I’m just popping in briefly to give you this delicious recipe! Always finding new ways to use up my leftover almond pulp, I’ve noticed Dallas falling weak to lemon coconut combinations lately. So that’s what I did. Of course, if these aren’t awesome enough for you, you can always cover them in chocolate So go make a batch or two of almond mylk! Then make these! Because they are ridiculously easy.

I really should get back to my homework, though…then maybe I’ll get around to putting away the clean laundry that’s been in the basket for 2 weeks. Maybe I’ll make almond mylk and do the dishes, too. And maybe, just maybe, I’ll finally take down the Christmas tree {don’t judge me}.

Enjoy, foodies! From my kitchen to yours <3

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups almond pulp {from 2 batches almond mylk}
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp shredded coconut, unsweetened
2 tbsp lemon juice, from 1 lemons
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup almond butter

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, stir together almond pulp, rolled oats, and shredded coconut until well-combined.
2. Stir in lemon juice, pure vanilla extract, maple syrup, and almond butter, mixing until ingredients stick together.
3. Use an ice cream scoop to form dough balls. Drop onto a plate and place in fridge.
4. Eat whenever cravings strike.

peace, love, food <3

Char, xo

Friends of ours invited us over for dinner yesterday, and they served an amazing homemade veggie & lentil soup. The flavours were all so fresh, and it was a delicious comfort for a winter night. The soup was prepared with tomatoes, beets, zucchini, carrots, celery, lentils, corn…So good! <3 Now I want to pull out my slow cooker again!

I love how much thought people put in to serving me a vegan dinner when they’re not vegan themselves. It’s really, really appreciated {Thank you Stasia & Brandon!} So I bring pie.

I had originally planned on bringing just the pudding with some homemade whipping cream, but when I got to the store, I found this Keebler Ready Crust. It was obviously unintentionally vegan, but it gave me a great idea! There were also chocolate crust and shortbread options, and yep, they were all vegan! Score. Remembering the other ones for future reference for sure.

Unfortunately, when I tried to transfer the crust to my pie plate, it fell apart…haha. So I crushed it and decided to make a graham crumb bottom. No biggie.

I found this recipe for Chocolate Peanut Butter Tofu Pudding and it was perfect. I used smooth roasted almond butter, and icing sugar instead of white sugar {I did not dissolve the sugar as the recipe suggests}. The texture was amazing, and I promptly poured it over the graham crumbs. Into the fridge it went to set.

In the meantime, I went to work on the whipping cream. I had planned to make a homemade coconut version, but found this almond-cashew whipping cream made by Mimicreme when I was shopping. It was in the baking section of the store, un-refrigerated. You don’t need to put it in the fridge until you’re ready to use it! I popped it into the fridge for an hour, though it only needs 30 mins.

When I scooped it out of the box, it was a thick lump. I got out my electric beater and beat it on high for about 8 minutes.

It quadrupled in size!! And tasted amazing! That little box made 4 whole cups of whipping cream

I scooped the whipping cream into my icing syringe and got prepared to decorate.

Smiles!

I shaved some Bernard Callebaut chocolate…

…and sprinkled it on top. Delicious <3

Unfortunately, it looked ugly coming out of the dish, but was delicious nonetheless.  Everyone loved it, and there wasn’t a morsel left! Highly recommended by all

If you want to make this recipe:

-use about 1 1/2 cups graham crumbs
-this recipe for chocolate peanut butter tofu pudding
-non-dairy whipping cream of choice
-shaved chocolate, for decorating

Then assemble!

What was the best thing you ate this weekend, foodies?

peace, love, food <3

Char, xo

Unfortunately for Dallas, I over-cooked the lentils. I only had a small scoop of them in my dish, making sure to give the extra protein to my man. Next time, I will make sure to cook them in vegetable broth and be careful not to make them so mushy…oopsy.

The salad I served was simple and delicious, tossed with olive oil, apple cider vinegar, and a fresh squeezed lemon. A sprinkle of Epicure Selections Lemon Dilly Dip Mix and a bit of S & P made a perfect combo of flavours.

Dallas also picked up a package of  Mrs. May’s Blueberry Almond Fruit & Nut Crunchy Toppers to add to our salad. TO DIE FOR <3 Nice find, Dallas!

Wanna know something else? Since we’ve both been working hard at the gym and trying to eat smaller portions, I decided to weigh our pasta before cooking it. A serving size is 85 grams, and I was reeeaaally surprised to see what two servings looks like! Our bowls of pasta looked small when dinner came, only because we were used to eating about 4 servings EACH {No wonder I packed on the love pounds!}. I was also surprised that we both felt satisfied after dinner, even though there was less pasta than I usually cook. We filled up on salad, enjoyed the pasta, and it felt really good. I don’t think losing weight means cutting out foods you love. I think we all just need to be smarter about it

A few hours later, I was wanting chocolate {what else is new??}. I remembered Katie’s Single-Serving Mocha Chocolate Cake and HAD to make it in my mini cocettes! I texted Dallas at work to ask if he wanted one:

Results? Rich, decadent, delicious. Exactly what I was craving. We don’t have instant coffee, so I just used finely ground espresso beans and they worked perfectly. Since we don’t have a microwave, into the toaster oven it went. Also, it might not look totally baked, but that’s because I was too damn impatient to wait for it. Totally cool with eating half-baked batter. Such an amazing indulgence <3

Btw, it’s been almost two weeks since we started working out and going to the gym together: I checked at the 10 day mark, and I’ve lost 2lbs. Even while eating pasta and cake! Again, you don’t have to cut out the foods you love. You just gotta be smart about them

Anyhoo, want a recipe? How about two?

From my kitchen to yours <3

Fake Spaghetti:
Ingredients:
2 servings whole wheat spaghetti noodles, dry
2 tsp vegan butter
1 small can tomato paste
1/2 cup lentils, cooked
2 marinated artichoke hearts, sliced
1/4 cup tomato, diced
4 garlic-stuffed olives, sliced
sea salt, to taste
optional: fresh or dried basil, oregano, etc., to taste

Directions:
1. Prepare spaghetti noodles according to package directions. When cooked, drain water and return noodles to pot.
2. Melt vegan butter into the warm noodles, stirring well. Immediately stir in the tomato paste and mix until noodles are coated.
3. Toss all remaining ingredients with pasta.  Split evenly into two bowls and serve!

Gourmet Lemon Herb Salad
Ingredients:
1/2 head green leaf lettuce, chopped
1/2 bunch fresh spinach, chopped
2 medium carrots, sliced
1/2 medium zucchini, sliced
2 radishes, sliced
1/2 medium tomato, diced
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice, from one lemon
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp Epicure Selections Lemon Dilly Dip Mix
sea salt & black pepper, to taste
1/3 cup Mrs. May’s Blueberry Almond Fruit & Nut Crunchy Toppers

Directions:
1. Toss together green leaf lettuce, spinach, carrots, zucchini, radishes, and tomato.
2. Drizzle  olive oil, lemon juice, & apple cider vinegar over salad mix. Sprinkle in Epicure seasoning, sea salt, & black pepper. Toss well.
3. Lastly, sprinkle Mrs. May’s Fruit & Nut Toppers onto the salad. Ta da! Gourmet salad. Enjoy!

peace, love, food <3

Char, xo 

SNOW DAY!! Honestly, normally I’d rather be in class, but today I stayed in my pjs all day, sipped homemade cappuccinos, didn’t brush my hair or do my makeup, watched movies with Dallas, and snuggled with Mowzers. Best part was that I was actually home to make us dinner today! That hasn’t been happening much lately, so it was a nice treat for us both. I’d like to say I got a lot of homework done, but…uh…oh look, food!

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: if you don’t like tofu, you haven’t had it made properly. I used to loathe tofu, but only because of how it was prepared. I buy the extra-firm and press it, then marinate it. I just fed this to an omnivore- trust me, it’s good.

The veggies have their own flavour profile that goes well with the tofu, as do the peas & rice. Dinner was nutritious, filling, and hardly dirtied many dishes! I love it. Great comfort food on a snow day <3

Roasted veggies!! love <3

Fabulous dinner, minimal effort. Now I can get back to homework Facebook.

Enjoy, foodies! From my kitchen to yours <3

Ingredients:

For the tofu:
1/2 block extra-firm tofu, pressed & cubed
2 tbsp mango chutney
1/2 tbsp sesame oil
1/2 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

For the rice:
2/3 cup brown rice
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup frozen peas
2 tbsp Bragg’s {or other soy sauce}
1/2 tbsp rice vinegar
1/2 tsp sea salt

For the veggies: 
1 medium zucchini, chopped
3 medium carrots, chopped
1/2 head broccoli, chopped
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, seeded & chopped
2 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp Bragg’s {or other soy sauce}
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
4 cloves garlic, minced

Directions:

For the tofu:
1. In a small container, combine tofu with mango chutney, sesame oil, maple syrup, and apple cider vinegar. Close container and shake well. Allow to marinate at least 20 minutes, though it’s best to leave for an hour or longer.
2. Line a baking sheet with tin foil or parchment paper and place tofu on top. Bake @ 425 degrees for 35-40 mins, turning once halfway through {I baked this on the same pan as the veggies}. Serve warm.

For the rice:
1. Put rice and water into a small pot over medium high heat. Bring to a boil, stir, cover, reduce to minimum. After 20 mins, lift lid and sprinkle in frozen peas. Do not stir in. Cover and let cook until water is absorbed.
2. Once cooked, stir in the soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sea salt. Serve warm.

For the veggies:
1. In a large mixing bowl, toss all chopped veggies with sesame oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, sea salt, & garlic. Mix well.
2. Line a baking sheet with tin foil or parchment paper and spread veggies evenly on top. Bake @ 425 degrees for 35-40 mins, turning once halfway through {I baked this with the tofu}. Serve warm.

And your delicious dinner is done! <3

Question: Is there much snow where you live? Did you go out in it or snuggle up inside?

Just for some giggles, I will leave you with a photo of Ambrose. I hope you’re all having a better day than Ambrose.

peace, love, food <3

Char, xo

I am looooving my new mini stoneware cocettes for baking!! So far I’ve only used them for {a lot of} oatmeal, but I like the texture it produces better, and so does Dallas. As opposed to the ramekins, these cocettes keep the oatmeal more moist rather than crispy. {If you’re curious, they are made by Le Creuset.} I based this recipe off of my peanut butter fudgy baked oatmeal, using 1/2 mashed ripe banana in place of the applesauce. Originally, the recipe was inspired by Katie’s baked oatmeals.

looooooooove!! <3

As for our workouts, Dallas & I went to the gym again today! I did an intense at-home weight & cardio workout yesterday and am still feeling it today, sooo I went light on the elliptical and that was it. My body hurts so good. Simple acts like sitting down that I normally so appreciate are momentarily quite painful. I think light yoga tomorrow for sure.

And now I have some almond mylk to make and a Psychology textbook to read. Sowwie for the short post, but I have some obligations to attend to! xox

From my kitchen to yours <3

Ingredients:
1/2 cup rolled oats
2 tsp cocoa powder
1/2 tsp stevia {or 1 tsp brown sugar}
1/8 tsp sea salt
1/2 ripe banana, peeled & mashed
1/4 cup almond mylk
1/4 cup applesauce
1 tsp peanut butter {use chunky!!}
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:
1. In a small bowl, stir together first 4 ingredients until well-combined.
2. Mix in all remaining ingredients and stir well. Scoop into mini ramekin or mini bakeware.
3. Bake at 350-380 degrees for 20 mins.
4. Allow to cool for 2-3 mins. Enjoy warm.

peace, love, food <3

Char, xo