Return to Tasty Harmony

I've raved about Tasty Harmony before. The all vegetarian/99% vegan restaurant is a go to for local, organic, delicious food. We stopped by weekend before last and I fell in love with a salad. Which is kind of awkward since Bobby was right there. It's called "The Meal". On their website, it is described as "Two living sunflower croquettes over baby salad greens, red and green cabbage, shredded carrots, shredded beets, avocado, tomatoes and shaved red onions. Comes with a side of our Green Onion Tahini Dressing." A synonymous description could be "Pure raw veggie goodness". Here is a slightly blurry cell phone pic of it.

I included my hand as a size reference. This thing was definitely a meal

I had the chilled hibiscus tea to wash it all down. That green onion tahini dressing was so good. I think that tahini is almost as magical as bananas. I have yet to eat anything with tahini that didn't taste amazing. Those sunflower croquettes were also good enough to warrant such a fussy name. They crumbled nicely and served as a much healthier version of a crouton.

Tasty Harmony has specials that change often, and on this visit they were featuring a stuffed poblano pepper plate with their cashew cheese and vegan sour cream. It was also very good. It was similar to a chile relleno, but not quite. It wasn't my favorite relleno type dish, but it was definitely up there.

 Tasty Harmony rolled out their summer menu, so I'm sure we'll be visiting them a time or two over the next few months. In the meantime, I want to own whatever machine shredded the beets in my salad. I would never cook again, I'd just shred everything. This might be why I shouldn't own such a machine...

Tasty, Tasty Harmony

There is an all vegetarian, predominantly vegan restaurant that we love, called Tasty Harmony. I had to share these pictures of the insanely delicious food they have, even though said pictures are from my phone and, as a result, a bit blurry. All of the food pictured here is totally vegan, and completely wonderful.

 Vegan quesadillas with black beans, yam, and assorted veggies, drizzled with vegan sour cream and cashew  cheese.

 Yam with chocolate chili, drizzled with more vegan sour cream and cashew cheese. Topped with chopped green onions.

But this, this is my favorite- nachos with jackfruit "pulled pork", black beans, vegan sour cream, cashew cheese, guac, pico de gallo, and homemade chips.

If you ever have the chance to try out jackfruit prepared as meat, please do so. Jackfruit is crazy, in that the texture is so similar to pulled pork/brisket. If you get the kind canned in brine, it's not sweet, and you can marinate it in/rub it with whatever spice you want. I'm still trying to find some jackfruit around here so that I can try out a jackfruit recipe. Colorado doesn't have nearly as many Asian groceries as Texas, so I'm hoping to pick some up at the huge Asian World Market in Dallas when I'm back in Texas.

Chicago Diner

I spent a week in Chicago with our mutual friend Jo, and then Bobby flew out on Friday night to join us for his birthday weekend- his birthday is today actually, I'm glad he was born to say the least ;)

He flew in late Friday night, so Saturday we decided to hit up Chicago diner for lunch. It was AWESOME. Please go if you're ever in the area, it is very worth it and is pretty accessible from the L- we walked about a mile, which is really nothing in the grand scheme of city walking.





When the waitress asked for our drink order, I went first and ordered a cola. Then Bobby and Jo ordered shakes, so I decided that sounded good. Bobby got cookie dough, I got vanilla chai. Mine tasted like a pumpkin pie shake and it was really, really good. The restaurant is all vegetarian but most things are vegan, like the shakes.

I got the "Pork" Tacos, and they were a very, very good choice. The seitan (wheat meat) is marinated in a pineapple sauce, then grilled, and it was piled with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, salsa, avocado slices, and vegan sour cream- this was my favorite sour cream, as it was light and creamy, almost fluffy.

I ordered a side of biscuits and gravy with "sausage"- also seitan. I was a bit disappointed, if only because every vegan/veg restaurant I've gone to makes brown gravy and biscuits, not white gravy. I'm a Southern girl from Texas, brown gravy doesn't make sense to me on biscuits. On stuffing, yes. Biscuits.. where's that creamy white gravy? I've had vegan white gravy before, and I've made it myself, so I guess I'll just have to keep cooking it at home. But the search continues.

All in all, this place rocked. Great service, and although it was packed there was a quick turnover and we were seated immediately. Plus, it wasn't pretentiously expensive like a lot of vegan/veg places can be. I would definitely go back the next time I'm in Chicago, and I highly recommend it!

Letting Someone Else Cook

I had been wanting Thai food for a while, and Bobby had asked around work for good suggestions. We were pointed in the direction of Bann Thai restaurant downtown. I am so glad we went, because we will definitely be going back.



Bobby and I shared a bowl of tom kha soup, with tofu instead of veggies- this was one of the options on the menu, not a special request. With the tofu it was vegan, how easy is that? If you've never had tom kha, it's a lemongrass flavored coconut milk soup with carrots, mushrooms, and usually chicken. My favorite place in Dallas makes it vegan, and then just adds in chicken at the end, so that's pretty friendly too :)



The main event, pineapple stir fried rice- I ate about 1/3 before I remembered to take a picture, it was that good. This was the best version of this dish I've ever had. I really love the smoky taste of fried rice, that's one flavor that can be lacking even in a vegetarian diet since it's usually accompanying grilled meat. This dish also had the option of 3 different kinds of meat or tofu, I would usually forgo the tofu but I tried it this time. It was filled with carrots, tomatoes, small bits of broccoli, toasted cashews, and juicy pineapple chunks, and would normally come with eggs but those were easily left out. All of this was flecked with basil and topped with cilantro and green onions. Bobby had a pineapple curry, and we were happy to discover that they didn't use fish paste in *any* of their curries or other dishes. We'll be back for more menu exploration I'm sure.

Thai food is a great eat-out option for vegans that doesn't make you feel like you've created a bunch of gaps in your meal with the absence of animal products. The main thing to look out for is the fish paste in the curries, and asking them to leave out the eggs on the stir fries. Even in Dallas, which is far from veg/vegan friendly, there was always an option for tofu in all of the stir fries and curries to sub for the meat. Plus, Thai food is just delicious, so it's always good to try and have some in your life.

Sushi for Dinner

I had a job interview 40 minutes away Tuesday morning, so I had to be up early. I ate a lil' blue teacup full of tropical fruit crumble for breakfast. Oh, and then I had refried bean nachos for lunch at Taco Bell. Not my most shining moments, but I was rushed and late heading out the door, and after my interview let out a Taco Bell was *right there* and I was starved. I drank a ton of water and made up for it with a healthy dinner- lots of veggie packed sushi and green tea at our favorite local spot, Mt. Fuji.



We started off with vegetable dumplings. I love these. They're not greasy and slimy like some dumplings, and the different sauces all over the plate are so good. I had a green tea because they make theirs from the powder, the way it should be :)



Next up is a standard veggie roll. I really like this roll, even though it's very simple.



Mmmm, the "Heart Attack Roll". Bobby and I have never been to a sushi place that has so many vegetarian options that are also so complex. This roll usually comes with shrimp tempura, but we always sub asparagus for it instead. Inside is asparagus, cucumber, avocado, and jalapenos, on top is a chopped mixture of mango and avocados covered in a spicy mango sauce and topped with sesame seeds. The sweet and spicy mix of this is amazing.



Last but certainly not least is the chef's newest vegetarian creation, "Buddha's Feast". This roll has a lemony fresh flavor to it. Inside we have sweet potato, squash, cucumber, avocado, and a pickled vegetable, name escapes me as I type. It is wrapped in a thin layer of tofu, and topped with a dollop of lemony guacamole and sprinkled with black sesame seeds.

We really love this place because the guy that owns it is vegan. They know what it means, so we're not getting fish eggs on top of our veggie roll. So many places lean heavily on cream cheese/mayo when it comes to veggie options, and the creativity and complexity of this place makes me happy.

Yoga and Naps and Yummy Food

Lunch after yoga- whole wheat spirals tossed in a tbsp of basil pesto, topped with a mixture of zucchini, squash, green and red bell pepper, a Field Roast apple sage sausage, and fresh garlic sauteed in olive oil with the rest of the basil pesto and about half a cup of organic tomato sauce. This meal might look light, but it has 20+ grams of protein in it. Very much needed after that yoga class!



After an hour long nap turned into 3 hours (whoops!) I was hungry and needed something to get me through grocery shopping that wouldn't destroy my appetite for dinner. Enter a half a cup of shredded whole wheat, unsweetened coconut milk, topped with a trail mix of raw, unsalted cashews, walnuts, almonds, peanuts, sunflower seeds, dates, raisins, and unsweetened coconut slices, plus blueberries, chia seeds, cinnamon, and honey.



After grocery shopping we decided to go out downtown. Our downtown is amazing. Clean, safe, bike and pedestrian friendly, filled with flowers and trees and beautifully kept old buildings, and packed with local shops and restaurants. We hit up STUFT, where you can build your own burger. I ordered a Pepsi- I have no idea why, it just popped out- and it was way, way too sweet. This is a pretty small glass, and it was packed with ice, and I was still cracked out from all the HFCS and caffeine. Who knows why I did that to myself..



I built a portabella burger- it tastes like steak, and is so juicy and messy, it's awesome- on a sourdough bun with lettuce, tomatoes, onion and pickles, with spicy red pepper pesto. Sweet potato fries on the side. What I love about this place is how small their portions are. I ate the entire burger and 1/2 of the fries, and didn't feel anywhere near uncomfortable. Bobby took care of the rest of my fries :)



After STUFT we walked around downtown a bit and then hit up our favorite bar, Elliot's. It has a great atmosphere, it's never crowded, and there are comfy couches in the front where you can people watch. Bobby is a very light drinker, and I don't drink, so they gave me a Shirley Temple on the house. I took about two drinks of it but that was all the sweet I could handle after the Pepsi. We hung out for an hour or so planning some trips and then headed back home. Thanks for the free drink Elliot's. That's why you're our favorite.

Pizza Downtown

Lunch at Beau Jo's pizza. Root beer, drank about half. Water, drank all of it- it was hot today!



Whole wheat crust with basil pesto, garlic, olives, red and green bell peppers, onions, artichoke hearts, vegan cheese (they use my favorite mozzarella substitute, it's divine). After the pizza we walked around downtown checking out the shops and the live music, and then we hit up the food co-op to buy some liquid in bulk- today it was white vinegar. I can't get over how happy I am to be able to buy my liquids in bulk there. They have everything from maple syrup to apple cider vinegar to olive oil and agave, almost all organic, and way cheaper by the pound than in the store. Plus, I can bring in my own container. Nerdy things like that make me happy.