New Jersey – Always a Little Behind and a Little Ahead

July 2, 2009 by karisullivan

The first time I went to New Jersey (the Jersey shore even!) was in 1992, the year this documentary was filmed. I was too young to really notice how distinct the culture was there – it just seemed very different than Colorado. It was already pretty grunge in Colorado by this point, and I didn’t understand that Jersey was behind the times. I just assumed that *I* was behind the times, and I guess I was sort of was…from a trash culture perspective.

Watching this montage is such a trip, because the accents, attitudes, and (of course, of course) the hair really take me back. Forget the Real Housewives, this is New Jersey to me – drunk, brash, 90s teenagers who thought they were so tough and cool, especially while dancing to “Do the Bartman”!

First Weekend in Dallas

June 28, 2009 by karisullivan

So I can’t believe that we’ve lived in Austin for a year, and this is the first time we’ve visited there. Dallas is (obviously) huge, and I didn’t get to see as much of it as I’d like. I would say that I definitely like the whole downtown / uptown area more than the burbs, but that’s not too surprising if you know me.

Lisa and I

The best thing about Dallas is that my cousin Lisa lives there. This is the two of us (I’m on the right) after having brunch at Breadwinners. If you’re vegan they make a huge bowl of oatmeal which is great. I guess that’s not so exciting for younger vegans, but I’m old enough to take a bowl of oatmeal any time I can get one.

Relaxing space

We also went to a Facebook Developer Garage and Wordcamp Dallas while we were there. Or we tried to go. We ended up leaving both events early. I chalk that up to the fact that I can’t sit still and be quiet AT ALL. Plus, we were at the end of two months of travel, and we were beat.

Sawadika Thai Zone

Because we were staying near Wordcamp, we were in Richardson, which is really suburban. Lots of chains, which isn’t really my style. We did end up trying Sawadika Thai Zone, which was quite nice.

Green Curry with Tofu @ Sawadika Thai Zone

I am always up for some green curry.

Provocative Billboard Outside of Dallas

Like Austin, Dallas is cosmopolitan and modern, but it’s still in Texas. The ride up and back to Dallas is really entertaining, like this incredibly bizarre billboard above.

Spaceship in Italy, TX

A “spaceship” outside of Dallas. We randomly found this when we stopped for gas.

Willie's Place

Willie’s Place is possibly the best thing between Dallas and Austin. It seems like a redneck tourist trap, but it’s secretly part of Willie Nelson’s plot to take over the world with bio fuels.

Second Bento Box

June 28, 2009 by karisullivan

I tend to eat fairly bad crap when I’m traveling, and a couple weeks ago, I bought a bento box to try to remedy that. I am dorky enough to really love packing my own lunch. I would probably get sick of it if I had an office job, but since I work from home, packing my lunch is still novel for me.

My first bento box was a bit of a disaster. It was similar to this one but totally ruined by some nasty tabouli. So I present to you my second bento box:

I’m really glad I did bring my bento box up to Dallas. Given the lack of vegan food at Wordcamp, I would have been stuck with coffee and potato chips.

My Basic Green Smoothie

June 23, 2009 by karisullivan

Green Smoothie

The problem with my smoothies is that I will put almost anything in them. Fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, spicy sprouts, raw cacao powder… whatever I can find that’s fresh. My smoothies are usually a sludge-y brown. They’re healthy and they taste good, but they look horrible.

This smoothie, however, is great. It’s light tasting, fruity, and a pretty green color. I’m not going to be one of those green smoothie drinkers who denies the funk… you can taste the greens in this smoothie. Green smoothies take a bit of getting used to, but once you do, you’re hooked. Spinach is a good gateway green, and the pineapple does a good job of masking it. Not that baby spinach is so horrid that it really needs to be masked.

Basic Green Smoothie

1 cup packed baby spinach
2/3 cup frozen banana
1/3 cup pineapple
1/2 to 1 cup of water – depending on the consistency you like and the power of your blender

Hecuba @ Doug Fir Lounge

June 22, 2009 by karisullivan

This is the band that opened for Bat for Lashes. I was skeptical they would be good, but they were awesome. I wish I had a longer video.

Bat For Lashes @ Doug Fir Lounge

June 21, 2009 by karisullivan

Great show in Portland. I can’t wait to see her in Austin.

Brookland

June 21, 2009 by karisullivan

I know my blogging has been super light lately. I’d like to say it’s because I’ve been busy, which is true. However, I really just switched computers, and I was too lazy to transfer over my login info for this blog.

In the meantime…

I went to Brooklyn

Near Prospect Park

Bookish Cat

And Tulsa

Cain's Ballroom

Prayer Hands

And Portland

Ace Hotel, Portland

Powell's Books

Probably got the pig flu. Started learning how to program. And I cut my hair.

Messy Hair, Messy Hotel Room

How to Make Banana Bread French Toast

April 18, 2009 by karisullivan

Vegan Banana Bread French Toast

Bill and I were introduced to banana bread french toast at Watercourse about a year ago, and we’ve been dreaming about it ever since.

I decided to try to recreate this amazing dish at home, and it turned out great! Here’s the recipe I came up with (inspired by their recipe):

Banana bread:
(make this a day before)

Ingredients

3 very ripe bananas
½ cup maple syrup
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus a little more for oiling the loaf pan
3 tablespoons almond milk (any non dairy milk is fine though)
2 tablespoons soy yogurt
1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cup chopped walnuts

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Lightly oil a loaf pan. Put parchment paper down on the bottom of the pan. (Optional but highly recommended.)

2. Mash the bananas well and mix with the maple syrup, olive oil, almond milk, and soy yogurt.)

3. Stir together the whole wheat pastry flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt. Stir in the walnuts.

4. Blend the two mixtures and spoon into the loaf pan. Bake for 40 minutes, or until center is set.

5. Slice the banana bread and leave it out to dry.

French toast dip:

Ingredients

1/2 cup silken or soft tofu (press it into the measuring cup)
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons unsweetened almond milk (soy is okay too)
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons arrowroot (I suppose cornstarch would work too)
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
dash ground cardamom
dash salt

Instructions

Blend together until smooth.

To prepare the french toast:

Preheat a griddle or pan on medium heat. (I strongly recommend cast iron.) Put a thin coating of oil on the skillet or pan.

Make sure your banana bread is dry. If it isn’t dry, toast it lightly.

Take the slices of banana bread and soak them in the dip for a minute on each side.

Cook each side for about ten minutes, or until the banana bread doesn’t have any white spots. You may have to reduce the heat to prevent burning.

Serve with maple syrup, fresh fruit, and / or powdered sugar.

Food From a Trailer

April 17, 2009 by karisullivan

I’ve been meaning to try Lulu B’s, a Vietnamese food trailer in South Austin, forever. I hadn’t really found my Vietnamese groove here in Austin, but this place totally fits the bill.

Waiting on Vietnamese @ Lulu B's

I’ve never had food from a trailer before, but it looked clean enough. (Bill is using his phone… not meditating!)

Topo Chico

I thought I was so cool for getting Topo Chico in Colorado, but it’s much more popular here in Texas.

Lemongrass Tofu Bun @ Lulu B's

Amazing Lemongrass Tofu Bun from Lulu B’s. This is definitely the freshest, most flavorful Vietnamese food I’ve ever tasted. I covered it in sriracha sauce!

Domy Bookstore

April 15, 2009 by karisullivan

Domy Books

We finally got down to the Domy Bookstore in East Austin, and it’s a great little place. They’ve got lots of interesting arty books, some comics, some zines, and a few good magazines.

Plus it’s in a cool, vibrant section of Austin. (Drive further down the street for a vegan treat at Mr. Natural’s!)

Lamp on East Cesar Chavez