In Which We Reach the End of MoFo, and a Giveaway from GoMaxGo!

How sweet it is! We've reached the very last day of the month, and I'm happy to say I managed to post a blog entry every day for MoFo. Today I'm a bit lame, because I'm nursing a cold and have to drive four hours and get on two planes and get in at who knows what time and still get up for a 9:30 class tomorrow. Woe. So my post will be a bit short. But still sweet!

I'm a fairly new Portland transplant, and I'm not much of a sweets person. Save for a few exceptions that is. I thought that in case you're a Portland resident or perhaps visiting vegan Mecca, you might like to know what my few choices are if I do get a sweet craving.

Sweet Pea Baking (next to Food Fight!) has a great peanut butter brownie that I am never sorry to eat. Piece of Cake, while not entirely vegan, has absolutely killer vegan cupcakes. I prefer the German chocolate. Dave's Killer Bread makes a ridiculously good Sin Dawg; you may have seen me review this a few days ago. And finally, if I want a frozen treat, it's definitely going to be Luna and Larry's Coconut Bliss ice cream--probably Cherry Amaretto. I have yet to head out to VooDoo Doughnut, but it's on the list!

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Today, for my last giveaway of the month, I want to offer two of you something similarly sweet: a full range of GoMaxGo candy bars: Mahalo, Buccaneer, Jokerz, and Twilight! This giveaway is open to everybody everywhere, so please enter if you like candy bars! To enter, please leave a post on this blog entry. Tell me your favorite joke, or tell me a pirate story, or tell me anything at all. The two winners will be chosen by random number generator and posted here tomorrow.

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Well, huh! The winner of the PPK Extravaganza giveaway is none other than Ameyfm. She wished to be named someone's favorite PPKer, and over at the PPK, she was so named. Also at the PPK, she wished to win this giveaway, and . . . she did so win. What super powers does she have that we don't know about?! Congratulations, Amey! Please send your full name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Birthday Cake, Plus My Favorite Giveaway, Starring PPKers

There is lots to celebrate at my parents' home these days. Over the course of the week: their granddaughter (my niece!) visiting, Thanksgiving, the fact that the granddaughter just might remember Thanksgiving this year, my father's birthday, my parents' anniversary, and the first day of Hanukkah. Most of these occasions, if not all, call for celebratory desserts. The dessert above is the cake I made for my father's birthday, a raspberry blackout cake with ganache frosting from Vegan With a Vengeance. I would say this went over well. In fact, my mother sat on the kitchen floor for some time scraping leftover ganache from the pan with a spatula. It was kind of awesome . . . as was seeing my niece eat chocolate cake for the first time ever.

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Today is my favorite giveaway of the month, because it's starring the PPK. First I want to plug the stars' websites and etsy shops, because they are working hard and putting out great products and I hope you'll support them. First up, Soyfucker quarterly comic zine created by vegan writers and artists. These are awesome and you'll want every issue. Next please head over to the home of friendly monsters and tofu pirates at Panda with Cookie. You will want to feast your eyes on the delicious cookies at the companion shop Panda with Cookie Bakes. You may need them in your stomach, especially if you have a hungry monster or pirate to feed. Since you are already on etsy, you must check out the lovely cards at Chirp Cards. More great cards and art can be found at ilikeapplejuice.

So now let me tell you what the winner will win today. I have for you:

• killer Soyfucker Zine volumes one and two from Erica Soyfucker and friends
• pandaful tofu pirate pin and and panda pin from the fantastic panda with cookie
• adorable hedgehog card from Tahinitoo
• fabulous Heartkite and Saints and Sinners cards plus two great stickers from ilikeapplejuice

supplemented with: one smiling Oregon cloud magnet (you know you love rain), one package Butlers Soy Curls, six Primal Strips in different flavors, two coupons for free Turtle Island/Tofurky products, one coupon for a free Earth Balance product, one cute Amy's blue tote bag, one Amy's pen, and cents off coupons for Tofutti, Follow Your Heart, and Bubbies products.

Interested? The giveaway is open to everyone everywhere, from Philadelphia to Graz to Manila and all points in between. To enter, tell me about a PPKer you like, or a PPKer's art/craft project/recipe/whathaveyou that stuck with you, or tell me anything at all. Note: This does not mean pick your favorite PPKer. Who wants to do that? Not me. There are lots of nice ones. Tell me about one of them. The winner will be chosen by random number generator and posted on tomorrow's blog post. If the giveaway is won by an overseas entrant, I'll choose a US winner for the coupons by random number generator and post the second winner tomorrow as well.

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The winner of yesterday's Animal Camp giveaway is Mandee! Congratulations! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Tortilla Española, Plus an Animal Camp Giveaway from Skyhorse Publishing!

Chances are you've had tapas, right? If not, let me give you a little background. Tapas are Spanish appetizers or snacks. They can be hot or cold, and many are already vegan. You may be familiar with such tapas as patatas bravas, sherried garlic mushrooms, or chick peas with garlic and spinach. Pregan, my favorite tapas dish, and certainly one of my favorite dishes ever, was tortilla española, or Spanish omelet. I started obsessing about my memory of this simple, perfect recipe earlier today and I had to veganize it. It turned out really well, so I'm sharing the recipe. It's great hot, warm, room temperature, or cold. The secret to the eggy taste of the tortilla is the black salt, so try to get your hands on some if you don't already have it.

Tortilla Española

1 onion, thinly sliced
4 Yukon Gold potatoes, thinly sliced (think 1/8 inch slices)
olive oil
12 oz. firm silken tofu
black salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Using a large frying pan, sauté the onion in olive oil over medium heat until soft, salting lightly to keep from sticking. This should take about five minutes. After the onion has softened, turn the heat down to medium-low and cover the pan. Stir every five minutes until the onions have caramelized, say another ten to fifteen minutes. Scrape the onions from the pan and set aside.

Add a bit more olive oil to the pan and heat over medium heat. Lay a single layer of potato slices down in the pan. Cook them for two or three minutes on each side and then test with a knife to see if they are soft. They don't have to be browned, although it's fine if they are. You just want them soft enough to eat. No crunch left. Remove from pan and place on a plate. Repeat with remaining slices, adding olive oil as desired. (I had five batches total.)

Empty the silken tofu into a large bowl, large enough to accommodate all of the potato slices. Whisk the tofu as smooth as you can, and add black salt and pepper to taste. Remember you're salting for the potato and onion here as well, so be a bit generous. Now mix the potatoes into the tofu. (You may also mix in the caramelized onion here if you like to save a step.)

Heat a bit of olive oil in a small (six to eight-inch) nonstick skillet over medium heat. Layer 1/4 of the potato-tofu mixture in the pan. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the caramelized onions. Layer additional layers, ending with potato-tofu mixture. You may add additional black salt to each layer if you like. Press the top down with a spatula, ensuring that the edges are touching the sides of the pan and that you have a pretty solid potato cake. Allow to cook for five minutes or so, until you see that there is quite a bit of potato browning along the sides of the pan.

Place a large plate over the frying pan and quickly flip the tortilla onto the plate. Shimmy the tortilla, uncooked side down, back into the pan. Cook for an additional five minutes, rinsing and drying that plate while you wait. Now do the same plate-pan flip. You should have a gorgeous tortilla steaming and waiting to be devoured.

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And now I have a great giveaway for you. The generous people over Skyhorse Publishing have kindly provided me with a copy of Animal Camp, by Kathy Stevens. This lovely follow-up book to Where the Blind Horse Sings continues the story of rescued farm animals at Catskill Animal Sanctuary. As a person who initially went vegan after hearing about the horrors of slaughterhouse conditions, and later about the treatment of factory-farmed animals, my heart is warmed whenever I can hear about the wonderful animals that have been saved. I am sure you will agree, and I hope lots of you want this beautiful book. This giveaway is open to anyone anywhere, from the Catkills to Kathmandu to Catalina and all points in between. To enter, please leave a comment on this post. Tell me about an animal you love, a camp you went to, or anything at all. The winner will be chosen by random number generator and posted on the blog tomorrow.

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The winner of yesterday's Daiya giveaway is Sarah! Congratulations! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Khichari, Plus a Daiya Giveaway

This is a bowl of khichari, which I think of as the Indian equivalent of pure comfort food. And it's naturally vegan! In India, if you are ill or unwell, this is what you will eat. It's meant to be simple and soothing and easy to digest. It's basically a porridge made of rice simmered with some type of lentil, bean, or split pea in a fair amount of water, so the whole thing goes to mush. Sometimes vegetables are added. A spiced oil is stirred in, and the whole thing is finished off with cilantro. The version I made can be found in a book called Heaven's Banquet, but there are variations available everywhere. The bowl above is pretty simple, and you could make it without a recipe easily: basmati rice, red lentils, more water than you would for regular rice, cook it to mush and season it. My spiced oil contains a number of Indian spices, turmeric for color, lots of fresh ginger, and a pinch of asafoetida/hing (often used in place of onions and garlic in Indian cooking). I've fed this to omnis before and they have loved it. I hope you find a recipe and try it!

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Today's giveaway is brought to you by the generous people at Daiya! I have a coupon for a free package for you. To enter, please leave a post below, and tell me how you pronounce Daiya, or about a day in your life, or about something you've dyed, or anything at all. This giveaway is open to anyone who can get Daiya products. The coupons do not specify where they can be used, so enter if you can buy Daiya where you live!

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The winner of yesterday's Coconut Bliss giveaway is Monique a.k.a Mo. Congratulations to you! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

I'm so full. Are you so full? Plus a giveaway from Coconut Bliss!

I don't know that I can even muster a photo after today's Thanksgiving feast. I went through two airports yesterday, flew halfway across the country, and drove 3 1/2 hours to make sure I could see my niece before she slept. Today I woke up at 8:00 am and was cooking by 8:30. I didn't really plan ahead. My family is incredibly omni. I had managed to throw vwg (vital wheat gluten) and a celeriac into my suitcase, along with a number of tiny bags of spices and condiments I had packed previously for traveling. I knew that my mother had bought me a cauliflower. I knew I wanted stuffed and mashed potatoes and gravy, that I wanted to lighten the potatoes with the cauliflower, and that I would like a main course seitan if possible. I knew that there would be vegetables that I could eat where my sister and her family, who were hosting, would be staying. Everybody else who would be there would be decidedly omni. I knew that I wasn't going to enjoy that it was omni and that nobody was too interested in what I was going to make. I also knew that it was my Thanksgiving too. Even if my dishes were not good enough to be on the main table with all the omni dishes.

Somehow, at 8:00 in the morning, I got ambitious. I made a list of seven items:

• vegetable stock
• white seitan
• stuffing
• chickpea gravy
• mushroom and red wine gravy
• mashed cauliflower/potatoes
• celeriac and olive puree

My mother added another:

• pumpkin pie

I cooked all day. The vegetable stock is one I make loosely, and I've posted about that earlier this MoFo. I grabbed everything my mother could spare out of the fridge and cupboard and went to town: onion, tomato, eggplant, potato peelings, mushroom stem, dried shiitakes, lentils, celeriac peelings, filtered water, a glug of tamari, all simmer-boiled for an hour and a half. This was used as a base flavor for the remainder of my ingredients. I knew I wanted to try the white seitan from Viva Vegan, as I have heard nothing but raves about it. Instead of steaming it, I patted it into a rectangle and spread a recipe of my mother's stuffing, veganized, over the rectangle. I then rolled it up the long way to make a roulade. Chickpea gravy and caulipots are tester recipes from the upcoming Appetite for Reduction, so that decision was easy. I wanted another gravy for the roulade, so I went with one similar to my mother's, but veganized. At the end, I decided to add in a bit of balsamic vinegar to brighten it. Finally, celeriac and black olive puree is similar to one I first read about in Marcella Cucina. Oh, and the pumpkin pie was one I made for my parents a couple of years ago, and it's a recipe they loved from VegWeb.

I had some missteps along the way for sure. I oversalted the stuffing and had to increase the bread by a third. I pretty much ran out of stock. I overthickened one of the gravies. Damage control and then damage control. And yet.

Everything was really good. Everyone tried all of it. One omni said that she would have happily eaten my food and nothing else for Thanksgiving. Excuse my language for this following sentence. I have heard that Terry's white seitan is unfuckupable. It's true. It's the best seitan I've ever made. Everyone at the table thought it was delicious, from the omni food afficianado who has never tasted seitan, down to the three year-old who won't eat brown food but ate this brown food. It looked gorgeous with the stuffing spiraling through it. It felt and looked like festive food, and it was easy to make. The caulipots and gravy were yummy, and smoked paprika made them special. The celeriac puree was unusual and a combination of flavors that rolled all over your tongue. Cranberry sauce, arugula salad, green beans, and my sister's homemade walnut whole wheat bread based on this recipe rounded out the meal.

And I never got around to dessert. I was too full. I am told they liked it.

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Even though I was too full for dessert, I know that for most of you this is not possible. Especially for vegan ice cream. Especially if it's the divine Coconut Bliss. Today I have for you a coupon for a pint of delicious Luna and Larry's Coconut Bliss ice cream. To enter, please leave a post below, telling me your about your favorite coconut treat, or a nutty friend of yours, or anything at all. This giveaway is open to anyone who can get Coconut Bliss products. The coupons do not specify where they can be used, so enter if you can buy Coconut Bliss where you live!

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The winners of the awesome DKB Sin Dawg giveaway are Noelle, radioactivevegan, and joyfulgirl415. Congratulations to you all! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Happy Thanksgiving! Plus Dave's Killer Bread, and a Sin Dawg Giveaway!

Happy happy Thanksgiving! Above, you'll see a meal I made earlier in the month as a trial run in preparation for Thanksgiving. Roasted cauliflower steaks with a QueenV tester gravy, roasted Brussels sprouts, and a QueenV tester, individual stuffings, that you can also find on her blog. I hope your dinner is similarly delicious.

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And a review! Or four, actually. Today's giveaway comes from Dave's Killer Bread, and they asked me to do a review in conjunction with the giveaway. Their bread really is killer, so of course I was happy to oblige. They sent me a Sin Dawg, plus their three newest varieties of bread, and I trekked them back to the murky Midwest to share with my parents tonight. I am happy to say we love them all.

First up is DKB 21 Grain Light. This is a sweet, flavorful, chewy loaf. My mother commented that it had quite a lot of texture for a light bread, and I agree. This would make an awesome PBJ, or hold up well against a capery, veggie-filled tofu salad. Next we tried DKB Good Seed Light. I loved this, and so did my father. It's less sweet and more nutty than the 21 Grain. I'd love to use this for a vegan BLT or grilled cheeze. Our third bread was the Robust Raisin. Wow, we all agreed this one is just delicious raisin bread, dense and a bit nutty/seedy. It would be perfect breakfast toast, and I could see it as Fronch toast.

And then the Sin Dawg, which sent us all swooning. Here is the thing. They look healthy. They ARE healthy. And from the first bite, you will never believe it. Each time I buy one, I cut myself a slice of Sin Dawg take a bite, and am floored. Next bite the same thing. Each bite. They are so cinnamony and gooey and chewy and seedy. We were all in heaven. Believe it!

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Would you like to try your own? Of course you would. That is the segway to today’s giveaway! Dave’s Killer Bread will happily ship out a Sin Dawg, plus a DKB t-shirt and fun coloring book, to three lucky winners anywhere in the US. To enter, simply comment on this post. DKB would be grateful if you’d consider joining their email list or fanning them on FaceBook, but it’s not mandatory. And if you don't win, have a look at the recipe demonstrated by Dave himself on Everyday Dish. They are that good.

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The winners of yesterday's Primal Strips giveaway are phoenixdreaming, allicia, sara, Deanna G., Lizzie Bordello, motherbeck, greenveggies, and Tea and Sympatico. Congratulations to you all! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Unusual Citrus, and a Primal Strips Giveaway

My grocery store has interesting citrus lately, trucked up from the next state down, California, where everything grows. Above you will see Kaffir limes. If you like Indian and South Asian food, this might ring a bell, because Kaffir lime leaves get used a lot. I didn't have access to those, so I brought these how to play with. They are very acid, and as such not generally used in cooking. In South-East Asia, the zest is used in cooking. They're normal lime-size, but you can see they have a bumpy rind rather than the smooth one I'm more used to. These are destined for lime-ade


These little orangies are calamondin, and they are related to the kumquat. You can eat them whole. The rind is sweet and the interior is tart, and they are really delicious. I read that you can freeze them whole and use them as ice cubes in your drink, so I froze them to try.

Some floated, some sank, and the green you're seeing is calamondin leaves. This was pretty cute to look at and would be fun in the summer. I'm not sure if they are in season in the summer, though. Hmm.


This great big guy is a citron. You may have seen them candied, for use in baked goods. There is almost no juice in a citron--it's all rind and pith. In South-East Asia, I believe they make a picke out of the rind. The fruit smells heavenly, like a sweet strong lemon, and the scent stays on your skin after handling.


Here's the interior of a citron, along with my beginning of the zesting process. I'll freeze it in tablespoons for later use in baked goods, Joanna nuggets, etc.

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Today's giveaway is brought to you by Primal Strips! Eight of you will win a gift pack containing six different flavors for you to sample! What will you choose first? I like the hot and spicy. This giveaway is open to everyone everywhere, from Memphis to Halifax to Tokyo and all points in between. To enter, leave a comment on this post, telling me about your favorite flavor Primal Strip, whether you're interested in the Sunset Strip, or anything at all. The winners will be chosen by random number generator and posted on the blog tomorrow. Please remember to check back! Also please note there will be a one-week delay in shipping as I will be away from home.

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The winners of yesterday's Bubbies coupon giveaway is MachoPineapple! Congratulations to you! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Blossoming Lotus, and a Bubbies Pickles Giveaway

This afternoon I had the pleasure of lunching with the lovely Nummers and her sparkly shoes at Blossoming Lotus. BloLo is all vegan and organic all the time, with lots of raw and gluten-free options. It was my first visit there, and I was not disappointed. The atmosphere is lovely: high ceilings, lots of daylight, a chandelier mixed with more modern lighting. Our other photo of the space didn't really turn out, so imagine what you are seeing as three or four times as wide, and with a big chandelier in the center. It's really relaxed, open and inviting, a place you like to sit in, and not a place you feel rushed. You order at the counter and get your own flatware and water while you're waiting for your food. I like that casualness.

Here's the bowl ordered by Nummers: Soy Curls, avocado, kale, brown rice, beans, and I think a smoky barbecue sauce. I was very excited about my own food and I think I didn't inquire as closely as I could have. Behind the bowl, you can see a fluttering Nummers hand. She wanted to get to that fork! She said it was as delicious as it looked!

Although it is really cold here, for some reason I wanted a salad! This yummy thing had mixed greens, spiralized raw beets, and shredded carrots with some sweet/spicy nuts and a ginger dressing. I kicked up the ginger with a big class of fresh carrot and ginger juice. This was really, really good. Although: spiralized beets can be tricky to maneuver--some were as long as my hair! I'm not too good with long thin noodles like spaghetti, and I found myself slightly flummoxed. I had to be brought a knife. This helped.

So, anyway, to sum up, if you are in Portland: go here! And grab a knife!

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Today's giveaway is brought to you by Bubbies Pickles! One lucky winner gets to choose a free product from amongst the entire range of Bubbies products. Would you like pickles? Sauerkraut? Mustard? You decide. The coupon does not state where it can be used, so enter if you can get Bubbies products where you shop. To enter, leave a comment on this post, telling me about your bubbie, a pickle you got into, or anything at all. The winner will be chosen by random number generator and posted on the blog tomorrow.

The winners of yesterday's excellent Viva Vegan giveaway is Islaborg! Congratulations to you! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)

Mushroom "Scallop" Piccata Over Creamy Polenta, and a Viva Vegan Giveaway!

I would like to introduce you to my brunch today. King Trumpet mushrooms make a really good vegan scallop! I made an easy piccata sauce to serve them with and served them over some wonderful creamy polenta. I am a lemon freak, so know that this is really lemony. If you are not as crazy about lemon as I am, you might want to start with half the lemon juice and scale up from there. I didn't use the capers in my dish today, but they would be wonderful if you are a fan. You could also throw in some veggies. Spinach would be delicious, and so would red bell pepper.

Mushroom "Scallop" Piccata over Creamy Polenta

polenta

1 ½ c unsweetened non-dairy milk, water, broth, or a combination
½ c polenta
1 T vegan butter
1/4 t salt or truffle salt, or more to taste

Mushrooms and sauce

8 oz king trumpet mushrooms, cleaned, and stems sliced into scallops
olive oil
juice of a lemon, about ¼ c
1-2 T white wine
1 t capers in brine, optional
1 T vegan butter
Salt or truffle salt
Freshly ground white pepper
Green herbs of your choice to garnish (chives and parsley are good)

Sauté the mushrooms in a non-stick pan with a little oil over medium heat until soft, flipping, about five minutes. Set aside.

Now, make the polenta. In a small saucepan, heat the liquid and butter over medium heat. When it starts to steam, add the polenta in a steady stream, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Continue to stir until the sides start to pull away from the pan. If you are using non-dairy milk in combination with other liquids or on its own, this should take about five minutes.

Heat the remaining vegan butter in the nonstick skillet with the wine, lemon juice, and optional capers. Bring to simmer and allow to simmer until reduced by half. Add the mushroom scallops to the sauce and gently heat. Add pepper and salt to taste. Garnish with herbs.

Spoon the polenta into two medium-sized bowls. Divide the mushrooms and sauce over the bowls and enjoy!

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Today I have for you a giveaway from Perseus Books. It's the VegNews Cookbook of the Year, Viva Vegan, by Terry Hope Romero! If somehow you have escaped the rave reviews this cookbook has been getting, head over to the PPK to read some Viva Vegan love.

To enter, please leave a comment below. Tell me what you want to make from Viva Vegan, or tell me who you'd love to give a copy to, or tell me about a vegan cookbook you'd write if you had the chance . . . or anything at all. This giveaway is open to everybody, everywhere, from Austin to Vienna to Tijuana and all points in between! The winner will be chosen by a random number generator and posted tomorrow below tomorrow's giveaway.

The winners of yesterday's Lightlife giveaway are vegga and Anne! Congratulations to you both! Please send your name and address to me at miso...@yahoo.com. (<---make sure to click on the . . . link for the rest of the email address. This is a spam avoidance thing.)