braisenwoman's Profile

These mini stuffed peppers are my go-to hot appetizer. They're vegan, nut-free, and easily made gluten-free (sub GF breadcrumbs), so they work for almost any crowd at a party.

Roasted Peppers with Sicilian Tempeh Stuffing
http://www.braisenwoman.com/2012/10/roasted-peppers-with-sicilian-tempeh.html

Hm. I want to like this, but there are a couple of things that bug me. The clear plastic lid and attachments just look cheap, and given the durability of plastic vs steel, I doubt they will last as long. For $400, I expect durability. I use my grandmother's KitchenAid stand mixer, and it is still going strong after 50+ years of use.

Also, the little dots on the body of the mixer are just BEGGING to get junk stuck between them. I like wiping down my mixer after each use, and the texture of this one seems like a full-on scrubbing would be necessary. That said, I like where they're going with the overall lines and modern feel.

I just made polenta for the first time a few days ago! After all the fuss over how hard it is to make, I was pleased to discover that's total bull. :) And so so so yummy. I posted the recipe to my blog, if anyone's interested (you can make it vegetarian or vegan depending on your protein preference):

Roasted Mustard "Chicken" & Mushrooms with Creamy Polenta
http://www.braisenwoman.com/2013/02/recipe-roasted-mustard-chicken-and.html

Also, when testing the polenta recipe I had a TON of leftovers, so I refrigerated the leftover polenta and my partner and I had a week's worth of breakfasts - warmed polenta (in the microwave, it returns creamy and porridge-like upon reheating) with maple syrup and almond milk. Super comforting.

Do you have access to tempeh and miso? If so, I recently came up with a lovely vegan recipe for Roasted Peppers with Sicilian Tempeh Stuffing. They are colorful and super satisfying (oh, and the fennel pollen can be subbed with fennel seed).

http://www.braisenwoman.com/2012/10/roasted-peppers-with-sicilian-tempeh.html

That's the truth. We recently moved from Cap Hil after tiring of paying $1100 for 500 square feet.

Yea for the Swiss! :) Any other Bieris out there?

For my Venezuelan boyfriend, the craving is for corn flour-based starches - cachapas (corn pancakes) tortillas, tortilla chips, arepas (griddled corncakes), corn porridge/polenta/grits. The man is never happier than when cooking with Harina PAN. :)

@ Mirabella, I think jenawithonen was responding to her perception of the unspoken if-it's-vegetarian-it-can't-possibly-be-tasty slant on a couple of comments. Though she might have said it a bit nicer. :) Also, while you might not appreciate a separate area of the grill for your non-meaty items, many vegetarians/vegans truly do. Grilling is messy, and it's nice to know your zucchini hasn't been soaking up hamburger juice. No one is trying to make anyone's life difficult. But the poster asked for suggestions on how to make everyone comfortable, and that was one of mine, speaking from experience.

I second the Weber Charcoal Grill suggestion. We LOVE ours. They have three sizes of the traditional kettle shape which lets you choose the perfect size for your space (our little porch is quite narrow, so we went with the 22.5 inch in Blue). It's awesome and the perfect size for cooking for 2-8 people or so. Plus it's a steal at $160. We bought it through Amazon with a charcoal starter chimney and a weatherproof grill cover, and our total was less than $200.

http://www.amazon.com/Weber-758001-22-5-Inch-One-Touch-Charcoal/dp/B00005V5ZS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1343165819&sr=8-1&keywords=weber+blue+grill

@FOON - I totally agree about the type used in the early issues. Thankfully it looks like they changed to a more reader-friendly font by the Spring issue.