PETA's Vegan College Cookbook: 275 Easy, Cheap, and Delicious Recipes to Keep You Vegan at School is aimed at students living in dorms, an experience I am a decade removed from. Still, I remain a fan of tasty food made cheaply and easily so this book excites me. Yes, nearly all the recipes are carb heavy, many are of questionable nutritional value, and most involve very few fresh vegetables beyond onions, but that's how college is. Shit is real! You don't have time to be sprouting mung beans and basting turducken. You've got books to read and beer to drink!

Frankly, I'm amazed at all the things you can make in a microwave (including cake!). So far I've only made spaghetti and meat sauce. While the sauce—thick with Gimme Lean—was deliciously seasoned, the pasta was a mushy nightmare I am loath to revisit. Though preparing a meal in a microwave is more like a science experiment than cooking, there is fun to be had, and possibly even a tasty cake or two to be eaten. I can't wait to start nuking more things! I think every microwave should come with a copy of this animal-friendly book.

Try some of the recipes now on PETA2.com!

This recipe is my very best rip-off of Dao Palate's pineapple fried rice, which I think is the shizzle (but EXTRA shizzle if you replace the lettuce with peas and soy powder with flaxseeds!). I made it as easily as possible, using frozen veggies and canned pineapple, cause when I get home from work I feel more like watching videos of fat cats than waiting in the KILL ME long lines at Pathmark/heading southward to Natural Land. You can totally make it with fresh veggies, though!

The whole she-bang takes about 20 minutes + rice cooking time = 1 hour, 5 minutes, not accounting for tofu-baking time because I used pre-baked tofu. If you have leftover rice, you can save 45 minutes of your life, with which you should make cupcakes for the bake sale to support animals in Haiti. (You KNOW I'm going to work that into every post until January 28 so save yourself the second-guessing and make those cupcakes!)

Pineapple Fried Rice
makes 3 servings

Eric of Sun In Bloom was on Good Day NY on Tuesday making vegan western burritos! He provides the how-to in the video, and the ingredients are below. Before you watch, I just want to say:

1. I ate these. They are delicious.
2. I'm sorry to make you watch Fox!
3. I'm double-triple sorry for the sloppy eating noises Greg Kelly makes while downing this tasty wrap. Not judging or anything, Greg, but you're miked! Keep it down!
4. Eric is probably replacing some horrible inane news. Yay!


Vegan western burrito
1-1/2 cup soaked sunflower seeds
1/4 cup onion
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 cup peppers
Seasonings
Ranch dressing
Fresh salsa
Shredded cabbage
Zucchini
Avocado
Sprouts
Ezekiel sprouted wrap

P.S., guys, I know you're wondering, since when is SuperVegan the Sun In Bloom Show?? Since SIB is GETTING SHIT DONE! (Also since they're reporting Gyllenhaal sightings on the weekend. You heard it here!)

So as of, what, yesterday? my mom is a vegan cooking MANIAC. Christmas was ta-ta-ta-tasty this year! And the zenith of tasty was this winter root vegetable soup she made. It has quickly replaced veggie split pea as my favorite vegan soup, it is that good. It also happens to be gluten- and soy-free, so, soup for everyone! Even those of us who ruin everything, 'cause this soup is easy-peasy. If you get it right, and you WILL get it right, the soup will taste chowdery and look the color of pumpkin. Mmmm.

There's an hour-ish of down-time in this recipe where you're just waiting for vegetables to soften, so you might like to, say, write some New Year resolutions, or you can do what I did, which is watch Julie & Julia, because it's pretty awesome and inspiring and Meryl Streep is perfect as Julia Child. That is, if you can look past the animal-cooking (difficult, even for this movie) and the fact that real-life Julie Powell is an unapologetic butcher.

ANYWHO. Let's make some soup.

It's been a buzzy holiday weekend in the vegan news department. Tonight we catch up on all the goings-on since Wednesday.

• Obama poster artist Shepard Fairey immortalized Sea Shepherd Captain Paul Watson with a print of his very own. Posters measure 18 x 24", are signed by Watson, and cost $55 each. Buy 'em at Obey Giant. PAUL WATSON CAN NEVER DIE.
• The California-based Animal Legal Defense Fund released its 2009 State Animal Protection Laws Rankings. (Old news? Yeah, sort of. Still worth reading? Totally.) ALDF ranked New York in the middle tier -- not laying down the law with the best or permitting certain atrocities with the worst. Illinois ranked highest and Kentucky lowest. Read the full report here (PDF).
• In other ranking news, the Humane Society gave the Obama administration a B- for animal protection. Full report right here (PDF).
• Ingrid Newkirk reminds us via Huffington Post why it's awesome to be vegan, and then she rhymes with food.
• Vegan Twinkies are BACK. No Whey! Kitchen is going to fill the hole left in your heart by the closing of Vegan Honey Bake Shop. No Whey! sells to restaurants and is taking private orders for a limited time.
• Karen Davis, president of United Poultry Concerns, will deliver her lecture "The Social and Secret Life of Chickens" at the New York Public Library's Mid-Manhattan branch on December 30. That's 40th Street and Fifth Avenue, 6th floor, 6:30 p.m. this Wednesday. BE THERE.
• Your average dog eats a LOT of meat, VegNews reminds us: "research teams found that a medium-sized dog consumes approximately 360 pounds of meat and more than 200 pounds of grain each year. The agriculture needed to sustain this kind of companion-animal diet emits twice the greenhouse gas emissions that come from driving an SUV 6,200 miles per year."
• MEANWHILE, Annalisa Lazzaro of NYC asks The Ethicist whether it's cool to feed her cat a vegetarian diet. Duh! And you've got to be resilient! If one vegetarian -- or better, vegan -- kitty food doesn't work out, try another one. Then try cooking for Mr. Pus. Why support animal cruelty or slaughter in any way if you can avoid it, right?
• Don't know what to do with your sad, leftover shepherd sticks candy canes? Vegan Cookies brings us this recipe for peppermint candy cane chocolate chip cookies AND shows us how to crush candy canes. Holiday anger issues: resolved.
• Cafe Blossom's UES location opened, so go there and eat everything.

• We partied at Vegan Drinks like never before. This slideshow proves it! Excellent photography, Mr. Mitchell.
• Danielle Konya of Vegan Treats baked vegan cookies on NBC's The 10! Show.
• Representative Dennis Kucinich, Democrat from Ohio and two-time presidential hopeful, told Reddit in an interview that he wants everyone to eat vegan brownies. (Hey, me too!) Scroll over to about minute 18 to watch him answer this question: "If you were made the absolute dictator of the U.S. for one day, what are some of the things you would do?”

• Vegan Drinks is TOMORROW. Free stuff, and booze, and vegans, and what else could you want for a Thursday night?
• Teany's coming back, y'all! The teahouse/maker of delicious baked goods and light meals just began rebuilding the space, more than six months after a fire put them out of business. Pleasepleaseplease, chicken salad melt, come back!!
• Feeling generous? Or, hey, feeling like a greedy, selfish scumbag? 'Til the end of the year, your donations to Farm Sanctuary will be matched TIMES TWO by some secret and super generous donor for the rest of '09. Easy math: $1 for you = $3 for a cuddly lamb or frisky pig. So if you were planning to give nothing because you thought $20 wasn't good enough (which it totally is!), now you're giving $60, and that's, what? Food for a family of four (goats) for a week or two, right?
• OK, guys, more easy math: Buy one of Isa's cookbooks and she will donate ALL the proceeds to Out to Pasture Animal Sanctuary. Christmas shopping: done.
• Governor Paterson spoke at an NYLHV VIP reception held in his honor. Take a looksee at Ecorazzi's interview with him.
• So there's an octopus...snatching a coconut? I don't know. I mean, I've never seen an octopus run like that.
• One of us (Patrick? Maybe?) ate vegan fried ice cream at Soy and Sake. Devourable or detestable? YOU DECIDE. (I've already decided that every system in my body would shut down if I got near that thing.)
• A Ringling Brothers employee outted those elephant-abusing clowns, the Washington Post reported.
• Garden blend mock meat from Gardein appeared at Chipotle in Chelsea! Vegan mainstreaming, YES.

BEHOLD, the unbreakable bonds of food love: Milk and cookies. Peanut butter and jelly. But most of all, spaghetti and meatballs. For those brave enough to step away from the Lightlife and make their own balls, a recipe is coming AT YOU. Tonight we take you INSIDE a vegan meatball.

On Tuesday night, Moo Shoes (New York's favorite vegan shoe store) played host to the cookie event of the year.  Veteran vegan cookbook authors Terry Hope Romero and Isa Chandra Moskowitz were on site for the official release party of their latest joint effort, Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar.  Festivities began with passed finger foodstuffs from Brooklyn's own Foodswings, including various chick'n sandwiches and the cutest mini corn dogs you ever saw.  The feature food, though, was of course cookies!  Baked by the guests of honor themselves, offerings of at least eight kinds included a soft and chewy rocky road cookie, a mouthwateringly moist sweet potato blondie, and a classic New York black and white shrunk down to bite size.

After a doting and thorough introduction by longtime friend Eric "the awesome guy" Weiss, Terry and Isa took the makeshift stage to thank the crowd for years of support.  More than a few who were in attendance have been following the duo since the days of their public access cooking show, "The Post Punk Kitchen," and their following has grown astronomically with such hits as Vegan Cupcakes Take Over The World and Veganomicon. When asked what's next, Isa responded without a second thought, "more books!"

The ladies then retired to a very professional table at the back of the store where enthusiastic fans literally lined up for the privilege of a signature.  The space was packed with friends and admirers who spent a few happy hours munching the amazing cookies, sipping wine and Almond Breeze, and discussing all things vegan.  The party went on until well after 9pm when we were kicked to the curb - left to dream of cookies past and plan for cookies future, signed books in hand and ready for action.