Flora & Vino

All Food Recipes

Maple Cinnamon Baked Mochi

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Oven-baked mochi dipped in maple syrup and topped with cinnamon and toasted pecans. Bakes in under 10 minutes for a unique sweet snack or dessert! 

Maple Cinnamon Baked Mochi by Flora & Vino

This past weekend I visited Colonial Williamsburg with my cousin, my cousin’s husband, and M for a couples weekend getaway. 

Williamsburg has a special place in my heart because it reminds me of the family trips we took there as a kid. 

I have fond memories of ginger cakes from The Raleigh Tavern Bakeshop, strolling down Duke of Gloucester Street, and shopping in the market square. 

So it was a lot of fun to be there with family and show M all of my favorite spots!

We walked the historic area by day, dined in taverns by night, and spent the after hours at a beautiful Bed & Breakfast. 

While historic Colonial Williamsburg doesn’t exactly lend itself to the vegan diet, there were plenty of “hip” places nearer to the William & Mary campus. 

It was a lovely weekend, and I came home with a full heart and a well-rested mind. 

When we got home, I felt so refreshed and rejuvenated I created this Maple Cinnamon Baked Mochi.

This unique sweet snack or dessert starts with oven-baked mochi dipped in maple syrup and finished with cinnamon and toasted pecans.

It’s the perfect energizing fall bite!

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15 Apple Recipes To Make Today

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15 of my favorite apple recipes that will get you excited for fall! Apple is amazing in breakfast, salads, baked goods, and as a a snack for dipping!

This post is all about apples!

Apples are probably my favorite fruit; a staple in my kitchen counter fruit basket. 

I eat apples all year round, usually simply sliced with nut butter and dried fruit as a mid-morning snack. 

But in the fall, I actually *do* things with them.

I fry them, I bake them, I mix them into muffins and oatmeal and salads. 

Today I’m sharing 15 Apple Recipes To Make Today, tomorrow, and whenever you feel like getting creative with apples. 

I also included several recipes using apple butter, because it’s also amazing to add to fall meals and baked goods. 

Whether you go apple picking or just bring home extra apples from the grocery store, this recipe round up has something to inspire you!

From donuts to yogurt to toast, this recipe collection has an apple recipe that is sure to be the apple of your eye. 

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Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats

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Easy Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats made with dark chocolate and fresh or frozen cherries. Perfect for a healthy grab and go breakfast for the week.

Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats by Flora & Vino

I come from a long line of oat-eaters. 

I’ve known for a while that my mom eats them almost every morning. 

Then, when I was recently in North Carolina visiting extended family, I realized that the oat-love extends to my aunts and uncles, too!

We sat around the table and comparing notes on how we take our morning bowl of oats. 

It’s actually comical how similar our tastes are, miles apart and without familial influence.  

We all love texture– all the nuts, seeds, berries, and nut butter.

Some of them are even on the overnight oats bandwagon, or, ONOs, as I fondly refer to them. 

So, how do you take your oats? 

I’ll have to ask my family if they’ve ever thrown in chocolate and cherries– which is my current favorite combination. 

These Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats are made with dark chocolate and fresh or frozen cherries.

They’re perfect for a healthy grab and go breakfast for the week! 

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Vegan Blackberry Sundae

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Vegan blackberry sundae made with plant-based vanilla ice cream and a homemade refined-sugar-free blackberry compote. Serve with more berries and mint!

Vegan Blackberry Sundae by Flora & Vino

This summer my mom mentioned about a blackberry sundae she’d had some 20+ years ago. 

The recipe idea stuck with me throughout the sticky humidity and heat of August in Maryland. 

I’ve always loved sundaes; strawberry and hot fudge and banana split. 

But a blackberry sundae was something new to my dessert repertoire. 

Naturally, I had to try making one at home for the holiday weekend. 

I know the hot days left in the season are numbered, but I want to share this Blackberry Sundae recipe as one last ode to summer. 

This Vegan Blackberry Sundae is made with your favorite plant-based vanilla ice cream and a homemade refined-sugar-free blackberry compote.

It’s easier and faster to make at home than driving to your local diner or ice cream parlor! 

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20 Pumpkin Recipes to Make Today

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20 of my favorite pumpkin recipes that will get you excited for fall! Pumpkin is amazing in breakfast, bread, cookies, bowls, soups, and more! 

This afternoon when I walked to the mailbox to collect the mail it just felt…fall-ish. 

You know that feeling, right? 

The sun seems softer and the days are just a little shorter and I love the lessening. 

Even though it isn’t Labor Day yet, I’m already digging through the cabinets looking for last years’ pumpkin cans.

If you’re like me, you’re ready to turn all of your foods orange from pumpkin everything! 

If you’re not a pumpkin-lover yet, I bet I this recipe round up can convert you. 

(I’m still working on converting M, but I’m confident that this will be there year!)

Today I’m sharing 20 Pumpkin Recipes to Make Today.

And by today I mean, like, right now!

I *love* adding pumpkin to my recipes because it adds Vitamin A, fiber, and creaminess to vegan and gluten-free recipes. 

This round up has it all: from baked goods to soups to dips and spread, and of course, pumpkin bread, butter, and pie. 

Grab a couple of cans of pumpkin and try some new ways to add my orange to the fall season!

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Pesto Pasta Salad

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Pesto pasta salad made with Chickapea Penne Pasta in a delicious vegan pesto with juicy heirloom tomatoes. Perfect for a summer main or side!

Pesto Pasta Salad by Flora & Vino

I missed live music, friends!

This summer I’ve been fortunate enough to attend several concerts to see some of my favorite artists. 

Feeling the energy of a live crowd around me pales in comparison to lazy listening in my living room.

I felt intrinsically connected by the pulsing beat, the shared emotion, the pregnant silence between songs.

And it’s even better if you can bring your own picnic with you! 

The first time we attended an outdoor show, I threw this Pesto Pasta Salad together.

It was a hot hot day, and I knew we’d be craving something cold and fresh, yet hearty and filling. 

M and I devoured the entire bowl listening to Sharon Van Etten at Wolftrap in Vienna, Virginia. 

It was so good that I made it for our next outdoor event and at this point it’s a concert tradition. 

Today I’m sharing this Pesto Pasta Salad Pesto made with Chickapea Penne Pasta in a delicious vegan pesto with juicy heirloom tomatoes.

It’s perfect to make and share for a summer main or side!

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Sesame Shiitake & Broccoli Stir-Fry

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Easy Sesame Shiitake & Broccoli Stir-fry with dried shiitake mushrooms and broccoli in a sticky sesame sauce served over rice or your favorite grains. 

Sesame Shiitake & Broccoli Stir-Fry by Flora & Vino

A girlfriend and I switch off and on houses working remotely together. 

Sometimes it’s challenging to schedule, but whenever we make it happen, I’m always *so* grateful for the change in scenery. 

Last Friday I brought my laptop and planners to her place and worked at her kitchen table.

There’s something about working somewhere different that always kicks starts my creativity and motivation. 

I need to remember this, I thought to myself, as I checked boxes off of my TO-DO list at an unusually quick pace. 

And really I have our WFH session to thank for this Sesame Shiitake & Broccoli Stir-Fry recipe.  

We brainstormed ways to use dried mushrooms after a lunchtime walk in her neighborhood. 

What I finally came up with is this delicious stir-fry made with dried shiitake mushrooms and vegetables in a sticky sesame sauce over rice.

It’s better tasting and probably quicker to make than calling in takeout! 

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20 Vegan “Back to School” Snack Ideas

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20 of my favorite “Back to School” snack ideas that are easy, nutritious, and delicious for kids and adults alike. Sweet and savory selections included!

It’s almost September, which means it’s almost time for school buses to be back in service again. 

I shared my “Back to School” nostalgia with M recently, reliving that anticipation of returning to something, new, exciting, and unknown. 

Mom always took my sister and me “Back to School” shopping for new clothes and school supplies. 

My absolute favorite was picking out pens, paper, and folders, organizing and re-organizing the colors and sizes in my backpack. 

Even in adulthood, that feeling of “starting fresh” always hits me when long summer days turn into cool fall mornings and evenings. 

I wish I could bottle that sense of newness, momentum, and expectancy in an elixir for bad days. 

What are you going back to this fall? 

Whether it’s work, school, hobbies, traveling, or workouts, or *yourself*, make sure you pack some healthy snacks along the way. 

Today I’m sharing 20 Vegan “Back to School” Snack Ideas as a concise compilation of my favorite snacks! 

I made this recipe round up with tiny humans in mind, but adults will love the options, too. 

The collection is inspired by eats I had in my lunchbox as a kid, the snacks my mom made me after school, and the snacks I carry with me as a “big kid” today. 

They’re all made with simple ingredients, nourishing to eat, and easy to pack in a lunchbox or serve before homework. 

Bookmark this collection and come back to it whenever you need some vegan snack inspiration for yourself and your little ones! 

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SunButter Yogurt Dip

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SunButter Yogurt Dip made with non-dairy yogurt, Organic SunButter, and a hint of maple and cinnamon. Perfect as a nutritious dip for sliced apples! 

SunButter Yogurt Dip by Flora & Vino

This week I take my second course in Lead Climbing at my indoor climbing gym!

Lead climbing is my latest project in my climbing journey. 

Instead of having a set anchor point, the climber leads with the rope, clipping the rope into carabiners along the way. 

So, basically, the climber sets new anchor points as they climb! 

Climbing like this allows for more versatility in the nature of the climbs, and my ultimate goal is to be able to lead outdoors with M. 

But first, I’m trying to master all of the new information indoors. 

In class, we have to practice catching and taking falls as both belayer and climber. 

When my instructor shouted, “Lauren, Fall, Fall, Fall!” I had to just…let go.

It’s a weird thing to intentionally *fall*, and my feet found the wall again before I could really register the falling or the fear.

It also was a very real representation of what I knew to be true: that the worry, anxiety, and dread is often so much worse than the thing itself. 

But I do wish that this SunButter Yogurt Dip had caught me for a sweet soft landing. 

This light and fluffy dip is made with just 4 ingredients and is the perfect partner to sliced apples for snack time! 

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Baked By Melissa’s Green Goddess Salad

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My version of the viral green goddess salad with chopped cabbage, herb-y green dressing, and chickpeas for protein. Perfect to meal prep for a fresh lunch!

Baked By Melissa's Green Goddess Salad by Flora & Vino

If you’ve been following me on social media, you know that I joined TikTok this year. 

Because social media is big part of my job, I rarely find myself scrolling without a purpose. 

TikTok, however, is an entirely different story, friends. 

In the evenings when I’m too tired to make the move from the couch to the bed, I fall down a Tik Tok rabbit hole.

My thumb seems to move entirely of its own volition, descending through messy kitchens, viral sounds, and couples humor. 

It’s like the wild, wild west. 

Many evenings the app makes me laugh out loud, causing me to shove my phone in M’s face and plead, “Just WATCH this,” between giggles. 

He’ll roll his eyes and say, “I don’t understand TikTok!”

Well, you don’t have to understand or even like the app to appreciate the recipe that I’m sharing today. 

This Green Goddess Salad is my version of the salad from Baked By Melissa that was EVERYWHERE on the internet earlier this year. 

And I saw it first on…you guessed it…TikTok!

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