People ask me on almost a daily basis if I am vegan, it started around the time I became a yoga teacher.
And while the food I eat is primarily vegan and vegetarian, I prefer to stay away from labels especially when it comes to my diet. I like it puts me in a box of rules of what I can and cannot do, and to be honest, I have never been much for following rules.

I eat whole foods. Foods that come from our nature, mainly vegetables, fruits, grains, berries, mushrooms, etc. I almost never eat processed foods and prefer to make whatever I can from scratch as I want to stay away from additives, preservatives, fillers and unnecessary packaging and waste.

This is something I’ve been getting used to and has definitely been a slow progression, but because of this, I no longer crave processed sugars and meats the same way I did before and can almost exclusively eat a plant based diet. I do however, feel different cravings in my body during my moon cycle phase (flat out, period) and I...

Okay, making your own nut butter is insanely easy and you know what's so awesome with making your own?

You can make it exactly the way you want!

Want it without extra fatty oils? Skip it! Addicted to anything chocolate, add cacao. Or maybe cinnamon, pumpkin spice, salt, vanilla? So many options!! Can you tell I am excited?

The best part is that it only takes like 5-10 minutes for most nuts.

All you need is nuts and a food processor. I would imagine it would work with a high power blender as well but I don't have one so can't tell you for sure. But you learn by trying, right?

Note, almonds are a bit drier than peanuts and hazelnuts so it will take longer in the food processor. It will come to a point where you think nothing is going to happen and your food processor looks like it may or may not blow up, push through that and before you know it, you will see it turning creamy. It can take as much as 25 minutes. You might find yourself having to scrape down the sides as well in the...

(svensk version, klicka här)

This is the Pad Thai recipe that will make all of your friends and family brag about you. Seriously. I first posted this recipe on another blog over a year ago and people are still tagging me in it over on Instagram.

I've always LOVED Pad Thai but whenever I ordered it, it made me feel heavy and greasy. I decided to play around with it and now this recipe is one of my absolute favorites. My best friend doesn't even want to order pad thai at restaurants anymore because it disappoint compared to this one, hehe...

This recipe uses fresh ingredients, little extra veggies and much less sodium! 

I've been doing a little sneak releases of this baby over on the gram with hundreds of dm's asking about the recipe, but I almost felt it was too good to share ( I want it all to myself)... but it's also too good NOT to share. So I guess I'll be nice...

ingredients

10oz rice noodles
1/2 pack of firm tofu (or another choice of protein)
2 tbsp oil (I use canola or...

It’s fresh, light, citrusy, and packed with anti-inflammatory properties. I actually made this because I am soooo sore from yesterdays yoga practice and both ginger and turmeric can help reduce that.

Ingredients

1 orange
1 banana, preferably frozen
1-2 inch fresh ginger
1 tsp turmeric powder (or if you have fresh, add that)
1 cup water
1 cup coconut milk
* optional, add two dates.

For the coconut milk, I always keep some in the fridge so that the thick part and the coconut water separates and then I take more of the thick part to make the smoothie creamier. Makes sense? It was almost a little confusing for me too.

Just mix it all and add ice if you want.

Let me know in the comments if you tried it!

Xo,

Mandy

I made this açai bowl one day when I couldn't stop daydreaming about Hawaii, probably because my hibiscus plant was in full bloom.

INGREDIENTS

1 Pineapple

1 Açaí frozen pack

1/2 frozen banana

Frozen berries

Banana

Coconut milk

Granola

Raw honey or Agave

Edible flowers (optional)

HOW TO

Place the pineapple in the refrigerator upside down for at least 30 minutes to draw the juice away from the bottom. Cut the pineapple in half and gut out the fruit, save to be used as a topping. Make the açaí by mixing the frozen pack, the 1/2 banana and the berries in the mixer. Add a small amount of coconut milk and look if you need to add more. Always adding a little so you don’t get it watered down. Once finished; hopefully, it’s nice, smooth and creamy, add it to your pineapple bowl and then add your toppings as suggested above or of choice! Sprinkle on top with honey or agave for a sweeter taste. 

The whole reason this Kumquat Kale Salad came to life was because one of my neighbors has this giant kumquat tree and I wanted to figure out a way to cook with them. It was driving me insane with how much was being wasted and there’s just so many kumquats a girl can eat just on their own. I’m honestly thinking of making some sort of kumquat marmalade, what do you guys think?

Any other kumquat tips are highly appreciated! 

With that said, if you don’t live in Southern California, kumquats might not be as easy for you to find so feel free to opt out or add anything else, like oranges or tangerines. 

The magic is really in the Orange Tahini dressing, everything else is just a bonus.

This is delicious on its own but could also work as a side dish or just adding some protein in it (salmon, chicken, quinoa etc.)

For the past few days, I’ve been incorporating it into several meals.

If anything you are definitely going to want to save this recipe for...

Okay I have a confession to make, this is actually a section from one of my (and my girl Noelle’s) ebooks, 30 Day Body Project ll - Smoothies.

But there was just no way I couldn’t share this with all of you because…
ONE, it’s ridiculously easy….
TWO, it’s way more delicious than store bought and no weird preservatives or other ingredients…
THREE, you don’t need to buy any more plastic or single use waste if you do this on your own.

This is especially for my busy mamas and broke college students because it takes literally just a couple of minutes and you save money by making your own.

1. Get in a habit of stocking up on nuts

Whichever nut you prefer, play around with it and don’t be afraid to mix them up. Buy in bulk. It’s way cheaper to buy in bulk instead of those little prepackaged plastic bags.
Want to make it cheaper? Mix your nuts with a grain like rice.

2. Soak your nuts.

Make it a routine to keep soaked nuts in your...