It's been a while since I've done a WIAW!  Time to re-join the party!! (And I do have a recipe, but it will have to wait until I get a picture... I don't know about you, but a picture is what the seals the deal for me!)

The day began with a scrumptious breakfast consisting of this lovely bake and an apple.  I loved the bake even more this time around!  Seriously, make it.  Of course, I really don't have any control over if you make it or not, so perhaps I should ask in Spanish??  Hágalo, por favor.  Or we could just pretend that I do have control over you - I'll ask in English, and you will make it.  Your choice.  But personally, I suggest the latter.

My breakfast was eaten pretty late since I actually slept in (!!!), so by the time lunch rolled around, I wasn't very hungry.  However, this little lunch plate filled me up perfectly!  (Sorry for the awful picture!)

A hearty slice of whole foods bread (don't remember which kind) topped with gruyere cheese (<3) and a hard goat milk cheese (<3 <3), steamed veggies, and chia pudding (made with a little over a tablespoon of chia seeds, 1/4 cup almond milk, one teaspoon cocoa powder, and about four drops of stevia) were the stars of the lunch.  Along with.....

Love in a bottle.

My family and I went out to dinner to celebrate the end of my high school career!  I picked the place - a little Ethiopian joint.  We'd been there before, but not for many years.

Traditional seating!  They had regular tables too, but how boring would that have been??

This bread was brought out while we were waiting for our food and was so interesting!  It smelled like garlic bread, but had such a different texture.  It was wonderful!

Okay, my only complaint was that the proportions were tiny!  The picture below is what we ordered for all of us.  It may look like a lot, but it wasn't!  It was delicious though!  Mine is the red glob in the front (butternut squash), the green glob behind it and slightly to the right (collard greens), and half of the yellow glob to the right (yellow split peas).  And of course I had some of the carrots and greed beans in the center.  Like I said delicious!!  And the cool thing is that no silverware is allowed to this party!  Everything is scooped up in injera, a spongy bread made from teff flour.

Although we didn't leave with full bellies, that was okay because there was a cake waiting patiently at home. (Remember? Food has feelings in my world.)

For the actual cake part, I used the "basic chocolate cupcake" recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World.  I doubled it, used whole grain pastry flour, and subbed melted coconut oil for the canola oil.  I've made these substitutions before, and it has always turned out super moist (sorry) and incredibly tasty.  This time was no exception!  In between layers, I spread raspberry fruit spread, and then I topped the whole thing with cream cheese frosting also from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, but I subbed real butter and cream cheese.

Cake close up: (and a demonstration of my awful plating skills)

Best cake ever?  Um yes, yes it was.

What is your favorite cake flavor?

Any body out there??

Well, it has been a little while.  Okay, okay... it has been a long while.  I blame the final semester of high school and three AP tests.  But that's all over now.  Yippee for seniors!!

So I do have a recipe for you today (Remember my 50+ recipe goal?  Yeah, not happening this year...), but first a few life updates because I can.  Without further ado, here they are in chronological-ish order. (By the way, "ish" is a real suffix* and can be added to the end of any word.  You're welcome for just doubling your vocabulary.)
*Welcome to my world.

• I participated in my first 5k.  Ran part, walked part, and confirmed once again what I already knew - I am not a runner.  But that's okay!  I just went at my own pace and really enjoyed it!

Okay, enough of that.  Time for some food!

One of my favorite things about cooking is that with a little creativity, you can throw together anything just sitting around in your fridge and have a dinner worth remembering.  Take, for example, last weekend.  I had in my fridge the following items waiting patiently to be used (yes, in my world food has feelings too): grilled corn on the cob, black beans, tomato sauce, some [not so patient] cilantro, and a red bell pepper.  In addition, there were some whole wheat bread crumbs just sitting in the blender that my mom hadn't used.  I don't know about you, but those ingredients scream, "Southwestern stuffed bell pepper!!" to me.  You can't hear it?  I guess you haven't been in my world long enough.

Southwestern Stuffed Bell Pepper
This recipe uses ingredients that you probably have in your pantry and refrigerator.  But if not, it's worth going out to buy them.
Serves 1

Ingredients:

• 1 large red bell pepper
• 1 teaspoon butter
• 2 tablespoons chopped onion
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup black beans
• 1/2 cup corn (I used left over grilled corn)
• 1/4 cup tomato sauce (I used no-sodium)
• 1/4 cup cilantro leaves, torn
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• Shredded cheese, if desired (I didn't use any this time, but I think it would a wonderful addition - I mean really, when is cheese not a wonderful addition??)

Directions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Removes the stem and seeds from the bell pepper by cutting out the top, and steam the pepper for about nine minutes or until soft and flexible.
3. Melt the butter in a small pan.  Add the onion and garlic and saute until the onion is clear.
4. Stir in the bread crumbs, toasting slightly (should take 2 to 3 minutes).
5. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining ingredients (you could stir in the cheese, if using, or save for the top).
6. Stuff mixture into the bell pepper and bake for 20 minutes.
7. Top with cheese, if using, set oven to broil, and broil for 3 to 4 minutes.  The pepper browns quickly so keep an eye on it.  Personally, I like it pretty black!!

Hope everyone's doing well and getting ready for suuuuuummer!!!