Gluten-Free

Black Bean Mousse

Protein packed mousse made with black beans, cashews, and cacao powder sweetened with maple syrup. Perfect for a nutritious snack or sensible dessert!

So here’s the state of affairs:

Yesterday I played a state guessing game on the phone with a friend.

I was presented with a map of the United States completed with bold black state borders.

When the game populates a state name, I had to accurately select the corresponding state by clicking on the correctly shaped territory.

Well, let me tell you friends, I was never good at geography.

After accidentally clicking New Jersey about 4 times instead of other north-eastern states, I knew I needed to brush up.

I did get 77% accuracy, which I’m going to take as a win.

If quarantine is making your world feel small, grab a map and explore a little.

Or, we could explore in the kitchen.

If you don’t feel like baking, how about an easy no bake dessert that’s packed with plant-based protein, fiber, and complex carbs?

Today I made this Black Bean Mousse that’s vegan, gluten-free, and naturally sweetened with pure maple syrup.

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Cranberry Almond Breakfast Cookies

By Flora & Vino 5 Comments

Breakfast cookies made with oatmeal, SunButter, dried cranberries, and slivered almonds. Bake them in advance and grab for an easy breakfast!

It’s been stupid hot here in Virginia for the past few weeks.

Every day the forecast threatens 100 degrees with a chance of thunderstorms that fail to break the blanket of heat.

My daily power walks have become more of a mosey as I try to keep cool but still see the great outdoors.

So, how are you doing?

I know it’s been a while since I posted so I wanted to check in.

I’ve been OK.

Content on the blog has taken a bit of a backseat as I focus on new projects and big picture goals.

(More to come on this soon!)

And then there’s the ever present backdrop of life in a post-quarantine but not post-pandemic world.

Honestly, I have no idea how to navigate this new normal and not much desire to try.

So, instead, I stay home and make Cranberry Almond Breakfast Cookies.

Won’t you join me?

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Blueberry Pecan Arugula Salad with Blueberry Vinaigrette

By Flora & Vino 1 Comment

Light summer salad with arugula, blueberries, and toasted pecans. Toss with a zippy blueberry vinaigrette made with blueberry kombucha.

It’s thunder-storming as I write this post and I’m counting the seconds between the lighting and thunder.

One mississippi, two mississippi, three mississppi.

Earlier today it was bright and sunny, and I used the abundance of blueberries in my fridge to make a salad.

Summer thunderstorms in Virginia come and go about as quickly as this sweet and satisfying summer salad.

This Blueberry Pecan Arugula Salad with Blueberry Vinaigrette is simple, light, and refreshing.

It’s perfect to mix up for summer when the weather is warm!

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Trail Mix Overnight Oats

By Flora & Vino 1 Comment

Meal prep trail mix overnight oats naturally sweetened with maple syrup and topped with dried fruit, nuts, and nut butter. Perfect for make ahead breakfast!

How was your fourth of July?

Did you see any fireworks?

I spent Independence Day from the comfort of my own home with good food and good company.

The only fireworks I saw this year were the sparklers that lit up the asphalt on my neighborhood streets.

Every time we heard a bang I ran to the window, craning my neck left to right for any trace of glowing sky.

You’d be proud to know that I took the entire weekend off work to really relax and commemorate the red, white, and blue.

It’s honestly been hard to get back into the swing of things this week after a long holiday weekend.

This past Monday I woke up and had to take a few hours to center myself back into the work and kitchen mindset.

Can’t I just eat leftover watermelon and plant-based burgers all week?

Well, maybe…

But one of the things that always makes me feel more grounded and prepared is make ahead breakfast.

These Trail Mix Overnight Oats are so easy to mix up and top with my favorite trail mix blend of organic nuts and seeds!

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Mango Sticky Rice Dessert Sushi

By Flora & Vino 2 Comments

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 on the lip.

I was trying to grab a bag of shredded coconut from the top shelf and the pasta sauce was, well, in the way.

Luckily, after a quick icing the swelling went down and I was left with little more than a mark.

Then, yesterday, after months of haphazardly hanging my pots and pans on the hooks in my kitchen, a pan fell on my head.

Yeah, OK, it’s a little funny.

But let me tell you, it wasn’t funny yesterday when one of my Green Pans collided with my temple at an alarming speed.

I’m taking it upon myself to child-proof my kitchen this weekend and remove some of these work place hazards.

So until then, let’s try to avoid the kitchen catastrophes and make some dessert sushi, OK?

These Mango Sticky Rice Dessert Sushi are stuffed with sweet coconut rice and fresh sliced mango serves with fresh mint and date syrup!

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Mango Blueberry Overnight Oats

By Flora & Vino Leave a Comment

Mango Blueberry Overnight Oats with 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 until it balanced, but it felt like a bold move.

My first intentional piece of artwork in my home.

Huzzah!

It’s funny how long I’ve gone with bare walls devoid of decorating.

To be honest, I’ve never been very confident in my indoor decorating choices.

Like, do I need a color scheme, a theme, a purpose, or do I just start throwing stuff on the walls?

I joked with a friend (who is amazing at decorating her home, I might add), that I need a design consultation. STAT.

Anyway, sometimes I catch glances of my sign while I’m eating breakfast in the morning.

Never stop exploring.

Are you ready to go exploring some new overnights oats?

These Mango Blueberry Overnight Oats are so easy to mix up in jars in advance with oats, fresh mango, and blueberries!

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Raw Carrot Hummus

By Flora & Vino 6 Comments

Bright carrot hummus made oil-free and super creamy with tahini, lemon, and and seasonings. Perfect to make in advance for snacking!

As I type this my fingers are smarting.

Last night I dusted off my guitar for the first time since I moved to see if I still remembered how to play.

If you live next door to me, I sincerely apologize, because you might have heard me strumming and belting out Wonderwall at something close to 11 PM.

Oops.

I kind of forgot how much volume my acoustic guitar has.

The good news is that, yes, I do, in fact, remember how to make chords with my left hand and hold a pick in the right.

The bad news is that my fingertips do not remember the callouses that cushioned them back when I used to play with regularity.

So my fingers are pretty darn sore today, which I’m reminded of every time I press them into my MacBook Pro keyboard.

Luckily, it’s only my left hand, because my right hand is ready for snack time.

I’m excited to share this colorful new cracker and dip combo to make your snacking both pretty and delicious.

This Raw Carrot Hummus is ready in less than 10 minutes for easy snacking that’s raw, oil-free, and packed with nutrients!

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Chickpea Meal Prep Bowl

By Flora & Vino 2 Comments

Plant-based bowl with arugula, chickpeas, steamed sweet potatoes, broccoli, sauerkraut, and an oil-free turmeric tahini dressing. Perfect for meal prep!

I’ve been happy lately, friends.

Maybe it’s the warmer weather, or maybe it’s just a newfound perspective this summer.

It feels like things are shifting, changing, and becoming.

Like good things are on the tip of my tongue, about to spill over my lips and into fruition.

I’m emerging from quarantine feeling the vibration of potential and possibilities that the remainder of the year allows.

My intention for 2020 was *forward* and I’ve definitely tested that two syllable word to the fullest in the past month.

Shedding old identities, stories, and thought patterns and trying on new ones.

In the midst of all of this self reflection and discovery, I haven’t really wanted to cook fancy meals.

In fact, I haven’t been thinking much about food at all.

There, I said it.

But, in the midst of so much change, we still need to eat and eat well.

This Chickpea Meal Prep Bowl is perfect to make for an easy plant-based meal!

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Dark Chocolate Blueberry Macaroons

By Flora & Vino 4 Comments

No-bake vegan macaroons made with blueberries, shredded coconut, and dark chocolate. Ready in under an hour for a quick and clean dessert!

Earlier this year, before COVID-19 rocked the globe, I decided that this was going to be the year I was going to get back into live music.

I booked five concerts spread across the calendar with friends who shared my musical taste.

When the pandemic changed life as we know it, the cancellations slowly started to trickle into my email inbox.

So much for the year of concerts, I thought.

I have recently, though, rediscovered my love of listening to music.

Like, *really* listening.

Lately, I’ve been putting on an album in my living room and listening in a way I haven’t done since I got my first Backstreet Boys CD back in the day.

You know, really absorbing the lyrics and the melody and feeling it run through you from finger tips to toe tips.

The same way one devours Dark Chocolate Blueberry Macaroons.

You just need 6-ingredients to make these Dark Chocolate Blueberry Macaroons that are packed with blueberries, coconut, and dark chocolate!

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Baked Tempeh Tots

By Flora & Vino 6 Comments

Baked tempeh tots seasoned with rosemary, thyme, and nutritional yeast with an almond flour breading. Perfect for a protein packed snack!

Do you guys own bikes?

I’ve been wanting to get one for years now but never seem to tuck away the money for it.

During quarantine, outdoor biking became a favorite activity in my social circles.

It’s the perfect way to experience the outdoors, social distance, and get some exercise, too.

So it occurred to me this past weekend that while I don’t have a new bike, I *do* have a bike.

The purple bike sitting in my parents’ garage that I last rode when I was 16.

So I called my parents and asked for my bright bike back, pretty please.

Last weekend my parents dropped off the bike at my place and ever since then I’ve been pedaling around my neighborhood, feeling buoyant and carefree.

These Baked Tempeh Tots also made me feel gleeful and childlike this week.

They’re an easy savory snack that’s packed with plant-based protein!

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Gluten-Free

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