black bean soup (hearty, vegan, gluten free, whole30)
Soups are made for winter and winter is made for soups. AmIright? This vegan black bean soup is no exception. Filling and hearty, it’s perfect for warming up on a chilly day. (And as a freeze baby, I’m always trying to find ways to stay warm in the winter. LOL) It also packs a hefty dose of protein. Although all plants have protein, if you eat an exclusive plant-based diet, you need to be a little more intentional about consuming your recommended daily requirement. It’s not hard, but it does take a little more thought. It’s one of the many reasons why I love this soup! Personally, I feel beans…
easy party appetizer: vegan rainbow black bean dip
With 2018 quickly drawing to a close (how is that possible?!), I want to end the year on a high note with an easy party appetizer. Use it on New Year’s, for the Big Game, for Cinco de Mayo or just because. In fact, I often prepare it as a main meal. That’s when I know I’ve hit on an especially good recipe… when I want to make – and eat – it over and over and over again! It’s why I featured as one of the 6 Day Sugar Buster Bootcamp. Plus it’s an example of how party foods can be fun and healthy. It’s a guaranteed…
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Fighting the Spiritual Battle of a Sugar Addiction
vegan seven layer dip
south-of-the-border party dip (vegan, oil free, added sugar free)
I could happily eat Mexican-style foods most days of the week. It’s one of the few cuisines that easily adapts to a plant-based diet without extraordinary effort or feeling like something is missing. Meat- and cheese-lovers might disagree, but as a former meat- and cheese-lover, this is my story and I’m sticking to it. While this dip is made for the party scene, I also love it as a main, side or lunch any day of the week. It’s best when eaten within the first day, but can hold up in the fridge for a couple of days, although the avocado isn’t too happy about that. This south-of-the-border party…
his ‘n hers secret ingredient vegan black bean chili
Before I adopted a plant-based diet, there were some dishes that I never made with meat. Like pasta sauce (here’s my go to recipe). And chili. Not sure why, but for some reason, I never liked the addition of meat in these dishes. However, once I went all in on the vegan eating, I knew I had to pay more attention to my protein sources. Let’s pause a minute on this while I clear up the myth that you can’t get “enough” protein on a plant-based diet… First, all plants have protein, though some have more than others (think nuts, legumes, beans, lentils). Secondly, our bodies don’t store…
weeknight spinach tikka masala (vegan, dairy free, gluten free, soy free)
My love for Indian food – especially south Indian – has grown over the years and my favorite go-to curry sauce is this one. It’s one of the often-requested dishes from my boys (although they like chicken to go along with it…sigh). But, my girl…she’s a tough one! So far I haven’t won her over to that recipe, so you could have knocked me over with a feather when she actually liked this one. Praise the Lord. If you’re looking for a quick-ish fresh meal to make and one that rocks leftovers – this one is it! The sauce is the epitome of comfort food, Indian-style, with its…
building a better vegan BLT (+ VIP eggplant bacon recipe)
Today is National Sandwich Day. (Scratching my head over who comes up with these things, but we’ll run with it.) And what better way to celebrate than with a sandwich classic…the BLT? A vegan BLT. Let’s dig in. While it’s kind of hard to construct a bad BLT, there are a few tweaks you can try to make it even better both for taste and to give it a healthier nutrition profile. Here’s how: Start with whole wheat or whole grain bread. Whole wheat breads (and 100% whole grain breads are even better), give you the whole enchilada of fiber and nutrients and prevent sharp spikes in your blood…
vegan italian sausage soup (dairy free, soy free)
Last week, I shared my basic veggie stock recipe with you. Today, I’m giving you the perfect recipe to try it out with: vegan Italian sausage soup. When I first decided to go all in with a plant-based diet, I immediately thought of ways to replace meat-based dishes with vegan versions that closely approximated those flavors and textures I was used to. But when I started experimenting with new-to-me-foods like TVP, seitan and pre-packaged vegan “meats,” I wasn’t too thrilled with the results. You see, my goal in adopting this new diet was to get healthier and eating a lot of wheat-based and processed foods didn’t feel like it…
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Fear not.
vegan seven layer dip
easy party appetizer: vegan rainbow black bean dip
the best basic burrito recipe (vegan, dairy free, oil free option, gluten free option)
I could easily eat Mexican food most days of the week. That and my favorite Indian curry. I love how effortless it feels, how easily it adapts to a plant-based diet and that leftovers go a long way. This basic burrito recipe is one of my go-to’s and is inspired by a recipe I found on Whole Foods years ago. One of the things I hope you will love about it is that once you have the basic flavor profile down, you can easily tweak it to your preferences…a little more garlic here, less tomato there, more spice, more lime). Once the basic burrito mix is assembled, here’s how…
tuscan roasted tomatoes with sesame parmesan (vegan, dairy free, nut free, gluten free)
As much as I love sharing the fun, creative recipes (like these matcha coconut lime energy bites or these weeknight tacos), I also love giving equal play to recipes that are meant for the every day or moments when you’re not sure what to throw together. Like these tuscan roasted tomatoes. I came up with these lovelies one Sunday evening when we were going to have a mishmash of leftovers and family coming over at the last minute. Throwing together a medley of vegetables prepared in a number of ways is still one of my favorite things to do…it speaks of abundance and simplicity and letting my pickier (ahem) eaters…
sweet potato & lentil soup (vegan, oil-free)
The first vegan cookbook I ever purchased was Vegan Planet by Robin Robertson*. It was during the season in my life that my oldest son likes to refer to as “the time when we weren’t eating healthy.” I refer to it as the time when I didn’t realize the benefits of eating a plant-based diet. But the Lord knew He would bring me to this place, so He gradually encouraged me to go meat-free on more than just Monday. I started by exploring vegan and vegetarian cookbooks in our local library until I stumbled upon Vegan Planet*. One of my favorite recipes from the book is Robin’s “Indian-spiced Lentil Soup”…
