Check out my progress on To Be Julia
Ever since my exam on Monday, I have been totally immersed in Julie & Julia, perhaps because the concept appeals to my obsessive nature. The book revolves around a young woman’s brilliant and seemingly impossible idea: Julie Powell vows to prepare every one of Julia Child’s 524 recipes from Mastering the Art of French Cooking–all in one year. Throughout the pages of Julie & Julia, the protagonist feverishly concocts French dishes (some successfully, some not), often stirring and sauteeing until dinner is served at nearly midnight. This kind of devotion to food reminds me of myself, so I got to thinking–what would it be like to prepare every single recipe from a cookbook? It seems a daunting task, but I think it might be exciting and provide an opportunity to expand my repertoire. Would you ever consider such a challenge? If so, which cookbook would you tackle? Due to its abundance of chicken liver dishes and bone marrow sauces, Mastering the Art of French Cooking would not be my first choice. I think Eat, Drink, & Be Vegan would suit my taste perfectly:)
Although I have been thoroughly enjoying foodie lit, my eats have not exactly been up to Julia standards today. Take a look:
Tuesday
This smoothie was much better than last night’s. No creepy gel formations here.
strawberry-pineapple smoothie with berry HempShake, soymilk, & Vanilla Almond granola
Wednesday
I recently noticed my waffle maker sitting in a lonely corner in the laundry room, so I decided a homemade waffle was on the menu this morning. I made a simple whole wheat vegan waffle (with a dash of cinnamon mixed in) and topped it with PB and some strawberries to create a PBJ flavor sensation. Check out these tiny containers of Oikos that I found at Wal-Mart. I have always had a fondness for anything wee-sized.
"PBJ" Waffle; tiny container of plain Oikos
I used up the last of the lemon pepper tempeh strips in a tasty wrap today. Lemon pepper and creamy avocado make for quite the combination.
lemon pepper tempeh wrap with avocado; salad; cherries
Then I spent my afternoon doing two of my favorite things: sipping kombucha and talking to VeggieGirl!
Passionberry Bliss
Dinner was my take on a tuna noodle salad. My standard substitute for tuna is chickpeas, so I just mashed up about 2/3 cup cooked chickpeas with vegan mayo, white wine vinegar, kelp granules (for fishiness), and a few other random flavorings. Then I added broccoli slaw and whole wheat fusilli. It turned out pretty well–even my dad snagged a bite…and liked it!
Chickpea Noodle Salad; salad with sunflower seeds; grapes
Chickpea Noodle Salad: mashed chickpeas with kelp granules, broccoli slaw, whole wheat fusilli, vegan mayo, whole grain mustard, dill, white wine vinegar, & a touch of agave nectar
Off to start packing for my trip to Chicago this weekend! Good night,
Filed under: Meals
Caroline Yoder, dietitian-to-be and all-around foodie.
I found those tiny oikos in PA back in May at a walmart and haven’t seen them anywhere else since!!!!! They are so convienent!
That waffle looks so delicious!
Oh good luck with packing and safe travels to chicago!
That’s a gorgeous chickpea noodle salad! I think it’d be Julia standards
I think the cookbook challenge would be exciting too! I’d have to think hard about which cookbook to tackle but I’m actually considering doing it just for fun.
Cooking your way through a Moosewood cookbook could be fun–it is vintage (from the 60s and 70s I believe) and many consider it to be the definitive vegetarian authority, much like Julia for French cuisine.
i could totally see YOU taking on the cookbook challenge, but I think I am wayy too picky. I don’t think I could find a cookbook where I would want to prepare every recipe….and I doubt I’d have time! But that would be neat!! I’d love to see that challenge get around the blogosphere though!!!
Fantastic idea!!!!!!
And look at you getting creative with the broc. slaw!! YOU ARE AMAZING C! blow me awayyyy!
The whole concept is so intriguing. I wish I’d read the book already because I really want to see the movie. I would love to do a cookbook challenge, but I am so awful about following recipes I doubt I could complete it.
im definitely craving some PB&J now! and its so great to see your story by the way. As a young teen I also struggled with anorexia- which later ended up in drug addiction. Now that I have become a vegan I am obsessed with reading blogs and I have to say yours is one of my favorites! Great job!
I just bought that book recently so I NEED to get a’readin! I would definitely be willing to consider taking on a challenge like that. I think I’d probably opt for a cookbook on the shorter side though… there are so many great ones out there I’d love to try that with though. It seems like such a fun idea! I think I’d have a LOT of leftovers to deal with though… Ineed a second fridge first haha.
Good luck with the packing!
Have you read Michael Pollan’s piece in the NYT Sunday magazine this past weekend? It talks about Julie & Julia and the Food Network. I thought about you when I read it, wonder what you think.
You can find it here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/02/magazine/02cooking-t.html?_r=1&ref=magazine
that is crazy to go through a recipe book especially if you dont like something.
that chickpea salad looks bomb caroline.
I love the whole concept of Julie & Julia and I cannot wait to see the movie. Im thinking that when my mom comes to visit that she and I make it a date! And yes I think it would be amazing to attempt to recreate every recipe in a cookbook. Of course it would be daunting but so rewarding in the end.
OMG I love “wee” sized things as well! I havent been able to find the wee-Oikos but have been looking everywhere! Anywho, that breakfast looks divine and I want to eat it now!
It would be SO cool to finish an entire cookbook! My fav at the moment is Vegan With a Vengeance, and I’m (almost) halfway through!
oooh, what a fun challenge!! i’m always finding myself in food ruts, so that would be awesome to try! maybe not on such a grand scale, of course
have fun in chicago, it’s such a great city!!
I think the challenge would be fun to do, although the cookbook should be well picked!
I like your waffle with strawberries, so pretty!
I read the book last year and know that I’m WAY too picky to actually make and eat every recipe in a cookbook. Now maybe if someone else prepared every recipe from Eat, Drink and Be Vegan FOR me, I could get on board with that
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Julie and Julia was a great book, but some of those ingredients and recipes turned my stomach…
And I got way too excited when I found those little Oikos at Wal-Mart a couple months ago. Why I like little things like that, I have no idea, but it was a cheap thrill.
Your recent eats may not be *French* cooking, but I’d still say they sound and look gourmet to me
I don’t have any cookbooks with me right now, so I have no clue which one I’d choose!
I’ve been trying to do that with a Rachael Ray cookbook. I’ve been slacking lately!
Hey girlie! I’m so excited to meet you on Saturday!! I can’t wait for the Julie & Julia movie… I think I’d tackle Joy of Cooking
I actually completed a cookbook challenge : ) The first year that I was vegan, I made every recipe from ‘Vegan Cooking for One’ by Leah Lenneman (UK) in the order that it was printed in the book…it was a really interesting experience, and some of the recipes I never would have thought to try are now part of my regular repertoire (if you can call it that!) It did become a little OCD in the end, though…I think I was so terrified of eating something that wasn’t vegan by accident that I became addicted to a cookbook ; )
Lovely eats as always…I wish I could find a vegan mayo that isn’t soy based (mild allergy) so I could recreate that salad!
Have fun in Chicago!
As a foodie, I simply can’t wait to see the movie “Julia & Julia.” It looks so cute!
Ahh i’m so jealous- my cuz just moved to Chicago, have the best time! Sadly I’ve never been poo’d on
But I imagine it’s not fun.
Your waffle breakfast is so appropriate! It was national waffle day yesterday
LOVE that chickpea noodle salad – yum! If any blogger were to do a cookbook challenge I think it would definitely be you Miss Master Chef! Yay for Chicago! Love that city!!
Have fun in Chicago! Go to Karyn’s Raw for me
CHI! I’m going there in 2 weekends! Have fun
hahaha I think I would choose HungryGirl. Mainly because you can do half the recipes in the microwave. fail.
I myself could not do a cookbook challenge because I never follow a recipe. I love a recipe for concept alone. I then take it and eye-ball measure everything and pair more stuff or take some away.
Have fun in Chicago! If you make it up to MI then hey, shoot me a jingle. P:
i absolutely cannot wait to see julie & julia! i have NO idea what cookbook i’d tackle but it would be pretty cool to say that i was able to do so!
umm homemade waffles may be the best things ever — yours looks fab!
hope you have an amazing time in chi-town, i have never been so i’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the city!
I just got those yogurts too! They are itty bitty!
I don’t think I would take that cookbook challenge. It would take much preparation and planning (ingredients and such), and I wouldn’t have the time to accomplish that task. Also, if I was craving something, I wouldn’t be able to eat it, but would have to make a recipe from the cookbook instead. I like having my freedom with cooking
Kelp is a creative addition to the chickpea salad! Never thought that this + chickpeas would make a great sub for tuna!
I’m going to Chicago this weekend too!! Woo woo!!
And I would never attempt such a challenge mainly because I’m pretty sure it would be a massive FAIL. haha.
Have fun!
Imagine going through a whole cook book?! I would love to do that but I’m picky with somethings, any cookbook that included pork or seafood would be out for me.
You just made me realize how long it’s been since I had kombucha, I need one soon!
ahh i want to see julie and julia So bad. sounds like its going to be a great movie.
caroline, when do your meals not look great – seriously come cook for me! those waffles are so calling my name!
have fun in the windy city.
Your chickpea noodle salad looks great! I don’t know what cookbook I would use. I would have to really research one that would be interesting and never boring because going through an entire book can be daunting
nice job on celebrating national waffle day! i dont even know what i would pick as far as cook books go~something with lots of versatile dishes, not just one genre.
That would be so fun, to cook from an entire cookbook…but it’s not for me…I have never been one to follow recipes…too much of a rebellious spirit in me! lol.
If you were going to do it, what cookbook would you choose?