The Plant-Based Momma

Ever had a craving for something, but not want to spend the entire afternoon in the kitchen? I love making foods from scratch, but seeing how far vegan food items have become readily available in the past few years makes me appreciate being able to buy them. And that’s exactly where my love for Trader Joes comes in (no, this isn’t sponsored, I just have a genuine love for the place 🙃) and every single ingredient in this recipe was purchased from there.  And thus, I give you “Five Minute Banana Bread French Toast.” Seriously, impress your friends for brunch, vegan or not, on a whim.

 

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ps – be sure to follow @plantbasedmomma on instagram and facebook for more vegan goodness. 

 

There are a lot of vegan cheeses to choose from on the market these days – which is an incredible dilemma to have. But if you have never heard of Spero Foods before, this is a bandwagon you will likely want to jump on. You already know that we are fans of their vegan egg and of their healthy and sustainable philosophy. On top of that, they are plant based, made from totally clean ingredients, without unhealthy preservatives that you probably can’t pronounce (and free from soy, gluten and nuts!). They are also an impressive nine times more sustainable than dairy cheeses. 

Aside from all of that, these cheeses are AMAZING. If I haven’t stressed it enough, you will undoubtedly want to bookmark this company in the back of your mind. We shared our provisions with our extended family and they were completely stunned. Everyone’s favorite, hands down, was the “Goaty Chèvre” which was remarkably similar to the real thing. I am still amazed by the flavor and the fact that everything used to concoct this masterpiece of a non-dairy cheese was made from entirely clean ingredients. 

The different flavors of chèvre that we enjoyed were Sun Dried Tomato, Smokey Chipotle, Goat and Herbacious. I am really looking forward to trying their new Camembert, as well. These cheeses can be used on a platter, in or on pasta, soups or in any recipe that calls for a gourmet cheese.  

And the icing on top is this gorgeous Whipped Cinnamon Cheesecake. It is as beautiful, rich and delectable as it looks. 

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Spero Foods is absolutely changing the face of veganism and sustainable living and I am so glad that they exist. Vegans can undoubtedly rejoice in a delicious cheese plate again. You can wow your dinner guests with something impressively vegan, or enjoy it as a delightfully rich and gourmet snack by yourself. I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for this great company. 

**I received product in exchange for my honest feedback and opinion. I only share products that I absolutely love and believe in.

It’s the most beautiful time of the year at Disneyland…and let me tell you: they did not skimp on their gifts to vegans this holiday season! This season has by far had the most vegan friendly offerings of any Disney special event. If you were contemplating going, now is the time. On top of all the new delicious seasonal additions, there are a handful of new vegan items that are a permanent fixture on their menu as well. This comes right after releasing an entirely plant-based menu for World Vegan Day. The progression is amazing and is so appreciated. Thank you, Disneyland. Our vegan kids appreciate it more than you can imagine!

Here are some of the holiday options that we thoroughly enjoyed. Scroll all the way down to see what my very favorite was!

Chana Masala and Pomegranate lemonade, Festival of Holidays Winter Wonders Booth; California Adventure

This was the husbands favorite dish of the day. It was deliciously loaded with flavor and we were so excited to have vegan naan.  The pomegranate lemonade was a huge family favorite. It was so loved that we went back for another round of refreshing seconds.

 

Pumpkin Soup, Festival of Holidays Winter Wonders Booth; California Adventure

This pumpkin soup was packed with holiday flavor and a delicious addition to their vegan menu.

 

Vanilla and Cranberry Trifle, Festival of Holidays Winter Wonders Booth; California Adventure

This dessert was the most anticipated from our trip. The two words vegan and dessert do not usually go hand in hand at Disneyland. We are lucky to have a few miniscule options, but nothing as loaded as this tangy deliciousness. We’re crossing our fingers that Disneyland continues with the vegan dessert offerings.. because what is a trip to Disney without a lot little bit of sugar.

 

Plant–etarium Street Tacos, Studio Catering Co.; California Adventure

As an avid and self-proclaimed taco connoisseur, these were by the far most interesting tacos I have ever tasted. I intentionally didn’t read anything about them beforehand and was totally surprised by the fresh pomegranates. They were an interesting addition and completely lended to the holiday flavor.

 

Vegan Chile Rellano, Paradise Garden Grill; California Adventure

My absolute favorite dish of all of the holiday offerings was this gorgeous chile rellano! A roasted poblano stuffed with veggie stew and served with spanish rice and beans.  It was literally stuffed with a multitude of flavors, that all complemented each other so well. The most amazing part is that as a vegan or vegetarian, it is so rare to be able to eat spanish rice, since it’s traditionally flavored with chicken broth. So anytime I can order it vegan, I appreciate it so much more than I ever have.

 

 

And while not a holiday offering, but a permanent menu fixture, Hungry Bear Restaurant in Disneyland, has now added the Beyond Burger! You can grab this “Messy Melvin’s Vegan Specialty Burger” in Critter Country. Disneyland now has a decent selection of veggie burger, as this joins their house made patty and the Impossible Burger, which is a secret menu item at Lamplight Lounge in DCA.

 

 

 

Here’s one of our happy vegan kiddos, thoroughly enjoying all of Disneyland’s vegan gifts to us this holiday season. We are incredibly hopeful that this is just a taste of more awesome vegan things to come!

 

Thanksgiving is almost here and I couldn’t be more excited! Our family loves every single traditional dish.. so even if I’m not hosting dinner at our house, I make (or buy!) all of it so that my family can enjoy everything, without compromise.

Today I’m sharing one of those very favorite dishes, which is simply vegan mashed potatoes and gravy. Plant-based milks tend to have a different consistency than what’s used in traditional mashed potatoes. So our trick over the years to create a creamy dish has been to use (::drum roll, please::) a dollop of vegenaise! This ingredient makes THE creamiest, most delicious mashed potatoes. So, without compromise, I give you the creamiest mashed potatoes and the heartiest, most savory mushroom gravy you can imagine. No animals harmed, no hormones from other mammals consumed. 😉

 

Hope you have a wonderful holiday!

 

 

 

I posted an Instagram story last week of our first time using Just Egg in a scramble. It was such a crazy day that I forgot to follow it up and update everyone. I received so many messages asking what we thought so I figured I would give an update. And to make it interesting, since I always have Follow Your Heart Vegan Egg on hand for baking, we thought it would be fun to do a side by side taste comparison.

We’re big vegenaise and Follow Your Heart fans and we also love what the Just for All company has done… As a mom, their cookie dough is a complete game changer and I loved getting mini packets of their mayo in the hospital while having a baby. Both are amazing companies and we couldn’t wait to compare them side by side. So we give you, the Great Vegan Egg Showdown:

Just Egg: Everyone has been highly anticipating this product for the last few years, us included. Made primarily with mung beans (of which I am a fan, being part filipino) this egg had a sweet undertone, which eventually disappeared after a few bites. The texture and smell were pretty close to what we remember the real thing being like, making it more realistic for someone craving an actual egg. The downside is that there were no baking directions on the bottle, whereas FYH has simple conversions readily available. The biggest bonus is that it is ready to pour for quick and easy egg access.

 

 

FYH Vegan Egg: Definitely has that sulfur egg flavor and smell. It has the typical runny egg consistency and texture when eating. We already know that it bakes really well, but the downside is you do have to mix it with ice cold water before you can bake or pour it in a pan. To a seasoned vegan, this isn’t that big of a deal, who likely has experience with mixing flax eggs or any other vegan egg replacer. Another impressive contender.

 

 

All in all, we were impressed with both products and are incredibly happy to have these two great options available to us. My personal winner was the Just Egg. I think it’s an easy purchase for vegans and non-vegans alike (possibly looking to lower their cholesterol or cut down on animal products). However, since I haven’t tried baking with it quite yet (that’s a blogpost for another day) I will say that I have been been incredibly happy with the baking results of FYH egg.

And here’s what the husband had to say for his vote: “I see the appeal with Just Egg for someone who is new to veganism/a plant based lifestyle. It’s very simple to pour into a pan or recipe, without having to mix a bunch of things together to create your faux egg. As a veteran vegan I’m used to mixing instant egg replacer for recipes so the FYH Vegan Egg wasn’t that big of a deal, but the Just Egg is really nice for quick egg access and convenience. My vote is for the taste and consistency of the FYH Vegan Egg. The Just Egg, in my opinion, has a little bit of graininess to it. And that would be my only negative takeaway. But the ease of use might surpass all of that.”

So there you have it, it’s a tie. I should mention that one of our kids was napping and the other at school, so we didn’t get their votes. But my guess is, with how similar both products are to the real thing and because both of our children have been vegan since birth, they may not be big fans of the smell and taste. But I know they are happy to partake in any baked goods with them. 🙂

Both options make veganism so simple and readily available and I am so glad that we have options at all. I will happily use both products and continue to show family and friends how simple eating vegan can be.

 

 

When I was nine months pregnant with my first October baby, six years ago, a friend told me about a local coffee shop that had amazing vegan pumpkin muffins. We excitedly drove there after dinner that night, with my pregnant mind on all things pumpkin. By the time we arrived, they had completely sold out and I was so bummed. Right then and there in the parking lot, we scoured the internet for the best vegan pumpkin muffins, ran to the store and grabbed the ingredients and hoped that I wouldn’t go into labor before I could get a taste. Luckily, we hit the jackpot on our first try. These really are THE VERY BEST pumpkin muffins. They are a total crowd pleaser, fall or not. We always love eating them at our annual fall picnic with coconut caramel and sliced apples.

I know a lot of people have had success with adding nuts, but I always add chocolate chips and a little bit of vanilla. But they are honestly the perfect fall spice blend, no additions necessary.

So thankful to Isa Chandra from PPK for these gems: The BEST Pumpkin Muffins

 

 

October is here! We are so excited, not only for all of the fun fall activities, but it also means birthday month for our boys. To welcome one of our very favorite months, we went on our annual pear picking adventure. It definitely pays to have a tall dad when trying to get the best fruits at the top. Now we need to figure out what to do with all of our pickings. I’m so glad we live in a world where there are Octobers….

 

I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers….

 

Starting this blog has afforded me a handful of very cool opportunities, which I love sharing. But one that I am most excited about is a partnership with a brand that I love, No Cow. No Cow is a company that believes in  delivering high-quality, non-dairy protein with ridiculously low sugar. There are so many other protein bars and cookies out there, masking themselves as a health food, but are loaded with sugar and other awful ingredients. No Cow is a genuine company that cares what goes into your body, without including dairy, gluten, soy or GMO’s. And the flavors are delicious…lemon meringue, mint cacao chip, blueberry cobbler bars and snickerdoodle and double chocolate protein cookies! And all with less than 1g of sugar!

I am so excited to be giving away a variety pack of No Cow protein bars and cookies! Check out my post on instagram to enter (it’s super easy!): @plantbasedmomma. AND we are also excited to offer 20% off of your first No Cow order! Just check out their website and enter the code “joannah20” at checkout. Hope you love them as much as we do!

 

 

Giveaway ends Sunday September 23, 2018 at 5pm PST. *Keep in mind that we may receive affiliate commissions when you click our links and make purchases. However, this does not impact our honest reviews and opinions. We try our best to share things that we genuinely love and hope that you do too!