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Monday 1 June 2009

Birthday Foodz - part 1 of 3!!

It’s not actually my birthday yet (that’d be tomorrow!) but as my birthday is a Tuesday, the celebrations started Saturday. There’s going to be 3 celebrations in all (milk it for all it’s worth I say!!) so 3 posts.

Saturday was my family celebration. Mum and Dad took me and my brother Andy and his girlfriend Lara, to London for the day to watch Wicked which was absolutely awesome. Then we went for a meal in a vegan restaurant - SQUEEEEEEEE! I’ve never been to a veggie restaurant before so it was awesome being able to eat everything on the menu AND try everyone else’s food AND have dessert! I was a happy bunny indeed.

We went to 222 in West Kensington and it was fantastic. The food was gorgeous and they don’t use white flour or refined carbs which also made me happy.
I started with the Avocado Pomodoro – the sauce on this was delicious!

Andy and Dad both had the hummus and dips.
Mum had the baked mushrooms


I forgot to ask Lara to let me take a photo of her cream of mushroom soup as it came out first, it looked really good though.

Onto the mains – Dad & I had seitan stroganoff, which was creamy and delicious.

Andy had mushroom pasta, which was seriously tasty and had loads of different types of mushies.

Mum had the tofu burger (SOOOO good!)

Lara had the 222 Gardens which had baked plantain, falafel and okra and it looked realllly good!

For pudding, me & my bro both had the tofu cheesecake. It was delicious but I was too full to finish it all.

I kinda wish I had the cake though – Lara had carrot/coconut cake and raspberry ice cream and it looked amazing. They do a cake of the day but they actually had 4 varieties on the menu and all of them sounded good.

Mum and dad both had the 222 Pancake, which they said was a bit rubbery but the sauce and ice cream was good.

All in all, the meal was ace, it was omni family approved and I would definitely go back and recommend it to anyone. My bro even admitted how nice the food was and this is the guy who said he was going to sneak a steak in in his pocket!! Hehe.

Some other stuff from the last week:

Friday, after a double gym sesh of spinning and then water workout (which is not as easy as it looks!!) it was pretty late by the time I got home. This was about all I had the energy to make (and about all I had left in my barren fridge). Jersey Royals are in season (WOOP!) and I just sliced ‘em up and baked them in a little olive oil, salt & pepper and then had them with some mayo mixed with Franks’ Hot Sauce and a couple of eps of Greys Anatomy! Pretty damn good.


I have got today and tomorrow off and today was a busy day of pedicure, getting nails done and some shopping! It’s a hard life, eh. But when I got home, I just couldn’t bear to cook anything – it’s soooo damn hot today and even with the door open and the fan on, the flat is roasting! So I just made a cold noodle salad with some buckwheat udon noodles, veggies, tofu pieces and a quick sauce of tahini, lime juice, mirin, hot sauce and soy sauce. Quick, easy, tasty and no oven required.


I forget what day this was, but I veganised the barefoot contessa’s chicken piccata. It was pretty damn good, even though it was pretty sharp!! I just subbed seitan for the chicken and used vegan margarine instead of butter and I also used fresh whole-wheat breadcrumbs (I make them in my coffee grinder, out of wholemeal pitas and store them in the freezer). Oh and I used soymilk instead of egg for the breading.



Anyway, I’m off to enjoy the last night of my 20s by baking my birthday cake – I’m so rock’n’roll. Cross your fingers for another gorgeous day tomorrow cuz if it is – it’s Balcony BBQ time!!!

21 comments:

  1. Happy Birthday, part 1! Your first birthday meal looks like it rocked! What a great variety of dishes they have at 222!

    Also, Wicked is a killer show. I'm happy you got to see it.

    Looking forward to birthday part 2! :)

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  2. I've instituted "Birthday Week" surrounding my birthday, in which I cram as many celebrations and presents as possible. I've also been known to claim that Birthday Week actually lasts 10 days, as it includes 2 weekends.

    I love vegan restaurants, it always takes me forever to order because I can't handle having a whole menu full of choices.

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  3. oh, oh, oh! happy early birthday to you, Sal!

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  4. Happy Early Birthday! Looks like you're celebrating in style.

    222 looks delicious, but your cooking looks even better.

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  5. happy early birthday, Sal! hooray for some pre-birthday celebrations! superw00t! three birthday posts – ROCK ON! i can't wait! i’m so jealousfaced that you got to see wicked with your family. i picked up the book a few weeks ago and it’s the next one i’ll be reading! yay! squeeeeeeeeeeeeeee indeedz for a vegan restaurant! OMG, AWESOME! isn’t that the best – having ALL the options being vegan!?! wahoooooooo! avocado awesomeness, hummus & dips, mushrooms, seitan yumminesses, pasta, tofu burgerz, and all those roasted baked veggies – hells yeah! your appies, meals, and desserts = most excellent! a double gym session?!? damn, Sal! that’s great on having today and tomorrow off too! enjoy yours days of shopping, relaxation, and pampering! your cold noodle salad looks most stellar, and the piccata = the best! hope your bday cake turns out to be the best! i totally have my fingers crossed for you, Sal!

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  6. Happy B'Day! I said it on facebook this morning but then realised it's the 2nd here but still the 1st in the UK!

    Your meals at 222 look yummo, I especially like the baked mushies and the cake and pancakes!

    And make your b'day last a week )or more)! I always try to :p

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  7. Happy early birthday! All the food at the 222 makes me wish they were in my town. Vegan restaurants feel like stepping through the looking glass. Hope your birthday is great, and I appreciate the Jay and Silent Bob quote from the previous post - they're among my heroes. Rock on!

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  8. YAY!
    Sals birthday week of FUN!!
    Happy Birthday Sal!! WooHoooHooo!!!
    Damn right you should have three celebrations! One for each decade. That food looks super awesome - oooh those breaded Mushrooms! And the Pasta looks good and the CAKE!!
    YUM!
    I miss Jersey Royals SO much. I dream of them. I'm hoping our local Iceland store is going to stock them. The guilt of buying shipped over Potatoes from the mother land will last all of 30 seconds if I see them in there...

    A balcony BBQ sounds totally amazing - I reckon the sun will shine on you the brightest today.
    xx

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  9. Happy birthday, Sal! Wow! That food looks SO GOOD! I want to go to 222! (It'd be a long journey there and back, tough!)

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  10. Happy Birthday Sal!!!!!!!! Geeze, I wish I'd have known!
    All that food looks too good to be true! I just don't know how you could chose! Have a fantastic birthday, and I can't wait for parts 2 and 3!

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  11. Happy Birthday! Way to turn 30 in style!!! I did absolutely nothing for mine (not even a special dinner!).

    All that food looks absolutely fabulous, but you totally have me craving that avocado! I went and googled the name of it but nothing came up :( But I want!

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  12. Happy Birthday!

    I love 222 Veggie Vegan, I insist on going there every time I'm in London and I always order the exact same thing you did!!

    That avocado starter's amazing...I may have to try the seitan stroganoff next time it looks pretty good.

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  13. Happy Birthday! Can't wait to see your other birthday posts, have a brilliant time!

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  14. HAPPY almost... wait...it's TUESDAY... HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! All that food does look ACE! I'm sure you're having an amazing time today! Can't wait to hear all about it.

    **SLIMY ALIEN HUGS**

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  15. What a delicious way to kick off the celebration- Happy birthday! Also, very smart of you to draw it out into so many parts. ;)

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  16. Happy birthday! I love love LOVE your blog! ^-^

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  17. Your birthday dinner looks outstanding! Happy Birthday!

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  18. Happy birthday, Sal! What a fantastic spread of meals. Every picture it is getting better. I am glad you enjoyed part one of your birthday.

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  19. Happy Bday! All the food looks super tasty! Isn't it great to go out for dinner and have the option to order anything on the menu?!

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  20. I'm way to late, but


    HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!


    And you're so lucky you could celebrate in 222.

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  21. 3 days of feasting, not bad at all! Happy Bday!

    I went to 222 a few years back while I was in London. AMAZING food. Just looking at the pics makes me want to go back. somewhere in the house is my very lame food journal.

    the seitan picatta looks so good, but then again, your food always does.

    When I turned 30, I did get pretty drunk and puked on both sides of the 520 bridge in Seattle on the way home. nice, huh?

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