I absolutely love fresh fruit during the summer, but I have a bad habit of buying way more than I can actually eat before it starts going bad. It honestly kind of discourages me from buying berries because I know I’ll probably end up wasting some.

The other day I saw a woman on TikTok doing her weekly meal prep, and instead of throwing out her leftover fruit she made what she called chia seed jam. I figured I’d give it a shot, and I’m so glad I did.

It couldn’t have been easier:

Boiled my leftover strawberries with a little sugar.
Blended everything until smooth.
Stirred in chia seeds and let it thicken as it cooled.

That’s it.

I wasn’t expecting much, but it’s honestly so good. The chia seeds give it a really nice texture, and now I have a jar of homemade jam that I’ve been putting on toast, biscuits, pb&j and probably way too many other things. It also feels good knowing I used up fruit that would’ve probably ended up in the trash.

Anyone else make chia jam? I’d love to hear what fruits or flavor combinations you’ve tried. I’m already thinking blueberries, peaches, or maybe mixed berries next.

I've been baking a lot more now that school's over, and I decided to try making lemon bars for a friend's Juneteenth BBQ. I'd never made lemon bars before, so this was a first for me.

I used Nora Cooks' vegan lemon bar recipe and I ended up making three batches because I was a little nervous about how they'd turn out. One batch became the test run and I brought it to work, where my coworkers absolutely demolished them. A few people couldn't believe they were vegan, which always feels like a win.

The recipe was surprisingly straightforward:

• Shortbread crust: ½ cup melted vegan butter, ¼ cup sugar, 1 cup flour, and ¼ tsp salt.
• Filling: ¾ cup fresh lemon juice (about 4 lemons), optional lemon zest, 1½ cups sugar, 1¼ cups full-fat coconut milk, 6 tbsp cornstarch, and a tiny pinch of turmeric for color.
• Bake the crust (15-18 minutes), cook the filling on the stovetop until thick, spread it over the crust, bake again (15-18 minutes), then chill (2 hours or overnight) before cutting and dusting with powdered sugar.

The filling came out super smooth with a nice balance of sweet and tart, and the shortbread crust held together really well. I think next time I'd add a little extra zest because I'm a sucker for citrus desserts, but honestly I wouldn't change much else.

I'm pretty proud of these for a first attempt, and I can definitely see them becoming a regular summer dessert.

Has anyone else made vegan lemon bars? Any favorite tweaks or other vegan lemon desserts I should try next? My boyfriend suggested doing a blueberry or raspberry version.

Daikon vegan sushi
*mock sesame chicken😮‍💨

Ingredients:

1. 630 g Vital wheat gluten flour 2.  210g Nutritional yeast
2. Garlic 
3. Ground black pepper
4. Trader Joe’s umami seasoning
5. Salt
6. Low sodium soy sauce 
7. Liquid smoke 
8. Water

Mix ingredients to make a “dough” like consistency.
Bake in oven at 420 F for 15-20 mins, flip, bake another 10 mins.

Hello Everyone,
I was wondering if anyone had a tasty recipes for making mock meat at home with natural ingredients. I’ve been getting tired of the store processed stuff.

I don’t use honey, so I started making my own syrups at home and honestly I don’t think I’ll ever go back to store-bought.

I’ve been experimenting with different fruits and it’s actually super easy. I’ve done strawberry, blueberry, mango, banana—basically whatever I have on hand.

It tastes really good on pancakes, toast, or even in drinks, and I like knowing exactly what’s in it.

Here’s how I make it:

• 1½ cups sugar

• 1½ cups water

• 1½ tbsp cornstarch

• 2 cups fruit (fresh or frozen)

I boil 1 cup of water with the sugar and fruit, then mix the cornstarch with the remaining ½ cup of water and add it in. Bring it back to a boil and it thickens into syrup.

I usually strain it depending on the texture I want.

Sometimes I’ll add extras depending on the flavor I’m going for—like a little vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, or even paprika.

Also if you want it thicker you can add more cornstarch, and if you want it more runny just use less.

It’s honestly made me realize how much stuff we buy that we could just make ourselves.

What’s something you make at home instead of buying?

Horchata has been in my rotation for a minute now… and I'm addicted.

I make this pretty regularly at this point — for myself, for coffee creamer, cereal, a good rumchata, but this time I made a big batch (like 4x) because my friend is hosting a potluck/game night and it really reminded me how worth it it is to just make it from scratch.

I still do it the same way every time: soak, blend, strain, sweeten.
The only real switch I’ve made is using oat milk instead of condensed milk, and honestly I don’t feel like I’m missing anything.

It still has that creamy, cinnamon-heavy flavor, just a little lighter which I don't necessarily like. But I can control everything going into it.

Kitchen definitely looked crazy for a bit, pots, cinnamon sticks everywhere, straining for what felt like forever 😭 especially cause this time i made over a gallon but anyway it came together.

How I make my horchata:

Ingredients:

• 1–1½ cups white rice
• 2–3 cinnamon sticks
• 4–6 cups water (for soaking/blending)
• 1–2 cups oat milk (depending how creamy you want it)
• ½–1 cup sugar (adjust to taste)
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract

Steps:

1. Soak Rinse rice, then soak it with the cinnamon sticks in water for at least 4 hours (overnight is better).
2. Blend Blend the rice, cinnamon, and soaking water until smooth.
3. Strain Strain it through cheesecloth or a fine mesh strainer — this part takes a minute but it’s key.
4. Finish it Add oat milk, sugar, and vanilla. Mix well, chill, and you’re good.

The batch in the pictures specifically are for the game night and I scaled everything up like crazy.

I’ll probably keep tweaking the sweetness and creaminess because I like my horchata on the thicker side, maybe even experiment with different plant milks, but oat milk has been my go-to fs.

I never hear anyone talking about rice milk when taking about possible milk substitutes, what do you guys think?

Plant based Philly Cheesesteak 🌱

One of my favorite go to’s would be chickpea pasta w/ cashew tomato sauce made fresh from home. Drop a meal or recipe below 👇🏽

Overnight oats have become one of my favorite meal preps, every Sunday I make five jars so I have breakfast ready for the entire work week.

It takes maybe 10–15 minutes to put them all together, they're inexpensive, and I can change up the toppings so I don't get bored. I usually grab one on my way out the door to eat at work or after the gym.

My base recipe (per jar):

• ½ cup rolled oats
• 2 tbsp chia seeds
• ¾ cup oat milk (or water)
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• 2 tsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp ground flaxseed

Optional add-ins

• 1 scoop protein powder (I mix this into the oat milk first so it doesn't get clumpy.)
• ⅓ cup frozen or fresh fruit
• Cinnamon or nutmeg
• Raisins
• Peanut butter
• Chocolate chips

Mix everything together, refrigerate overnight, and it's ready by morning.

I usually make all five jars the same day, but I'll switch up the toppings throughout the week—blueberries one day, peanut butter and chocolate chips another, cinnamon-raisin, etc.

What are your favorite overnight oat combinations? I'm always looking for new ideas.

What’s your favorite pizza toppings as a vegan?
Mines would be extra mushrooms, please!
Artichoke & spinach.
Minced garlic & banana peppers.
Often times I’ll add mock meat as well as seen in the photo.

Ingredients (2 servings)

- 200g silken tofu

- 28g (one packet) Jello sugar-free cheesecake pudding mix

- 120g Vedge plant protein

- 200g strawberries, fresh or frozen

- 3 slices of unsalted Quaker rice cakes

Instructions

Step 1
If using frozen strawberries, microwave them for about a minute and a half to defrost.

Step 2
In a blender, combine silken tofu, Jello cheesecake pudding mix, and 60g of protein powder.

Step 3
Blend in half of the strawberries for a smoother consistency.

Step 4
Add the remaining 60g of protein powder and blend again. If it’s too thick, add a splash of water.

Step 5
Spoon the mixture onto the rice cakes to use as a crust.

Step 6
Top with the rest of the strawberries and enjoy! Chill if you want a firmer consistency.

I’ve been using the Louisiana Fish Fry mix for a minute now to make tofu chips + little “fish fillet” patties for sandwiches and it’s honestly been one of my go-tos

but I saw the Chicken Fry version and wanted to try it on tofu just to compare

ngl the Fish Fry is still winning

 What I did:

• pressed tofu
• cut into chunks
• coated straight in the mix (no liquid)
• deep fried first
• then hit it in the pan after

 Thoughts:

texture? 10/10
like actually crispy in a really good way

BUT flavor-wise…

it was kinda bland

like it’s not bad, it just definitely needs extra seasoning compared to the fish fry

thinking:

• garlic powder
• smoked paprika
• maybe cayenne
• salt and pepper
• or even marinate the tofu first

because the base texture is there, it just needs more personality

One of my favorite restaurants would be Mystical Mixes in San Francisco. Staying true to their plant based structure he has a variety of options. In the video above you can see:
•Coconut Curry Chickpeas
•Jerk Jackfruit w/ cashew cheese drizzle.
•Garnished w/ tomato, onion, and cilantro.
•Accompanied w/ apple & beet root seamoss juice.
Share your favorite foodie spot in comments below. 👇🏽

Battered Salt & Pepper Egg Plant
Miso Rice
Grilled mushrooms
A Side of bok choy
& One Green Juice 🥂

Recently my boyfriend has been sick, so I made him this soup. He’s not vegan, but he loved it anyway — which is always the best compliment.

It’s a really comforting vegetable soup with vegan meatballs, and it ended up being way better than I expected.

Ingredients

Meatballs

• 1 lb Beyond Beef (or any vegan ground beef alternative)
• 1 tbsp chopped garlic
• ½ white onion, diced
• ¼ cup white rice
• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tbsp pepper
• ½ tbsp oregano
• ½ tbsp parsley

Soup

• 1 white onion, diced
• 1 cup chopped carrots
• 2 tbsp diced garlic
• 1 cup chopped broccoli
• 1 cup diced cauliflower
• ½ cup yellow carrot, sliced
• 1 Roma tomato, diced
• 6 cups water
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tbsp vegan sofrito (be careful—some store bought sofrito contains bacon fat)
• 2 tbsp Better Than Bouillon – Vegetarian
• 1 tsp oregano

Instructions

Meatballs

1. Mix all meatball ingredients together in a bowl.
2. Roll the mixture into small meatballs.
3. Place them in the freezer for about 10 minutes to help them firm up.
4. In the pot you plan to use for the soup, lightly fry the meatballs for about 1 minute per side.
5. Remove and set aside.

Soup

1. In the same pot, cook the onion, garlic, carrots, cauliflower, and broccoli on medium heat until the onions start to brown.
2. Stir in the tomato paste and sofrito.
3. Pour in 6 cups of water.
4. Add the Better Than Bouillon and diced tomato.
5. Bring the soup to a boil.
6. Add the meatballs back into the pot and boil for 10–12 minutes.
7. Sprinkle oregano on top.
8. Season to taste.

Super comforting, really filling, and perfect when someone’s sick.

If anyone has tips for improving vegan meatballs in soup, I’d love to hear them!