The Friendly Vegan

         Coconut? For bacon bits?? I'll admit I was skeptical at first, especially since recipes kept telling me I needed this stuff called liquid smoke? Where am I even supposed to get that? I have no idea what it even looks like to be completely honest. So, I just did my own thing, tweaked a few things to my liking, and created something that I just felt really selfish keeping to myself because it is so easy and so yummy! And you can store it in the cupboard for a few weeks so that's a bonus. Its just a few simple ingredients, a lot of which you probably already have on hand! Ingredients: 2 cups of unsweetened coconut shavings 1 tbsp soy sauce  2 tsp paprika 1 tbsp maple syrup 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pepper Directions Mix well into a bowl until all the coconut is evenly covered. Make sure to work out any clumps of maple syrup.  Then, spread thinly onto a lightly greased oven tray, and bake at 325 Degrees Fahrenheit for about 4-6...

As you might already know by now, I like to buy things in bulk as much as possible, and although my local bulk barn has croutons, they don't have vegan croutons. So I began my search for some crunchy vegan little bites of goodness, tested a few recipes, and came up with the most perfect and flavorful recipe possible. The trick with these, to get nice crispy croutons is to get a loaf of uncut, rye bread, and slice it up yourself, and to use the end pieces! Ingredients: 4 cups of bread (including one end piece on the loaf) 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder 1 1/2 tsp dried parsley 1/2 tsp salt 3 tsp oil Directions: Cut your rye bead into desired size and shape (I did regular crouton size) and put in a large bowl. Begin by gradually adding the spices as you mix the bread around with your hand, this avoids having all your spices stick to the same piece of bread. Then, carefully mixing the bread around, gradually add the olive oil.  Once your pieces are evenly coated, spread on...

I've finally done it. I have perfected my oatmeal raisin cookie recipe. I've been tinkering around with a few different recipes for a while now, but they were always too sweet, or too dry.  After a combination of a few different recipes, I think I have finally come up with the perfect recipe. They're not too sugary, they're satisfying, soft and tasty. Ingredients: 1 cup of flour (I used wheat for these) 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/8 tsp salt 1 tsp cinnamon  1/2 cup of margarine or coconut oil  3/4 cup of cane sugar 1 flax egg (1tbsp flax seed, 3 tbsp water. Soak about 15m) 1 tsp vanilla 1 cup oats 1/2 to 3/4 cup raisins  Directions:  Mix all the ingredients together well, form into small balls and press down lightly on a greased tray.  Bake at 350 Degrees for about 10-12 minutes

This recipe is amazing because its so easy, you can change up the ingredients to include whatever you want, and it requires hardly any measurements so you can just grab a bunch of stuff, throw it in the pot and cook it. So simple, so satisfying, and so healthy! I used to eat an industrial amount of ramen noodles, until I realized they had a crazy amount of harmful chemicals, many of which have been proven to be highly carcinogenic. I knew I needed to find something else that was healthier, but just as salty and satisfying. Now, with this recipe, I satisfy my craving AND i'm getting so many beneficial nutrients. Since this recipe is so flexible, I will give a list of the must haves, and then all of the optional ingredients. You can mix and match the optional ones and just put in whatever sounds good to you! Must have's: 4-6 cups of vegetable broth (depending how broth-y you like your soup). 2-3 tbsp of soy sauce (I use low sodium) 2/3 cup to 1 cup of Lentils 2...

I want to touch base on why I live a low waste lifestyle. Aside from making me feel better about my personal impact on the planet, there are a number of reasons why I, and you, should live a low waste lifestyle. First things first, a lot of people wonder why the low waste movement is even a thing. You may think that my efforts are going wasted, and that everything I do is so minimal that I will never make a difference. However, when I was little, I was always stressed out about the environment, I always felt like I wasn't doing enough. Every time I threw something in the trash, I felt so guilty and ashamed because I knew as a society we could be doing better, I never even considered that my individual action could make that much of a difference. I never even considered that I could make all the changes that I wanted to see, and encourage others to change small things in their every day life, like taking a to-go cup to get your morning coffee. Nowadays, I still produce some wast...

I use this cleaner for everything. Working as a waitress, I get a lot of access to up-cyclable stuff, like the spray bottle I use to hold my cleaner. You can also buy a new bottle if you would like, but I personally like the idea of finishing what I have, and then re-purposing the bottles for the natural alternative. Less demand on resources to create a new bottle, and one bottle gets kept out of landfill. This is super simple to make, takes no time at all to prepare, and can be used from ingredients you might already have kicking around your house! What you will need:  Citrus peels of any kind (I like to just mix whatever I have on hand) A jar with a lid Vinegar (enough to mostly fill the jar) Directions: Put your peels in the jar, you can also use the pulp if you aren't already using it for something else. Then, fill the jar with vinegar until your fruit is covered. Cover and store away anywhere from 2-6 weeks. Shake it every few days, whenever you remember. I leave ...

Everyone I make these for goes nuts for them! They make me look like some chef genius, even though they're super simple, and only use 3 ingredients! What you will need: Onion soup mix (make sure it is not beef broth based) 2 potatoes  2 tbsp butter or oil (I prefer vegan butter) Salt to taste Directions:  Begin by boiling the potatoes until they are about half cooked. Remove them and strain out the water (keep the water to use with my   Mornin' Dumplin  recipe if you are making that too)  Place the potatoes on an oven tray and use one packet of french onion soup mix. If you are using mix from bulk, do about 4 tablespoons.  Add the butter and mix around until potatoes are coated and there is no dry powder left.  Bake at 400° F for about 12-15 minutes, flipping them half way.

Although you may not see it, the food we buy is loaded with harmful chemicals, in order to preserve our food longer. But does anyone tell us how truly harmful these are? Many of the chemicals do not even get tested before being added to the food we eat, they are considered to be innocent until proven guilty. Cancer rates are at an all time high, and we wonder why? Maybe its because they keep poisoning our food! In the past few decades, there has been a 2000% increase of chemical use in America! Must we always have the prettiest fruit? Or the freshest fruit? Couldn't we pick the ugly ducklings that are still perfectly fine to eat, in order to save them from going to waste? Organic is not always the "prettiest" option, but let me tell you this, it wont harm my body, the growing method is actually good for the earth, whereas inorganic is very bad. Organic, where I live, is not very affordable, and the options are really limited. Which means that I have to buy inorga...

One of the things I thought I would be missing out on when I decided to go vegan was cream of broccoli soup, or just creamy things in general. I never dreamed I could make something so creamy and delightful using just plants, but as my journey evolved, I realized you can make anything, and I mean literally anything, vegan. It might taste a little different, but most of the time I find my food tastes better now than it ever did before (this recipe is definitely one of those). I know, every time I put food in my mouth that no animals suffered in the making of it, and I know that I am not sacrificing my health for the sake of my taste buds. Before my journey began, I would have never even thought of cream of broccoli soup to be something that was associated with animal cruelty at all! But after watching a video on the dairy industry and how horrifying it really is, not to mention all the nasty stuff that is found in dairy and the fact that it literally turns on cancer cells, I q...

Mornings are always tricky for me, I love the idea of tofu scramble and smoothie bowls, but sometimes all I really want is some veggies in a pan with some onion baked potatoes . ←Click there for the recipe! I was looking for a way to incorporate this in an easy, filling and nutritious way, and after speaking to one of my Jamaican friends and getting some inspiration, I created just the right thing. There is so much wiggle room with this recipe to tailor it to just the way you like it! This recipe is flavorful, filling, easy and oh-so delicious. Ingredients: Dumpling: 1 and 2/3 cups of flour 1 cup of water 1 tsp of salt Season with whatever spices you would like! I usually do pepper, parsley and some oregano, but be creative! Veggie mix: Handful of spinach Healthy mix of tomatoes or bell peppers, onion, and mushrooms Directions: Combine flour, salt, and spices in a mixing bowl. Gradually add the water and mix with your hands until you get a thick dough. If the do...