Vegetarian 'Bolognese' Sauce and Homemade Salsa

What a wonderful weekend it was!

Spent most of my time with Ellen (obvi), but hey, she's just da best. Anyway, Thursday was pretty great. We watched Kiki's Delivery Service and just chilled the whole night. Friday, we made Bolognese Sauce and salsa (recipes below!), gamed, and watched Tour de Franzia from my bedroom window (being on ResLife staff, I could not participate). I must say, it's quite fun to drunk-people-watch, especially when all of them were getting kicked out of the Butts by ResLifers (lolz). Anyway, we cat-called a few people, posed in a picture, and enjoyed our OWN night of fun in my room and house. Games were played, classy drinks were drunk, (a lot of) food was consumed...you get the idea.

I don't remember much of Saturday, probably because it was pretty uneventful. During the day, anyway. At night we went to a frat for a birthday party and then went to Fountain for a jazz concert. And then I decided I really wanted food so I booked it back to Turath because I had a bowl of noodles (that my housemate Bertram so kindly shared!) waiting for me. And they were so delicious. Worth leaving Fountain early, in my opinion.

And then Sunday, my mama and papa and grandpa came to visit! I hadn't seen my parents in a while and my gramps since my gram's funeral, so it was so heartwarming to see their smiling faces. We went to Esca, where my mom and I went with my gram when she visited last year, and sat in the same booth :) After a delicious meal of softshell crabs, flatbread with caramelized onions, goat cheese, figs, and spinach, and homemade pasta, we went on a walking tour of the school. Grandpa absolutely loved the campus! We were holding hands the whole time and I was so so happy to be with him. He's such a midge!

So cute.

Anyway, food time.

Now, this bolognese sauce does not hold a candle to Grandpa Cal's pasta sauce + meatballs (a container of which he lovingly brought for me! I already finished it), but it is a delicious alternative if you are vegetarian, gluten free, and/or short on time. And it's still pretty damn good. I 'created' this recipe last semester when I was in a pinch and wanted to experiment with the only thing I had on hand: TVP. Textured Vegetable Protein. It sounds weird, it looks weird, but it's good, and good for you. Bob's Red Mill makes it, you can find it anywhere, really. It's so versatile, too! I've made this sauce several times as it only takes about 20 minutes to make! It even has my brother's stamp of approval, and he's a certified carnivore.

TVP Bolognese
Ingredients

• 1.25 c water
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1/2 large bouillon cube (or however much you would need to make one cup of broth)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 c Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP)
• 6oz. tomato paste
• 2 15oz. cans fire-roasted tomatoes
• oregano
• basil
• rosemary
• dehydrated red bell pepper (if you like it spicy, which I do)
• salt, pepper

Instructions

1. In a small pot, take the bouillon cube and put it in along with 1.25c water. Bring to a boil, and add the cup of TVP. Remove from heat, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes. Add hot water accordingly (it shouldn't be too watery by the end but it's okay if it is).
2. In a large pot, fry the onion in some olive oil until translucent. Add the garlic and after a minute add the spices.
3. Add tomato paste to the onions, etc. and mix until thick. Transfer TVP to tomato paste mixture, then add cans of fire-roasted tomatoes. Stir well. Add spices/salt/pepper to taste. Let simmer for 5-10 minutes. Sauce is ready!

It's really good. Plus you can use TVP in anything--I've used it in chili and enchilada casseroles. It absorbs flavor really well!

Spicy Cilantro Salsa

Ingredients

• 1/2 large onion, chopped
• 2 15oz. cans fire-roasted tomatoes
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• adobo seasoning
• salt
• cumin
• 4oz. can diced green chiles
• dehydrated red bell pepper
• 1/2 c chopped cilantro

Instructions

1. Fry onion in some olive oil for a few minutes. Add garlic and then 15 seconds later add tomatoes. Cook for a while, then add spices and cilantro. Heat for a few minutes until flavors meld and take off heat. Let cool and serve!

So good and so easy to make! I highly recommend making your own salsa. The cilantro was so flavorful!

Okay time to do some work. 2 more days of class left, ahhh!

Song of the Day-- Sally's Song, by Parov Stelar. It's a great song, one that a friend said embodies me heheh.

Recovery Quote of the Day-- "It's not about forcing happiness; it's about not letting sadness win."

Spicily,

Carina

Me and Gramps with our favorite--Limoncello!