Creamy Cashew Brussels Sprout Pasta

There’s nothing better than an easy-to-make meal with simple ingredients that still really brings the flavor! And this creamy cashew brussels sprouts pasta is just that. It’s so creamy and dreamy without the dairy, and it’s so quick and easy to make! The sauce itself is vegan and gluten free, and the entire meal can easily be made both. Not into brussels sprouts, switch them out for your favorite veggie or just enjoy the pasta and sauce on it’s own!

Here’s What You’ll Need:
(Makes 2 servings)

• 2 tbsp cashew butter

• 1/4 cup water

• 2 tsp nutritional yeast

• 2 servings of gluten free pasta (or pasta of choice), cooked

• 1 bundle of brussels sprouts, de-stemmed and sliced

• 1-2 cloves garlic, chopped

• Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Heat up 1-2 tbsp avocado oil (or oil of choice) in a pan on the stove top over medium high heat. Once hot, add in the brussels sprouts and garlic, season with salt and pepper, and cook for 15-20 minutes until the brussels sprouts are softened and charred.

2. In a small bowl, mix together the cashew butter, water, nutritional yeast, sea salt, and black pepper until it creates a sauce (add more water as necessary).

3. Add the pasta into the brussels sprouts, and toss everything with the sauce.

4. Serve and enjoy!

Let me know what you think in the comments below!

Vegan Summer Vegetable Mac and Cheese with Bolthouse Farms® Plant Protein Milk

This post is sponsored by Bolthouse Farms®, however, I am sharing my own thoughts. All opinions are my own.

I have been craving some mac and cheese like it’s nobody’s business! I know that’s a little strange since it has been nothing but hot and humid here for the past few weeks, but a girl wants what she wants and that’s some mac and cheese. So mac and cheese it was, and it was GOOD, so good in fact that I obviously had to share. Loaded with some of my favorite summer veggies, plant-based, and dairy-free, this recipe is sure to please the entire family. It’s packed with flavor and protein and is super easy and quick to whip up!

The star of this recipe is Bolthouse Farms Plant Protein Milk! Each serving contains 10 grams of pea protein and 50% more calcium than dairy milk per 8 oz. serving. It’s also non-GMO and doesn’t contain dairy, lactose, nuts, soy, carrageenan, or gluten. It comes in four variations – original, vanilla, chocolate, and unsweetened (which I used in this recipe) and can be found at your local grocer in the refrigerated area of the dairy department. Use their store locator here to find Bolthouse Farms Plant Protein milk near you!

So let’s get to it!

Here’s what you’ll need:
-7 oz pasta of your choosing (I used chickpea shells)
-1 zucchini, sliced in ¼” rounds and quartered
-Half a pint of cherry tomatoes
-1/2 cup Unsweetened Bolthouse Farms Plant Protein Milk
-1/4 cup nutritional yeast
-2 tsp Dijon mustard
-1 tsp lemon juice
-1/4 tsp sea salt
-1/4 tsp black pepper
-1/8 tsp turmeric
-1/8 tsp chili powder (optional)
-2 cloves garlic, chopped
-2 tbsp avocado oil

Instructions:
1) Toss the zucchini and cherry tomatoes with the avocado oil and season with salt and pepper as desired before baking them in a preheated 425-degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes
2) In the meantime, cook your pasta according to the instructions on the box.
3) Once cooked, strain the pasta, and use the warm pan to combine the Unsweetened Bolthouse Farms Plant Protein Milk, nutritional yeast, Dijon, garlic, lemon juice, turmeric, salt, pepper, and chili powder.
4) Pour the sauce over the pasta, and mix in the roasted veggies.
5) Serve, and enjoy!

Let me know what you think of this summery plant-based mac and cheese in the comments below and be sure to check out Bolthouse Farms full line of Plant Protein Milk!

Vegan Cauliflower Mac and Cheese

I've recently become obsessed with making my own nut milks, specifically cashew milk, ever since coming across Ellie's Best nut milk bags. For some reason I was under the impression that it would be difficult, but it's SO quick and easy. I just soaked a cup of cashews in water for 2+ hours, strained and rinsed them, and tossed them in the blender with 3 cups filtered water and a pinch of sea salt on high for a minute or two. Filtered it through my nut milk bag, and BAM delicious, creamy, unsweetened cashew milk. You can use the code Stacy10 for 10% off your own Ellie's Best nut milk bag by the way!

So basically I've been going through cashew milk like crazy these days. It's so tasty, and the consistency is nice and creamy. So I thought it would be the perfect ingredient for some creamy, vegan mac and cheese. You guys know I'm veggie crazy, so I decided to add in cauliflower because it would just soak up the taste of the delicious sauce. And I decided to keep it gluten free and protein packed with some Ancient Harvest POW! Green Lentil Penne.

Here's What You'll Need:

-7 oz Ancient Harvest POW! Green Lentil Penne
-1/2 head cauliflower, cut into pieces
-1/2 cup unsweetened cashew milk
-1/4 cup nutritional yeast
-2 tsp Dijon mustard
-1 tsp lemon juice
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-1/4 tsp sea salt + extra
-1/4 tsp black pepper + extra
-1/8 tsp turmeric
-1/8 tsp chili powder (optional)
-2 tbsp avocado oil

Serves 2

Instructions:

1) Toss your cauliflower in the avocado oil with some sea salt and black pepper, and roast it in a preheated oven at 450 degrees for 15-20 minutes until it starts to brown and soften.
2) In the meantime, cook your pasta according to the directions.
3) Strain your pasta, and use the warm, empty pot to mix together the cashew milk, nutritional yeast, mustard, lemon juice, garlic, 1/4 tsp sea salt, 1/4 tsp black pepper, turmeric and chili powder.
4) Once cooked, remove your cauliflower and cut into smaller pieces.
5) Mix the cauliflower and cooked pasta into the sauce, serve, and enjoy!

Not into cauliflower? Feel free to swap it out with the veggie of your choosing! I also topped mine with a bit of red pepper flakes for some extra heat. Let me know how you play around and what you think in the comments below!

Chocolate Almond Butter Banana Protein Cookies (Vegan + GF)

Chocolate almond butter banana protein cookies - what a freakin mouthful, am I right? But each ingredient is so important and adds such an extra punch of flavor to this recipe that I couldn't leave one out. So chocolate almond butter banana protein cookies it is!

They're vegan. They're gluten free. They take only 8 (YES 8) minutes to bake. They're delicious. AND you can even eat the batter because did I mention they're vegan and delicious? Plus you get some great protein thanks to Naked Nutrition's Chocolate Less Naked Pea Protein Powder and almond butter. So let's not waste anymore time and get this thing started!

Here's What You'll Need:

-2 scoops Naked Nutrition's Chocolate Less Naked Pea Protein Powder
-1 tbsp cacao powder (I use this one)
-2 tbsp coconut flour
-1 banana
-1/2 tsp baking powder
-1/2 tsp vanilla
-2 tbsp unsweetened almond milk
-2 tbsp unsweetened almond butter (I use this one)
-1 tbsp maple syrup
-2 tbsp sweet almond coconut butter (optional; I use this one)

Makes about 8 cookies

Instructions:

1) Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2) Mash the banana in a bowl until relatively smooth.
3) Add in all of the other ingredients minus the almond coconut butter and mix thoroughly until it forms a dough-like consistency.
4) Form the dough into balls about an inch in diameter and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
5) Flatten the balls slightly using your hand or the back of a spoon to form a cookie shape.
6) Bake in the oven for about 8 minutes, and then remove to cool.
7) (Optional) Warm up the almond coconut butter until it becomes semi-liquid and drizzle-able. Drizzle some on top of each cookie.
8) Allow the cookies to cool (and the almond coconut butter to harden).
9) Serve, and enjoy!

If you just can't wait, I do have to say that they're also great warm! Either way, they're a great pre or post-workout treat or just a great protein-packed snack or dessert. Also make sure to check out Naked Nutrition's other vegan protein products, and let me know what you think of the recipe in the comments below!

Vegan Apple Cranberry Stuffing

I can't believe that I'm about to say this, but Thanksgiving is just about a week away. Seriously where did the time go?! I'm pretty sure it was just August. Either way, I'm definitely not disappointed. I love getting to spend time with family and eating some delicious food!

I've recently been partnering with Whole Foods Market on Instagram to share some of my holiday traditions and recipes, and I decided that I wanted to create something new this year. The majority of my immediate family is either vegan or vegetarian, so coming up with Thanksgiving options isn't always so straightforward. I figured it would be best to start with a Thanksgiving staple, stuffing.

It was pretty easy to keep this recipe vegan given the goodies I picked up at my local Whole Foods, and I decided to give it a bit a twist with the added sweetness. It has officially been vegan family member approved (this dish was gone pretty much immediately), and as someone who isn't vegan, I can say that I think everyone at the dinner table will love it! The sweet and savory combo will make it the perfect side dish for your Thanksgiving dinner.

Here's What You'll Need:

-10 oz package of organic 365 Everyday Value multigrain stuffing mix
-1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
-1/2 cup dried cranberries
-3/4 cup walnuts, chopped
-1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
-1/2 large sweet onion, chopped
-1 celery stalk, chopped
-2 pink lady apples, chopped (can sub with other varieties of apples)
-1 tbsp fresh sage, chopped
-1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
-Olive oil cooking spray (optional)
-Sea salt to taste
-Black pepper to taste

Directions:

1) Preheat your oven to 400 degrees
2) Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium high heat.
3) Add in onion and celery, and cook for about 5 minutes.
4) Add in the apple, and cook for an additional 5 minutes.
5) Mix in the fresh sage, thyme, sea salt, and black pepper. Remove from heat.
6) Mix the apple, onion, and celery mixture into a large bowl with the stuffing package contents, dried cranberries, walnuts, and vegetable broth.
7) Spread the mixture evenly into a 2 quart baking dish, cover with foil, and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes,
8) Coat the top of the stuffing with a quick spray of olive oil cooking spray (optional), and return it to the oven for an additional 15 minutes until browned.
9) Serve, and enjoy!

Let me know know what you think in the comments below! I'd love to hear how you incorporated this dish into your holidays!