A very delightful Bloomington welcome.

I am staying with a couple friends of mine for a few weeks while I am working at my new job and waiting to move into my new house. They have two cats (Chewy and Churro; see img 1) that are incredibly cute, yet very destructive. They run around at night and knock things over, and sometimes run over the length of my sleeping-bagged body when they are playing tag. My like for cats has never been high, and living with them has reiterated in my mind how weird they are. For instance:

1. Always hungry & steal people food.
2. Clumsiness - Churro has no balance and falls off things, and Chewy often slides into the cabinets face first if she is running on the wood floor. All I'm saying is that this opposites previously believed 'cats always land on four feet.'
3. Interest in multiple things at once, or switching back and forth between chasing an inanimate object, each other, the kitty laser, their own tails, etc.
4. No cats have the same meow. Chewy actually sounds like a very miniature Wookiee.
5. Kneading chosen nap place - usually me. Churro has awfully sharp claws. No matter how cute she is when she gets cuddly and how loud she purrs, it HURTS. see img 2
6. Must be under human feet at all times.
7. Naps in impossible positions.
8. Must lay on human lap / face / laptop at supremely inopportune times. see img 3
9. Cats smell like poop.
10. They like toilet water.
11. They also like playing with kitty litter. Kitty litter + toilet water = cat footprints errywhere.
12. If Chewy could pick a favorite place in the whole world, it would be in a kitchen cabinet. You know, where the clean dishes live.
13. New object in house = new favorite place to nap.








































I also have this mad cat allergy, but I just cannot resist their cuteness. My face, on occasion, looks like Rudolph's nose with extra snot.



I started my job at Bloomingfoods, a food co-op, where I make sandwiches and coffee, stock the salad bar and cooler shelves, and wrap up deli food for customers, amongst many other things. I felt the strong bonds between coworkers from the first day, and think that the job is a good fit for me.

So far, I have been thoroughly impressed with this town. It is bike-friendly, pretty Eco-friendly, has a great music scene, etc etc etc. There are so many gems here - bookstores, restaurants, a community orchard.. the list goes on. On Saturday, I rode over to the farmers' market which was the first of the indoor winter market of the season. My friend insisted on buying me carrots and a butternut squash there because she wanted me 'to have a really good welcome to Bloomington.' I have felt that from almost everyone here. The town is welcoming, the people are sincere, and in general, I see much more genuine respect for each other as human beings than I have in the last two cities I lived in. As one friend told me, "Bloomington is a fantasy land. Cotton candy and rainbows." Bloomington is magical, yet still very humble.

I do very much miss the friends and family I am not able to be around right now. Mostly my SISTER who just got ENGAGED. [Insert squealing and huge smile here.] I have already started wedding dress shopping for her, and figured out that I might become a maidzilla if she thinks she wants to get anything ugly.. Joking aside, I am really really happy for her and her hubby to be. They cute. Also, if you were wondering, all their puppies found homes!

I will be moving into my new house at the end of December. In it already will be two lovely ladies, a yellow lab named Darby, and three backyard chickens. All of us are garden lovers (!!!), and we will have three types of composting. I could not be more stoked.

I mentioned that Bloomington has a great music scene... In the past week or so, I had dinner at Cafe Django, named after the fantastic Django Reinhardt, while watching live jazz. I saw one of my favorite bands, Murder By Death, play a sweet show here in their hometown. And the night before that, I went to a punk rock tribute show and danced my booty off to Operation Ivy covers.

That said, I'll leave you with this:

Pumpkin Pie, and I wish I knew CSS better.

Thanksgiving is done, and I have no excuses as to why I would post this recipe so late. :[ Slacking.

Also, I have been trying to make my website look nicer / add more work to it. It is coming along, slowly but surely. Tips, suggestions, and high fives are always welcome - - rachelwalsh.me.




Vegan Pumpkin Pie

Blend in food processor or blender:

2 cups canned pumpkin
1 cup non-dairy milk
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 Tbsp molasses
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cloves

Pour filling into pie crust and bake for 60 minutes. Cool on rack, then refrigerate overnight before serving. The longer you can refrigerate it, the better. This is key in having this pie set up.

Puppies up for Adoption.

Mama, a super beautiful and sweet beagle, was abused and dumped in the country near my sister's house in Delphi, IN. I cannot imagine how anyone could even think of hurting such a lovely creature. My sister's dog, Loki, banged her, and now we have six puppies on our hands! At least five still need good homes, and they will be ready around Thanksgiving.

If interested, please give one of those guys a call. The parent dogs are both very loving and love to play, and their pups are AMAZING - such sweethearts.















Googly eyes point toward my dad to take Mama Beagle. :D

Potato Soup with Broccoli and Kale.

My love for kale-containing soup started quite a few years ago when I tried Olive Garden's zuppa toscana soup. If you eat sausage you should totally try it. This soup reminds me of that with the kale, potatoes and spices, but it is not trying to mimic it by any means.

I made this and chocolate muffins for dinner last night.. You could definitely say 'food baby.'


6-8 baking potatoes, baked and cooled
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 large onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp fennel seeds, crushed,
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp rubbed sage
1/2 tsp dried tarragon
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Cayenne pepper to taste
1 tsp salt
8 cups vegetable broth
6 kale leaves, torn into bite-size pieces, rough stems removed
1/2 cup plain soymilk


Saute sliced onions in olive oil until they appear transparent. Slice the potatoes into 3/4 inch chunks. Add garlic and spices to the onions, and cook for another two minutes or until fragrant. Add some of the vegetable broth to deglaze the pan, then add the potatoes and bring to a slow boil. Add broccoli and kale during the last 10-15 minutes of cooking. Use an immersion blender to blend about 1/3 of the soup, but keep it chunky. Stir in the soymilk, and let the soup sit for a few minutes to let the flavors meld.

Serve with your favorite muffin recipe, and enjoy!

Hearty Spiced Cocoa Muffins.

This recipe is pretty much straight out of The Joy of Vegan Baking by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau. These muffins are very rich, moist, and satisfying. Great for Autumn weather and the holiday season.

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
6 Tbsp cocoa powder
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp salt
3 tsp Ener-G egg replacer (equivalent of 2 eggs)
4 Tbsp water
1 cup soymilk
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 400 F. Lightly grease muffin tins or fill with paper liners.

Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, cayenne, and salt together in a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, whip egg replacer and water together until creamy. Combine egg replacer mixture, soymilk, and oil. Add the liquid to the dry ingredients, sirring just enough to combine. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Spoon mixture into muffin pan, filling them 3/4 full. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 20 minutes.

Moving.

I do not think anyone is more interesting to draw than my painting professor.

"Don't waste the paint."

Vegan Chili.

I am loving this flannel weather. I am also loving that, now that it is flannel weather, it is acceptable to have things like soup and chili for dinner.. even though I eat soup all year round like a weirdo.

When I cook, I rarely ever precisely follow a recipe. And I cook a lot. It is difficult to write it down too, because I never measure anything [excluding baking]. Thus, here begins my effort doing that for these AWESOME things I make.


24 oz crushed tomatoes
6 oz tomato paste
4 cups vegetable broth
1 white onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup carrots
2 small zucchini
1 can corn
1 can chickpeas
1 can kidney beans
1 can pinto beans [you can do any combination of beans]
1 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp cocoa powder, or a handful of chocolate chips
3 Tbsp chili powder
crushed red pepper to taste
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
2 Tbsp vegetable oil


In vegetable oil, caramelize the onions and garlic. Add spices and cook for another two minutes, until fragrant. Add vegetable broth to deglaze the pan, then add all other ingredients besides the beans. Simmer for about 20 minutes, or until flavors have blended and carrots are tender. Add beans and simmer for another 15 minutes.

Vegan Banana Bread.

Did you know you can make your own brown sugar? When it is homemade, it is way more fluffy and delicious than the stuff you can buy. Simply follow the ratio,

1 Tablespoon Molasses per 1 Cup Granulated Sugar.

Less molasses gives you lighter brown sugar, more molasses is darker!





I have always loved bread. Artisan bread, poppy seed bread, zucchini bread - you name it. My mother tells me it runs in [at least and primarily the female side of] the family. The problem, however, is that all the recipes I grew up loving usually have dairy or eggs in them. Here is a necessary vegan intervention, telling you that you CAN bake without eggs.

One thing that irritates me about a lot of vegan recipes is that many I have come across include tofu. You will probably never see me post a baked / dessert recipe with tofu in it. Just because it's vegan does not mean tofu is a mandatory ingredient. I mention this because it was difficult to find suggested vegan banana bread recipes without tofu incorporated. I mean, they taste good. But ew.


Ingredients:

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup Earth Balance, room temperature
3 very ripe bananas, mashed
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup soy milk
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray 8x4 bread ban with non-stick spray, or lightly coat with margarine.

Combine soy milk and apple cider vinegar in a small bowl to let curdle. Cream together Earth Balance and sugars. Add bananas, soy milk mixture and vanilla.

Sift together flour, baking soda, salt and spices.

Add wet ingredients to dry, and mix well. Pour batter into pan. Bake for an hour to an hour and ten minutes.



Enjoy!

Creating organic forms with vertical line.

Or at least trying.





Feeling very lost with my drawings, lately.

'Lack there of,' rather.

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies.

If Cookie Dough Mountain was a place, I would live there...







Here is a recipe for Vegan Chocolate Chip cookies. I haven't seemed to perfect it yet, but what the heck. I found that putting the tray of scooped dough in the freezer for a few minutes before you bake them helps them hold their shape better, and maybe helps their texture.


1 cup Earth Balance
1 1/4 Cups Sugar
1 Tbsp Molasses
2 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/3 Cup Soy milk
2 1/2 Cups Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Salt
1 1/2 Cups Semisweet Chocolate Chips


Preheat oven to 350°F.

Cream together the margarine and sugar until fluffy. Add molasses, vanilla extract and soy milk. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda and salt. Combine wet and dry ingredients. Fold in the chocolate chips. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto a ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 12-14 minutes, until slightly browned. Let them cool on the baking sheets until you can palm it for a good while (very important, eager beavers), then transfer to a wire cooling rack.

New Moleskine.

Here are a couple drawings from my new bebe sketchbook that I was talking about. Both are self portraits & were way fun to do.



Yesterday I made my bittersweet move back to Lafayette for a few weeks until I can find a house in Bloomington. The night before I left, my buddy Sean Drews took some photographs of me & friends. You can check those out & more of his work here on his blog!

2009 was a new beginning.

These are a few drawings from class at MIAD with Shane Walsh.

The first is from my first semester at college. This was the day I fell in love with drawing. I will never forget it.



"Is this a finished drawing?" he asked me of the second. My mind was saying "Nooo," but, against my young judgment, I think I shrugged. Yes, against my will and want I let it go and learned so much in doing so.

I feel like I owe my teachers so much.

It has been a series of awe, discomfort, and endless learning. I will miss MIAD, but I will not forget my experiences there. I cannot. I was told that what teachers say about things may not make sense at the time, but down the road something will spark the understanding of that which was said. It is totally true. So, fellow art students... pay attention. =]



Pee ess. I bought a mini Moleskine (which I have never had before - super stoked) and have some sweet drawings I will post once I scan them. Woo!

Sketchbook Lately.

I have been awkwardly craving homework. This semester off thing is a little intimidating and I have to find inspiration in different ways than being given assignments - which is totally okay and preparatory for.. life.



















My way of thinking has broadened immensely in the past few weeks. I have been learning a lot about people by simply thinking and noticing more things, and my experiences this summer have made me become much more comfortable and content being alone. I have struggled with that since high school.

You know how you have to love yourself before you can love others? The same thing goes with expectations and acceptance. As you grow up, you realize the lies of life and learn more about yourself, at least that is what I have been experiencing. Things are what they are - what will be will be. Life is so incredibly strange, and people are extraordinary.

Expect less.

Expect less.

Accept more.

Vegan Pumpkin Muffins.

It's FALL, and you know what that means about Pumpkin. This is, by far, one of my favorite recipes to bake.

... Okay, I mean 'eat.'

1 3/4 cups flour
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp allspice
1/8 tsp cloves
1 cup pureed pumpkin
1/2 cup soy milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 Tbsp molasses

Sift together all the dry ingredients and set aside.. In another bowl, whisk together the remaining wet ingredients. Pour wet mixture into dry and combine with a fork until just mixed. Do not over mix the batter, or your muffins will suffer in texture. Pour batter into muffin cups about 2/3 full and bake at 350 F for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. (I have never actually figured out the exact time these take.. it is usually longer than I expect.) The muffins are chewy when they are hot, so allow them to cool completely before eating.

Side note, I added chocolate chips this time, which is not necessary. But hey, chocolate in anything is okay by me. Also, this recipe always leaves extra batter at the end for you to do with what you please. (No eggs, no salmonella. Just saying.)

Twenty years old.



How strange.

Memorial to my Great Grandfather.

I did this print in the last part of this past spring semester and just recently was able to document it. I hung it in a class show at Astrix Gallery in Milwaukee in May, 2011, two months after my Great Grandfather passed.






Few words, many emotions.

Enjoy.

I have the sweetest plant.

Seriously, such a trooper. I ignorantly underestimated you, lone green bean seed.

Meatless Manicotti, amongst other things.

I adapted this recipe from my mother's Meatless Manicotti that we used to eat growing up. Her version includes cheddar and cottage cheese with sloppy joe seasoning mix and tomato paste. I made tofu ricotta in place of the cheese and good ol' veggie marinara for the sauce.

Manicotti:
1 package manicotti shells
3 cups diced zucchini
Tofu ricotta
1 jar of your favorite marinara sauce


Parboil manicotti shells for 6 minutes at a rolling boil. When done, shells will be slightly hard and hold their shape. Make sure shells are not touching while they cool. (Using the plastic trays they come in works as a perfect holder until you are ready to stuff them.)


Tofu Ricotta (basically double of Isa Chandra Moskowitz's recipe):
2 blocks extra firm tofu, crumbled
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp. salt
Black pepper to taste
Handful of fresh basil, chopped finely
4 tsp. olive oil
1/2 cup nutritional yeast

Mash all ingredients together with a fork (or your hands if you want to get messy).


Mix together the zucchini with the tofu ricotta. Use a spoon to stuff each shell with the mixture and place them in a single layer in a baking dish. Pour marinara sauce over the stuffed shells.

(This would be great with Pine Nut Cream on top. That recipe can be found in Isa's Veganomicon, however I did not make it with it this time. Pee ess, sorry I didn't take a picture. I completely forgot.)

Bake covered at 375°F for 30 minutes, uncover and bake for another 10 minutes.


...


I just sent my 'thank you / goodbye' letter to my teachers. My stomach sank right after I finished it. I am REALLY sad. But excited. Hopefully this give and take thing works out for the best.. I think it will.

I am also *this* close to renting my apartment. Thank you, craigslist. (PLEASE SOMEBODY TAKE MY LEASE.) I am looking forward to catching my breath. But this house is really becoming more of a home lately, however obvious it is in its ephemerality.

I hung up this clothes line yesterday. So freaking cute. And it's outside of my house.





Peace out, faithful readers.

Vegan Zucchini Bread.

At the coffee shop this morning I saw they had zucchini bread slices with the bakery. I realized that's what I have been missing! I totally forgot about putting zukes in bread, it's mostly just been stir fries all summer. Silly me. So now I have two loaves cooling on my kitchen counter. One for the house and one as a friend's housewarming treat.



Ingredients:

- 2 cups grated zucchini
- Egg replacer, equivalent 3 eggs
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3 cups flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tsp nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease 2 bread pans - which I totally forgot, but they slipped out fine... Stir together the zucchini, egg replacer, oil, sugar and vanilla. Add remaining dry ingredients and stir well.

Pour batter into pans and bake for 50-60 minutes.


On a side note, I freaked out for a minute because I don't have a grater to grate the zucchini. And then I thought, "I wonder if I could just run it through the food processor." And THEN I remembered that my food processor is SO AWESOME that it has a shredding blade! Oh, Hamilton Beach, you treat me well.


It's good. You should make this.

Hello, watercolor.

Baby painting.

I apologize for the awful terrible picture quality. I have no scanner or real camera at the moment, and this is way cooler in real life.

The past few days have been an overload on me entirely - drawing self portraits, trying to figure out my crazy living situation that keeps changing, showing my house, doing weird things, figuring out my relationships with people, writing to my teachers about leaving MIAD, thinking aaaand thinking about everything, etc etc. I cannot focus at the moment. I have been up since 8 am and all I have consumed is a mug of coffee and a glass of water. Plus I am anticipating that my life will continue to be insane throughout the next 5 years, and I'm not sure how I am going to handle myself.. Cross yo' fingers for me.

Growin' stuff.

Today I picked my first ripe tomato! I have so many more green ones that are on their way, and take a look at those zukes. I accidentally let that one grow a little too long. Oops! It's like the size of a child...





My dad and brother came up for the Milwaukee Air Show yesterday, which was totally awesome, by the way! It was my brother's birthday yesterday, so happy birthday again, brother. Dad brought me awesome veggies and peppers from their garden! Yum. I think I'm having a cookout this evening, so I'm definitely putting those in some bellies. And I just got an idea for tofu ricotta stuffed jalepenos. I think I'll try that.



I just poured my most recent batch of kombucha into its jar - thus the fuzziness. If you don't know what kombucha tea is, you should read up on it and get into it! Super delicious, naturally carbonated, really good for you tea. Instead of buying it for like $3 per serving at the store, you get a culture and make it yourself!

PS, my culture is in need of trimming. If you want to make your own, hit me up and I'll give you part of mine. The mushroom keeps growing, so you can share.


In other news, I am officially done with school until 2012. My last day to turn in all my summer school stuff was Friday, so I'm a free bird except for working my two jobs. My plan is this: make art, make food, and do stuff. We'll see how the other stuff works out. (Still in search of someone to sublet my room, moving is up in the air, etc.) Oh, and I'm turning 20 in 22 days. Don't know if I'm ready for that number.

Carrots, Cows, and THRICE CREAM!!!!

So, uh. My carrot harvest was pretty pitiful, but rather cute aaaaand delicious. If you have any carrot growing tips, please do share!


This is Espresso Oreo Soy ice cream from Babe's Ice Cream in Bayview. Whoever came up with this flavor is a total genius. If I remember correctly, I have not had an ice cream cone in four years - the length that I have been vegan. I got a double (aka a lot of thrice cream), which made me feel full but not sick like dairy would have if I ate that much. o_o The experience was rather nostalgic to my childhood - the cone is getting a hair cut, come on... "Look, Ma. I need a hair cut. *CHOMP." Yeah. But it also made me think of cows and how glad I am to not eat them.

A couple days ago, I stopped at a gas station for a potty break during a trip back home from up north. There was a semi trailer full of live 'cargo.' My friends and I went over to see them. I'll tell you what. I love cows. I think they have the cutest noses and they are just so sweet. The cows in that trailer were so close together, standing in their own poo and pee, and being peed on by the cows on the levels above them. They were so dirty, but so beautiful. I was sad and happy at the same time, just in my transfixion and staring. I wondered how crazily uncomfortable it is for them to ride together in that trailer. I heard cows crying and moving and wanting out, and the ones we got close to obviously HATED us humans.

I walked back to the car with a mind full of anger and tears in my eyes, not only from witnessing the animals' present but also thinking about their past and future. What made me more angry on top of that was watching the morbidly, McDonald's greasy, disgustingly obese driver walk back to his beloved career.

No respect.

SL sketchbook.

This is my friend Vincent, from my sketchbook. I have been trying to get back to drawing in my sketchbook more consistently, which has been somewhat of a challenge for me in the past. The idea of a drawing being 'finished' was drilled into my head from long ago, but this idea that a drawing can be quick, imperfect and still be meaningful is one that I am trying to embrace since it was introduced to me at MIAD. Drawing in a sketchbook is a good way to practice that.

And there's no better time to draw than when you're forced to sit still and listen in the most boring service 'learning' class EVER. Please teach me something we haven't talked about for the last four weeks. (Baby rant.) Hope you like it, and I'll try to post more drawings really soon!

Green Bean Harvest.

I was pulling part of the mass amount of weeds we have around the house this morning, (apparently the tenants who are supposed to mow the lawn have never heard of a "weed whacker" before...) and threw them in the huge pile we've already got going. That's next to the garden, so I checked up on that. The zukes are being a little weird, they aren't growing big and fast like I remember them to. But I was pretty shocked to find that my loner green bean plant had produced finally. Out of many, many seeds we planted, only one grew. But it was good to me!