My Favorite Vegan Snacks

I like to snack. Everyday I have "tea time" around 5 o'clock and have coffee and a snack. I gives me a little energy to finish work and to hold me off until dinner time which is usually late for me. After about 3 weeks of being Vegan I have found it really easy to find very healthy things to snack on besides the obvious fruits, vegetables, and nuts. Some are surprisingly good and addictive...

My favorite are Probars. They have a wide variety of bars to choose from, are great tasting, and very fulfilling. They also all come in really attractive packaging which caused me to try them in the first place. Probars make a good meal replacement and are perfect when traveling through areas that might not have anything healthy and good to eat. ProBar - website to see all of their wonderful products.

...another wonderful product I found during my last visit to Whole Foods Market are these wonderful Vegan and Organic - Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups by Justin's. They are amazing!!! The best peanut butter cup I have ever tasted. They are much more flavorful and not overpoweringly sweet like some other more famous brand. Justin's makes a variety of nut butter - that I can't wait to try. Visit there website: Justin's to see there products and learn more. Plus if you Like them on Facebook you can get a coupon!

...and speaking of chocolate. A lot of chocolate has milk in it... hence "milk chocolate" but there are vegan chocolates! The Endangered Species Chocolate brand has quite a few different varieties of vegan chocolates to choose from. Last night I tried the Dark Chocolate with Mint and it is very good. If you visit there website: Endangered Species Chocolate and search Vegan in there search bar you can see the vegan gift basket below and the different varieties of vegan chocolate flavors they sell.

Other yummy sweet snacks I found are in the Whole Foods Market bakery. They have a few vegan baked goods such as the Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie, which taste just like a regular yummy chocolate chip cookie, maybe better.

There are so many many good foods to discover. I think the search and discovery has been a surprisingly unexpected enjoyable thing about becoming vegan. It has forced me to try new restaurants, look for new foods at the grocery store, and expand my knowledge of food in general. I feel I knew about everything there was to know about American food and this change has opened the door to a new world that was waiting to be explored.

Mother of Pearl Caviar Spoons

Last Christmas I received a gift card to Sur La Table from my two good friends Darryl and Gee. And now 9 months later I finally used it on something that I have been wanting for a while!

Mother of Pearl Caviar Spoons

Mother of Pearl is also known as Nacre. It is made by various species of Mollusk as the smooth inside of their shells.

Mother of Pearl spoons are the traditional utensil for eating caviar. This is due to the fact that using metal can change the taste of the caviar and impart unwanted flavor.

These spoons measure 5 inches long and are very unique. They all glow and shimmer brightly in the light.

I feel lucky to have found them. They look like something that could be displayed in a museum as part of a precious stone collection or artifacts from a past civilization.

Houston Hummingbird Season

September is the month where the most hummingbirds are seen in Houston, TX. After raising their chicks during the summer many start migrating back to their wintering grounds in Central Americal and southern Florida. Most of the hummingbirds that are seen here during this time of year are Ruby-throated Hummingbirds - Archilochus colubris.

Right now my feeders have a few Ruby-throated Hummingbirds that visit on a daily basis. One male is acting aggressive and territorial and chases the others away.

Here he is, showing off his bright ruby throat. He visits the feeder every ten minutes or so and then stays around the yard (usually sitting in the crepe myrtle tree close by) and chases away any other hummingbirds that get near the feeders.

To learn more about the Ruby-throated Hummingbird you can visit this link: Ruby-throated Hummingbirds ...you can see range maps, hear sounds, and read all about Ruby-throated Hummingbirds and similar species. Last winter I had a Rufous and Black-chinned Hummingbird at my feeders all winter long.

If you'd like to attract hummingbirds to your yard you can buy a hummingbird feeder from most garden centers and online. The one I have is called the Hummzinger by Aspects and I bought mine from the Wild Birds Unlimited store but it is also on Amazon.com.

Hummingbird Food Recipe:

Use 4 parts water to 1 part regular table sugar. Boil sugar water until sugar is dissolved and then let cool completely before filling your feeder.

*Do not use any red food coloring, prepackaged hummingbird food, or any other sweetener to feed hummingbirds.

Also it is very important to clean your feeder every few days or sooner if the weather is warm. I use a plant/mineral based soap, warm water, and a toothbrush to clean the hummingbird feeders. Of course make sure all dirt and soap is rinsed completely from the feeder before filling with food.

Good luck attracting hummingbirds to your yard and check back soon for more hummingbird sightings!