craft – VeggHead BeerCyclist

BillHicks-Style Soup

Posted on September 6, 2016 by jeffreylatty

It makes for a great night to accidentally discover there is Bill Hicks comedy specials on Netflix. I talk badly, usually, about Netflix, these days. The amazing and rare discovery that I made, motivated me to make an impovisational late night soup after one too many Beers.

For those who do not know who Bill Hicks is. A lot of you, probably shouldn’t know who he was. Bill Hicks passed away in 1994, to pancreatic cancer, at the age of 32. He was bluntly honest and widely controversial. A comedian with a severely dark persona. Will Melvin Hicks was on a higher level of comedy that only a few people have touched base with. And even some of his stuff pisses me off. That is how you know it is genuine. Horrible comedy pisses me off, but finding controversial comedy that somewhat gets under my skin is uncommon and unique.

On Netflix as of 6.6.16 = Bill Hicks : Sane Man , Bill Hicks : Revelations

The band Tool dedicated their 1996 album, Ænima, to Bill Hicks. Here is a YouTube link to its best song, in my opinion…

This soup was easy and extremely delicious. I grilled halved Red and Yellow Potatoes while simmering Tomato Juice and Veggie Broth.

I threw in all sorts of leftover veggies consisting of: Onion, Tomato, Cucumber, Scallions, Celery, Parsley, Tofu, Tempeh, Japonica Rice and Garlic. I seasoned this Soup with Sugar, SeaSalt, Pepper, Cayenne, BalsamicVinegar and Garlic Powder.

I let it simmer for some more Bill Hicks Comedy before checking it again to realize that it needs more time. I made myself a sandwich of beer. The sandwich of Beer was simply a sandwich between two slices of Beer. I let the Soup simmer just above warm for the rest of the night.

There are things you can rush, but knowing ultimately that you cannot not rush something multiple beers deep, is the art of cooking.

I suggest any flavor of White Claw Hard Seltzer to anyone 21 or older.

Refreshing.

I made a Daiya Cheese sandwich with two separate Grilled Daiya sandwiches capturing Lettuce, Tomato, Onion and Guacamole. With some evolved Soup materials on the side:)

Happy Tuesday! Go find a blood drive near you! I will be donating double red cells at noon today and so should you, if you qualify to.

iSalad

Posted on September 2, 2016September 2, 2016 by jeffreylatty

My excuses for cooking my life away is to obtain my most correct lifestyle and distrust of the area involving my lifestyle. My lifestyle is easy. iRide iEat iDrink

I do shuffle and repeat that playlist. I will say a positive mindset and attitude about every freaking thing is key to inner happiness. And always having good days, makes life irresistibly better, for me. Maybe I have my head up my own ass, but maybe I’m doing it right.

You can spin everything to be a good thing. TRY IT.

I made a simple Taco Salad. It was so simple that a picture reveals its ingredients.

I’m just a lazy blogga wannabe. 🙂 Happy Thursday!

Tofupeh Rangoon

Posted on September 1, 2016 by jeffreylatty

I pictured these jumbo Tofupeh Rangoon turning out just a little bit better, visual-wise. The wonton wraps like to flop around, limply. And that is why the smaller wonton wraps are commonly used. All in all, they were still extremely deliciously edible.

My Sourly Sweet Sauce consisted of:

Pineapple Juice
Molasses
Rice Vinegar
Balsamic Vinegar
Tamari
SeaSalt
Cayenne
Garlic Powder
Corn Starch

The amazingly delicious Tofupeh:

Tempeh, diced
Tofu, extra firmly crumbled
Wasabi Powder
Tamari
Balsamic Vinegar
Thai Style Peanut Sauce
Daiya Cream Cheese
Daiya Jalapeno Havarti Cheese, diced
Scallions, chopped
SeaSalt/Pepper/GarlicP/Sugar/DillWeed

Basically, just pan-fried Tempeh and Tofu in oil before adding everything else.

I used Sugar/Water/Mollasses for Wonton adhesive. I baked the Rangoon on low heat.

The Wonton wraps contain less than 2% egg. I’d say this recipe is 99.5% Vegan.

Deliciously Dairy-Free.

-Daiya

RIP Gene Wilder.

Baked Tortellini

Posted on August 26, 2016August 26, 2016 by jeffreylatty

I’ve mentioned in previusly unread blogs, that I do not wish to continue being a stickler about minute (mynoot) amount of dairy or egg. I will probably never purchase cheese nor egg themselves ever again in my life.

I used Wonton wraps today that included less than 2% of egg.

Thus, I’ve been saying for a few weeks, I am 98% Vegan. The other day a coworker/friend offered me a cookie. She is Vegetarian and warned me that they consisted of a little egg. I thanked her for the information and consumed one delicious cookie. Stress kills and it’s not a good feeling to be excited for consumable food only to find out it conflicts with your lifestyle. I am keeping a small window open and that is truly up to me.

Heat Veggie Broth
Throw in (from a decent distance) Celery, Baby Carrot, Onion & Bay Leaves
Season with Basil, SeaSalt, Pepper, Sugar, BalsamicVinegar&GarlicPowder
Simmer down now
I thickened this Broth with InstantMashedPotatoes

I used leftover Fennel Cream which has not been blogged yet…

Roasted Fennel Seeds
Dill Weed
Scallions, diced
Vegenaise, mmmmm

I will not buy eggs. I will not physically cook with them. I mixed Sugar with Water to create an edible adhesive.

I pan-fried Tempeh in OliveOil, BalsamicVinegar, SeaSalt, Pepper, CrushedRedPepper, Sugar, Basil & GarlicPowder.

I stuffed the Tortellini with Fennel Cream, Tempeh & Daiya (Jalapeno Havarti:) and Baked them in the oven.

I adjusted my rear caliper on my FatBike and went for a small ride fighting the sunset and visibility without a light.

Chicago-style Dawgza

Posted on July 24, 2016 by jeffreylatty

“Goodbye my friend

I hope you are well

I’m sorry our time has run out

There’s so many stories left to tell

About our battles, losses, and victories too

My tongue hurts with the words

I never said to you”

STEADY HANDS

Recipe at the end………….:)

I ordered a new bicycle Friday after getting off work. It is by far the most expensive bike that I’ve ever purchased. It is also the nicest bike that I’ve ever purchased.

CrossRip 3

The video shows the CrossRip 2, this will be my third CrossRip, so I have to go with the 3, right!? To help with funds, I will be selling my original CrossRip. I named this bike the HulkRip. The HulkRip is a 2014 CrossRip purchased in 2013. It was my real first bike and I rode the shit out of it! It has a heart of steel with durable aluminum skin. It has been through numerous wrecks and has truly survived a beating. I’ve ridden this monster just short of 8,500 km (roughly 5,300 miles). I have upgraded to a carbon fork and have rebuilt its entire drivetrain. I’m sad to see this beast go. And technically he hasn’t been sold yet;) My Sunday consists of cleaning the HulkRip up and getting ready for a sale.

I had an interesting Saturday, yesterday, of drinking a lot of beer, eating VEGAN and riding a bicycle, henceforth, VEGGHEAD BEERCYCLIST. This is who I am. I slept horribly Friday night / Saturday morning. I might as well say that I barely failed at pulling an all-nighter. I decided to give up and I made VEGAN pizza while enjoying a beer.

I don’t always drink first thing in the morning, but when I do it usually makes for an interesting day worth blogging into (onto) peoples faces.

My idea was to eat/drink and nap hard afterwards. That did not happen. I went out and rode 50km and enjoyed numerous other beers. It was hot and hydration is key and beer is a little more lively than water. It is water on steroids, basically. I stopped at a booze shop after getting into town and forgot I was a minimalist cyclist without major storage space and bought a bomber, a 4-pack and a sixer. The cashier gave my these in a paper bag inside of a plastic bag. I walked my bike home with my hydration necessities. I rested the bag handles on my handlebars to ease my travel.

The bag broke and shattered my bomber and poked a hole in one out of ten cans. I screamed mother FFFF-er. And a kind sir gentleman, working in his garage, walked out and brought my a 30-pack carton and a garbage can where we disposed of the glass and leaking beer. I continued my journey looking like a bum walking his bike after drinking 20 Busch Lights and still dragging along the last 10…. Destroying the normal label of cyclists not steeping to that level:)

At times things aren’t exactly how they appear. I dropped my luggage and bicycle off and went to hang out with some family, where I was driven back to the same liquor store to replace that imploded bomber.

I fed my (first) niece for the first time and had a great lazy day. I also attempted a tipsy Mexican Dawg (to be remastered later) What a great day!

Chicago-style Dawgza

Ketchup / Catsup is NOT allowed on any kind of hot dog / sandwich. That is the rule. Nothing beats the flavor of a raw tomato and other various VEGGIES.

Sauce-PizzaSauce,Mustard,BrownSugar,Tofu,ChipotleP,GarP,BalsamicV,Salt, Pepper,SerranoPeppers – MIX

I’m lazy most of the time and bought and used prepared Ⓥ pizza dough. I smothered that pizza dough with that heavy duty // heavy gauged pizza sauce and began creating a masterpiece! I used Cucumber, Onion, Tomato with DAIYA and pre-grilled SmartDog slices. I baked slowly before slightly broiling my pie. A little mustard to garnish and BOOM.

Sunday Ride On

Posted on July 11, 2016 by jeffreylatty

I encountered a strange different style of riding yesterday. Not so much strange, just a change of pace on a strenuous ride. I have been riding solo for the last few weeks, which happens and is totally fine. A buddy was going to commute to his new job for the first time. Which doesn’t seem like a big deal, except for it being just short of 30 miles. When I ride, I rarely start before 9am.

Yesterday, I left to meet up with my buddy at 6:12 am. When I open (for my job) I leave about the same time. On a day off, this is unheard of by me. We rode the 45 kilometers and met up with a couple of engineers who we occasionally ride with for some breakfast. I enjoyed water and a peanut butter Vegan Cliff bar.

Dude went to work and I went with the engineers and in a sense went to work. We went a little farther to stop in a little town to have a beer. Their town ordinance was not to serve alcohol before noon on Sundays, so we rode on.

We hopped on a horribly weed overgrown and sinkhole plentiful canal for roughly 55 kilometers (35 miles) where I ran out of water and snacks conveniently away from stores and non-well water. We wound up splitting up at different paces after canal departure, yet still all trying to conclude this ride without passing out on the side/middle of a road/trail from heat exhaustion.

It is extremely uncomfortable to be out of water in the heat pedaling away with your mind medaling affray almost as if your life flashing before your sweaty eyes. I guess in my defense, I didn’t exactly know where the engineers were leading me. I could have been more prepared. I’m a sucka for cold water and on longer rides, I fill up my water bottle somewhat regularly with ice. I might start bringing two, but I normally know where I’m going.

The point of my story is to keep an open mind. You never truly learn anything unless you occasionally jump into something blind. Routines are great, but changing them up from time to time has benefits.

If a bartender gives you a homemade pickle and it is amazing, take a shot of that pickle juice!

Sunday Ride

And according to Untappd, I experienced my first ever Old Milwaukee. I do not recommend experiencing an Old Milwaukee.

I do condone experiencing this track of music via YouTube link:

Pals

Good people drink good beer.

Just Photos

Posted on May 28, 2016 by jeffreylatty

Bulls on Parade

Posted on May 15, 2016 by jeffreylatty

I went to Dixon, IL, yesterday, for a gravel (bicycle) ride which was more of multi-surface ride with a mixture of various levels of gravel and road. It was a great ride, just a shitty day. The wind was windy and cold. The sun was hidden and also cold. I rode 118.7 km (73.76 miles) which did complete Strava’s May Gran Fondo challenge.

I’ve blogged in the past about my difficulties with an athletic watch manufacturer and decided to go the Forerunner route, paying extra money for a Garmin Forerunner 235. It’s pretty sweet. I can track my rides as it is a Garmin. I can track runs, if I ever did run. I do not run. This watch monitors my heart rate and also my sleep.

Last June, I attempted to track exactly what I did that entire month and put it into a blog that no one read.

June 2015 Time Science

It is and was extremely hard to monitor sleep manually. Next month will be a different story. Technology is our friend, but it is up to us how close of a friend it will be. But, first June has to get here. And June has to conclude to document an entire month of data and lifestyle.

Yesterday, on this gravel ride, I rode new roads, I drank a couple of new beers, met new people with some of the same passions and I RODE WITH A BULL. I also ate out at a deli, deliciously, confidently Ⓥeganly. The day sums up this way. You take an excellent cut of Bike Ride layered generously, Vegetable genocide of all sorts, being outside in nature with animals and life, garnished with an array of Good Beers adding character and flavor – STUFFED between two pieces of Good Bread. Consumption of a sandwich of this magnitude is VEGGHEAD BEERCYCLIST. And this is the good life.

Happy Sunday!

(No animals were harmed:)

FunFoodPhotoFun

Posted on May 14, 2016May 14, 2016 by jeffreylatty

¡Salsa Ⓥerde!

Posted on May 11, 2016May 11, 2016 by jeffreylatty

Don’t be a fisherman. Be a farmer. Eat yo veggies! The amount of flavorful variations involving just vegetables are exponentially infinite. Not to mention the number of benefits that come with eating yo veggies! They are delicious health fuel that gives you nothing, but quality life.

I do not intend to be a bossy asshole, but I strongly recommend the following:

Ride a F*#king Bike
Drink a F#*king Beer
Take Quality F*#king Pictures
Eat Yo F#*cking Veggies
Have F**king FUN

I’ve been slacking with my blogs lately, but today, I am blogging all over yo face:)

It is rare for me to blend or make sauces/relishes/salsas/etc smooth. I like food chunky flavorful and with character. I love Salsa Verde, but I refuse to make store-bought Salsa Verde. ¿Comprende? I was Mexican, Spanish or Creole in my past life. That style of cooking is explosive with fun and interesting variations.

¡Salsa Ⓥerde! ingredients:

Tofu, extra firmly crumbled
Black Beans, cooked and cooled
Cilantro, chopped
Tomato, deseeded and chopped
Scallions, sliced
Tomatillo, chopped
Habanero, deseeded and diced
Serrano, deseeded and diced
Jalapeño, deseeded and diced
Garlic, minced
SeaSalt/Pepper
Lime, juiciness

Prep. Mix. ENJOY!

I enjoyed my ¡Salsa Ⓥerde! with chips and as a relish for a satanishly amazing Seitan (Ⓥegan) Boca Sandwich with ¡Salsa Ⓥerde! as relish engulfed by a Pretzel Bun. And then there were POTATOES.