Pumpkin Pancake Recipe

While this is not the healthiest recipe, I made these back in the fall and never blogged the recipe so I thought I would share. Considering this is from the fall, it is also apparent that I have not been doing a good job in general of blogging lately! I know excuses are just excuses, but I have been extremely busy with school and preparing for the GRE which I took just this morning! Yay! 

I will now, hopefully, have a lot more time to post more frequently! Let me know if there is anything specific you would like me to blog about; otherwise, I have a lot of ideas I'm excited to share with you all. 

Now, back to the recipe! For this recipe you will need the following: 

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup Pancake Mix (I used Arrowhead Mills Multigrain Pancake & Waffle Mix)
• About 1/2 tsp cinnamon or to taste
• 1 tbsp grapeseed oil
• 1/4 cup almond milk
• 1/4  cup and 2 tbsp pumpkin spice coconut milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
• 1/4 cup fresh berries or 1/4 cup chopped nuts (optional, I served my fresh berries on top of my pancakes)

As usual, I created this recipe on the spot and didn't measure out my ingredients exactly so keep in mind that my measurements are approximate!

Directions:

• Stir all ingredients together until there are no lumps. Do not over stir!
• Preheat pan lightly oiled with grapeseed oil, and cook pancakes, flipping when edges get crusty and you can see bubbles forming on top. 
• I used a slight amount of organic blue agave syrup on top or you can eat these plain.
• Serve and enjoy!

Avocado and Tomato Salad

Quick, simple salad recipe!

Ingredients:

• One bowl of washed and chopped red-leaf lettuce (or lettuce of choice)
• One tomato 
• 1/2 avocado 
• freshly ground pepper
• juice of 1/4 a lemon
• balsamic vinaigrette

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and enjoy!

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

This recipe is quick, simple, delicious, and perfect for those mornings when you are in a rush but still want to eat something healthy that will fuel you through your morning. During the fall and winter seasons, I love to make oatmeal because it is warm and comforting and also because it is high in fiber and low in fat. Oatmeal stays in your stomach to make you feel fuller longer and it's full of anti-oxidants. This recipe also works great for apples that are starting to get soft.

For this recipe you will need:

• 1/3 apple
• 1/2 cup quick oats (I used 365 organic quick oats) 
• about a 1/4 cup almond milk, or whatever milk you prefer
• about 1/2 cup water (this doesn't have to be exact and can vary depending on how hard or soft you like your oats to be)
• cinnamon 

Directions:

• Add oats to bowl
• Dice apple and add on top of oats
• Pour almond milk over apples and oats
• Add water until all parts of oats have been contacted
• Microwave for 1-11/2 depending on how cooked you like your oatmeal
• Sprinkle cinnamon over your oatmeal

And like always, you can modify this recipe by adding more oats and using the entire apple; this is just the serving size I typically make. 

Enjoy!

Free 21 Day Meditation

Oprah and Deepak are offering 21 days of guided meditations available here. This started on November 11, but each meditation is available for 5 days after being posted so there is still time to start today; you could even do two meditations a day to catch up! This is a great way to get into meditating. Even if you already meditate, this is a good thing to do to guide you and remind you to find some peace of mind on a daily basis. This meditation series is about desire, destiny, and finding who you are. Each mediation also comes with inspirational messages and quotes. If you can find 20 minutes tonight, sit down in a quiet place, close your eyes, and start this 21 day journey with me!

So Hum. . . I am.

Star Fruit!

Star fruits, or carambolas, are one of my favorite fruits. They are great to eat on their own but they are an even better to add to a festive fruit salad that you might make for a party or just for the family, especially with the upcoming holiday season. They are also rich in iron, fiber, and vitamins A and C. If you've never had one, go try one today!

Veestro Delivery!

For the most part I try to prepare meals using fresh, whole ingredients but there are times when I simply just don't have time to cook (or feel like cooking)! In times like those, Veestro is the perfect option to have stocked in your freezer. Veestro is an online organization that creates delicious vegan, plant-based, preservative free meals at an affordable price and then ships them straight to your house. If  you buy a meal plan, then shipping is free! So we usually buy a meal plan and then also buy individual items on top of that and get free shipping for the whole order. Then, when it's delivered, you just put everything in your freezer, and when you're ready, the products can be thawed, boiled, or microwaved for a simple and speedy preparation!

 They use dry ice to keep everything frozen in the package.

(Full Order)

So if you ever feel too busy or tired to cook but also don't want to compromise eating a natural, plant-based diet, I highly recommend checking out Veestro! 

Homemade Vegan Pasta Recipe

 

Today I have for you a very simple yet delicious vegan pasta recipe. I have to say I wanted to make this recipe because I wanted to use my pasta maker with my Kitchen Aid mixer that we've never used since we bought it years ago. However, after making the pasta dough I realized there was a part missing! So needless to say I had to do some improvising and make the pasta the good old fashioned way with a rolling pin and knife. The pasta still ended up being a great success and was quite delicious. I will order the missing part and do yet another pasta recipe, only next time I'm thinking whole wheat ravioli.

Ingredients:

• 5 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (I used 365 organic unbleached all-purpose flour)
• About 1 1/2 cups water 
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon tumeric

Note: This makes a lot of pasta, and you can always reduce the measurements. Also, you can add more flour or water as needed to make sure the consistency of the dough is right; you don't want it to be sticky or tacky but you also don't want it to be too dry.

Directions:

• In a large bowl, mix together the flour, tumeric, and salt. 
• Make a well in the flour and pour in olive oil and water.  Gradually combine ingredients, adding more water as needed. 
• Knead the dough on a floured surface for about 5-10 minutes or until texture is smooth. 
• Cover dough and let sit for 20 minutes. 
• Cut dough into several different sections (about 7)
• Roll out each section of dough using rolling pin on a floured surface (or using a machine) using flour as needed so your dough doesn't become sticky. 
• Starting with the end closest to you, fold the rolled out pasta sheet a few inches (going away from you), and then continue doing this until you have a flat jelly roll shape.
• Using a sharp knife, cut the jelly roll pasta dough forming your desired width. I made a pappardelle shaped pasta, about 3/4 inches thick. 
• Lay pasta strands on a floured towel and dust them with flour. 
• Let the noodles sit for about 10 minutes before cooking them, and then cook them in salted water for about 5 minutes. Cooking times vary widely so keep an eye on your pasta to tell when it's ready. 

Enjoy!