Happy Sunday, beautiful cats! I hope you’re having a nice weekend. To be honest, I am enjoying this stormy weather – while walking back from work yesterday, the wind was pushing me a bit and made for a fun walk. And this morning, I spent some time in the garden, with the clouds going so fast in the sky, and I sat reading a book (“Just Another Missing Person” by Gillian McAllister) and drinking my Matcha and Moringa Latte (my own special recipe that I make every Sunday) in the garden. It was very peaceful and the perfect way to start the Sunday.

However, it was during the week that I made something easy and quick and delicious: as I had a short week (what with Easter Monday and Wednesday was my day off) and still felt a bit in holiday mood, I found the recipe for Vegan Chocolate Peanut Butter Eggs by ItDoesntTasteLikeChicken that was just right for a treat for the week (you know when you would like something sweet after dinner, and want it to be satisfying and at the same time not junk food? this is it!).

Ingredients 

• ½ cup natural peanut butter
• ¼ cup powdered sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 ¼ cups (8.6oz / 245g) vegan chocolate chips

Method 

1. In a medium bowl mix together the peanut butter, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and salt to form a dough. The dough should be easy to roll into a ball. If the dough is too dry, add a touch more natural peanut butter. If the dough is too wet add a bit more powdered sugar until you reach the correct texture.
2. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Take about 1 tablespoon of the peanut butter dough and roll it into a ball. Flatten the ball to about ½ inch thick, use your fingers to pinch it into an egg shape, and then place it on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining peanut butter dough to make about 9 peanut butter eggs. Freeze for 30 minutes (or as long as overnight).
3. Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave in 20-second increments, stopping to stir, and being careful to not burn the chocolate. Alternatively, you can melt the chocolate in a double boiler.
4. Remove one peanut butter egg from the freezer at a time (they soften very quickly), and use a fork to dip the frozen peanut butter egg into the chocolate, evenly coating it. Let excess chocolate drip off then place it back on the parchment paper-lined tray in the freezer, or on a second tray if preferred. Repeat with all the eggs. If you have leftover chocolate, you can return the chocolate to the microwave to make sure it is melty, then use a fork to drizzle extra chocolate over the eggs for decoration. Chill the eggs in the freezer for 30 minutes or until the chocolate is set. Peel off the paper and enjoy.

I hope you’ll love them as much as I do!

Love,

TVCL xx

Hello beauties! How are you today? Here we can’t complain – I was speaking at an online conference for International Women’s Day and I had been very nervous for the past few weeks: I was very excited about the invitation and also about sharing my research. But I am not good at all at public speaking, like that’s not my skill. However, I have also been invited to give a workshop with a colleague at an in-person conference in June. So I thought that if I can manage this online one, it will be good prep for the in-person one. Also, at this past online conference I prepared the presentation, I rehearsed it and it was an excellent chance for me to share my research project and my findings.

And you know what? I nailed it! Two of my colleagues were following the event and they both came after my talk to tell me that I did very well, they learned new things and also they gave a hug! The attendees at the conference left many lovely positive comments and one person also suggested that they can help progressing my research. I won’t lie: I was DRAINED after the event, but couldn’t stop because I had another event I had to attend with a colleague (that also went well!). Yesterday I was working too, so such a busy week!

And you know me, even if I’m busy I want something tasty, some kind of comfort food and it has to be easy and quick. I was so lucky to stumble upon this recipe for a Pear Almond Torte Tatin by Miyoko Schinner. I am not a fan of pears, but oh goodness this is such a great recipe! (Also, now the Pear Galette, my go-to recipe with pears, has some competition!)

Ingredients

• 3-4 pears, sliced
• 2/3 cup of brown sugar (plus 3-4 tablespoons for the caramelization)
• 1/2 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil (plus 2 tablespoons for the caramelization)
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup almond flour
• 1 cup almond milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon baking powder

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 350F/180C;
2. Prepare an 8-9 in cake pan with a sheet of parchment paper at the bottom;
3. Brush the 2 tablespoons of olive oil on the paper and sprinkle the 3-4 tablespoons of brown sugar (this will help with caramelization);
4. Put the pears now: you can fan them out or just set them there without much attention (the fanning will make the end result prettier, but to be honest I just threw them there) and set aside;
5. Put the half cup of oil with the 2/3 cup of sugar and stir;
6. Sift the flour with the baking powder then add the almond flour;
7. Add half of the flour mixture to the oil mixture and stir;
8. Then add half the milk and whisk well;
9. Add the rest of the milk and the rest of the flour;
10. Add the vanilla extract;
11. Pour the batter over the pears and we’re going to put it in the oven for 25-30 minutes.
12. Check with a toothpick if it comes out clean. Flip it upside down and let cool.
13. Enjoy!

Love,

TVCL xx

Hi my beautiful cats! I hope you are well. Recently, I haven’t been much active here and there are many reasons:

• Since December, I’ve had an on-and-off cold: it seemed I got rid of it 2 weeks ago, but it came back with a vengeance. Definitely, it doesn’t help that at work we are still without heating and we are passing these bugs around with my colleagues, like playing tennis with the cold;
• Despite taking all of my “concoctions” (from tea with turmeric and black pepper, to oregano oil and apple cider vinegar) I can’t quite shake this cold off and I am currently on day 4 of antibiotics – before this, I hadn’t needed antibiotics, for years;
• I have let the current world events deteriorate my mental health: I am struggling to understand the people defending the criminal actions of the Israeli government and I am really losing hope in the human species. All the NATO/Russia is also not helping.

However, here I am today with some comfort food – I had a single eggplant waiting to be used in the fridge and this Spicy Eggplant Pasta by ConnoisseurusVeg was exactly what I needed.

Ingredients

• 8 ounces dried rigatoni pasta
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more if needed, divided
• 1 medium (1 pound or 450 gram) eggplant, salted if necessary, cut into ½ inch cubes
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 5 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (14 ounce or 400 gram) can diced tomatoes
• 1 cup canned crushed tomatoes
• 3 tablespoons capers
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
• ½ teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• ½ cup chopped fresh basil, plus more for serving, optional
• ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley, plus more for serving, optional
• Black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook it according to the package directions, until al dente. Drain the pasta into a colander when it’s finished cooking.
2. While the pasta cooks, coat the bottom of a large skillet with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and place it over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the diced eggplant in an even layer. (Notes 1 and 2)
3. Cook the eggplant for about 10 minutes, flipping the pieces only once or twice, until they’re browned on multiple sides.
4. Remove the eggplant from the skillet and transfer it to a plate when it’s finished browning.
5. While the eggplant cooks, coat the bottom of a large pot or skillet with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil and place it over medium heat.
6. When the oil is hot, add the onion. Sweat the onion for about 5 minutes, until soft and translucent, stirring frequently.
7. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more, until very fragrant.
8. Stir in the diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, capers, red pepper flakes, and ½ teaspoon of salt.
9. Bring the sauce to a simmer, and allow it to cook, uncovered, for about 10 minutes, until it thickens up a bit. You can add a splash of water if it becomes too thick.
10. Stir the eggplant into the sauce and let the mixture simmer for about 5 minutes more, until the sauce very thick and the eggplant is very tender.
11. Add the cooked pasta, parsley and basil to the sauce and stir everything well to distribute the ingredients and wilt the herbs.
12. Remove the pot from heat and season the pasta with additional salt and black pepper to taste.
13. Divide onto plates and serve. Sprinkle with additional parsley and basil, if desired.

Enjoy!

Love,

TVCL xx