More hits from the road, and shopping back at the ranch

Returned home to Philly on Wednesday. On Tuesday, enjoyed Lewisburg, WV. Visited the Wild Bean and the Bookstore and Edith's Store. The Wild Bean has a very nice menu.

I had the Healthy Wrap, which has greens, avocado, red onion, seeds, not sure what all else. Also had some of the chili you're seeing to the left. This was delicious. Sweet and hot and tomatoey. I was impressed that on the menu, in the description of the "Fakin' BLT," they note that their mayo is vegan. I didn't try the BLT, so I guess I have to go back someday. Oh, darn.

the "Healthy Wrap"

At Edith's Store, I bought a 2-oz. package of the sea vegetable Dulse, which I had never had before. It is red, and much softer and less chewy than the green varieties of seaweed I have tried. It tastes like bacon and sharp cheddar cheese. It has a sharp bite to it, and on the package they actually recommend crisping it in a pan in oil and using it to replace bacon on a BLT. It was so good as a raw snack that I ate most of it on the train the next day. The brand I bought is the same brand they carry at Weavers' Way Co-Op, but I don't remember if they had this variety or not. The brand is Maine Coast. Also bought some Celtic Sea Salt, some tea, and a mesh tea ball.


From a vegan-food-blogging perspective, my trip to W.Va. was a smashing success. It's so fun to go someplace I'm not usually and see what there is to eat. I can't believe I ever thought being vegan would be hard. Food is everywhere once you know what you're looking for. The Wild Bean and Edith's Store are not everywhere, but you remember my vegan Wal-Mart grocery list from the other day, right? The idea behind that was not to encourage vegans to shop at Wal-Mart (I don't recommend that to anyone); the idea was to show people who already shop at Wal-Mart that you can buy vegan foods in almost every aisle. Yeah, it's easier than you think. And remember, I also ate at a Mexican restaurant in Summersville in the same strip mall as Wal-Mart. Easy. Like fallin' off a log.

Got home Wednesday night and went to the farmers' market on Thursday to stock up. (I have no idea what Mark ate while I was gone. I'm not going to ask.) Went to the market this morning for a few more things.

Thursday Shopping List

1 bunch kale
1 bunch mustard greens
1 quart green beans
6 plum tomatoes
4 (bigger) red tomatoes
6 (big) yellow potatoes
1 pint blackberries
1 pint raspberries
(and at Milk & Honey Market)
1 avocado
1 loaf multigrain bread

Saturday Shopping List

1 quart okra
1 head red leaf lettuce
4 red shallots
1 golden zucchini
10 ears white sweet corn
2 portobello mushroom caps
1 oz. peppermint
1 oz. chamomile flowers
1/2 oz. lemon verbena
1 oz. sage
(and at Milk & Honey Market)
1 lb. unbleached wheat and barley flour
vanilla extract
1 lb. organic cane sugar

The chamomile flowers, peppermint, and lemon verbena are for tea, now that we have that mesh tea ball. Can't wait. Need to get cinnamon.

Oh, remember the vegan burger from the Amtrak train? On the way back, I got another one. It's actually not bad at all. You wouldn't want to eat it every day, but it's pretty tasty with ketchup and mustard. The bun is a Kaiser roll, and they microwave the whole thing in the package, but it doesn't get soggy somehow. A little chewy or stretchy, maybe, but tolerable.

After returning home from mom and dad's I am now inspired to make biscuits, hence the flour. And pancakes, hence the vanilla extract. Things we had to eat at mom and dad's included fried potatoes with peppers and onions, homemade biscuits with molasses, kale crisps (which I made and they loved), tomato-rice-bean soup, hummus & avocado sandwiches (both grilled and not grilled), fire-roasted corn on the cob, fire-baked potatoes, baked apples with walnuts and cinnamon crumbles, sweet potato fries, oatmeal, berry smoothies, and pancakes.



It was good to be home while I was there and good to be home now that I'm back. Wherever I go, some things don't change. More scenes from the Wild Bean....