Cauliflower Soup

  

Cauliflower soup is a wonderful base. You can add anything to it: sautéed/steamed leafy greens, cooked vegetables, beans, noodles, etc! 

For instance, I like to add garam marsala along with garlic onions and sea salt, which is how I flavored my soup today. I also added sautéed spinach; it added a nice texture that complemented the dish.

  
Creamy cauliflower soup enjoyed with garlic mushrooms and spinach. 

While I was steaming the cauliflower I sautéed sunflower oil, green onion, and garlic in a skillet until the aromas flooded my home. Then I added the mushrooms, coated them with garlic powder and sea salt, and cooked them until the moisture came out. 

***this step is crucial to cooking mushrooms! I recently learned that if you leave them cooking for longer, the moisture will come out and they will be much easier to chew and more pleasant overall. 

Once the mushrooms were done, I quickly sautéed the spinach.

Learning how to multitask in the kitchen can be challenging at first, but I have to say this was the first time I really noticed how much I’ve been learning within this entire experience. I felt the connection that cooks feel with their kitchens 💚 also, I efficiently multitasked without burning any pans!  Horay! 

I found my flow in the kitchen and it was glorious. Always learning, always growing. 

Servings: 2

Time: 20 minutes

Cauliflower Soup
Ingredients:

A head of cauliflower

½ c vegetable broth + more for desired consistency

¼ c soy milk or a plant based milk

1 large garlic clove

½ tsp garam marsala

¼ tsp garlic powder

Sea salt to taste

Directions:

1. Steam clean cauliflower florets until tender enough to slide a fork through

2. Add steamed cauliflower, soy milk, garlic, and seasonings to blender 

3. Blend and add vegetable broth until you reach the consistency you prefer

4. Pour into bowl and garnish with freshly ground black pepper, green onions, sautéed spinach and mushrooms –  or whatever you have 🙂 

*really wish I had added some cilantro and jalapeños

tofu veggie bowl

Tofu has become my favorite food lately because it’s so versatile & fun to experiment with. This recipe came out of my brain and sort of just happened.

This tofu veggie bowl is packed with protein and dietary fiber. It left me feeling very nourished. High vibes! It’s such a strange combination of tastes but I really liked how different it was! Confusing my tastebuds is very entertaining 😀 I enjoyed my dinner with strawberries, blueberries, and pear slices to complete the rainbow. Maybe that’s why I feel so nourished & complete.

It blows my mind every time how much of a difference being present makes when doing anything, especially when cooking. I’ve noticed a great change in how I feel and how my food looks and tastes. I am full with gratitude for the opportunity and freedom to cook whatever I want and experiment as I wish.

The Greek yogurt is really nice for balancing all of the flavors, but unfortunately, makes this recipe not suitable for vegans. However, it can easily be taken out or subbed by a vegan yogurt or sour cream! I know I’ve seen recipes for both, however, that is a LOT of tofu.

This recipe is sweet, spicy, and tangy! The pear + curry powder + lemon zest give it a really nice flavor explosion. Tastebuds-approved.

Ingredients:
1/4 block tofu extra firm
1/4 c black beans
1 garlic clove, minced
Sea salt
Black pepper
Garlic powder
Chili powder
Cayenne pepper
Red chili flakes
Curry powder
2 Green onions, chopped
1 zucchini, cut in half then sliced into thin pieces
Handful cilantro chopped – stem and leaves, you get way more cilantro this way*
1 pear, cubed
1 TBS chopped red onion
Carrot shavings from 1/2 carrot
Lemon zest from 1/4 lemon
2 tbs Greek yogurt
1 tbs Liquid Aminos or soy sauce

Directions:
1. Put sunflower oil in pan on medium heat
2. Add green onions and garlic, cook for ~2 minutes
3. Mash the tofu in a bowl & add sea salt, pepper, garlic powder, chili powder, cayenne pepper, stir
4. Add tofu, black beans, half of the chopped cilantro, and 1/2 tbs liquid aminos to pan, stir and cook for 5 minutes
5. Add zucchini and other 1/2 tbs liquid aminos, mix
6. Add curry powder and red chili flakes
6. Remove from heat
7. Add pear, carrot, lemon zest, red onion, other 1/2 of chopped cilantro and Greek yogurt on the side

Enjoy!

Vibrant Veggie “Tacos”

Yesterday’s lunch was vibrant & nourishing,

packed with phytonutrients & high vibrations.

I spotted a gorgeous red cabbage at the market & I could not resist.

I must say it sparked some creative fire because once I got home, I was
inspired to learn all about cabbage, including the health benefits,
nutritional profile, how to select and store it, and how to prepare it!
This website is amazing if you have ever felt overwhelmed with the internet & would like a single, condensed article with everything you need to know about healthy foods to get started.

Despite all of my cabbage research, I still decided to stick with raw red
cabbage this time around because I needed it to be somewhat strong enough to act like a hard taco shell! Although, I believe steamed cabbage would work just as well. It’s a totally durable vegetable.

So I went on to prepare the filling with what I already had/just bought, which ended up including avocado, tomatoes, leftover roasted zucchini, jalapeños, steamed broccoli + kale, and red onions.

I love the vibrant colors! Only bummer was that I didn’t have a single yellow or orange vegetable anywhere, so I can’t say I ate a rainbow today… how tragic. To prevent anymore tragedies, next time I can add…

Orange:
• orange bell peppers
• shredded carrots
• carrot juice to drink after my meal
• papaya banana smoothie
• sweet potatoes cubes

Yellow:
• yellow squash
• Lemon juice
• sliced yellow bell pepper
• yellow rice instead of white
• corn

Although I didn’t consume a rainbow, I felt like I had and I was full all day! Success.

Here’s the glorious set up:

You know it’s gonna be good when you end up having a photo shoot with your food :p

I also went to Good Will the other day to get some pots and while I was there I found these super cute plates (above) and this Japanese mug (below) for my new place. The plates and mug added up to less than $2! I love Good Will; I always find the cute stuff, muahaha.

Gah! It’s so cute.
& filled with black tea.
Holy caffeine.

I think it’s pretty self explanatory what I did with the filling and the cabbage “shell,” but just in case, here’s the order I put the filling in:
white rice first, kale, the big vegetables (broccoli, tomatoes, avocado,
zucchini) followed by the tiny vegetables (red onion, jalapeno) & herbs (cilantro).

The finished product:

Nom!

Filled with nourishment & gratitude ❤

Does anyone have a favorite filling for vegan “tacos?”

I’m always up for suggestions.

“Oatcake” For One

After years of pancakes followed by stomach aches,

I’ve finally found a solution!

These oatcakes, are vegan, clean, and just the right amount of sweet. 

& the funny thing is…

I kind of just made it up as I threw ingredients into a bowl, so they’re super easy to make. If I can do it, you can definitely do it.

 ***I did not know oatcakes existed until I thought I had an epiphany and called it an oatcake. Only to find, in my research, that oatcakes are a Scottish thing and they usually include butter, so here is my clean, vegan version.

Vegan Oatcake for One

Ingredients:

• Handful of oats

• 1-2 Large spoon-fulls of apple sauce

• Couple shakes of cinnamon (adjust to taste)

• Swig of vanilla

• 1 Mashed banana

Directions:

1. Mash the banana with a fork

2. Add the apple sauce + oats

3. Add the cinnamon + vanilla

4. Cook in skillet over medium heat for a couple minutes

5. Top it off with some honey

*adjust amounts of ingredients to however mushy/dense you like your pancakes – I just added enough oats to where it seemed chunky enough to cook in a skillet.

**blending the oats first into an oat flour would be SO ideal if you want more of a homogenous PANcake rather than a chewy OATcake

Super sweet oatcake for one!

^.^

Spicy Lentil Soup + Sprouting Lentils

Last nights dinner: spicy lentil soup

I love lentils. They are my new favorite food. I’ve even got some set aside to sprout!

Sprouting lentils is extremely easy & so good for you. I was intimidated for a while, but I did some research on sprouting and it’s actually very simple! All I did was put about ½ c of dry lentils in a strainer and I rinsed them with water from the faucet 3 different times yesterday. In between rinses I just set the strainer on the counter so that they stay moist, but not waterlogged.

It’s that easy.

And I already have little sprouts!!!

Back to the soup.

I enjoyed this soup so much I’ve decided to add it to the list of meal prep ideas for when school starts. I plan on doubling this recipe (5 servings) and storing each soup in its own individual mason jar. I could pack the lentil soup along with avocado slices, rice or some seed crackers. Or maybe some dosa!!!

Side note – I am going to learn how to make dosa  someday.

Side note II – lentils + rice = complete protein

Anyways, this spicy lentil soup was fairly easy to make and only took about 30 minutes!

Spicy Lentil Soup

Ingredients:

1 TBS Sunflower oil

½ purple onion – chopped

3 large garlic cloves – minced

1 TBS tomato paste

1 TBS curry powder

½ tsp red chili flakes

2 c vegetable broth

2 tomatoes – diced

1 ⅓ c dry green lentils

1 jalapeño – sliced

Handful of cilantro

Spinach or any other leafy green

2 Green onions – chopped

Directions:

1. Heat oil in pot

 

2. Sauté onion and garlic in oil

3. Add tomato paste, curry powder, and red pepper flakes & stir until everything is combined (like the picture below)

4. Add vegetable broth, tomatoes and lentils. Bring to a boil & let simmer on low heat for 30 minutes, until lentils are very tender

5. Remove from heat and add cilantro, green onion, jalapeño, and leafy greens

Enjoy 🙂
This recipe is adapted from Vegangela

Tofu – scrambled & sautéed

I’ve been feeling extremely groggy since I stopped eating meat, which I understand, but I didn’t realize until this week how much protein I’ve been missing. Along with going out on weekends, my body has truly been suffering! For example, I feel weaker and yoga has been more challenging in the physical sense. Another example, I have been taking naps! I never take naps. So this is a huge wake up call for me.. 

I need more protein! 

So I did some research on vegan protein sources:

Beans

Nuts 

Legumes

Greens

Soy 

I have always loved tofu so I remembered to pick some up on my next grocery haul. 

And I always make sure to have some canned beans around.

& I learned all about the many ways to prepare tofu! Exciting stuff ^^ 

For my first successful tofu cooking experience, I decided to make scrambled tofu with black beans and green onions, tomatoes, avocado, and jalapeños. 

   

It was fairly easy to make this! I was surprised and very happy with this meal 🙂 I used half of the tofu block for this serving.

Next time, I should add something orange and yellow like sweet potatoes and corn or bell pepper boats! And add some cilantro or fresh basil.

& maybe even a dessert bowl of blueberries and oranges.

& add a spicy chili sauce!

To make scrambled tofu:

1. Mash ½ tofu block with a fork in a bowl

2. Add seasoning to bowl and mix – sea salt, cumin, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, oregano

The next day, I went all out and made some tasty sesame kale (like the kind from whole foods!) so I added some tomatoes, avocado, black beans, jalapeños, and tofu that I sautéed in the pan. 

 
I like you, Tofu. 
To make the tofu,

1. Chop up ¼ of the tofu block and put the pieces into a bowl. 

2. Add sea salt, paprika, chili powder, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, and liquid aminos. Stir the tofu.

3. Heat pan on medium with some oil (I used sunflower oil) 

4. Sauté tofu for 10 minutes or until it changes color on all sides.

5. Enjoy!
I’m so so pleased with how the tofu came out both times. Definitely will be adding these two recipes to my meal prep list for the school year.
Next I want to make miso soup with extra tofu, my mom always orders it. 

Also, I’d like to make crispy baked tofu!

Sesame Veggie Wraps

After I recently wrote about making cabbage wraps, I became inspired to make more wraps! 

This time using beautiful sesame leaves from Hmart. 

  
I am forever grateful to my mother for introducing me to sesame leaves, yum! 

I’ve been craving Asian food a LOT lately, so I mixed together a little bowl of seasoning for the rice (rice vinegar, liquid aminos, red pepper flakes, paprika, cumin, garlic powder) then I sliced some cucumber, and got out my little container of diced onions, jalapeños, and cilantro that I’ve started to keep on hand. It saves a bunch of prep time! 

Unfortunately, I was unable to snap a picture of an actual wrap… Guess I enjoyed my meal too much 🙂

Not to worry though, I made wraps again the next day!

 
This time, the only difference was the veggies to fill the wraps.

I used: steamed green beans, broccoli, carrots, and cabbage

  
I used the same seasoning for the rice as the day before. 

Also, I really like to put a little smudge of soybean paste (far left) on the completed wrap on the outside or hidden somewhere inside the wrap. It’s not very healthy as it contains a lot of salt but every now and then I tell myself it’s gonna be okay and indulge just a lil 😀

Abundant Salad Cabbage Wraps

  

I’ve been craving tortillas for nearly every meal, but it isn’t happening because 

A. I refuse to buy store-bought-laden-with-chemicals-&-preservatives 

and 

B. I still have not mastered the art of making my own clean tortillas (I’ve tried twice now and it is just not my cup of tea)

SO. 

My resolution? 

Cabbage! 

I know. 

Cabbage does not compare to a tortilla whatsoever, but all I was thinking was, I just want to taste everything at the same time without the mess.

   

Yum! Fresh herbs and veggies is SO worth it. I mean, look at that tomato! It’s so red and vibrant, freshly picked off the vine from my container garden. 

  

This salad consists of: avocado, sautéed spinach, steamed cabbage and broccoli, fresh tomato from mini garden ^.^, red and green onion, basil, jalapeños and cilantro. 

For the dressing: I sprayed some liquid Aminos on some tahini. Good mix! Especially with the cabbage.

I am that person who puts every possible food item on my fork for one bite, so I got fed up because there was too many food items this time. 

Resolution – wrap it all in a big cabbage leaf 

Tada!

 

An easy, clean, crunchy fix and a much better alternative to a tortilla 😀

  
Update ***

I made cabbage wraps again!

   
This time, I used a sweet potato, avocado & jalapeños as the filling, topped with a spicy garlic tahini dressing. 

 
These were delicious and very filling!

For the inside:

I mashed sweet potato, avocado, green onion and some seasoning (sea salt, paprika, garlic powder, cayenne pepper), then I added chopped green onions and jalapeños. 

For the dressing:

I blended 2 TBS Tahini, 2 garlic cloves, garlic powder, 1/8 tsp liquid aminos, 2 slices orange bell pepper, paprika, cayenne, chili powder

Chickpea flatbread – so easy!!

I finally bought a bag of chickpea flour today and I’m so glad I did. 

 Chickpea flour is so versatile, cheap, and nutritious!

aaaand it only requires water. Say wha?

Pictured above is before mixing. The bowl contains chickpea flour, water, and spices (garlic powder, sea salt, paprika, chili powder, and cumin)

I can’t believe how easy this was. 

Just mix and pop in the oven for 15-20 minutes and voila, an interesting, tasty “flatbread.”  

I was shocked when I saw that it looked like this, but felt like a very thin layer of a moist cake. It’s an interesting food. 

I initially intended to make mini veggie pizzas, but I was hesitant to potentially waste my veggies on something that could have failed, so I added them after baking.   

 I topped them with thinly sliced avocado, tomato, jalapeno, cilantro and fresh basil. Yum!

After devouring a mini flatbread/pizza, I whipped up a garlic tahini soybean paste dressing.

 I am pleasantly surprised and happy about the outcome. Chickpea flour rules.

Chickpea flatbread / pizza crust

Ingredients:

⅔ c chickpea flour 

⅓ c + 1 tbs water

Spices – anything you want; I used garlic powder, paprika, chili powder, cumin, and sea salt 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375

2. Mix everything in a bowl

3. Prepare baking sheet

4. Add mixture to baking sheet and try to spread evenly with a spoon or your hands

5. Bake for 15-20 minutes 

6. Top with herbs or veggies and enjoy!
***also, I experimented with the chickpea flour + water mixture a couple different ways & they all worked!

Method 1:

All I did was mix 1/3 c chickpea flour, 1/3 c water, and ⅛ tsp baking powder and it became a very thin batter, like the consistency of pancakes, and I poured it into the skillet to find that pancakes, crepes, dosas, etc are all totally doable:)

Method 2:

I also mixed ⅓ c chickpea flour, ⅓ c water and poured that into the skillet. They came out as slightly thicker but not a very noticeable difference.
Pure awesomeness.

Lentil Sprout Bowl

About a week ago, I made a spicy lentil soup and I also learned how to sprout lentils in the midst of it all.
It’s such an easy process that I think everyone should do it. Seriously.
All you need is a strainer, running water, and 1-3 days! So simple and so good for you.
The sprouts are super packed with nutrients! I got an energy burst after enjoying this colorful & hearty meal.
Also, they’re ridiculously cute!
 

  
I whipped up the last of my produce for the week – a purple potato, orange bell pepper, sautéed spinach and mushrooms, green onion – and topped it off with some fresh lentil sprouts.
  

 
It was so nourishing and divine tasting!
 
Definitely making this again.
  
Hmm… what should I sprout next?