Bumps, Strides & a New Format

It has been a while, friends! The last month has been incredibly eventful and I'm happy to say that I am still enjoying my vegan lifestyle! At times it has been a challenge to stay the course. Sometimes I have found myself saying, "but wouldn't it be easier to just not eat this way?" The times I have deviated from the course, I have regretted it and actually seen my immune system and its defenses drop as a result. Eating healthy, great food makes a huge difference and I am committed to continuing on this course to heaven...

In other news, as I am going to be finishing my 90 days soon, I wanted to change the format of this blog a bit. I love that I feel accountable to my wonderful family and friends who take the time to read this (thank you!) and I want to continue that as it is super fun to think about what I'm going to highlight in the blog moving forward. Due to my schedule and demands on me in life overall, I'm going to change this blog to be a monthly blog. Each month I will feature at least one new recipe, some activity I've done or something I've learned to keep me healthy, and of course any meaningful research or personal reflections I have along the way!

Success!

The Vacation Challenge
When we are on vacation, it is the easiest time to get away from your diet and routine. Earlier this month, my husband and I went to California to reunite with great friends and spend some time on the beach and drinking wine. For a couple of reasons, this was a big challenge for me. The first part of our trip was staying in two big beach houses with mostly folks who are not vegan or vegetarian. Seriously, our friends were AWESOME about it! They thought about my needs in group dinners and one morning for breakfast, I came up with a great recipe of my own which has now become a breakfast/brunch staple!

Enjoying a good book on the Santa Cruz beach...

One Pan Breakfast Heaven

This is the perfect breakfast/brunch dish that is sure to please everyone in your household!

Ingredients:

Bag of small multi-colored potatoes

Package of vegan breakfast patties

Green pepper

Red pepper

Green onions

Parsley

Paprika

Rosemary

Salt

Pepper

Instructions:

To prepare: Chop up three strands of green onions, half a green pepper, half a red pepper, fresh parsley, half all your mini-potatoes, and cut up the breakfast patties into small chunks.

To cook: Lightly drizzle EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) in a large saucepan and let it heat up on medium-high heat. Once warmed up, add the onions and peppers to the pan. Let them heat up and move around for approximately 5 minutes. Add in the potatoes and chunks of patties next. Salt and pepper to taste and add in around two tsps of parsley, paprika, and rosemary (but it is to taste, based on your preference). Stir frequently. You may need to add more EVOO, but taste the potatoes along the way to gauge when it is done. You want the potatoes to be soft enough to chew through and they should be lightly browned.

Vegan Chocolate Low-Fat Bundt Cake

I altered an already great recipe to meet my own needs and baking preferences. I could not believe that this was vegan when I ate it, and neither could my co-workers who enjoyed a taste at a recent conference.

Ingredients:

2 shots freshly brewed espresso

2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1/3 cup canola oil

1/3 cup applesauce

1/4 cup cornstarch

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups whole wheat unbleached cake flour

1 cup plain almond milk

2 teaspoons baking soda

confectioners' sugar for topping

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly grease a mini-bundt pan (I recommend having two for this recipe, but you can do it with one).

Brew two shots of espresso, put them and the almond milk in a small pot and simmer over medium heat. Turn down the heat a bit and whisk in the cocoa powder until it disolves. Remove from heat and set aside to cool to room temperature.

In a mixing bowl, mix the granulated sugar, canola oil, applesauce, and cornstarch for about two minutes. Mix in the vanilla, then add in the chocolate, milk, espresso mixture. Sift in the flour and baking soda. Beat until it is all evenly mixed and smooth.

Pour the batter into the prepared mini-bundt pan(s). Bake for about 12-15 minutes per each pan (only put one mini-bundt pan in the oven at a time). Check with a toothpick.

Remove from the oven and let cool for about 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and put them on a serving plate. Sift or sprinkle the confectioners' sugar over the top and serve!

NEXT MONTH... Get excited to hear about my new running routine, including the tools I use to keep track of my progress and my new indoor cycling bike workout - guaranteed to burn at least 500 calories in 35 minutes!