Savory Pancakes, Sweet Party

The Chef: Elizabeth

The Menu: A pile of savory pancakes! We've got about 8 gajillion green onions in the fridge these days, so in an effort to use up these springtime staples, Elizabeth threw together some pre-fab pancake batter, grated carrots and zucchini, and sautéed several tons of green onions, and presto—a plentitude of pancakes. Topped with veg hoisin sauce and homemade, extra-garlicky aioli, these were sort of the like super-delicious okonomiyaki we had not too long ago, though today's meal was decidedly less fun to say. A salad of mixed greens, kidney beans, Blue-style Sheese, and pumpkin seeds added to the savory sensation.

The Goods: You know what makes a great balance to a hearty, savory meal? A super-sweet party! We're totally freaking thrilled to announce the VegNews Urban Dessert Soirée, celebrating the launch of Ani Phyo's incredible new book, Ani's Raw Food Desserts. You definitely won't want to miss this elegant evening of fun, a five-course dessert menu, the adorable CandyBar ambience, and, of course, Ani. So, you know, don't miss it! Tickets are available now!

BBQ, We Love You!

The Chefs: Melissa and Frankie

The Menu: Ribs! Barbecue-sauce-smothered ribs, to be exact. If there's anything yummier than Frankie's famous falsie ribs (which of course means that they are deliciously meat-free), it's those very same ribs absolutely doused with her signature barbecue sauce. Um, yum. Melissa whipped up some of the most wonderful mashed potatoes ever. She imbued them with a certain something—OK, fine, we'll tell you, it's Sheese—which made them light, fluffy, and fantastically flavorful. To finish off the hearty meal, Melissa also made a lovely mixed-greens salad with cherry tomatoes, carrots, and Chipotle Pistachios. Fancy, you say? That's just how we like our salads—and pants.

The Goods: Maybe we hammered out the final details for our May+June cover yesterday. Maybe we're abso-freakin-lutely beside ourselves with glee about it. And maybe, just maybe, today's meal, which was completely delicious in its own right, felt even more celebratory knowing all the midnight oil that got burned last night. On days after long work-nights, it's always a good idea to eat something filling, flavorful, and smothered in barbecue sauce. Speaking of sauce, we'll be seeing all the Bay Areans at SF Vegan Drinks tomorrow, right?

Greens Galore

The Chef: Elizabeth

The Menu: Today brings you yet another installment of the ongoing "What Do We Have in the Kitchen" challenge. Thankfully, when the fridge is packed with lovely romaine lettuce, plump tomatoes, red onion, and Sunergia Soy Feta, the salad practically makes itself. Bright rainbow Swiss chard just needed to be chopped and lightly tossed in a hot wok with big chunks of garlic, and a pile of hearty red potatoes got a cheesy infusion when Elizabeth mashed them with an amount of Garlic-Herb Sheese that will remain classified.

The Goods: Do we leave for Expo West tomorrow? Yes. Does that mean that things around the office are just about bat-sh*t crazy right now? Yes. We don't want to sound weird, but cheesy mashed potatoes are just about as close as you can come to sanity at times like these, and we happily devoured them today.

Valentine Curry

The Chef: Colleen

The Menu: A subtle, and subtly themed, Valentine's Day curry. See those tasty little red chunks of Swiss-chard stem dotting the curry? In combination with the red-skinned potatoes the chard made for a veritable Valentine's Day card, in food form, of course. Colleen also added some lovely purple potatoes, baby corn, and tofu to the mix, served everything over rice, and topped it all with some fresh cilantro. She also whipped up a bright salad of romaine, grated yellow beets, and blue-cheese-flavored Sheese.

The Goods: Sometimes eating such a lovely meal can put you in a certain mood—namely the mood for love. Since a certain holiday is tomorrow, and we thought you might enjoy a little foray into the world of veg dating. And remember, whether you're happily married or happily unmarried, chocolate affects your brain in much the same way love does, so don't forget to cover something delicious with it!

Advocacy that Delivers!

The Chef: SFVegan's Barna Mink

The Menu: Slightly crisp, gooey, vegan pizza featuring homemade sour dough crust and tomato sauce, onions, olives, Follow Your Heart "mozzerella," Sheese Blue Style "cheese," and "chicken" chunks from Layonna Vegetarian Health Food Store —with a side of organic romaine and shredded zucchini salad.

The Goods: We always love it when a good friend of VegNews stops by, but we're not accustomed to having one of these friends hand deliver their own homemade pizzas to us for lunch. Barna Mink, founder of the new vegan networking organization and AR commentary/San Francisco vegan-living-guide site SFVegan, is not only a software guru and an active animal advocate, he seriously knows his way around a kitchen. Sorry ladies and gents, he's already taken, but keep your eye out for him and fellow SFV members at venues around the city where he will be tabling with literature and delicious vegan food. For more information, visit sfvegan.org. Or see him for yourself below as our cheeky delivery boy: