Vegan Cheese Review Pending...

So I caved in and splurged on a vegan version of Pepper Jack cheese. I was originally planning to make a healthier version of poutine (which could still happen), but mostly, I wanted to make a tortilla or enchilada pie. I was going to use my go to vegan cheese solution - nutritional yeast - but curiosity got the best of my skeptical self and I purchased a bag of Daiya brand cheese. The ingredients on this cheese actually impressed me - it's totally allergen free - no soy, no casein, no wheat and the list goes on. Plus, it was made with actual food products, not some strange concoction of science experiments that somehow end up as some kind of franken-food. I know what everything in the ingredients are and I wouldn't have bought it if I didn't. I haven't got around to actually trying it yet, but I forsee a tortilla/enchilada pie happening this weekend at some point and I will be sure to share my findings. I'm a little leery to try it straight out of the bag as I'm not quite that convinced it'll be palatable...But this stuff is actually supposed to melt.....Melty, cheezy goodness. Well, those are my hopes anyway. I really don't miss dairy, and believe me, my body certainly doesn't miss it either, but there are a few things I'd like to have once in a while; pizza, poutine, nachos, grilled cheese sandwiches, even vegan scalloped potatoes or vegan cheese scones. These things are all treats, certainly NOT part of my daily or even weekly/monthly routine.

Well, it would appear that Summer has finally decide to arrive here on the West Coast and I'm going to head out there an enjoy it in case it decides to take another holiday.

Get out there, get your daily fill of vitamin D and enjoy the sunshine! Don't forget, berries are almost in full swing! Be sure to get your hands on those sweet little gems packed full of fiber, antioxidants and vitamins! Strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, oh my! And when September rolls around, we get another burst of delicious blackberries! YUM!

MIA.....But Back....

So I'm now well into my bodybuilding/weightlifting routine as a vegan. The results are good. Great, in fact. I've done physical jobs in the past, always been fairly active but never have I gained muscle faster or recovered faster than I have since I converted to being vegan. To be honest, since January, I have slipped up a handful of times indulging in sushi (a couple of times), one steak (YUCK - totally lost my taste for those....), a piece of organic pepperoni and fish tacos. That being said, I felt pretty gross after eating the red meat, and just ok after the fish. I feel better with them totally eliminated. I have more energy, less digestive issues, less bloating, and all round just feel lighter. I'm a high raw vegan. Or high raw plant based, whichever works. I don't like titles, I don't like labels, but I am constantly asked how I eat, so I guess, to make it easy for others, plant based seems very self explanatory. I personally find it VERY easy to eat this way. Oh, and another benefit, which I should mention if anyone out there plans to make dietary changes, since I've been vegan the pain I experience daily from serious injuries caused by an MVA 4 years ago have significantly lessened. Very significantly. This was a very welcome side effect :). So all in all, this was a very good change for me. I was high raw before, but did eat some meat (maybe a few times a month). My meat intake had decreased to almost nothing over the past couple of years, so the transition was pretty easy. I'm really loving how I feel and the results I'm seeing at the gym! Anyone out there who doesn't think you can gain and maintain muscle, weight lift or body build being vegan is very, very wrong. More and more professional MMA fighters, athletes and bodybuilders are becoming vegan, and they're not only still holding their own, they're WINNING! :) Welcome to clean eating and a strong, healthy body!

Workshop

So tonight I did another workshop. I really like doing them for a few reasons. I like that the people who attend CHOOSE to be there. They read the description of the workshop, find that it interests them and they attend. They want to learn. The subject matter is important to them. This is especially important to me because the workshops I put on are all about health, wellness and well being, not only of the individual, but of their families and the planet. It makes me happy when people attend. It shows me that there are people out there who not only care about themselves, but in cleaning up the way they do things, they care about everything around them too. Makes the world just a little bit brighter for me. It was a really great group tonight. To be fair though, it usually is. It was small, which was also good. It allows for more conversation and more interaction. It's more personal, and I like that too. It's nice getting to know other like minded people, even if it is just for a few hours. I really had to muscle through this one though, I'm fighting the flu and felt less than good. Actually, I felt less than even mediocre. And now it's late and I feel less than human. Oh well, this too shall pass. A good night's sleep and a couple of flu busters and I should be good as new in no time. All in all, feeling like poop aside, it was a really great night. I hope they enjoyed the workshop as much as I did.

Mineral Makeup Photos

I am working to get the mineral makeup photos up on the website. The first few colour blocks of eye shadows are up along with a description of each colour. I am hoping by the end of the weekend or mid week next week to have pretty much all of the makeup photos done with descriptions. Don't forget, if you live locally, you can come and shop at my house or email me your order, I'll get it ready and we can figure out a good time for pick up and payment. Easy peasy!

Don't forget about hosting makeup and body care parties. What a great way to restock for spring, try before you buy, get the ladies together and have a good time! The hostess will get perks :). Also, my body care line is great for guys too!! Toners double as aftershaves, face scrubs reduce or eliminate ingrown facial hairs, body butter are great for rough, calloused hands and EVERYONE loves the whipped soaps!

Check out the pics so far: http://www.divineearthbodycare.com/mineral-makeup.html

Do You Like Salad Rolls?

I LOVE salad rolls. Mmmm, do I ever. Nutritionally, they're kind of void of anything really. White rice paper, white rice vermicelli, a couple of small pieces of cilantro or thai basil leaves, usually a bit of carrot and iceberg lettuce/napa cabbage and a couple of prawns and/or pork. And then there's the peanut dipping sauce. I do love the sauce. I don't love that it's peanut though. Last night, I threw a few simple ingredients together to make a quick salad dressing and the stuff made my nutritionally dense salad taste like a salad roll sans the wrap and noodles (and the meat products and the peanuts). I wasn't intentionally trying to do this. I just threw some random things together, drizzled it on my salad and voila, a vegan, peanut free salad roll salad. It honestly did taste just like a salad roll. It was really good. I didn't use any rice vermicelli, but you absolutely could to make it even more salad roll-y (like lazy salad rolls ;)). Just cook and cool your noodles, stir in some dressing, top with your salad and drizzle a little more dressing onto your greens and then gently combine the two.

 Here are the ingredients. I didn't measure anything so just make it to suit your taste and the amount you require. You won't be disappointed!

*Roasted Almond Butter (enough for as much dressing as you'll need, this makes up the dressing base)
*Nutritional Yeast (to taste)
*Unrefined Sea or Himalayan Pink Salt (to taste) - I actually found it didn't NEED the salt, but definitely taste it for yourself and see.
*Chopped cilantro (I used a lot in my salad, so you can either add a fair amount to your salad, or add it to the dressing, or both, it's up to you)

That's it!! Drizzle on your salad and enjoy! You could get really creative and sprinkle some roasted almond pieces on top for garnish, and yumminess, of course.

New Gorgeous Eyeshadows

I had a chance last night to really check out the 5 new eyeshadow shades that are now in stock. They are gorgeous colour shifters. Really great colours! 2 new green shades; Spring Mist (pale, misty, shimmery green with silver undertones and flashes of purple, WOW) and Deep Sea Green (description to come later, this little guy has been help up a day or so, but I promise you, it's gorgeous), Purple Gold (Light to medium shimmery purple with beautiful gold flashes), Plum Honey (A mid tone shimmering plum with flashes of honey gold) and last but certainly not least, Honey Gold (gorgeous shimmering honey colour with golden flashes, great as a highlight but enough tone to use alone as a shadow. Really rich colour, not yellow-y at all). I'm definitely snagging one of each for myself. My eyeshadow collection is starting to get out of control, perhaps this is yet another obsession of mine ;). As usual, the foundations are fantastic and I got a couple of smaller cream foundation/concealer to try in the most popular foundation colours. We'll see how those go. I'm typically skeptical of cream concealers, but I am currently using one in a concealer format, not a cream foundation format, and it works great! I do LOVE the powder ones though. They are awesome and the blend wonderfully. Don't forget, all of the makeup is PURE mineral makeup, no additives, no chemicals, no animal products (it's ALL vegan) and the makeup is actually GOOD for your skin. What more could you want! :)

Restocks!! Some New Goodies!!

The foundations have been restocked and there are also a few new eyeshadow colours! So gorgeous!