new apartment

It's supposed to be moving week, but at the very last minute we changed our mind. This Saturday we got a call from a place that we really liked, but it just wasn't the right price. They told us they had dropped the price and were offering a month free. We went back to look at it and sealed the deal! It's newer, and doesn't have all of the weird quirks (small, uneven windows, niches, columns in the way, etc.) that the other place has, plus we like the location much more. You also get to choose your bedroom light fixtures that they install free of charge, and get this... the wall color isn't beige! It's a very light gray with a darker gray trim, which I'm totally digging. I just knew a better place was out there for us!

Kitchen in the place we were originally going to rent:

Kitchen in the new place:

It is a little smaller, but it looks a lot nicer don't you think?

I'll share a lot more pictures once we get moved in later this month!

instagram updates

We had a wonderful, but very busy weekend. We spent most of our time scouting out our new, new place (more on that tomorrow), but also found time for some fun. Saturday we went to our favorite local spot for dinner, and enjoyed a little Bob Marley from the band.

And shared an after dinner gelato on the patio :)

Then for a few hours on Sunday we went to the Texans for West benefit concert where we picnicked, soaked up the sun, and listened to great live music. 

Stay tuned tomorrow for some exciting moving news!

mmmMonday

Today I'm going to share with you my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe that also happens to be vegan. Now, this in no way makes these healthy... they are chocolate chip cookies after all, but I feel a little better about eating these over other cookies. This recipe was given to us by one of Charlie's coworkers, and I've never made a regular chocolate chip cookie again!

I usually make a batch of these and only cook about 6 of them, and then put the rest in the freezer. They taste better after they've sat for at least 24 hours, and it also makes it easy to cook just two or three at a time. I bake from frozen, and add a minute or two to the baking time.

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

4 1/2 t. Ener-G Egg Replacer

6 T. of water

1 C. non-dairy butter (like Earth Balance)

3/4 C. organic granulated sugar

3/4 C. organic brown sugar, firmly packed

2 t. vanilla extract

2 1/4 C. unbleached all-purpose flour (next time I'll be trying this gluten free flour)

1 t. baking soda

1 t. salt

1-3 C. non-dairy chocolate chips (I use Trader Joe's semi-sweet chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 375. In a food processor whip the egg replacer and water together until thick and creamy. 

In a large bowl cream the butter, sugars, and vanilla. Add the egg replacer into this mixture and thoroughly combine. In a separate bowl combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually beat the flour mixture into the wet mixture until it begins to form a dough. Stir in chocolate chips. 

Bake for 8-10 minutes of until golden brown. Let sit for 2 minutes before removing from cookie sheet.