Healthy Summer Salad

By: Genevieve Melzer

It’s officially summer and I’m all about fresh, light salads right now, maybe because its 117 degrees outside and eating hot, heavy foods is about the last thing I want to do.

These days I’m all about creating new salads with season vegetables and interesting spices. This salad was inspired by a recipe I found in an old newspaper for a chickpea ginger salad. I thought ooh chickpeas sound good and I was off to the local market. I wish Liz and I lived closer to each other instead of 8 hours away because

I would just go to her amazing garden and pick out organic vegetables.
At the market I saw some beautiful bell peppers, and chose orange and green colored ones. I then picked up some fresh cilantro, a red onion, green olives, an heirloom tomato and some raw spinach. When I arrived home with my bounty I was super excited at what I was about to create.

You will need:

1 15 oz can garbanzo beans

2 bell peppers chopped (which ever colors you prefer)

¼ large red onion, choped
¼ cup chopped cilantro
½ teaspoon cumin powder
1 heirloom tomato, chopped
½ cup green olives (small)
2 cups raw spinach
1 tbsp avocado oil
1 tbsp lemon infused olive oil (don’t have this one use regular oil olive)
1 tbsp hatch chile vinegar (I used this special vinegar, feel free to use whatever vinegar you have and prefer)
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Start by placing your garbanzo beans into a large bowl, add the cumin and a sprinkle of salt and mix together. Set aside.
2. Slice up your bell peppers and onion; then chop up slices for smaller cube pieces. Place in large bowl on top of garbanzo beans
3. Chop cilantro as fine as you can get it. Place in same large bowl when finished.
4. Chop of heirloom tomato and place in the bowl.
5. Pour olives in bowl with the rest of your ingredients.
6. Add the spinach and lightly toss.
7. Now it’s time to dress the salad, pour in the olive oil, avocado oil, vinegar and salt and pepper.
8. Toss all ingredients together making sure the dressing gets all over every piece.
9. Serve and enjoy!

When I took the first bite of this salad my taste buds were electrified. The cumin added such an interesting flavor profile to the beans. Each bite was fresh, crisp, refreshing, sweet and salty; when my bowl was empty I wanted to go back for seconds it was that good.

This recipe makes about 4 servings, so it is the perfect salad to take to a small dinner party and impress your friends. This salad is perfect for summer because it is refreshing and light but still fills you up because of the heartiness of the beans. Let me know what you think of this salad in the comments below; until next time stay cool, fit and eat healthy.

Chocolate, Almond Butter Energy Nuggets

By: Genevieve Melzer

When eating healthy it is so important to snack. We are supposed to eat six small meals a day so you feel like you are grazing throughout the day. I wanted to make a snack that I could eat before I worked out that would give me energy and help fuel me for my workout.

I found a recipe online for “no-bake oatmeal cookies” and I took a look at the recipe and figured out how I could make it vegan and even healthier. I wanted to make these energy nuggets so I could grab something healthy in a pinch and not eat anything processed.

What you will need:
1 cups oats
2 tablespoons dark chocolate chips
2 tablespoons crushed pecans
2 tablespoons coconut flakes
1 tablespoon hemp hearts
1 tablespoon flax powder
1 tablespoon chia seeds
2 tablespoons Vega One chocolate protein powder
1 tablespoon chocolate PB2 protein powder
4 tablespoons almond butter
½ cup almond milk

Preparation:
Put all dry ingredients together in a medium to large sized bowl. Add almond butter and mix completely together using your hands. Pour in almond milk and mix again. Roll and form 10 balls out of the batter. Place on a plate and refrigerate for 10 minutes. Serve and enjoy!

These energy nuggets are hard to stop eating, I ate three right away. I feel as though cooking doesn’t need to be so strict, feel free to add anything else you would like to like goji berries or other nuts. Also you can substitute any other nut-butter for the almond butter for you would like and that goes for the almond milk as well.

Let us know what you think of these energy nuggets and what you add to yours to improve this recipe. We look forward to hearing from you, until next time… eat healthy, appreciate life and believe in yourself. Peace!

Almond Milk

Using a nut bag to make smooth almond milk

Homemade Almond Milk

What you will need:

1 cup almonds, soaked overnight in cool water

4 cups filtered water

blender

nut bag or cheese cloth with a strainer

glass jar to keep your milk in

1. Take the dry almonds, rinse and soak them under at least three inches of cool water overnight. Toss any almonds that floated to the top.

2. In the morning, drain and rinse the almonds a few times. Place them in the blender with four cups of filtered water. Blend slowly at first then turn your dial to 10 and on high (Vitamix). Blend for a min, maybe two depending on the power of your blender.

3. To get a smooth milk, strain your milk thru a nut bag or cheesecloth. 

Take a large bowl, preferably with a spout on it (it makes it easier to pour out when done) to catch your milk, pour the milk into the nut bag and squeeze the liquid out the bag and into the bowl. If using cheese cloth, place it over a strainer and pour your milk slowly thru. Squeezing the cloth to push the liquid into the large bowl.

4. Pour your fresh milk into your glass container. Makes about 4 cups, depending on your blender. Keep in the refrigerator. Use within five days. 

Milk Protecter (glass container)

When you blend your almonds you can add a sweetener like soaked dates. Use three or four of them depending on how sweet you like your milk. Just remember you can always add to your own drink later, but you can’t unsweeten the whole batch. Soak your dates in warm water for a few hours just to break down the fibers, drain and blend in milk.

The sky is the limit as to what your homemade almond milk can taste like, try cinnamon and nutmeg, or a bit of maple syrup. Test it out first on a small amount to see what you do and don’t like.  

This may not be the most cost effective way to get your almond milk. Almonds are $$$ and almond milk you find in the store is a bit cheaper. Next time you pick up a box of almond milk or rice or soy milk, read the label and see what else you are drinking besides almonds, rice or soy. You may find the $$$ spent is well worth it.

"Ice box" Chia Seed Oatmeal

By: Genevieve Melzer

Hello everybody,

It’s been awhile since I’ve posted and it’s time to get back into sharing recipes with all of you. This week for me was all about preparing meals for the next day. I always work out and eat healthy because that is a part of my healthy lifestyle, but since I have gotten engaged I have really stepped it up a notch.

I eat healthier when I have it mapped out for the day. I love eating oatmeal in the morning because it fuels me for much of my day, so when a friend told me about this easy oatmeal recipe I had to try it.

Start by using a Mason jar or tuber-ware container.

What you will need:
½ cup oats
1 cup almond milk (can use coconut milk or hemp milk)
2 teaspoons of chia seeds
¼ cup blueberries
1. Scoop oats into the mason jar
2. Pour almond milk on top of the oats.
3. Add chia seeds and blueberries.
4. Mix everything together well.
5. Seal Mason jar or tuber-ware container.
6. Place in “ice box” (refrigerator) over night and oatmeal will be ready to eat in the morning.
7. Eat & Enjoy!

You can heat the oatmeal up or just enjoy it cold like I did. Feel free to add any fruit you like besides blueberries, that’s just what I had in the house so that’s what I used. I love bananas and strawberries in my oatmeal so I will probably use those next time. Also feel free to add cinnamon or agave if you need more of a sweet taste.

This Ice Box Chia Seed Oatmeal is the perfect grab n’ go breakfast when you are running late for work or just too tired in the morning to make something. On Tuesday mornings I go to Zumba class and sometimes I am so tired I can’t get up to make breakfast so this is the perfect thing to have in the “ice box” waiting for me.

This oatmeal is vegan, made with all organic ingredients and super healthy for you too. It is a great go to meal when you are super busy with work and life. Post in the comments below what you add to your oatmeal from the garden, I’m always looking for new ides. Until next time eat healthy, live in the moment and keep moving.

Pea and Parsley Risotto

Pea and Parsley Risotto

By: Elizabeth Beals

   Peas are just coming into season this year and it's still a little chilly outside for spring. Risotto is the perfect dish to fill you up and keep you warm. I have come to love this dish so much that I requested it for my 29th birthday dinner. I will be honest and tell you, the first time I made this dish from start to finish it took me two hours! I was still new to vegan cooking and had never made a risotto in my life. I am proud to say that I have it down to under an hour now. What a little bit of patience and practice will do for the cook in all of us. Three tips I want to pass on to you about risotto. Pull a stool to the stove you are going to be there for a while. The wine can be cold, but the veggie broth needs to be warmed. Lastly, please wait until all the liquid has been absorbed each time before adding more. 

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1  white onion, finely diced

1 cup + more to garish fresh parsley, chopped

1 cup arborio rice

1 cup white wine, use what you like and drink the rest

3 cups veggie broth, warmed

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast

1 cup fresh or frozen peas 

1/4 cup basil, fresh chopped

1. Heat oil in your largest pan with a tall edge over medium heat. Cook the onion for a few mins until soft then add the parsley. Watch out because the parsley will pop out of the pan from the hot oil. Lower the heat if parsley starts to brown. Cook until all is tender it will take about 3 mins.

2. Stir in rice and cook until the tips are translucent, stir constantly for 2 to 3 mins. Once tips are translucent stir in wine. When the wine had been absorbed by the rice, reduce heat to a simmer. About 3 mins for the wine to be absorbed by the rice.

3. Stir in warmed veggie broth a half cup to a cup at a time. Waiting until each amount has been absorbed by the rice before adding another cup of broth. Make sure rice doesn’t stick to the sides of your pan and keep stirring.

4. After all cups are absorbed taste to see if rice is tender enough. If not add more broth or water to rice. Cook until rice is tender.

5. Add pepper, yeast, and peas. Cook until peas are hot. Take off burner and cover with a lid. Let it sit for about 10 mins. From onions in the pan to letting it rest it’s about 40mins for me now. Garish with fresh basil.

Keep in mind it use to take me 2 hours when I first started making this dish. That included getting all the ingredients together and measuring everything out then reading and rereading the recipe that I had planned. There's an hour plus right there! We are all working at different skill levels on this journey. Be proud of where you are and keep moving forward.  

Cucumber and Soba Noodle Salad with Spicy Peanut Dressing

By Elizabeth Beals

    This is a light and refreshing meal that you can spice up or mellow down to your preference. I tend to make it in the spring and summer for lunch a lot. It will help if you have a mandolin in your kitchen to make quick work of the cucumber. If not, it will be a great time to practice your knife skills.

 Peanut sauce:

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup boiling water

2 tablespoons plum vinegar or rice vinegar

1 tablespoons beet sugar or sweetener of choice

4 garlic cloves, minced

crushed red peppers, to taste

2 teaspoons lemon juice

Sriracha or chili sauce of choice to taste

Noodles:

One cucumber, thinly Julienned (aprox the size and shape of the soba noodles)

soba noodles (make sure they are GF, some have wheat flour in them so read your labels)

1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

1/4 cup peanuts, chopped

1. Combine the peanut butter with the boiling water and mix together.

2. Then add the rest of your sauce ingredients together and let it cool.

3. Cook your soba noodles, they won’t take but a few mins. Rinse them with cold water and drain.

4. Mix the cucumber and soba noodles in a bowl with as much or as little sauce as you would like.

5. Garnish with fresh basil and chopped peanuts. Add more Sriracha if you need more of a kick. 

Nuts over Bananas…mini "ice cream" sandwiches

by: Elizabeth Beals

   If you have been following our posts you see that we are nuts over bananas and peanut butter. In the world of vegan cooking, bananas are a wonderful tool to create many different treats and eats. From smoothies, to muffins, and even ice cream can all be made using this amazing fruit. Add peanut butter with the bananas and you have a real treat! This is a no bake dessert, a food processor and freezer are all you will need.

Step 6 In the freezer

Ready to eat

   My desirer was to create a dessert that was healthy, but would satisfy my sweet tooth at the same time. Ice cream sandwiches were a favorite of mine growing up, like many people I know. I hope you try and enjoy my own take on this classic dessert.

Ingredients:

Raw dough

8 dates, soaked in warm water to soften with seeds removed

1/2 cup unbleached raw almonds

1/8 cup pecans

1/8 cup raisins 

1 tablespoon flax seed

Ice Cream Filling

1 banana, sliced

1 teaspoon peanut butter per sandwich

Wrapper

mini muffin tin papers

Tools or special equipment 

food processor 

mini muffin tin paper

Preparation and procedures 

1. Remove the seeds and soak dates in warm water to soften them. Only for a few minutes if soft already.
2. Pulse the almonds in the food processor until you have very small pieces, but don’t over process them or you will have almond butter. Take your almond pieces out and set them aside.
3. Drain the dates and pulse them in the processor until you have a date paste.
4. Add back the almond pieces and all the other dough ingredients to the date paste and pulse together. In 30 seconds or so you will have a sticky dough. It will come together in a ball and when that happens, your dough is done.
5. Take 1 teaspoon of the dough and with your thumb press it down in the muffin paper.
6. Layer 1 sliced banana on top and spoon 1 teaspoon of peanut butter on top of the sliced banana. Place in freezer for 30 minutes.
7. The peanut butter should be semi hard after 30 minutes in the freezer. Take them out and top off your sandwich with another teaspoon of dough. Press lightly down to flatten the dough.
8. Place back in the freezer for 20 minutes. Pull out of the freeze a minute or two before eating.

Cacao, PB2, Banana Muffins

By: Genevieve Melzer

I am notorious for eating green bananas, I like my bananas right as they turn from green to yellow. So I always buy them when they are green so they will be perfect to eat in a day or so, but sometimes I buy too many and as soon as they get any sort of brown spots on them I just don’t want to eat them.

I have a few recipes in my repertoire that involve brown or super ripe bananas but I wanted to make something new. I had 3 overly ripe bananas so I looked in my pantry and two ingredients jumped out at me immediately. The cacao powder and the PB2 (a peanut butter protein powder), I then realized what I was going to make… cacao, peanut butter, banana muffins.

I recently purchased PB2 and am obsessed with it; it is a peanut butter protein powder but doesn’t have any weird additives. It packs 5g of protein in 2 tablespoons and has 85% less fat calories than traditional peanut butter. I have been using it in all my protein smoothies and thought I should see what it’s like to bake with.

You will need:

3 bananas (very ripe)
3 tablespoons coconut sugar
3 tablespoons cacao powder, unsweetened (can use cocoa powder instead)
3 tablespoons of PB2, peanut butter protein powder (can use peanut butter or almond butter instead)
½ tablespoon of vanilla extract
4 tablespoons of earth balance butter
¾ cup of Gluten-Free All Purpose Flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill brand)
Pinch of sea salt

Note: The peanut butter taste is not very pronounced from the PB2, you can add more if you like.

1. Preheat the oven at 350 degrees and place muffin cup liners into muffin baking pan.
2. In a large bowl, combine banana, coconut sugar, cacao powder, PB2, vanilla extract and earth balance. Mash together until the consistency of the mixture is like that of pudding.
3. Slowly stir in the flour and add the salt. Mix together.
4. When the batter is mixed together completely scoop heaping tablespoonfuls into individual muffin cup liners.
5. This recipe should make one dozen (12 muffins) bake for 20-30 minutes, test for doneness by sticking a toothpick in the middle of one of the muffins, if it comes out clean the muffins are done.
6. Let cool for 10 minutes, serve and enjoy!

BEWARE! These muffins are yummy and once you eat one you will want to eat a few more. They are smaller than regular muffins and have only good ingredients in them so feel free to indulge yourself.

The shelf life of these muffins is around 3 or 4 days if you don’t eat them all before that. Mine only lasted two days because I was all about eating them and so was my man.

The Art of Thinning

By: Elizabeth Beals

As the days grow longer 

and the cold drifts away 

the earth slowly warms 

ready to welcome

new seeds 

and new life.

One of the hardest parts of this garden business hits you right out of the gate.
You've beaten the odds and successfully germinated your carefully chosen seeds. 

Good for you by the way. 

Your instincts are to let them all live and grow into big, beautiful veggies. I doubt you
have ever been warned that you will be faced with Sofie's choice each spring.
In the gardening world, it's called thinning. Sounds harmless, right? Possibly even pleasant.
Thinning, though sometimes difficult, is a necessary evil. Kill the weak and the crowded!
Why kill such a young and helpless little seedlings you ask? They haven't hurt anyone. 

Well, not yet they haven't, but given time and they will.
You must defeat the seedlings before they defeat your garden! 

Dramatic, sure, but I was surprised how difficult it was to do. 

From seed to plate these plants are like my children.  

Which baby beet plant in this picture would you want to kill? (None please!) 

(Answer: sadly, all but one) 

We as gardeners must grow a thick skin, suck it up, and pick the best of the best!

Give our energy towards that seedling and hope it grows into a plant. That will then feed 

and nourish you and your family in return.

If we want a big FAT beet you can't have two of them growing right next to each other. 

You end up with two small flat sided beets. 

Thinning is an important part of vegetable gardening. 

There are good reasons for planting more than one seed in each hole. 

You plant a few seeds in each hole hoping that at least one seed will germinate.  

If more than one does become a seedling, then you need to make a choice. 

Pick the strongest and healthiest when they are only a few inches tall. It's best to cut the stem 

at the soil line so you won't disturb the roots of other young plants you wish to keep.  

It may be hard, but many of the sprouts in your garden are edible and extremely nutritious in their 

young state. Think of alfalfa sprouts on a sandwich or salad. Otherwise, you can 

always throw them in your compost pile and let them live again. 

There are even some cases where you can save the life of your young plants by 

transplanting them. 

Leeks, garlic and some onions are examples of plants that can be moved as they grow, 

but more on transplanting later.

I hope you give a few seeds a chance to feed you and your family. It was what they

were born to do! Come on, what's the worst that could happen, you kill the plant?

Been there (still happens sometimes) but, as a friend told me once "You can't let fear stop you."

Energy Packed Granola

By: Genevieve Melzer

I love making homemade granola because when you make it yourself it doesn’t have any weird additives or animal byproducts. Store bought granola can be packed with crazy high amounts of sugar, when all you really need is a little maple syrup to sweeten your oats.

When I make granola at home I use whatever I might have lying around that would taste good in granola like flax seeds and coconut oil. I like to make granola as filling and energy packed as possible by adding different nuts and seeds.
It is also super easy to make granola and doesn’t take much of your time at all. You basically just combine all the ingredients and mix together and voila your very own homemade granola.

Energy Packed Granola

You will need:
2 cups oats
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup raw pecans
½ cup raw almonds
1 tbsp flax seeds
1 tbsp chia seeds
1 tbsp hemp seeds
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp molasses
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tbsp of coconut oil
Pinch of sea salt
Pinch of cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl combine oats, dried cranberries, pecans, almonds, flax seeds, chia seeds, hemp seeds and sea salt and mix together.
3. Then add the maple syrup, molasses, vanilla extract and coconut oil. Stir together until completely combined.

4. Spread mixture evenly on an ungreased baking sheet.
5. Bake for 30-40 minutes, halfway through baking stir the mixture and heavily sprinkle with cinnamon.
6. When mixture is golden brown (30-40 minutes) remove from the oven and let cool for 10-20 minutes. Then serve with almond milk poured all over it. Makes 5 to 6 servings.

I like to store my granola in a large mason jar when it’s done cooling; it keeps it good for a long time. This granola’s shelf life is probably a couple of weeks, but mine never lasts that long because I eat it so fast.

This granola doesn’t need any added sugar, the maple syrup adds enough sweetener to it, and you can’t even tell it doesn’t have some form of sugar or artificial sweetener in it because it tastes so good.

Feel free to change this recipe as you see fit. If you have some other ingredients lying around that you would rather add go ahead and do it. Other ingredients I sometimes use are coconut flakes, carob chips, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, etc. Be creative but make sure to add only the foods that give you energy since granola is a great healthy way to start the day.

Seasoned Brown Gravy

By: Elizabeth Beals

This gravy is very simple to make and can be used for many different meals. My favorite way to enjoy gravy is still with mashed potatoes. Or I will make my Shepherd's pie which is a comfort food filled with veggies, topped with creamy mashed potatoes. Cover all that with gravy and you have a wonderful and very filling meal. It's healthy too!

You will need: 

a small sauce pan

1 cup water

1/4 cup Bragg's Liquid Amino 

1 tablespoon Poultry Seasoning

2 tablespoons corn starch 

1 tablespoon cold water

1. Mix corn starch and cold water together, set aside.

2. Bring water, Bragg's and poultry seasoning to a boil in the small sauce pan.

3. Lower the heat to simmer and slowly stir in the corn starch and water mixture. You may not use it all, it will depended on how thick you like your gravy.

4. Take off heat once the gravy has thickened. 

Serve and enjoy.

Vegan Super Bowl Snacks

By: Genevieve Melzer

It's that time of year again football season is coming to a close and the Super Bowl is upon us. I have been to countless Super Bowl parties and had to navigate through the dishes because so many of them revolve around meat and cheese.

I usually end up only eating cut up vegetables with no dip and chips. This year is going to be different because no longer do us vegans have to miss out on delicious signature Super Bowl dishes we can make them vegan and healthy.

I have wanted to make my own version of hot wings with cauliflower instead of chicken for a long time now and what a perfect excuse but for the Super Bowl.

Cauliflower Hot Wings

You will need:
1 medium to large head of cauliflower
12 oz. hot wing sauce (I used Frank’s Redhot Original Cayenne Pepper Sauce, as it was the only one that didn’t have butter flavoring or egg yolk, feel free to make your own if you have the time)

Warning: The sauce I picked is incredibly spicy, not for the faint of heart!

1. In a large pot boil water.
2. Cut cauliflower so that florets are separated from stalk and discard.
3. Place all florets into the boiling water, boil for 10 minutes.
4. Drain cauliflower and set aside, pour hot wing sauce into a medium saucepan and put heat on low.
5. When the sauce is warm, using tongs grab cauliflower florets and place into the sauce, move around so all sides are touched by the sauce. After 1-2 minutes take cauliflower pieces out of the sauce and set in a bowl.
6. After all cauliflower florets have been in the sauce. Pour leftover sauce all over them. Serve and enjoy!

Another Super Bowl recipe that that I changed from its original version is oven-baked pickles instead of deep fried pickles. Deep-friend pickles are usually made with some sort of dairy and deep-fried to perfection. In my recipe I have discarded the dairy and I baked the pickles instead of deep-frying them because baking them is healthier.

Oven-Baked Pickles

You will need:
8 oz of dill, sliced pickles (I used the pickles they call “bread & butter” pickles)
Salt
Pepper
Garlic Powder
Nutritional Yeast

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease a baking sheet with oil (olive or other)
3. Place pickle slices on sheet, so they aren’t touching.
4. Generously sprinkle sliced pickles with salt, pepper, garlic powder and nutritional yeast.
5. Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes.
6. Remove from oven, serve and enjoy.

I hope you enjoy my recipes and the big game. Try creating your own vegan Super Bowl snacks for this year’s big game. You can really recreate any traditional recipe and make it vegan and not lose the flavor. Eat, drink and have fun this Super Bowl Sunday!

Healthy, Vegan Pancakes

By: Genevieve Melzer

Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day and I usually end up eating oatmeal nearly every morning, because it’s very healthy and fuels me for many hours. But sometimes I feel like shaking things up and eating something different.

I wish pancakes or French toast could fuel me the same way oatmeal did. I started to research healthy pancake recipes on Pinterest and came across some healthy, easy to make pancake recipes using bananas, oatmeal and egg whites. As soon as I saw this I got to thinking, can I make a healthy vegan pancake without using egg whites?

I rated the kitchen cabinets and found a few key ingredients and thought this will work. So I attempted my own creation…healthy, vegan pancakes. No longer do we have to miss out on delicious pancake breakfasts.

You will need:
2 bananas
2/3 cup of oats
1 cup almond milk (option: can use coconut milk, flax milk, rice milk)
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon molasses
2 tablespoons agave
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ cup gluten-free all purpose flour

Combine all ingredients into a Naturibullet or blender and blend on high until all ingredients are blended together.

Oil your griddle or large skillet with coconut oil or other oil. Turn heat on medium and let pan get hot. Pour ½ cup of mixture onto the griddle. When the mixture starts to bubble from the heat of the griddle flip it, usually 30 seconds- 60 seconds. Let other side cook for 30-60 seconds then remove from pan.

Pancakes will be golden brown. Repeat until all the batter is used. This recipe makes 6-8 pancakes.

Top your pancakes with any of the following:
Earth balance (vegan butter), jam, maple syrup, fruit, almond butter, apple sauce, vegan chocolate chips…or whatever you love to put on your pancakes.

After making these pancakes I realized what an easy recipe this was and how easy the pancakes were to make. I remember as a kid, my mom slaving away making pancakes and this recipe seemed so much easier. By blending the ingredients together you save so many steps.

I also felt this recipe was less messy than other times I have made pancakes; I barely had any clean-up which was nice.

This recipe would be a fun and easy recipe to make with kids and a healthy alternative to conventional pancakes.

These healthy, vegan pancakes look and taste just like regular pancakes…but you don’t feel guilt eating them. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

5 Steps for Losing Weight in 2015

By: Genevieve Melzer

Every year we all make New Year’s resolutions many of them are about getting healthy and losing weight.

It’s the middle of January and some New Year’s resolutions have already been broken, but it’s not too late to stick with them. January is the perfect month to get motivated and say “this is the year I’m finally going to get the body I have always dreamed of.”

It is never too late to follow your dreams and stick to your goals. Losing weight can be a daunting task; if you have a lot to lose it can even seem impossible. But if you choose to make small changes in your life you will start to see big results. Follow these 5 steps and see your life change in front of your eyes.

1. First clean out your kitchen, get rid of anything that is unhealthy for you, anything you binge on. For me it was potato chips I knew I had to get them out of the house, because once the bag opens I would have to finish it. By removing any unhealthy/binge foods you won’t have the temptation to eat them every time you are in your kitchen.

2. Plan out your meals in advance every week. If you plan out your meals then you will be less likely to deviate and eat unhealthy foods. We tend to eat unhealthy when we are tired from our work day and just want something fast. If your meals are planned out you know exactly what you are to eat and when. Another tip to help you stick with this is making all your food in advance; cook all your food for the week on Sunday.

3. Portion size is key. America is known for huge portion sizes which leads to us overeating. If you eat the correct portion of protein, veggies, carbohydrate, etc. you will start to see weight lose because you will only be giving your body what it needs.

4. Therapy! It doesn’t matter how big or small you are everyone can benefit from therapy. If you are carrying around baggage about whatever happened to you in your life, you have to deal with it. Sooner or later everything catches up to you and if you don’t work through your baggage it can manifest itself into others things including your weight.

5. Start an exercise plan. Whether it walking, yoga, Pilates, running, etc. start an exercise plan where you are held accountable. Maybe start with a friend so you are more likely to stick with it because your friend is there to push you. You have to get active if you want to lose weight, start off slow and build on your exercise program.

If you stick with these 5 steps you will start to see positive changes with your weight and your life. These 5 steps will get you on the right path and lead you where you want to go.

Kid Friendly, Mother approved Mac and "Cheese"

This was last year's garlic and my dog Luke                        

That same garlic you saw with Luke

 By: Elizabeth Beals

I have been a fan of mac-n-cheese for as long as I can remember. Homemade, gourmet, or the cheap blue box, you know the one, it didn't matter I ate it all. I love the rich, creamy sauce over what else, pasta! It just didn't love me back. So began my quest for a healthy mac-n-cheese. Little did I know how rough of a start it would be. After many months of trying this recipe and that, I cooked a few veggies and blended them together with some spices. Amazingly, I wound up with a thick rich "cheese sauce" to pour over veggies, rice, or whatever pasta I like. So far, my favorite is brown rice pasta, it doesn't fall apart on you.

Brown Rice pasta

What you will need: A medium sauce pan and a blender.

Ingredients:

1 medium white onion, roughly chopped

1 carrot, roughly chopped 1/2 cup to 1 cup

1/2 head of cauliflower, roughly chopped (save the other half for mash potatoes with a brown gravy)

4 cups veggie broth

1 heaping tablespoon garlic, minced

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon mustard powder

1 heaping tablespoon nutritional yeast (more or less if you like)

salt and pepper to taste

1. Place onion, carrot, cauliflower and veggie broth in a medium sauce pan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and cover. Cook covered for 15 min or until you can easily pierce the cauliflower with a knife.

2. Spoon out the cooked veggies into the blender. Don't toss the veggie broth yet, you will need a cup or so to thin the cheese sauce. Add the garlic, turmeric, mustard powder, and nutritional yeast. Close the blender and cover with a towel, just in case. Blend until smooth adding broth until you reach the consistency you want. I use about a cup of broth. 

3. Pour over you favorite pasta, rice or veggies and serve while hot. 

 

Cauliflower, Carrots, and Onions I swear