Cafe Gratitude LA: I Am Humble

Cafe Gratitude LA introduced an amazingly delicious special this weekend. I Am Humble is a grain bowl (your choice of quinoa, brown rice, or both) filled with butternut squash [edit: butternut squash has been replaced with yams], spinach, a deeply flavorful curry sauce, and topped with a tamarind drizzle. The brilliant head chef has truly outdone himself this time, so head over there ASAP to try it yourself.

Today's Cafe Gratitude LA question of the day: What do you love about the ocean?

Unprocessed

About a year ago, I had the pleasure of attending a vegan, whole foods cooking class with Chef AJ. I included links to some of her recipes in the post reviewing that class and she's now released a book titled Unprocessed, so you're able to have all her recipes at your fingertips.

One thing is certain about Chef AJ: She loves sweets! In fact, Unprocessed opens with a sweets chapter (Chef AJ says, "Life is uncertain. Eat DESSERT first.") and closes with another sweets chapter. Not to worry, though, there are plenty of vegetables, including her favorite kale, in between.

Having already highlighted many of the dishes from her book in my previous post about her, I decided to prepare the Chocolate Covered Cherry Smoothie from the Beverages chapter. Rich and delicious, while low in fat and high in antioxidants, this was the perfect lunch for a hot day in LA.

LA Vegan Happenings

I've been terribly remiss in not mentioning A Moveable Feast, LA's spectacular underground vegan supper club. Perfectly executed and thoughtfully crafted food created by my friends Alix of Cute & Delicious and Kim of C'est la Vegan, enjoyed in an intimate setting at a private residence, makes for a fantastic evening. The Moveable Feasts are thematic (the one I attended was springtime Italian (see photos above and below) and the most recent one was Spanish) and the lucky attendees this Saturday, September 17, will be treated to what promises to be a phenomenal French breakfast for dinner. I so wish I could be there to dine on homemade vegan crepes! To reserve a seat, e-mail: veganfeast@gmail.com.



Two weeks after filling your bellies with gourmet French delicacies, celebrate the book release of Spork-Fed (view the trailer here) by the Spork sisters, Jenny Engel and Heather Goldberg. The $20 ticket (part of the proceeds goes to Animal Acres) admits party-goers to a private Hollywood Hills home for a book signing with appetizers and well-stocked goodie bags! So, we can now take Spork classes in LA (and occasionally in San Diego), at Spork Online, and we can cook at home from Spork-Fed; it's a Spork trifecta!