Super Easy Vegan Falafel Pie

Geez Louise has it been an insanely long time since we posted a recipe! Yikes! We've been cooking and eating yummy, healthy, meals all winter. But with the shorter days and lack of sunshine by the time the dinner hours rolled around, it prevented us from taking photos in the natural lighting that we prefer. So now that the days are longer we hope to share lots more recipes here. In Jersey the month of March is never predictable. We'll get a day that feels like Spring, and then wake up to super freezing temps. Which reminds me…tomorrow we are expecting 3-6 inches of snow!! ughhhh. 

Ok, back to the food…we just had to share this super tasty, super easy, recipe with you guys. Even though we really enjoy meals with lots of totally homemade sauces, batters, and dressings…this one just seemed so simple, quick, and perfect that we had to give it a try on one of our busier days. This Vegan Falafel Pie  comes from an adorable food blog called The Vegan Stoner. 

And the other day was suuuuper busy. We were working on so many projects at once...cutting out our diecuts, sanding, painting, walking to the post office, cleaning, yep...one of those days. The perfect day to make a dinner that takes barely any time and almost zero effort. 

This recipe starts with a package of falafel mix, which you can find in the International aisle of your grocery store. Sure, it's super easy to make your own...and we have…but again, we loved this recipe for it's shortcuts. 

This recipe couldn't be easier…

You'll need:

Falafel Mix

Your favorite hummus (we went with Sabra roasted red pepper)

plain soy yogurt 

tomatoes

1 cucumber

And any other topping you would like! We added diced red onion. 

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a pie dish (we misted ours with olive oil).

Mix a cup of falafel mix with a half cup of water. You can add a bit more water if necessary. Spoon the mixture into your prepared baking dish, and bake for 15 mins. 

While your falafel bakes, slice your tomatoes and cucumber, and dice your onions and any other toppings you will be adding. 

In a blender, or cusinart, combine 1 cup of yogurt, a tablespoon of lemon juice, and half of a cucumber.  We also added some fresh minced garlic. Blend until you have a smooth dressing.

Once your falafel is baked, top with a layer of hummus (as much as you'd like), followed by a layer of sliced cucumbers, and tomatoes, and diced onions. 

It was ready in under 20 mins! And it was SO SO tasty!  We actually killed the entire pie in a sitting. Don't judge us! wink. 

And even though we cheated a bit with the store-bought falafel mix...we still made a bright fresh super tasty dressing from scratch. It was a great meal! We will be making it again soon! It's so simple that the recipe is already committed to memory. You really just have to grab very few things at the grocery store, and then throw it together in a pinch. 

Whether you're vegan, vegetarian, or a meat eater…this is a super tasty dish! 

Hope you'll give it a shot! And if easy meals like this are up your alley… Definitely check out The Vegan Stoner.  You'll love their hand painted illustrations!

Thanks so much again for reading! Happy cooking and eating!

xo, Jenny & Aaron

Super Yummy Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hey everyone! This is Aaron writing this one. We figured that I should be the one to share this recipe being that I'm the one doing the baking. Yes it's true, I used totally dislike baking. I love cooking, but baking always intimidated me. Most likely because I was always watching Jenny bake, and she is really really good at. But sorta recently I got over my fear and started baking things whenever I got the chance. I really like the idea of Vegan Baking. It's really not all that different from traditional baking, but I love all of the creative substitutions that are used in vegan recipes. Namely, the "flax egg". To make a "flax egg" you just combine a certain amount of flax meal with a certain amount of water…whisk together, and let it sit until it thickens. This will take the place of an egg in most recipes. I know it's a simple concept, but it still impresses me (I'm a cheap date). And there is another big bonus to vegan baking…you can ALWAYS lick the batter bowl…never ever a chance of salmonella from raw eggs. :)

Anyway, we had a very flavorful dinner the other night and we needed to finish the evening with some chocolate. I found this awesome recipe for Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies, and within minutes I had the ingredients prepped and was popping the dough in the oven. There are lots of vegan chocolate chip cookie recipes out there, but Jenny and I can totally vouch for these. They're really really good, and they stay soft and moist. Lots of other chocolate chip cookies get hard, and I'm not really into that type of cookie. These were so easy to make, and we've already added them to our stack of reliable go-to recipes.

Here's what you need:

2 Tablespoons flax meal

3 Tablespoons water

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

¾ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon salt

¾ cups + 2 Tablespoons or 1 ¾ sticks Regular Vegan Butter or margarine, at room temperature

1 ½ cups sugar

2 teaspoons molasses

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 350F, and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

1. First prepare your flax mixture, or what is often referred to as your "flax egg".

 In a small bowl whisk together the flax meal and the water. Allow it to sit for 10 minutes so the mixture thickens. 

2. Now it's time to combine the dry ingredients. In a medium mixing bowl whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt until well incorporated. Set aside.

3. In a separate large mixing bowl cream the Vegan Butter and sugar until well mixed. Then beat in your flax mixture from step 1, followed by the molasses and vanilla extract.

4. Now add your bowl of mixed dry ingredients into you larger bowl with the creamed butter and sugar mixture. Mix until combined. I used a wooden spoon, but being that the dough is pretty thick, you may want to use your hands to really get in there. Lastly, stir in the chocolate chips.

5. Form the dough into 1 ½ inch sized balls. Space the balls out on the cookie sheets so that they're about 2 or 3 inches apart. You should get between 22 - 24 cookies. 

Bake for 15 minutes. Rotate the cookie sheets halfway through the baking time. Being that they really don't turn golden brown, it's a good idea to keep a close eye on the clock. When they're done, take the cookie sheets out of the oven and let the cookies rest on the sheets for a few minutes. Then transfer to a cooling rack.

The cookies will have a perfect, moist texture. We stored ours in an airtight container, and three days later they were still perfect.

Again, these cookies will definitely be in our regular rotation of trusted recipes. We hope you love them as much as we did! Thanks for reading!

xo, Aaron…and Jenny says hi!

Vegan Chai Spice Snickerdoodles

So Aaron, the self described non baker is now eating his words. Finally, I think he has to admit that not only is ok with baking…but it's a full-on hobby of his. He started with muffins, and soon they became a breakfast staple around here. Then he moved onto baking cookies (we gotta blog the amazing almond thumbprint cookies he made!), and last night he baked his first from-scratch cake! 

This recipe was one of his first attempts at from-scratch cookies. With Fall weather settling in it's the perfect time to warm up the house with fresh baked cookies. And the scent that filled our home and studio was better than even the best candle in the world could offer. The recipe comes from one of our favorite books: Isa Does It. This is a Vegan recipe, but I promise you that these could easily be a bake sale favorite! Or a fave at your local coffee shop. They bake up so incredibly perfect! I'd even say beautiful! Perfect texture and size! We love BIG cookies around here. This is the perfect cookie to have with a cup of coffee or tea. 

Here is Isa's recipe: (Aaron didn't change a thing)

For the topping:

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

3/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

pinch cloves

For the cookies:

1/2 cup canola oil

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

3 tablespoons non-dairy milk (Aaron used almond milk)

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Mix the topping ingredients together on a dinner plate. Set aside.

In a medium mixing bowl, use a fork to vigorously mix together oil, sugar, syrup, and milk. Mix for at least a minute, until it resembles applesauce. Aaron believes this step was key…you really want to stir it all the way until it's the right texture. Then mix in vanilla.

Sift in remaining dry ingredients, stirring as you add them. Once all ingredients are added mix until you’ve got a pliable dough. Get in there with your hands to mix, it’s the easiest way to get the dough to come together.

With clean, moist hands, roll dough into walnut sized balls. Pat into the sugar topping to flatten into roughly 2 inch discs. Transfer to baking sheet, sugar side up, at least 2 inches apart (they do spread a little). This should be easy as the the bottom of the cookies should just stick to your fingers so you can just flip them over onto the baking sheet. (Aaron agrees with Isa…the formed cookies easily flip onto the cookie sheet.) Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, they should be a bit browned on the bottoms. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

If you love snickerdoodles you'll love this unique take on a classic. You might be hesitant to add the cloves to the topping in the beginning, thinking that the taste might be overpowering…but it is not…these are sweet and delicious, and not "overly spiced" at all. 

Give them a try!! And check out Isa's blog for lots of amazing recipes!

Italian Bean Balls & Spaghetti Squash

We have been meaning to share this recipe with you guys for a while. We've made them a bunch of times and we kinda feel stingy for keeping the yumminess to ourselves for so long. Honestly, we love these bean balls! And we think the recipe is perfect just the way it is. Many times we'll come across a recipe, or a few similar recipes, and we'll use them as just a loose point of reference. But this one is right on the money. It's from one of our absolute favorite food blogs, Oh She Glows. 

Aaron's childhood favorite was good ol' classic Spaghetti & Meatballs. This dish is kinda like the responsible adult version. And when I say "responsible adult",  being vegetarian or vegan has nothing to do with it…I'm referring to the idea of sneakily replacing red meat and pasta with wall-to-wall vegetables…and you still get your protein, by way of kidney beans and walnuts. But the health benefits of this meal seriously take a back seat to how deeeelish it is. So many layers of great flavor!

Every time we had this dish we made it just like you see in the pic above…with spaghetti squash and spaghetti sauce…but the awesome Italian Bean Balls are the focus of this post. We are big fans of spaghetti squash, but you can certainly use pasta…or heck, you can even make an Italian Bean Ball Hero!

When we prepared ours, the first thing we did was roast our spaghetti squash. We blogged a quick how-to here. Once it was ready we kept it warm, covered in foil, on top of the oven.

And as far as sauce, just go with your favorite homemade or jarred variety.

Here is what you'll need for the bean balls:

3/4 cup walnuts, finely chopped and toasted

3/4 cup rolled oats, processed into a coarse flour

1 cup shredded carrot

1/2 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped

1/3 cup fresh basil leaves, finely chopped

2-3 tablespoons finely chopped oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes (about 2 large)

3 large garlic cloves, minced

1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed

2 tablespoons ground flax + 3 tbsp water, mixed

1/2 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

3/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt, or to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and toast your walnuts for 7-9 minutes, until fragrant and golden.

Meanwhile, add the oats into the food processor and process until finely chopped. You want the texture to be like a coarse flour.

Now add your oat flour, grated carrot, chopped parsley, basil, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, walnuts, into a large bowl. Stir to combine.

Add the drained and rinsed beans into the food processor and process until finely chopped. You want the mixture to be a coarse paste with some beans still intact, but don't completely puree the mixture. 

Stir the processed beans into the bowl with the vegetables and oat flour.

Now you can make your flax "egg". You can buy flax that is already ground, but we usually have seeds that we pulse in the food processor until ground. 

Just whisk together the ground flax and water in a small bowl. Let it sit for only 15-20 seconds, any longer, and it will get too thick. Then stir it into your bean mixture until fully combined. 

Next, stir the oil, oregano, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes (if using) into the bowl, adjusting amounts to taste if necessary.

Shape the mixture into 18-20 balls (the size of golf-balls), packing each ball tightly between your hands so it holds together well. Place each ball onto the prepared baking sheet an inch or two apart.

Bake for 20 minutes, then gently flip the balls and and bake for another 15-20 minutes until golden on both sides.

While ours baked in the oven we made one of our fave sauces. It's called "Spicy Slurpy Spaghetti Sauce", and it's from one of our favorite cookbooks, Isa Does It. 

All of the ingredients are right there in the pic. Crushed tomatoes, a chopped onion, minced garlic, brown sugar, a little salt, a handful of herbs & spices, including a generous dose of red pepper flakes. It is so delicious!

After baking, place balls on a cooling rack for 10 minutes to cool slightly.

Ready to serve…just sprinkle some ribbons of fresh basil on top, and you are set! We have made this exact meal many times. The bean balls really have so much depth of flavor…and the texture is perfect. They are delicious, and I think it would be hard to find tastebuds who would disagree. 

We hope you love them, and we'd love to hear about your experiences in making them…any things that you changed…or if you do in fact serve them as an Italian Bean Ball Sub. We'd love to see pics too!

Happy Eating!

xo, Jenny & Aaron

Crazy Good Vegan Sloppy Joes

Me and Aaron cook a meal together every day, and we try to share pics on Instagram and Facebook whenever we can. For a while now lots of people have been asking us to share the recipes. Since we tend to be very detail oriented, we really like doing full step-by-step recipes, with pics to go along with each step, like all of the previous recipes we've shared here. But sometimes we're in a bit of a rush or it's too late in the day to get good lighting for all the pics. 

But we've been eating so much good stuff that I'd love to share with you guys…So I figured- What the heck...we'll share the simplified versions! I wanted to start with these Crazy Good Vegan Sloppy Joes because they are the epitome of simple. We made them last night and as the title states...they were Crazy Good. They are so good, that while eating them you will already be planning when and how you're gonna eat the leftovers. 

Yes, they are vegan…but you lose none of the tasty goodness of traditional sloppy joes. I'd say the only thing lacking in these is grease. And that's something we could all do without anyway. 

Me and Aaron like really good food…we are foodies for sure. So I promise that most meat eaters will wholly enjoy our meat free meals. These are a great option for Meatless Monday.

We've seen recipes for meatless sloppy joes made with veg/faux meat crumbles, but we really liked this one because it was made with lentils instead. We love lentils. They have a great taste before you even add any seasoning…sorta peppery and broth-like. Plus they have great texture. So we took the aforementioned recipe and added some of our own flavor touches…and we love how they came out.

Here's what you'll need:

1 cup uncooked green lentils
4 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced small
1 green pepper, diced small
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chili powder or ancho chili powder (we prefer ancho chili powder)
2 teaspoons oregano (we used Mexican oregano)

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/2 teaspoon black pepper (optional)
1 teaspoon salt
8 oz can tomato sauce
1/4 cup tomato paste
3 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon yellow mustard

We served ours on ciabatta rolls that we toasted in the oven, but when it comes to rolls and breads it seems like everyone has "their thing". And I get it. So go with whatever you'd like…kaiser rolls are great, burger buns, maybe go open faced, maybe go with biscuits!

1. Ok, first put the lentils in a sauce pot with four cups of water, cover, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes until the lentils are soft. Then drain and set aside.

2. Now, in another pot, heated medium, add your olive oil. Once the oil is hot, sauté the onion and green pepper until softened, about 7 minutes. Now add the garlic and sauté for a minute more. To this add your cooked lentils, chili powder, oregano, cumin, smoked paprika, black pepper and salt. Stir to mix through. Then stir in the tomato sauce and paste, and cook for about 10 more minutes.

3. Add the maple syrup and mustard and stir until heated through. Then turn off the heat and let it sit for a few minutes so the flavors meld. Then serve!

We plated ours with a simple spinach side salad with cherry tomatoes, sliced carrot, and red pepper dressing. The fresh greens were a great contrast to the yummy indulgent sloppy joes. We love the signature sweetness of sloppy joes, and for us the smoked paprika made all the difference.  Also, as I said above, we really loved the texture of the lentils…they're soft but have a teeny bit of bite.

And our rolls weren't huge, but they weren't tiny either…so both of us felt like we could eat more but not an entire sandwich more. So we dished a little extra "Joe" on our plates right next to our sandwiches to eat with a fork. I recommend this tactic. :)

Ok, hope you love these! Let us know if you do!

xo, Jenny & Aaron

Raw Vegan Brownie Balls

This weekend was spent mostly in the studio. We're trying our best to get all open orders out this week so that we can get to work on new designs. You'll never hear us complain about working on orders. We love the work, we love our collectors, and there's a very specific peace that goes along with being busy. It's so extremely hot outside, but we've got the air conditioning cranked, music playing, good candles…and snacks! Snacks are key!  

Currently, we really need to go grocery shopping. We've haven't be able to get to the store, so the cupboards are pretty much bare. We didn't think we had the makings to whip up a sweet treat, but then we came across this recipe that looked and sounded deelish, and it just so happened that we had every ingredient in our pantry. These Brownie Balls are raw, vegan, and there's no added sugar…just dates to bring the sweet. 

So this afternoon we took a little bit of time out to make them…and by "little bit" I mean about 10 minutes total! And that includes the time it took to gather the ingredients. They are so easy...and SO GOOD! So much rich, deep chocolate flavor...and that bit of sea salt makes them! 

You will need:

1/2 cup walnuts

1/2 cup almonds

1 cup chopped dates (Medjool or regular)

1/3 cup plus 2 teaspoons good quality unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

This seriously couldn't be more easy! Add your walnuts and almonds to your food processor and process until it starts to resemble "dough".

Now, add your dates, cocoa powder, and salt…and process until well combined and resembling chocolate cookie dough.

And remember…these are raw! No baking! All you have to do at this point is roll your mixture into balls. I used some little truffle cups…but you could just put them on a plate. Then pop them in the fridge for about an hour…and Enjoy! In mid summer, why turn on the oven when you can make these balls of goodness in mere minutes!

These are so good, and we just had to take time out of our schedule to share this recipe today! We're just about to unwind for the evening with a couple of our fave shows…and I think it's also time for a second serving of dessert.

Thanks for popping in!

xo Jenny…and Aaron

Vegan Date Bars

The past 3 days with Lieutenant Dan here at home with us have been a dream. He already feels like Family...with a capital F. It feels like he's always been with us. We can't believe how much the little guy has already adapted to our daily routine. Carlos is loving having him around, and we couldn't be more happy about that. Zero aggression at the food bowl, and there doesn't seem to be any territory issues. We actually feel like Carlos has a sense of just how small and delicate Dan is.

But jeez, with all this dog stuff the week has flown by! We are doing our best to work on orders without being distracted by that cute little guy staring longingly at us. We want to just eat him up all day! We could go on and on...but this post is actually about baking! We were in the mood for something sweet, crumbly, and wholesome tasting. Something sweet that's mostly nuts, oats, and fruit. We had just picked up some dates on our last shopping trip and wanted them to be the base of whatever dessert we'd decide to bake. So we found this recipe for Vegan Date Bars and just had to give them a try!

We really didn't veer too far off course from the original recipe. Just slight adjustments. In the end they turned out to be exactly what we were craving. Sweet but not too sweet, crumbly, crusty, filling...and easy!

Here is what you will need:

lightly greased or sprayed 9" x 13" baking pan

Date filling:

2 cups pitted chopped dates

1/2 cup coconut sugar (we used light brown sugar instead)

1 1/4 cups water

1/2 cup almonds finely ground

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Crust:

3/4 cup vegan butter, softened

3/4 cup brown sugar, packed

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1 1/2 cups Quick cooking oats

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

First, we prepared our filling. We chopped our dates into fine pieces in the food processor.

Then, in a skillet we added the chopped dates, the water, and the 1/2 cup of light brown sugar (again, feel free to use coconut sugar instead) Next, we stirred and cooked it over medium high heat. Then we turned the heat down a bit and cooked it until it thickened. Once thickened we added the vanilla and almond extracts, and the finely ground almonds. We stirred it until it looked like the pic above. Next, you'll transfer it to a bowl to cool for a bit.

Now for the crust. We creamed the vegan butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. We used our Kitchen Aid, but you can always use a hand mixer.

Next we added the flour, baking soda, and salt...and mixed it some more.

Then we added the oats and mixed well. Don't expect it to turn out like dough...it will be crumbly.

But the crumbly texture is exactly what you're looking for. Next you'll sprinkle half of the crust into your prepared pan. Then press it down with your fingers.

The next layer is the filling. It's pretty thick and sticky, so your best bet is to drop spoonfuls of it all around. Then you can use a spoon to smooth it out in an even layer over the entire bottom crust. Press and spread carefully so that you don't pull up the bottom crust. 

Then cover the filling with the remaining crust mixture and press down. You'll pop this in the oven and bake for 25 minutes. Then remove and let cool for about 5 minutes. Then cut into squares while still warm.

They really turned out great. We think there is a perfect ratio of sweet filling to nutty/oaty, just-ever-so-slightly salted crust. We have them stored in an air tight container in the fridge. We each ate one first at room temperature and then today had one straight from the fridge...and both of us liked the chilled version even better. The original recipe says they freeze well, and can thaw on the counter for an hour. Aaron's mom had one with coffee and said it was perfect. 

We highly recommend these! I was just about to try to formulate some terrible pun/joke about not having to go out to a Bar for a Date...that you could stay home and have the Date in the Bar or whatever...terrible idea...but too late now! Anyway...enjoy some Vegan Date Bars! They are no joke! derp.

xo, Jenny & Aaron

and Carlos and Lieutenant Dan 

Celebrating Life & Love

This week has been rough. But it's also been so much more than that. Me and Aaron had to face the very hard reality of losing our little baby Jack. I know there are many hard realities in life, but when you're in the middle of a heartbreak like this one you simply cannot fathom that anything in the world could be any harder. Our hearts are hurting to their utmost capacity. 

But while this hurt is very real and very necessary, it shouldn't be endless. There has to be relief in site. But relief isn't something you can pull out of a magic hat. Nor is it something that's just lying dormant inside of you.

 Relief has to come from somewhere...or more accurately...from someone.

In our case, me and Aaron first had to look to each other. It isn't enough for me to know that I love Jack. Or for Aaron to know that he loves Jack. We need something more tangible. We needed to know the we love Jack. The two of us, as a couple, as soul mates, as partners, as confidants.

We need to reassure one another that we did and are continuing to do the right thing. We need to hold each other's hands while we move forward. Going it alone is never an option.

And second, we looked to our little old man Carlos. He misses Jack just as much, only he doesn't have the benefit of being able to fully articulate his emotions. His feelings may take the form of appetite loss, depression, fear, anxiety. These are all things that we're feeling too, but we're people and we can deal with those things. A little pup cannot adequately deal with those things.

So we have to help him. It's our job. 

There's no crying in front of Carlos...no moping...in fact, we can't even let ourselves feel bad if we're in the same room as Carlos. Because he'll sense it and it will hurt him. So, our love for Carlos is a very big motivator for getting over this loss.

And the third part of getting over loss is the most heart warming and magical of all. The third part is friendship. 

The compassion, generosity, and sympathy that has been shown to us from our beloved little community is enough to make us cry all over again...but for the exact opposite reason. We feel that Jack wasn't just our pup...he was a spirit and an energy. And through the outpouring of comments on Facebook, Instagram, and here on the blog we can feel his energy in full force. It has spread out across our little world. We feel like you guys can actually feel his spirit. Somehow, the little videos and photos were sufficient in getting it across. We feel like you all GET who Jack was and is to this world. He was nothing but happiness...joy...funny stuff...good stuff. And when he passed, it was so so sad because we lost something so pure. We lost happy, we lost funny, we lost goodness.

But we didn't.

Somehow, we gained more of all those things. It's our duty to gain more of those things. To look inside ourselves and to look to each other for help, compassion, sympathy. It's what we're all supposed to do. You lose the idea of that in your day to day busy schedule. And it's not anybody's fault. That's just the way life works. 

But then something happens...a heartache, a personal tragedy, a loss...and we move toward that heartache, that tragedy, that loss. It seems to go against basic survival instincts. Why would we move toward pain? 

Well, because we can. We are strong enough to do so. We are brave. And we love one another, and we can help each other out. It's our job. It's what we need to do.

Ok, that said...if I may speak more casually...all of you guys are doing your jobs very well!

The outpouring of support for me and Aaron in this hard time is amazing. And holy cow did we need it. We needed it more than you'll ever know. Ok, this post is at risk of becoming an epic, so I should tighten things up.

Yesterday was our anniversary. Me and Aaron became partners in crime 21 years ago. May 9th is a very special day for us...and it's a gift that this day fell just a few days after one of our absolute worst days together. We needed light to follow the dark.

So, on this special day we planned to celebrate our love for each other. We put work aside, cleared the schedule, and actually left the house. And it worked out well for Carlos too. His grandparents (Aar's parents) were so excited to have him over for a visit. They spoil the little old man and give him all the attention he needs. And, when Carlos goes over to his grandparent's he acts like a puppy. He runs around like a madman and has a blast. So...a visit like this couldn't possibly have come at a better time.

Ok, so me and Aaron were getting ready to leave for the day when we heard a package or two land on our doorstep. One package contained a book "Saying Goodbye to Your Angel Animals".  It's fantastic and just what the doctor ordered. So many insights into all of the complex emotions we deal with when losing our pets. The book contained no note or return address...so whomever sent it to us...Thank you so very much.

There was also a card from our dear sweet friend Kate, who suffered this same heartache not too long ago. Thank you Kate.

And there was also this package from our sweet friend Kimberlee. One of the gifts inside you can see in the pic at the very top of this post. That incredibly sweet necklace with our little Jack staring out from within a keyhole. I cried my eyes out when I saw it...and i instantly put it on for our day out together.

She also sent this Amazing vintage giant walnut shaped paper mache candy container. Kimberlee really really gets me. We can talk for hours about the rare and vintage collectibles that we covet. Our tastes are every very similar. And we both go for the color black in a big way.

She also sent Aaron this little Jack pocket watch/good luck charm. Aaron slid it into his pocket and said he'll carry it with him always...he loves the way the horseshoe rattles in his pocket when he walks. She also sent Aar that dark chocolate he was craving the other night! Geez. So so kind.

Train rides are great. Here we are at our local train station getting ready to head into Red Bank for the day. By the way...from this point forward my hair became a disaster. It was gloomy out all day yesterday. It didn't actually rain...but this very fine hair frizzing mist came down All Day Long. Oh well. 

Red Bank has a bunch of antique shops that me and Aaron had frequented since we were teens. So we took a walk over to one of our old haunts. This amazing vintage medical cabinet is from our friend Cheryl's booth. I LOVE it! 

These are also Cheryl's.

And so are these.

And yeah, these old aluminum folding chairs are hers as well. I want these bad!

And check out that globe light fixture! She had a set of two. I don't think I need to tell you that Cheryl has got style and taste to spare. We ran into our old friend Carla as well...but wouldn't you know we started gabbing and forgot to take photos of her shop. Next time!

Down on the other end of town we stopped in this place. Antoinette Boulangerie.

Yep...

uh huh...

I think you get the picture. 

And then it was time for dinner. Good Karma vegan cafe is fairly new. We almost went here with friends back in winter, but when we walked up it looked way too packed that night. This time we planned our attack in advance and got there way before the dinner rush.

The food is nothing short of stellar. These are Crispy Baked Tempeh Buffalo Wings. We both realized how long it had been since we had hot sauce. We use Sriracha often, but they are seriously two totally different tastes. These were classic Buffalo Wing flavors. What a treat these were!

This one's mine. Live Pizza, from their raw menu. Raw crackers with sun dried tomato marinara, cashew nut cheese, marinated dark greens, shredded zucchini, and walnut sprinkle cheese. AMAZING! 

And here's Aaron's tower of awesomeness. Pineapple Mango Tempeh. Which is coconut crusted tempeh served with jasmine rice and sauteed seasonal vegetables. Served with creamy thai coconut sauce and pineapple mango chutney. 

We switched plates with each other a couple times needless to say. SO GOOD!

And I hope you didn't think we'd leave the joint without first inhaling this chocolate ganache cake! Deeeeeelish. What a great meal...what a great day out together...despite the hair frizzing misty rain. We're so thrilled that we went. We really needed it. 

Ok, now here is where I cry tears of joy all over again. More gifts showed up today. I don't know if I can fully express what it means to us when we receive the gift of art. That a person would take the time to make or render something for us...to take their valuable time...to use their talents. It's priceless. We balled our eyes out when we saw this painting by our friend Shannon...aka Danger S. Jones. Full disclosure...me and Aaron kissed this painting lots and lots of times already...right on his sweet little eyeball.

And Oh. My. Gosh! Our sweet friends Kitty, Dan, and Bono Baby (he's a chihuahua...but I'm sure he had a say in the process) enlisted the amazing Amanda Atkins to paint this portrait of Jack. Jeez, I'm trying so hard not to cry. It is so unbelievably sweet. I love it so much! Thank You guys!!!

And this picture frame arrived as well. I don't think the message could be any more fitting...any more perfect. My heart melted. I don't know who is responsible for sending this but it's made by Etched in My Heart. We love it and we'll find the perfect little Jack photo for it right away. Thank You!

Over in Jack's favorite spot we've got all of his stuff. Everything will find it's proper spot in our home but for now we're keeping it all close and where he'd like it to be. That's the sympathy card from the vet with little Jack's paw print. It's beside our sunny yellow vintage stuffed bunny who's wearing Jack's favorite shirt and harness.

I really didn't think it would be possible for me to utter these words so soon after our horrible loss...but we feel lucky...we feel blessed...we feel gifted.

We can't believe the friends we have. And I couldn't possibly express how deeply this outpouring has effected us. We can feel the love for Jack so very profoundly. He hasn't gone anywhere. He is right here where he will always be...right here in our hearts...right next to you guys.

xoxo, Jenny & Aaron