Your new go to salad when you're not too sure what you want for dinner at night, or if you need a make ahead lunch for a work or school day. A tip I want to share with you is that you can actually make double or triple the amounts of quinoa and lentils and freeze the extra. They honestly don't take long to make at all, but I have found that at times a frozen stash comes in handy. Plus, when you thaw them, you can add them to practically anything, and season them differently each time as well. These two ingredients are extremely versatile. I have even seen them in breakfasts, sweets, baked goods and breads, etc.
Quinoa / Did you know that it is actually a seed? But even though not technically a grain, it is still considered a “whole grain” food. There are several varieties of quinoa {red, black, and white}, and you can sometimes buy a "mixed" bag at the market, which gets you a mixture of the varying nutrient values in each. White is the most popular and commonly found variety found in stores. It is gluten-free, low on the glycemic index, high in fiber, antioxidants, and protein, containing all of the essential amino acids that we need. Click
here for more recipes with quinoa.
Lentils / Nutty and earthy in flavor, lentils are a great addition of nutrition into your diet. There are several varieties of lentils {green, red and brown}, with brown being the most commonly used. Lentils are low in cholesterol, are good source of protein, folate, and iron, and promote digestive health with their fiber content. Enjoy them in soups, salad, spreads, dips for vegetables, or even baked into sweet or savory goodies.
Arugula / Also known as Salad Rocket, arugula and its peppery-kick are the perfect flavor to fulfill that "umph" I am sometimes missing in my meals. Arugula is a rich source of phytochemicals, a great source of folic acid and Vitamins A and C, and is one of the best vegetable sources of Vitamin K. Arugula is great both raw and cooked. Plop it atop {vegan} pizzas, mix it into your salads, create an
arugula pesto with it, or even add it into your next soup.
This recipe stemmed from my attempt to create a recipe to use for the big game coming up here in the U.S., aka the Super Bowl. I asked my dad what he would want to eat at our family get together, and he said bacon.
Well, you know what my initial reaction was to that...yuck! So I compromised. I told him that I would use homemade coconut bacon instead. I began googling recipes for a bacon marinade, and got to it. I took out all of my ingredients and then...I realized I had no coconut meat :,(
4 ingredients
Fat-free
Raw vegan
Absolutely delicious :)
Last year for Christmas I made a 
An impromptu dinner with my family last night lead to the creation of this fall inspired dish! This was actually my first time cooking with black rice (I purchased it from Trader Joe's), and I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it! It worked perfectly as a risotto, and I will definitely be using it again!
I'm excited to share that I was able to source half of the ingredients for this recipe from my backyard garden. I picked the kale, calamansi, thyme and butternut squash from my garden just before I got cooking. All organic, and grown with love <3 (If you grow any fruits or veggies in your home, share below, I'd love to read about your gardens!) 
I have been slacking on my greens lately, not going to lie! School has started, and adding this on top of my internship has caused me to have long days, away from the beloved kitchen. It has been lots of bananas, dates and dried figs for me, as these are most convenient for both calories and transportation. I finally had some time yesterday after work to whip up a salad, and this is what I came up with.
The star of this salad is the Tomato Jalapeño vinaigrette I used! It is raw, vegan, oil-free and salt-free! I sweetened it with a medjool date, used water instead of oil, and made sure I used a 
Where are all my mango lovers at?!
Mango salads, soups, smoothies or just a plain ol' mango mono meal. All are always the best, right?
Atualfo mangoes are always my favorite. For me personally, I love that they are less stringy, that they are creamy dreamy when fully ripe, and that they are almost always the most affordable mangoes in my area. I was inspired by 