veg-couver bc

remember how i said i took the train up to vancouver to see the lumineers last weekend? well i thought it'd be nice to tell you guys about what i ate there! cause, ya know, that's what this blog is. just me talking about all the food i eat and how much i like it. still with me? there are pretty pictures, i promise.

the wallflower was a diner we spent most of our time is. like, literally two days in a row we were there. they serve meat & dairy but have a bitchin' separate menu for vegans. WORD. the first night we got a full dinner which included the best vegan mac & cheese i have ever had, and i have had a LOT of different mac & cheese's in my time. please note the cheese crust. CHEESE CRUST. it was incredible. i also got a black dahlia cocktail which was vanilla stoli, southern comfort and coke. i don't know if you guys know this, but i am a sucker for specialty cocktails. ugh, so good. highly recommend this place if you're in vancouver.

www.thewallflowermoderndiner.com

and here, to your right, is the best reason i can give you to go to the wallflower, and, indeed, to go to vancouver. this vegan creme brulee nearly killed me with its delicious. truly. we ate it both days we were there AND IT COMES IN A TEACUP. i don't know what else you need. also it goes well with whiskey (their $4 well whiskey is jim beam, too. can you tell i love this place?)

the concert was beautiful, the heroine addicts were
rampant, but i don't have pictures of those things and that's not really what you're here for, is it? we spent most of the next day (prior to crawling back to the wallflower for aforementioned whiskey + creme brulee) in the gastown district, which was super adorable and old time-y. we stumbled into the first coffee shop we found because i am incapable of function (without screaming) before i am caffeinated and OH MAN. it was good. parallel, it was called. to your left is a brownie, a mocha (pretty foam art and all, props to the barista, that shit's tough), my coffee with soy + cinnamon, and MAGICAL JOY IN VEGAN PASTRY FORM. pumpkin date coconut something with cashew butter and almond crust. holy god. i got two and had to stuff the second one in my face on the train before customs. all class, this girl.

before we got on the train we went to a kitschy cute cheap & veg-friendly burrito joint called budgie's. i got a chipotle tofu burrito with guacamole (not pictured) and it was AWESOME (i need some new adjectives). also we had some beers with jesus (pictured).
www.budgiesburritos.com/

also here's a picture of a rabbit girl in a fun antique shop we explored.

the moral of the story is, you gotta know where you're going in vancouver, kids. for multiple reasons. one is that if you go down a certain street (the street our hotel was on, in fact), you will be met with a city unto itself of heroine addicts. i have never seen anything like it. also, there are some really amazing places to eat, but you gotta do your research beforehand. in this case, i've done it for you! thank me later. 

xo m

chocolate peanut butter bunny eggs

well, it's that time of year again. the time when all the rite-aids are carrying chocolate peanut butter approximations of avian reproductive vessels and i drool all over myself despite my better judgment. i can't help it! they're so much better than regular reese's and everyone knows it. i used to wait for them all year and buy them in illogically large quantities, making myself sick and also a little crazy. now what i do is remind myself to make my own at home without using too much terrible stuff. don't get me wrong, there's nothing healthy about these, but hey! at least fewer chemicals and no animal secretions. ugh, anyway...

soundtrack;

the lumineers: ho hey

you guys can't know how infatuated i've been with the lumineers lately. i took the train up to vancouver to see them last weekend and they are just so full of love and light and passion for what they do. i'm serious, you want in on this. aside from that though, their whole album is great sunny springtime music and perfect for making & eating delicious chocolate to.

(please note the springy dress and freshly-painted fingernails)

chocolate peanut butter bunny eggs

makes about 16, i usually half it for my own safety

4 cups powdered sugar

1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter (i like it salted)

1/4 cup earth balance

2-3 tablespoons almond/soy/rice milk

3 cups semisweet chocolate chips

3 tablespoons coconut oil (or more earth balance)

1. mix together the powdered sugar, peanut butter, and earth balance. 

2. add the milk one tablespoon at a time until it becomes a nice workable dough. 

3. form the dough into egg shapes, and put them in the freezer for about an hour.

4. stir the chocolate chips and coconut oil together in a double boiler (boil water in a big sauce pan, put everything else in a little one and put inside. you can also use a microwave if you wanna)

5. dip each egg in the melted chocolate. this is kind of a bitch with a fork, but you can make it happen. probably better if you have a skewer around though.

6. stick 'em in the fridge on some wax paper. they hold up best a little chilled, but having chocolate melting all over your fingers is really not the worst scenario in the world, is it.

xo m