento we started off eating at the all you can eat vegan buffet at Queen Sheba . I always load up on enjeera and lentils!


I just really wanted to try Sugar Plum Vegan after seeing they opened a store front. I had tried a gluten free - vegan brownie at a craft show one year and it was yummy. The owner was super nice and we both got our order fast. I got the midtown club and my boyfriend got the tempeh reuben panini - they were both damn tasty and we are not even sandwich people. We stocked up on sweets for after the concert (we saw Dum Dum Girls perform at Blue Lamp - good show, clean venue!), the owner even through in a large cowboy cookie! The best thing we had (on our way home!) Was the peanut butter creme filled giant cookie - tasty!
Can I just applaud Sugar Plum Vegan for a bit...Living in the valley we don’t have vegan food on every corner. People from bigger cities thinks that we are often lame and write shit about us. Sugar Plum Vegan gives me hope, they are offering monthly workshops and kick ass food without the attitude. I look up to Sugar Plum Vegan - they started off how I am starting off with my own vegan bakery and it gives me lots of hope.



Yay smaller town vegans and having a awesome bday!

Quick Party Snack

I like hosting little vegan parties in my backyard. I am a fan of finger foods and I am also a fan of comfort food. One of the easiest and yummiest things to create is Tofurkey Roll Ups or as many people call this dish Pig In A Blanket.

[Tofurkey Roll Ups]
1 package of Italian style Tofurkey Sausage (4 links)
1 package of Pillsbury Original Crescent Rolls (8 count)
ketchup, mustard, pizza sauce to dip (optional)
-------------------------------------------------

Set your oven according to Pillsbury Crescent Roll instructions. Roll out the dough and flatten/connect the perforated edges so you get a sheet that is more uniform and will not divide. Cut the dough into 1 inch or so strips, you should get 16 strips. Set aside. Cut the Tofurkey links into 16 1 and a half inch (or so) pieces. Roll each Tofurkey piece in a piece of dough and set on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the dough is a golden baked brown color. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce, mine is mustard!

Summer Cosmetics - Vegan Style

The temperature is rising and while I love the longer warm days I can’t handle the weather on most days because it is so damn hot. I hate spending time getting ready to only end up end a pile of sweat and oil a hour later. Here are some must have vegan safe products from SPF to cosmetics that help me get through the days.

SPF is important. I have pretty light olive tone skin and rather stay pale than burn. Most sun blocks for the face leave my oily skin super greasy and nasty. However I am a hugggeee fan and will only buy Murad Oil-Control Mattifer SPF 15 . When you put it on your skin feels less oily and almost velvety in seconds.



To keep my face shine free and looking fresh all day I really love E.L.F.’s Complexion Perfection powder. It evens out any redness in my face and makes the shine go away. At $3 it is a must have buy. To apply it I use a large synthetic fluffy brush.




Too keep my black liner in place all day I turn to Urban Decay’s Eyeshadow Primer Potion. It makes my eye makeup not run down my face during a game of Frisbee.


I am a fan of glossy lips but before I put on gloss I slick my lips down with Merry Hempster’s SPF 18 Lip Balm. Glossy lips attract sun and it is important to protect your lips with a SPF.



Can’t forget the body. I use Eucerin Everyday Protection Body Lotion, UVA + UVB SPF 15 Protection. The formula works for my sensitive skin and has never left my itchy or red.



(I am not getting paid by companies to endorse products - these are what I actually buy and use daily!)

Pet Cancer Awareness Month is still happening. You can still donate to help reach the goal. I am wearing my blue bracelet all month long!
When Mar was diagnosed with cancer we were totally shocked. It started off as a sore on his tail that was not healing. We took him in and Mar's vet decided to do a biopsy, when that came back positive we had Mar checked out and thankfully the cancer was contained in his tail. We had his tail amputated and had Mar home that day. Almost a year later Mar is doing fine and we are very thankful that we have our panda-cat with us when others are not so lucky. Every day we are thankful for more time with Mar.
Please keep the signs in mind when you see something wrong with your companion animal, educate yourself and others :

Early Pet Cancer Warning Signs, As Identified By The Veterinary Cancer Society.

1. Persistent, abnormal swelling
2. Sores that do not heal
3. Loss of weight
4. Loss of appetite
5. Bleeding or discharge from any body opening
6. Offensive odor
7. Difficulty eating or swallowing
8. Hesitation to exercise or loss of stamina
9. Persistent lameness or stiffness
10. Difficulty breathing, urinating or defecating

Modesto's vegan bake sale - Awesome day!

April 29th through May 2nd marked the second annual World Wide Vegan Bake Sale. All around the world people were in their kitchens baking up some tasty treats minus all the animal ingredients usually associated with baking. Last year the event was during my birthday weekend and I was in San Francisco. I stopped by San Francisco’s event and saw the set up, met some people and thought to myself “I could do that” and this year I did.

I chose May 1st because May is the official pet cancer awareness month. Last year my cat Mar was diagnosed with cancer and thankfully it was treated when we had his tail amputated. He is doing fine now. I want to give other cats and dogs a fighting chance.
I started planning in March, first came location. After finding one I started looking for bakers. At first I thought I would be the only one baking. My mom offered to help and soon after people started contacting me. I was so excited and super thrilled. We even had Vegan Propaganda send in dog treats from NJ! Awesome right? My boyfriend Matthew designed some simple fliers, we printed them out on recycled paper and placed them all over town and on our social networking sites.


May 1st arrives and I am up frosting a few dozen cupcakes I made the night before and getting the car packed. We arrived early and while it was windy we got things together. Bakers and friends started arriving and pretty soon we had a nice set up. There were various flavors of cupcakes, a variety of raw treats, chocolate chip cookies, raspberry blondies and solar oven baked cinnamon rolls to name some of the stuff there.


While the food and new friends were awesome the best part of the day was when we counted the money and realized we made $400 in four hours that is going to help the local animals in our community. With kitten season around the corner we are helping getting cats trapped and neutered and buying much needed medicine.




I want to thank the awesome people that came out and helped, people that spread the word and people that came out and bought yummy treats. This inspires me on so many levels. I get misty eyes just thinking about how awesome the day was.