Category Archives: sunset

Raw Vegan Academy and Cafe!

     After spending seven hours in the booth and wandering the fine arts along the streets of Carefree, Arizona, the artist and I went to visit a client-turned-friend of hers who is opening up a new raw, organic vegan restaurant in the area.

This isn’t your typical little hole-in-the-wall startup restaurant. This adorable little cabin-style building is nestled away from the road, surrounded by cacti, shrubs and rocks, and has the most beautiful sunset you could imagine.
Well, if you ignore the wires, it is GORGEOUS! One of those moments where you had to be there, I guess. Just take my word for it.
Sara (who you may remember from my first trip to Carefree – she brought the raw vegan cheesecakes!) has been renovating this building for a few months now. This section of the restaurant will be the “academy” room where she teaches clients how to eat, buy and LIVE the raw vegan life.
I got to go behind the counters and check out the setup.
Ready for the best part???
THE MENU!
I’ll admit, some of those shots scare me, but I’ll try anything once!
This place opens in two weeks! If you live in Arizona, I seriously recommend you try it. Everything Sara has ever brought to the show has been greedily shoved into my face. I love gorging and feeling healthy at the same time 🙂
Hi ho, hi ho, off to the booth I go!

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Filed under academy, Arizona, Carefree, Cave Creek, cheesecake, Chef Sara, raw organic vegan, sunset

Sexy Mannequins!

     Ahh, the weekend is so close I can smell it! It’s just too bad I can’t enjoy it – I work six days in a row! It’s going to be painful on my feet, but feel so good on my wallet!

     This beautiful Thursday started with a Monsta.

This sucker had 3 cups of spinach, 3/4 a cup of unsweetened soymilk, the juice of 1/4 of a lemon, 1/4 a cup of frozen cherries, 1 tablespoon of flaxmeal, and half of a frozen banana. I think the frozen banana really makes it smooth for some reason – there were no big chunks or strings today!
     I was all set to go on my morning hike, and then… I didn’t. No reason. I just didn’t. I woke up SUPER late (after 8am!), had a coffee, made my GM, and by the time I looked at the clock again, it was just too late to go. I had a lot of errands to run today and starting after noon just makes me feel unproductive and stressed.
     Instead of hiking, I went with my roommate to The Natural Cafe to use a buy-one-get-one coupon for lunch. I picked my favorite, the Local Favorite :).
This is avocado, alfalfa sprouts, tomatoes, red onions, lettuce and a thin layer of garlic mayonnaise on toasted 9 grain bread.
     My roommate chose the special of the day.
This had grilled chicken, pinto beans, lettuce, sprouts, onions, salsa and cheese in a whole wheat tortilla, topped with more salsa and jicama, and a side of vegan split pea soup.
I demolished mine.
     Next we headed to Barnes and Noble to glance around. I found a book that interests me very muchly – I’ve put it in my favorites to the right –>
It’s called The Flexitarian Diet by Dawn Jackson Blatner. I think I’m going to become a flexitarian. Flexitarians live a mostly vegetarian lifestyle, but still allow themselves the occasional burger or piece of chicken. I’ve wanted to lower my meat intake and focus on veggies, grains and fish, so this seems to fit my lifestyle right now. I haven’t bought the book yet though – I requested it from my library instead – I’m very cheap!
     Menchies just happens to be next door to the bookstore.
I got a SMALL amount of dairy-free mango sorbet and topped it with strawberries, kiwi, blueberries and a spot of marshmallow creme, just because I had to try it once! It was GOOD!
     I stopped by a specialty wine/beer store and picked up some Old Rasputin stout and a beer that’s been brewed like champagne (don’t ask me what that means, I’ll look it up and tell you tomorrow) so I could have a tasting with some friends tomorrow night. When I got home and threw the bottles in the fridge, I remembered that I’d wanted to try a recipe for a sweet omelette that Heather (Heather Eats Almond Butter) had posted about a few days ago. 
     I beat two egg whites with a hand-mixer until they were big and fluffy, then mixed in an egg and two teaspoons of vanilla. I poured the pretty batter into a frying pan that had a thin layer of (gasp!) butter in it.
So fluffy! And it was a LOT bigger than I was expecting!
And very delicate as well. The flipping didn’t work out how I imagined…
I filled it with a berry mixture – I thawed 1/4 a cup of frozen berries then mixed in a little agave-maple syrup, folded them in between the omelette and drizzled more agave-maple on top. Seemingly weird combo, but I was impressed! YUM!
     Work was the usual – lots of reading, walking around, trips to Paciugo
(I got another blurry soy chocolate. Not picture-worthy)
     There are summer concerts going on in my town now! Tonight was a tropical rock band.
They were okay. I like Black Carl better :).
All the little kids were dancing up a storm! Pretty cute!
     I went to a clothing store to try on a few shirts – I need some more for work since we have to wear all dark colors – boo! 
     Florescent lighting is a horrible invention. I picked a shirt I liked after cursing at all the other ones that looked horrible in the light, and as I turned to walk out of the dressing room, I saw this:
Isn’t that lovely?
     After I paid, I was walking out and saw something that made my day even BETTER!
Teehee, the mannequins are clenching – I’m such a dork!
     There was only one more thing that could make this day absolutely perfect – a sunset.
Okay, it’s just the rays of a sunset shining on a hill, but I’ll take it!
What one thing would make your day perfect?
And now I’m off to crash so I can wake up early enough to make a GM, coffee and attempt to look pretty for the opening shift at work. Wish me luck! I’ll need it!

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Filed under Barnes and Noble, mannequins, Menchie's, Natural Cafe, sunset, work