Month: October 2015

Vegan Pumpkin Spice Latte: Kiss Starbucks Goodbye

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Like many women, I pretty much lose my mind to obsession compulsive fall thoughts each year. I practically live in a virtual pumpkin patch, because if something is labeled “pumpkin” Imma gonna snatch it right on up! I consider it my life’s goal to incorporate as much spice into my life as possible, and I take this mission very seriously whilst wearing the classic Basic B*tch Uniform of fall: over-sized sweater, riding boots, and a scarf, of course.  Unlike most women, I loathe Starbucks, their “pumpkin” spice lattes, and their coffee in general. I know…I am such a bougie Wish I Were Euro snob when it comes to my coffee. Look, you have no idea how badly I wish I could go mainstream on my coffee…it would just make my life so much easier! But alas…I just can’t. I do however, love their baristas, all of whom I instantly want to be BFF’s with because they’re so darn delightful.I’m more of a chai drinker when I’m in the States, but I do drink coffee occasionally, and …

Smoothie Fail: Is Your Drink Making You Gain Weight?

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Smoothie drinks, smoothie bowls…they’re all the rage now. It seems like almost everyone I know is throwing their not-so-healthy, sugary yogurts in the trash in favor of the smoothie trend. Smoothies are a great way to get a huge amount of nutrients with minimum effort. Everything about this seems awesome…right? So why are people worrying that their oh so healthy smoothie might be the culprit behind their weight gain? Is it even possible to gain weight from something so healthy?! The terrible answer is yes, but don’t freak out! I’ll break down why your smoothie or shake might be sabotaging your weight goals and what you can do about it! So let’s get down to business. My milkshake does bring all the boys to the yard, only it doesn’t have milk or sugar. It does have all the nutrients my body desperately needs and then some, but it’s easy to ruin a good thing if we fall into these traps: PORTION CONTROL Unfortunately too much of a good thing can be high calorie. ARGH! MUST …

Chia Pudding with Roasted Figs + Goat Cheese

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One of my favorite breakfasts go-to’s happened to be a mega Superfood.  Chia seeds have received great acclaim for delivering a whopping amount of nutrients and antioxidents in each teeny seed. Figuring out how to incorporate them into your diet might be a little tricky, other than the obvious “add to smoothie” advice that I’ve followed for years. That all changed for me when I came across a lovely vegan restaurant in London that served up chia seed pudding. UM, WHAT? Why have I not beeng doing this all my life?! It’s like overnight oats only a MILLION TIMES HEALTHIER! Que the Hallelujah chorus right now. Imma bout to shout it out! Effortless: check. Delicious flavor possibilities: check. Mega healthy: check, check, check. While the seeds themselves don’t have much flavor, when soaked, they plump up and form a gelatinous, pudding like mixture. On it’s own, I don’t find it too appetizing. I actually think the even just the word gelatinous sounds unappealing. BUT wait! Don’t go anywhere yet! I also think plain soaked oats are …

Velvety Smooth, Vegan Roasted Tomato Bisque

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While I might enjoy marching to the beat of my own drum on any given day of the week, I will go SO BASIC B*TCH all over fall. Pumpkin everything, spices galore, cozy sweaters, scented candles….give me all the basic stuff! I think fall is such a beautiful time of the year, and there are a million and one little things about it that remind us to celebrate the simple things in life. And one of those simple things that I love on an obsessive level: soups. Oh, there will be soup, make no mistake about it! A new recipe I played around with this past weekend is this roasted tomato soup recipe that is SO YUM-O! I’ve always loved tomato soup, but I despair over the dairy-free recipes. They’re often extremely acidic and lack the rich, creamy comfort of a big ol’ bowl of not-so-healthy tomato soup. But you can’t keep a vegetarian/mostly vegan down! Let’s the recipe experiments commence! After a few test runs, consulting the oracle (aka Pinterest), and mixing in various ingredients, …