Sweet Potato Appetizer Bites

These sweet potato bites are a fun and festive party appetizer! A nutty, tangy avocado tartare tops thin rounds of roasted sweet potato.

How cute are these sweet potato appetizer bites?! The topping is my plant-based riff on classic tuna tartare, with diced avocado in place of the fish. It tastes fantastic, with a yummy mix of nutty, tangy, creamy, and crunchy elements. It’s also pretty! The vibrant sweet potato contrasts with the pale avocado, and watermelon radish adds a big pop of pink. If you ask me, these sweet potato bites are almost as fun to look at as they are to eat. Speaking of eating, these sweet potato appetizer bites are totally vegan and gluten-free! As a result, they’re a perfect…

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Chickpea Salad Wraps w/ Avocado Dill Sauce

This easy chickpea salad is my vegan version of a classic tuna salad. It's tangy & light, made with Dijon mustard, crunchy celery & cornichons.

I think there are 2 types of people in this world – those who love tuna salad and those who hate it. Because my mom made it all the time when I was growing up, I definitely fall into the first category. But today, I’m hoping to bridge the “hater” gap with these chickpea salad lettuce wraps. If you’re not into fishy things, no worries, these wraps are completely vegan. If you are into fishy things, I think you’ll love them just the same – mashed chickpeas combined with salty, briny flavors (i.e. good Dijon mustard, capers, and cornichons) and…

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Almost-Raw Carrot Cake Bliss Balls

We love snacking on these 7-ingredient carrot energy balls. They taste just like carrot cake, but they're nut-free, vegan, gluten-free, and easy to make!

It’s April which means – time for carrot desserts! Or, well, in this case, carrot snacks. These lightly sweetened carrot bites are great for 3pm snacktime or an on-the-go breakfast. They’re more carroty than cakey – and by that I mean that they’re not cake-like at all and there’s no baking required (if you’re really craving cake click here or here). They’re chewy little balls made from a mix of carrots, sunflower seeds, dates, coconut, and cinnamon. By popular request, I made these nut free (as long as coconut is ok) – I was very tempted to try an almond version, but I held…

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Jessica’s Pistachio Oat Squares

6-ingredient Pistachio Oat Squares are a lightly sweet healthy snack, breakfast, or dessert! Easy to make, vegan, and gluten free.

I’m excited to share this recipe today – these Pistachio Oat Squares are SO delicious! It’s spring which means that the best cookbooks are coming out now. You know the ones – they’re brimming with fresh healthy, veggie-ful recipes. This recipe is from Jessica Murnane’s book One Part Plant. If you’re not familiar with my blog pal Jessica, you should go listen to her podcast – she’s hosted all of your favorite food bloggers (including yours truly!) and other inspiring folks who are part of the plant-forward food community. Her mission is simple – to inspire people to eat one plant-based meal a…

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Ginger Miso Dressing

I love to keep this 6-ingredient citrus miso dressing on hand to brighten up simple veggie dishes. It's great on slaws, salads, and even DIY noodle bowls!

There’s nothing better than having a vibrant salad dressing on hand in the fridge during a busy work week. When you’re strapped for time, a yummy sauce can make even the simplest meal feel satisfying. Lately, whipping up this citrus miso dressing has been my go-to. It’s a bright, tangy combination of clementine, lemon, miso, garlic, and ginger. In addition to tasting delicious, all of these ingredients have detoxifying properties – so consider this dressing a little health kick too! How to Use Miso Dressing Once you make this miso salad dressing, you’ll use it on everything. Not sure where to start? Try…

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Lemon Shortbread Cookies

These lemon shortbread cookies are a fan favorite, and once you try them, you'll see why! They're tender, buttery, and filled with bright lemon flavor.

When life hands you lemons, make lemon shortbread cookies! When we first planted our lemon tree, I had this romantic idea that I’d be able to pick fresh lemons all year round. Obviously, I’m not good with plants, or I would have known that the famous saying is literally true. You get lemons once a year, and you get a lot of them. Needless to say, life has been lemony lately in many ways, but today it’s all about these lovely lemon shortbread cookies. Lemon Shortbread Cookies Ingredients When I was testing this recipe, I made a ton of lemon…

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Vegan Gingerbread Cookies

These vegan gingerbread cookies are perfect for the holidays! Soft, chewy, and deliciously spiced, they're fun to make, fun to decorate, and fun to eat.

These vegan gingerbread cookies might just be my new favorite holiday cookie! They’re so good that I’ve made them quite a few times this month already. We (ahem, Jack) kept devouring batch after batch, so I just had to make them again this weekend so we could snap some photos and share them with all of you! These vegan gingerbread cookies are soft, chewy, and deliciously spiced. If you ask me, they’re just as good as traditional gingerbread, but they’re made with wholesome, plant-based ingredients like coconut sugar, coconut oil, and almond butter – my secret ingredient. It makes these…

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Brussels Sprout Salad Avocado Toast

This smashed avocado toast is topped with a tangy Brussels Sprouts salad. Great for breakfast, a snack, or to serve to family.

There’s a shaved Brussels sprout salad in our Cookbook (page 68) that’s one of my go-to salads in the fall and/or winter. It has a tangy citrusy dressing and it’s tossed with cranberries and pine nuts. A few weeks ago while I was planning to make that salad for Thanksgiving, I saw a sprout and ricotta toast recipe on Epicurious and got the idea that my favorite little salad would make a bright festive appetizer. Instead of using ricotta cheese to hold the filling onto the toast I used smashed avocado – because I can never resist yet another seasonal avocado toast. This…

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Lemon Cake

This light, 10-ingredient lemon cake recipe is lightly sweet and bright - the perfect treat to enjoy with an afternoon tea or coffee.

“This not-too-sweet, very simple cake is perfect for that ‘it’s four o’clock and I need a little something with a cup of coffee’ moment,” says Julia Turshen about this lemon cake recipe, and I completely agree. I’ve had a little slice of this lemon olive oil cake every day this week, and it’s been delightful. This easy lemon cake recipe comes from the book Small Victories by Julia Turshen. If you think you’re not familiar with her work, you probably actually are, as she’s co-authored books with Gweneth Paltrow and Mario Batali, to name a few. I am head-over-heels for her easy…

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Coconut Macaroons

Here it is: the only coconut macaroons recipe you'll ever need! They're crisp on the outside, soft in the middle, and oh-so-good with a chocolate drizzle.

Truth: I have a hard time writing cookie posts without getting up to eat at least one. two. For this reason I usually like to post salads and other lighter foods on Mondays, but I’m switching things up today because sometimes you just need a #cookiemonday (or in this case a coconut macaroon Monday) and that’s ok. This coconut macaroons recipe is from Angela Liddon’s new book, Oh She Glows Every Day. I’m sure you all have it by now, right? If you don’t, and you’re vegan (and even if you’re not), you’re going to love it. It’s packed with SO MANY…

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Alanna’s Pumpkin Cranberry Nut & Seed Loaf

This delicious flourless loaf is vegan, gluten free, and packed with nutrients from seeds & nuts. Toast a slice for a hearty breakfast. Recipe from the book Alternative Baker.

Say hello to my new daily breakfast. I’ve made this loaf twice in the last two weeks and have been enjoying a slice in the morning ever since. It’s lightly sweet, nutty, seedy, wonderfully wholesome and dense. I’ve been craving a dark seedy “bread” like this ever since we spent time in the Netherlands this past summer. So when I flipped through Alanna Taylor-Tobin’s new book Alternative Baker, this recipe immediately jumped out to me. There’s a lot going on in this loaf – walnuts, pepitas, oats, flaxseeds, chia seeds, psyllium husks and pumpkin puree among a few other things. Once…

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A food blog with fresh, zesty recipes.
Photograph of Jeanine Donofrio and Jack Mathews in their kitchen

Hello, we're Jeanine and Jack.

We love to eat, travel, cook, and eat some more! We create & photograph vegetarian recipes from our home in Chicago, while our shiba pups eat the kale stems that fall on the kitchen floor.