Flora & Vino -

Cinnamon SunButter Star Cookies (Zimtsterne)

Vegan Cinnamon SunButter Star Cookies (Zimtsterne) made with almond flour, SunButter, and a coconut butter icing. Perfect for a Christmas cookie exchange!

Today I’ve got a Christmas cookie recipe for you that’s anything but ordinary.

Move over sugar cookies, I give you…Cinnamon Star Cookies!

When we visited M’s family in Kentucky this fall, they pulled out some old German textbooks for me to continue to learn the language.

One of my main goals for next year (are we allowing new year’s resolutions yet?) is to improve my German!

They also pulled out some classic German cookbooks, including a recipe for these Cinnamon Star Cookies, or, Zimtsterne, in German.

I had a sneaky feeling that I could easily adapt the original to be vegan and gluten-free, and I was right!

The cookies are traditionally made with egg-whites and powdered sugar, but I subbed in flax egg and coconut sugar with a delicious outcome.

The result is these vegan Cinnamon SunButter Star Cookies (Zimtsterne) made with almond flour, SunButter, and coconut butter icing.

They’re perfect to make and bake for a Christmas cookie exchange this holiday season!

…

Flora & Vino 2022 Holiday Gift Guide

A collection of my current 2022 favorites to inspire meaningful gift ideas for you and yours this holiday season. Happy holidays!

Happy happy holidays, friends! This time last year I was preparing for my first trip to Germany to meet all of M’s family and friends. This year we’re staying in the states to spend the holiday with my family and our friends here. So this is actually our first Christmas in Maryland, and I’m excited to decorate and deck the halls in a new space. I got my “Christmas box” out before Thanksgiving and started my Christmas gift brainstorming early because I have so many ideas! Here are a few of my favorite 2022 discoveries that I want to share with you this year. Check them out and see if they might be a good fit for you or someone you love. For more great gift ideas, check out my 2020 Holiday Gift Guide and 2021 Holiday Gift Guide. Wishing you a very happy holiday season and new year!

…

Sesame Tahini Soba Noodles

Soba noodle bowl with sesame, tahini, broccolini, and edamame. Ready in under 30 minutes for a cozy better-than-takeout plant-based meal.

It feels like M and I have been away more this fall than we’ve been home!

I can’t complain, because it’s all good things filling up our calendar.

This past weekend we were near Charlottesville, VA, exploring the outdoors and celebrating one of my friends’ birthdays.

We hiked Humpback Rocks and visited some local breweries and good eats all while staying at a beautiful B&B.

We arrived home last night and stuffed our suitcases up in the attic storage until next year.

As much as I loved all of our travels from this past year, I’m equally excited to cozy up at home until 2023.

That’s not to say that we don’t have things planned– there’s holiday parties and game nights and social engagements on the horizon, for sure.

But they’re all day trips and events that will find us sleeping in our own bed at the end of the day.

The temperature also dropped about 20 degrees this weekend, from the mild 60’s to the much chillier 40’s.

So I’m ready to make all of the cozy comforting food until it’s time to bring out the holiday menu.

This Sesame Tahini Soba Noodles is the quickest, most comforting meal I’ve made in a while.

It’s ready in under 30 minutes for a cozy better-than-takeout plant-based meal!

…

Birthday Cake Batter Chickpea Balls

Celebrate with grain-free birthday cake batter balls made with chickpeas, maple syrup, cashew butter, and vegan sprinkles! Yes, they taste like b-day cake! How was your Memorial Day? Yesterday was a special day for me because I taught my first virtual yoga class! Before you get mad at me for not inviting you, don’t! It…

Cajun Cauliflower Poppers

Cajun cauliflower poppers ready in under 30 minutes with less than 10 ingredients for the perfect plant-based game time or anytime appetizer. Friendsssss! Happy Super Bowl weekend. I had initially intended to share a hearty tempeh-based chili with you for the occasion, but I received so many requests for the Cajun Cauliflower Poppers on my Instagram…

See MORE SNACKS >>

Mango Blueberry Overnight Oats

Easy overnight oats with old-fashioned rolled oats, fresh mango, blueberries, and a spoonful of SunButter. Perfect for summer workweek meal prep! Last week I hung a rectangular printed canvas sign on my wall. “Never Stop Exploring”, it reads. All I did was press a push pin into the wall and steady the sign on it…

Kale Caesar with Avocado Tahini & Crispy Chickpeas

Simple plant-based caesar salad with crispy chickpea “croutons” and a creamy oil-free avocado tahini dressing. Perfect for meal prep and weekday lunches! When I first delved into finer dining on dates and amongst friends, I got nervous ordering off of the food menu. I always ordered a Caesar salad in those instances because it’s easy to pronounce…

See MORE MEAL PREP >>

Curried Cranberry Apple Pecan Chickpea Salad Cups

1-bowl curried chickpea salad with apples, pecans, cranberries, and a delicious spicy yogurt base. Serve with radicchio cups for a fun lunch, snack, or appetizer. I’m writing this post with the sniffles and a tickly throat…all of the telltale symptoms that a cold is coming for me. Doh. Sometimes I like being sick. Is…

Roasted Beet Salad with Lentils, Carrot Ribbons, & Citrus Tahini

Colorful roasted beet salad for a spring dining spread. Gluten-free, oil-free, and packed with seasonal colors and veggies. Pair with a glass of Prosecco! When I put on my first pair of glasses, I walked outside the optometrist’s office to a crisply defined outdoors. I commented the whole way home to my parents how…”the trees…they…

See MORE SALAD >>

Apple Maple Tempeh Marinade

Easy 30-minute tempeh marinade made with apple butter, yellow mustard, and pure maple syrup. Perfect to make for meal prep and serve with sides! Hiiiiiii, I know I’ve been quiet lately, friends. I’ve been shying away from the social spotlight. Letting my stories go blank on Instagram; content without sharing serial snapshots from my daily…

Zucchini Crust Pizza (Vegan & Gluten-Free!)

Plant-based pizza made with a creative zucchini crust that’s vegan, oil-free, gluten-free, and sugar-free. Add pizza sauce and your favorite toppings! How are you channel changing skills? To be honest I’ve never been a big TV channel explorer. I’m more of a “pick a show and binge-watch it then turn off the tube” kind of…

See MORE MAINS >>

Oatmeal Tahini Chocolate Chip Scones

Easy oil-free, gluten-free, and refined-sugar-free scones with tahini, oatmeal, and chocolate chips. Perfect with a warm beverage in the morning or evening! To get through tedious homework in elementary school I used positive conditioning in the form of candy. I opened a bag of bag of plain or peanut M&Ms next to my textbook and…

Mango Sticky Rice Dessert Sushi

Dessert sushi twist on mango sticky rice! Nori sushi wraps stuffed with sweet coconut rice and fresh sliced mango. Serve with optional date syrup! Are you accident prone? The statement “I am” is an understatement when it comes to me. A few weeks ago a pasta jar fell from my pantry and hit me squarely…

See MORE NOMS >>