Stuff I Ate

Hey everyone! I hope you are all doing well and staying safe and healthy. I'm trying to get used to the new normal and have some struggles of course but I think I'm holding up ok. I've been trying to psych myself up to go to Aldi but haven't gotten there quite yet. I'm going to try really hard to get there on Thursday but I guess we'll see. This week I tried to photograph as much as I could and have a few pictures to show you of stuff I ate. This week is Passover but I haven't really been following it because let's be real, we are in the middle of a plague so I think all will be forgiven if I can't get my kosher for Passover food.

So here is some stuff I've been eating!

First up I have a little flatbread pizza and some steamed broccoli which I desperately needed.

I made this udon noodle stir fry and it was so delicious! It was udon noodles with zucchini and broccoli and onions and I added some tamari, agave and some garlic.

I found this really cool product and was lucky enough to get my hands on it! I still haven't tried the Just Egg in the bottle because the price was just crazy to me but I decided I couldn't pass these folded "eggs" up. You know I love my breakfast sandwiches so I thought it would be a fun time to try something new!

Another amazing breakfast sandwich, this time with the Just Egg and Beyond sausage patties. The sausage patties were super delicious and I can't decide if I like the Beyond Sausage or the Field Roast better. I would definitely buy them both again. The Just Egg folded things were good and definitely mimicked having eggs in the sandwich but they were kind of bland. I don't know how often I would buy them but it is definitely good and I'm glad I tried it. I definitely still want to try the liquid version. I think Aldi carries it at a much better price so I'm hoping to get my hands on it at some point.

This was a random udon noodle soup with some corn and broccoli and Better than Bouillon No Chick'n Broth. It was very delicious and came together quickly

This last treat was something I found on Pinterest for 3 ingredient cookies! I used this recipe and it was so simple and came together so quickly and they were delicious! The three ingredients are almond flour, banana and baking powder. I wanted to add even more flavor so I included some chocolate chunks, some vanilla extract and a little maple syrup. They were seriously delicious and I will probably experiment with oat flour and different add ins as well.

They aren't the most beautiful but they were tasty and seriously so easy. I highly recommend them.

I've moved my home office out of my brother's house and into my own home because I just didn't feel comfortable leaving my house and being around other people anymore. I did snap one last photo of my lazy coworker sleeping on the job yet again. He is too adorable and I definitely think that is why he gets away with it 😉

I hope that you are all holding up ok and staying healthy 💚

Champs Diner in Brooklyn, NY

Hey guys! Hope you are all well, safe and healthy. Today's post is definitely something special because I had wanted to try this restaurant for a long time. Anyone that has been to this region will know that diners are a big deal. We LOVE diners and they are EVERYWHERE. Since going vegan it has been difficult to indulge in diner fare but we are lucky enough to be able to do so thanks to Champs Diner in Brooklyn. In December I went to visit Doug's grave with two of my friends and we decided that the best way to honor him after would be to enjoy a meal for him. Doug was a foodie so he definitely would have approved of the plan so we decided to head over to Champs Diner after we spent some time with him.

There were 4 of us in total (my friend's son came as well) and I got most of what we ordered except for one of my friend's entrees and my friend's son's entrée. I'll share the photos that I did get though.

We all really wanted to try the biscuits and gravy and OMG are we glad we did. We all LOVED it!! Biscuits are one of my favorite things and their sausage gravy was absolutely delicious. We didn't really eat the hash browns because we all had some sort of potato with our meals but omg those biscuits were amazing!

This was by far my favorite part of the meal. I had been craving a Caesar salad for months at that point so we ordered a chick'n Caesar salad to share. It was absolutely delicious and exactly what I had been wanting. Everyone else enjoyed it as well.

This was my meal. Breakfast was always my favorite at the diner so I ended up getting a breakfast plate. It looks delicious but was sadly only ok to me. I wasn't really impressed by the tofu scramble (I ate maybe half of it) and I decided to get all sausage because I have always hated bacon. I ate one of those and was kind of over it. The star of the plate was the French toast which was so surprising to me! I normally don't eat sweet breakfasts in the form of French toast or waffles or pancakes (I like them but I just don't really eat them), but this French toast was seriously delicious! It kind of made me wonder why I don't eat it more often but it's probably for the best that I don't, ha! It was definitely the star of the plate though.

One of my friends got the same thing as me but she got hers the way it comes on the menu which is with both bacon and sausage. 

I didn't get a photo of my other friend's meal (she has a really amazing looking burger) but I did get a photo of her dessert!

She ordered the birthday cake sundae and holy shit you guys, how amazing does that look! I was so full I couldn't fit another bite in my facehole but it just looks incredible. It had ice cream, whipped cream, funfetti cake bites, sprinkles and a cherry. It may have had syrup but I don't remember. It looked amazing and I really wish I had space for a bite but I just couldn't do it.

I have been back one more time since this outing and decided to go for the chicken Caesar salad for my meal and it was just as delicious. We also tried the nachos and holy fuck were they good!

Bottom line is that Champs Diner in Brooklyn is seriously amazing and I can't wait to get back there after this damn pandemic. Everything on the menu looks and sounds incredible and there are so many more items to try. I'm glad that I was able to go with my friends and share a meal in Doug's honor. It was really a bittersweet day but I'm so grateful for the amazing people that I met through him.

So that's all for today. Stay well and stay safe my friends 💚

Aldi Haul

Hey everyone! I hope that you are all doing well. Sorry for the unexpected week long hiatus. I'm preparing to sell art at an event this weekend and I've had tunnel vision on getting prepared for that. I've been working non-stop and forget to eat most days actually. I am only working today for this week as I had a few vacation days to take before the end of the year and this was perfect timing as it allows me to prepare for the event. I've been a bit of a mess so blogging totally slipped my mind but when I headed out to Aldi on Sunday to stock up on a few of my cost effective favs I knew I had to share my haul with you..

I wasn't really going there for produce (I would have gotten apples if they had honeycrisp but I didn't see any) so I just grabbed an Asian Chopped salad kit for my one day of work this week, some asparagus, baby carrots and some tofu cream cheese.

These were random cravings I had. I've been seriously craving cashews and trail mix lately and this trail mix looked so yummy and the chocolate had no milk in it so I grabbed that. The cookies on the bottom are like thin mints so they came home and promptly went into the freezer after I took the picture. I also got veggie chips and snap pea crisps.

You know I always stock up on my chick'n patties when I got. I got three boxes because that's how I roll. These are my primary fake meat of choice, I rarely ever have others in my freezer so I stock up because the price is so good. These seasoned fries were only $1.69 for a bag so I grabbed two of those because why not.

This is a normal amount of dessert hummus to have, right? 😂 We all know I love the brownie batter one and I couldn't resist trying the pumpkin pie and sea salt caramel one! How amazing will the caramel one be with apples and the pumpkin with graham crackers?! I can't wait to try and let you know what I think!

So that is what I have for you today. I will definitely make time to catch up on your posts during my time off this week and I will be back on Friday to share something fun as well. I hope you all have a great week and that you are all well 💚

Stuff I Ate: My First Week At My New Job!

Hello my friends! I hope that you are all doing well! Today is the last day of my first week at my new job! It has been exhausting and stressful. There is a lot to learn and a lot to do all the time. It's great because time flies but it's been really difficult for me when I feel lost and need help. I came from a place where I've been there for 11 years and just knew what to do. Now it feels like I'm trying to keep my head above water. I'm glad today is Friday and that the weekend is coming up. I have been sleeping so much more this week (which is great because I typically don't sleep well) and I'm looking forward to resting over the weekend. I'll have to figure out some meal prep as well and I'm sure that'll find its way onto this blog 😉 I am still working on getting used to this schedule and daily routine (I went from a 10:00-6:00 schedule 7 minutes away to an 8:30-5:00 schedule 40 minutes away) and I will catch up on all of your blogs this weekend! I promise!

I wanted to keep things easy for myself this week so I decided to just photograph the meals I've been eating and wanted to share those with you today. I'm going to try to get something fun up for you next week but for today, let's check out some stuff I've been eating this week as I get settled into my new routine!

I have been eating a lot of Asian Chopped salad kits. This one was one that I got from a regular grocery store and I also had one from Trader Joe's. I love these. They are so quick and easy. I think that I'm going to try and make my own next week by just getting my own veggies and chopping and dressing them myself. I can get more bang for my buck and it is a great, easy meal to have on hand.

This beige delight is some of the Morningstar Farms Popcorn Chicken and some Tater Tots from Trader Joe's. Not healthy at all but so delicious and a comfort meal for sure.

I've been making sandwiches to bring to work with me on some days (other days I've brought salad). It is a very basic sandwich because I don't have much at home. It is made on sourdough bread with tofurky slices, butter lettuce and some hummus. Definitely basic but so delicious and easy to make ahead of time (the bread doesn't get soggy despite the lettuce and hummus!).

This is the Sesame Crunch Chopped Salad (or whatever it is called) from Trader Joe's. You guys. The toppings that you mix in make this salad the best. It has nori, sesame sticks and cashews. So freaking good. I made a few pieces of the cauliflower tempura from Trader Joe's to enjoy with the salad. This meal was perfect. I brought the rest of the salad for lunch the next day.

Finally, I've been snacking on Skinny Pop White Cheddar Popcorn since finding out it was vegan. It's so damn good. I've missed popcorn in general (I don't know why I stopped eating it!) and white cheddar flavor is definitely a treat when you are vegan! My current favorite snack for sure.

So that is what I have for you today. It has been a crazy week and I'm looking forward to relaxing and catching up on your blogs and my comments. I hope you've all had a wonderful week and I'll see you back here next week! 💚

Vegan MoFo 2019: Trying Ambitious Kitchen's Chickpea Blondies!

Hi friends! I hope that you are all doing well today! For today's post I'm trying another blogger's recipe again. This time it is Ambitious Kitchen's Chocolate Chip Chickpea Blondies! I've been wanting to try Chickpea Blondies for a while and figured now was the time (when it's hot AF and the oven shouldn't be on but oh well). 

This recipe came together so quickly and so easily! There was only a few ingredients that most vegans would have on hand already (chickpeas, maple syrup, peanut butter, etc.) and you just toss them into a food processor and make your dough! It seriously couldn't be simpler than that!

I think the finished product looks amazing! It tastes really great too. It's a really great treat when you want a baked dessert with less guilt. It has a really nice texture too! It stays together pretty well, maybe a little more crumbly than a traditional blondie but totally worth it!

I swear, the things I do for this blog 😂😂😂 Totally kidding, obviously but can we talk about this chickpea blondie sundae?! I warmed up a blondie for about 25 seconds and then topped with a scoop of the Haagen-Dazs ice cream that I got. Of course I had to top with sprinkles because sprinkles. It was delicious!

Of course I had to do a glamour shot of my beautiful Vegan Bowl with that delicious scoop of ice cream sticking out of the top 😂 So good you guys!

So, moral of the story is I highly recommend this recipe if you'd like to try chickpea blondes. There are only a few ingredients that are pantry staples, they only require a food processor, they come together quickly and they taste amazing. I'm so glad I finally tried this recipe! 💚

Vegan MoFo 2019: Aldi Product Taste Test!

Hey everyone! I hope you are all well! Today's post is going to be the Aldi taste test I promised in my Aldi Haul post! I got a few fun things that I had never tried before so I figured I'd review them here for you and let you know what I thought!

Also, I apologize in advance for my nail polish 😂

The first thing I had to try was the RANCH HUMMUS!!! Yes, I know I always type it in all caps but it's ranch hummus! How can you not!? I was very excited to try this and it did not disappoint! It is so delicious, definitely has a ranch flavor and the only thing that is disappointing to me is that there was only one left so I couldn't load up on them. It is delicious and it seems like they do bring it back every once in a while so if you happen to see it, grab it!

Up next I tried the Fudge Mint Cookies from Benton's. I had heard from The Vegan Zombie on YouTube that this brand has some vegan cookies so I grabbed the Fudge Mint ones because who doesn't love a Thin Mint? I immediately put mine in the freezer because that is the only way to eat these cookies. They are exactly what I wanted them to be, a crunchy, delicious minty chocolate cookie. I love these and they were perfect for a chocolate craving.

This is actually from my previous trip to Aldi. I have discussed it here before but I thought it was worth mentioning again to bring it all together in one post. This is the Chocolate Brownie dessert hummus. It is the first dessert hummus I tried and it was delicious! I wouldn't be mad at it if they added a little more chocolate to it because it was a little light on the chocolate flavor but it was incredibly delicious and certainly made me excited to try the Vanilla Flavor! I tried this with a graham cracker and loved the pairing.

Finally, I have the Vanilla Bean hummus. IT'S SO GOOD YOU GUYS!!! It has a really strong vanilla flavor which I really like. I tried mine with a pretzel because it's all I had but I really want to eat it with strawberries. I think that would be so delicious. I highly recommend trying dessert hummus and I think that the vanilla definitely packs more of a flavor punch than the chocolate. Both are really delicious though, you can't go wrong with either!

So there are my thoughts on some of the new products I've tried from my latest trip to Aldi. I really love their products and will try to get there quicker the next time I hear about new products coming out. I wish I could have tried the ice cream and ravioli but I missed out this time. Next time I'll make sure I don't!

I hope you all have a great day! I'll be back with another MoFo post! 💚

Vegan MoFo 2019: Stuff I Ate!

Hey friends! Welcome back for another MoFo posts! I'm not going to lie I'm pretty proud of myself for sticking to this weekday schedule I set for myself. I'm really happy to be able to share some new content with you. Today, I'm going to be doing a post you'd regularly find on my blog: some stuff I ate over the past week. This is standard for me and I love sharing the delicious things I've had! 

Please ignore the styrofoam, I got this from a local deli that makes really great hot food. I'm going to leave a plate at work to start using instead but yes, this is in styrofoam. Anyway, I needed a quick lunch so I grabbed some delicious potatoes and a veggie medley that contained cabbage, mushrooms, corn and onions and it was DELICIOUS!

A friend of mine bought me a Mahalo bar to try! If you love coconut and used to eat Almond Joy in your pre vegan days you'll love this bar! It is incredibly sweet though so I saved it for two servings. I'm glad it had the almonds because that helped cut the sweetness just a little bit.

The night I roasted my veggies I made myself a chick'n parm cutlet using the Aldi Chickenless patty and had it with some roasted asparagus and cauliflower. I wanted to save those stuffed mushrooms for quick after work dinners. The chick'n parm was DELICIOUS.

This is the bagged chopped Asian Salad mix that I got from Aldi. I actually used the Asian Vinaigrette from Panera (I love that dressing and it's vegan!) and it was delicious. I added the crunchy topping later so it wouldn't get soggy. I dressed this salad the night before because I wanted the cabbage to get more tender.

A delicious container of green grapes!

The delicious and quick meal of my meal prep items. The stuffed mushroom was so delicious! Such a satisfying meal!

So that's some of the stuff I've been enjoying over the past week or so! I'm so glad to have gotten so much more produce and fresh foods in my body recently. I'm definitely looking to keep that up as it is especially ideal during the summer 😊 I hope you all have a great day and I'll see you tomorrow with a very special post!!

Vegan MoFo 2019: Sweet To Lick Bakery and Market

Hello friends! Welcome back to another MoFo post! I couldn't let MoFo go by (especially when one of my themes is Long Island Vegan businesses and restaurants!) without discussing one of my favorite businesses on Long Island. It is called Sweet To Lick and they started by selling their amazing baked treats at farmers markets here on the Island. Luckily they decided to go brick and mortar and they opened up their bakery in Williston Park. They have been doing well and even expanded their menu to include some lunch items as well. I haven't tried their savory lunch options yet but it is definitely on my list of things to try.

Here is what the bakery looks like:

source

I don't go to the bakery very often (typically about once every couple of months) but I always enjoy it when I get to go. I figured I'd share some of the amazing treats I've had in the past:

One of the first times I went into the bakery I tried their version of the Swiss Roll and OMG. These things are amazing. They haven't made them in a really long time and when they did make them it was sporadic and they sold out quickly. I'm sure you can guess why I stocked up on this particular occasion. There are two regular and two peppermint and there was also a funfetti scone because I love all things funfetti. I am so sad that they don't make the swiss rolls anymore.

One of my favorite items that they make are their whoopee cookies. They are two cookies with a cream filling and they are delightful. My standard choice is the chocolate chip cookie with cookies n cream filling (right) and this trip I chose to pick up a grasshopper (chocolate cookie with mint filling) whoopee cookie as well.

On this trip I picked up a black and white bar (this one was ok but I probably wouldn't repurchase) and a funfetti (I told you I can't resist some damn sprinkles) whoopee cookie.

This is now my new favorite (OK tied with their version of a rainbow cookie which also shows up sporadically) item to get when they have it. This is a Rocky Road bar and it is FREAKING DELICIOUS. Pop it in the microwave for a few seconds and this shit gets next level awesome.

A few years after opening the bakery the owners of Sweet to Lick opened up their sister store two doors down and Long Island finally had its own all vegan market. To be honest their prices are a bit high but I get it. They probably aren't buying enough stock to get super wholesale pricing so I definitely understand. I love coming here when I want to try new items and get them all in one spot and not have to worry about going from store to store and them possibly not having it.

I figured it would be fun to share a few hauls to show you the kinds of products they have.

They typically have a really great selection of WayFare products which I think is awesome because they can be hard to find. Their dips are freaking awesome and while they are a treat for me I enjoy them when I eat them. The puddings are nice and thick and delicious. They also have a really great vegan cheese and meat substitute selection as well.

I chose this haul to share because it was the first time I had found most of these products! I was so excited that I found the Amy's Vegan Margherita Pizza Swirls, Oatly and the Violife Feta (they have a HUGE Violife selection). I know it is easier to find these products now but at the time they were all a lot more difficult to find so I remember being really excited about it.

Primal Strips in the Thai Peanut flavor are a random snack that I LOVE but can NEVER find. I can always find them at Sweet to Lick. It was also where I tried my first Vegan Rob's products and loved them. 

If you are ever on Long Island and want to check out a great little market to see what kinds of new vegan products you can find I highly recommend stopping by Sweet to Lick. Bring a cooler if you are traveling far because the highlight (for me at least) is their refrigerated selection. They also have health, beauty and lifestyle products as well as some apparel and cute accessories. They are very supportive to local companies and artists and just a very cool business to support. If you stop by make sure to pop in to the bakery and grab a tasty treat. If I'm being brutally honest I'm not a huge fan of their cakes and cupcakes but typically love everything in the first case you'll see when you walk in (to the right of the register). 

Thank you so much for stopping by! I'll be back on Monday for another week of posts! I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! 💚

Stuff I Ate

Hey everyone, I hope all is well and that you had a Happy 4th of July. Mine was quiet and I was quite emotional because I know I would have been spending the day with him. These milestone days like holidays and anniversaries and birthdays are going to be difficult but I'm doing the best I can to get through them. I decided to work on some art which was a pretty decent distraction for a bit but I definitely was emotional before and after that time.

As I mentioned on Tuesday, that night was the first memorial for Doug. It was really nice and a lot of people showed up to honor him and celebrate his life. There was time for mingling and meeting new people and there were speakers there to honor him. Midway through the speakers I was approached and asked if I would like to say anything and I instantly started panicking. All of these speakers had time to prepare and I was on the spot and I am NOT a public speaker. I instantly had anxiety but I knew that if I didn't speak I would never forgive myself to I agreed. I got up on that stage in front of at least 100 people and I spoke off the cuff and from the heart. I was terrified and it was not polished (I lost my words at one point) but it was honest and raw and vulnerable and I'm really glad I pushed through my own fears and discomfort to honor what we had. I know he was proud of me and I'm really proud of myself.

It was pretty late after the event but a group of us decided to go out for some vegan food in honor of Doug. We went to a restaurant that he really loved called PS Kitchen. One of the really nice things about this restaurant is that they donate part of what they make to charity and I know that he really loved that. It was a little sad because we arrived there essentially at the exact time of the accident exactly one month prior. We toasted Doug and enjoyed some great vegan food and company for him. It was really late (they were serving their late night menu) and although I didn't have dinner I went with a caesar salad because anything else would have been quite heavy. The caesar salad was DELICIOUS, the dressing was so yummy and it was a really great choice.

Overall the event was really nice and I met a lot of really amazing, supportive people. I have had people reach out since to make sure that I'm ok and that night I had a lot of people approach me with their condolences. Doug loved connecting people together and I truly believe his last act of service to his loved ones was to bring us all together.

I did have some pretty great meals through the rest of the week as well.

I made a pizza on the Trader Joe's crust and I added a cut up chick'n patty from Aldi to make it like a "chicken parm pizza" and it was SO DELICIOUS. I will definitely do this again.

I tried to be festive for the 4th of July and I had one of the Aldi soy protein burgers (it was very good, not the best I've had but definitely something I'd eat again) with some chips and corn. Also a great meal.

I tried the brownie dessert hummus from Aldi as well and OMG it's SO GOOD. I love it, it's a great way to satisfy a chocolate craving without getting too heavy or decadent. I had it with graham crackers and they were a perfect pairing.

I have been having avocado toast on the sourdough bread from Aldi for breakfast. I have missed eating avocado toast and this avocado was perfect so it was definitely really delicious.

As I mentioned previously, I tried to distract myself from the emotions and the loneliness yesterday by creating some art. I really like the way this one turned out and it was definitely a good distraction for a little while at least.

I really love the sponge painting effect that I've been achieving on my pieces. It's definitely becoming a signature style and I really like it.

I love these colors and quotes as well. I'm very happy with how this piece came out.

So that is all I have for you today. I'm definitely looking forward to the weekend so I can relax and maybe do something fun. I'm not sure what I'll do yet but I know that I have to get out and do something because sitting at home will drive me nuts. I do want to work on some more art as well if I'm feeling the least bit creative. Every day is still a struggle but I'm going to continue to take it one day at a time.

Thank you all so much again for your continued kindness and support. It really means so much to me and I'm so grateful for this community. 💚