Since Carnival is in full swing (so I hear, it’s not like inland Southern California is Mardi Gras central), I thought I’d do a few days of vegan pseudo (and not so pseudo) New Orleans food. I’m sure Guy is rolling his eyes right out of his head at the thought.

Instead of using Joanna’s spice blend, I just used the salt-free variety of Tony Charchere’s (oh ho, I’m such a fucking local now), and tried the vacuum-sealed ‘high protein’ (?) super-extra-firm tofu from Trader Joe’s. I should have probably used my usual organic water packed extra-firm, because this kind is almost rubbery, so it’s probably not ideal for broiling. Other than that, I love that it’s practically a shake-and-bake sort of process. No batter fingers here, thank you very much. I put some Red Rooster on top because it’s a little on the dry side.

The collards are really, really good. (Thanks, kittee!) Of course, being a born and raised Malibu Stacey, I’ve never had them before. These are really smoky and full of flavor, pretty much exactly what I expected. And they’re not full of grease, like I imagine the original recipe to be. And it’s so easy, even dazee can make it.

Unfortunately, I took a nap when I got home from work, so it’s now too late tonight for me to get working on the king cakes. Hell, I wasn’t even going to make this, but when I woke up I turned the tv on and Emeril was on (ugh), doing a NOLA theme show and talking about how the food isn’t pretty but it’s damn tasty. I saw that as somewhat of a sign and got off my ass.

I’m restructuring the organization of the site a little, and since I got a couple of new books in the mail, I figured I’d try something new and start a list of the recipes that immediately catch my eye as I flip through them.

It may not be exciting for you, but it may help me remember when I think I’ve run out of cooking ideas.

Up first is the cookzine Papa Tofu. If you want this, order it now because it’s popular and kittee probably didn’t print many of them. Many of the recipes are on her PakuPaku site, but in convenient printed form. Lots of stuff from Ethiopian fare to New Orleans cuisine (and a buttbusting load of sweets) are in here.

Since Mardi Gras is coming up, I’ve been eyeing her king cake recipe and maybe something like the red beans and rice from Veganomicon, I’m not entirely sure yet. I’ll probably not do anything because I’ll be lazy, heh. The stuffed tofu has been winning hearts all over the Inkernet, so that will probably make its way into my tummy some time before the end of the universe. Yay kittee!