My day at LA Vegan Beer Fest!

When I first heard about the LA Vegan Beer Fest coming up I wasn't that excited, because I'm not a beer drinker. But, when I heard there would be some yummy vegan food to munch on, I decided to give it a chance. I went online and checked out what food trucks would be stopping by and immediately I began to salivate. So, bought some non-drinking tickets ad patiently waited for the grub. I had such a great time. The weather was beautiful, cool vegan peeps to meet and catch up with, and the food was Delish! I was a little disappointed that the non-drinking tickets were 25 dollars on top of having to pay more for food. So, I did suggest to some of the vegan food trucks that they should really come together more often, so we won't have to wait for special events to see them all at once. It would be more like a monthly/bi-monthly basis like they do for First Fridays (A monthly event for trucks to come together...held every first first Friday of the month). Man, it would be awesome if they did that and then we wouldn't have to pay extra on top of paying for food and we would also have more of a selection to try from instead of having to chase around one vegan food truck at a time.lol One can hope! :-) Anyway, I'm done rambling. Please check out the video and the pics. If you didn't make it this year the you might want to give it a try next year, especially if you're a beer lover...and a vegan food enthusiast!

Vegan Band,

Curry fries from Fresh Fries.

Buffalo Ranch fries from Fresh Fries. These were Amazing!

Vegan Bands.

Maple Crumb Cupcake from Amanda's Bakery. My fave!!!

Maple Coconut "Bacon" doughnut from Amanda's Bakery.

Molasses Cookie from Amanda's Bakery.

BBQ slider from Doomies. 

Fudge Brownie from Doomies.

Fried "chicken" sandwich with Mac & Cheese from Southern Fried Vegan.

Tempeh "Meatball" sandwich from Seabirds Truck.

Seabirds classic Beer battered Avocado Tacos.

Black Bean Sliders from Seabirds Truck. 

Spicy Jackfruit tacos from Seabirds Truck. 

Hubby holding some fries from Fresh Fries. 

Curly Fries from Fresh Fries. 

Vegan 1 Year Anniversary!

Hey everyone! I hope you are all having a wonderful day so far. Yesterday, I celebrated my 1 year vegan anniversary! :-) Well, I didn't really get to celebrate because I was stuck at work from sun up to sunrise.lol...but I did meet someone who was curious about my vegan lifestyle and it was nice sharing my experience with them. I seriously can't believe it's been a year, it just flew by. I can honestly say that this vegan journey has been amazing and I can't wait to celebrate another year. Thanks for sharing in this incredible vegan life with me! :-)

Tone It Up's 5 Day Slim Down Day 5!

Woo Hoo! I made it through the 5 day slim down! It was a little rough especially with the cramps and everything, but I actually enjoyed it. I'm proud that I made it through without caving in and giving up and I can honestly say that I don't mind doing this again in the future. Before I was terrified of it and now that it's done, it's not scary anymore. :-) Check out my video and what I had for my last meal on the slim down.

Tone It Up's stuffed mushroom...I added vegan shrimp, nutritional yeast, red peppers, tomatoes, and leeks.

Tone It Up's 5 Day Slim Down Day 4!

Hawaiian "shrimp" (Sophie's Kitchen-Vegan Seafood) with pineapple salsa and kale.

Tone It Up's 5 Day Slim Down!

Hey guys! Tone It Up is back with a new and improved slim down just in time for the summer. With this slim down I'll be doing 5 days instead of 7 and I'll be incorporating more fruit, tropical smoothies and drinks. I'm on day three now. I wasn't able to post about this Monday and Tuesday, because I was held hostage at work all day. But, now I have some time to let you know how it's going.

Day 1

Monday morning started out great. I got my workout in, a protein pancake for my "beach babe breakfast", and a kombucha for my tankini. Then I headed off to work and grabbed some pineapple for my "one piece" of fruit. Unfortunately, my monthly friend decided to come along (I thought I still had a few more days) and so did the cramps. The rest of the night at work was a little rough. I don't have a mini fridge to keep food stuff cool, so luckily they held up in my lunch box with an ice pack. I brought a spicy mustard collard wrap for lunch and did my best to fight off cravings...and it definitely doesn't help when they load a bunch of junk food snacks on set. I had a chickpea patty with veggies and quinoa for dinner and some apple slices for my one piece. Being at work late into the night is the worst because the later you stay up, the more you want to eat but thank God the night was finally over. I didn't get in my second workout because I got home pretty late and needed to hit the sack so I could get up nice and early for work the next day.

Day 2


No booty call Tuesday morning because of a 6am call time. I had my Tone It Up "bomb shell spell" before leaving. When I got to work I had some sauteed veggies on top of potatoes. Potatoes are not part of the slim down but I only had a little bit.lol The rest of the day I followed the slim down completely and closed my eyes to the temptation around me. It was one of the longest days of work yesterday and I was super proud of myself for making it through the day without giving into my period cravings....and I really wanted some chocolate!!!lol It was late when I got home and I was totally beat from two crazy days of work so I didn't do my 30 minute workout but I did do the Tone It Up "Under the Sea" workout before bed.


Day 3

Garlic Meatless Meatballs In Tomato Sauce

I found these meatless meatballs at whole foods the other day and I decided to give them a try. I usually don't use any "meatballs" when I make pasta but it doesn't hurt to mix things up every now and then. On the Bodyrock.tv website they have an amazing tomato sauce that I've been meaning to try, so it was only natural that the two would go together (especially since they used meatballs in their recipe). I had to veganize it but it was so delicious that I'm sure non-vegans won't be missing any meat or dairy with this dish.

Here is the link to the recipe: http://www.bodyrock.tv/2011/10/25/garlic-meat-balls-in-tomato-sauce/.

Garlic Meatless Meatballs in Tomato Sauce


Ingredients:
-8 tomatoes (I only had one fresh one and I used 1 can of organic diced tomatoes)
-1 large red onion
-fresh basil (I had to use dried basil)
-parmesan (I used vegan)
-1 tsp paprika
-1 tsp cumin
-pepper
-extra virgin olive oil (I used a little coconut oil)
-honey (I used agave)
-1 cup chicken broth (I used low-sodium veggie bouillon cube w/1 cup hot water)
-8 cloves garlic
-sour cream (I used follow your heart vegan sour cream)
-vegan meatballs (You can use meatless grounds, match meat, or the meatless meatballs I used from whole foods)

Try and make your own version of this and let me know how it comes out! :-)

Yummy In My Tummy!

I found a super delicious recipe last week and I just couldn't wait to make it and share with you. The recipe is from Spabettie and it's for a Chipotle Tofu Potato Burrito w/chipotle vegan mayo. When I first saw the picture for this recipe I was drooling...maybe not literally, but I was close to it.lol If you check out the pics below I'm sure you'll agree. I had to use a few substitutions for this burrito but I think it was still one of the tastiest meals I've had.

I used kale instead of arugula. 

Since I didn't have any bell peppers I decided to throw in some broccoli. 

If you check out the recipe, the wrap is supposed to be gluten free, but I couldn't find one that  looked as good or  would wrap as good as this spinach one. 

Finish product. Yum! 

This burrito was so flavorful and I can't wait to make it again. I've never made chipotle mayo before, so that was quite a tasty change. I used soy free vegenaise. I'm still on the hunt for the perfect gluten free wrap. I love the brown rice tortilla ones but they break apart when I try to wrap something in them. I use them mainly for quesadillas. Here's the link to the recipe: http://spabettie.com/2012/03/19/chipotle-tofu-potato-burrito-with-chipotle-mayo/