Taking A Break (At Enchanted Rock)

Never before have I understood why there are such things as wedding planners.

The past couple of months have been absolutely full of wedding planning, shopping, and scheming. And we're still not done with everything. It's less than one month now, people, and we're definitely feeling the pressure.

Which is why we packed up our bags Saturday morning and hit the road toward Fredericksburg.

Chris decided that all she wanted for her birthday was a tent. She's a big astronomy nerd and she has about reached the maximum of what she can see in the city with her telescope. The light pollution is just so terrible in Austin. Our hope was to spend some time stargazing at Enchanted Rock this weekend, but as the clouds rolled in and the chance of rain increased we realized that would not be part of our trip.

We did, however, go anyway.

The two of us started our day by puttering her Volkswagen up to the dealership. Even though the car had been there a few days before, it had started making a rattling noise inside the engine and definitely needed to be looked at. Chris has been struggling with cars for the past couple of years. Her baby, a 1998 Mustang, finally reached a point beyond repair last year. We traded her in for the VW. The price was right. But apparently that was because there were a bunch of things wrong with it. We've got $1700 left to pay on it, but depending on how the car does at the dealership we may be about to part ways. Yes, it is that bad. We won't know until Tuesday (hopefully). Until then we'll be getting practise as a one car family.

We hit up HEB afterward in order to procure camping supplies and groceries for the rest of the week. Home was next. We loaded the car, grabbed the poodle, and headed to REI for a lantern. And then, we were off!

Just as the rain started coming down!

Like in most instances, the weatherman was off in his estimate of when the rain would cease. The two of us scrambled to assemble the tent between showers once we arrived. Rather difficult without any practise, you know! When finally in a tent-like shape, the three of us huddled inside waiting for the drops to subside. They finally did, around dinnertime.



The two of us grilled a couple of zucchini and a bunch of vegan hot dogs. We happily ate them while we grilled a pineapple for dessert. It was at this point that Rusty made it quite clear that he did not enjoy camping. He either sat or stood and watched us quizzically as if asking us what on Earth we were doing, eating outside, sitting outside, doing nothing outside?? Who were all these people he could hear and not see?? Why was it so cold? And so forth. Eventually, he wound up in Chris's lap and fell asleep. Then, the two of us humans read until the sun began to set and then played an easier version of 20 questions in the dark.

Sleeping was troublesome. A large church group with many, many teenagers remained loud into the night. We also had neighbors close to us chopping wood very late and shouting swear words for no apparent reason. Oh, and the cement under the tent? Extremely uncomfortable. I awoke every few hours out of pain and had to turn over. Tent pad in our future? I think, yes.

We took turns eating granola and drinking cold brew coffee for breakfast. We loaded the car and drove to the Enchanted Rock trail.

I very much enjoyed photographing the local flora and fauna. Most visitors seemed to as well. There were, in fact, many, many visitors today. Enchanted Rock is so popular they sometimes have to close for a couple of hours to prevent there being too many people on the site itself.

It took us awhile to reach the top. Chris is still suffering from a foot injury she obtained while training for her 5k. She did a great, job, though, and so did our adventure poodle. Mr. Rusty enjoyed hiking a lot more than he enjoyed camping, that's for sure.


Now that looks fun to climb, no?

Considering the time of year, the rain really was a good thing. Otherwise the heat would have been oppressive and neither of us would have wanted to climb the Rock at all. Even with it being cooler the humidity made for a challenge.



It's almost like being on the top of Texas. Hahaha.

And at this hour in one month we will be wife and wife. Now that's one adventure I'm really looking forward to!


Until next time!

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Three Months Left...

Well, we passed the three month countdown until our wedding day. It really does not feel like October 12th will be here in about 2.5 months. Chris and I have been so busy with things here that it has been very difficult devoting time to wedding planning. She has been especially distracted by work. Life in Texas has gotten rather complicated for us recently. In fact, the two of us have spent a lot of trying to figure out if we could afford to purchase a foreclosure house in rural northern New Hampshire on our current budget. One of the reasons we moved to Texas instead of New Hampshire after leaving West Virginia was because the cost of living here was so much lower than it was up there. Now it seems to be the same, even the reverse in some cases. It may not end up being better for us and/or our finances, but we'll take more comfort in knowing we have family very close by if we need help. The price on the home we were looking at went down by 16% recently. I am having my mother (a real estate agent!) take a look at it for us sometime this week.

My bridal ring set.
In the meantime, the crunch is really on now (for the wedding) and I've been trying to focus on all of the things we need to do. We've got most of the basics covered; the venue, officiant, hotel, my attire, and rings. We're trying to accomplish a few things while we're planning. While we want our wedding to be special we don't want it to cost a fortune nor do we want it to be terrible for the environment. We've ordered custom printed napkins and paper plates and straws. We'll be buying compostable plastic cups and bamboo cutlery to use while we're there. We bought non-diamond rings from a southwestern artist/designer. And we'll be having vegan food. The majority of it will be purchased from Whole Foods, mains, sides, salads, and potentially the cake. I'll also be making sweet treats like cookies and puffed rice treats for a candy/dessert buffet. That is the thing I am most excited about! I am ready and rearin' to order the candy from an online natural candy website but due to it being July I figured I should hold off for fear or the chocolate melting in the mail...

Because the two of us are quirky, Chris and I are coming up with some unique activities to make the day more memorable. She's learning how to DJ and we'll be having a dance contest for our guests. One of them will win a trophy. Also, I've printed "Wed Libs" to entertain everyone for at least a few minutes. And because we can't afford a photographer I have made a photo scavenger hunt game, too. This will also help us make sure we have photos of everything, in case we're too busy and forget to photograph something ourselves. And if that isn't enough things for me to craft, I am going to erect a DIY photo booth with forest themed backdrop and masks for everyone to play with!

Yesterday we went over the venue layout and determined where everything would be positioned. We also planned out the order of the day and determined how the ceremony will go. Like many same-sex couples we have decided not to include anyone else in the actual ceremony. While I asked my brother to be my Best Man, Chris's sister, her Best Man equivalent, is no longer coming and we were at a loss to come up with an alternative. So it'll just be the two of us and the officiant for now.

Our wardrobes still need completion. We ordered a suit for Chris from an online retailer based in India. No word on the progress! Hopefully it won't take too long. We both need shoes and accessories, though. But it seems like right now most of what needs to be done is to purchase things. Hooray! Oh, except for one very important thing.

I CANNOT DANCE TO SAVE MY LIFE.

In fact, I dance like a grandpa.

Any recommendations on good instructional videos would be appreciated!

Over the next two months I will be sharing with you all photos of my many various craft projects currently underway. Right now I am assembling a three tier dessert tray. I bought it at Hobby Lobby many months ago and am redecorating it to match our forest theme. That involves covering it in wood grain scrapbook paper and adorning it with artificial moss, flowers, critters, etc. This will be used for desserts. And I'll have to create owl or fox or little deer cake toppers if Whole Foods can, in fact, provide us with a vegan cake.

At some point throughout this process I'll try to remember to give you some recipes. Can't make any promises, though :-)

Thanks for reading! Y'all are the best!

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Oh, My! Tomato Pie!

When I first moved to Austin, Kerbey Lane Cafe was my favorite place to eat. I tried nearly every vegetarian thing on the menu. Then I went vegan, limiting my options a bit. Vegan pancakes and the breakfast platter became my usual picks. I have always been intrigued by their seasonal menus, which unfortunately don't usually have vegan options. The highlight of the summer menu is their Tomato Pie. I have never tried it but have always been intrigued.

So I decided to make tomato pie at home.

For starters, I used the all-knowing master of knowledge, Google, to see if any copycat recipes had been shared for Kerbey Lane Tomato Pie. Surprise! The KLC blog posted a recipe themselves. How about that?

I have made two versions of this pie since discovering the recipe online. The photos are from the first attempt, which I felt worked the best.

I'm not really good with pie crust... I made a traditional pie crust from the Better Homes & Gardens cookbook with regular flour and vegetable shortening. It was quite flaky and pleasant but it didn't roll very well at all and barely came to the edge of my pie plate. But it looks pretty darned good, eh?



Of course I was pleased to discover how incredibly tasty tomato pie is. In fact, I loved it. And it didn't really take that long to make, either. I typically shy away from dishes that require a lot of prep, but this baby was absolutely worth it. We were having seconds by 7:30.

The only challenge I really had was interpreting the instructions provided by the KLC blog. I'm not sure they're accurate... Maybe it's more like user error. Who's to say? The original recipe called for four tomatoes. It didn't specify which kind. It didn't indicate what size pie crust or pan to use, either. So, perhaps my pie plate was a bit too small for the original recipe, though I don't know how you could have fit that many tomatoes in a deep dish sized pie plate, either! Anyway, I used their recipe to inspire mine and I hope my version inspires you!



INGREDIENTS
2 ripe hothouse or beefsteak tomatoes, cut into thick slices
Salt, divided
10 fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1 14-ounce package extra firm tofu, pressed for at least 20 minutes and liquid drained off
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
1-2 tablespoons plain Vegenaise
Pre-made vegan 9-inch pie crust or your favorite recipe (see note)
Vegan Parmesan, optional
Kalamata olives and fresh basil, for garnish

DIRECTIONS
Note, the second time I made this dish I tried my hand at a whole grain crust. I used 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1/4 cup cornmeal, 1/8 cup refined coconut oil, and 1/4 cup water. I mixed it in a food processor until crumbly, then added an additional 1/8 cup water until the dough became soft and stretchy. I rolled it out on a well-floured surface and then transferred to the pie plate. I poked the bottom with a fork a few times and then baked it at 400 degrees for 11 minutes, until it started to look golden. It was crisp on top and had an excellent flavor! Anyway, moving on.

Place your sliced tomatoes on a wire rack over the sink. Sprinkle them with salt. Let sit for 10 minutes, then flip and repeat. You're trying to drain out as much liquid from the tomatoes as possible! Don't go too crazy with the salt, but sprinkle them evenly.

In a small bowl, combine the fresh basil and onions. Set aside.

In a medium sized bowl, thoroughly squish the tofu with your hands until it resembles ricotta cheese. Add the white wine vinegar, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, Vegenaise, and 1 teaspoon salt. Mix well with a fork or a wooden spoon.

When the tomatoes have sat long enough, press them each between two paper towels to remove additional liquid. Press firmly but don't mutilate them! Then dice the tomatoes into small pieces.

If your pie crust isn't pre-baked, bake it in a 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes. It should be light brown.

To assemble the pie, layer half of the onion and basil mixture on the bottom. Then add the diced tomatoes. Top with the remaining onion and basil mixture. Pour the tofu mixture (effectively, the tofu cheese) over it. Push down with your fingers or a fork to ensure the tofu is pressed well into every nook and cranny. If you're using a smaller pie dish, like I did, you may have a little extra. If able, use a deep dish pan. If not, that's okay. If you want to use the extra tofu in something else, go ahead. Be creative!

Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and top with a nice layer of vegan Parmesan cheese. I used a homemade recipe from the Non-Dairy Formulary. Bake for an additional 15 minutes until the Parmesan is nice and browned! If not using the Parmesan, bake for 45 minutes altogether.

Let cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes before cutting and serving. Garnish with chopped olives and fresh basil. We ate ours with fresh green beans lightly sauteed in grapeseed oil and minced garlic!

Makes 4-6 servings. Depending on how much you love it. ;-)

Dont' forget to Pin It! Just click here to add it to your boards:
http://pinterest.com/pin/214624738467462343/

By the way, did you know that Tuesday is also known as Tofu Tuesday?? I have been sharing tofu recipes with readers via social networks where tofu is the main ingredient. If you'd like to join in on Twitter, click here to tweet about this recipe. Also be sure to check out some of my other tofu-centric dishes, like my Tofu Shawarma and Veganized Paula Deen Collard Greens (with tofu bacon bits).
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