Without Further Ado, The Lazy Vegan Début: Indecisive Wimpy Coco

Another reason I am vegan, “wimpy” hot coco, and an ingenious (albeit not naturally vegan) invention.

Herein lies an often overlooked reason to be vegan: indecisiveness. Tonight I ate at Curley’s Vegetarian Lunch (my favorite “Lunch” in the entire world,) with one of my favorite people in the entire world (dubbed “M,” for now). Going to Curley’s always makes me appreciate the decision-making speed of my usual omnivores dining companions. I have it pretty easy—there are usually two things on the menu that I can eat, and one is easily eliminated due to the fact that it contains raw celery, or bland tofu, or something equally undesirable. Meanwhile, my poor friends must read, process, and ponder pages upon pages of options! I encounter this challenge only when I go to Curley’s, or some similar establishment. I inevitably end up in awe of omnivore alacrity.

Anyway. Before going to Curley’s, M requested a stop by the City Bakery. She had read about their acclaimed Pretzel Croissants, and was dying to try one. After the experience, I hereby dub Pretzel Croissants an Ingenious Invention. Here’s a vegan croissant recipe; apparently Earth Balance does the trick. To evoke the pretzel-esque experience I suggest:

1.      Fearlessly implementing the Pretzel shape—where few croissants (and even fewer VEGAN croissants) have gone before

2.      Adding the requisite seseme seeds

3.      Not undercooking. Pretzel Croissants are crispy on the outside. This is an opportunity to exercise patience and control if, like me, you are impatient and have a penchant for raw dough… 

 M also ordered a small cup of City Bakery’s famous hot coco.

We settled down at the bar (former breakfast counter, complete with a milkshake maker,) where I ordered a lovely glass of red wine, and the bar tender revealed the secret of City’s hot coco: it’s literally melted chocolate. Yes, that’s right boys and girls. Melted. Chocolate. Bars. And a teensy weensy bit of milk. Here’s a tip: if you ever go to City Bakery, but don’t feel up to the task of imbibing pure chocolate bar, ask for it “wimpy.” They add milk. Of any kind. Even soy.