Healthy Snacking

Purple Sweet Potato Muffins

Sweet potato muffins made with purple sweet potato purée and oats naturally sweetened with maple syrup, applesauce, and raisins. Perfect for a fall snack!

Hey, everyone.

How was your week?

Also, how is Thanksgiving day in exactly TWO WEEKS?

Yes, the Thanksgiving feast is coming, but I thought we could start out small, with an appetizer of sorts.

I thought we could start the festivities with Purple Sweet Potato Muffins.

They’re oil-free, gluten-free, vegan, and refined-sugar-free, making them a suitable treat for everyone in the fam.

If you’ve been following me for a while, you probably know that I’m pretty obsessed with purple sweet potatoes.

When my girlfriends came over for brunch a few weeks back I made them goodie bags of my favorite products.

In passing, I threatened to stuff a purple potato in there, because they’re that good!

I have quite a history with purple sweet potatoes so far.

Remember when I added them ti Overnight Oats, stuffed them with Tandoori Spiced Chickpeas, and whipped them into hummus on toast?!

And now it’s time to bake them into muffins.

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Pumpkin Spice Pecan Granola

By Flora & Vino 5 Comments

Pumpkin Spice Pecan Granola that’s gluten-free, no-oil-added, and refined-sugar-free with pumpkin purée and pecans. Perfect for breakfast or snacking.

Today I stocked up on pumpkin purée…again.

Every time I put armfuls of the 15 oz. cans in my cart I think to myself, yes, for sure, this should get me through pumpkin season.

But then it doesn’t, and this trip probably won’t either, because pumpkin is so darn good.

And because pumpkin season at F&V is more of a 365 day affair.

Lately I’ve been loving it in this Pumpkin Spice Pecan Granola that’s gluten free and made with no-added-oil.

You’re less than ten ingredients and 30 minutes away from your new fall favorite!

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Pumpkin Chocolate Chunk Bread

By Flora & Vino 10 Comments

1-bowl pumpkin chocolate chip bread that’s vegan, gluten-free, and naturally sweetened with maple syrup. Perfect for fall breakfasts, snacks, and dessert.

Last night I had the weirdest dream.

I decided that I was going to drop everything and pursue my dreams…of becoming an actress.

Except that in real life even the thought of playing charades is enough to dissuade me from attending a party.

In front of an audience (or a camera) I become a self conscious shell of myself that probably wouldn’t be able to tell you my name if you asked.

I am NOT an actress.

So believe when I tell you, I’m not acting like you need this Pumpkin Chocolate Chunk Bread in your life.

It’s the TRUTH.

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Pumpkin Pie Shake (Banana-Free)

By Flora & Vino Leave a Comment

Pumpkin Pie Shake (Banana-Free) that’s lightly sweetened with Medjool dates and fluffy from steamed and frozen cauliflower.

I wore a jacket today for the first time this season on an evening walk with Harper around the neighborhood.

Dan was stoically shivering beside me, despite my solid attempts to get him to bring a jacket.

“It’s not that cold”, he argued, grasping elbow to elbow around his middle like a protective barrier to keep out the chill.

Typical.

The air was cool and crisp for the first time this season, and I found myself craving all of the pumpkin…everything.

This launched a discussion about PSLs (Pumpkin Spice Lattes), both of us agreeing that they really are too sweet to be good.

But then most pre-made pumpkin things this time of year taste too sweet to my taste buds.

My thoughts are this…if you can’t taste the pumpkin…then what’s the point?

The point is that you need to make these this Pumpkin Pie Shake (Banana-Free), friends!

They’re packed with pumpkin, protein, and nourishment to get you moving and grooving into fall– hopefully with a jacket on.

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Oil-Free Sweet Potato Fries with Lemon & Tahini

By Flora & Vino 2 Comments

Easy oil-free baked sweet potato wedge fries served with lemon and tahini. Enjoy as a healthy plant-based snack or side dish.

Isn’t it funny how sometimes the recipes we love the most are the ones we are the least likely to share?

Maybe it’s that they seem too literal, too basic, too ordinary.

Don’t get me wrong, I love all of the recipes I share with you guys here at F&V, but some appear on my literal table more than others, you know?

Like this simple sweet potato fry plate combo that I’ve been making for a few years now.

It shows up at least once a week just to leave me drooling and re-establish that ordinary foods make extraordinary meals.

If you’re thinking, “OMG Lauren, you’ve been sitting on this deliciousness for over 365 days?!

I know, I know.

All I can do is offer to share with you now, in hopes that you’ll accept my most sincere apologies.

From one sweet potato lover to another, these Oil-Free Sweet Potato Fries with Lemon & Tahini are timelessly tasty.

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Chocolate Fig Hazelnut Mini Muffins

By Flora & Vino Leave a Comment

Chocolate Fig Hazelnut Mini Muffins with dried figs and smashed banana. The perfectgrain-free easy bite-sized snack for fall!

This week has been rainy and dark and wet, guys.

It’s the kind of rain that really sets in, the damp dank that latches onto your heartstrings and threatens to color ’em gray.

Instead of wallowing in the gloom, Harper and I have kept ourselves busy in the kitchen!

Well, we also took a long flooded walk this evening that left us both dripping, but if you have to choose your rainy day therapy, definitely go with baking.

Especially since I’m excited to share a new fall baked good with you that’s figgin’ delicious.

These Chocolate Fig Hazelnut Mini Muffins have a short ingredient list and even shorter stature, but a BIG taste.

Who’s ready to get figgy with it?

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Peanut Butter Date Caramel

By Flora & Vino 2 Comments

Peanut Butter Date Caramel made with no added sugar and just three ingredients! Super drizzly and sweetened with Medjool dates.

Do you say care-a-mel or car-mall?

I’m a care-a-mel kind of a girl, myself, but I’ll respond to either, especially when peanut butter and dates are involved.

This Peanut Butter Date Caramel is the perfect fall dip that you can whip up in 5 minutes to transform your fall snacking!

It’s naturally date-sweetened sweetened, peanut protein-rich, and oil free, all with major drizzle potential.

You might have heard of date caramel before, yes?

This recipe was inspired by my very own Easy Date Caramel, which you should also check out.

This recipe mimics my original recipe with a very important addition– creamy peanut butter.

Don’t get me wrong, I adore my original date caramel recipe and how easy it is….I just might love this one ever so slightly more.

Creamy peanut butter adds in healthy fats and sort of takes the “edge” off sometimes super-sweet dates.

Plus, peanut butter and dates just GO together.

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Loaded Sweet Potato Chip Nachos with Sweet Potato Nacho Cheese

By Flora & Vino 4 Comments

Quick and easy plant based “nachos” with sweet potato chips and all the fixings. Perfect for a plant-based side, appetizer, or game time snack.

At Mexican restaurants, my sister used to order the loaded nachos appetizer as an entree and we’d all laugh at the giant plate juxtaposed with her tiny frame.

I’m starting to think she had the right idea, though, you know?

It’s been dark and overcast here with the the impending Hurricane Florence, so I’m thinking we should brighten up our plates a bit.

My plans tonight are simple and I thought you might want to join in.

I’m making a giant plate of these Loaded Sweet Potato Chip Nachos with Sweet Potato Nacho Cheese to kick back for a little fiesta.

It’s the perfect plant-based appetizer, side, meal (no judgement!), or snack to munch on for sunshine-y vibes.

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Healthy Trail Mix Cookies

By Flora & Vino 4 Comments

Healthy Trail Mix Cookies that are nut-free, oil-free, gluten-free, and refined-sugar-free. Perfect for a healthy breakfast, snack, or dessert.

Happy Sunday, buds.

This past week on the phone with my parents we laughed about the family excursions we used to take on Sundays to Costsco.

You might not think Costco is a very exciting place for kids, but for my sister and I, it was a wild brunch extravaganza.

Every aisle we turned onto was brimming with major sample potential, and those little white portion cups got us through the most trying of trips.

They also had the best signature trail mix– a sweeeet mix of almonds, peanuts, cashews, raisins, and M&Ms.

It was a back-to-school staple that could almost always be found somewhere in the dark recesses of my overly stuffed backpack.

I was thinking about that mix this weekend when I whipped up these Healthy Trail Mix Cookies.

They’re the perfect back-to-school snack– a lil sweet, a lil salty, and packed with 5x the seed-y healthy fats and protein.

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Beet Brownie Bliss Balls

By Flora & Vino 4 Comments

5-ingredient beet brownie bliss balls made with cacao powder, nut butter, and roasted beets! Perfect for a healthy snack, dessert, or pre/post workout fuel.

Friends!

How has your weekend been?

I’ve had beets on the brain since my trip with Love Beets this past week to visit their organic beet farm and factory.

After eating many a beet during my stay in upstate New York, you’d think I might be sick of this hearty root veggie.

…FAT CHANCE.

Things have been a little topsy-turvy here after traveling, so I decided to grab some beets upon my return and make bliss balls!

These Beet Brownie Bliss Balls only require 5-ingredients, 1 Love Beet, and a little room in the fridge (and your stomach) for healthy snacking all week long!

Fun Fact: You can trace my first version of these bliss balls back to the Total Solar Eclipse of Summer 2017.

Did you see it?!

I didn’t have the special viewing glasses here at home, so Harper and I stayed indoors and made bliss balls instead.

To be honest I didn’t notice it getting freakishly dark outside, so maybe we weren’t in a very good viewing zone.

Anyway, snacking on chocolate and beets to celebrate, I fondly called them “Blackout Beetroot Bliss Balls”.

But they taste like brownies, so I decided a name change was in order.

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Healthy Snacking

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