HAPPY NEW YEAR

A brand new year is upon us, and I am making a delicious vegetarian lasagna to celebrate the beauty of the day. My family tradition is to serve sauerkraut and pork roast, but since I choose to be meat-free I am making up some new traditions of my own. My vegetarian faux meat sauce I am cooking now looks amazing. I use a good red wine and  lots of tomatoes, onions and garlic to flavor the ground soy. The lasagna is going to be delicious, what an awesome twist  on a New Year's tradition

My husband and I and our two cats are enjoying a quiet holiday, well not so quiet since it is also football Sunday. What are some of your traditions? Have you chosen to reinvent traditions to make them your very own?

A friend of mine lost her beloved cat Gypsy today. I am a self admitted animal lover, and my cats are my family. My heart mourns for her and her family as they grieve their beloved feline family member. Our pets are never forgotten, years go by and we still miss them terribly.

I wrote this poem about my cat Dewey, thirteen years after I lost him. He was my best friend from 13-29. My family had many beloved pets over the years, all since passed away. We now have two beloved cats of our own, Stormy and Rascal; they are our newest loves. The heart always has room for more love, yet never forgets those gone from this world.

I dedicate this poem to my friends Susan, Melissa, Kristen, Jessica, and Donna and of course to beautiful Gypsy.

DEWY-EYED

Midnight warmth,

memory of my childhood;

long gone from my world.

yet never forgotten.

Always near to me,

shadow of my steps;

your roaring signature,

healed my myopic soul.

Your presence was sheer heaven,

during undesirable days of hell;

frightened at what was to be,

you were my diminutive anchor.

Now all that remains,

is a collection of old photographs;

my reminiscence of your very existence,

to remind my mind to never forget.

Midnight warmth,

seems like a dream to me;

memory of my childhood,

memoir of my heart.

(c) Rose Bruno Bailey

Happy New Year. Love, light, blessings and abundance in 2012 for all.
Prayers for those going through loss and hardships, may you find strength in those you love.

VEGETARIAN FAUX BEEF STEW

It is autumn, and cooking seems to go with the lush of the season. I am loving experimenting with vegetarian products, and have been converting some old standbyes for my  new lifestyle. I was craving my Mother's Beef Stew and decided to personalize it for my vegetarian ways. With the help of Trader Joes this is what I came up with, and it was amazing. My meat eating husband could not get enough of this cool weather dish. Served with warm rolls, this is a true stick to your ribs recipe and should please even the fussiest of eaters.

You will need:
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 bags mini potatoes
1 bag pearl onions
1 yellow onion, diced
1 bag baby carrots
1 bag crimini mushrooms
6 celery stalks, diced
1 head of garlic, chopped fine or pressed in a garlic press
2 packages trader joes beef-less strips
1 box low sodium vegetable stock
1/2 cup cabernet wine
vegetarian worcestershire sauce, a few tablespoons
1 small can tomato paste
2 tablespoons cornstarch for thickening at the end
salt, pepper, dried basil

In a large pot heat extra virgin olive oil.

Add diced onions, celery, garlic, and mushrooms and saute' until soft and carmelized

Stir in 1 small can of tomato paste

add 1/2 cup red wine,3 tablespoons vegetarian worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, and basil. Mix well.

Add vegetarian beef-less strips and break up into smaller pieces, cooking for a few minutes so the veggie beef soaks up the flavor of the worcestershire sauce, wine and vegetables.

Stir in 1 box vegetable stock, carrots, potatoes, pearl onions and mix well. Season with a bit more salt, pepper, and dried basil.

Depending on your tastes, you may wish to add a bit more of the worcestershire sauce for flavor. I was heavy handed, but everyone is different.

Cook stew uncovered for 45 minutes over a medium heat, until the carrots and potatoes break apart with a fork. Stir frequently as your stew cooks.

After the stew is finished, add a few tablespoons of cornstarch for thickening, it should have a gravy consistency and be brown and rich in color.

Serve this dish with some warm dinner rolls or fresh baked biscuits and you will swear you are dining at your grandmother's house. Even though this is a vegetarian dish, it has all the components of those traditional home-made memories you remember from your childhood, but without cholesterol and much lower in fat. Enjoy, and remember cooking is much more fun when you do it for someone you love.

MY EVOLUTION TO VEGETARIAN COOKING AND LIVING.

My sisters and I used to love to go to the grocery store with our mother. We would follow like little disciples, contributing our wish list of meal choices for the family dinner. This was the one thing that kept us together, the family meal. I never took an interest in cooking, never needed to. My mother was gifted at the culinary arts and I just basked in her glory, sampling an array of delectable delights as the years passed. She cooked with such passion and love, we all were the recipients of this gastronomical  way of showing affection.  


When my mother was growing up, she had artistic abilities, talents that she never had the opportunity to fulfill. She could pick up a pencil and sketch a portrait, and sing like a songbird. Her mother taught her dreams were unrealistic and unattainable. Over the years those dreams were left at the wayside, replaced with children to raise and the constant need to just get through a day and survive. When my father first met my mother, her cooking skills were so lacking, she could not even boil an egg. I believe when she picked up that wooden spoon for the very first time, the artist in her was reborn; the wooden spoon was her pencil, and the food she created was her masterpiece. Her cooking would be the light that kept us from darkness during those challenging years of childhood, and I believe her culinary talent became the basis of her identity and our lives together.

As we grew into our teens, birthdays meant big meals with spaghetti and tomato sauce, and all the accompaniments that go with a  huge Italian meal. Our friends were always welcome, and there was always enough food to share with anyone who stepped on our doorstep; kindness to others always came first. We might not have had much, but there was always enough to share. Through my mother I learned it is so much more important to give than to receive. A value I believe has shaped me through the years.

I became a vegetarian and I was one for ten years, and she was always able to take family recipes  and come up with something completely  unique just for me. As the years went by I never took a liking to cooking, I was always off doing my own thing and let’ s face it; who needs to cook when you have someone always doing it for you. I could never compete nor did I wish to, that was her arena. My interests were in the arts and I was not a cook. Then the day came when I wasn’t within driving distance of my mother.  It was time I learned to cook, and I did so  with her help via the telephone . I learned all that I needed to learn and more, and I even cooked my first Thanksgiving Dinner.

Now I find myself living in California and a vegetarian once  again, a lifestyle I find enlightens my mind, body, and soul. This time it is me converting recipes and reinventing old stand-byes.  If I do say so myself the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, passion for cooking  and giving can be inherited.  I am always learning, growing, and evolving; with the reassurance that my inspirational Mother is always a phone call away to assist me when needed.

Food feeds our bellies but friendship, love and light nourishes our souls. I am honored to share both with all of you as well as all topics about the beauty being alive. Join me in my new journey through the blogosphere of life.
Namaste'

Rose Bruno Bailey