A confession: I cheated with this recipe. It's one of the very few recipes on Happy Herbivore that uses added fat. It calls for a bit of peanut butter, but I'm also including a variation for my chocolate lovers that is "fat-free." 

The idea for these treats came haphazardly. James left a comment on HH's Facebook page asking for a pumpkin version of HH's black bean brownies. Since I created a whole-wheat, fat-free pumpkin-brownie recipe last year, I decided …

I was away all weekend (and yesterday) in D.C., celebrating my best friend’s birthday. Admittedly, I get nervous anytime I’m “unplugged.” I’m convinced something is going to happen in my absence — and often it does. For example, my domain, like clockwork, chooses to crash when I’m “unavailable” to fix it, or I get coverage on some big website when I’m on vacation.

So really, it should be no surprise that I missed a big Internet “to do” yesterday. I’m …

I really shouldn't accept cookbooks for review anymore. They end up sitting in a pile for weeks, if not months, on end, making me feel guilty. (Sorry publishers!!)

I made the Spicy Black Beans from this book, only I added tomatoes and corn because I didn't have enough black beans (and I thought they sounded like a nice addition). I served the beans over steamed kale and true to the book's title, it came together quickly -- about 7 minutes …

Top 10 Tuesday: Recipes from the Pantry

Every so often I like to "cook from my pantry." My pantry (which you can see in this video) is very small so there's no room for excess. I keep control over the situation by cooking from my pantry--which also helps keep my grocery bill down, too. Plus, pantry meals are great when your fridge looks pretty empty. 

Here are my 10 favorite "pantry meals" :

1. Chickpea …

Friday was my birthday and in a full-circle like fashion, my 28th year closed with my cookbook going off to the printer. Here is the final cover:

I also celebrated my birthday on Saturday with friends...many of whom I met through Happy Herbivore Meetups!

(yes, those are Doritos and yes they are vegan. Healthy? no. Vegan? yes!)