oh! heyyy!

this is my latest concoction. it is pumpkin, spices, and banana in the food processor. that's all! andd it was so great. i call it pudding, but it was more like yogurt.


i made a vegan cake for my theory class. it was my friend erica's birthday. we always talk about vegan food, etc. so it was a perfect opportunity [and excuse] to make it. my other friend then used the recipe for a bake sale...yayyy! i love recipe sharing.


of course, the delicious and comforting candy bar. this was my 1stttt vegan candy bar. and it was needed so badly after a poor score on an exam. thanks for bein' there jokerz.


i have no time for anything since grad school has begun. it is hard to give up 'me' time and friend time and fun time. but it is a great level of learning that i would not like to give up. and so, even though i have been so stressed and have no time to upload photos of the QUICK and EASY foods i am eating, i am going to stick it out. [i hope]

this is just a veggie hot dog w. some pickle relish [okay, lots of relish b/c i lovvvvve it]



oatmeal w. my mom's homemade applesauce...SO GOOD.


sorry for the saaaaaaad pic, but this is some butternut (?) squash. all i know is that it was delicious.


sadly, i can't even remember the days i was eating these. hmm...must've been back in october. where did these months go?! anyway, there is pumpernickel bread toasted w. spinach, mushroom and black bean/corn salsa from target. so, so simple &&yummy.


ate half of this in one day. and i am almost continuously craving it. after this ran out there was tofutti cuties sandwich thingers. grad school=a continuous need for a reward b/c you have made it through another day.

no time for nothin'

one of my grad school friends gave me a large bag of fresh basil--i used it on a baked potato w. spinach, guac, and onion. ohhhhh my! [so good]


made this party dip--hormel vegetarian chili w. onion, corn, and guac on top--and black olives--yummmm.


i made these pb cookies w. mint chocolate drizzle for a girls' night. i ate all of them in 2 days...except three which i wanted to save for my mom. needless to say, i made myself sick. :( but i guess that's good, b/c i thought they were delicious...


baked potato from my dad's garden w. spinach, nutritional yeast, and onion...


the apple orchard is open again! so that means PUMPKIN BUTTER. i think i might try to replicate this, this fall [if i ever get time]. wish me luccckkkk!
peanut butter cookie my grad friends bought me for my b-day. :) so thoughtful!

leftover black bean burgers from my brother's cook-out--YUM.


more [perfected] carrot muffins!


happy fall!

is time going this fast for everyone??

months pass like days now....

VEGGIES. garden carrots & squash. also, i haven't had mushrooms in agessss!

cantaloupe (YUM) with my own version of pumpkin spice tea (green tea w. lots of soymilk and nutmeg and ground clove)...


squash, onion, and mushroom stir fried in red wine...


after a particularly rough day...


just your stock pumpkin waffle w. blueberries....


grad school is great! the group people i am with have bonded so quickly and so well. :) we're like a little make-shift family. two of the girls got me a vegan pb cookie (for my birthday which was thursday [2-3!]) among other thoughtful and unexpected gifts. these are good people. this is a good time in life for me. <3

tired life

nice little juice drink i made of the below ingredients:


this is quite possibly the best sandwich ever [okay, just that i have made]. it has spinach, 1/2 avocado, jalapeno hummus [by wild garden or something], tomato from the garden, onion from the garden, and that bread is homemade pitas i had made earlier this summer and frozen.


two more variations of the avocado w. jalapeno hummus and garden veggies.

zucchini spaghetti w. garden onion and pico de gallo salsa on top.

guac w. carrots


cantaloupe. such amaZing cantaloupe.

and thus begins my grad school journey...

this grilled portabello salad was amazing!


i was making my dad [non-vegan] carrot cake. so, i decided i should get a carrot-y treat too. so, i made these muffins with maple syrup and apple sauce instead of sugar and added some cardamom [arguably too much] to spice them a little. they are pretty great. i really enjoy how moist the carrots make them. i am also fond of the heaviness of their texture. i froze some to keep for breakfasts this semester.

not much to say...busy busy busy

i can't believe it has taken me this long to begin putting soymilk in my smoothies. i will never go without again.

this raspberry salsa from our local apple orchard is wonderful. sweet and spicy in the most perfect of ways. i cannot wait until they open for the fall. the time is coming!

nothing too exciting here

decided to try almond milk b/c it was on sale!


this is what was leftover of my black bean burger at lunch the other day. my mom and i decided to try a little restaurant i'd been wanting to check out. the burger was a bit spicy, but i like that. i definitely want to go back not only for this, but also to try a few of their other options.


upon sorting the goods in the freezer my mom found some chili from i have no idea when. i thought it would be okay to eat though so i made one of those 'hot dogs' i got the other day. the hot dog was okay, i don't really miss meat so it wasn't anything super special that i would buy again. but it was delightfully smokey tasting.


i made this sandwich last night for dinner and today for lunch. the key ingredients are onion, cucumber, and tomato from my dad's garden. i spread half an avocado on it and toasted it. DELICIOUS! those tomatoes are absolutely divine and i don't think i could ever buy another from the store.

a very epic shopping trek

i visited my aunt and cousins in aurora last tuesday and we headed into naperville to go to lunch && then to a few stores that are not available to me at home.

first, we ate lunch at a place called pomegrante cafe. the only problem i had with this place is their charge to substitute avocado for cheese on their veggie panini and the fact that when i arrived home and decided to eat my second half there was a little cube of chicken in it. hmm....



the following are the items i picked up on our stops to world market, whole foods, fruitful yields, && michael's fresh market...




argentine wine. mmmm!







the following would have to be my favorite item of the day [BY FAR]. it has no fat it in it. NO FAT?! it's made with pear and apple[?] juices. it was so fudgy and delicious i almost fainted.

I WANT A WHOLE FOODS.