Vegan MoFo ~ Kitchen Tour Time!

Today is Kitchen Tour Time but I'm embarrassed at the sight of my kitchen at the moment so I thought I would take this time to blog about some of the things I HAVE in my kitchen.  This may be a lengthy post.  I have a feeling it will be!

Before I get to the appliances I have in and around my kitchen I have been getting a lot of questions about certain ingredients and products I have been using as of late.  I thought I would combine many of these into one post.

First up...one of the most asked about products as of late is this Kelp with Cayenne.  I've also LINKED to the specific product for you in case you wanted to check it out over at The Raw Food World which is where I got it to begin with.  It's part of a line of sea seasonings.  The one I have been referring to a lot lately is the Organic Kelp with Cayenne.  It gives you the benefits of a sea veggie and gives you a little bit of natural saltiness without adding actual salt to your foods.


They have other flavors, too, including a Trio Blend of Dulse, Laver, and Sea Lettuce which I have yet to try...one with Sea Salt, Kelp, and Dulse...another being Dulse with Garlic...on that is straight-up Dulse...you get the idea.  I've had a couple of these in my pantry for a while and they keep well in a cool dry place.  Right now they are only $4.10 each and are TOTALLY worth it!.

I usually make my own dressings but there is a new-to-me line that I am REALLY stoked about!  And it's from a company that I have adored in the past!  Foods Alive!  Check out THESE dressings!  They are AMAZING!  And right now the individuals are priced at-cost!

If you take a look at my sidebar you will see a search button and if you type in Foods Alive you will see the others posts on my blog containing some of their products that I have enjoyed and blogged about in the past.  But these dressing are in a class of their own!  Take a look at the link above and let me know which ones appeal to you most!  Oh...and of course WILDTREE is my favorite brand of many products and I am a Rep if you are interested!

Salad Booster from Living Intentions is another product I keep in my frig as often as possible.  It's a great product to have on hand.

There are TWO flavors...the original and the Vegan Cheesy!  Both are excellent!

The original contains: Seeds, Wild White Chia Seeds, Spirulina, Himalayan Crystal Salt, Chlorella, Organic Dulse, Organic Kelp, Organic Dill Weed, Organic Spices, Organic Lemon Peel and Organic Cayenne.

The Vegan Cheesy contains: Organic Sprouted Pumpkni Seeds, Organic Sprouted Sunflower Seeds, Organic Sprouted Sesame Seeds, Wild White Chia Seeds, Spirulina, Organic Red Bell Pepper, Himalayan Crystal Salt, Nutritional Yeast, Chlorella, Organic Dulse, Organic Kelp, Organic Dill Weed, Organic Spices, Organic Tumeric and Organic Chilies.

SunRoot Sweetener is something I JUST started using.  I need a little bit more time with it before I completely make up my mind but so far so good!  It's an alternative to Agave and other natural sweeteners.

It's made from Jerusalem Artichokes - also known as - Sun Chokes.

It's sweet but I don't think it's AS sweet as some of the Agave's I have tried.  It's VERY dark in color, too.  I made a two layered RAW Freezer Fudge that I will be posting about in the near future and used this as the sweetener.  The flavor of fudge was Pistachio Cacao in case you were wondering.

Of course other things you will find in my kitchen are various Nut Butters, Garden of Life products, raw nuts and seeds, more recently Cacao products, and Super Food Powders among other things.

Now...when it comes to certain appliances I have throughout my kitchen there are a few.  I started with Ninja Blenders before I was able to get a high speed blender.  Once I got my high speed blender I saved all of my Ninjas.  Yes...I have several.  I still use them for food processing, mostly.  I have many different sizes and I also have these containers that I store in the frig at times, too!

Once I finally got a high speed blender I went with a Vitamix...actually the Vitamix went with me, actually!  I was lucky enough to win one.  I'm so grateful I was able to win one.  The only down fall is now I will ALWAYS have to have one.  I hate to say I have a 'prized possession' because that sounds so material but I would have to say my high speed blender is one of the things I just may have to guard with my life.  Is that too dramatic?  Meh.

I use my Vitamix EVERYDAY at least once.  However, I have  often wondered the differences between the Vitamix and the BlendTec.  I'll get to that in a moment.  But first I would like to jabber about my Vitamix.  I supposed I should name her, shouldn't I?  Anyways, I LOVE my Vitamix as I have said but there are only a few things I wish were better about it.  One being I wish it was glass and not plastic but that isn't a 'make it or break it' for me.  When making thicker dips and spreads like nut butters and hummus for example it is hard to get all of the 'good stuff' from under the blade.  I feel like I am wasting a lot when this happens.  Also...it's not the easiest to clean when doing a lot with nuts...they tend to cause a build-up under the blade.

Enter the BlendTec WildSide Rebel Jar and XR Vitamix Fit Jar.  These jars make it so that you can have a BlendTec and a Vitamix at the same time, basically.  I wanted to try this prior to possibly purchasing a BlendTec, too.  I'm glad I did.  Yes, I know...I'm a bit of a blender freak now.  I have noticed a few things with this WildSide Jar.  I LOVE the jar.  It fixes the problems I was having!  It's so much easier to clean and under the blade stays cleaner with little effort.  I also get nearly everything out of the jar with little effort - that was the other concern I had with the Vitamix Jar in the first place.  There are 2 things I'm not overly thrilled about, tho.  One being it's MUCH louder than the stand alone Vitamix and the other is I don't think the BlendTec gets 'chunks' as smooth as the Vitamix.  I think the BlendTec breaks them down better but I like the textures of the Vitamix better.

This could be because I'm using a BlendTec blade and Jar on the motor of the Vitamix that is yet to be determined.  There are pros and cons of each but I have a love for both of them because of their pros.

Next up...yes...I have an Excalibur Dehydrator.  I love it and I need to use it more than I have been as of late.  I think that will be a goal of the upcoming season.  If you want to search for my past recipes feel free in the search box on the side just type "Excalibur" in there.  I will be gearing up for snacks and breakfast bars and cookies with this soon I have a feeling!  I'll tell you it was one of the BEST Christmas presents I even got (thanks Hubby!)

More recently I added this to my kitchen...it's the Tribest SlowStar Juicer.  I'm ashamed to say that I haven't put it to the test YET but will very soon!  Prior to this one I had a Jack LaLanne Juicer.  I liked it but it didn't get the juice as 'juicy' and 'clear' as I wanted so I decided to get this one.  I almost purchased a different brand and made a last minute switch-a-roo because of the Instagram photos that Chris from The Vegan Zombie posted.  It seemed like he was getting the results I was looking for and that is what switched my mind at the very last moment.

Another thing I should mention is that I have a SLEW of Mason Jars throughout my kitchen!  Dozens!  I store everything in them.  You can read more about that HERE as to why I started that when I did.  It has just grown since.  HERE is another post and HERE is another post - both with pictures!  I guess in a way you can see my kitchen in those photos and posts, too, when it was a little more 'put together'.  Another example would be HERE.

In My Kitchen ~ April

I thought I would get a JUMP START on the IN MY KITCHEN ~ April Edition!  A few items of interest in my kitchen for this upcoming month are highlighted in this post!  Let me know what you think of them - if you have used or done and thing with any of the items listed or if you have any questions.  Questions help me think of future posts - so I ALWAYS welcome them!

First up...

Dried items!  If you visited my blog last week you saw that I accepted Opal's Dehydrator Challenge.  I REALLY enjoyed that adventure and her and I have been trying to put together a weekly blogging Linky to get more people to BUST OUT their dehydrator!  Let us know if this is something that would interest you!  We would LOVE more participants!  One of the many things I hope to do with my Excalibur Dehydrator this month is to dry more fruit and herbs to use in my teas and tonics.  I would like to start off with citrus!  Another item in my kitchen as of late is TEA.  Well, I always have tea with or around me - pretty much throughout the day and evening.  One of the companies I have been into lately is Pelican Tea.  WHY?  Because it stands out in the sense they use peppers and spices to add a HOT KICK to their tea flavors and blends.  I think this really sets them apart from many/most other tea companies!  They have some really interesting flavors and I hope to review some of them over at Sororitea Sisters soon!

Another item in my kitchen is the 'growing of the herbs' attempts.  I will say that I am somewhat disappointed in the Chives and Parsley.  I don't think they are going to sprout.  That's ok...I won't give up...I will be trying to resprout another batch soon!

On a more positive note...

The Basil has sprouted!  YAY!  I LOVE Basil!  I hope it continues to grow!  I started it from seed but I will most likely be getting a starter plant at some point, too, but I know I will use it!  I use a lot of Basil!  I will probably be getting more starter plants for herbs as well.

I have been buying more Dates lately, too!  That is one thing you will find in my frig most of the times any more.  I get them from my local herb lady.  I have been using them in my Vitamix when I made Salad Dressings and Smoothies.  I have also been using them in my Breakfast Bars when I try and make them in my Dehydrator.  A little bit goes a long way and I appreciate them much more now that I am older.  I'm NOT saying I didn't like them when I was younger it just wasn't something we had a lot of fresh in the house growing up..so maybe it's like my 2nd Childhood when it comes to dates?

These little gems may have been in previous posts but I cannot get enough of them!  RED Lentils!  They are my FAVORITE Lentil, after all.

Lentils are one of the worlds HEALTHIEST Foods!  They are a Fiber ALL-STAR!  They are Heart Healthy!  They are an energy booster!  They help stabilize blood sugar!  They are a good source of Iron, Vitamins B1 & B6, Protein, and Magnesium...among others.

I have been getting into my NuNaturals Products again and will be having a giveaway in the near future of some of their products!  If you would like to receive updates on when that is going to happen in addition to any new posts on my blog - sign up for my email alerts. 

On of the many NuNaturals Products I'm intrigued with is this one.  Oat Fiber.

It's a way to add more fiber to your diet.  I don't think I have a problem with that but I'm interested in this product as a whole and also interested in possible passing a bit of this on to my mom and dad as my father is trying to increase his fiber intake.  

NuGrain™ Oat Fiber is naturally produced from food-grade oat hulls through a proprietary process. This is a chemical-free process, turning organic hulls into various organic fibers. Oat fiber has many uses in baked goods, adding to smoothies, porridge, smoothies, and other recipes where you want to boost the fiber content of the foods your eat.

Substitute 3 tablespoons NuGrains™ Oat Fiber for every 8 servings per recipe. For example if recipe yields 24 cookies and serving size is 3 cookies, then substitute 3 tablespoons for flour in your recipe.

What's in YOUR Kitchen for April!?  Let me know in comments!

In My Kitchen - February

Better Late - than NEVER, eh!?  Yeah...sorry about this In My Kitchen - February being so late!  And I don't know if I am breaking the rules or not but I'm starting this post off with an item that I REALLY enjoyed the past few months and have run out of recently!  This is definitely a restock-able item the next time I get to Trader Joe's!  It's their Vegetable Masala Burger and it's VEGAN.  I LOVE LOVE LOVE the flavor of these.  The first ingredients listed is Potatoes and they are marvelous!  I wasn't even able to eat these as an actual 'burger' - I ate them plain.  I just cooked them in a pan on the stove top with a little bit of Grapeseed Oil and it was spot-on AWESOME!  I think that by putting it between a bun you might lose some of the flavor.  Don't quote me on that but I am FINE with the way I ate it stand-alone!  I already told my husband I will stock up on them next time!

One of the many tea companies I was introduced to this past month was Tea At Sea.  They don't have a HUGE selection of teas (yet) but they are doing a LOT of things RIGHT!  I really LOVE the little "press kit" promotional visual they included in my mailing!  It looks a lot like this...it was a half of a Wine Cork for the base with a tooth pick for the 'body' and a heavy duty paper that you clipped on for the sail!  Very nice!  I was able to sample both their Black Tea as well as their Oolong Tea and both were lovely.

In the past I have shared my Veg*n Findings at Aldi and I am happy to report than their Vegetarian and Vegan offerings are multiplying as well as their Organic offerings!  So exciting!  This month I found a Bean and Corn Salsa/Dip that was not only made with vegan ingredients it was actually LABELED Vegan as well!  AND...I found a Mango Chutney that was labeled vegan, too, YAY!   I also noticed earlier this week that they now have a Vegetarian Section in their Recipe area on their website!

I always have GARLIC in the house...whether it's actual Garlic Cloves and Bulks or Minced Garlic in the Frig or powder even.  I almost always have Lemon Juice in the house, too, but I just ran out of it with the Raw Vegan Burgers I made Sunday Night.  2 flavors I have been using more than usually as of late have been both CURRY and TURMERIC.  Not only the flavors I have been craving but the nutritional benefits of each.  PLUS...with this horribly cold winter we are having it just makes sense to consume them both!

As for Grab-N-Go Convenience Foods this month I have enjoyed a few of the McDougall's Vegan Soups.  I bought them because they were on sale.  They aren't a new-to-me-product but I don't necessarily buy them often either...unless they are on sale.  I especially like the lower sodium offerings because I'm not a salty foods fan - generally speaking.  All of the soups I have tried I have liked.  I see there is a Tamale one that I have tried but want to.  Those are just a few things that have been popular in my kitchen this past month!  How about you!? 

In My Kitchen ~ January

I jumped on the In My Kitchen wagon in November and I think I may have skipped December!  Oops!  But I'm not going to let that stop me for January!  I have a lot to share with you about my Kitchen Adventures!  Looking back to that first post many things have changed!  I mentioned in that first post about wanting to upgrade my dehydrator and I did that last month!  I even gave it a name!  Another update since that last post has to do with Maca.  I mentioned I wanted to do more with my Maca stash and I have...a few desserts and smoothies.  And finally...my Garden of Life Products I have been having fun with - almost on a daily basis!  So much so that I hope to have some REALLY exciting news to report in the near future! 

Moving ahead to a new month and a New Year...what are some of the utensils that I cannot live without?  Well, it may be simple, but, my all-time favorite is wooden spoons.  Any kind, really, but today I would like to narrow that down to these smaller scoops that I like to use for loose leaf tea, matcha, and other things!  I really love them!  I also obtained some plastic funnels over the last month or two.  Can you believe that up until recently I had never had funnels for pouring food related items into other containers?  Now that I have been reusing a lot of my glass jars I have been using these almost every day!

Speaking of Tea...Tea is a staple in my kitchen and my life everyday.  You can read a lot about that over at the Sororitea Sisters site that my friend Anne and I co-founded.  But I not only drink tea...I use it for crafts and more recently revisited a childhood use of washing my hair with it.  More on that down the road.

A few new products to my kitchen include...The Spaddy and the Spaddy Daddy...as seen on Shark Tank.  I will be doing several posts about these products in the future!  It's a neat little tool that helps reach the bottoms of bottles - such as condiments - and make-up containers - like foundation, for example.  But one thing I will be playing around and posting about is my attempts to use this product with small compartments of my Bento Boxes.  Which brings me to my next item In My Kitchen for January...Bento Boxes!

And let's not forget about my NEW obsession with EcoJarz and many of their products!  I started blogging about them last month and continue to LOVE them.

The last In My Kitchen I posted a few of the healthy snacks I had be into at that time.  This time around I've decided to include - various home made Kale Chips that I have made in my new dehydrator, some of my new favorites including Coconut Chips from Trader Joe's, and some seasoned Cashews that I have been making at home, too! 

(And it just occurred to me that I think I forgot to post about these so I will try and do that in the near future, too, they are a very tasty and healthy snack with very little time and effort involved).

In my freezer this month I've been pretty hot on frozen fruit - mixed berries and Mangoes - but also I challenged myself to get into frozen bananas more and have been able to handle about a half of one in a smoothie.  I'm pretty proud of that - for some one who has always HATED bananas! 

This past weekend I was able to SCORE some FRESH Blackberries and Blueberries as well!  They aren't local this time of year - of course - but I bought them anyways and they were tasty.  If you scroll down to the previous blog entry before this one you will see a vegan smoothie recipe I made with the Blackberries!

I have been getting back into various grains, again, including Farro - which I posted about in the previous blog post as well!  YUM!  And have also been tinkering with my NuNaturals Products again - thanks to Christine for the encouragement there, too!

And here's a REAL Shocker...I attempted to BAKE...read more about this HERE.

I could go on and on with things happening in my kitchen as of late but I think I will end it with this next item...that I have YET to try...but am super excited about...Chocholistic.  Raw Vegan Chocolate...among other things...but a full review on that, soon!

My New Excalibur 2900 ECB 9 Tray Dehydrator

Christmas came early for me this year!  Here's my My New Excalibur 2900 ECB 9 Tray Dehydrator!  It was delivered yesterday.  I'm so excited.  I think I will call her Guinevere. 

I set it up on top of my Freezer.  It weighs about 22 pounds so I shouldn't have a problem moving it when I need to get into my freezer.  It is my secondary freezer, after all.  We store larger items in there things we don't need access to on a daily basis, really.  All of my frozen fruit and veggies are in my other freezer above my frig.


I will have more write-ups on this new addition to my kitchen very soon!  I just couldn't wait to announce it's arrival!  The very first thing I made were little Protein Balls and I will be posting more about that very soon! 
 

Some of the features include:

• 9-tray dehydrator, 15 square feet of drying space
• Built in on off switch
• Great for large familes and gardens
• Includes adjustable thermostat
• Easy to clean polyscreen tray inserts 

In My Kitchen ~ November

For this post I will be participating in In My Kitchen - November Edition.  Of course most of my entries you will see what's been going on in and around my kitchen but I figured this would be a good one to catch up on some random food things!

New Earth Superconscious Living Almond Courage.  I have to say this took me a while to appreciate and understand!  At first I was eating the contents of the bag one at a time.  I think I was a little thrown off at the texture of the dried Mulberries...not completely sure but I just wasn't totally loving them!  But then I had that Ah-HA Moment!  If you eat them by the small handful and not one by one and get all or at least several ingredients in your mouth at once - they overall flavor was much better.  More tasty!  Complex yet real!  This way...I really liked it!  This product is vegan, it's RAW, and it dandy to have on hand at the office for mid-afternoons!  I think it would be great as a cereal topping, too...but I just like snacking on them!  Ingredients include: organic activated almonds, organic sweetened cacao nibs, organic mulberries, organic goji berries, organic coconut chips, organic yacon syrup, organic mesquite pod, organic reishi, wildcrafted himalayan pink salt.

Another thing in my kitchen lately are Sesame Sticks.  The ones I get come from my local Herb Shop.  They are Non-GMO and contain Wheat Flour, Barley Flour, Soy Bean Oil, Sesame Seeds, Bulgur Wheat, Beet Powder, Turmeric, and Salt.

These are another great snack or salad topping!

Last night we did a Wildtree Tasting Party for a friend.  It was the first time we tried to make the Chai Spiced Bread.  Actually, my mother made it.  It was a HIT!  She said it was different from the other breads she has made but in the end the flavor was tasty and there wasn't any left at the end of the night and that's what counts!  All you have to do to this Bread Mix as add water!  NO EGGS NEEDED!  Yessss!  I was so happy!  The ingredients for this product are located HERE.  If you are interested in purchasing this product or any other products from Wildtree PLEASE visit our website/store!

Next Up...Maca Powder from Foods Alive.  I'm still a novice when it comes to Maca.  I have been tinkering with it a bit and hope to add some success stories to my site soon!  

This Maca Powder is rich in calcium, magnesium, phosphorous and iron, and contains trace minerals, including zinc, iodine, copper, selenium, bismuth, manganese and silica, as well as B vitamins. It also contains four alkaloids proven in scientific investigation to nourish the endocrine glands.  

It has a nutty taste, blends well with cereals, ice creams, juices, milks, yogurts, pies, cakes, smoothies, cookie fillings and desserts and can be added to a variety of recipes. 2-3 tsps per day is the suggested use of the powder.

It's been a LONG time since I have dehydrated anything in my dehydrator.  I think it's because I am longing for a NEW Dehydrator.  I really want a square one...not this round one I have from Nesco that I have had for YEARS.

Regardless I will be pushing myself to use it more in the coming months.  I will certainly report back here with my efforts.

Of course, the ultimate would be an Excalibur but I can't see myself spending like 300 bucks on one!

I know I have mentioned it before on my blog but it's worth another mention that is for sure!  The Raw Protein Marley Coffee Blend from Garden of Life.  I'm totally LOVING it and will have more ideas and recipes very soon.  So far my favorite quick and easy recipe is a scoop of this in 1 C of Almond Milk (or Cashew Milk) with 2 Tablespoons of Chocolate Peanut Butter from the Peanut Butter Company.  But I will say I am super excited about the whole line thus far and will have TONS of ideas in many upcoming posts!  I might even start contributing to their blog!  VERY EXCITING!  This among many other things are what's new and or HOT in my kitchen so far this month!  How about you!?  I could go on and on about tons of other things, too, but I will save those for future posts!

 Also Participating Post for Live It Up at Healthy, Happy, Green, & Natural