Started 2025 with a trip to Las Vegas

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It’s now December 31, 2025 Im drinking tea in an ice cream shop in Ottawa realizing I never finished this post. I drafted this post earlier in the year but it’s all still relevant.  The  way the world has changed in the last few months I feel like I need to explain that I went to Las Vegas in early 2025 because I knew things were going to change after January 20. I didn’t know how. I was expecting more violence and less direct flights. I never expected that things would change so quickly in a few months. It is now the beginning of March and it’s hard to keep up. Anyways flights and tourism to US destinations are already significantly reduced from Canada. I finished this trip knowing it would be awhile before I visited the US again and it was a pretty perfect trip for my memories and I am glad I took it.  I have been to Las Vegas many times you can read about some of my previous trips on this blog. I don’t think I have ever been in January. This time I was supposed to go w...
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Cheesy vegan baked pasta

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I cook everything in the instant vortex plus air fryer oven. I just got a new loaf pan that fits perfectly inside. Vegan feta was on sale so I decided I should make the TikTok viral pasta. I have made it once before with tofu and used a cake pan. The past one was good but I only made it once. 

I recently became vegan so I remember what dairy cheese tastes like. This is the first time I have tried vegan feta it tastes more like cream cheese to me but it’s good. Cherry tomatoes were too expensive so I got fresh San Marzano tomatoes they will be a good substitute. 

I put tomatoes, olive oil, half a block of feta, and some za’star spice. I got the spice as a free sample and I don’t have other dried herbs so also a good substitute. I cooked this in the air fryer oven at 350 for fifteen minutes. 

The feta was all nicely melted but I probably should have cooked the tomatoes for another ten minutes. I have no patience so I added fresh basil and mixed it. 

I had already cooked the pasta and it was in the pan so I poured the sauce in the pan. 

I like to add curry powder to everything so I added some along with pepper. The cheese is already salty. I have eaten vegan Parmesan many times today was the first time I bought a block of Violife vegan parmesan. I had used some for a Caesar salad earlier and I thought if I put it back in the pan and bake it with some more vegan feta and Parmesan I would get a nice baked cheese pasta. 

It didn’t work. The Parmesan became more like crisps and I ate them off the top. I might have to try making vegan Parmesan chips. The rest was great with the creamy feta nicely melted into a sauce. I poured it back into the pan to make it easier to see how creamy it is..

This tasted really good especially with the curry powder addition. I like how the vegan feta melts and gets really creamy so I will probably experiment with making a sauce out of it in the future. I don’t follow recipes but have tried to make one below if you would like to make it. 

Recipe

1/2 box cooked penne pasta
1 container small fresh tomatoes 
dried herbs
1/2 block of vegan feta
2 TBSP olive oil
garlic (optional)
curry powder (optional)
salt, black pepper
fresh basil
vegan parmesan (optional)

Preheat air fryer oven on bake at 350 degrees. In an oven safe container add tomatoes, dried herbs, garlic, one TBSP of olive oil, salt, pepper. Mix well. Place vegan feta in center of tomatoes and sprinkle with herbs and remaining olive oil. Bake for 25 minutes. Add pasta and curry powder, mix well. If desired top container with more vegan cheese and bake for another ten minutes. When plating add more fresh basil and vegan parmesan.

Let me know in the comments or on Instagram @livingvancouverloca if you make this. 

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