Dandelion and squirrel stir fry ...

Crikies. How come whenever I sit down to recap my week on a Sunday night I can never remember anything that happened between Monday and Saturday, but I can totally remember that time I saw "Scream" in the theater? 

Here is what I made, ate, and read last week, though. So I guess I'm hitting the biggies.

FOODS

 
It's a triple threat here, playas. I made Pad Thai Salad with Peanut Lime Dragon Dressing and Red Thai Tofu. All told, this should have taken me no more than 45 minutes and instead it took like forevs. It might surprise you to know that my movements are not concise.

It was good, though. Especially when they all blended together on my little plate. Lately I've been craving lettuce, which I usually find boring but now I put it on my sandwich from Subway EVERY SINGLE DAY instead of Spinach. In case you were wondering what to get me for lunch.

Anyway, the salad is standard, but the dressing has a kick and the tofu, a mix of shallots and ginger and red pepper and curry paste and soy sauce and stuff is good, but pretty mush like everything you mix with with tofu in a nonstick pan.  These came from Appetite for Reduction: 125 Fast and Filling Low-Fat Vegan Recipes by Isa Chandra Moskowitz, who writes my favorite cookbooks in the world.

 
Cholent: This hearty stew from the pages of Veganomicon feels like the epitome of Minnesota winter food. This one mixes lentils, potatoes and other veggies and feels like it's really sticking to the ribs. Super easy.

Coconut-Lime bars: This week's kitchen lesson: Coconut oil. It can be used on your skin, on the radiator in your car and in your desserts. The oil part is a bit deceptive. It is actually comes in a solid state. It tastes a bit like Crisco on its own. It also can keep in the cupboard for years, so stock up while you're prepping for 2012. You can use it to in your Dandelion and Squirrel Stir Fry  when you're on the lam from hordes of hungry, violent, half-faced survivors.

Between the coconut and the limes, this smells like Malibu Barbie drinking margs at a beach party. This one is from The Urban Vegan: 250 Simple, Sumptuous Recipes from Street Cart Favorites to Haute Cuisine a cookbook by Dynise Balcavage. And this is the big winner from the week.

FOOD WE ATE AT A RESTAURANT THAT I WANT TO MAKE SO BAD

Pork Wasabi Shumai: These little bite-sized bursts are like my favorite appetizer on Hanabi's menu. I bet they are easy-ish. A pork meatball, sitting in a dollop of wasabi within a wanton wrapper and then steamed. I bet my first through third batches would have too much wasabi.

BOOKS
White Noiseby Don Delillo: One of my favorite scenes to every happen in a book happens in this book. An almost plane crash that is hilarious. I admittedly missed much of the point of this because I'm completely unable to recognized product placement unless it is Bret Easton Ellis'd in my face.

Full review will be here.

I'm still reading Joyce Carol Oates' A Widow's Story: A Memoir and have tacked on Blood, Bones & Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef by Gabrielle Hamilton.