A big thank you to wunderkind Chef Hannah Kaminsky, author of My Sweet Vegan, for graciously sharing this dreamy recipe with the GirlieGirl Army. Fun little fact about Hannah; She finished “My Sweet Vegan” before she’d even begun college and is about to release cookbook #2! Her site is full of divine recipes, awe-inspiring crafting/ crocheting projects, and the intelligent ramblings of a teenage genius. Before you start reminiscing about your mix tape years, get out your mixing bowl and whip up a batch of perfection.

Bet you thought this was going to be some strange PMS-y combo of Ronzoni and Nestle bars! C’mon, we have some level of culinary respect for ourselves! Before you start thinking this is WAY too hard for you to make, consider Hannah’s input; “Attempting to combine some of her favorite culinary aspects - chocolate, pastry, and fruit - I devised a ‘fancy’ treat that is so ridiculously easy to throw together, it feels almost as if you’ve cheated or cut corners. Let me assure you though, the end result is not only a fantastic presentation and tastes delicious, there’s no one else to steal away the credit. Oh yes honey, hours thinking of you as I slaved in the kitchen…”

Cheater’s Chocolate “Ravioli” by Hannah Kaminsky

Ingredients: Frozen Puff Pastry (check labels to double check veganity) -Strawberries -Various Chocolates

This barely even needs a recipe, only assembly, so sit tight while I bore you with the details. Make sure you defrost the puff pastry for the allotted time marked on the package (at least 45 minutes or so) before attempting to work with it. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees, or whatever your specific brand suggests. Gentle roll out the pastry just enough to flatten out any creases or bumps, but don’t go crazy here - you’re not actually trying to make it any larger. Cut out your desired shapes with fairly large cookie cutters, remembering that you need atleast two to make one ravioli (hey, sometimes it’s easier to screw up a simple recipe) and place one from each pair on a silpat (parchment paper, but I wouldn’t go for wax, unless you enjoy the taste of crayons.) Now, grab just the tiniest bit of chocolate - here’s where the fun starts to happen. This would be a great application for vegan truffles or simply your favorite vegan chocolate. Both of which will probably require a size reduction - it may not seem like much, but when paired with your delicious fruit sauce, it will come together beautifully, trust me. Place your top half of dough over your bottom layer to create your little pocket of chocolate. Now is when you need to pay special attention to all sides, ensuring that there are no gaps or tears, or you will have leakage later. You may wish to moisten the edges for a firm seal, or crimp it all the way around with a fork, such as I did.

Throw these babies in the oven for about 10 - 14 minutes, checking periodically because there are few things that can go from perfect to blackened quite like pastry in general. As they cook away, puree your strawberries (fresh or frozen, doesn’t matter) and mix with sugar to taste. Nuke either in the microwave or on the stove until the heat and consistancy are to your liking. It’s not very specific, so go ahead and play around with it. Oh and as another aside, feel free to substitute any berry you might prefer instead. We just happen to have frozen strawberries, and I thought it would be cute to mimic a tomato-sauce type of side with the ravioli. When the raviolis are lightly browned, pull from the oven and sprinkle lightly with a dusting of confectioner’s sugar. Allow to cool for a few minutes so your love isn’t burnt by molten chocolate, present with sauce on the side, and be prepared to accept a whole lot of praise.

Easy as that!

Originally posted to Hannah’s personal blog, Bittersweet. Join Hannah’s list, buy her book, and learn more about her precious little self here: http://www.mysweetvegan.com.

We all would love to totally green up our wardrobe, but it hasn’t always been entirely affordable for all of us. Now we can get eco-clothing basics at Target and save a fortune on higher end green couture on WhiteApricot.com where they post exclusive new deals on the best eco-lines daily!

Stewart + Brown Wide Cuff Dress.

AND

If you happen to be in LA on September 19th and 20th - hit the mother load with eco-sample sale featuring some of the most glam green designers around; Deborah Lindquist, James jeans, Stewart + Brown, ecoSkin and SO much more. Plus, the organizers of the sale are going to plant trees for each and every purchase! The event is brought to you by greenROHINI and Multeepurpose and takes place at their headquarters, located at 269 S. San Pedro Street in L.A. Hours are Friday from 3 to 9 p.m. and Saturday from 12 to 5 p.m. Shop men, women, and kids.

Shop til you drop hemp.

Old BFF half necklaces from friendships gone quite wrong? Name charms from your boriqua jewelry stage? Grandma’s cat pendant missing a ruby from its eye? The star of David from Aunt Ruth from your Bat-Mitzvah that you never wore again? What else is sitting at the bottom of your jewelry box wasting space? Imagine if you could make the most killer cool necklace out of old pendants and doodads! Well, you aren’t that creative and don’t have the time to sit around crafting the hope diamond all day!

Luckily Jen Boaz does this for a living and if you have a dime, she has the time. Check out her “BRILLIANT” necklaces. What could be more eco-fierce than recycling in this delicious way?

Here’s how to get started: Gather charms, securely package them and mail to Jen Boaz Jewelry. Include a note with your contact information and any special instructions. Specify Silver chain ($175.00) or Gold chain ($210.00). Send an email to jenboaz@gmail.com once your treasures have been shipped so her crafty little fingers can be on the lookout for your package.

Or contact Jen via email (above) or call her (404.409.7586) to arrange a time to deliver your items in person if you are in Atlanta.

Mailing address: Jen Boaz Jewelry 1166 Dunwoody Knoll Dr. Dunwoody Ga 30338

GIRLIEGIRL BONUS: 20% OFF ALL PURCHASES ON ENTIRE SITE WITH CODE “BOAZ”

Laura Marling is a folk-pop singer-songwriter from Hampshire, England. Marling has toured with a number of well-known indie artists in the UK, and is now about to kill it in the US (don’t say we didn’t tell you so). Her new record “Alas, I Cannot Swim” is one of those records where you will just love every song and not know which is your favorite. From short (under 3 min) songs that take you through entire novel-like stories to wild frenzies of mania in snippets of melody. You keep wanting to think folk, but you get transported elsewhere. This may have been what your Mom was listening to while rolling a joint at Woodstock, but maybe not. This is cinematic music to listen to on long trips to foreign lands… or at least on your morning commute.

The lovely Laura.

If you buy the actual CD, you’ll notice that this album doesn’t just appear in a ‘normal’ format - the music is part of a ‘Song Box’, designed by Laura, which contains postcards, trinkets and stories - plus a concert ticket to her shows in March. ‘The idea came of a conversation I had with a guy who owned the studio I was recording in,’ says Marling. ‘He said he was depressed with the way music’s going, because nobody buys records any more and people are listening to MP3s on bad headphones, using music for wallpaper.’ So, she designed the chart-ineligible, beautifully printed ‘Song Box’: ‘I want people to *love music,’ she says, ‘I want people to treasure it, not just my songs, but treasure music.

Just buy the record (cuz you trust our taste) or check it out on her site or myspace page. She’s currently on tour in the US and will be in the UK in November. Check out her site for tour dates. And if you have a couple of minutes, watch the video for “My Manic and I” below. Doesn’t she look like an old school, pre-botox Courtney Love?

In the search for affordable bulk seaweed (I’m a noted addict), my GirlieGirlfriend and personal trainer - aka life saver - Kendra Coppey suggested I head to Sunrise Mart (above my absolute favorite Independent bookshop St. Marks). Sunrise Mart is a tucked away nook of a genius in NYC’s East Village. It’s a Japanese grocery store that is so perfectly dreamy and cute, it’s practically a kitten. Stop in for the most fabulous huge glass containers of cheapity cheap kimchee, organic button mushrooms (almost too adorable to eat!), precious pottery, and fabulous Japanese beauty products. If you are fan of beautiful produce and seaweed, or Japanese cookies and candies - you’ll want to make a trip over to Sunrise Mart. Don’t live in NYC? That’s cool, use this blog as a reminder that ethnic markets (Indian, Kosher, Japanese, etc etc etc) are usually a treasure trove for the healthy and broke, and help fill in the produce blank of items you’ll never find in mainstream markets. They are perfect for healthy eaters and vegans since they often have less American-ized food options (super processed and sugar-laden foods), and offer better prices. I go to Indian markets for super cheap bulk spices, dry beans, and incense, I head to Kosher markets for great “Parve” dessert options (fabulous dairy and egg free foods), I pop in to Chinese markets for the best leafy greens for pennies, etc etc! Remember to think outside your local market, where you are usually overpaying. Supplement a weekly trip to an ethnic market in to your shopping regime to broaden your eating horizon and stretch your paycheck.

My goodies from Sunrise Mart.

Sunrise Mart: 29 3rd Ave (between 10th St & 2nd Ave). Upstairs. NYC