What information are you looking for?

I never even liked meat, but was still intimidated so much by idea of how bland, expensive, and complicated I thought eating a plant-based diet would be for me...and especially for my family. Not everyone lives with a chef, but these changes were so simple that I couldn't help think how useful some of what we figured out along the way would have been GREAT! That said, for those of you looking to transition into a full-on plant-based diet, the first couple tips are for you. Whether you're just incorporating some plant-based meals into your repertoire or not, like most new things, learning to cook plant food and actually make it taste good without paying more wasn't nearly as intimidating as I expected it to be. Hopefully, we can save you some time and stress by making it as easy as possible! Tips and Tricks for Plant-Based Cooking Tip#1: Keep it simple After talking with your doctor about any major dietary changes (see what I did there), don't rush to purge your kitchen of everything you already paid for! Aside from the whole 'wasteful' component here, believe me when I tell you the knowledge you will gain through experimenting and planning will be worth the wait. Besides, don't worry about having to change major habits overnight! I can't tell you how many times I tried and failed in the past...only to learn that any major change takes time, that's okay! ​ ​ We were fortunate to have had a head start, by having recently cut out most processed food. So we were prepping most of our own meals at that point. If you're not eating homecooked meals most of the time, that's a great place to start! ​ While getting in the habit of prepping food each day, keep things interesting by experimenting with new flavors and dishes. Finding new ideas online became a fun way for us to experiment, both with changing meals up and with keeping the enthusiasm up during what otherwise might have gotten downright daunting. ​ We would find ideas, then research a few different recipes and take our favorite parts of each, to suit our tastes and suggest you do the same. This website will feature a lot of new recipe ideas, so check back often! Tip#2: Create a weekly meal-plan and try to stick to it! We plan to add meal-plan ideas very soon, because keeping new and fresh ideas was probably the most challenging part of sticking to a plant-based diet, since the same dishes will lose their luster...FAST! ​ We try to have varied dishes each week, with a good balance of easy and complex recipes, of various types of cuisine. As a family of five, making an Asian feast was not in the cards on a Wednesday night, factoring these things in will help everyone! ​ In our house, Sunday is usually the night for prep and some next-level cooking. Which may come as no surprise as to why that's also the only night we usually take pictures! Think simple for a few nights, one leftover night, and one takeout night, if you do that sort of thing.

Garlic & Rosemary dinner rolls Ingredients: Garlic & Rosemary dinner rolls 350 F WET: 1 ½ C warm water 3 Tbsp active dry yeast 2 Tbsp sugar 2 Tbsp vegan butter, soft, not melted DRY: 3 C + 1 C AP flour 2 tsp kosher salt 2 Tbsp garlic powder 4 tsp crushed rosemary, dried TOP: 2 Tbsp vegan butter, melted ½ tsp kosher salt 1 Tbsp garlic powder 1 tsp crushed rosemary, dried Directions: 1) Mise en place all ingredients. Set up warm area for proofing your yeast and subsequently dough. 2) Add all wet ingredients into stand mixing bowl. Gently incorporate ingredients and place in warm proofing area for 15 minutes. 3) Once yeast is risen, add in pre-mixed dry ingredients. Mix together with dough hook for about 3 minutes. Turn out onto floured surface of + 1 C flour. Hand knead bread, incorporating flour for an additional 3-5 minutes. 4) Place dough ball into a greased mixing bowl and cover with a towel. Allow to proof in this vessel in warm area for about 1.5 hours. 5) Once dough is finished proofing, pour dough ball out onto floured surface. Cut dough into evenly shaped balls using hands to form dough into balls. 6) Place dough balls into greased baking pan with a lip. 7) Combine all topping ingredients in same bowl used to melt butter. Brush butter mix on top of panned rolls. 8) Bake in the oven for 20 minutes.

Audio Resources: Audio Resources

Breakfast Keep checking back, we will be adding more of your favorite dishes! Breakfast Hash A new spin on a classic dish that also tastes great for Dinner! Breakfast Sandwhich Easy and fast enough to make on the fly or for the whole week! Cinnamon Spiced Doughnuts They tast as good as they look!

News From Around the World From our favorite sources for good news! Thank you to: Good News Network Positive News ​ ​ The oil industry is terrified of college kids Students held crush apartheid. Now they're using the same tactics against fossil fuels https://www.positivenewsus.org/the-oil-industry-is-terrified-of-college-kids.html During the pandemic, this artist fills her neighborhood with fairy doors https://www.positivenewsus.org/during-the-pandemic-this-artist-fills-her-neighborhood-with-fairy-doors.html Roar Into the ‘Year of the Tiger’ With Fortunes and Traditions of the Chinese New Year https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/year-of-the-tiger-chinese-new-year-traditions/ Canada just approved psychedelics ​for therapy. This is a positive step in transforming mental healthcare system by offering additional support to conventional treatments https://www.positivenewsus.org/canada-just-approved-psychedelics-for-therapy.html The African Wildlife Foundation is using photography to inspire the next generation of conservationists https://www.positivenewsus.org/the-african-wildlife-foundation-is-using-photography-to-inspire-the-next-generation-of-conservationists.html South Australia Smashes Renewable Record Using 100% Solar And Wind For Full Week https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/south-australia-smashes-renewable-record-using-100-solar-and-wind-for-full-week/

Homemade Biscuits Preheat Oven to 425F Yield: 12 biscuits 10 minutes Ingredients: Dry 2C AP flour, unbleached + ¼ C for dusting ¾ C almond or oat milk 1 Tbsp baking powder ½ C Crisco 1 tsp kosher salt 1 Tbsp sugar Directions: 1) In a large mixing bowl, add in AP flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Sift together. 2) Using food handling gloves, add in Crisco to flour mixture until it looks like little grains of rice, having the flour evenly coating the fat globules. 3) Slowly add in the DF milk until a dough is roughly formed. 4) Turn out onto lightly floured surface and mix in remaining ¼ C flour. 5) This step you can do one of 2 ways a. Roll out biscuits and use a dough ring to form round biscuits that you set on a baking sheet/silpat b. Press biscuit dough into a greased pan to cut after baking 6) Bake in a pre-heated oven at 425 F for 10 minutes

Potato and Sausage Hash Preheat Oven to 375F Ingredients: Russet potatoes, peeled, large dice 1# red potatoes, large dice 1# yellow potatoes, large dice 1# Brussel’s sprouts 1 bag of baby carrots 1 large red or yellow onion, large dice 1 green bell pepper, large dice 1 package of 4 Field Roast sausages, cut into round disks 2 Tbsp Cajun or Creole seasoning 1 Tbsp Montreal steak seasoning 1 Tbsp olive oil Directions: Pre-heat oven to 350 F. Mise en place all ingredients. Chop all vegetables and sausage and set out uniformly across a baking sheet covered with a Silpat or parchment paper Coat chopped ingredients with light olive oil and seasonings. Roast on 350 F for minimum of 35 minutes

Chocolate Chip Cookies WET: ½ C vegan butter ½ C butter flavored shortening 1 C brown sugar 1 C cane sugar or white sugar 1 C almond milk 2 Tbsp vanilla extract 1 Egg replacer (we ONLY use Just Egg) or flax egg (1 tbs ground flaxseed 2 tbs water, 10 min) Directions: Pre-heat oven to 350 F and set aside wet ingredients into a larger bowl with dry in a medium sized bowl. Combine dry ingredients, we recommend sifting or mixing with a wisk, set aside. Cream butter and shortening with sugars in stand mixer bowl. Pour milk and vanilla extract into a measuring glass. Add ½ of dry ingredients Add remaining dry ingredients and mix dough until no lumps remain By hand, use spatula to lightly HAND MIX in chocolate chips into dough. Freeze for 30 minutes. Bake 12-15 minutes in pre-heated oven. Depending on how you like your cookies. DRY: 4 C AP flour, unbleached 2 tsp baking powder 2 tsp baking soda 4 tsp cornstarch 1 tsp kosher salt or ½ tsp table salt 1 C dark chocolate chips ***Optional Grandma Lola tip- Want to make an ultra-sweet and flavorful version? Try replacing ¼-½ cup of flour with vanilla pudding mix. These are not recommended for those counting sugars or carbohydrates. Makes about 24-32 cookies, depending on size

Plant Based Breakfast Casserole Ingredients: 30 oz shredded hash browns, thawed 2 C cheddar cheese (V, DF) ½ C chick’n broth ½ medium yellow onion or 1 entire small yellow onion, small dice 1 Tbsp olive oil 1 C milk (DF) 1 Tbsp butter (DF), melted 2 tsp kosher salt 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp celery seed 1 tsp crushed black pepper Directions: 1) Let hash browns thaw at room temperature. Pre-heat oven to 350 F. 2) Sautee onions in olive oil in large pot on medium heat until soften. 3) Add in hash browns. Stir together. 4) Add in remaining liquids and seasonings. Mix thoroughly. Finish seasoning to taste. 5) Prepare 8x8” with spray oil. Pour in hash brown mix. 6) Cook casserole in pre-heated oven for 30 min at 350 F. Set timer. 7) Turn oven up to 375 F and cook for 10 additional minutes

Moist Vegan Banana Bread Ingredients: WET: 3-4 large ripe bananas, mashed 2 flax eggs 1 ½ C sugar ½ C Crisco or other shortening ¼ C almond or oat milk DRY: 1 tsp baking soda 2 ½ C AP flour 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 tsp nutmeg ¼ C crushed walnut pieces Directions: 1) Preheat oven to 325 F. Grease and flour loaf pan. 2) Wet mix: mashed banana, flax eggs, Crisco, vanilla extract, and sugar. 3) Dry: In separate bowl mix together AP flour, baking soda, and nutmeg. 4) Mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients, slowly adding in milk. Fold in walnuts. 5) Pour mix into prepared loaf pan. 6) Bake @ 325 F for 60-80 min. Use toothpick to test for doneness

Destiny McLaren Jul 12, 2023 This week Like Reactions 0 0 comments 0 Views Destiny McLaren Jul 12, 2023 Introductions Like Reactions 0 0 comments 0 Views Destiny McLaren Jan 14, 2022 We want to hear from you! Like Reactions 0 0 comments 0 Views Online Community: Members_Page