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Chocolate Chip Almond Butter Skillet Cookie

Chocolate Chip Almond Butter Skillet Cookie with almond butter, almond flour, coconut sugar, and paleo chocolate chips.

Remember when I said to wake me up when September ends?

Well, it’s September 30th and I still feel like snoozing.

That being said, I think (read: hope) that things will calm down a bit here in October.

I remember looking ahead to September on my giant office wall calendar, snorting at the idea of that blue cursive ink scrawled across dates coming to fruition.

But it did.

In September, I moved my life, my business, and my fridge, started yoga teacher training, traveled for a trade show, and somehow lived to tell about it.

And here I am, tired, and ready for dessert.

This Chocolate Chip Almond Butter Skillet Cookie is vegan, paleo, and grain-free without any added oils or refined sugars!

You just need 6 ingredients, a small caste iron skillet, and a love for gooey cookies.

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Chocolate Chia Chai Overnight Oats

By Flora & Vino 1 Comment

Chai-based overnight oats with chia seeds and hints of chocolate served with cacao nibs and dried fig. Perfect for an easy workweek breakfast.

This weekend marks my second weekend of 200-hour yoga teacher training.

I feel like I just came out of the first, buzzing with new info on anatomy and gurus and sanskrit poses dancing on the tip of my tongue.

In the midst of completing my take-home quiz on the history of Yoga and feverishly reading the Bhagavad Gita, I decided making breakfast ahead was a must.

I have to be at the studio from 8-6 on Saturday, so I need something to grab and go quickly that will keep me fueled and on fire for long training days.

Simultaneously, I’ve been embracing fall with warm beverages on chilly mornings.

So, I thought, let’s fuse these two comforts into an overnight oat mix that’s easy to enjoy anywhere.

If you’re drinking a cozy cup of Chai with your oatmeal, why not combine them in these Chocolate Chia Chai Overnight Oats?

Mix up these easy overnight oats for a quirky mixture that’s sure to put some pep in your step…or in my case, my chaturanga dandasana.

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Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Breakfast Bars

By Flora & Vino 17 Comments

Easy pumpkin chocolate chip breakfast bars with oats, almond butter, and pumpkin naturally sweetened with maple syrup and dark chocolate.

Hello!

This week feels heavy and it’s only Tuesday.

Yesterday I had a a home photo shoot in my kitchen, which was awesome because I got to see my friend Michelle of Bosch Studios, but also because the deadline forced me to clean up my new kitchen.

I was grumbling around washing pots and pans before the sun rose, my pretty gray granite counters slowly becoming more and more visible as the dirty dishes became clean and shelved.

They say your living space reflects your mental space, or maybe it’s the other way around?

Either way, they both got a massive makeover yesterday.

Which made it way too easy to turn around and make something delicious for breakfast.

I highly recommend you clear your kitchen counters and whip up a pan of Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Breakfast Bars.

They’re packed with pumpkin, protein, healthy fats, and all the fall feels you need this autumn.

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Root Veggie Chip Arugula Salad

By Flora & Vino 3 Comments

Root Veggie Chip Arugula Salad with crumbled cashew cheese, and caramelized onions. Perfect for a light autumn lunch or side salad.

Today I left the house at 7 AM in shorts and felt 60 degree breeze hit my bare thighs.

I proceeded to jump into the car and blast the heat and seat heater, because how else do you get warm in September?

It’s definitely starting to feel like fall here in Virginia; colorful leaves cascading off of trees and a definite chill in the mornings and evenings.

With the first “official” day of fall in just a few days, all I can see are shades or sepia and burnt orange and gold.

When I think of fall, I immediately think of ruby-colored root veggies.

How about root veggies in chip form?

You’re going to love this Root Veggie Chip Arugula Salad for a light autumn lunch or side salad this season!

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Spiced Green Pear Protein Shake

By Flora & Vino 2 Comments

Pear protein shake with frozen pear, avocado, leafy greens, and cinnamon lightly sweetened with Medjool dates. Enjoy for breakfast or post-workout fuel.

Did I tell you that I gave up protein powder for almost…three months?

You might have noticed it’s been a long time since I shared a protein shake or smoothie bowl on the blog.

When you’re plant-based, I’m sure you’ve been asked at least once, “So, where do you get your protein?”

*Yawn*

Protein powder has always been on the scripted list that I recite along with legumes, whole grains, nuts, seeds, leafy greens, yada yada.

The problem was that I was treating protein powder like it was a necessary whole food, when it is, in fact, is not.

If I didn’t have my shake in the morning I made one for lunch, or as an afternoon snack, pretty certain that if I didn’t consume protein powder every 24 hours I might shrivel up and perish.

But here I am, still *gasp* alive, and here to tell you that you can survive on whole foods protein alone!

But protein powder is still a fun add, especially when you mix it with seasonal fruit flavors.

I’m back from my hiatus with a new protein shake recipe that’s, shall we say, pear-fect for fall.

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Paleo Sweet Potato Snack Bowl

By Flora & Vino 5 Comments

Paleo sweet potato snack bowl with cinnamon, chopped nuts, dried fruit, and pecan butter. Perfect for a fall snack or breakfast!

I’m *really* trying to get back into the habit of preparing my own food after my move.

It’s been a lot of Whole Foods hot bar and Cava trips and Chinese takeout and I for one am over it and ready to get back to regularly scheduled F&V programming with a fridge full of chopped veggies and a kitchen I can walk through without fear of tripping over a half-unpacked box and stumbling to my death.

I keep telling myself that it’ll happen “when the counters are clear” or “once I clean the dishwasher” (it smells bad…LOL)…but I’m pretty sure that those are all just excuses for being uninspired.

Change is hard, and all I want to do these days is curl up with something to eat that’s safe, known, normal.

So I’m taking it back to the ultimate comfort food base for occasion– sweet potatoes.

These Paleo Sweet Potato Snack Bowl are a delicious fall snack or breakfast idea that you can make in advance and serve warm or cold!

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Pumpkin SunButter Chip Bliss Balls

By Flora & Vino 6 Comments

Easy 7-ingredient pumpkin SunButter chip bliss balls mixed together without a blender! Perfect to keep on hand for fall snacking.

This past week at Target I saw orange and black Halloween trinkets at the end of aisles and my immediate reaction was a visceral, “Too soon, TARGET. TOO SOON.”

But then at Whole Foods I spotted the first pumpkins, sitting plump, orange, and peppy in their cardboard cases.

Suddenly, it didn’t feel like too soon at all.

It felt TIME.

I wanted to pick a pumpkin right then and there and parade it around secure in my shopping cart for the remainder of my grocery trip.

Somehow I managed to restrain myself and made a beeline for the canned pumpkin, instead.

However, I’m fairly certain I’m going to get an heirloom pumpkin for my front step instead of the classic orange pumpkin this year. Thoughts?

I’d also like your thoughts on these Pumpkin SunButter Chip Bliss Balls that I made this week.

My first pumpkin recipe this year is in motion and it’s rolling your way.

All you need are 7-ingredients, 10 minutes, and the hunger for some fall fuel!

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Dark Chocolate “Choco-Tacos”

By Flora & Vino 1 Comment

Dark Chocolate “Choco-Tacos” in 30 minutes! Crispy corn tortillas stuffed with vegan dark chocolate ice cream dipped in chocolate with your favorite toppings.

Summer’s making a come-back.

Today when I woke up and checked my phone the weather app told me it was going to be 95 degrees today in Virginia.

Ninety-five! In September!

This calls for one cheers with something chilled…

Shut off the oven and let’s make Double Dark Chocolate “Choco-Tacos”.

When I didn’t order a chocolate chip cookie ice cream sandwich from the ice cream man at my pool growing up, you bet I was ordering a choco-taco.

I miss a good dessert taco, how about you?

So I made some today that are vegan, gluten-free, and naturally sweetened.

These ice-cream stuffed tacos are the best way to extend the summer sweetness a while longer.

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Apple Chip Nachos with Date Caramel

By Flora & Vino 4 Comments

Apple Chip Nachos with date caramel, dried fruit, dark chocolate, and chopped nuts. Perfect for an elevated snack or dessert.

When you move do you move with perfectly labeled brown boxes or with trash bags stuffed with random odds and ends?

I started out as the former but on the last day, yesterday, I was tossing pots and pans and appliances and silverware into anything I could carry with two hands.

So now I’m in the new townhome and everything is literally everywhere.

I even hired movers to help with the big ticket furniture items, but it’s really the little things that get you, you know?

Anyway, with moving, I have been the hungriest of hungry hungry hippos.

I lunge at snacks the minute the last box is unpacked, ripping apart energy bars and overnight oats and yogurts and all of my pre-packaged favorites.

Not quite ready to jump into learning how to use my new gas-stove and kitchen, I decided to make something easy but upgraded, with all the fall feels.

I’m loving these Apple Chip Nachos with Date Caramel for an easy fall snack plate that you can throw together in under ten minutes!

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Endive Boats with SunButter Sauce

By Flora & Vino 2 Comments

Endive boats stuffed with carrots, celery, and sunflower seeds with a creamy oil-free SunButter sauce. Perfect to serve as a plant-based appetizer!

Happy Labor Day Weekend!

There are lots of ch-ch-ch-changes happening at F&V right now.

I know, I know, at this point it must feel like I’ve been talking about moving for months, but that’s about about all I can think about right now.

The final push is in the next few days, and the next time I write to you I will be 100% settled in my new townhouse!

The other big news is that I *finally* signed up for a 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training.

You can read a little about my decision to sign up here.

I’m excited and more than a little scared about the whole thing; not as much the yoga part but absolutely the teacher part.

Every now and then I look askance at the pile of yoga books I have to read in the next 6 months.

But the truth that this will be the first reach for personal growth I’ve made outside of F&V in a long time, and that in itself feels like something worth chasing.

You know what else is worth chasing?

This new plant-based appetizer recipe that I’m sharing with you today featuring endives.

Grab an endive and let’s sail into the 3-day weekend on these Endive Boats with SunButter Sauce!…

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