Happy birthday to me

My birthday was this week, and I didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. But, with Andy out of town, my main options were (1) to stay home alone and do nothing as I have conversations with the kitty or (2) organise something with a few friends. I’m still a bit young for the crazy cat lady thing, so I opted for a small gathering at my place.

I made four kinds of dip.

First, hummus. This wasn’t from a recipe, but I added cumin as I’ve seen in some recipes and I loved it.

I also defrosted some coriander (cilantro) pesto and blended it with some tofu and soy yogurt for a tangy, creamy dip.

I also took the opportunity to test out some recipes from Urban Vegan’s forthcoming cookbook. First, the Easy Tahini Sauce, made a bit thick to be dippable.

The other test recipe was the Creamy Avocado Dressing, which was tangy and creamy and really yum.

For dipping, I had sliced sourdough bread and water crackers. I told my friends about the recipe testing, and they took their job very seriously. Both new recipes were tried individually (palates were cleansed with beer between tastes), and on both bread and crackers. While both were delicious, the tahini dip was the clear favourite of the night.

Daria brought a tray of cut up veggies, corn chips, and the yummiest tomato stuff I’ve ever had. Fresh ripe tomatoes from her parents’ garden, charred and cooked down in olive oil. Somehow such a simple concept gains so much in the process. I’m currently pestering her for a recipe, which she says doesn’t exist.

And what’s a birthday without a cake? I tried to make Boston cream pie I saw bazu blog about ages ago. But, the cream didn’t thicken much at all, so I filled the centre with peanut butter and some of the chocolate topping instead. This is a flavour combination which is fairly foreign to most Australians but my friends all thought it was great.

I had some leftover cake today, topped with the runny cream filling and strawberries. Yummy.

And, over the course of two days (time difference and all) I’ve been absolutely showered with birthday wishes via facebook, email, and text message. Andy hid my favourite chocolate in the closet before he left (but I found it a few days early). Heather got me a shirt from New Internationalist... it didn’t photo well, but it has a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr: “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter”.

Viv got me a cool book full of great ideas about making changes which lead to environmental and social changes.

A few friends, some food and some drinks is a good way to spend any night, but especially a birthday.