I live about an hour west from Atlanta in Dallas, GA. I know about Whole Foods and Trader Joe's but are there any other health/natural food groceries or farmer's markets closer to where I live? Also if anyone know of a good Asian grocery store that would be great... I'm currently looking for a place that would have ingredients for miso soup.

I had previously posted a mini-review of Atlanta’s ubiquitous vegetarian restaurant, Café Sunflower. This time around, I’m trying to give a more comprehensive review of one of any Atlanta vegetarian’s must-eat restaurants. In my opinion, after Lush in cabbagetown closed, Café Sunflower was elevated to the titles of Atlanta’s best vegetarian restaurant and Atlanta’s most upscale vegetarian restaurant.

Café Sunflower has two locations, with slightly different atmospheres and menus: Buckhead and Sandy Springs. Perhaps the most notable difference between the two locations (to me at least) is that the Buckhead location serves beer and wine while the Sandy Springs location does not. While neither location is necessarily formal, we often eat at the Buckhead location for special occasions, and have never felt out of place there dressed formally as the Buckhead location seems quite atmospherically adaptable to casual or formal settings. Perhaps it’s just me, but I tend to perceive the Sandy Springs location to be more appropriate for casual dining. We are about equidistant from both locations so we tend to go to Sandy Springs for lunch and quick dinners and the Buckhead location for more important occasions, but admittedly, that has something to do with the alcohol availability as well. Both locations are cozy, impeccably clean, and present a warm and inviting décor. We have eaten many many times at Café Sunflower and the staff has always been exceptionally outgoing and accommodating.

Those details aside, it is the food that is of paramount importance. Café Sunflower presents a pretty typical representation of American vegetarian restaurant fare: some comfort food, some Asian and Indian dishes, some Italian dishes, etc. While Café Sunflower may not be reinventing the wheel with their menu, they execute it extremely well. We’ve probably had most every entrée on the menu at Café Sunflower, and were only disappointed once. That one incident involved the Peppercorn Crusted Tempeh, which I would advise steering clear of unless you like the sensation of chewing on whole peppercorns (were we supposed to scrape them off?). Highlights include the Southern Polenta Napolean, Sesame Chicken (out of this world), Tri Colored Ravioli, Veggie Burger (best in Atlanta?), Spicy Pad Thai (highly recommended), Stir Fry with Tofu in Ginger sauce, Moo Shu Vegetables (extremely good), Sweet and Sour Soy Chicken (best in Atlanta again), Bakes Samosas (dream about these). Two of these entrees deserve further mention. The Stir Fry with Tofu in Ginger sauce is undoubtedly the quintessential Café Sunflower dish and is in a league of its own. The tofu is so succulent, sweet, and perfectly flavored and combined with a flawlessly executed stir-fry of vegetables, mushrooms, and plump brown rice. In the Sandy Springs location, the Moo Shu Vegetables entrée redefined for me just how good vegetarian Chinese dishes could be. The dish is fried, but so fresh and light that it almost defies the cooking technique. If you’re going all out, I’d definitely recommend the Sunflower Box starter. This comprises a Bento box with hummus, stuffed mushrooms, pot stickers, basil rolls, spaghetti squash cakes, and spring rolls (depending on which location). Each of these items is extremely good. As for dessert, the desserts at Café Sunflower are to me absolutely legendary. Café Sunflower buys in their desserts and I am trying to find out their source. I do know that Java Monkey in Decatur has many of the same vegan cakes as Café Sunflower, but these are the types of vegan desserts that could tempt any non-vegan to give up their allegiance to dairy and eggs. The Old-fashioned chocolate cake must be had by all Atlanta-area vegans. Either at Café Sunflower or Java Monkey, it is imperative.

If this review is too glowing, I can offer some sincere criticisms. Firstly, the Café Sunflower menu has not changed in the entire 5-7 year period we have been patronizing the restaurant. This bothers me more and more each time we go. There are variable specials each night, and these are unwaveringly good, but with the culinary skill of Café Sunflower’s executive chef/owner and her supporting staff, I really would expect to see a more seasonal menu. Even if not a seasonal menu, a yearly menu update would be so welcome to this patron. My second criticism came about after I made the jump from vegetarian to vegan. Café Sunflower is a vegetarian paradise, not quite so much for a vegan. There are many vegan options, and the staff is certainly sensitive to the requests of vegan diners, but sometimes it’s nice to have a plethora of vegan menu choices without having to inquisition the server as to the contents of a dish or request modifications. I would welcome a 50/50 menu, but without looking, I would estimate the menu is more like 70% ovo-lacto, 30% vegan. My final criticism simply concerns pricing. I don’t mind paying a fair price for a good meal, but I feel that Café Sunflower is a little bit more expensive than is justified. This is exacerbated by the fact that this is the only restaurant where I order an appetizer, entrée, and dessert without fail, but I think a 10-20% reduction in menu price would be more in line with my expectations as a patron.

If you haven’t been to Café Sunflower, I highly recommend you check out what you may have been missing. If you have, what are your favorite dishes? What do you make of this Atlanta vegetarian landmark?

We decided to go for another sushi night tonight and picked up some bento boxes for the occasion. To break out of the routine, I tried all new sushi tonight.

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Pictured here:
Oshizushi (pressed sushi) with vegan pepperoni, red bell pepper, avocado, and spicy mayo
Oshizushi with teriyaki roasted eggplant, pickled scallion and daikon
Kappamaki (cucumber, daikon, and pickled scallion)
Abokadomaki (avocado roll)
Inarizushi (rice stuffed tofu pockets)

Inarizushi is an absolute favorite of mine. Here’s quick run-down of how I make it:

Ingredients
1 block firm tofu
1 cup sushi rice (w/ seasoned vinegar and fan dried)
2 tbsp minced leek, green onion, carrot, etc.
Peanut oil for frying

Instructions
Cut the tofu into ½” thick strips, wrap in a paper towel and then a clean kitchen towel and press between cutting boards or plates with some weight on top (to drain). Allow the tofu to press for 15 minutes or so and continue slicing into pieces about ½” thick by 1” wide and 1.5” long. Fill a small sauce pan with about 1” of oil. Bring the oil to 250 degrees F (a thermometer is really important for this). Add the tofu pieces and fry for 5 minutes. Multiple batches might be required. After five minutes of frying, drain the tofu on a paper towel-lined plate and raise the oil heat to high. Once the oil is at 350 degrees F, add the tofu back for 4 more minutes. Do not allow the tofu to burn. Again, allow the tofu to cool on a paper-towel lined plate.

Once the tofu is cool enough to handle, cut a slit in one end with a sharp knife. Use a small spoon to spoon out the soft tofu on the inside leaving a hollow pocket of fried tofu. Mix the sushi rice, leek/onion and carrot together. Gently stuff the tofu pockets with the rice. Serve with hot sauce, shoyi, or spicy mayo (veganaise mixed with some sriracha).

I desperately need some good recipes for vegan chocolate chip cookies, brownies, and yellow cake with chocolate frosting. I have tried several chocolate chip and brownie recipes and been most unsatisfied, including the ones out of Vegan with a Vengeance.

My birthday is coming up this week and it would be most appreciated to have some delicious sweets.

Also, if all fails, is there a place in Atlanta to buy vegan cakes besides Cafe Sunflower? I have had their classic chocolate cake on my birthday a few times already and while it is very yummy, I would like to try something new!

It was hard enough to try to find decent cheese pizza in Atlanta, so I don’t even bother trying to find vegan pizza in this fair city. As pizza was always my favorite food, I’ve got no choice but to try to learn to make a decent vegan pizza at home. Tonight’s attempt was my best effort so far.

For the dough, I used Peter Reinhart's Neo-Neapolitan Pizza Dough which was really good and quite simple. I’m sure better pizza dough can be made at home with enough effort , but I’ve come to accept that some trade-offs are required in the name of practicality and will keep with the basic Reinhart recipe for the future. Somewhat by accident, I let the dough rise for a bit over two hours after removing from the refrigerator, which seemed to be a good accident.

Now, for the sauce: vegan pizza has almost always tasted to me like it was missing something…namely cheese. I’ve heard that good soy cheeses exist, but I haven’t had any I liked on pizza and prefer a different approach. I was first introduced to a cashew/pepper/tomato sauce at Bella Facia pizza in Portland. Quite honestly, it is an ingenious concept. The cashews impart a richness and fullness to the sauce and the roasted pepper imparts a satisfying sweetness. The sauce is so complete that nothing seems to be missing from the pizza. I didn’t quite measure everything in this sauce, but I could probably recipe-ize it if anyone was interested.

I tried a couple different pizzas tonight, but this was the best one (topped with basil and sliced mushrooms). Tonight, I cheated and didn’t let the pizza stone heat up long enough before baking. This led to the top of the pizza cooking faster than the dough underneath. It was still pretty good overall, but could have been a bit better if the stone were hotter. I’ve been experimenting with baking temperatures and think that 450 degrees is probably sufficient, but I might try preheating the pizza stone at 550 degrees and then reducing to 450 before the pizzas go in. 

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I have been trying my hand at cooking, and while I did make a pretty good vegetable curry and black bean soup, I did have one major "omfg that was bad" moment. I got a bit ambitious and tried to make the Tofu Meatloaf from the Grit Cookbook.

I am not sure if it was the recipe or me (most likely), but it turned out horrible and would not cook all the way through, even after 1 hr of baking, frying, and then eventual microwaving out of frustration to get the moisture out, because by that time I had used so many ingredients and had spent too long in the kitchen to even attempt anything else. To say it was the one of the worst things I have ever eaten would be a massive understatement. We tried to get down a few bites and then felt so nauseated that we didn't eat until the next day. It was that bad, although at least we are able to laugh about it now!

So in the theme of kitchen failures, what are some of your least proud cooking moments?

Any other Atlanta students out there?  I'm starting law school at GA State this fall (orientation starts today, classes start next Monday, to be exact), and I already have homework!  I think this is totally unfair.  However, I think it warrants me using my bag of organic spinach from my CSA to make my favorite brain food.  This makes about 4 servings, but it can easily be frozen and thawed if you're cooking for one, like I am.  I keep some on hand year-round.

Potato-Spinach-Lentil Brain Soup

1/2 cup brown lentils
~ 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 onion, diced
2 (or 10, whatever's your fancy) garlic cloves, minced
~ 1 1/4 lb of frozen cubed potatoes
4 cups vegan vegetable stock (from bouillon cubes--I use the Rapunzel brand--I get them at Sevananda in Little 5 Points)
1/2 lb of fresh spinach leaves, well-rinsed and tough stems removed (from my TaylOrganic CSA box)
salt and pepper
a fat sprinkle of curry powder (I know that's a very specific measurement, but you know what mean, right?)

In a small saucepan, add the lentils and enough water to cover.  Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 20 minutes, or until the lentils are tender.  Drain and set aside.

Add the vegetable oil to a Dutch oven or other large pan and add the onion and garlic.  Cook until onion is soft and golden, then add the potatoes.  Cook until potatoes are thawed and broken apart.  Add the vegetable stock and boil for a few minutes until potatoes are very tender.  Add the spinach and cook for a few minutes longer, until spinach is just tender.

Transfer soup to a food processor, in batches if necessary, and process until relatively smooth (it doesn't need to be homogenous; the spinach and potatoes just need to be broken up into flecks.)  Return to the pan and add the lentils.  Heat through and season with salt, pepper, and curry powder to taste.

Time:  about 30-40 minutes (it took me 40, but I bet a less-spacey person could do it in 30)

If you're not going to the Peachtree Road Farmers Market on Saturday mornings you are cheating yourself! I went this morning and got some fantastic blueberries, yellow zucchini, red and green bell peppers, heirloom tomatoes, Carola potatoes (supposedly the "Rolls Royce of Potatoes"), cucumbers, onions, a Pure Bliss energy bar (vegan!), and some Peach Butter made with white peaches, cinnamon and vanilla.

I love this market, and the farmers are all local (Georgia and Alabama mostly), and grow organically (though they are quick to tell you they are not "certified" - apparently organic certification is a process, and it involves expenses most are not able or perhaps willing to afford), and are mostly a very nice and friendly bunch. Plus, you get to see a lot of dogs, sort of frou frou Buckhead type purebreeds, but still, dogs, fresh produce, nice farmers, what more could you want?

Visit the web site for info - it's in the Cathedral of St Philip parking lot, across from Rumson road (I think it's Rumson), where the Garden Hills Cinema used to be, right across the street, on Peachtree, naturally.

I heartily recommend - two thumbs up!

This is an easy and tasty red lentil soup, in a Middle-Eastern style.    The recipe is highly versatile and can be augmented with different seasonal vegetables.  Carrots, celery, green beans, etc can be added with the onions at the beginning.  Julienned cabbage can be added in the last 10 minutes of simmering or wilted spinach can be added at the end.  As a completely different option, substitute 1 can of diced tomatoes for 1/2 cup of the water, use lime juice in place of lemon, and serve with vegan sour cream to make a great Mexican side dish.  Use of Garam Masala in addition to the cumin and coriander and mung dal instead of red lentils turns this into a good Indian dish.  Like most soups, this one does well to allow the flavors to meld for an hour or more before serving (just reheat to serve). 

Ingredients
1 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
1-2 thai, jalapeno, or Serrano chilies
1 tbsp olive oil
1 cups split red lentils
1 cups veggie broth
3 cups water
2 tbsp white or red wine vinegar
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
1-2 tsp hot sauce (ideally Taptio or Cholula)
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Plain soy yogurt for garnish

Instructions
In a sauce pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the onion, garlic, and chilies.  Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently.  Rinse the lentils in a colander and pick through to make sure no foreign objects are in the lentils.  Add the water, broth, vinegar and lentils and bring to a quick boil.  Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes, or until the lentils have just about cooked thoroughly.  If soup needs thinning, add water.  Toast the cumin and coriander seeds in a dry saute pan just until aromatic.  Grind in a spice grinder or morter and pestel. Stir in cumin, coriander, pepper and lemon juice and adjust seasoning as needed.  Simmer for 5-10 minutes more. 

Serve with a dollop of soy yogurt, hot sauce, and a garnish of cilantro or Italian parsley.

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