Breakfast

Pink Coconut Cloud Smoothie

Erewhon-inspired Pink Coconut Cloud Smoothie with a berry and pomegranate swirl that’s vegan, creamy, and perfect for a nutritious treat!

As the snow starts to melt outside my windows, I’m finally spotting little patches of grass peeking through.

It’s a quiet but hopeful sign that winter won’t last forever.

After weeks of cold, gray days and being cooped up indoors, I can feel my energy slowly starting to shift.

I’ve been in a bit of a funk lately, missing my daily walks and the simple joy of being outside in fresh air and sunlight.

There’s something about that first glimpse of green returning that makes me crave brightness in every area of life, especially in the kitchen.

This Pink Coconut Cloud Smoothie was my way of leaning into that feeling.

It’s vibrant, creamy, and uplifting; exactly the kind of colorful boost I needed this week.

The soft coconut “cloud” paired with bright berries feels playful and nourishing all at once, and the natural pink hue makes it perfect with Valentine’s Day this month.

Whether you’re celebrating with someone you love or simply making something beautiful for yourself, this smoothie is a sweet reminder that brighter days are on the way.

This Erewhon-inspired Pink Coconut Cloud Smoothie is made with a berry and pomegranate swirl that’s vegan, creamy, and perfect for a nutritious treat!

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Cinnamon Raisin Cookie Baked Oatmeal

By Flora & Vino 3 Comments

Cinnamon Raisin Cookie Baked Oatmeal for a breakfast that tastes like the classic cookie. Meal prep a pan and reheat for an easy breakfast!

This is the story of my engagement.

On Halloween last week M and I hiked into Great Falls National Park where he got down on one knee and presented me with a diamond ring and a question.

“Would you like to marry me?” he asked, the midday sun creating fiery colors in the pear shaped diamond in yellow gold.

“Yes!” I said immediately, wondering if I had responded too quickly.

We kissed and M slid the diamond onto my ring finger as people I didn’t know were there gave their congratulations.

So, friends, I am engaged.

The funny thing is that I almost didn’t want to go on this hike that I realize now M was carefully planning.

There was really high winds forecast for the day and that felt like reason enough to curl up at home and read under blankets.

I’m forever grateful that we ended up going and I braved the discomfort.

Great Falls has always been a special place for us in our relationship.

It’s the first place M taught me to climb outdoors in the height of the pandemic, and a place we kept coming back to for hiking, climbing, and nature.

Standing on top of Sandbox Overlook with my new fiancé, my best friend, this man who has chosen me forever, I didn’t feel the windchill a bit.

The last week has been a bit of a blur with engagement announcements, living in our own “honeymoon” bubble, and making tentative plans for the future.

Being newly engaged, I’ll admit, I haven’t been the most creative with food.

However, I did come up with a new baked oats recipe for you that’s essentially a cookie in baked oats form.

Can you tell that I was craving cookies when I created this Cinnamon Raisin Cookie Baked Oatmeal?!

Cinnamon Raisin Cookie Baked Oatmeal that tastes like the classic cookie for breakfast.

It’s easy to meal prep a pan and reheat for an easy breakfast all week long!

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Pumpkin Turmeric Waffles

By Flora & Vino Leave a Comment

Pumpkin Turmeric Waffles made with oats, pumpkin purée, and Navitas Organics Turmeric Powder. Serve with melted cacao for breakfast!

Two weekends ago I had to miss my yoga teacher training because I was sick with the first cold of the season.

It’s been an ongoing goal of mine to connect with more local yoga studios in the area.

The hope being that I find a place that I can practice regularly and perhaps even one day teach at.

Ever since the pandemic, I’ve been all too comfortable practicing yoga from the room I fondly refer to as…the yoga room.

I am so fortunate that I have a space to work out at home, but, as my teacher said when encouraging me to connect locally, the energy just feels different in the studio.

So I’ve been pushing myself to get outside of my comfort zone and take classes with the public.

After the third class, I started to feel a connection to the community and myself I hadn’t felt in years.

It was like realizing a version of myself that I’d forgotten; a Lauren that went out for evening yoga regularly because it lit me up.

However, with the public yoga comes the public germs.

I remember looking askance during my third class at the girl next to me, sniffling heavily in downward facing dog.

She sounds unwell, I thought to myself, and then went on with my practice because what else can you do when you’re flowing next to a germ monster?!

So now I’m on the upswing of a bad cold, sitting with the irony that a public yoga class potentially caused me to miss my yoga training weekend.

However, I have to believe that that striving for connection, community, and movement outside of my house is worth the risk.

Being sick, I’ll admit, I haven’t been the most creative with food.

However, I did come up with a new waffle recipe for you that’s perfect for upcoming “spooky” season.

These Pumpkin Turmeric Waffles made with oats, pumpkin purée, and Navitas Organics Turmeric Powder.

Serve them with melted cacao drizzle for an elevated breakfast!

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Vegan Apple Pie Pancakes

By Flora & Vino 2 Comments

Super fluffy Vegan Apple Pie Pancakes with buckwheat flour and apple pie compote. Perfect for a weekend breakfast topped with SunButter!

This season has been all about healing for me.

Right now, I’m attending physical therapy two times a week to work on healing my chronic back pain.

It’s a commitment, right? In time, energy, and physicality.

Two days a week in my very adept physical therapist’s office releasing tension, increasing mobility, and building strength.

Not to mention the homework exercises that I do religiously (because I’m a good student, y’all!).

It was humbling to realize after my the first evaluation that despite being highly active, I have areas that are *extremely* weak.

And of course that imbalance and weakness is a contributing factor to the pain I experience on a daily basis.

The other cause most likely being the strange and incorrect form I use to capture all of the delicious food that I share with you all.

Yes, food photography is probably ground zero for the back problems that started a few years back.

I ignored it for so long, thinking, “Eh, it’ll just get better on it’s own, it’s just from holding the camera in a weird way.”

Spoiler alert: it did not get better and in fact, got more and more pervasive to the point that day to day activities became painful and challenging to perform.

A lot of my healing has been self-awareness of certain body patterns and motions that I’m doing that will trigger the pain.

As a yoga teacher, I know how important balance and harmony are in the bodies, so it’s kind of ironic that I couldn’t see that dissonance in myself.

So, consider this your PSA, friends: if anything is bothering you, take the time, the energy, and the resources to get it looked at.

Our bodies are our one amazing vessel to carry us through this life, so let’s take care of them as such.

Which is part of the reason as to why I love a plant-based lifestyle, because it’s good for us and the planet.

No one can argue that these Vegan Apple Pie Pancakes that I’m sharing today aren’t healing from the inside out.

These super fluffy Vegan Apple Pie Pancakes are made with gluten-free flour and apple pie compote.

They’re perfect for a fall weekend breakfast topped with SunButter!

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Blueberry SunButter Breakfast Cookies

By Flora & Vino Leave a Comment

Blueberry SunButter Breakfast Cookies made with oatmeal, SunButter, and blueberries. Bake them in advance and grab for an easy breakfast!

Last week I was lucky to see the Glass Animals perform live in Richmond, VA.

It’s the longest distance I’ve ever travelled for live music!

The energy was palpable and we spent the entire show standing, dancing and singing to the beats that I knew, craved, and loved.

Attending the show meant *so* much to me, and even more so because I missed seeing them last year when they were in Maryland.

Last year, I forfeited the tickets last minute because we had just brought home Flora, who was cute enough to make me forget even my most admired artists.

I joke that the Glass Animals helped me survive 2020, but truly, their album “Dreamland” felt like a lifeboat amidst divorce, pandemic, and solo living.

It also helps that the singles played on the radio became the unofficial soundtrack to my budding relationship with M.

“Heat Waves” and “Your Love” were always on when I made the drive to Maryland to pick up M for a day date.

So I feel very satisfied and fulfilled that I was able to see them live after all these years.

Naturally, we packed up the pup and took her with us, and although she couldn’t actually attend the show, she waited up for us at the Air B&B like an angel.

Because this was a 24 hour kind of mid-week trip, I wanted to keep things super simple and easy with packing, and, particularly food.

That’s where these Blueberry SunButter Breakfast Cookies come in.

These Blueberry SunButter Breakfast Cookies are made with oatmeal, SunButter, and blueberries.

Bake them in advance and grab a few for an easy breakfast, no matter where you are!

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Blueberry Stovetop Oatmeal

By Flora & Vino Leave a Comment

Blueberry Stovetop Oatmeal made brilliantly blue in 15 minutes. Top it off with your favorite nuts, dried fruit, and seeds.

Last weekend, I attended our Philosophy section of my 300 hr yoga teacher training program.

To prepare for the weekend, we read the entire Bhagavad Gita and answered a series of question prompts on identity, ethics, and right action.

If you haven’t read the Bhagavad Gita, it’s a part of an epic poem that takes place on a battlefield where the warrior king Arjuna converses with Lord Krishna.

The battlefield is a metaphor for life, and the lessons Krishna imparts on Arjuna are both powerful and very applicable to our modern society.

During the session, we shared our responses honestly and openly.

We identified our personal battlefield, narrowed in our dharma (duty), and started to understand our attachments and why they cause suffering.

I left the weekend, mind whirling with ideas, questions, and all of the tools to continue the practice of svadhyaya (self-study).

When prompted, I told the group that I felt that my dharma in this lifetime was to be a creator.

Whether it’s writing a post, photographing a recipe, styling a plate, or sequencing a yoga class, it’s all from the same energy.

I want to continually put love out onto my website, social media, the yoga studio, your email box; all of the avenues of connection.

My hope is that I start a ripple that somehow inspires right action in you, whether that’s to make a recipe, start yoga, eat more plants, or maybe just take a bubble bath.

Because if there’s one thing I learned this weekend it’s that we’re all connected.

I love the metaphor of us all being drops in the ocean, all a part of the collective whole.

So, thanks for being a part of my collective, friend!

And now, after my philosophy rant, I have a new recipe for you that is beautiful, nourishing, and seasonal.

This Blueberry Stovetop Oatmeal is made brilliantly blue in 15 minutes.

Top it off with your favorite nuts, dried fruit, and seeds for a fun breakfast for any season!

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Viral Tiramisu Chia Pudding

By Flora & Vino 1 Comment

Viral Tiramisu Chia Pudding made with Organic Chia Seeds and espresso topped with cacao. Perfect to meal prep for breakfast or a snack!

This year, we got our hands on our first espresso maker.

We purchased it second hand so there was no pressing urgency to use it religiously.

While I have used it bagel (0!) times, M has already gotten our money’s worth and then some with all of the espresso he has experimented with.

The addition of the espresso maker inspired a kitchen reorg with the creation of “coffee corner”.

We now have a whole corner of our precious counter space dedicated to coffee related things, including but not limited to:

Our coffee grinder, bags of beans, the coffee scale, the new espresso maker, and all of it’s accoutrements.

With the new workspace, he’s tried pretty much every bean from our favorite local roaster to dial in the best ‘spresso.

So, naturally, he was delighted when I requested that he make me espresso shots for today’s recipe.

Tiramisu has been a long time favorite dessert of mine, but one that I’ve yet to make vegan.

So I’m excited to share my version of the Viral Tiramisu Chia Pudding.

This chia pudding incorporates all of the layers and flavors of tiramisu, without all of the hard work.

It’s Tiramisu in pudding form!

My version of the Viral Tiramisu Chia Pudding is made with Organic Chia Seeds and espresso topped with cacao.

It’s perfect to meal prep for an energizing breakfast or a snack!

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Vegan Chocolate Waffles

By Flora & Vino Leave a Comment

Vegan Chocolate Waffles made with oat flour, coconut milk, and raw cacao powder. Perfect to make for a nutritious breakfast!

Hi, hello, what’s new?

This week was crunch time at F&V as we prepare for a camping trip next week AND Flora’s spaying surgery.

I can feel the momentum of spring into summer, all culminating into the celebration of Memorial Day this weekend.

We’ve also had a *lot* of rain, making work and life a little more challenging in navigating shoots in natural daylight and muddy walks with the pup.

I read a quote recently when preparing for teaching yoga this weekend that spoke about finding the calm amidst the storm.

And by focusing on a single raindrops hitting the ground we can find a bit of calm in the chaos.

Life has felt a bit like one big storm lately, to me.

I find myself procrastinating tasks and challenges for when “life is easier”.

It dawned on me that I need to find a slice of tranquility while life’s marathon races around me.

Because if there’s one thing I know for sure, it’s that life won’t stop life-ing, so maybe I can challenge it with reframing what calm looks like.

Amidst the stressors, I still *love* me a warm sweet breakfast.

These Vegan Chocolate Waffles are made with oat flour, coconut milk, and raw cacao powder.

They’re perfect to make for a nutritious breakfast, no matter what season of life you’re in!

Trust me, the ingredient list is shorter than your “To Do”, list, friends!

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Vegan Blueberry Muffins

By Flora & Vino Leave a Comment

Vegan Blueberry Muffins made with almond flour, oat flour, and frozen blueberries. Perfect for a nutritious breakfast or snack.

I have a working oven; I repeat, I have a working oven!!!

It’s been *over* two weeks since the oven lit up light a firecracker and died while I was baking a sheet pan meal at 450 degrees.

Since then, we’ve been waiting patiently for a new oven part to arrive and be installed.

In the meantime, I’ve been working on portable induction cooktop.

This is actually my first experience with induction cooking, friends.

While I loved how quickly the pans heated up for a stir-fry, I found it to be lacking when you need to boil a *lot* of water, like pasta.

We survived mostly on oatmeal, homemade fried rice, and air-fried sweet potatoes for the past few weeks.

Which isn’t the worst menu to live on, right?

That being said, I’m super grateful and excited to have a functioning oven again.

Sure, ovens are great for cooking and I rely on it frequently to roast veggies and chickpeas.

However, the one thing I couldn’t stop craving while we were oven-less was baking MUFFINS.

Homemade muffins warm from the oven, bursting with blueberries.

Naturally, today’s recipe is a celebration of that craving.

Friends, I give you, Vegan Blueberry Muffins.

These Vegan Blueberry Muffins are made with almond flour, oat flour, and frozen blueberries.

They’re perfect for a nutritious breakfast or snack!

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Vegan Applesauce Waffles

By Flora & Vino Leave a Comment

Vegan Applesauce Waffles made with oat flour, coconut milk, and unsweetened apple sauce. Perfect to make for a nutritious breakfast!

In our house, I like every item to have a space, a home, a location where we can always find it.

M can attest to the fact that I’m always tidying, organizing, and putting things away.

Which is why whenever he looks for his empty coffee mug to refill it, it’s already in the dishwasher.

Sorry, M!

Anyway, this is especially important for me in the kitchen during busy photoshoot and recipe testing days.

However, being a food blogger, I tend to amass a certain amount of kitchen gadgets that…have no home.

And living in a condo, let’s be honest, I don’t have the biggest kitchen.

So, these kitchen gadgets usually end up in our storage closet or the attic waiting for me to miss them and eventually unearth them 6 months later.

That is, they don’t get to take up *precious* kitchen real estate.

Yes, I’m sorry to admit that the ice cream maker, the air fryer, and the crock pot all live in varying degrees of dust and rumble when not making recipes.

However!

The waffle maker that I told you guys about recently might be the exception to the rule.

Because I just don’t have it in my heart to put away, so it might just have to live on the kitchen counter forever.

I don’t know how M will feel about it blocking the coffee grinder, but we can find out after I share this new recipe with you.

These Vegan Applesauce Waffles are made with oat flour and coconut milk for a nutritious breakfast.

Unsweetened apple sauce is the secret ingredient to making them brown and crispy!

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Breakfast

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