In my continuing efforts to find new vegan dishes to cook, I've begun warming to the idea of recreating some old dairy-based favorite with vegan ingredients. This was something I'd purposely stayed away from in the past, because I was skeptical it could be done well. Things like fake meat products have always skeeved me out, and I figured fake cheese would be no better.

But, partly in an effort to please my dairy-loving husband, I decided to try making vegan mac and cheese today. My recipe, from Robin Robertson's 1,000 Vegan Cookbooks, required a remarkable assortment of ingredients to try to mimic that cheesy flavor we all know and love. There was nutritional yeast, of course, as well as white miso paste, turmeric, onions, paprika, soy sauce, mustard, cayenne, and soy milk. It certainly looked like mac and cheese, at least the bright yellow kind that comes in a box. I tasted the sauce before pouring it over the macaroni and sticking it in the oven, and it seemed too thin, with a flavor that wasn't even close to "cheesy."

After 30 minutes in the oven, it looked a little more appetizing. The sauce had absorbed partly into the pasta and thickened. The verdict? It tasted pretty good, though I'm pretty sure it wouldn't fool anyone into thinking it was actually mac and cheese. It grew on me as I ate it, and I think I might even make it again (or perhaps look for another vegan mac and cheese recipe to try).

I had more success this afternoon with a veganized dairy favorite. A friend tipped me off that Cafe Romeo in New Haven had begun offering vegan strawberry gelato. I rushed right over. Yum--two thumbs up. The nice man who served me also happened to be a vegan, and we started a conversation about some of our favorite vegan products and restaurants. He also told me Cafe Romeo serves vegan pizza, which I'll have to try soon.

This weekend, I got a chance to do something I've been wanting to do for a long time: cook a big vegan meal for my family.

I've been immensely enjoying cooking--something I was never very good at--since becoming a vegan. I have two wonderful cookbooks by Robin Robertson, and love picking out new recipes to cook each week for my husband and me. On Sunday, I decided to prepare dinner for my parents, grandmother (whose birthday we were celebrating), brother and husband.

I was excited, but also a little nervous. Certain family members who will remain unnamed have expressed skepticism about my vegan diet, so I felt some pressure to impress.

For the main course, I decide to cook something I'd made a week earlier with success. It's called seitan en croute, a mushroom-based stuffing with wine and slices of seitan inside a puff pastry. Delicious, except I wasn't a fan of the seitan (wheat gluten), and was pretty sure my meat-eating family wouldn't be either. So I decided to leave out the seitan and add some chopped walnuts to the stuffing.

I also made some simple roasted asparagus, and small red potatoes with caramelized shallots on the side.

I left myself most of the day to prepare this meal, so I wouldn't be rushed and mess it up. It miraculously all came together at the right time, and I think it was a big hit! My dad, a talented cook himself, called it "gourmet." Even my not-so-adventurous-eating little brother tasted a bite of the (non) seitan en croute and proclaimed it pretty good.

Since it was a birthday celebration, I also decided to try baking a chocolate cake. I've had mixed results in the past with vegan baking, so I also purchased my family's traditional Carvel ice cream cake beforehand in case the vegan cake didn't turn out well.

The cake recipe was completely bizarre. First, you made a mixture of flour, baking powder, cocoa powder, sugar, oil and soy milk, which was like a very dense brownie mixture. It was a struggle to spread it across the pan. Then, you made a second mixture of cocoa powder, sugar and hot water, which you poured over the first batter. As it baked in the oven, the two layers combined into something of a normal cake. Fascinating. As for the taste... it was okay. I think my mom put it best when she said, "It's like Passover cake. You know, good for Passover cake."

I was so happy to have the chance to share my new love of vegan cooking with my family. I'm excited to host future vegan gatherings!