Recipe: (Non-Alcoholic) Pineapple Mojito Smoothie

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I'll be honest... I've been going a little smoothie crazy lately. I seem to always crave them as soon as the weather warms up a little bit. I plan on experimenting with different, interesting ingredients and sharing all my smoothie-masterpieces with you guys- starting with this one! It's light and refreshing and perfect for the spring and summer. Plus, it not only makes a great quick addition to your breakfast or snack, it can be turned into an awesome cocktail smoothie by adding some rum

Makes 1 serving

Here's what you'll need:

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen pineapple

3/4 cup water (use 1 cup if using frozen pineapple)

4 fresh mint leaves

the juice of 1 lime

Blend all ingredients together for about a minute - or until the mint leaves are distributed evenly throughout the smoothie. Sprinkle with a bit of raw cane sugar if you please! Enjoy :)

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Recipe | Garlic & Herb Spaghetti with Tomatoes and Zucchini

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Makes 3-4 servings

1/2 box whole grain spaghetti
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 zucchini, quartered and then chopped
1 yellow onion, chopped
5 cloves of garlic, crushed or minced
2 tsp fresh oregano, chopped
3 tbsp fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
3 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Set a large stock pot filled with water over high heat for the spaghetti. Set a large skillet with your olive oil over medium-low heat.

While waiting for you pasta water to boil, add your onions and garlic to your hot olive oil. Saute the onions and garlic until the onions become translucent/slightly browned (about 5-7 minutes) and then add some salt and pepper. Add your zucchini to the onions and garlic and and saute for another 5-7 minutes. Salt and pepper the mixture once again.

At this point, your pasta water should be boiling. Generously salt your water and drop your pasta in. Occasionally stir throughout the cooking process to make sure the spaghetti is not sticking together.

While your pasta is cooking, turn the heat off for your zucchini, onion, and garlic mixture. Add your tomatoes to the pan and stir to combine. The goal is to just heat the tomatoes through and give them a chance to lend their juices to your sauce - you don't want to actually cook the tomatoes and make them mushy.

When your spaghetti is ready to be drained, reserve 1/4 cup of the starchy cooking water and add it to the pan with your veggies. Drain your spaghetti and add it to the pan. Fold the pasta in with the sauce and make sure everything is coated. Add your fresh herbs and some more salt and pepper to taste.

Enjoy!

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Recipe | Morning Glory Green Smoothie

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Hey friends! Long time, no blog. The past couple of months have been rough... emotionally, psychologically, physically... I have been neglecting to do things that I love and make me truly happy for a number of reasons, and maybe I'll elaborate in a future post, but for now let's just get into this awesome smoothie recipe.

I call it a "morning glory" green smoothie because I like to have it in the morning for breakfast and it gives me the boost of energy that I often need to get my day going. Call it whatever you want, just give it a shot. If you're skeptical about green smoothies, this is a perfect one to ease you into this delicious, healthy trend.

What you'll need (this recipe makes 3 smoothies):
3 apples, roughly chopped
2 bananas, peeled and roughly chopped
3 cups of your favorite leafy greens (I used a mixture of baby spinach, chard, and kale)
2 kiwis, peeled and roughly chopped
the juice of 1 lemon
2 cups water
8-10 ice cubes

Throw all of the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. I left the skins on my apples because I don't mind the texture and the skins add more nutrients to the smoothie. Peel the apples if you're not into the little specks of skin throughout your smoothie. Also, I'll sometimes add a tbsp of chia seeds to the smoothie after blending for some extra nutrients and texture.

Enjoy!

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Recipe | Loaded, One Pan Breakfast Scramble

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What you'll need:

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

3 red potatoes, diced

1/2 red onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 tomatoes, diced

4 eggs, whisked

1/4 cup fresh mozzarella, cubed or shredded

1 avocado, diced

1 tsp smoked paprika

1/2 tsp coriander

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp turmeric 

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400° F.

Set a large, oven-safe skillet to medium-high heat. Start sauteing your potatoes in the olive oil until they start browning - about 10 minutes total, flipping occasionally. Next, add the onions, and once they start becoming translucent (after 5 minutes or so) add the garlic. Add some salt and pepper and stir to combine.

Turn the heat down to medium-low and add your whisked eggs, spices, tomatoes, and more salt and pepper. Scramble the egg mixture until they begin to set up. Add the mozzarella to the top of the mixture, and then transfer the pan to the oven. Bake until the eggs are cooked through and the cheese is melted, about 5-7 minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven and top with your fresh avocado. 

Enjoy!

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Recipe | Super Grain Veggie Bowl

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What you'll need:

• 1 cup Super Grains mix (mine was from Whole Foods with red & white quinoa, buckwheat, and millet)
• 2 cups vegetable stock
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 10-15 grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 carrot, shredded or thinly sliced with a vegetable peeler
• 1 cup frozen edamame
• 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

*to make this a complete meal, add some sauteed tempeh or seitan

Combine the super grains, vegetable stock, onion, garlic, and some salt and pepper in a pot and set over high heat. Bring the mixture up to a boil and then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the liquid has been absorbed. With about 5 minutes left of cook time, add the frozen edamame to thaw.

If you're adding tempeh or seitan to the dish, start sauteeing in some olive oil on medium heat while the grain mix is cooking. This should take about 5 minutes on each side.

When the grains are done cooking, add the tomatoes, carrots, crushed red pepper flakes, and some more salt and pepper to taste. Fluff with a fork to combine everything. 

Enjoy!

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Recipe | All Purpose, Everyday Seasoning Blend

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So, if you've noticed in my past recipes... I use a lot of the same spices as sort of a "base blend" and work other flavor components into that specific mix. 

Last week, my lazy self came up with a groundbreaking idea - mix those spices together so that I'm only reaching for one jar while cooking instead of 5 different ones! The ultimate lazy cook's dream. I stayed away from spices like cumin, coriander, and turmeric, because I don't think those flavors are necessarily appropriate in EVERY dish that I cook. Again, I wanted to make something that I could use in almost every recipe as the foundation of flavor, and then build up from that.

So, for the mixture, just combine the following in a mason jar or an empty spice container. If you plan on making a larger quantity, just follow the basic ratio of the 5 parts.

4 tbsp kosher salt

2 tbsp onion powder

2 tbsp paprika

1 tbsp black pepper

1 tbsp crushed red pepper flakes

Enjoy!

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Recipe | Vegan Strawberry, Mango, and Blueberry Smoothie

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Before we get to the recipe of this post, I wanted to update you guys really quick - I moved! Only about a half hour north from where I previously was, but I'm much closer to where I'll be working in two weeks as well as my job at the coffee shop. My apartment still isn't completely done being decorated, so I'm not going to post any pictures just yet, but they will come! I like how everything's turning out so far, but I have so much more space to work with than I did at my previous apartment so the place still looks a bit empty.

Today's breakfast was another quick, easy, and delicious one - three characteristics I require for sleepy morning breakfasts.

Avocado toast with a delicious vegan strawberry, mango, and blueberry smoothie. Yeah, a SMOOTHIE! I finally have a blender! Which is good news for you guys as much as it's good news for me, because that means I'll be whipping up lots of smoothie, blended soup, and maybe even some frozen cocktail recipes for you guys in the upcoming future.

Avocado toast is pretty self-explanatory... plus I've already let you in on my spice combination that I top my avocado toast with, so on to the smoothie recipe!

Here's what you'll need:

1/2 cup mango lemonade (you can easily use some mango nectar/juice and the juice of 1/2 lemon, but Trader Joe's has an amaaaaazing mango lemonade that I used)
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
4-6 strawberries, depending on their size
8-10 chunks of frozen mango, again depending on their size
1/4 cup frozen blueberries

Blend all the ingredients on high for a couple minutes, or until your desired consistency has been reached, and enjoy!

What are your favorite smoothie/juice ingredients?

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Recipe | Spicy Mustard and Grapefruit Vinaigrette

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I'm not entirely sure what compelled me to use a grapefruit in a dressing, but I've been wanting to do so for quite some time. I was really nervous about how it would come out, but this vinaigrette is absolutely fantastic... I was pleasantly surprised.

Pour this over your salad, use it as a dipping sauce or marinade, or... check back soon for a delicious spring-time recipe utilizing this vinaigrette :)

In a mason jar or a small mixing bowl combine the following:

the juice of 1 grapefruit - about 1/4 cup

2 tbsp spicy brown mustard

1 tsp raw agave nectar (maple syrup or honey would work just fine)

1/2 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp onion powder

1 tsp dried oregano

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

*if you're using a mason jar, just pour all the ingredients together and shake them up. If using a mixing bowl, slowly whisk in the olive oil at the end to combine all the ingredients.

Enjoy! :)

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Tonight's Dinner | Quick Quesadilla

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First and foremost, thank you to the new Bloglovin' Followers for deciding to keep up with my random, weird, all-over-the-place blog! You guys are the bomb dot com, seriously! 

Secondly, I decided to add yet another element to this blog: art. I liked writing up my last blog post about Jan Ironside, and I know I've brought art related topics up in past posts about my own personal art and what I've been working on, but I think every Tuesday will be dedicated to sharing a new artist with you guys - whether it's an old favorite of mine, or a new one that I just found out about. I think it's important to continuously look for inspiration in life, and this is going to be my way of doing just that. Let me know what you guys think! Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. I already have two Artist Focus posts scheduled for the next two upcoming Tuesdays.

Alright now. Quesadillas. They're easy. They're delicious. They're what I had for dinner tonight. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to throw a quesadilla together, but I thought I would just share this one with you guys since I have been lacking in the recipe department.

1 whole wheat quesadilla (check the ingredients! Some torillas have FISH GELATIN in them! Gross!)

1/2 bell pepper, diced

1/4 onion, diced

1/2 tomato, diced

1/4 cup frozen corn

1/4 cup shredded cheese of your choice (use soy cheese to make this vegan)

1 tbsp of your favorite hot sauce

some extra virgin olive oil

Set a large skillet over medium heat with some EVOO. Saute the onions and peppers for a few minutes, then add the corn and combine to thaw - about 2 more minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Add half of your cheese to one side of the tortilla, then add your veggie mixture, tomatoes, and hot sauce. Top with the remainder of the cheese. Fold over to form a half-moon shape and throw it on the hot skillet for about 2-3 minutes on each side, or until the cheese is all melted and the tortillas is golden brown.

Serve with guac, salsa, sour cream, or just eat the whole thing on it's own in an embarrassingly short amount of time.

Enjoy!

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Update + Recipe | Post Workout Breakfast

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Woops, I let another month go by without updating this blog. Sorry! A huge thank you to the people who have stayed with me on Bloglovin', and to the new people that just started following me! Hey! You guys are great :) I'm really gonna try and update more regularly! I promise!

A quick recap: March arrived, along with more snow and more schoolwork and more stress. I had a seriously low point last week, but I'm feeling much, MUCH better now.

My birthday was last Monday and the preceding weekend was AMAZING thanks to my wonderful friends/coworkers and Chris. I am so thankful to have made friends with such a loving group of people at work and to have an equally amazing boyfriend.

Now I'm on spring break (it's almost over!) and I was surprised with a couple days off from both of my jobs, so I jumped at the opportunity to come home and visit my mom (and dogs!)... since I haven't been home since winter break.

Anyway, on to the point of this post. One of last week's gym days was followed by a breakfast that I think is worthy enough of it's own blog post. It's easy, filling, and full of the necessary protein and energy needed to replenish what you've spent working out.

• 1 egg, scrambled with a tbsp of salsa
• small handful of "power greens" (or any greens) topped with two slices of sauteed tomato
• 1 slice of whole grain toast (mine was double protein whole grain... 6g per slice!) topped with some sliced avocado with  salt, pepper, paprika, and onion powder.
• 4 slices smokey tempeh bacon (mine was the tofurky brand. serving size is 7 slices, but I had enough food on my plate and didn't need that much)

Couple with a mug full of Blackberry Mojito tea from Teavana, this breakfast was perfect.

What do you guys like to eat after a good workout?

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Update | Friday Thoughts

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With graduation rounding the corner quicker than I had realized it would be, I'm finding myself experiencing some anticipated, but still not welcome, anxiety. I am extremely excited to start working in the field I've been passionate about and studying and preparing for for the past four years, but it's a bit scary. I've been trying my best to focus on the present and just deal with things as they come, but I still find myself constantly thinking about the future and what I'm going to be doing after graduation.

In an attempt to calm myself down, I've been trying to schedule some "me time" whenever I possibly can within my schedule of going to class, my internship, working at the coffee shop, and babysitting. Today is one of those me-days. I have an unexpected day off! I was supposed to babysit from 6:30am-2pm, but I was told I actually wasn't needed for the day, and since the schedule was already made for the coffee shop & I requested off for babysitting, I wasn't scheduled to work there either.

I started the day kind of sluggish, but in a good way. I set my alarm for 8am (even on a day off, I feel like I'm wasting the day if I sleep past 8. I know... I'm working on being less crazy about this). I guess by body is getting used to my routine of waking up earlier than that most days, because I naturally woke up around 7:30. I tossed and turned for a while, trying to snag a few extra minutes of sleep, but my body was already awake and it was not going back to sleep for anything.

So I laid in bed for a while, talked to Chris, checked twitter and instagram, and snuggled with Benji - the normal situation before I got out of bed, ate a banana, got all ready for the gym, and then whined and complained to Benji (yes, my cat) about not wanting to walk outside because it was 12 DEGREES OUT. Eventually I made myself feel as guilty as possible about not going, and dragged my butt over to the gym and had a mostly cardio-focused work out.

I came home, showered, and ate this delicious breakfast:

...which was VERY easy to make:

1/2 cup chopped zucchini
1/4 chopped avocado
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp (or more) of your favorite hot sauce
a pinch each of salt, pepper, onion powder, and paprika
1 tbsp chia seeds

Cook the zucchini over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until they start to brown. Scramble in the eggs. I usually whisky the hot sauce directly into my eggs, but you can add it separately if you want. Add in the spices and cook your eggs to your desired done-ness. I usually cook them VERY dry. Add the zucchini and eggs to a bowl, stir in the chopped avocado and chia seeds, and enjoy!

I would have liked to add some chopped tomato and some onion instead of the onion powder to this as well, but I don't have any on hand at the moment. Today is a day for doing anything and everything that calms me, so grocery shopping might be on the list for later today. Yes, grocery shopping is definitely something I consider me-time. I love it. I'm also a big fan of cleaning, which is another thing I will be tackling today. And lastly, reading. It may be reading for my abnormal psychology class, but the book we're required to write a paper on for Tuesday is actually extremely interesting, so it doesn't seem like a chore. Maybe I'll do a review on it for the blog... who knows.

If you've made it to the end of this unnecessarily long blog post, thank you for reading. Sometimes you just need to let your thoughts out, and this blog is one of my outlets for that. I hope you're all enjoying your Friday!

xo Sam

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Recipe | Roasted Eggplant and Sweet Potato Quinoa Burger

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As promised, here's the recipe for the burgers I used for my burger-bar set up for me and Chris on Valentine's Day.

Yields 10-12 burgers, depending on how big you make them.

1 small eggplant, chopped
2 sweet potatoes, chopped
1 large white onion, roughly chopped,
1/2 cup quinoa cooked in 1 cup water
1/4 cup vegetable stock
1/2 cup old fashioned oats
1 tbsp paprika
2 tbsp chipotle hot sauce
1 tbsp spicy brown mustard
couple tbsp extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 350°F

Spread your chopped sweet potatoes on a lined or greased cookie sheet. Season with some olive oil, salt, pepper, and half of the paprika. Pop that in the oven for about 15-20 minutes. When the sweet potatoes start to soften up, remove them from the oven and add the chopped eggplant and onion to the mix. Season with some more olive oil, the remainder of paprika, salt, and pepper. Cook together for another 15-20 minutes.

While your veggies are cooking, prepare you quinoa - 1/2 cup dry quinoa to 1 cup of water (or vegetable stock). Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered, for 15 minutes.

When the sweet potato and eggplant mixture is cooked, remove from the oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes before adding to the food processor.

Once cooled, Add the veggie mixture to a food processor with the 1/4 cup vegetable stock. Pulse until the mixture is at your desired consistency. I liked mine to be slightly chunky, but this step is totall up to you.

Add the veggie mixture to a big mixing bowl. Throw in the oats, cooked quinoa, hot sauce, mustard, and some more salt and pepper. Mix together thoroughly and form into patties.

Now, you can either bake the burgers off in the oven, since it's already heated up. Or you can sear them up in a pan with some olive oil. If you choose the former option, they'll take about 10 minutes on each side in a 375° oven to get a nice golden brown color. On the stove, they'll take about 5 minutes on each side over medium heat with about a tbsp of olive oil.

Enjoy!

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Recipe | Lemon Ginger Quinoa with Fresh Herbs

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I cooked this last night along with my Zucchini Pizzas, so this recipe will yield two servings, if served with a side dish, or one serving, if eaten alone.

1 cup vegetable stock
1/2 cup quinoa
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 inch fresh ginger, peeled and chopped into large chunks
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp onion powder
salt and pepper to taste

Set a pot over low heat and bring the vegetable stock, ginger, and lemon juice up to a very gentle simmer. (You can throw the lemon half into the stock as well, like I did, for extra lemony flavor).

You just want the mixture to gently warm up so that the ginger is able to infuse the stock.

Once your vegetable stock is gently simmering, add the quinoa and bring to a vigorous boil. Once a a boil, bring the heat back down to low and simmer, covered, for about 15 minutes, or until the quinoa has absorbed all the liquid.

You can remove the ginger and lemon before you at the quinoa if you'd like. I chose to leave everything in so the flavors can cook together with the quinoa. If you do leave the ginger in, make sure to remove the big chunks when the quinoa is finished cooking. There are few things worse than chomping down on a huge chunk or fresh ginger. Ouch!

Once the quinoa is finished cooking, turn the heat off and add the red pepper flakes, onion powder, oregano, salt, pepper, parsley, and basil.

You may wish to squeeze a little bit more lemon juice over top of the quinoa before serving.

Enjoy! :)

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Recipe | Zucchini Pizzas

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Pizza?! On zucchini?! Well, I'm sure you've had a veggie pizza with zucchini on it, so why not the other way around? These zucchini pizzas are a healthy and delicious alternative to everyone's favorite carby, cheesey food!

I made these tonight for dinner, so this recipe will only yield enough for one or two, if pairing with a side dish.

1 zucchini, sliced in half and seeded
some extra virgin olive oil
a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
about 1/4 cup crushed tomatoes - use however much you want, really
roughly 1 oz. fresh mozzarella, sliced or diced
1 tbsp fresh parsley
1 tsp fresh basil
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 350° F.

Take your halved and seeded zucchini and drizzle with some olive oil. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes. Pop that in the oven for about 10-12 minutes, or until the zucchini is starting to soften up.

Once the zucchini is roasted a bit, take it out of the oven and start assembling your pizzas. Split the crushed tomatoes between the two halves, as well as for the fresh mozzarella. Put the zucchini back in the oven for another 5-7 minutes, or until the cheese melts.

Sprinkle with the fresh parsley and basil and enjoy! :)

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Recipe | Vegan Peppermint Chocolate Chip Cookies

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I took the base recipe for these cookies from Oh She Glows (one of my favorite food bloggers) and tweaked it to make my peppermint chocolate chip cookies.

Makes 12 cookies

1/2 cup vegan butter + 1 tbsp melted vegan butter
1/2 cup packed coconut sugar OR brown sugar
1/4 cup raw cane sugar
1 tbsp chia seeds mixed with 3 tbsp water (egg substitute)
1 tsp peppermint extract
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
a pinch of salt

*I do not have a stand or a hand mixer, so my cookies came out a little more crumbly than they probably should have, which is find with me, but I'm assuming a mixer would make the dough a bit smoother with the initial creaming of the butter and sugar... But smushing everything together with your hands makes for a perfectly tasty cookie as well :)*

Preheat your oven to 350° F.

Combine the butter, coconut or brown sugar, and cane sugar together in a large mixing bowl. Either mash everything with your hands, or cream together with a mixer. Then incorporate your chia seeds and water mixer to the butter and sugar.

Add the flour, baking soda, salt, and peppermint extract and combine well. Again, either use your hands to combine everything, or a mixer.

Finally, fold in the chocolate chips.

Prepare a baking sheet with either parchment paper or some cooking spray. Form your cookies into 12 good sized spheres. Pat them down a bit so they're a little flattened out.

Bake at 350 for 13-15 minutes, or until the cookies start to brown on the top and bottom. Let them cool for 5-10 minutes before transferring them off the baking sheet. They may crumble if you omit the cooling step.

Enjoy!

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Recipe | Vegan Granola

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A lot of granola recipes aren't vegan-friendly because honey is used as the sweetener/binder. This recipe is 100% vegan because agave is used in place of honey. Maple syrup is another good substitute if you don't have agave on hand

2 cups old fashioned oats (rolled oats)

1 cup steelcut oats

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1/4 cup chopped pistachios

1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup raisins

1/3 cup dried cranberries

1 tbsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 cup agave

1 tbsp coconut sugar OR brown sugar

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup canola oil

a pinch of salt

Preheat your oven to 325° F.

Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Make sure you mix everything well so all the oats, nuts, seeds, and dried fruit are coated with the agave, canola oil, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla extract, and salt.

Line a baking sheet with tin foil or parchment paper. Spread the mixture onto the baking sheet and bake at 325 for 15 minutes, or until the granola starts to brown.

Let the granola cool off before transferring to an airtight container.

Enoy! :)

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Recipe | Winter White Sangria

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Okay, I know I'm bad at keeping promises when it comes to this blog (*cough* fotd friday *cough*)... so here's a sangria recipe to help you get over it.

1.5 liter of Moscato, or your favorite white wine
1 Granny Smith, or any other tart apple, sliced
the juice of one orange
another orange, sliced
about 2 cups of fresh cherries
1 pear, sliced
1/4 cup grenadine
juice of half a lime, the other half sliced
1/4-1/2 cup honey whiskey
optional - club soda to top off the glasses once served.

Combine all of the fruits, whiskey, and juices with the wine in a large pitcher or punch bowl. You can make it a sparkling sangria by adding the club soda to the pitcher, or you can just use it to top off each glass of sangria served. This step is also totally optional as the sangria will taste just fine without the bubbly.

Let the sangria sit and chill for at least an hour before you plan on serving it!

Enjoy :)

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Recipe | Vegan Pumpkin Maple Walnut Scones

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This recipe was loosely based on this pumpkin scone I found here. I had never made scones before, let alone vegan ones, and needed something to base my measurements off of.

Makes 10 scones.

1 cup raw walnuts
2 cups brown rice flour (or any flour you have on hand, really)
1/4 cup coconut sugar (or brown sugar)
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup solid coconut oil
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
a pinch of salt

Preheat your oven to 400° Fahrenheit

Spread your walnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet. Toast them for 3-5 minutes in your preheated oven. Remove them and chop them into tiny pieces.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, and walnuts.

In a separate bowl, mix together the pumpkin puree, maple syrup, almond milk, and vanilla extract.

Cut the solid coconut oil into the flour mixture until it becomes crumbly and lumpy. You can do this with a fork or if you're fancy, with a pastry cutter. The you can introduce the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients.

Mix until the dough starts to come together.

Remove from the bowl and onto a lightly floured clean surface. Form the dough into a about a 1 inch thick circle.

Use a circular cookie cutter, a cup, mug, or some sort of small circular object to cut your scones into rounds. You could also cut them into triangles, but I'm partial to the round scone... I think it's because Ireland really only had round ones when I was there.

Place your scones on a lightly greased, or lined with parchment paper, baking sheet.

Bake for about 12-15 minutes, depending on your oven, or until lightly golden brown.

And there you go! A delicious addition to your morning coffee routine, afternoon snack, or just an anytime treat.

Enjoy! :)

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Recipe | Chana Masala (non-traditional)

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Before I get any hate from hard core Indian food snobs about this not being a traditional Chana Masala recipe - I AM NOT CLAIMING IT IS. I understand that some key ingredients are left out ( It's not exactly easy to obtain an ingredient like amchoor powder for me). I am also aware that I introduced some new ingredients (I like zucchini, so what?). I was just working with what I had on hand and catering the recipe to what I like. I wanted this to be relatively easy and equally as tasty. I hope you can look past these minor details and try this recipe out for yourself. It's quite good, if I do say so myself, even if it isn't traditional. One day I'll try my hand at a traditional recipe, but for now this is a great alternative.

1 large white onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, any color, chopped
2-3 small potatoes, chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
1 15 oz. can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 cup low sodium vegetable stock
1 tbsp tomato paste
3 heaping tbsp mango-ginger chutney
1 tsp chili-garlic sauce
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp turmeric powder
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
a couple tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Set a large skillet to medium heat with some olive oil. Start off by sauteing the potatoes because they'll take the longest to soften up. After about 5-7 minutes, add in the other vegetables. Saute together with some salt and pepper for another 5-7 minutes.

Introduce the drained and rinsed chickpeas to the veggie mix. Then add the cumin, coriander, red pepper flakes, and turmeric to the pan to wake them up a bit. Stir to coat all the veggies with the spices.

Now you can stir in the tomato paste. When the tomato paste becomes fragrant, add the mango-ginger chutney and the chili-garlic sauce. Stir to combine everything.

Add in the vegetable stock and simmer until the liquid reduces by about half (15 minutes or so) Season with more salt and pepper if necessary. 

(what it should look like BEFORE it has reduced)

Serve over jasmine rice or just eat on its own.

Enjoy! :)

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Update + Recipe | Happy Thanksgiving!

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No, this Friday I am not bringing you my face or the products used on it... mainly because I didn't feel like doing my make up. Instead, I thought I'd just make a little Thanksgiving-themed post since yesterday WAS Thanksgiving and all... for Americans at least.

My mom, sister, nephew and I drove up to my aunt and uncle's house for the holiday and it was really a nice time. I hadn't seen my cousins, aunt, and uncle all together since Liam's baptism back in September, so it was nice to see everyone again.

The night progressed as usual for our family get-togethers... political arguments, making fun of each other, and attacking the vegetarians of the family, and eating delicious food... just the way it's supposed to be!

Liam and I, before heading out to Thanksgiving Dinner

I am so thankful for the family I have been blessed with. They've helped me get through the roughest points in my life and I couldn't have asked for a better group of people to raise me and watch me grow up into the woman I am today :)

Now, for a recipe.

My mom gave me freedom to do whatever I wanted with the sweet potatoes we were bringing for the dinner, so I came up with this easy and delicious recipe for spiced, mashed sweet potatoes

8-10 sweet potatoes

2 tbsp butter OR butter substitute to make this a vegan recipe

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

1 1/2 - 2 tbsp dried, ground sage

Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375° Fahrenheit 

*You can peel the sweet potatoes if you want. If you choose not to, make sure you scrub them really well

Bake the sweet potatoes for an hour, or until they are soft and mashable. Transfer them to a bowl and add the butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, sage, salt and pepper. Mash with a potato masher or with a hand-held or stand mixer... whatever's easiest for you... until you reach the desired consistency.

Enjoy letting people guess what the spices you used are!

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