Clean Plate update

Clean Plate update
What began as a temporary raw-food restaurant and farm-to-table experiment in NoDo this summer will become a locally sourced vegan restaurant in south Omaha in the next three months.
Operator Elle Lien said Clean Plate — or Clean Plate GOOD FOOD, as the signs will read — should be open for lunch and dinner at 1801 Vinton St. by the new year.
Lien anticipates a small menu of all-vegan seasonally inspired fare. She said she'll carry over a few of the popular raw dishes from her monthlong occupation of the Empty Room. But most items will be cooked and the menu will change daily.
Lien said she's working to restore some of the building's historic details and plans a kitchen garden in the side yard. She said she'll share the building with Tugboat Presents, an Omaha offshoot of a Lincoln art gallery.

Good advice

Posted from email...
If a man wants you, nothing can keep him away. If he doesn't want you, nothing can make him stay. Stop making excuses for a man and his behavior. Allow your intuition (or spirit) to save you from heartache. Stop trying to change yourself for a relationship that's not meant to be. Slower is better. Never live your life for a man before you find what makes you truly happy. If a relationship ends because the man was not treating you as you deserve then heck no, you can't "be friends". A friend wouldn't mistreat a friend. Don't settle. If you feel like he is stringing you along, then he probably is. Don't stay because you think "it will get better." You'll be mad at yourself a year later for staying when things are not better. The only person you can control in a relationship is you. Avoid men who've got a bunch of children by a bunch of different women. He didn't marry them when he got them pregnant, why would he treat you any differently?Always have your own set of friends separate from his. Maintain boundaries in how a guy treats you. If something bothers you, speak up. Never let a man know everything. He will use it against you later. You cannot change a man's behavior. Change comes from within. Don't EVER make him feel he is more important than you are...even if he has more education or in a better job. Do not make him into a quasi-god. He is a man, nothing more nothing less. Never let a man define who you are. Never borrow someone else's man. If he cheated with you, he'll cheat on you. A man will only treat you the way you ALLOW him to treat you. All men are NOT dogs. You should not be the one doing all the ending...compromise is a two way street. You need time to heal between relationships...there is nothing cute about baggage...Deal with your issues before pursuing a new relationship. You should never look for someone to COMPLETE you... a relationship consists of two WHOLEindividuals... look for someone complimentary...not supplementary. Dating is fun...even if he doesn't turn out to be Mr.Right. Make him miss you sometimes... when a man always know where you are and you're always readily available to him - he takes it for granted. Never move into his mother's house. Never co-sign for a man. Don't fully commit to a man who doesn't give you everything that you need. Share this with otherwomen and men (just so they know)...You'll make someone smile, another rethink her choices, and another woman prepare.
Love,
Me

:( Fail! Banana Soft serve

Oh boy - cloudy, rainy, dreary awful day. Plus, much catastrophe in the kitchen while I tried to make banana soft serve last night. Apparently, you should peel the bananas before you freeze them.... Sigh, it was like a scene from Bridget Jones when I tried to get them out of the peel.

Ok - bananas are cheap we will get more and try again. I think if the sun would come out everything would be ok. Fortunately, having wine with the girls tonight!

Being a Vegan in Omaha, NE

Being a Vegan in Omaha, NE
Omaha has a surprising selection of stores and restaurants that are at least Vegan friendly, but not necessarily Vegan. I just wish there were more!
Here is a good link http://www.vegdining.com/Search.cfm
Restaurants:
Thai Spice locations all over town (best 108th and Maple) - can make nearly any dish with tofu. I have had their Bangkok Tofu and it is fantastic. I don’t know for certain that there is no diary, but I think the sauce is curry with coconut milk which is delicious and Vegan.
Blue Planet Natural Grill 67th and Center – is mainly healthy and organic but does have some Vegan dishes and lots of Vegetarian dishes. Their Thai rice bowl with tofu is amazing. They also have organic ketchup in lots of fancy flavors and even Vegan desserts! Yay! Also, love their social media marketing. We’re bff on lots of sites!
#1. McFosters Natural Kind Café 302 S. 38th St.- is the best place in town to go if you are Vegan. They have a lovely, casual ambience and healthy nourishing food. Lots of Vegan and Vegetarian dishes and a few with animals if you bring an omni. I brought my (now ex) boyfriend and he really enjoyed it – although he did have chicken.
Stores:
No Name Nutrition Store – 2032 N 72nd
I can’t remember what it’s called but shop on SS of 61st and Maple
#1. Whole Foods – Regency Plaza; They have the best selection and diverse if you need to feed omni’s as well.

Banana Soft Serve

I am going to try to make banana soft serve (recipe found on See Sarah Eat) tonight! I have also been enjoying the coconut Bliss ice cream but this is going to be way better!
Below the frozen bananas are containers of the Vegan chicken noodle soup I made the other day.

Vegan MoFo – Fiesta Brown Rice Salad and Vegan Pizza

Vegan MoFo – Fiesta Brown Rice Salad and Vegan Pizza
Pizza!
I finally made a successful Vegan Pizza!!! It was awesome – the cheese melted and everything!! Woo-hoo!! My first attempt several weeks ago was not good – I managed to have both a burnt and soggy crust and non melted cheese. Terrible! Then I found a recipe on-line and I feel terrible but I can’t reference here I have looked all over! I will try to find it an add it in later. The blogger had the great advice to cook the veggies first as the mushrooms can make your crust soggy. Also, I invested in a cheese shredder and the cheese (Follow Your Heart Mozzarella Cheese) melted perfectly. Although, my inspiration said you may need to broil the pizza to melt and brown the cheese, I didn’t find it necessary. I sautéed in safflower oil (I use safflower oil in place of olive oil because it is still healthy at high heats), fresh mushrooms and cut up Ives Deli style Ham. IN another pan I sautéed (in safflower oil) frozen “stoplight” peppers. I put these in another pan because frozen peppers (also onions) release a ton of water when cooking and you will need to drain them several times. Also, my bff T had the great suggestion of soaking up the excess water with a paper towel. Worked perfectly – you want them as dry as possible or your pizza will get soggy. I purchased tomato paste but I didn’t like that at all so ended up just brushing the crust with olive oil. I used a stone ground wheat crust that I found near the bakery department at Whole Foods. I then piled on the toppings and grated “cheese” over the top.
Oh no! I forgot I have some really lovely vegan parmesan cheese that I could have used. Boo!
Sorry about that! I’m back. Anyway, it turned out really nicely and my roommate and I ate the whole thing. It really would be enough for three people.
Fiesta Brown Rice Salad
I also made this recipe I got from the e-newsletter of WHFoods (World’s Healthiest Foods) by George Mateljan. Honestly, I get the vibe that he is a bit of a creep show but the recipes are often healthy and very good. I’m just going to include it here and then tell you about my modifications.
WHFoods: Fiesta Brown Rice Salad
Fiesta Brown Rice Salad
This health-promoting rice salad not only tastes great but can supply 114% of
your Daily Value (DV) for manganese, 141% DV for vitamin C and 26% DV for
magnesium to your Healthiest Way of Eating.
Prep and Cook Time: 50 minutes -includes cooking time for rice
Ingredients:
4 cups cooked brown rice
1 medium red bell pepper, diced
1 medium green bell pepper, diced
1 cup corn
1 cup black beans
your favorite vinaigrette
1 tsp ground cumin
pinch of cayenne
2 TBS chopped cilantro

Directions:
Combine 4 cups cooked brown rice, diced bell peppers, corn, and black beans.
Toss with your favorite vinaigrette.
Add 1 tsp cumin seed and a pinch of cayenne to dressing. Sprinkle rice salad
with chopped cilantro
Serves 4
© 2001-2009 The George Mateljan Foundation

The only real difference is that I only had one green pepper and so I used the left over sautéed peppers from the pizza (I purposely made extra). Also, I always put 1 tbsp of safflower oil in my rice while cooking. And of course I added lots of cracked pepper and celtic sea salt to everything! I also put extra cilantro in because I really love cilantro. I think adding red onion and tomato would be very good and I will try that next time.
It turned out really nicely and my roommate loved it too. She did pick out all the raw green peppers so next time I will keep those separate. I had it for lunch again today and it was still very good. I actually warmed it up a little which was nice. I am currently reading, “The China Study” so I am going to be limiting my protein for awhile. Although, so far it sounds like plant protein is ok I am not taking any chances!

Vegan MoFo III – Thai peanut “chicken” and Yams with Apple Butter

Vegan MoFo III – Thai peanut “chicken” and Yams with Apple Butter
Thai Peanut “Chicken”
This recipe owes a lot to my dear friend MG. She made something very similar and I totally stole it and made it my own.
I took WestSoy Thai Peanut tofu and cut into squares. I sautéed it in peanut oil (1 tbsp) with: squash, zucchini, baby carrots, red onion, garlic, Brussels sprouts and mushrooms. I topped it with a dash of sesame oil (less than 1 tsp), celtic sea salt and liberal amounts of cracked peppercorns. I also think fresh ginger would be excellent – but I didn’t have any. Then I put it over brown rice.
You could really add any vegetables you wanted for your own version. I am thinking of making it again with asparagus and whole mushrooms. It was also very pretty. I need to remember to take pictures of these dishes. I love to make very colorful dishes and the carrots, zucchini and squash really added nice color. It was fun, easy to make and very delicious. I feed my roommate too and she also loved it.
Yams with Apple Butter
Since my recent breakup my cousin and her husband have been really great about inviting me over for dinner. Usually, I bring my own food and something we can all eat since they are omni. It was so nice on Sunday, they specifically made a dish that I could eat. We had this fantastic, yummy spinach salad with toasted almonds and walnuts, dried cranberries and mandarin oranges. Mmmm.. so good! I just skipped the dressing and didn’t even miss it. I brought over bread which we dipped in olive oil with salt and cracked pepper.
They also made yams and I brought cinnamon and natural (and organic) apple butter. It was so delicious! I made sure to get apple butter without added sugar (I only use a handful of sweeteners: agave, natural fruit juice, evaporated cane juice etc) and it was still very sweet and tangy. It just added a lovely zest to the yams. My cousin also made the yams in the oven which I am far too lazy and impatient to do (5-7 minutes in the microwave)… The meal was so lovely and colorful. Perfect for fall! Next I am going to try apple butter and cinnamon over frozen (organic) butternut squash. I read a recipe for that that sounds simple and easy (microwave the squash, mash it up, add apple butter and cinnamon).

Tonight - I am going to try Vegan Pizza and maybe "Fiesta Brown Rice Salad"