One of my favorite things in this world is F O O D.

I have been vegan and gluten-free for around 10 years so my “lifestyle habits” are so natural, normal, and habitual that whenever someone asks if my diet is challenging, I am so perplexed and don’t understand what they mean haha!
But then I talk to people who want to eat more plant-based and they’re so overwhelmed
with where to start! Then I remember what it was like to change and how daunting that can feel!

So I put together my favorite, easy meals/snacks/desserts that I think are “musts”
if you’re scared at the thought of eating plant-based!

Let’s start with dessert because its my favorite.

1. My go-to chocolate chip cookies are a tad pricey but worth every penny:
Cappellos’s chocolate chip dough is sold at Whole Foods and Natural Grocers for about $15.
It’s made with almond flour and maple syrup, super clean and 100% guilt free!
I dip the cookies in unsweetened vanilla almond milk

2. Apple crisp

I am having a hard time finding a super easy recipe online for you…
I always make mine “of the cuff” because its so so simple,
maybe google a few so you understand the gist?

In my oat crumble topping I mix together: quick oats, gluten free flour, maple syrup,
baking soda, almond milk, vanilla, salt, pecans, and cinnamon
You do not need sugar, or cornstarch or anything else!
I use SO DELICIOUS Sugar Free Coconut Ice Cream or whip my own coconut whipping cream.
Use a coconut milk can that has been in the fridge for a day, get your beaters and whip it reallllll good: )

3. Chia Pudding
I use vanilla almond milk, vanilla extract, maple syrup and chia seeds to create the base,
then add fresh berries and Purely Elizabeth (very low sugar!) granola to the top!
If you want super creamy chia pudding, use some thick coconut cream!!
(google some chia seed pudding recipes so you understand the measurements…
I don’t follow recipes or measurements, I eye-ball everything so I can’t help in that department haha)

Medical Medium Rice Crispies

HONEY + BROWN RICE CRISPS + CASHEW BUTTER
=
THE MOST DELICIOUS AND HEALTHY RICE CRISPIES EVER

Banana Chocolate Chip cookies

I don’t have a photo but these are my go-to cookies when I am low on groceries
because I usually have bananas and oats!

Rough estimate:
2 bananas, 3/4- 1 cup-ish of quick oats, some cinnamon,
Lily’s Stevia Dark Chocolate Chips, pecans, 1/4 cup coconut oil

I like having the consistency more banana than oats so that they remain moist

Bake about 15 minutes at 400 degrees

You can eat them warm, but I like them best cold
so the flavor is more potent, but to each their own.

I eat these for breakfast sometimes because theres no sugar!!

The key to transitioning from meat products to mostly plants is that
you need to increase your plant foods by A LOT!!
It’s easy to have a full-feeling belly just from vegetables,
but the key is a WAY larger portion size than when you were eating meat.
Eat an entire cauliflower head, or two.
Or eat a little more fat in the form of guacamole/avocados, or eat as much fruit as you want.
Fruit is so healing, you should never feel guilt eating a lot of fruit.
Some days I have three bananas because its “fast food” haha.
Your body will adjust to the new normal-
I think the culprit is usually mind games more than anything :P

Potatoes
We make some type of potato everyday…. potatoes are super healing,
but typically HOW their cooked and prepared (fried) is what makes them unhealthy!

We slice up sweet potatoes into wedges (all types, purple, white orange!),
drizzled in olive oil or avocado oil, and pink salt
almost every single day, not lying.
Cook them until they’re a little crispy!

My personal favorite are red skin potatoes chopped
with rosemary, salt, and oil, baked in the oven!!

Truly, my favorite recipe EVER and the recipe everyone always asks me for on Instagram:
Roasted Sweet Potato and Cauliflower Chipotle tacos, that I usually make into a bowl!

I SWEAR its the easiest recipe!!! The only two abnormal ingredients I had to go and buy were cans of chipotle peppers
(one can lasts an entire month if I store it in the fridge) and smoked paprika powder.
I usually saute onions and bell peppers, warm up black beans, smash an avocado,
and spice up jackfruit from Trader Joes with taco seasoning to complete the bowl:

Our easiest meal every week:

Saute cauliflower and brussel sprouts (or just cauliflower if we’re super lazy)
add in Majestic Garlic sauce at the end (apply liberally, but not TOO much)

Saute Trader Joes cauliflower gnocchi
I have found that having a hot pan and only flipping the gnocchi once or twice is the trick because
the gnocchi can get messy/sticky in certain pans! Use a good pan!

Mix it all together with salt and stay away from human beings for 24 hours
because you will smell of garlic haha

#1 lazy meal is cooking chickpea noodles, frying a plant sausage, cut it into small pieces,
adding marinara sauce and voila, spaghetti!
yes, zero veggies, but sometimes I am just too lazy : )

PIZZA!!!!

Buy any crust you want, or pizza dough mixture
(I love Namaste gluten free pizza dough from Natural Grocers, just add water!!)

Buy any pizza sauce you want (or pesto sauce), saute a few veggies like onions, mushrooms, bell peppers,
top the pizza with the veggies and with Follow Your Heart brand vegan cheese
(apply lightly, sold at Sprouts, Whole Foods etc)

If you want to get a little crazier, the Medical Medium sweet potato crust is AWESOME

Chef Chloe’s avocado pesto recipe

You can skip the pine nuts so its easier to make on the fly:

Thai Red Curry

I buy many many cans of coconut milk and Thai Kitchen red curry paste while
grocery shopping so I never run out! Thai curry is VERY hard to make without this paste for some reason.
**I always add peanut butter to any Thai curry dish!!**

I usually use whatever vegetables I need to use up in my fridge and add in frozen peas because: protein!!

Once you make this recipe once, you’ll see how easy it is and you will want to make it all the time!

I also love the Medical Medium’s Chili Loaded Potato Recipe 

If you want awesome information about HOW to transition from an animal based diet to a plant diet,
visit my brothers blog: Burnt Lentils 

Easy Breakfast options:

My go-to breakfast is a fruit smoothie with vanilla pea protein
(Garden of Life is the best) and spirulina, 1-2 hours after I drink celery juice and some coffee.
Adding fruit like peaches and mangos and some nuts like cashews, always enhances a smoothie!

Eating light for breakfast allows me to feel super energized,
eating heavy breakfasts slows me down!
When I eat light, I run in my own house instead of walk hahahha too much energy!

Hashbrowns and veggies with plant sausage:

If I cook breakfast, I will saute hashbrowns with veggies (broccoli, bell peppers, onion ususally)
and one Beyond Meat plant sausage (Hot Italian flavor, they’re made of pea protein,
one sausage has 16 grams of protein) with salt and pepper and avocado oil

Banana Oat Pancakes

All you need is a banana and maybe a half cup of quick oats and you have a pancake!!!!
Add in cinnamon, pecans, blueberries, or apples… whatever you like!
Practice a time or two, you might not get the consistency on the first try.
Add maple syrup, or put some berries in a pot on low heat and squish them up for a berry sauce

Other breakfast ideas: avocado toast, muesli with almond milk and fruit on top,
chia pudding, or oatmeal but with bomb toppings like peanut butter, pecans, cinnamon, maple syrup, coconut shreds, and granola! (Add berries or apples in the base of oatmeal)
This breakfast was crafted in Madrid, by my brother who has a vegan recipe blog Burnt Lentils

I also love eating left over Apple Crisp, cold, for breakfast!! YUMMM