Sunday, October 5, 2014

Cooking Demo at Case Memorial Library

(photo by Carolyn Stanley)

It's a packed month of cooking demonstrations at Well on Wheels headquarters.  I kicked off the fall leg of the "Easy Peasy Vegan Eats" book tour with a primarily raw demo at Case Memorial Library in Orange, CT.  It was a full house of guests eager to learn how to make quick and easy recipes with seasonal veggies.


I demonstrated how to use a spiralizer to make zucchini spaghetti.  This was tossed with a luscious pumpkin seed pesto which one attendee said tasted just like it was made with parmesan cheese.

 (photo by Carolyn Stanley)

Lucia with the endless zucchini noodle! (photo by Carolyn Stanley)

The other dish I made was a gluten-free twist on a Mediterranean favorite,  Tabbouleh.  Instead of bulgar wheat, I substitute a combination of red and white quinoa.  It cooks just as quickly and has a soft, yet chewy texture.  Combined with the same essential ingredients of cucumber, tomato, onion, fresh mint, parsley, lemon and LOTS of garlic, the finished dish is colorful and flavorful.

(photo by Carolyn Stanley)

When I asked at the end how many people think they could eat this way, nearly everyone in the room raised their hand and heartily applauded afterward.  I'm always thrilled when this is the verdict!

(photo by Carolyn Stanley)

The next day I received this lovely email from one of the attendees.  It made my day.
"Thank you for coming to demonstrate how to prepare vegan meals at Case Memorial Library Thursday night. I learned a lot. Your presentation also helped to push me closer to a vegan diet. First I have to get to a vegetarian diet!"
I feel so very fortunate to get to do this.  Thank you, Sue Cook, for organizing this event and Lucia for your fabulous introduction and assistance in cleanup duties.  Thank you also to Carolyn Stanley for taking the candid photos - I'm glad you were able to get promoted from the waiting list to attend!

2 comments:

Mrs. Stanley said...

It was a wonderful evening. I was especially entranced by the raw zucchini spaghetti with the unique pesto. It was so delicious. I recently purchased sunflower seeds, but now pumpkin seeds are on my grocery list. You are a terrific presenter, and I'm amazed at how you can carry on a conversation and keep your train of thought and still be on task preparing your recipes. You could be the next Food Network star!😄
I am so glad I purchasd your cookbook for my friend, a dedicated vegetarian and animal rights advocate. I am sure she won't mind if I copy out a few of your recipes before presenting it to her.
Thanks so much for an entertaining, educational, and tasty experience.
Oh, and I LOVED taking the pictures. I'm thrilled you found a use for them.

Unknown said...

Thank you so much for coming to my class and for sharing your enthusiasm! I'm so glad you had such a great time and are feeling inspired. Thank you also for the photos - I'm always so busy with the food that I never get to take photos