Summer job & Vegan Peanut Butter Pumpkin Mousse

I have never worked one job for 12 hours, but there's a first for everything. I haven't said much about my summer job so I'll give you an idea of what I did today:

• Watched professionals set up table scapes
• Helped amateur adults and children set tables
• Assisted judges
• Moved bundt cakes from paper plates to dishes
• Froze half quick bread loaves and displayed the other half
• Not eat any of the 1000+ baked goods that came in

Did you guess? I'm working on culinary competition, and did the whole table setting competition by myself for 6+ hours! My other 5 or so hours - 1 hour of lunches - involved moving cakes, cookies, and mostly loaves from station to station.

While the food industry is my dream, it's not quite what I expected. We've only had a few weeks to set up with a staff of 15 so everywhere moves big cabinets and shelves or does dishes. :( Not totally fun. Today was different. Instead of moving heavy things, I talked to people and moved plates of food.

Table setting doesn't sound particularly exciting but it is! Just think wedding tables and you've got the gist of it. There are so many aspects of it besides placing a knife and fork down. I loved the centerpieces, decorations, and furniture everyone picked. If I don't work next year, I will compete. I have lots of great ideas now.

I'm normally a baker, but I haven't been inspired lately. Today was somewhat of a disappointment because nothing really stood out to me. Though I would like to try my hand at making candies or decorating Styrofoam cake forms.

I find inspiration on Pinterest quite often. Lately, I've been browsing black bean recipes: soups, salad, and brownies showed up frequently. I don't like soup and beans in salads aren't appealing. One day, when I have more time, I'll make those brownies.

But as of now, the best brownies I ever made used a non-conventional ingredient, tofu. The taste was lighter than the super-fudgy variety.

Brownies aside, I decided to create something else with tofu tonight. I was inspired by Chocolate Covered Katie's Healthy Peanut Butter Frosting to make Vegan Peanut Butter Pumpkin Mousse.

Wait, I don't love mousse, but this is a copycat of Mother Market's pudding that uses tofu, PB & Co's White Chocolate Dreams, and pumpkin. Easy peasy dessert. Just add some sugar and whiz it in the blender. I didn't even have to whip out the full-sized blender.

• 1 box Mori Nu silken tofu
• 1/3 c. Peanut Butter & Co's White Chocolate Wonderful, or other
• 1/4 c. pumpkin 
• 1/4 c. Trader Joe's organic maple sugar

Another great no-bake dessert I made, Joy the Baker's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls. Much sweeter than the mousse, if that's what you're craving.

What are your go-to desserts when you don't want to bake?
What industry, besides your own, would you like to work in?