Raw Taco Salad

March 8, 2010
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Hey loves!
I’m on a raw food kick right now, and I created an amazingly delicious raw “taco salad” tonight. I was inspired by the taco salad at One Lucky Duck – their salad is amazing, but a bit nut-heavy with the nut meat and cashew sour cream. I wanted to create a taco salad that [...]

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Split Pea Soup + Garlic Croutons

March 2, 2010
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A hearty, chunky soup is the perfect comforting meal on a chilly night. I adapted this recipe from 101 Cookbooks. Heidi Swanson has a whole list of amazing soups, but the vegetarian split pea soup sparked my interest tonight.  I switched up the ingredients a bit, but the general idea remains the same.
To make this [...]

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SELF Magazine’s Healthy Food Taste Test

February 23, 2010
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Today I had the exciting privilege of being a taste tester for the 2010 SELF Magazine Healthy Food Awards. The taste test took place at the SELF office in Manhattan.
I had a general idea of what to expect after reading their 2009 Healthy Food Awards recap. I knew I’d be tasting foods from certain categories, [...]

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Institute for Integrative Nutrition

February 20, 2010
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Today was my first day of class at Institute for Integrative Nutrition (IIN). Since so many readers have written me asking about IIN, I figured I’d give you a little recap of my experience!
I just have to start by saying that it was absolutely amazing. The energy there is so high-vibe, and I knew immediately [...]

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Valentine’s Day Aphrodisiac Foods

February 14, 2010
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I thought it would be a cute, fun and healthy Valentine’s Day idea to put together a meal of a bunch of aphrodisiac foods. I would have posted this earlier so you guys could do it too, but I just got the idea at 11pm the night before V-Day…c’est la vie. The good news is [...]

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Kind Diet – Crispy Almond Butter Treats

February 10, 2010
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I’ve been meaning to make a dessert from Alicia Silverstone’s Kind Diet cookbook for weeks now, and I finally made one last weekend. I’m excited to share it with you because it was such a hit over here!
This is a healthier, more fun version of the traditional favorite, Rice Krispies Treats. And these ones are [...]

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Leo’s Vegan Mexican Pizza

February 9, 2010
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I came home tonight to find my boyfriend Leo hard at work in the kitchen making an incredible creation – Vegan Mexican Pizza! Of course, I grabbed my camera immediately and documented his every move so I could share it with you guys. 
Here’s his step by step process of creating a delicious, indulgent, [...]

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Girls Gone Zen

February 8, 2010
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Healthy food, meditation, yoga, life coaching, and connecting with your inner guide…all while vacationing in a tropical paradise? Plus…a chance to win a free trip? Read on, my friends!!!
Guest Post contributed by Gabrielle Bernstein, Inc.
No more Girls Gone Wild. The days of booze cruises and Cancun spring breaks are a thing of the past. [...]

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Daiya Cheese Review

February 6, 2010
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*Photo from Daiya Foods
I’ve been hearing a lot of hype about Daiya non-dairy cheese lately in the Twitter feeds of vegan foodies. People have been claiming its the best vegan cheese on the market, that it melts and tastes like real cheese. If you’ve ever had non-dairy cheese, you know that this would be a [...]

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Chipotle’s New Vegan Meat

January 31, 2010
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Chipotle is at the forefront of the healthy fast food movement. You all know how I feel about the place, after reading this post.  A quick recap of why they are so great:  according to founder Steve Ellis, Chipotle uses “unprocessed, seasonal, family-farmed, sustainable, nutritious, naturally raised, added hormone free, organic, and artisanal” products.  And [...]

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Baked Mexican Wontons

January 25, 2010
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I made up this Baked Mexican Wontons recipe yesterday – I wasn’t sure what to expect, but turns out it is delicious (and definitely boyfriend-approved). I first got the idea of cooking with wonton wrappers from Heidi over at 101 Cookbooks, and they are surprisingly easy to use (no deep fryer necessary!) Although the process [...]

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Butternut Squash & Crispy Sage

January 24, 2010
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This recipe was inspired by the vegan butternut squash risotto I had at Gobo. After experiencing this amazing dish, I knew I had to recreate one of my own. I decided to use quinoa as the base instead of making risotto because quinoa is the healthier (and my favorite) grain. Quinoa is also a complete [...]

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Your Perfect Diet

January 18, 2010
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Every day we’re bombarded with new diet fads and nutritional advice. Everyone has a different opinion on what we should and shouldn’t eat. Some opinions are biased. Some opinions are funded by the food or pharmaceutical industries. Some people are genuinely trying to help you. Trying to figure out what to eat can be a [...]

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Sober Beans

January 10, 2010
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The other day, I tried an amazingly delicious Mexican dish called “Drunk Beans” (also known as “Borracho Beans“). The dish is named this way because one of the main ingredients is beer.  Drunk Beans are also often made with chicken broth, bacon, and topped with sour cream or cheese. I thought – there must be [...]

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Cocoa V NYC – Vegan Chocolate

January 9, 2010
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*picture above from Cocoa V site
Last night I had the pleasure of trying out NYC’s newest chocolate cafe, Cocoa V (opened by the owners of vegan restaurant Blossom). As if being a chocolate cafe isn’t enough, this place is 100% vegan, organic and fair trade! I was in sweet, sweet heaven.
As many of you know, [...]

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The New Happy Hour

January 4, 2010
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A couple of years ago, my idea of happiness usually involved beer, boys, cigarettes, drugs, and greasy bar food.  Looking forward to happy hour got me through some tough days at work, unstable relationships, and whatever life “stuff” I was going through. Ironically, though, those happy hours stayed true to the name -  the actual [...]

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Yerba Mate – A Healthy Coffee Alternative

January 3, 2010
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Yerba Mate (pronounced “yerba mah-tay”) is a term I’ve heard thrown around a few times as a healthier alternative to coffee, but I never got around to trying it until today. This afternoon I went to brunch at the Roebling Tea Room and spotted Yerba Mate on their menu. I decided to give it a [...]

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David Wolfe – Superfoods

December 26, 2009
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“How well can you become? How high can it go? It is possible to feel good ALL THE TIME.” – David Wolfe
Last week, I was fortunate enough to be able to tune into a webinar with David Wolfe, hosted by Uri Feiner from The Institute for Integrative Nutrition. The topic of the webinar was [...]

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Food, Inc.

December 19, 2009
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I watched Food, Inc. the other night.
Although I was already aware of many of the horrors of the meat industry and of corporate “food” production, the film touched on a number of things that are eye-opening and worth investigating further. Eric Schlosser (Fast Food Nation) and Michael Pollan (The Omnivore’s Dilemma), both pioneers in removing [...]

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Alicia Silverstone’s Mac & Cheese

December 12, 2009
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Alicia Silverstone posted her favorite vegan mac & cheese recipe yesterday on her site, The Kind Life. The site is a community based around her new book, The Kind Diet. (Pick it up as a holiday gift!) The actual recipe comes from a vegan catering company in Los Angeles called Seedling Catering.
Because I love Alicia [...]

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Healthy Gift Ideas

December 2, 2009
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Healthy Holiday Gifts
Do you have a health-conscious friend or family member on your holiday gift list? Here are a few of my top picks for gifts that will nourish the mind, body and spirit this holiday season!
Super Natural Cooking by Heidi Swanson (the amazing food writer from 101 Cookbooks). Five ways to incorporate whole, natural [...]

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Umami – The Fifth Taste

December 1, 2009
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What is Umami?

I was able to catch an episode of The Next Iron Chef while I was at my parents house for Thanksgiving. The focus of the episode was cooking foods rich in “umami.”  I had never heard of this before, and Iron Chef Morimoto was the judge – so I was very intrigued.
Umami was [...]

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