Looking for a ethnic Mexican meal? That's also really delicious and easy! Well enjoy this simple tortilla soup and cheesy taquitos.


makes 4 servings
tortilla soup ingredients:
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 C diced onion
1/2 C diced red pepper
1 tsp  chipotle chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp dried sage
1 brick seasoned smoked tofu
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 vine tomatoes, diced
1 1/4 C canned crushed tomatoes
2 C vegetable stock
1/2 tbsp coconut sugar
1 C canned black beans
1 C thawed frozen corn kernels
1 lime, zest and juice
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
topping options:
vegan sour cream
diced green onion
diced avocado
fresh cilantro
cheesy taquitos ingredients:
1-2 C vegetable oil (for deep frying)
8 corn tortillas
1 pkg daiya cheddar style shreds
To make the soup start with a large stock pot and sauté onions with vegetable oil for 2 minutes until soft and fragrant. Then add red pepper and all the spices and sauté for 4-5 minutes.
Then pull apart the brick of tofu so it resembles chunks of chicken. If you are using plain firm tofu you might want to add a little but more seasoning in the form of smoked paprika and/or cumin to your taste. Then stir in the tofu and the minced garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes.
Next add crushed tomatoes and diced tomatoes. You don't have to add fresh tomato, but I happened to have it when I made this. You can use all canned crushed tomatoes and you can even supplement some of the volume of that with some jarred salsa! I happened to add 1/4 cup of salsa in addition to the tomatoes and canned tomatoes because this is was made up on the fly, after all! Stir to combine everything with the tomatoes and then add vegetable stock.
Bring the soup to a simmer and then add coconut sugar (this did help the acidity, but if you must, you can leave it out), black beans, corn, lime zest and juice, sea salt, and ground pepper.
Now you can let it simmer for at least another 20 minutes before serving.
To make the taquitos heat up vegetable oil to 375 F in a wide cast iron pan. It should be about 1" of oil on the bottom of the pan so the amount given in the ingredients is general, depending on the size of your pan.
Using corn tortillas is the best, but they might be a bit dry and crack while you roll them. TIP: heat them for a few seconds in a pan without oil or anything just to soften them!
Spread a 1/2 tbsp of jalapeño ranch onto one side of each tortilla and sprinkle a good layer of cheddar cheese shreds on top. Tightly roll the tortilla from end to end and place 2 toothpicks on either end to hold it together. Do this with all the tortillas and then when your oil is hot enough you can start frying.
Use the toothpicks or a fork

to gently place 2-3 taquitos in the pan and then remove them immediately. Use a metal spoon to spoon hot oil over top of the taquito to get the top browning as well. After 1 - 1 1/2 minutes you can gently flip the taquitos over. Fry for another minute and then remove from the hot oil with a pair of tongs onto paper towel to absorb excess oil.
Serve soup in bowls with your desired toppings and the hot and crunchy taquitos! Don't forget to dip that taquito into the soup. Enjoy!

You scream, I scream, we ALL scream for ice cream! Now, I do not know not one person on this earth who does not love an icy delicious flavorful treat. And that's ice cream. Ice cream comes in so many flavors, and of course they even have vegan ice creams. Made with milk alternatives such as coconut milk or almond milk. In my opinion, it gives it more of a flavorful ice cream experience rather than just regular ice cream. One of my favorite brands of ice cream is Ben & Jerry's. My favorite flavor used to be Chunky Monkey. CHUNKY MONKEY WAS THE BUISNESS! It was great for chocolate lovers. Now that I'm a vegan, I thought I could no longer indulge in any Ben & Jerry's ice creams. Until I discovered Ben & Jerry's has a NON DAIRY ice cream line!!! Yes, you read correctly, it's non-dairy, and all cruelty-free. And they have a Chunky Monkey non dairy flavor!!! Yes, you read correctly again! Their other flavors include chocolate fudge brownie, coffee caramel fudge, and P.B and cookies. These ice creams are made with almond milk. I purchased Chunky Monkey at my nearest whole foods for about $8.99. So go out and try a flavor guys, or try them all! Their delicious, just like the real thing! Enjoy :)

                                                      What do vegans eat?


Many people think vegans can't eat much of anything. Like meat is the only thing available to eat, which is completely funny and false. Here are just a couple food products that are 100% vegan. You're welcome.
1. Oreos
2.Duncan Hines Creamy Home-Style Frosting
3.Duncan Hines Cake Mixes
4.Jell-O Instant Pudding Mix
5.Smucker’s Marshmallow Ice Cream Topping
6.Taco Bell’s Bean Burrito (minus the cheese)
7.Taco Bell’s Cinnamon Twists
8.Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup
9.Chipotle Sofritas
10.Betty Crocker’s Bac-O’s Bacon Flavor Bits
11.Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
12.Ritz Crackers
13. Unfrosted Pop-Tarts
14.Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry Sheets
15.Lindt Excellence Cocoa Bars in 70%, 85% and 90%
16.Famous Amos Sandwich Cookies
17.Goya Flan
18.Nutter Butters
19.Nature Valley Crunchy Granola Bars
20.Nabisco Original Graham Crackers
21.Krispy Kreme Fruit Pies
22.Thomas’s New York Style Bagels
23. Super Pretzel Baked Soft Pretzel
24.Chocolate Chip Teddy Grahams
25.DQ Star Kiss Bar
26.Sara Lee’s Frozen Pies
27.Mast Brother’s Chocolate
28.Trader Joe’s Speculoos Cookies
29.Trader Joe’s Pound Plus Chocolate Bars
30. Ghiradelli Double Chocolate Brownie Mix
again, you're welcome :)

Recently, I've been quite obsessed with YouTube. It's just so entertaining. There is billons and billons of videos. My favorite channel would have to be Good Mythical Morning, their awesome. I know you're asking, well, what does YouTube have to do with veganism?..So Much! Their is so many vegan recipes, "what I eat in a day's", and informational videos having to do with vegan/vegetarian lifestyles. I am going to share with you some of my FAVORITE vegan Youtubers. Give them a check!
1) Bite Size Vegan: Don't expect just a bunch of recipes here!  Emily offers entertaining well produced videos that tackle topics such as: being vegan enough, how to get a vegan tattoo and whether or not riding a horse is considered a vegan activity.
2)Eco-Vegan Gal: On Whitney's channel you can expect interviews, product reviews and tips on how to live a compassionate and eco-friendly vegan lifestyle.  She also has an ebook for buying organic food on a budget and started a podcast where she helps aspiring entrepreneurs.
3) Edgy Veg: I enjoy Candice's channel because she's not afraid to show the other side of vegan life. What do I mean by that? She doesn't mind showing the comfort food, veganizing fast food dishes and cocktails.
4) Lauren Toyota: She is the head of "Hot for Food". A channel I've mentioned several times on my blog. On her person channel, she does a bunch of what I eat's, which is really fun and inspirational.
5) Vegan Gains: This guy, he has to be my fav. Just a warning, this guy is crazy and uses a lot of swearing. That's why I love him so much (lol). Vegan Gains pokes fun of fitness moguls, and extremely promotes veganism. He is a very strange guy but I enjoy looking at his videos..they are strangely entertaining.

I hope you guys enjoy these awesome YouTubers!!

Hey guys. As you already know from my last post I had a vegan pancake recipe. However, this week I ran across another AMAZING and even easier pancake recipe, with only 3 ingredients! I made these pancakes on Saturday, April 2nd an they came out incredible. (The picture are the pancakes I made) I got this recipe from vegan blogger "thrivingonplants" from YouTube. She's awesome and has so many vegan recipes. Check her out, you'd love her channel! I hope you give these a go. Even non-vegans would love these I swear by it! My mother, who is non vegan, loved them and wanted me to whip her up a batch!

PANCAKES: Process 1.5 cups oats into a flour consistency (I use quick oats, rolled oats work fine too), then add in 1 cup of your choice of milk (I use unsweetened almond milk), 1 ripe banana and pulse/blend until its well combined and forms a thick but pourable batter. [Optional add-ins: 1 tbsp of coconut sugar, ¼ tsp cinnamon, would highly recommend!!]. To cook the pancakes, preheat a non-stick frying pan on low to medium heat. I cook it on the lowest setting however keep in mind that the flame that I'm using is the largest one on the stove if that makes sense! If you don't have a non-stick frying pan, grease with a little bit of oil (use a paper towel to spread it out and soak up the excess). I used to do this and it was only a really thin coating but would last the entire batch, this batter is magical and doesn't stick! Cook on the first side until you see bubbles and/or the rims of the pancakes become matte as opposed to being shiny. Flip, cook on the other side until nice and golden.

CHOCOLATE SAUCE: Blend 3 dates (soak for easier blending), 1tbsp carob powder and water (adjust consistency as you go). Alternatively, you can simply mix in your preferred powder (carob/cacao/cocoa) with some rice malt syrup or any other liquid sweetener.

(I decorated my pancakes with some coconut chips, and bananas)

I decided to come back to you guys this week with another recipe! I am going to show you my vegan pancake recipe! These are absolutely delicious, and are so simple to make. By the way these pancakes are also gluten-free. It's like your getting a 2-in-1! And like I always say, try these and thank me later..cause your going to love them!

Ingredients

• 1 cup rice flour (150 grams)
   
• 1 cup oat flour (120 grams)
• 2 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup soy milk (250 milliliters)
• 2 tablespoons agave syrup
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract (optional)
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 2 bananas

Instructions

1. Mix dry ingredients in a bowl (rice flour, oat flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon).
2. Mix wet ingredients in another bowl (milk, agave syrup, vanilla extract and oil). Add sliced bananas and blend until smooth. You also can add smashed bananas, so you won't need to blend.
3. Combine dry and wet ingredients with a blender or with a wood spoon.
4. Place ¼ cup of batter in a hot pan lightly greased and cook for about two minutes for each side.
5. Serve with sliced banana and agave syrup.

Note: these taste great with fruits! I like to add some diced mango and bananas on top of these! You'll be in heaven, it's so delicious.

It's been a long day, You've had meetings and errands to run. You still have to workout, feed and walk the dog, do homework, chores, and other daily home activities. Or maybe it's just a lazy Friday night. By the time you're done with everything you'd be way to tired to cook a meal. And occasionally it's difficult to come up with an original, delicious vegan recipe, or it can be pretty time consuming as well. I've been there. I've been there several times. I am going to share with you a couple of AWESOME vegan/vegetarian restaurants you'd love! You can even bring your non-vegan friends along with you, I'm sure they'd love the food!

1. Escopazzo: 1311 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach; 305-674-9450; They sell mostly Italian cuisine. 

2. Sublime: They like to describe themselves as a "clear-conscience" restaurant. 1431 N. Federal Hwy., Ft. Lauderdale; 954-615-1431

3. La Vie en Raw: They sell mostly raw food, as well as smoothies, and other yummy eateries. 3808 SW Eighth Street, Coral Gables; 305-444-3826

4. Lifefood Gourmet: This restaurant as well has lots of raw vegan goodness. 1248 SW 22 Street, Miami; 305-856-6767

5. Glaser Farmer's Market: Technically not a restaurant, but they still have great vegan meals. As well as smoothies, desserts. It's technically a Whole Foods. 19100 SW 137th Ave., Miami; 305-238-7747

I've been to Sublime, Glaser's Farmer's Market, and La Vie en Raw. The rest I've heard great reviews on and will be visiting soon! They're all great, hope you enjoy them if you go.