Snacks!

I'll admit it - I am just one of those people who loves to snack. I could easily eat snacks all day long instead of three main meals. But vegan snacking can be tricky - especially when you're on the go - so here are my top 6 favorites:

1. Nuts and Dried Fruit
Seriously cannot go wrong here. You're packing in the protein, the fruits satiate that craving you have for something sweet and this is totally portable. But here's the trick - experiment with combinations. It will blow your mind. I always start with a 1/2 cup measuring cup and fill it with varying combinations. I buy all my nuts and dried fruit in the bulk aisle at Whole Foods (don't buy trail mix - it's ridiculously expensive and I find that I eat more when it comes already mixed together!) - but here's the cost saving trick: compare the price per pound on the bulk bin to the price per pound on the packaged ones they have in the same aisle. Sometimes the packaged is cheaper! Here are some of my all time favorite combos:

Raw Almonds + Raw Pecans + Dried Sour Cherries + (vegan chocolate pieces if you really need chocolate)

Raw Almonds + Pepitas + Lightly Salted Sunflower Seeds + Dried Cranberries

Raw Cashews + Dried Blueberries + Hazelnuts

Pepitas + Lightly Salted Sunflower Seeds + Dried Cranberries + Pecans + Almond Slivers

2. Toast with Avocado and Flax Seed Oil
Ok, not so great for on the go but this is seriously one of my all time favorite snacks. I toast one slice of bread, then pour about a teaspoon of flax seed oil on it and spread it around, then I take some avocado (maybe a quarter) and I mash it on top of the bread and top it with some sea salt and freshly ground pepper. I just ate a slice...nom nom nom.

3. Fruit
No-brainer. Fruit's one of the most portable snacks you can find. Bananas, berries, and apples are my favorites because they're the least messy. I will never bring an unpeeled orange to work. NEVER. I can just see orange juice spraying all over the papers on my desk; squirting a co-worker in the eye. Temporary blindness! Yea, not happening.

4. Dates stuffed with Pistachio
Remember that detox J and I did last winter? This was one of my favorite snacks. Buy a container of pitted diglet dates from Whole Foods and raw pistachios. Put pistachios in a food processor and process the heck out of them. It becomes a sort of powdery-ish pistachio paste. Slice the dates open, stuff them with the pistachio paste and top it with some unsweetened shredded coconut. I have an extreme sweet tooth as you may have guessed (after all, I am a baker) and this totally does the trick when I'm going out of my mind with cravings.

5. Hummus
You really can't go wrong with hummus. We always make ours at home because, well, for one thing it's cheaper, for a second, we can make it ANY flavor we want, and for a third we know where our ingredients are coming from and it's super duper fresh. Here's recipes for our Cucumber-Dill Hummus and our Ginger-Lime Hummus. It's not hard, I promise. I like to dip in sliced veggies - but sometimes we'll use it as a condiment on a sandwich too.

6. Pop Cakes
So Pop Cakes are these crazy things they sell at Whole Foods and our cat Bob is addicted to them. We like them too. They're sort of like rice cakes, only more compact and they don't fall apart or taste like cardboard. They're so versatile! Have them with hummus, PB&J, tapenade, Tofutti - the possibilities are endless.

Vegan Lunchbox!

Today's lunch:

Rice wrappers filled with avocado, carrot, mint, kale, and zucchini. A small salad of kale, mint, and cucumber. Spicy peanut dipping sauce: a spoon full of peanut butter, rice wine vinegar, toasted sesame oil, and garlic chili paste (sorry - I just winged it and didn't measure).

Really light and refreshing lunch for hot days when your apartment feels like it's 900 degrees and you don't want to actually cook anything!

Vegan Lunchbox

Rainbow Salad
2 carrots, julienned
3-4 baby portebelloes, chopped
1/4 red onion, diced
1 cup green beans, slivered
1 cup snap peas, halved
2 stalks celery, diced
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/4 cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup clover sprouts
1 sheet of nori, ripped into small pieces
 salt & pepper

Dressing:
2 Tbsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp freshly grated ginger
1-2 garlic cloves, minced

Mix everything together!

Serves 6-8

Cashew Spread Veggie Sushi
Post Punk Kitchen's Cashew Spread (made without scallions & red pepper)
1 carrot, julienned
1/4 avocado, sliced
1/8 yellow bell pepper, sliced thinly
1/8 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup clover sprouts
1 sheet of nori

Serves 1

Cool Beans (and Rice!)

After an aggravating and anxiety-inducing trip to Whole Foods (the store was packed and run amuck with loud, obnoxious children), J and I came home, worn out and needing some TLC! So J took to the kitchen with an idea for a new, low-fat, comfort food recipe and I lounged on the couch surfing Pinterest (so addictive!). Below is his new receipt for Cool Beans (and Rice!)  - enjoy...I sure did!


Cool Beans (and Rice!)
Serves 4-6


1 cup dry brown rice
2 1/2 cups homemade vegetable stock
1 can refried beans with green chilies
1 can black beans (with liquid)
1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes
1/2 pablano pepper, diced
1 garlic clove, diced
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 Tbsp crushed red pepper flakes
2 Tbsp cilantro, plus more for garnish
1 avocado sliced thinly for garnish
Salt & pepper to taste

Optional: vegan ground protein (e.g. seitan, veggie crumbles, TVP, etc.)

Cook rice in a rice cooker or on the stove with veggie stock. Let it cook for around 20 minutes, covered.

Combine the rest of the ingredients in a large pot (excluding garnish, of course!). Cook on medium heat for about 20 minutes while the rice cooks. Stir occasionally.

Layer the bottom of a bowl with some rice and put bean mixture on top. Garnish with cilantro and avocado.

Cumin Quinoa Veggie Dinner Salad

Cumin Quinoa Veggie Dinner Salad


1 cup quinoa (we mix regular and red together)
2 cups boiling water
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped
3-4 crimini mushrooms, chopped
1/4 zucchini, chopped
1 can chickpeas, drained
1-2 tsp freshly ground cumin
1-2 tsp cayenne
salt and pepper
1-2 cups fresh spinach
1 avocado
1 lime

Bring water to a boil and add quinoa. Allow to simmer, uncovered, until water is absorbed. Fluff with a fork and allow to cool.

In a large skillet, saute onion in some water. Add water if they stick too much - continue to do this throughout cooking so that you don't end up using oil! Add garlic after onions become translucent. Continue adding veggies, except spinach, avocado and lime, and allow to cook through. Add spinach last and allow to cook, removing from heat just after the spinach wilts. Add veggie mix to quinoa.

Serve cold topped with a few slices of avocado and a wedge of lime.

Serves 4-5.