These two recipes will bring ANY taco recipe to the next level. I promise you. They would be perfect for a dinner or potluck where you are accommodating meat-eaters and herbivores alike, or just for your average Taco Tuesday!

Sometimes I just HAVE to have something sweet. Like I will rummage through my fridge and my pantry desperate for SOMETHING that will suffice my craving. And the funny thing is that I’m not even a big sweets person! I have way more of a “salty-tooth” (is that a thing?!). I CANNOT have potato chips in my house. I will 100% eat them in 2 days, tops. I have no control. But for some reason it is way easier for me to have a couple bites of dark chocolate and be completely content. Except when I become ravenous and will destroy all in my path to eat some friggin cookie dough or SOMETHING. You with me?!

Hummus is one of the foods that, prior to ditching animal products, I never tried. And to be quite honest I was kind of grossed out by it because the idea of eating any type of bean was disgusting. I’m so embarrassed to admit that now! Especially considering that at any point in time I’ve got at least 4 cans of chickpeas in my pantry, a couple cans of black beans, and hummus is in my fridge at all times. Oh how things change! I’ve mentioned before that when I decided to eat more plant based foods, I sort of had to grow up and start eating more veggies, grains, legumes, and nuts. Because my diet previous to this was reeeaallly lacking all of those categories. SO enter things like hummus!

What a title, right?! Friends, I’m currently listening to a podcast with Dr. Will Bulsiewics (@theguthealthmd/Dr. B) and Nimai Delgado (Body Builder and vegan diet advocate). I’ve been wanting to listen to this one for a while because I’ve had my fair share of gut health issues. As a child I suffered from pretty severe ear infections, like a lot of children do. The typical treatment for ear infections is antibiotics. We know now-20 years later-that antibiotics wreak havoc on our guts

As we know, sugar is in EVERYTHING. So I’m very slowly taking steps to get rid of it all together. Thankfully I’ve found some ways to suffice my sugar cravings with natural sweeteners like DATES! Dates are perfect little fiber-filled sweet fruits that look a little gross but taste delicious. They can be used in so much to replace sugar. I throw them in smoothies, top them with some nut butter and seat salt for an after dinner treat, and make them into a “paste” to replace in recipes that call for pure maple syrup.

So I’ve been on this plant based journey for quite some time so I’ve tried out a lot of “substitutes” for meat and cheese. Most have been subpar but as the demand for vegan products has grown, companies have really stepped up their game! From Beyond Meat and the Impossible Burgers, to Daiya Cheddar Slices—we’ve got some pretty good options! Even with these increasingly tasty substitutions, I still prefer a more whole foods approach. That’s where this combination of Lentils and Walnuts comes in!

It is the time of year when soups make it into our weekly dinner rotation quite often. For the most part they are pretty easy to throw together, feed us for days, and are so comforting on these cold almost-winter-days! This Butternut Squash Soup is no different!

I’ve finally perfected a quick, easy, and DELICIOUS recipe that I make regularly for me AND my toddlers (one of which is extremely picky!). The fact that this is a winner with my boys is HUGE because it is such an easy way to get them some really great nutrition first thing in the morning and it fills their bellies.

The holidays are {almost} here! I don’t know about you but in my family, holidays have always centered around food, travel, family, food, and more food. The common denominator being FOOD. Will there be some awkward political conversation you don’t want any part of? Go get seconds. Too many screaming children for your patience and liking? More food! Feed the screaming children with more food! FOOD. It’s all about the food, y’all.

This is going to sound a little bit crazy guys, but this recipe literally just came to me from the creative clouds. I have no other explanation for it. I have dabbled with baked goods a little bit (see: muffins) but never really thought I’d focus too much of my attention on the science and intricacies required in developing baked good recipes.