This is my second month of being vegan! I started eating vegetarian in 2013, and decided to progress to eating completely plant-based in September. The transition has been alright so far, especially since there are so many amazing vegan “substitute” foods available. I’m also still on my weight loss journey — which has slowed down since I lost 30 lbs. I’ve lost 6 more pounds since then, and I wanted to share what I eat in a day now that I’m vegan:
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We visited Lou’s Sushi in Sacramento for some vegetarian/vegan sushi and it was great. I never thought about vegan sushi before but I’m so glad to have found a cool place.
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As a White Elephant gift, we received The Southern Slow Cooker Bible that has 365 crockpot recipes by Tammy Algood. One of the recipes that sounded great was the Summer Ratatouille which is what I decided to try out. Of course, being a crock pot recipe, this was very easy to make — here’s a look at our slow cooker ratatouille.
We recently went to Carmel for my birthday and we had the best time. I wanted to do a Travel Diary about our trip and our experience! ❤
This post may contain affiliate links; all opinions are my own. See Disclosures here
This post may contain affiliate links; all opinions are my own. See Disclosures here
This recipe is super easy and delicious. It’s a pasta casserole that is perfect for staying warm and snuggly during these winter months. This dish is great for an easy date night dinner or perfect for lunch time leftovers. Yum!
I found this recipe on thkitchn.com and made a few changes to better suit my taste.
Ingredients
8 ounces spinach pasta (I like linguine!)
6 ounces fresh baby spinach, roughly chopped
2 large shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 ounces Asiago cheese, grated
1/2 cup low-fat Greek yogurt
1/2 cup half and half
6 ounces basil pesto
Freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggs
Olive oil
Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees.
Boil 4-6 quarts of lightly salted water in a large pot and cook the pasta according to the package.
Set cooked pasta aside.
Peel, wash, and thinly slice the shallots.
Roughly chop the baby spinach
Mince garlic
Grate the cheese
In a large bowl, combine the half and half, basil pesto, eggs, and greek yogurt. Wisk together until smooth.
Combine the spinach, cheese, shallots, and cooked pasta in a large bowl.
Lightly grease a 9×9 casserole dish with olive oil and mix in pasta mixture with the pesto mixture.
Bake for 30 minutes
Let cool for about 10 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
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This recipe is so simple to make and tastes delicious.
20 minutes Prep Time. 45 minutes Cook Time
You will need:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Begin by sautéing the onions and garlic in the butter in a large pan over medium-high heat. About 5 minutes or until onions begin to brown.
Add mushrooms and 3/4 of the cheese to the onions. Stir to combine.
Once the cheese begins to melt, add spinach.
Begin string in the spinach leaves until they combine with the onion mixture. You may need to add the spinach in small batches at first.
Once everything is combined, add salt & pepper, stir, and reduce heat to low. Then, in a large bowl, combine eggs and half and half. Wisk together and add salt and pepper.
Pour the onion mixture into the pie shells.
Next, add the egg mixture to the top of the onion mixture and gently shake it from side to side to help the egg infuse with everything.
Put your pies into the oven and set a timer for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, add the remaining 1/4 cheese to the top of your pies. Then bake for an additional 35 minutes
Remove from the oven and allow to cool and set.
Then serve and enjoy! This quiche tastes great with tobasco and a tall glass of orange juice!
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You know I love Chipotle, I always get a sofritas burrito with fajita peppers, green & corn salsa, sometimes sour cream, and guacamole. Their guacamole is amazing; no wonder they charge $2 extra!
Looking around online, I found a video of how to make Chipotle’s famous guac!
This recipe served 6 – 10 people (or just me for 2 days. lol. I love guacamole!) You’ll need:
And that’s it! This recipe is so easy and tastes so perfect.
Combine all your avocado in a large bowl and lightly mash with a fork, large spoon, or a mashed potato press.
Add your peppers, cilantro, onions, salt, and lime juice and combine/mash together. I prefer my guac to be a little chunkier so I combine all the ingredients lightly.
And ta-da! You’re ready to enjoy the best guacamole EVER!
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This vegetarian sandwich is easy to make and tastes great!
You’ll need:
Broil your bread in the oven and lightly drizzle some Olive Oil on one side, then flip the bread over and let your cheese melt slightly on the bread.
Remove the bread from the oven and add tomato slices to one slice of bread, and spread hummus and mustard to the other slice. *Use a thin layer of hummus. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Then add sautéed peppers, onions, and garlic to your sandwich, cut, and serve with potato chips.
*For an extra kick, add some tobasco hot sauce to the vegetables!
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When I first heard about Landon Austin on Youtube, I thought he used auto-tune on his voice. He has a really unique sound, accompanied by an acoustic guitar and his songs are pretty mellow. I am really liking Once In A Lifetime. Even though it’s a slower song, I like to listen to this when I’m running.
This movie was much better than the first. The Capitol establishes new rules in order to surpress a rebellion encouraged by Katniss Everdeen’s breaking the rules in the last Hunger Games. Peacekeepers are enforcing more rules on the different Districts and Katniss and Peeta must fight again in the 75th Hunger Games. If you liked the first movie, you’ll really like the second. By the end, I was holding up my three fingers and whistling the Mockingjay tune!
I’ve been loving Chipotle so much in November. I get a burrito with: white rice, fajita vegetables, sofritas (only served in select states/locations), the green salsa, corn, sour cream, and guacamole. MMMmmm. So good. I’ll sometimes get the chips and guacamole on the side, but only if I’m super hungry.
I’m still training for a half marathon, and I’m using the Nike+ Running App to track my runs. Just the other day, I logged my farthest run – 7.25 miles! Yay. I’ve still got a ways to go and a lot more conditioning, but I really like how the Nike+ Running App lets you create goals how you can “race” with your friends. Add me (MuffinChanel) and we can race!
I love Lush baths; especially during the colder months. Relaxing underneath a blanket of bubbles is so perfect. My favorite combination at the moment is The Comforter bubble bar and Think Pink bath bomb & to make it extra amazing, I add a dropper of Josie Maran’s Argan Oil! With this bath ^, I used Sandstone soap to exfoliate and Sweetie Pie shower jelly. Amazing!
I’m so excited that I was selected to participate in the Starbucks Holiday Star Dash. As you can see, I earned my 16 stars and will get the $10 eGift! Yay for those Very Berry Hibiscus Refreshers!
I got this lens for my birthday and it’s awesome. If I have to choose from the three they offer, this is the one I choose. I love it because it is both Macro and a Wide angle lens — just unscrew it to get the Macro.
My little cousins shared their Rainbow Looms with me over Thanksgiving! They taught me how to make the Starburst and Fishtail bracelets! You can get the Rainbow Loom at Michael’s for $17 and each Rubber Band Pack of 600 bands is $4.
Grand Theft Auto 5
I recently bought GTA 5 and it’s so much fun. I have GTA 4 (but I never even finished the story mode), but GTA 5 is so much better. You play as three different characters in story mode & the online mode is so much fun; I’m already on level 16!
I bought this in my Sephora VIB Rouge haul to try it out and it’s awesome. My hair looks and feels softer and healthier. I’ll repurchase the larger sizes when I run out. I do like these small bottles though; perfect size for traveling.
What have you been loving this November? Let me know in the comments.
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I love this movie and not just because I like musicals. This 1968 adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist is fun while touching on serious issues. If you haven’t seen the movie or read the book, I definitely recommend it. This used to be on Netflix, but they’ve taken it down since 🙁
Earlier this month, we saw Philip Glass play at the Days and Nights Festival in Big Sur, California. It was a beautiful day and the festival was so much fun. If you aren’t familiar with Philip Glass, check out some of his solo piano HERE and HERE.
You already know how amazing this has been for me! Of course I had to make it one of my October favorites 🙂
So excited about this. Review HERE, but you can use this organic oil for so many things! It’s amazing and it is perfect for all skin types! 🙂 🙂 🙂 Historically, Argan oil has been used to treat acne, stretch marks and skin conditions like eczema and psoriasis!
I first got a sample of this with one of my Sephora purchases and I loved it. I recently picked up the full sized version, and I got a great deal! I use this on top of moisturizer but underneath foundation. It give a smooth canvas to apply your makeup and it reduced the appearance of pores — it’s gives an airbrushed effect.
I love the classic look of a French manicure; it looks great with everything. This kit from Sephora is a great value with 2 full sized gel polishes, a detailing brush, and nail decals for just $29. I’ve only had this on my nails for 3 days, but the gel formula is amazing and will last up to two weeks. Super easy to apply and several colors to choose from in-store and online.
This show makes me think of fall. I had a Netflix marathon last year in October and tried to keep up on the most recent season online. With the most recent Halloween special, I’m excited all over again to solve more of the mystery! Are you watching? Do you think Ezra is A?
I got this mask in a set in my last Sephora haul. I have used it twice and there is a full review HERE, but so far I really like it.
This organic, vegetarian “burger” was awesome. With avocado and white cheddar, the lentils, mushrooms, beets, cashews & bulgar wheat pattie was delicious. It was served with a side of mixed greens, roasted potatoes, and pickles. Yum!
This is my go-to highlighter for that gorgeous winter glow. I like the way the product glides on and it blends very easily with your fingers. The highlight is natural looking, but you can definitely see it. Perfect for holiday party time or year round.
This post may contain affiliate links; all opinions are my own. See Disclosures here
These cupcakes were a lot of fun and very easy to make!
Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees
In a medium bowl combine:
Let mixture sit for about 5 minutes or until foamy
Whisk Baking Mix into the liquid ingredients and blend until smooth
So easy, right!? Then we poured the mixture into our cupcake pans, greased with coconut oil, and popped the tray into the oven for 18 minutes.
While the cupcakes were baking, we made the Organic Gluten-Free Vanilla Frosting Mix! Yay!
The mix was super easy to make — just combine vegan margarine (we used Coconut Oil) and the mix and voila!
By the time we were done, so were the cupcakes!
After letting the cupcakes cool for 15 minutes, we added the frosting.
These cupcakes are awesome! Even if you don’t have a food allergy or dietary preferences, you will enjoy this mix and frosting. You can order this and other organic, gluten-free baking mixes from wholesomechow.com.
I want to try their Lemon Poppy Blueberry Muffins next!