Post Punk Kitchen Forum

I like this book. It's a cookbook. It has yummy recipes. I had to give it back to the library but it is on my xmas list. We had the thai burgers and they were tasty. I am really interested in the recently posted cake pop recipe on her blog, also.

I just made her scones (with a few alterations), and they were quite good. I am actually going to make a few more of the recipes today; they seem reasonably healthy and pretty quick, which is what I need. I don't know if any of them will be mind blowing, but that's okay.

As far as the tone and everything, I will say that Ms. Matheny's style is not really my thing. I did find it a bit weird with all the pics of her kids throughout the book, which kind of made me feel like I was looking through a family album rather than a cookbook. However, assuming the recipes turn out well, I will just skip over the text and continue to happily use the book. I am obviously not the book's target audience, and that's fine. If Peas and Thank you appeals to people who would otherwise not be cooking vegan, then that's great.

Oh, though I don't like how there's always the option to use "organic milk" or other dairy products.

I generally enjoy the blog (though I only check foods blogs every now and again). But I also like A Prairie Home Companion, and I feel like these facts are related.

We've tried the following:

Spicy African Peanut Slow Cooker Soup - it really wasn't spicy (at least to us) but it was REALLY easy to make in the slow cooker and tasty. An omni couple loved it. We are making a second batch for the work week today.

Spanish Quinoa - My husband liked it. It was meh for me.

Carrot Cake with "cream cheese" icing <in process> - the batter tasted amazing. My daughter keeps asking if they are cooled enough to make the frosting.

Well, I made the jambalaya last night, and while it was easy and healthy, I must say it was a bit bland. After tasting it, I realized it must be calibrated for a child's tastebuds. I think if I had had hot sauce in the house, that would have given it just the kick it needed. I'm making the frittata ball things today, and I have high hopes.

I hate the same thing with the tamale pie from her site. Although without the hot sauce it seemed more appropriate for breakfast. It really was that good. It's the cornbread topping stuff.

Update: Carrot Cake with "cream cheese" icing - Awesome. The only modification I made was to add walnuts instead of raisins.

Tofu Nuggets: We should have marinated them and baked them longer. However, my daughter did eat a few. I think this will be a good "go to" recipe when we are trying to figure out what to feed our daughter.

Loved the lentil meatballs and so easy to make! The mini frittatas were good.

I'm trying to let the brownies cool a bit before I chow down. Not sure how they'll taste, but the batter was good, and they took like 2 minutes to prepare. Maybe brownies are just easy? I don't know; I'm just really happy that I was thinking something sweet, pulled out the book, and happened upon this recipe, and in less than 30 mins from doing so, I'll be eating brownies.

I just ate 1/3 of the pan of brownies. They're really good. A little cake-like, but not so much that they're not brownies. I wasn't really measuring carefully either, so that might have had something to do with it. I think they'd be OK without the chocolate chips even, but they're not unwelcome by any means! I added walnuts because I have them on hand. I wish I would have added more, or that I had Dandies.

I'm going to go pass out in a state of sugar bliss. . .

Teriyaki Tofu- this was very good. We made rice bowls with rice, broccoli, pineapple, and tofu. Our daughter liked this (she ate her items separately).

I just made the tofu nuggets last night and they were yummy! My husband and 6 yo both loved them. 2 yo didn't eat them, but he is so on and off with food and I think he was just not in the mood. I marinated them for about an hour and a half and the flavour was good, and I baked them for 30 mins instead of 20. Hubby had his with chilli sauce and the kids with ketchup. I also made the Crazy Good Hummus to use for the nuggets. You only need 2 tbsps for the nuggets though so we were munching on the rest today. It's good, but too garlicky for the kids. I even peeled every forking chickpea like she suggests........can't say it made a huge difference. When I make it again I won't bother and see if it affects it much - I might be wrong.

I think peeled chickpeas do make for a nicer texture. I've started dumping a cup of chickpeas at a time into a tea towel, bundling it up and then rubbing. Then, it is easy to just pick off most of the skins. It only takes a minute and I dont fuss about getting them all; just getting most results in super creamy hummus. I can't imagine peeling chick peas by hand.

Chewy Energy Bars - Super easy. Super yummy. I doubt these will make it to mid-week. They came together really quickly and I will definitely make these again.

*I subbed dates for most of the raisins.

I didn't think of that, but I should of because I've done that before for roasted nuts. I have to admit though - I made my hubby do half so it didn't actually take very long.

Tempeh Chili - This was just spicy enough without being too spicy. It makes a ton. It is VERY filling.

I enjoy Sarah's blog, and think she reaches those who might otherwise not bring much
compassion to the table. Her book is attractive, and so far the Tempeh Chili has been a winner.

I made the single chin brownies a while ago, but they had a metallic-y taste, I think it was the lack of fat, because any other brownie recipe using the same cocoa powder is fine. It wasn't that bad, but I won't make it again. I think I might (usually) be a full fat dessert kind of girl.

I made the Spicy African Slow Cooker Peanut Soup and it is sooooo good. I love it! It was super simple to make. It wasn't very spicy, even with my extra hot curry powder, but I'll just add habanero sauce for my next serving. I will definitely make this again for busy nights. My father hates anything with peanuts (but he loves them plain?), and he thought it was delicious, too.

Jambalaya - We used a store bought spicy sausage in this dish and it more than made up for the lack of spice/flavor. It ended up being too spicy for me the next day. The omni couple we made dinner for thought it tasted great!

Update! I found a great home for this book in my friend who has recently assumed single dad duty and wants to eat and cook healthier along with his young son. I think they'll find this book really useful, so that's great!

That seems like a perfect home for it. I do really like this cookbook, but like you mentioned before, it's more focused on families with kids. I want to buy a copy to share with my sister and her kids.

I made the banana bread and my friend, her flatmate and me all loved it!

The Lemon Lentil Soup is great!

I made the PB Blondies, but instead of chocolate ganache, I mixed in some choco chips. They turned out really well. I think I didn't stir the PB enough so there was more oil in it than needed, but otherwise, these were fabulous (and I don't think that was the recipe's fault; a no-stir PB would have solved the issue). Everyone at work has loved them!!

I made the tofu ricotta gnocchi a couple of nights ago and it was great. We had it with the homestyle tomato sauce and my 6 yo loved it. He calls them 'donkeys!' te he