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Unfortunately for our guests, it's been "winter" here. By that I mean, the weather is not cooperating, and it's been rainy and unseasonably cold here. The high yesterday was only 64°F. That's actually cold for Los Angeles! And while we welcome the respite from the hot summer weather we know is imminent, our company would prefer something a bit more balmy.

Since it's been so wintry, we made a hearty breakfast this morning. We tried a new version of a quinoa porridge we've been making on and off since we've been vegan... Warm and Nutty Cinnamon Quinoa, which we found at 101 Cookbooks (my picture isn't nearly as attractive as Heidi's, but I'm sure it tasted just as good!).

Actually the recipe is in John La Puma, MD,s new cookbook -- ChefMD's Big Book of Culinary Medicine. It's not a vegan cookbook, but it does provide a wealth of healthy eating information, including what foods to eat for specific medical conditions, and what to stock in your pantry. With only 60 of nearly 300 pages devoted to recipes, cookbook is probably a misnomer; the nutritional information is the real reason to pick it up. Again, La Puma writes for omnivores, but there is a lot of good information here for anyone.

But back to our breakfast... We've made a few different versions of Quinoa "porridge" for breakfast, and while they've been good, we've still been hoping for something a little more remarkable. This was it. We used the organic quinoa found at Trader Joe's, and of course, we subbed the cup of milk for a cup of almond milk. It was delicious. For sweeteners, we tried agave nectar, brown rice syrup, maple syrup, and honey*. The honey and brown rice syrup were the winners in this particular dish. We all thought the maple syrup a little too over-powering and the agave nectar just wasn't right.

Jane's thinking of making this again and refrigerating it overnight. It might make a good cold breakfast too, or a nutritious dessert.

* Honey is one of those things that divides the vegan community, this post touches on our philosophy on the subject of honey and sugar.

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It's the Memorial Day weekend here in the US. We've got friends staying with us as part of their holiday. They came out to California for a week, and on Tuesday will be heading to Disney Land, and then off for a bit more sight seeing before returning home to the East Coast. Our friends have two kids and we thought we'd borrow them for the day to give the parents some time alone. So, what does one do with two pubescent girls? Well, if they're like most teenage girls, one goes to the mall! We didn't exactly go to the mall, but we did spend the afternoon in Old Town Pasadena, shopping and eating (same thing, no?).

And where did we eat? Why Johnny Rockets, of course. We had to try the Johnny Rockets Streamliner (their vegan burger)! First, I'm happy to report that the vegan burger is, as advertised, cooked on a separate area of the grill. It's not visibly marked off for the consumer, but we paid particular attention to this. For the entire time we were in the restaurant, the only things that were cooked on that part of the grill were the Streamliners, onions, and the buns. Johnny Rockets does indicate on their website that they use specific, color-coded implements to differentiate between what touches meat and what touches veggies. We didn't notice those (that's not to say they weren't there and being used, but we did not see any indication that separate utensils were being used for the vegan product). This isn't an issue for us, but there are a number of people who do find this off-putting in some way. So if this is an issue for you, you might want to call the Johnny Rockets you plan on visiting and ask them about this practice.

So, was it wonderful? Personally, I think the Morningstar Griller's Vegan is a better patty. But it's really great to be able to go out and have a burger and fries with your omnivorous friends and family and not feel like the odd-man-out. Our order, looked and felt like everyone else's. Maybe not the most healthy fare, but certainly a sociable meal.

As a reminder, Johnny Rockets is offering a buy one get one on their vegan burger through the end of the month. If you'd like one, just click here: Johnny Rockets Streamliner Coupon.

And in response to those of you who asked, I did not make that vegan chocolate shake for Jane that I'd thought about bringing along. It's kind of dreary here, overcast and cold, so I knew she'd be able to easily resist the shakes there and I was right! But next time we go, I'm going to have to give it a try!

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We'll be having the standard American barbeque this weekend to celebrate the Memorial Day holiday, vegan-style that is. Jane's been working on the menu; while doing so, she came across this information on the dangers of grilling. None of this is new, but it's certainly worth repeating. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine compiled a list of the five worst foods to grill. What makes these foods so bad, is that when grilled, they produce something called heterocyclic amines (HCAs), which are carcinogenic compounds created during the cooking of animal products.

So what are these five foods to avoid on Memorial Day weekend? Nothing that we vegans will concern ourselves with, but we all have friends and/or family members who still consume these foods and should be warned of the dangers...

1. Chicken breast, skinless, boneless, grilled, well done -- 14,300 ng/100g
2. Steak, grilled, well done -- 810 ng/100g
3. Pork, barbecued -- 470 ng/100g
4. Salmon, grilled with skin --166 ng/100g
5. Hamburger, grilled, well done --130 ng/100g

The measurements are HCAs per 100 gram portion. 100 grams is aproximately 3.5 ounces

You'll be happy to learn that vegetarian foods result in extremely low to no HCAs being formed during the grilling process. So pass the vegan burgers, and hold the cancer.

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Though we'd love to say we had some influence in Oprah's decision to go vegetarian for three weeks, we really can't. We sent email to the Oprah show alerting them to our petition requesting that she do a program segment on factory farming. We received the auto response alerting us to the fact that they (at the Oprah show) are very busy and may not be able to get back to us personally... Of course, we'll keep you posted if we do hear from them. But in the meantime much of America, indeed the globe, will now be exposed to the benefits of a vegan diet.

Apparently, Oprah was inspired by the book Quantum Wellness: A Practical and Spiritual Guide to Health and Happiness, by Kathy Freston, and she (Oprah) is now engaged in the 21-day cleanse described in the book. This means, she'll be eating vegan (and gluten and alcohol free) for the next three weeks.

Freston says "If you want to look and feel your best, you have to make the complete mind, body, and soul connection. That means you have to work from the inside out." From this she has devised her premise of the 8 Pillars of Wellness, which she says is the way to live an engaged life. Meditation may be the first pillar, but it is the second pillar, conscious eating, which is the pillar Kathy says should be observed above all others.

It doesn't only make a difference to our own personal health and well-being, but conscious eating means you stay aware of where your food comes from, how the animals are treated, and how the environment is affected by the foods that you eat. You take in the energy of whatever went into creating that food.

We are absolutely thrilled! This means Americans, and the rest of the world, will now be exposed to vegan eating and maybe even the issue of animal rights in a medium that a huge number of people are willing to pay attention to!

For further reading, you can click on this link to read more about the 8 Pillars of Wellness as previewed on Oprah.

If you'd like to follow her progress, Oprah has a blog. Here's Oprah's blog post from this week:

Well, I feel like I got baptized in Vegan Land today. Kathy Freston sent her chef, Tal Ronnen, to help me and three friends at Harpo who are doing the 21-day cleanse.

Wow, wow, wow! I never imagined meatless meals could be so satisfying. I had been focused on what I had to give up—sugar, gluten, alcohol, meat, chicken, fish, eggs, cheese. "What's left?" I thought. Apparently a lot. I can honestly say every meal was a surprise and a delight, beginning with breakfast—strawberry rhubarb wheat-free crepes. — Oprah

I predict this action by Oprah will do more for the cause than anything else to date!