Gluten-Free

Pesto Pasta Salad

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

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

By Flora & Vino 2 Comments

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

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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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!

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

By Flora & Vino 2 Comments

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

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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Peaches ‘N’ Cream Protein Shake

By Flora & Vino 2 Comments

Peaches ‘N’ Cream Protein Shake made with frozen peaches, banana, and non-dairy yogurt. Perfect for a post-workout summer breakfast or snack!

It’s hot here, friends, and I’m struggling to fit in my long runs for marathon training without melting.

Even when I set an alarm to beat the sun, I open the weather app to find the dawn temperature lingering just below 80 degrees.

But when I can peel myself off of the couch, lace up my sneakers, and step out onto the asphalt, usually the temperature falls into the background.

There’s something really lovely about running before the day begins.

Lately, my favorite post-run fuel is this Peaches ‘N’ Cream Protein Shake.

It’s so easy to blend up minutes after stepping through the door.

It’s cool and refreshing, lightly sweetened with banana and super creamy with almond milk yogurt with a hint of cinnamon.

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Quick Corn Salsa

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Quick corn salsa with frozen sweet corn, fresh cilantro, and lime. Perfect to serve as dip with chips or as an addition to tacos, burritos, bowls, and more!

Recently, I taught my first yoga class in my new position as a substitute teacher!

I was all nerves as I arrived at the studio wearing my lucky yoga tank (the one I got during teacher training) with my yoga books and prepared routine.

Whenever I’m nervous, I remind myself that anxiety and excitement kind of feel the same way in the body.

It just means that I *care*.

But as soon as I started teaching, breathing, being with the class, it was all good.

If you’ve been around here a while, you know when I completed YTT in 2019 I firmly believed that I only wanted to know more about yoga.

I never saw myself actually teaching…and now, I am.

It feels good, right, and fulfilling.

Afterwards, M and I ordered tacos and burritos from Chipotle to celebrate.

I usually get their corn salsa, which, in addition to the lonely bag of frozen corn in my freezer, was the inspiration for this recipe.

This Quick Corn Salsa is made with frozen sweet corn, fresh cilantro, and lime.

Serve it with chips or as an addition to tacos, burritos, bowls, and more!

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Vegan “Cookie Corners” (Nussecken)

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Vegan “cookie corners” (Nussecken)! These tasty triangles are made with oat and almond flour, SunButter, jam, hazelnuts, and dark chocolate.

Today I’m sharing a recipe with you inspired by my European travels!

M’s mom is kind of famous in their area in Germany for her Nussecken.

And with good reason, because they’re kind of amazing.

This delicious German dessert is made with a nougat base, jammy center, and sweet hazelnut topping.

After baking you cut layers into triangles and dip the corners in melted chocolate.

Nussecken directly translates from German to “Nut Corners”, but I’ve also seen them called “Cookie Corners”.

I thought Cookie Corners sounded cuter, so let’s go with that naming convention.

You’re going to love my Vegan “Cookie Corners” (Nussecken) that are also gluten-free and refined-sugar-free!

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Rainbow Vegetable Kabobs with Creamy Sriracha Sauce

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Rainbow Vegetable Kabobs with Creamy Sriracha Sauce made on the grill or grill pan. Enjoy them over rice with fresh herbs for a fresh summer meal!

It’s grilling season!

Lately, when I take my daily walk through the neighborhood, I come back hungry.

And not because I walked 10,000 steps.

It’s because tantalizing smells are wafting from the neighboring houses.

It takes all I have not to pop in their garden or patio where upbeat music plays, voices carry, and smoke rises from the grill.

Clearly, I didn’t get the invite.

But friends, I’m cordially inviting you to my plant-based grilling party.

It’s a Rainbow Vegetable Kabobs with Creamy Sriracha Sauce party!

Attire: grilling casual.

RSVP, yes or no?

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Chocolate Tahini Banana Pops

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Chocolate tahini banana pops are the vegan treat you need this summer! Frozen bananas drizzled in tahini and chocolate and rolled in nuts.

I swear, something magical happens to bananas when they freeze.

If you’re joining in on my current banana craze, then you’re going to love this week’s recipe.

Did you eat Nestle’s Drumsticks growing up?

Because that’s what these Chocolate Tahini Banana Pops remind me of.

They sit somewhere deliciously between an ice cream cone, fudgsicle, and popsicle.

I took halved bananas, froze them, covered them in tahini and melted chocolate, then rolled them in nuts.

This frozen treat is perfect for a sweet snack or healthy dessert.

Ready to make some banana pops?!

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Easy No-Bake Dessert Ideas

By Flora & Vino 3 Comments

A collection of no-bake dessert ideas that are perfect to make when it’s too for the oven. Included are cookies, bars, cups, truffles, brownies, and more.

In Germany it’s really common to not have air conditioning at home.

So for the majority of my stay in Europe I went without the whir of the AC unit.

I was nervous at first, imagining sweat-soaked clothes and fanning myself incessantly with anything accessible.

But it wasn’t like that at all.

Honestly, I didn’t really miss it.

There was a beautiful breeze during the day with the windows open, and I got used to running around the house in shorts and a tank top.

In the evenings and early mornings I even had to throw on some layers because the temperature cooled down without the sun.

Except this ONE night that the kitchen got *really* hot.

Mostly because on this particular evening I decided to turn on the oven and do a lot of meal prep.

Sitting around the kitchen table in a sticky hot haze, I thought to myself, lesson learned.

So, maybe don’t do that.

Maybe make some of these Easy No-Bake Dessert Ideas instead!

We’re in the depths of summer so I thought it was a great time to share some of my favorite dessert recipes that, you guessed it, don’t require *any* baking!

Included in this post are no-bake cookies, bars, cups, pies & tarts, truffles & macaroons, brownies & fudge, stuffed & dipped desserts, and spoonable desserts.

There’s something for everyone in this collection so bookmark this post and reference it whenever you’re too (insert: hot, lazy, tired?) to bake!

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