Raw Vegan (Emergency) Brownies in under 10 seconds. PuraVegan Raw Vegan Pizza. Horton gets out of Jail. Laughing Giraffe Raw Vegan Granola.

PuraVegan. In St. Louis, Missouri-United States.  Barbecue Pizza.  Had zero idea what to expect.  Um, amazing.  I went home & made raw bbq sauce for a week afterwards!  Lots of food and the crust was dense.  Very filling, and that's no BS. I hate "light" dishes as I am a powerhouse eater & can't stand it when there are a few pretty sprouts with some "raw" dressing and some nuts and it's called a burger or something.  But PuraVegan totally delivers & I have been to a fair number of Raw Places.  Try it!

My first PuraVegan Post and Second PuraVegan Post.

This was the Italian Pizza I think...Deliciousness with the olives.  Once again, a great crust that had lots of flavor and was perfectly "done".  Raw crusts can be tricky.  They have to be thick enough to hold food, yet thin enough that they can fully dehydrate.  Also, when "wet" food hits the crust, the crust (if not protected), can get a bit damp.  So you can protect the crust by putting down an initial layer of collards, a dry nut base, or something to create a kind of barrier between the sauces and the crust.  It is not essential, but it does help the integrity of the crust last a bit longer.  Loved these pizzas!

And Raw Vegan Laughing Giraffe Granola.  I have never tried this, since it is usually not on sale & it has agave in it.  Usually I aim for the snacky snacks that are date sweetened.  But, I splurged.  

 The stuff is delicious.  Cranberry Orange.  Yum.  But delicious comes with a price.

190 out of 260 calories from fat.  That said, it is all from nuts.  Walnuts, Pecans, Almonds, Pumpkin Seeds, and Raw Cacao.  I have been trying not to overdo the nuts (my belly revolts) but of course I ate the whole bag within the day.  Yeah, I know.  I tried to pawn some off on my hubby but he likes to "save" the raw treats for me.  The combo of cacao, cinnamon & oranges rocked though.  And I might try to make a low fat version of these same flavors.  Without the agave.

So the whole bag has something like 28% RDA of Iron.  14% RDA of calcium.  7% Vitamin C.  

Improvisational Salad......Cabbage, Apples, Avocado, Cayenne.  Have been using Apple Cider Vinegar, salt free seasonings, and some dates as toppings.  

Ever heard the jokes about how raw vegan cookies are some nuts and dates smushed (yeah, it's a made up word) together?  Well, they are wrong.  Because usually it is in the food processor! :) But if I want some chocolate, and I mean, fast.  I don't want sugar. I don't want preservatives.  I pull out those Cacao Beans & grab a few dates from my 15 pound box from The Date People.

Ingredients: Cacao Beans.  Dates.

Usually I don't get this brand of Cacao.  It's fine, but this type is pricey & from Whole Foods.  I shop online for the best deal, typically.  

Step 1. Gently Massage/twist the peel of the Cacao Bean.  You can eat it.  But it is a little bitter.  My hubby loves the things, straight up.  But for the 10 second brownie, I peel it.  The cacao bean may break into nibs.  Try to keep them kind of together.

Step 2.  Take the pit out of the date.

Step 3.  Put the Cacao Bean into the date.  And Smush!

www.gatewaypets.com

Pj & Horton.  Before he was rescued.  Horton is a doll.  He has hung out with multiple packs of dogs & all of his friends had been rescued.  We had plans to rescue him, but he actually went in an Animal Control Trap just prior to that!  Luckily a beautiful girl who works at the adoption center part of that, recognized him from some photos sent out weeks before.  We were notified, and Pj & GPG made a beeline for Animal Control.  If I did what Pj did every single day, I would have either have a yearly subscription to yoga, an organic vegan wine club & mandatory meditation classes-or be on high doses of Prosac.  Going into Animal Control was hard............We left with Horton but heard the cries of so many other dogs.  It was hell.  I was trying not to actually just sob uncotrollably and have a meltdown.   That's when I play "The Suffering Game".  I just have to focus on all of the suffering on the entire planet.  The ocean that is polluted.  The millions of animals on factory farms, that no one cares about.  The chickens with their beaks cut off, laying eggs.  The people in other countries risking their lives just to make water runs.  The widows of India, exiled from their families, spending their days begging.  The plants that are crying because their planet has been so polluted.  And what is happening inside of this Animal Control, is just a small piece of that suffering, that is happening as I type this.  So we are saving this one life, reducing the suffering by just a little bit.  And we cannot alleviate all of the suffering, all of the time.  We can only do our best.  So I just take those bad moments & try to put them in another spot in my head & try not to visit it too terribly much.

East St. Louis, Illinois

www.gatewaypets.com

Here is Horton walking out of Animal Control (in Illinois) with Pj & Gateway Pet Guardians.

Horton getting kisses from the gals at Hillside Animal Hospital.

www.gatewaypets.com

Walking out of Animal Control. Sigh. Cry. Sigh.

Pj helping Horton out at Hillside Animal Hospital.

Horton gets weighed!

A doll!

RaRa.  Still on the Streets.  East St. Louis

www.gatewaypets.com

www.gatewaypets.com

RaRa is in East St. Louis, Illinois.  If you would like to help her out, or any of the other kids on the streets.........please contact us.  Horton still needs a forever home as well. 

www.gatewaypets.com

314.664.7398

My Fridge. Raw Vegan Ice Cream. Go Raw Spicy Seed Mix. Still Juiced. Dogs need YOU!

The inside of our basement fridge.  No, it isn't always this green or this awesome but had just come back from my folk's home & they have a garden.  A spectacular garden & I raided it.  So everything except the fruit is from their garden!  

Raw Vegan Ice Cream.  40 pounds.  Organic.  No Salt.  No Oil. 

 About 35 dollars and that's from Whole Foods!

Peel them.  Freeze them in ziplocs-I break into pieces.  Put in Vita-Mix or Food Processor & put in smallest amount of water possible.  Just enough water to get blender going.  If you use the Vita-Mix, then the tamper is a huge help.  Blend until smooth.  Don't do too much or it starts to melt!  I love putting in my PlantFusion powder as well, probably just because it is vanilla.  But it also has lots of aminos.  So I pretty much have been living on this stuff during the summer.  It rocks.

Go Raw Snacks

I used to balk at "Raw Snacks" because I used to buy all my seeds in bulk.  Have been eating gluten free these days and haven't found great sources for all my nuts & seeds.  Bremner Farms does have truly raw & organic almonds.  But Pepitas??  Just need to find a cost effective to buy.  And these were on sale......and Gluten Free.  Not too much spice, but very nicely flavored.  This was to bring to the Bhakti Fest in Madison, Wisconsin.  We had a "Sisters" weekend (I am the niece) with Yoga & Kirtan & Gong Baths.  Having no idea that there would be a raw vegan mecca there, I brought some snacks!

So I did a 5 day juice cleanse prior.  And I am still juicing.......just not everyday.  But Dave the Raw Food Trucker inspired me to truly make it a priority.  He also juiced 3 gallons at once which was 3 days worth-of green juice.  And he still got better.  So I am getting a little more adjusted to the idea of keeping green juices for 3 days.  

Beautiful Juices.  Great for this terrible summer heat.  Seems like a month of 100 degrees and up.  This is why it is cheap to live in the midwest.  To have San Diego temps, you must pay property tax in San Diego.......Sure, you can afford a bigger house in the midwest (the States) and you will need it because you will be confined to it the majority of the summer.

Breakfast.  People think you have to spend time cooking if you are Vegan.  That's BS.  You don't even have to cut the fruit up!!  A case of bananas, apples, berries.  You are set!  Want some density to that?  Add some almond milk & chia seeds.  Or make a batch of quinoa that will last you the week.  It is great in breakfast bowls!  Quinoa & fruits!  

Washington Park, Illinois.  One of the areas that Gateway Pet Guardians feeds/rescues the stray dogs & cats.

Pj feeding some new puppies.  She thinks these are "claimed".

www.gatewaypets.com

Tony and Elsa are battling out the summer heat.  These temps are hitting 107 some days and it is very heavy on the heart to think of all the sentient beings out there, that do not have a cool place to go.  If we can get some dogs out of our shelter, we can bring more in.  These kids have been on the streets for a very long time now.....waiting.  East St. Louis, Illinois.

www.gatewaypets.com

RaRa in East St. Louis.  

www.gatewaypets.com

Dirk and "his girl".  Pj says it is more difficult to name the girls.  That's why they are always "the girl". East St. Louis

www.gatewaypets.com

New dogs.  East St. Louis

www.gatewaypets.com

Dinah.  Poor Dinah has been out here for years.  Had many litters but Pj can never actually find them.  GPG has searched many an abandoned building and wooded areas looking for her kids.  We think they probably don't survive.  She is on "the list".  We need fosters.  So badly.  And funds.

www.gatewaypets.com

Bananas.  Morning. Noon. Night.  

Mamoun's Falafel Restaurant in New Haven, Connecticut. Cheap Vegan Eats in Yale Town.

Mamoun's Falafel Restaurant. 
85 Howe Street
New Haven, CT.

"The best falafel on the planet."  -Husband of GSGV

I have been hearing about this place for years now.......this is where my husband first started his falafel addiction.  Hearing about how insanely cheap & yummy this place is, I was stoked to finally try it myself.  They also have a famous "hole in the wall" location in Greenwich Village, the first location, which was opened in 1971.  Mamoun's has been family owned and operated since it's inception.  It also made it into the "1000 places to see before you die" book.

You don't have to worry about dog or cat pee on your rugs if you just hang them on your wall.  Thinking we need to try this at home!!

Really happy that it was a sit down place well suited for hours of sitting.  Drinking strong coffee.  And eating tahini filled foods.  Just has a flair for both style & comfort.

Their famous Lentil Soup.  This stuff was great and not terribly spicy.  I just couldn't deal with the paper cup though........Always think about the linings of those and what lurks beneath the surface.  But the soup was delicious.  We had been driving for several hours, from NY to Boston and a sit down place with hot soup was wonderful.

I ordered a squash veggie type of soup.  Lightly seasoned and full of fresh veggies and yummy tomato broth.  Once again, hard to overlook serving hot soup in paper cups.  

I wasn't feeling the fried food thing that day and opted for salad.  Basic type of Middle Eastern salad with onions, tomatoes, chunks of lettuce, and herbs on top.  Tahini based dressing.

Hubby got falafel sandwich and devoured it.  With hot sauce.  Something about the Mamoun's hot sauce that now he can never have a falafel without some form of heat.  At home we use Melinda's.

Picture of Mamoun on the wall....

Guess they are in on the hookah craze.  I think they had hookahs there 20 years ago, but they weren't "on the menu".

Signage.......Yep, there is an Ivy League school in this town, and yes, there is a fair amount of crime.  I guess a few decades ago it was pretty terrible.  Don't know what the current scene is but of course in the daytime, just passing through, everything looks lovely.

Apartments by Mamoun's....Hubby used to live here 2 decades ago and this is the SAME door with the SAME dents!!   Just steps away from Mamoun's.

85 Howe Street

I say it's a fun place for falafel & baba.  Cheap eats, unique atmosphere, and hubby's old haunt.  It isn't "fine dining" and if you have ever been to the one in the Village in NY, then you will think the atmosphere here is truly fine.  In NY, hot sauce is passed back in forth patrons standing and doubling up on the couple of tables, at 2 in the morning.........Not into plastic anything at either location, but in some way, that is just "part of it".

And from www.gatewaypets.com
East St. Louis, St. Louis Animal Rescues


A great 30 second PSA for rescue dogs! Starring Phil, a GPG rescue!

Some snapshots from our March 1, 2012 East St. Louis & Washington Park Feeding Route.

 Knuckles on left.  Pop's on Right.  East St. Louis.

 Knuckles doing his morning stretch. East St. Louis.

 Horton & Fallon.  And Pj.  Pj isn't up for adoption!

Although she could use a good foster! East St. Louis.

 Jughead....is a stray but has a collar on him.  Pj is going to try to earn his trust so she can either loosen it or take it off.  People put collars and chains on puppies and then either never change them, or dump their dogs.  Then the collar gets embedded and if nothing is done, then the dog will get strangulated. East St. Louis.

 RaRa is happy for the doghouse.  But she is still waiting for a foster.  She thinks she's pretty cute. Well, she's right.  East St. Louis.

 RaRa .

 Ridge.  East St. Louis.  Ridge adores Pj and she has a pretty special thing for him as well.

 Washington Park, Illinois.  Lark was running in the road today.  A busy road.  Lark and her friends also hang on on and by the highway.  I said a lot of bad words in front of Pj today, while watching Lark try to navigate her way across the street.  These dogs are waiting for angels.  

Washington Park is full of abandoned homes.  But not old homes.  Homes with vinyl siding.  Broken out windows.  Bars over the windows.  Boarded up everything.  This adorable pup is becoming a regular on the route.  He/She hangs out in an abandoned home next door with his/her friends.