One of my really good friends Morgan is a vegan and I love swapping recipes and food ideas with her. Last week she sent me a snap of vegan pesto that she made and I needed the recipe pronto. I knew it would be even better if she was able to write a guest blog post so I could also share with everyone! Please read on for her recipe and be sure to try it soon! I know I will be 🙂
Hi All! For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Morgan, a good friend of Ashley’s! When Ashley asked me if I wanted to write for her blog I felt EXTREMELY honored. I really enjoy reading her posts and am always looking for new recipes to add to my collection!
So for my post, I will show you guys how to make vegan pesto with zucchini noodles!
I will say that you do need 2 essential tools to make this:
– A blender (I don’t think it matters what kind, I just use my nutri-bullet-thing because it’s MUCH easier to bring out than my big blender)
– And a vegetable spiraler (I got mine for like $10 on amazon and I use it CONSTANTLY… just get it, ok?)
PESTO FIRST!
Here are all of the ingredients you will need:
– 2 cups of basil
– 3/4 cup of pine nuts
– 2-3 cloves of raw garlic (I usually go for 3-4, but I’m a garlic fanatic)
– 1/2- 3/4 cup of grapeseed oil (or olive oil… basically whatever oil you usually cook with)
– a couple dashes of salt and pepper (to taste)
– 1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast
– 1 tablespoon of lime juice
Blend all of the things!
I usually blend for like 2 seconds, shake it, and repeat until I get the consistency I like. (I like slightly chunky pesto)
WHA-LA! PESTO!!
See…. it’s not that hard! 😉
Ok, you can do whatever you want with that now.
Orrrrrr you can make zucchini pasta!
In which case, you will need the following:
– 1 zucchini
– 1 teaspoon grapeseed oil (again, or use whatever oil you usually use)
– Wash and trim the stem off the zucchini.
– Put teaspoon of oil into a pan.
– Insert cut end into the spiraler and twist over the pan.
– (I usually do about two rotations then pull it up to break it off, or they get too long and it’s impossible to eat)
– Once zucchini is done, turn heat on low, and sauté until warm.
(I like to just heat them up so that they are still crunchy)
When cooked to your preference, put zucchini in a bowl and add a dollop of pesto on top and work into warmed zucchini.
Now you have vegan pesto zucchini pasta.
You don’t have to warm the pesto at all, raw is pretty tasty as well.
It’s been real and hopefully you all enjoyed my recipe!
Your favorite little blonde vegan,
Morgan B.
I am 100% obsessed with my freezer. My freezer is amazing. She always has my back when I buy too much food and don’t want any of it to go to waste, not even a single leaf of spinach! (Yes, I have froze approximately 10 leaves of spinach before. …And a half of an apple one time.) She saves me money and time every month. She stores the leftovers from bulk cooking. She makes sure I am never out of ice for my cocktails or iced coffees.
She once let me store vegetable scraps in her drawer for an entire year so I could make my own veggie broth. Smoothies are readily available all year round because of her. If I wanted to, I could make dinner for an entire month and she would keep all of my noshes safe on her frosty shelves. My freezer is on 24/7 and I know I can always count on her. (In my kitchen,) my freezer is my best friend. She’s my ride or die. I love her big and I know she loves me right back.
Some freezer-frequents in my house are soups and stews; bananas; chopped basil, garlic, and green onions; ice wine; and vegetables (of course!). My most recent addition and discovery is homemade burritos! A while ago I posted my vegan sweet potato recipe. I doubled up on this recipe and froze the extra burritos that I made which got me thinking… why don’t I make a whole bunch of burritos and freeze them all!?
#burritosfordayz
Recently I bought a 10 count pack of flour tortillas, mashed sweet potatoes, frozen bell peppers, green chilies and guacamole. I already had some spicy black bean dip and salsa so figured I would make a few breakfast burritos too.
Trader Joe’s, anyone?
I let the bell peppers thaw overnight and then “wrung them out” with a paper towel to get any unnecessary moisture out. The next day I heated up my mashed sweet potatoes; which I got from Trader Joe’s and they save me a ton of time by not having to steam and peel the potatoes before mashing. All you have to do is pour the potato “pucks” into a pan, add 1/4 c of water and stir while they heat up.
A couple of years ago I wrote a blog for a website called Living Sunlight that explained which fruits and vegetables you should try to buy organic and which ones are okay to buy non-certified. You can check it out here and you’ll notice that sweet potatoes are a part of the “clean 15,” so I don’t fret about finding organic sweet potatoes. (You will also notice bell peppers are on the list of things you should buy organic but, unfortunately, my frozen bell peppers were just regular ol’ pesticide laden ones.)
While my sweet potatoes were in the pan, I spread my tortillas all over my kitchen. If you have a bigger kitchen you won’t have to be so creative…
Can you count all 10?
Then I spread my spicy black beans on 3 tortillas (Mike isn’t a fan of the breakfast burrito so I made less of these), added scrambled eggs, some peppers, and salsa to make a perfect breakfast burrito for busy mornings.
I swear these will taste better than they look
After my potatoes were heated all of the way through, I spread guacamole on the remaining tortillas and piled a scoop of potato in the middle of each.
And then added peppers and green chilies before wrapping them up to freeze for future use!
And there you have it… 10 homemade burritos ready for my girl, the freezer! 😉
In all of her glory!
Stay tuned and eat your greens.
** Note this blog went through a rebrand and is now veg vibes; which aligns better with the direction I organically gravitated towards. It’s all about your vibe **
Last night I made a red lentil and chickpea soup that was inspired by the dinner my boyfriend’s sister, Wendy, made on our last night in Canada.
Mike is from Toronto and we usually spend time there with his family over the holidays. I love going to Canada around Christmas because, even though it’s freezing, it is usually snowing and, having grown up in California, a white Christmas was something I only got to experience through movies. This year it didn’t snow as much as it has in the past but we still got to experience some snow before we left. We also tried our hand at an Escape Room which was a ton of fun and highly recommended (even for people like me who aren’t the most strategic, game-minded individuals!).
Of course it’s always nice to see all of Mike’s friends and family. We make it a point to see one of his best friend’s (and my soulmate, essentially) Melissa. It is also a tradition to eat at The Keg (best steaks ever) with family friends Nikki and Carole. This year was extra special because we got to meet Mike’s niece, Ella, for the first time. Our holiday in Toronto was filled with games, celebratory drinks, good food, and better company.
Dinner and drinks with good friends Melissa and Davin!
After we successfully escaped our Escape Room
Drinks and some Catan action
Our last day there was lazy and perfect. In the morning we took a nice walk in the snow and then went to go see the new Star Wars movie (which I, surprisingly, actually liked). After the movie we went to get a few beers and appetizers and then went home to pack. As we packed (and, full disclosure, drank scotch) Wendy made the most delicious soup with red lentils, onions, and chickpeas. She garnished it with cilantro and, in much need of something healthy and nourishing, I devoured it!
Last night I re-created this meal for me and a friend but based only on the knowledge that the ingredients included red lentils, chickpeas, onions, and cilantro. I had a general gist of the recipe but didn’t have anything written down so it wasn’t exact – for instance, I added a carrot and a tomato because I had them on hand – but I am happy to report it turned out well and tasted similar to what Wendy made. I decided not to share the recipe until I get the real one from her.
Also, this dinner incorporated cilantro (Herb of the Week!) and didn’t include cheese. Win-win.
Stay tuned and eat your greens.
** Note this blog went through a rebrand and is now veg vibes; which aligns better with the direction I organically gravitated towards. It’s all about your vibe **
We’ve made it halfway through the first week back to work! Annnnd it’s “cheese night.” If you remember, I’m trying to reduce the amount of cheese we eat since having given up meat on the weekdays and TONIGHT is the night for some added parm on my pasta!
This dinner is super easy and fast to make (as I believe most weeknight dinners should be). We paired the pasta with some roasted green beans and slivered almonds for some added veg power.
Happy hump day, y’all!
Ingredients
1 c pasta
1 bag spinach
1 can fire roasted tomatoes
3 cloves garlic – minced
1/4 c onion – chopped
2 Tbs olive oil
Parmesan cheese (optional)
Directions
Cook pasta according to package
Sauté garlic and onion in olive oil until translucent
Add can of fire roasted tomatoes and package of spinach – bring to a boil and then simmer until pasta is ready
Drain pasta and top with sauce
Sprinkle on parmesan, if desired
Easy peasy, right!?
Stay tuned and eat your greens.
** Note this blog went through a rebrand and is now veg vibes; which aligns better with the direction I organically gravitated towards. It’s all about your vibe **
A few years ago our good friends Gary and April moved to Los Angeles. I still haven’t gotten used to not seeing them every week and miss them terribly. One of my favorite things we used to do was bi-weekly Wednesday dinners, where we alternated going to one couple’s house and the host cooked / the guest brought dessert. These dinners were casual and lovely. Plus, it was nice to have something to look forward to in the middle of the work week.
If you have friends that live nearby, I definitely recommend starting this tradition with them!
Now (sadly!!) to see Gary and April we have to put in effort and planning. Waaah, wah, wahhh. Happily, we started a tradition of visiting them in LA every year for 4th of July – which certainly doesn’t make up for all of the time we don’t see them but at least we have one weekend a year where we know the four of us will get together again.
During our first 4th of July visit, Gary woke up early and reserved us a perfect spot at their pool, complete with umbrellas and couches to lounge on in between dips. We spent the whole day outside, alternating between lazily laying around and splashing in the pool. We ate, drank, laughed, and played. It was perfect. But, after all of that time in the sun (and all of those beers!), we were beat and opted out of plans to go to a nearby street fair.
Instead we stayed in and April made this AMAZING pasta dish that inspired my dinner tonight. In short, she added cooked bell peppers, garlic, onions, zucchini, asparagus and grilled chicken to pasta and tossed everything in olive oil and cilantro. So simple and so good! I love recipes that you can easily add and subtract to and from which is exactly what I did tonight.
You’ll notice I used the left over black beans and corn from yesterday’s dinner and I’m sticking with my Herb of the Week, cilantro. Also, no cheese!!
I hope you try this dish and maybe even have it at your own bi-weekly dinner with friends 🙂
Ingredients
1 spaghetti squash
1/2 c black beans
1/2 c corn
2 garlic cloves – minced
1 Tbs olive oil
2 Tbs cilantro (garnish)
2 Tbs green chilies (optional)
Directions
Cut spaghetti squash in half, scoop out seeds, bake hallow side down* for 35 minutes at 350 degrees
While squash is baking, sauté garlic in olive oil until translucent
Add black beans, corn, and green chilies – stir
Keep on low heat until squash is ready (you can also prep the spaghetti squash before and heat it back up in the sauce to save on time)
When squash is tender to forks touch, “shred” it
Incorporate squash into beans and corn
Top with cilantro
Enjoy!
Note I usually put a little bit of water in my baking dish to keep the squash from crisping up
Stay tuned and eat your greens.
** Note this blog went through a rebrand and is now veg vibes; which aligns better with the direction I organically gravitated towards. It’s all about your vibe **
Since Mike and I have been trying our hand at being weekatarians (which we did a pretty good job at maintaining over the holidays) I’ve noticed I have been relying heavily on cheese to supplement the flavor meat used to bring our dinners. Last year at least 3 out of our 5 dinners had cheese as a main ingredient so I decided to try really hard to limit our cheese intake in 2016. We aren’t completely cutting out dairy (yet) so I think it will be fine to have cheese once or twice a week at dinner but certainly not as much as we used to. So we don’t miss out on flavorful and satisfying dinners, I will use a lot of beans and herbs in dinners this year. I love cooking with fresh herbs but find that I don’t use all of them quick enough. This is why I will be buying one fresh herb a week and basically building most of our dinners around it. This week? Cilantro!
No cheese for me, please
Tonight we had vegan sweet potato burritos with cauliflower cilantro lime rice and because of a HUGE demand for some recipes on this blog (ok, ok, one person has suggested I add a few veg recipes…), I’ve provided the ingredients and instructions for you below 🙂
Ingredients:
1 – 2 sweet potatoes
1/4 cup black beans
1/4 cup corn
1/2 cup guac
1/2 cup salsa
6 flour tortillas
Directions:
Peel and steam sweet potatoes until tender enough to mash
Once SPs are mashed up, layer the mash, black beans, corn, guac, and then salsa on each tortilla
Wrap, serve, and enjoy!
Note: I froze the extra 4 burritos we made for a quick lunch or dinner in the future
Stay tuned and eat your greens.
** Note this blog went through a rebrand and is now veg vibes; which aligns better with the direction I organically gravitated towards. It’s all about your vibe **
Oh, 2016, you are about to bring on a whole new way for me…
You are going to change me. You are going to make me better. More pleasant and more present. You are going to be filled with light, balance, and restoration. Your clean slate will allow me to grow, to forgive, and to learn. I will love, laugh, swim, jump, dance, create, read, downward dog, namaste, live, jam, and vibe with authenticity in your days.
At your end, I will have evolved. During your allotted days, you will give me time and space to stretch and touch new things; physically and mentally. I hope to gain flexibility to touch my head to my knees, as well as the patience to be more flexible with day to day life. I will also flirt with new hobbies, new thoughts, and new parts of my mind. We are already three days into your 366 twenty-four hour time blocks we judge time by. In the past, this timeline would make me anxious. Seventy two hours spent getting to know you and I haven’t even tried a little bit to start on my resolutions for you…
Some of my resolutions are the same as they always are – to eat better (I’ve devoured fried appetizers and pizza during your past 3 days), to drink less (I started the first day of 2016 – your birthday, friend – with a mimosa …in celebration of you, of course;), to exercise more (I’m already 2 days behind in my yoga challenge) – but there are new resolutions, too. Resolutions that I’ve never made before, like giving myself a stress-free grace period before I dive deep into your pockets of time.
I have decided not count any days as the “new year” until tomorrow, January 4th, 2016. A Monday. When I will go back to work, when my travels for the year are complete, when the parties are over, and when I can pass on the morning champagne without feeling like I’m missing out on the festivities.
Tomorrow will be the official start of our relationship. You will remind me to be grateful of pleasures – big and small – everyday. I will take in the smells of my morning espresso. I will enjoy both the rain of the winter and the heat of the summer. I will recycle and reuse and keep mother nature close to me. I will work on remembering that Earth loves – and needs – me as much as I do her. I will treasure time spent with friends and family.
I will visit the beach more often because I know it’s hard to be upset with the ocean breeze blowing in my hair and the salt and sand on my skin.
This year I do resolve to eat better, drink less, and exercise more (all very physical driven resolutions) but I will also make a conscious effort to nurture my mind and spirit as well. I will read books that make me think about big things and books that let me escape reality for a while. I will dedicate more time to my blog, endlessly documenting my efforts of living a compassionate life and eating a compassionate diet. I will create and cultivate every day with your months as my maps and your seasons serving as my milestones.
You’re going to be a whole new way for me, 2016, and I can hardly wait to start the voyage.
As always, stay tuned and eat your greens.
** Note this blog went through a rebrand and is now veg vibes; which aligns better with the direction I organically gravitated towards. It’s all about your vibe **
Let’s take a step back. A weekatarian is someone who only eats meat on the weekend but, during the week, is a vegetarian. I encourage you to give it a try via the following, if only for a few weeks! Besides, who doesn’t love a challenge, right?
Commit: Watch some of the documentaries I’ve mentioned on this blog (Forks Over Knives, Vegucated and Cowspiracy, to name a few) and get angry! Get angry about how animals are being treated or how our government doesn’t care about our health or how agriculture is destroying the planet. I promise you, if you’re angry about even one of these things, it will make committing to this cause a lot easier.
Prepare: Go online and on Pinterest to find veg recipes that look good to you. Make a list of all the ingredients you will need and then go shopping! (Don’t be scared to buy new spices and herbs that you haven’t tried before – smoked paprika is my new go-to.)
Execute: This is simple, just don’t eat meat during the week! You are armed with a new attitude (of wanting a better life for yourself, the animals, the globe, or all three) and a kitchen full of ingredients to start cooking your non-meat meals.
Re-commit: You might not need this step but it’s possible that on Thursday night, when that slice of pepperoni pizza is calling your name and you don’t think you’ll be satisfied until you eat it, you have to re-commit. I’ve found adding spice (chili flakes on my pizza) gives me that little something extra when I feel like eating meat. Besides, being a weekatarian means you still get meat on the weekends, remember? Surely you can hold off for a few more days. Just think of all the good you’re doing for your girl, Planet Earth.
Dive Deeper: This step could also be optional for you and one I am flirting with taking. Instead of just giving up meat during the week, also give up cheese and other dairy products. This will be particularly hard for me because I love a good splash of half and half in my morning coffee and a piece of fruit with a few slices of cheese is a popular snack for me but the more I learn about a diet that is mostly plant based and how good it is, the more animal products I am prepared to give up.
Stay tuned and eat your greens.
** Note this blog went through a rebrand and is now veg vibes; which aligns better with the direction I organically gravitated towards. It’s all about your vibe **
As mentioned in my post about our weekend in Washington, I came home less impressed with the food when I traveled to New York City over the summer.
Towards the end of August, my mom, grandma and I took a girls’ trip to the Big Apple. We flew east on a Wednesday and came home that Sunday. My mom and I went to New York a few years ago but it was a short trip so I was excited to be there longer and to show my grandma around.
As to be expected, the food at SFO and on the flight to New York weren’t anything to write home (or blog!) about. We arrived at our hotel in Tribeca around 11pm ET and, being that we were in the city that supposedly never sleeps, I didn’t think it would be much trouble to find a place to eat so late. Sadly, I was mistaken. After a walk around the block we realized there weren’t many eateries in the area. We also had a suspicion that our hotel wasn’t located in best neighborhood and it was probably better to stay in for the night*
Despite the hotels sketchy location, it was really nice. We somehow booked with VIP lounge status, which was conveniently located right across the hall from us. The lounge had rooftop access, snazzy chairs and tables to dine (or social media lurk) at, free snacks, waters and sodas throughout the day, plus complimentary breakfast in the morning, and fresh baked cookies in the afternoon. Not mad about it!
On our first night, since we couldn’t find anywhere to eat, we ended up ordering room service and eating it right there in the lounge. In theory, I can end this post here because this was actually (disappointingly!) the best meal we had in NYC…! We ordered a salad and spaghetti to split 3 ways with a side of bread. Full, but mildly disappointed in our first night of the trip, we went to bed right after in anticipation of the next day ahead.
On Thursday we woke up early, grabbed a quick breakfast at the lounge, and headed out into the crowded, congested, annoying, amazing streets of New York City!
Our first stop was Gramercy Park via Starbucks for iced teas because of the heat and humidity. We walked to Chelsea Market after for some exploring (and more iced tea!) and then to Tortilla Flats for lunch. All three of us love Mexican food so I thought Tortilla Flats would be a hit. The restaurant was cool and I’m glad we went but I think living in California and having access to authentic Mexican food sets a standard that the east coast just can’t compete with. I got the cheese enchiladas with rice and beans; it was too greasy for my taste and lacked flavor but we chatted with the owner and got free shots of tequila so overall not a complete waste. 😉
Outside of Gramercy Park
All of the shops in Chelsea Market
Tortilla Flats!
Free shots of tequilaaaa
Next we did a bunch of touristy things including finding Carrie Bradshaw’s “apartment,” the Friends building, and grabbing cupcakes at Magnolia’s Bakery, as featured on Sex in the City. I’ve been to NYC three times and every time**, I’ve gotten a cupcake here! Sometimes there is a reason things are touristy (because they’re good!).
The “Friends” building
Magnolia’s
Outside Carrie Bradshaw’s
After enjoying our cupcakes in a nearby park, we stopped at The Spotted Pig for a drink. Our drinks were insanely overpriced (as to be expected in New York) and, in my opinion, horrible (!) but we were still in Greenwich Village, which is by far my favorite NYC neighborhood so the location (location, location, location!) made up for it.
Girls’ (walking) tour of Greenwich Village!
After lunch, cupcakes and drinks it was time for a walk to work off all of those calories. We walked the 1.5 miles back to our hotel where we relaxed for a while before going to a Broadway show. We saw BEAUTIFUL The Carole King Musical and it was ah-mazing! Before the show we split a margarita pizza in Times Square and after, we met the star of the show, Chilina Kennedy.
Meet and greet with the cast
The next day we had a carriage ride through central park scheduled first thing in the morning, so after a quick breakfast at the hotel we were on our way. The carriage ride was (also) expensive but I think worth doing if you’re in New York City. We explored Central Park after, seeing the memorial for John Lennon, and a few other things while walking to the upper east side for lunch. Word to the wise, do NOT go to Madison Avenue hungry and without a designated eating spot. We ended up at a place called EAT and I should have Yelped it before because all of the one star reviews are spot on. I ended up ordering a $20 Cesar salad that came with romaine lettuce and dressing and that’s it! Not even a single crouton or sliver of parm…
Us and our horse, Cody
At EAT (but don’t eat here!)
Money bags
Unimpressed with lunch, we moved on to the museums. We explored the Metropolitan Museum and The Guggenheim (and when I say “explored” I mean walk by and take a few pictures) with more iced beverages in hand! It was so hot, having something to drink was a necessity while walking around. I splurged for an iced mocha (usually sticking with iced coffee) while my grandma and mom got lemonades. We also bought a few bags of those famous NYC roasted nuts to snack on while walking and, let me just say, well worth the $9 spent.
Exploring Central Park and neighboring areas
I had made reservations at Serendipity months before our trip for dinner on Friday night and regretted it. The food was sub par and their legendary frozen hot chocolate wasn’t anything special. Beyond that, the restaurant is tacky (in my opinion) and the service was terrible… Oh, well. At least we’ve tried it.
Overall though, day two turned out to be another disappointing day, food wise. (If you don’t count the roasted nuts!)
HUGE menus
The “famous” frozen hot chocolate
On our final day in New York, we had essentially done everything we planned to do so, last minute, decided to take a harbor tour.
After another breakfast at the hotel, we took the subway to Times Square with the intention to walk to the harbor from there to catch the 12pm tour. We were doing great on timing …until I realized I had accidentally lead us in the exact opposite direction of where we needed to be going. We could have quickly turned around and hustled to the harbor, but there was another tour leaving at 2pm so we took our time righting the wrong.
Which turned out to be a good decision because we were able to visit the New York City Public Library, something that I wanted to see but didn’t want to go out of the way for it (on purpose). The library is as beautiful and grand as you expect. The security guard gave us a map (a map of the library!) and pointed out where Carrie B. was supposed to get married in the SATC movie (can you tell I’m a fan?). Interesting side note: he also had to check my backpack and my grandma’s purse as we were leaving to be sure we didn’t take any books! I guess there is a demand for NYC library books online… who would have thought?
After exploring the library we walked to the harbor where we had a quick lunch before the tour. I didn’t expect this meal to be anything special, which could be why it didn’t disappoint. (Expectations! …they’ll get ya every time.) We ate at a small concession stand nearby that basically sold “theme park food;” burgers, chicken tenders, fries, etc. I ordered a veggie burger (because I much rather not know where my soy beans are coming from than my meat!) and split an order of fries with my grandma and mom. As mentioned, my burger wasn’t that bad and kept me full during the 3 hour harbor tour.
The tour was a great last day activity for us. It was nice to get a history of Manhattan and see the Statue of Liberty – plus some other cool sights that we likely wouldn’t have seen – all the while sitting down and enjoying the breeze! We walked back to Times Square to get on the subway to go to the hotel but, by this point, we were hungry again. Having had bad luck with NYC eateries so far, we decided to eat dinner at Chevy’s in Time Square. Typically I much rather dine at a hole in the wall than a chain restaurant, especially when traveling, but honestly, I just wanted something I knew I was going to like at that point. So, another round of cheese enchiladas it was!
We got back to our hotel and a friend from college met me for a drink on the rooftop of our hotel. It was so good to see her and another great thing about traveling; having the opportunity to see old friends and make new memories.
Overall, our trip was great but not because of the food! It was so much fun to experience New York City again with my mom and grandma. I truly do love that city and recommend going if you ever get the chance to, just don’t expect every meal to be as amazing as the city.
Stay tuned and eat your greens.
*Later, my friend who lives in NYC confirmed that we definitely should not have been walking around that area late at night.
**For your viewing pleasure, a picture of the first time I visited New York/Magnolia’s …Back when bleached blonde hair, fake nails, and dangling earrings were all.the.range.
** Note this blog went through a rebrand and is now veg vibes; which aligns better with the direction I organically gravitated towards. It’s all about your vibe. **
In February Mike’s mom told me about saving vegetable scraps in your freezer to make broth. I love anything veg and homemade so as soon as we got home, I dedicated a big zip-lock bag in my freezer for the ends of carrots, tops of bell peppers, outer layers of onions, and any other vegetable pieces that would otherwise go in the trash.
My bag filled up within a couple months but it sat there – frozen and dormant – until tonight! I finally cut up a few onions that were on the verge, some celery and garlic that I had on hand, and started to make my veg broth. While I was in my kitchen, putting things away and taking in the savory smells of my scraps boiling, I started thinking about a post to show what food I have in my kitchen on a random Monday.
So, here we are… Below are pictures (upstaged and not the greatest…) of what is currently in my kitchen.
Starting from the top left and moving clock-wise:
Do you see all of that tea we have? (Shelves 1 and 4- 9!) My boyfriend is clearly an addict 😉 We also have our spices, oils, and pastas stored here.
Our cabinet is tiny so I think it looks like we have more food than we actually do (or I’m in denial and have a problem buying/stocking up on organic noshes). On the top shelf we have our flour, sugar, etc. – things we don’t use very often. On the middle shelf we have snacks and treats (in the basket) like crackers, bars, and popcorn + all of our “extras” we keep on hand like salsa, mustard, and olive oil spray. On the last shelf we store “everyday” items like granola, soups, dried onions (SO good on salads), etc. (Note, I am using the pasta sauce for dinner tomorrow hence it’s front and center location.)
An overall snap of our refrigerator. I know it looks like I haven’t gone shopping in a while but that isn’t the case at all. I just went to the farmers market and Trader Joe’s yesterday – expect most of the food I buy for the week is stored in the drawers. #vegetables #fruit (You will also spot hummus, eggs, almond milk and half&half, which are regular guests in our fridge among a few other random things like the apple cider, that I’m pretty sure has been there since last Thanksgiving.)
Our veg drawer. This week we have peppers, spinach, onions, mushrooms (brown paper bag), carrots, celery, sprouts and broccoli (both stored in the blue glass containers to keep fresh longer).
[Fruit drawer not photographed] Since it’s winter, we aren’t eating too much fruit but apples are a stable and tangerines are good for a boost of vitamin C during flu season.
What we buy and have is the house doesn’t vary a lot from week to week. We have our staples and rotate through them. Although, most weekends we eat out a lot and get more … experimental.
Stay tuned and eat your greens.
** Note this blog went through a rebrand and is now veg vibes; which aligns better with the direction I organically gravitated towards. It’s all about your vibe **
VEG VIBES 