Italian Shmitalian

A look at some Italian eats:

Garlic Knots

Fresh-baked garlic knots with a cold marinara dipping sauce from Bella Faccia Pizzeria on 29th and Alberta. My guest and I sprinkled on loads of nutritional yeast (of course), oregano, salt and pepper. We both like things heavenly-seasoned (just ask anyone who attempts to eat the popcorn I make), but on their own they were still warm, soft and doughy-delicious.

 

Pizza

One night last month there was an epic slumber party with 3 of us gals. It involved pigtails, pillow fights, pinot, pizza, and pajamas. It was pretty much the most fun ever, in part due to the yummy pizza we made. We used store-bought pizza dough, bruschetta sauce, mushrooms, onions, tofurkey sausage, and lots of red pepper. I know the lighting isn't terrific for these pics (we ate at 11pm) but I hope you can catch a glimpse of it's pure awesomeness. Turns out a pizza stone really does make a difference.

Spinach and Mushroom Lasagna

 

Lasagna Rolls

These last two are recipe tests for the Happy Herbivore cookbook coming out this fall. All fat-free vegan, easy, and super flavorful.

 

breakfast sausage patties

So if I haven’t mentioned it yet, I’m recipe testing for Happy Herbivore’s new cookbook.

Her recipes are all so easy and so quick. Each one utilizes ingredients that I always have at home, they’re extremely time-efficient, and they always come out great.

The kicker? Her recipes are all fat-free. Wha?! Yep, she makes the most creative and delicious fat-free and vegan dishes!

Okay, enough raving. (But I do seriously love her and what she comes up with).

I made these breakfast sausages for a breakfast discussion group I attended a few weeks ago. They were incredibly easy, prolific (yes, I’m making that word work in this case. So there.), and were, of course, fat-free.

Breakfast Sausage Patties

Her cookbook comes out next fall.

~~~

Our breakfast that day was superb. The Spicy Vegan and I made breakfast for six of us. She made roasted potatoes and a tofu scramble (AMAZING) and I made Happy Herbivore’s breakfast patties and nessie mcmuffins (My mcmuffins are the things wrapped in foil on each plate).

And yes,that is Portland’s own Secret Aardvark Sauce on the table.

Close up: