"U" try it

Go ahead...try to list enough "U" foods for 5 fingers. Can you name 10? I challenge you. I couldn't.

I couldn't find uglifruit locally, and Ryan doesn't care for umeboshi plums because they're "too sweet", his explanation for most things he doesn't like.

Ryan's
"U"
lunch:
pine-
apple
upside
down
cake;
upper
crust
pota-
toes;
udon
noodles
with
thai
sesame
peanut
tofu,
carrot
and
scallion.

The udon noodles were
frozen, and used packaged
thai tofu, so that was the
quick dish of the meal.

I found plenty of upper
crust potato recipes loaded
with butter, heavy cream,
milk & cheese. So instead I
veganized my own. It got
a 50/50 response from the
kids, but my husband raved,
so I think it's worth posting
the recipe. It's not some-
thing to include often in one's
diet, but it sure does hit the
spot on a cold winter day in
March. (And if you're won-
dering, no, I didn't taste it myself, but I froze a bunch for the end of the month when I'm done eating completely raw foods. I can't wait to try it, along with a dozen other dishes I've got waiting for me in the freezer!)

Upper Crust Potatoes

5 large russet potatoes
1 1/2 cups soy creamer
3 cloves garlic
6 shallots
2 T. margarine
1 tsp. crumbled rosemary
1/2 tsp. fresh thyme
6 oz. Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese (3/4 tub)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/4 cup vegan parmesan crumbles
1/3 cup panko bread crumbs

Peel and slice potatoes thinly,
preferably with a mandoline.
Place in a large bowl and pour
on 1/2 cup of soy creamer.

Preheat oven to 400F.

Next chop the garlic and
shallots finely. Melt the
margarine in a medium saute pan over low heat. Add shallots, garlic, rosemary & thyme (if you don't have fresh thyme just omit it--dry thyme is icky). Cook for a couple of minutes until just softened, then add Tofutti cream cheese. Increase heat to medium-low and stir to combine. Add the other cup of soy creamer, salt, pepper & paprika. Stir until there are no large lumps. Pour over potatoes.

Grease a square baking dish with margarine or olive oil. Put potatoes into baking dish, creating fanned out rows. Repeat another layer. Pour remaining sauce over top. Sprinkle on vegan parmesan, followed by bread crumbs. Bake uncovered for 1 hour.
The other thing I knew I wanted to make was a pineapple upside down cake. Finding vegan recipes wasn't a problem. But you know me...I wanted something QUICK! And something that didn't dirty too many bowls. Oh, and something that worked without a springform pan! So I took what I liked, omitted what I didn't, and made a 1 bowl cake recipe.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

1 large can pineapple rings
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. cider vinegar
1/3 cup organic canola oil
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups flour (I used 1 cup unbleached white flour & 1/2 cup quinoa flour)
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt

Drain canned pineapple into a measuring cup (you should get about 1 cup juice). Grease a round nonstick 9" cake pan. Place 5 pineapple rings in the bottom. If you'd like, cut 2 more pineapple rings into quarters and arrange them in the spaces. Sprinkle brown sugar over them. Preheat your oven to 350F degrees.

Pour pineapple juice into a large bowl. Add the cider vinegar & canola oil. Whisk to combine. Add the remaining ingredients. Stir by hand until no lumps remain. Pour batter over pineapple rings. Bake for 40-45 minutes.

Allow to cool until pan can be
handled with bare hands.
Place a large plate over cake
pan, then invert to remove
cake from pan. The boys
enjoyed this with vanilla ice
creme (coconut vanilla is great,
or we like Trader Joe's soy
vanilla too).

Yesterday it looks like I barely ate! But a bowl of soaked steel cut oats is FILLING. I just wasn't hungry. And later I was distracted by hiking...

7am- soaked steel cut oats w/blueberries & walnut-cashew creme.
3pm- bento lunch: cantaloupe, orange, starfruit, raisins, date pieces, sliced almonds, carrot sticks, salad wraps (bib lettuce, green onion, yellow bell pepper, marinated portobello mushroom).
8pm- bowl of snap peas w/sprouted chick pea hummus; 8 olives.