peanut butter banana oatmeal

I never tire of breakfast, it is the one meal that I get totally excited over. I love the ritual of our lazy Sunday morning breakfast, the predictability of breakfast during the work week + the quietness of Saturday mornings with just the pup, kitty + a crossword with a bottomless pot of tea.

Saturday is also the day of branching out; a new oatmeal, vegan eggs bene or whatever was found at the Farmer's market that morning.

sweet + spicy roasted chickpeas

You guyssss!  Oh wow, just WOW - these chickpeas are so freakin' amazing.

A little sweet, just the right amount of heat and so easy to make!

This is good vegan eating on the cheap - super inexpensive and wicked versatile.

book review: 100 best juices, smoothies + healthy snacks {giveaway + bonus recipe!}

{photo credit Emily von Euw}

How exciting is it too see so many amazing vegan cookbooks being released - so much goodness + beauty. It is even more exciting when you have seen blogging friends grow leaps + bounds with their art and publish not one, but two vegan cookbooks- both with amazing recipes and beautiful photos.

I remember with Em first started her blog, you always got the feeling this girl was going to be someone that makes a huge impact on the world through her love of food and living a healthy wholesome lifestyle. It was such an honor to have the opportunity to review her latest masterpiece:

100 Best, Juices, Smoothies + Healthy Snacks!

vegan eggs benedict // smokey portabella bacon

I am absolutely in love with breakfast - it is the one meal I look forward to everyday. Many of my breakfast "go to's"  include farina, tofu scramble, pancakes, tofu egg sammies, english muffin with peanut butter + breakfast wraps.

Some of my best recipe ideas come to be just before falling asleep, for this reason I always keep a pad + pen at my bedside table. I was actually thinking about my sister and how she and her other half love brunch - one of her favorite brunch dishes is a vegetarian bene. Hey, I've never made a vegan bene before, I need to get on that! Then I start to visualize the flavors and composition of the dish, furiously writing down my thoughts in a half awake // half asleep state (all with a confused Justin by my side).

sweet potato minestrone // chickpeas + pesto

Happy New Year!
Have you set your intentions for the new year? Each year I compile a life list; on one side I list out goals or intentions for the coming year , on the other side future long term goals and intentions.

I typically have these thought out way in advance, this year is a bit different. 2014 came and went so quickly I feel as though I'm just beginning to breathe again.

Intentions for 2015 // more whole plant based foods- less "vegan" junk food + processed foods // regain confidence + consistency in my yoga practice  // redefine + rediscover the purpose of this blog + what it means to me + direction // design our dream home

This soup is perfect to kick off the New Year - whole plant food goodness + loads of flavor, easy to make a batch for a week's worth of healthy lunches.

best of 2014!

It feels as if I was writing this post recapping 2013 just the other day - who can believe it is already the New Year, we are in 2015 my peeps! 

2014 was a good year, busy but good - to sum it up it was a total whirlwind. 

In 2014 I had the opportunity to see my photography published with the Experiment in Sharon Palmers book: Plant Powered for Life!

During the Summer I brushed up on my Wedding Planning skills and stepped up as an interim Wedding Planner at work, which ended up being a blast.

I had the opportunity to dabble in actual people pictures, not just food which was completely foreign to me but found is something I enjoy doing more than I had thought I would.

Sadly, I did not blog as frequently as I wold have liked - with a new year upon us I am hoping to hone in my focus on the blog and get those creative juices flowing once again.

To close out 2014 and kick off a new year, I give you my most popular posts of 2014!