Sweet Sesame Tahini Noodles

Sweet Sesame Tahini Noodles are a great vegetarian weeknight dinner! Made with tahini, lime, almond butter, ginger, and plenty of veggies.

I have more than a few soba noodle recipes on this site, but I’ve decided that THIS recipe is my new favorite. These noodles are rich, tangy, creamy, sweet and a little spicy, with loads of kale mixed in – I love meals like this for weeknight dinners. The formula is simple: sauce + noodles + seasonal vegetables. Check, check, and check. The sauce can be made in advance and the rest can be assembled fairly quickly. First, let’s talk about this sauce because it’s the main component of this recipe. It’s tangy, nutty, salty, and lightly sweet. It’s sweetened with Truvia Nectar,…

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Almost-Spring Recipes

I think it’s safe to say that no matter what climate you live in, we’re all experiencing a version of spring fever. It’s been exceptionally beautiful in Austin lately which makes me want to cook (or in some cases, just assemble) meals that are light and fresh and full of green things. Here are some of my favorites that I’ve been in the mood for lately. Click on the photos or the links to go to the full recipes. Spring Broccolini & Kale Quinoa Bowls (pictured above) These are packed with roasted chickpeas, broccolini, radishes, herbs, and avocado. Serve with a…

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5 Tips for a Healthy Morning Routine

After such a positive response to this post that I wrote last month, I’m back with some more healthy little tips – this time I’m giving a little sneak peak at what my morning routine looks like. Yours might be more or less busy/hectic than mine – I work from home and don’t have kids to get off to school – but hopefully there are a couple of tidbits in here to inspire. 1. Wake up & take a sec to cuddle with the dog. I’m one of those people that doesn’t need an alarm clock because we have 2 hungry…

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Citrus Cabbage Salad

This napa cabbage salad is a stunning showcase for colorful winter produce. Sweet & tangy with lots of veggie crunch, it's an entertaining showstopper.

There’s exactly one thing I love about winter – the colorful produce! I know, I know, the winter is not so bad here in Austin, but I feel for those of you up north, because I used to be one of you. I live for warm sunny days, so I made this cabbage salad of bright winter produce with you in mind – to send some love – and lemons… and well, also some clementines. What’s in this Cabbage Salad Recipe? This recipe includes two major categories of ingredients. You start with a base of crispy veggies: Cabbage –  Tender napa cabbage or savoy…

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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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Easy Power Lunch Bowls

Simple vegan bowls filled with roasted sweet potato, marinated chickpeas, avocado, kale, hemp seeds, tahini & lemon make a healthy, filling lunch or dinner!

Most people say breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but I personally get most excited about lunch. People who say “I was too busy, I forgot to eat lunch”… I don’t get you. But maybe I’m the only weirdo who eats breakfast and then immediately starts counting down the hours ’til lunch? This bowl was inspired by one ordinary day last week when I made a quick lunch for myself with kale, sweet potatoes, some other things I had on hand, and these Yves Kale & Quinoa Bites. It’s definitely an “I work from home” kind of lunch, but the whole thing…

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Raspberry Vegan Cheesecake

A tart raspberry layer, a creamy "cheesecake" layer, and a gluten-free walnut crust make this easy vegan cheesecake recipe tangy, rich & delicious.

Happy early Valentine’s day… or Galentines Day… or whatever holiday you like to celebrate with heart-shaped treats and little paper cards. As I’ve written about many times before, Jack and I have this Chocolate Molten Cake Valentine’s tradition. This year I switched things up a bit and made this decadent yet mostly raw raspberry vegan cheesecake. How cute are those layers!? Vegan Cheesecake Recipe Variations I have two versions below – one version uses raw cashews for the white “cheesecake” layer and the other version uses vegan cream cheese. I wanted to offer these two options because one requires a fancy…

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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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Creamy Polenta Recipe with Roasted Beets

Top creamy polenta with lemony raw & roasted beets, and you have a healthy, comforting, delicious dinner. Great for date nights!

We celebrated Valentine’s day early this year with this creamy polenta recipe. We actually celebrate most holidays early around here… at least food-wise. Christmas cookies in October, Thanksgiving food in late August and so on.  I’m not sure what we’re doing for “real” Valentine’s yet – but once I got this recipe just right and the pictures were done, Jack and I sat down to a romantic (albeit reheated) meal for two. The only caveat – Jack doesn’t like beets. He’s not a picky eater but beets are on his short list of foods he usually won’t touch. I originally tried…

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Healthier Game Day Recipes

our favorite vegetarian superbowl snacks and meals including Healthy Loaded Vegan Nachos, Super Stuffed Sweet Potatoes and more!

Ok, so aside from watching the Cubs win this year, I’m not what you would call a sports fan. I know the Super Bowl is this Sunday but I have no clue who’s playing and if I had to guess (without googling it), I’d embarrass myself by naming teams from the wrong sport. But sportsball aside, here are a bunch of taco-nacho-ey-pizza-ish recipes that you might consider serving this weekend. I’d be game to eat any of these… game or no game. pictured above: Super Stuffed Chipotle Sweet Potatoes pictured above: Healthy Loaded Vegan Nachos Mango Goji Guacamole / Sweet Potato Avocado…

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Sustenance Sweet Potato Soup

This hearty sweet potato soup is exactly what you need to power through the winter. With a scoop of almond butter for richness, it's vegan & gluten-free.

Crazy weather we’ve been having here lately… one day we’re eating a sunny lunch on a patio and the next five nights we’re curled up at home trying to stay warm during torrential downpours. I SO wish I was one of those people who finds rainstorms to be cozy and calming, but I’m quite the opposite. Storms may get me a little edgy and nervous, but what does calm me down is making a stew like this one. This recipe comes from my friend Tess (a.k.a. The Blender Girl)’s new cookbook The Perfect Blend. This stew is everything you want on a cold January night…

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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.