Cult Restaurants: Loving Hut And More

Come for the vegetarian spring rolls, stay for the brainwashing!
When I say "cult restaurants" I don't mean "an underground hit" or "a restaurant with a small but loyal following." I literally mean "a restaurant run by a cult." Throughout the ages, several religions and cults have decided that the path to Heaven starts with a full stomach. One such cult is run by Supreme Master Ching Hai, the leader of the cult that runs the chain of Loving Hut vegan restaurants.
 
The Supreme Master Ching Hai International Association operates out of Taiwan, and promotes a splinter religion based on Buddhism which requires strict veganism from its adherents. In this respect it is similar to the Jainism religion, an Indian religion which also promotes strict vegetarianism leading into veganism. 

Jains even avoid consuming microorganisms whenever possible, which means avoiding fermented foods like yogurt (which contains live bacteria). They accept violence against plant life only in so far as it is required to sustain human life. They even go so far as to avoid some forms of vegetable matter, like potatoes and carrots, because consumption of these root vegetables leads to the death of the entire plant. Unlike, say, an apple, which you can pick without damaging the parent tree.
 
There are about 25 Loving Hut restaurants in America, most of them in California. The Houston Press ran a hilarious restaurant review of the Houston branch a few years ago. ("If Scientologists were less aggressive and more interested in food, this is undoubtedly the kind of restaurant they would run.")
 
Along with the strict vegan fare, the restaurants all run looped video on flat screen televisions scattered throughout the dining floor. These videos are essentially an infomercial for Quan Yin, which is the Buddhist offshoot invented by Supreme Master Ching Hai. 
 
Hare Krishna temples also often offer free vegetarian meals on Sundays, after their regular service, in conjunction with their Hare Krisha Food For Life organization. In some locations they expect you to sit through a sort of sermon after the meal. In other locations (particularly the bigger temples) it's a cafeteria-style meal without any sermonizing. 
 
The Hare Krishnas' food is apparently pretty good, and I have to applaud their mandate to bring free nutritious food to homeless people across the world. And unlike Loving Hut, since it's free, you don't end up supporting a cult with your own hard-earned dollars. But then again, "that's how they get ya," so I hesitate to recommend dinner with the Hare Krishnas.

Homemade Apple Crumble

I love eating apple crumble, but I hate biting into a big chunk of an apple. Since I make my own apple crumble at home in a unique way, I decided to share the recipe with you.

You will need the following items to make your apple crumble:
  • 5 Granny Smith apples
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • 1 Tbsp. granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • ½ cup flour
  • ½ cup softened butter
  • 1 cup rolled oats
  • ½ cup salted pecans


Follow these steps to make the apple crumble:

Step 1:
Peel the skin off of the Granny Smith apples and then core them. Dice the rest of the apples up into small bite-sized pieces. Most people leave them in full slices, but I prefer they are diced up.

Step 2:
In a large bowl combine the brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and flour.

Step 3:
Add your softened butter to the mixing bowl and toss together.

Step 4:
Add the rolled oats and combine one final time.

Step 5:
Lay the apple pieces in a greased baking dish and cover with the apple crumble mixture.

Step 6:
Crush the salted pecans by placing them in a plastic zipper bag and hitting them with a meat tenderizer. Sprinkle over the top of the apple crumble mixture.

Step 7:
Bake for 30 minutes in an oven that has been preheated to 375 degrees F.

Tips:

  • If you don’t want to use rolled oats, you can crush up a corn flake cereal and use that instead.
  • Almonds can be used instead of pecans if that is what you have on hand.
     

Easy Homemade Waffles

Waffles are a great way to begin the day. The best waffles are the homemade ones. They are quite simple to make, and all you need are a few common ingredients and of course a waffle iron. The toppings can be simple like maple syrup to fancy such as fruit and nuts.

 

A simple homemade waffle recipe

Two eggs separated, first beat the egg whites stiff and set them aside

Turn on your waffle iron so it is getting warm.

In a mixing bowl, pour the following ingredients

2 cups Flour

1 tablespoon Baking Powder

½-teaspoon salt

Mix your dry ingredients well.

Add in the egg yolks

2 cups milk

1/3 cup oil

Once batter is mixed, fold in the egg whites gently.

Now go ahead, pour a ladle full of batter into your waffle iron, and allow them to cook. This recipe will make about a dozen waffles. If there are leftovers simply, pop them in the freezer until they are needed.

 

 

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As far as the flour goes, you can use white or wheat. Some people prefer using the white all-purpose flour only. You can also add a cup each of white and wheat flour, this will give you more fiber. This is a great way to sneak extra fiber into our diets.

If you wish to add fruit such as blueberries or raspberries feel free to add them in the mixing step. You can also toss in chocolate chips, peanut butter chips or crushed nuts into the mixing step as well.

Learning to Love The Slow Cooker

Using a slow cooker couldn't be easier. Just add all the ingredients, then let it sit and quietly do its thing, usually for at least 6-8 hours or even

 

I'm trying to move away from the cheaper and overly-processed meats that tend to creep into my diet. It's so much cheaper to buy some Buddig packets or a pound of ground mystery beef on sale, versus a whole cut of real meat. But I don't always have the time or wherewithal to do "real cooking." Thus: the slow cooker. 
 
The slow cooker (a.k.a. Crockpot, although that's a specific brand name) lets you easily prepare larger cuts of meat. Larger cuts of meat are frequently cheaper than the smaller portions, not just because you're buying in bulk, but because this is how you get some of the less desirable cuts. But the slow cooker can really make magic with this kind of meat, and it's so easy and delicious and so much better for you than a pile of ground beef! 

 
The best place to buy a slow cooker is the thrift store, where you can pick one up for a few dollars. Personally I have an irrational fear of house fires, so I insisted that I buy one new. For the princely sum of $15 I was able to buy a medium-sized (5 quart) bare bones slow cooker. Don't be fooled by the bells and whistles; you won't end up using them.
 
There are basically two ways to cook food in the slow cooker: wet and dry. 
 
"Dry" is a misnomer, since the moisture from the meat is what helps steam and break it down. This results in an incredibly tender, fall-off-the-bone pile of meat. It works great for big things like a rump roast or a pork blade roast. 
 
For "wet" cooking, put in your meat, then smother it with a liquid. This can be canned tomatoes, salsa, cans of soup mix, wine, broth, or any combination. 
 
Other specialties of the slow cooker are soup and soup-like substances, such as spaghetti sauce.
 
Using a slow cooker couldn't be easier. Just add all the ingredients, then let it sit and quietly do its thing, usually for at least 6-8 hours or even longer. You can assemble everything in the crock the night before, put it in the fridge, then in the morning take it out and drop it in the cooker. Start things going, and by the time you get home from work, a delicious meal will be waiting for you!
 
Some great recipes to get you started:
 

McDonald's Will Stop Using "Pink Slime"

Jamie Oliver's "Food Revolution" probably played a big part in the decision - but McDonald's won't admit it
Jamie Oliver's short American television series "Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution" continues to have wide-ranging effects for the better on the American food supply. Although McDonald's denies that Oliver's show had any influence on their decision, they have recently decided to stop using ground beef treated with ammonium hydroxide - what Oliver aptly named "pink slime" on his show.
 
Oliver has also referred to this ammonia/beef concoction as "dog food." Virtually all of the ammonia-treated beef comes from a single massive source: Beef Products, Inc, which happens to be McDonalds' largest supplier. Beef Products, Inc claims that ammonium hydroxide is a naturally-occurring antibacterial chemical which is found normally in meat. They simply, you know… amp it up a little.

Ammonium hydroxide is used to turn what would otherwise be waste meat into something judged suitable for a McDonald's cheeseburger. Without the ammonium hydroxide treatment, these "trimmings" would be used in dog food and other low-grade meat sources.
 
America has one of the worst food safety records in the developed world. Although the media and corporations like to put the burden on the consumer (thus blaming the victim), practices like taking otherwise unsuitable meat and washing it with ammonium hydroxide to make it (theoretically) "human safe" are a large part of the problem. Who is ultimately to blame: the company that contaminated the meat, or the person who failed to cook it within an inch of its life?
 
One wonders, if a vat of meat is so dicey that it has to be washed with ammonia before being fed to people, whether it should be served at all. This was Jamie Oliver's contention, along with the belief that although Americans know that their diet is poor, they don't really realize HOW poor. Everyone knows they shouldn't eat at McDonald's, but how many people know that the meat in the burgers has had to be disinfected with ammonia first?
 
(Incidentally, although people love to draw a connection between obesity, poverty, and eating at McDonald's, a recent study shows that it is the time-strapped but relatively cash-rich middle class who are most likely to imbibe of the Golden Arches.)
 
The ammonia-washed meat supplied by Beef Products, Inc can be found everywhere, as you might expect from such a colossal corporation. If you want to ensure that your ground beef is just ground beef and nothing else (like "trimmings" or ammonium hydroxide), buy a cut of meat at your store's butcher counter and ask them to grind it up for you. Most stores will be happy to do this for you at no extra charge.
 

Tea and Memories

"The tea ritual of childhood, to the extent there was one, was very different from the one I observe now."

What Proust's madeleine did for him, hot tea does for me.  Every cup transports me back to childhood.  In those days I only wanted to drink tea when I was home sick from school.  With a nurse for a mother, those sick-at-home days did not come often.  The tea was steaming hot and fragrant with oranges and spices I could not identify.  Back then I liked my tea super-sweet.  After a hot cup or two, I always felt better--not well enough to go to school--but warm and satisfied.

The tea ritual of childhood, to the extent there was one, was very different from the one I observe now.  Back then, all my mother or grandmother made tea.  All I had to do was add sugar, stir, and drink it.   Even on days when I had strep throat or a bad cold, tea made everything better.  To sip tea while wearing my jammies and reading a book was the ultimate in way to spend a day off from school. 

Now,  I must make my own tea.  Usually  I just fill the kettle and make  one cup.  On occasion, I make a whole pot for myself and go through the steps of warming the pot with hot water and using loose-leaf tea.  I have no tea cozy, but I can improvise one from a large dish towel.  The wrapped pot will stay hot for a good 45 minutes or more.  I drink a variety of teas now, mostly decaffeinated or herbal teas, but the orange spiced tea of childhood sick days was for many years the only tea I would drink.  I still keep some on hand.   Now, no matter what tea I drink or how I prepare it, I go back to those relaxed and free times of decades past, if only for a few minutes.

 

Raw Vegan Chocolate

As a practicing vegan/vegetarian, I subscribe to this email alert called Vegan Cuts, to subscribe click here. This is similar to the Groupon coupons promotion, but features weekly vegan deals.

Recently, while checking my email, one of these deals popped up in my inbox. Vegan cuts had sent me a coupon for a case of discounted raw vegan chocolate. That is, chocolate that has been uncooked and therefore left in its highest enzymatic rich state.

This raw vegan chocolate bargain included 12 bars for less than 30 bucks. This may seem a bit pricey, but when consider that all bars are organic, vegan ingredients (which are sometimes hard to source from given lack of supply in demand). Organic food is a niche market. Therefore prices are more expensive than conventionally produced food.

Considering the extra expense, one should bear in mind that your body is a temple. So what you put in it should always be on one’s mind. That is: be a mindful eater. Why?

As the famous saying goes “you are what you eat”; this is in fact true. If you fill your body with more processed food and a less plant based diet, your skin, hair, nails, etc. will suffer. You’ll probably constantly feel like you’re being dragged down from all that weighty nutrient deficient food.

The makers of this chocolate stand by Hippocrates famous quote: “Let food be thy medicine”. Instead of feeling weighed down by eating chocolate filled with corn syrup and milk solids, indulge in something that’s been handcrafted with LOVE (it says it on the label), made with 100% natural, raw ingredients. To read more about LuLu’s Chocolate, go here.

Doritos: Throwback "Taco" Flavor

The Doritos of my youth
When Doritos were created, there was only one flavor. Doritos flavor. Which is to say, Taco Flavor. It wasn't until 1972 that Doritos released a second flavor, Nacho Cheese, which became their most popular product. Doritos released new flavors about once a decade, until the sudden explosion of Doritos flavors in the 1990s and beyond.
 
But back in the day, life was simple, and there was only one Doritos flavor. And it was good.
 
I had forgotten this until I tried a bag of the new throwback style Doritos. The bag features the original look from the 1960s and 1970s. I never would have thought I would feel nostalgic about tortilla chips. But when I opened the bag and tried a chip, my first thought was, "THIS IS WHAT DORITOS TASTE LIKE."

 
In the last few decades, the various Doritos formulas have strayed far from their initial mandate. Which is fine - obviously a lot of people like them. But it just doesn't work for me. For one thing, the more "Extreme" the flavor, the more likely that I will get instant heartburn. Heck, I get heartburn just thinking about eating Doritos. These flavors today? They are too extreme. (Also, those kids need to get off my lawn.)
 
But Taco Flavor Doritos are juuuust right. They have plenty of flavor, but not OMG EXTREME amounts of flavor. Frankly, I prefer the subtlety. It's hard to believe that a Doritos flavor could ever be called "subtle," but compared to some of the flavors out there these days, Taco Flavor fits that bill.
 
Now it must be said that there are a lot of purists out there who claim that this is NOT the original Taco Flavor. Doritos may have added some sour cream notes, or people may just not be remembering correctly a taste from forty years ago. Hard to say. I myself have no opinion on the subject - they taste pretty authentically "1970s Doritos" to me, but I was a kid then, and it was a long time ago, and Doritos could easily have shifted a few flavors and I wouldn't notice.
 
Apparently, these retro Taco Flavor chips are going to be with us on a permanent basis. I'm pretty happy about that. It's rare that a limited edition becomes a permanent fixture, but if anything deserves that coveted slot, it's Taco Flavor Doritos. 
 
Later this year they will be releasing another retro classic: Sour Cream and Onion. Rest assured I will be keeping my eyes peeled!

Pretty In Pink

Tackling a fat free diet, or even fat free meals…is not an easy feat. We scour websites, cookbooks, etc. looking for recipes to sub into our diet…something delicious and healthy. However, what I have realized along the way, is that I can find numerous healthy food options…some fat free, some low in calories or sodium. Yet, when I was in college, I vividly recall the dreaded premonition – “the freshman fifteen”. I realized that the impact of the freshman fifteen came from the alcohol – reality is, we didn’t eat extremely healthy then, but our financial budget was low and therefore, we didn’t eat too much that couldn’t be microwaved. The challenge was the alcohol – being able to drink, yet not gaining pounds upon pounds from wasted alcohol calories.

We all know that beer has a bit of a kick. We know that adding soda to hard liquor has some kick. Reality is, drinking in excess has some kick. I am personally a beer fan…yet can only do so much Michelob Ultra. So, I often strive to find something new, exciting and delicious to tap into on a random night on the town…or a random night at home.

Fortunately, there are cocktails out there…low fat/fat free with reasonable calories. One that I have come across, have tried and thoroughly enjoyed – Sangria. There are many Sangria recipes out there, and I assume all are similar in their own right. However, the one that I found was a pink sangria – meshing juices with alcohol and strawberries. The benefit is, outside of flavor, it has almost no fat and only 134 calories.

If you are also seeking something new, something healthy, and something different…try this recipe. You will not be disappointed.

Valentine’s Day Pancakes


Valentine’s Day is not just for romance. You can celebrate it with the entire family. What better way to start off the morning than with some homemade Valentine’s Day pancakes. You can surprise your kids, or have them help you in the kitchen.

You will need the following items to make your Valentine’s Day pancakes:
  • Heart-shaped cookie cutter
  • Medium-sized bowl
  • 2 cups flour
  • 3 ½ tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 1 ½ cups milk
  • 3 Tbsp. melted butter
  • 15 drops red food coloring
  • Whipped cream
  • 10 sliced strawberries


Follow these steps to make your Valentine’s Day pancakes:

Step 1:
Beat your eggs in the mixing bowl. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt and stir to combine.

Step 2:
Pour the milk, vanilla extract, melted butter, and ground cinnamon into the mixing bowl. Stir until combined once again.

Step 3:
Drip your red food coloring into the pancake batter. Fold in until the pancake batter is an even pink color.

Step 4:
Cook the pancakes on a heated skillet that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.

Step 5:
Cut out heart-shapes with a cookie cutter of the same shape. Save the extra pancakes for eating the next morning by cutting them into bite-sized pieces and storing them in a plastic zipper bag.

Step 6:
Arrange the Valentine’s Day pancakes on the plates you plan to serve them on. Outline the heart-shaped pancakes with whipped cream, and then place strawberry pieces on top of the whipped cream.

Step 7:
Serve immediately.
 

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