WIAW #34 OR A Day of Favorites

   Hi Friends!

   Are you ready for another edition of WIAW? Me, too! This is actually Sunday's eats, not Wednesday's AND, they all just happen to be my favorite foods. So, without further ado, let's get on with the eats!

Breakfast...

Tofu Scramble with Avocado Toast

  Lately I've been obsessed with two weekend-type breakfasts: tofu scrambles, like the one above, and my new favorite Chickpea Omelette. I can't get enough of either lately!

Lunch...

Spring salad with lot's of veggies, hemp seeds and a homemade vinaigrette

I love salad! If salad were the only food I could eat for the rest of my life, I would be totally fine (and happy) about that!

Snack...

Organic Gala Apple and Earth Balance Coconut Peanut Butter

I thought about cutting the apple and plating it with a spoonful of the peanut butter, but I knew that if I did that then I would have gobbled it up before I could take the picture. If salad is my weakness then there is no word for what peanut butter is. If I allowed myself, I could finish a jar in less than a week! No joke.

Dinner...

Chili-Lime Lentil Tacos on  sprouted Corn Tortillas with Guacamole

I love tacos! This is another meal that I could eat every single day and not get sick of. And it's so versatile. You could pretty much turn anything into a taco, or taco-like food as I like to call it. I've been known to cook up a veggie burger, chop it up, and add it to a corn tortilla along with some peppers and salsa. I've also done that with a Field Roast sausage. Fast food but healthy and delicious!


In keeping with my Day of Favorites, I thought I would share my favorite songs of the moment. The ones that I hit the repeat button to three times before I let the playlist move on to the next song. Every.Single.Time.

Click to listen....















For some reason I could not find the original to this ^ song on SoundCloud so check it out here on YouTube (warning- explicit lyrics) if you haven't heard it yet... that's only if you've been living under a rock. The remix is only okay. It's missing the drums. Oh, the drums!

And, last but not least, this last song has been on repeat for a LONG time. I had to add it. I love running to this song so I listen to it a lot. It's also my morning alarm... so yes, I do listen to it on a daily basis! Haha! LOVE it.



I hope you enjoyed the little music break! You danced a little, didn't you? Me too!

Happy Hump Day!

Love,
Ves xx

Raw Pad Thai

Hi Friends!

I hope you're keeping cool! I think the temperature in my neck of the woods reached 39C or something crazy like that. I'm definitely thankful that I have central air conditioning in my home. Especially for Patchie, I don't think that old girl can take too much heat and humidity!

See what I mean? She's too used to living in the lap of luxury. But, enough about her, let's get on with my super easy recipe!

Since summer is in full swing and the temperature will only continue to rise, who actually feels like turning on the oven? Or even the stove for that matter? Not me, that's for sure! My summer menu is always filled with an abundance of raw food; from smoothies in the morning, to salads in the afternoon, to some sort of veggie dish at night, and fruit in between. I love to eat the rainbow and it's so much easier in the summer! Which brings me to my super yummy recipe. I know there are many different Raw Pad Thai recipes on the interweb and I encourage you to have fun and experiment. I've been making this one on and off for a couple of years and I make it slightly different each time. Usually I use some sort of nut butter in the dressing, but not this time. I think this was my favorite way which is why I wanted to share it with you guys.

Raw Pad Thai
Ingredients:
1/2 cucumber or 1 zucchini cut into thin strips
1 carrot, peeled & julienned
1/2 bell pepper (orange, red or yellow), julienned 
1 green onion, finely chopped
1/4 red onion, finely chopped or sliced into thin strips
handful of parsley, chopped
small handful sprouts 
1 tbsp hemp seeds or sesame seeds (optional)
1/2 lime, juiced
2 tablespoons coconut aminos

Pad Thai Dressing
1/2 - 1 avocado (I used 1)
1 clove garlic
1 inch fresh ginger, peeled and grated
2 tablespoon coconut aminos 
1/2 lime, juiced
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon agave nectar

Directions:
I used my mandoline to help everything come together quickly but you can use a vegetable peeler if you don't have one. Cut away the top and bottom of the zucchini and then slice it on the mandoline or with your peeler. Stack the strips together and slice them lengthwise 2 or 3 times depending on how wide your zucchini is. *Hint* This is also how you make "zucchini linguine". :-) Place the zuchini and the rest of the veggies in a bowl. Add the parsley, lime juice, and tamari to the veggies and give it a toss with your hands. Let this marinade anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour. I let mine hang out in the fridge for about an hour because I like the carrots to get a bit soft. While the veggies are marinating, make the Pad Thai Dressing.

For the dressing, add all of the ingredients to a blender and process until smooth and creamy. Take your veggies out, drain the marinade and squeeze some of the excess liquid from the veggies. Place them in a new bowl, or use the same one (and save yourself from washing more dishes!) and take about 2 tablespoons of the dressing and mix it in with your hands, ensuring that all the veggies are coated. Garnish with sprouts and hemp/sesame seeds, serve and enjoy!

** The extra Pad Thai Dressing will last in the fridge for a couple of days. Use it as a dip for veggies!

If you do feel like turning the oven on, feel free to add some baked tofu...

Yum!

Happy Monday everyone! Stay cool!

Love,
Ves xx

WIAW #32 OR Weekend Eats

   Hi Friends!

   It's Wednesday and you know what that means! I'm linking up again with Jenn over at Peas and Crayons for more WIAW shenanigans. Oh, and if it's all right with you I'm going to keep this post light and breezy after Monday's slightly heavier post.

Let's get to it!

Breakfast...

Tofu scramble with steamed kale, leftover tomato and cucumber salad, and sprouts by yours truly. I'm obsessed with sprouting and always have some in the fridge plus some seeds in a jar sprouting away on the counter.

Lunch...

Since breakfast was kind of huge, I went with a strawberry mango smoothie for lunch. It may not sound like much but this baby was jam-packed with fruit and then thinned out with some coconut water and a splash of lemon juice. De-lish!

Snack...

One super delicious organic apple with dijon mustard for dipping. Wait, you don't eat apples dipped in mustard? Ha! Don't knock it 'til you've tried it. The children at my work are obsessed with apples and mustard thanks to my influence. You'll love it too, I promise!

Dinner...

Homemade Black Bean Burgers with Boston lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, sprouts, peppers and homemade polenta fries. I've made this burger plate like three days in a row. I love open-faced burgers with no bun. It's so much more fun!

Bevies...

Water! I drink water all day long and I absolutely love to infuse my water with lemons, limes, cucumbers, etc. But my absolute obsession is mixing coconut water with filtered water and adding a ton of lemon wedges plus lemon juice to it. It's so hydrating, refreshing and tasty.

I told you I was obsessed with coconut water. I can't get enough of this stuff!

And of course, there's always time for a glass of wine at the end of the day. I never really understood how people unwind without a glass or two... Or maybe that's just me?
And obviously I drink a lot of coffee... it just doesn't always last long enough for me to actually remember to take a photo!

And last but not least...

I think it should be a kind of tradition, finishing off a WIAW post with a photo of Patchie. Here she is sitting pretty and looking like the princess she is! FYI she never sits in those chairs unless I was sitting there first. Go figure, she always has to take my spot!

Happy Hump Day, everyone!

Love,

Ves xx

Vegan MoFo #10: The Ultimate Vegan Cheese Sauce!

Hi Friends!

I have an amazing Cheese Sauce recipe to share with you today.  Let me tell you that I have tried so many different "cheese sauce" recipes and none have come close to this one.  It's thick, creamy, and oh so yummy.  I've adapted this recipe from one that I found on the interweb.  I was so intrigued with the use of potatoes and carrots that I had to investigate but, the rest of the recipe seemed a little too plain for my taste so I jazzed it up a bit.  The result was nothing short of amazing.

Remember, there is no actual cheese in this sauce so don't expect it to taste exactly like cheese.  But, do expect to add this to everything you eat!  You may even find yourself licking the blender.  Don't worry, you're not alone.

Ultimate Vegan Cheeze Sauce
Ingredients
2 cups peeled, boiled, and mashed potatoes (I used 3 medium potatoes)
1 cup peeled, chopped, and boiled carrots (I used 3 medium-large peeled carrots cut in 1 inch pieces)
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1/3 cup vegetable stock (water will work, too)
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon Herbamare
1/2 - 1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp mustard
1 tbsp Sriracha (optional, but adds amazing flavor)

Directions:
Boil your potatoes and carrots until they are fork tender, measure them in their mashed form (that step is more important for the potatoes than it is for the carrots) and add them to your blender.
Place the rest of your ingredients in your blender and process until smooth.  You may have to scrape down your blender a couple of times.
You can serve this immediately or store it in an air tight container in the fridge until you are ready to use it.  The sauce can be reheated on the stove or in a microwave.  Just  make sure you stir it really well.

I chose to try out the sauce on a Tofu 'Egg' Sandwich.  It was amazing!  I can't wait to smother this sauce onto a plate of vegan nachos!  Yum, yum!

TGIF and have a great weekend y'all!

Love,
Ves xx