Busy Bees Make the Tastiest Honey

To reassure you, dear readers, right off the bat: no, I have not gone hungry for the past week.  I have simply been what is usually referred to as busy.  While busy does mean less time to cook or sit down to at a restaurant it does not mean a lack of scrumptious edibles (Unless you want to count those fries and frosty I had for lunch the other day.  Which I, and my gut, do not).  Weeks like this, however, are what I keep experiences like Cafe Flora, and a little thing known as leftovers, in my back pocket for.  So, to business!

Two weekends ago, I made an early morning game out of looking up as many tasty-looking restaurants to try out before Derek woke up.  Side-note: if you know Derek at all you know that this really isn't a difficult game...sorry, love!  And as the super-nice, indecisive girlfriend I am I made him sit down and pick one.  Ultimately, he settled on Cafe Flora; a place that was not new to me but I certainly hadn't been there for a couple years at least.  Cafe Flora is one of the earliest outliers of my vegetarian memory.

Cafe Flora was when I realized that there were actually vegetarian restaurants.

I kind of feel like I owe a lot to Cafe Flora for the simple fact that it showed up in the google results for "Vegetarian Food in Puyallup, WA" that showcased potato skins at TGI Fridays as its most promising possibility (bacon-topped potato skins, of course).  Or maybe I owe it to Google.  Either way, it felt good to go back after such a long hiatus.  I started the meal out with their "Bucket of Yam Fries".  Literally, it is served in a bucket which, let's just face it, is awesome.  They come with cayenne aioli and just like anything else that is really yummy and probably really bad for you, there is never enough of it.  So I ordered the "Black Bean Burger".  Because aside from being a nice little alliteration it comes with more aioli.  It also comes with your choice of yam fries or greens but since I already had my bucket I got greens to feel a little better about my aioli consumption.  If you're looking out for the "food Sarah doesn't like" in this post, it's beans.  Refried, whole, kidney, pinto, black, you name it.  Of all my food distastes, though, it's been the easiest to overcome.  Especially when you turn them into this:

Mmmmmm..... The potato bun was the perfect, floury cloud for the black bean patty which was subtly spiced but not spicy (and did I mention the cayenne aioli?!).  The greens were also delightful, but then again I find greens delightful.  And I much prefer saying "greens" to "salad".  Cafe Flora is also a restaurant that I love for its atmosphere.  Derek agrees - he was very excited about being seated in the restaurant's lush atrium-esque section, right next to the indoor rock fountain.  The whole restaurant gives a light, airy feeling that I, personally, find relaxing and makes the food all the more enjoyable.  Also, for anyone who might be vegan or gluten intolerant, Cafe Flora offers options on many of its dishes.  I wish I could say that we sampled the dessert menu as well, but we were too happily stuffed to do so.  On this visit at least....









Earlier, I mentioned leftovers.  And oh boy have I been rolling in the leftovers this week.  A few weeks back my very, very good friends Mike and Angela made dinner for Derek and I.  I call it "Ricey goodness, smothered in tahini, spinach and tomato goodness, rolled in love".  I'm still working on that.  It is a distinctly Mediterranean meal with a nicely balanced and straightforward flavor profile that makes my mouth just about the happiest it has ever been.  This picture I took doesn't quite do it justice but I say earnestly: try out the recipe.  (I'm going to guess that M & A don't mind since it's already on facebook for the whole world).

Tahini Sauce:

1/2 C Tahini

3 Garlic Cloves, crushed
1/2 t Kosher Salt
2 T Olive Oil
1/4 C Lemon Juice
1 t Parsley

Mix it all up. Keeps for up to 2 weeks.

1 C Rice
A lot of spinach, steamed
2 Tomatoes, diced
Pitas
Olive Oil
Dill
Garlic
Cumin
Cilantro
Salt
Black Pepper

Stir everything into the rice from Olive Oil down (oil included, whatever seems appropriate), then assemble and eat!

Thank you to Mike and Angela - I was seriously craving this for weeks after you made it for me.  As a note, if you find that you don't have all the ingredients (say, for instance, you can't find tahini paste at your store, or didn't realize you didn't have all the required spices) you can use pre-made humus as a base for tahini sauce, you won't really need more olive oil or lemon juice unless you really want it.  And if you find that you don't have cumin, a light dusting of paprika and curry powder does quite nicely, too.

And with that, I'm out!  Off to enjoy more of those leftovers... 

Veggie Monster  

ps - Yet another shameless plug.  If you have a facebook go here and hit that "like" button!