Vegan | Gluten-free | Soy-free

I’m a big fan of coconut treats, and this recipe ticks all the boxes: simple, few ingredients & cost effective. They’re not raw, but they don’t require any baking, and they come together with only 6 ingredients. Most importantly, they are intensely, supremely satisfying, seriously addictive and take minutes to whip up! Once you bite into these chewy coconut bars you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about!

Are these Coconut Bars healthy?

Amazingly, yes! They contain lots of good fats: desiccated coconut, coconut cream, coconut oil & nuts.

But what about the sugar?

For this recipe, I used date syrup, which is less sweet than agave, honey, or maple syrup. Its benefits include low-Glycemic index food, high fiber content, & 78% invert sugar. However, if you can’t find date sugar, natural maple syrup will work just fine.

Variations:

• Trade the macadamia nuts for cashews or almonds
• Cover the bars in chocolate to create vegan mound bars!
• Try adding dried berries to the mix: cranberries or goji berries

Keep them in the fridge and serve straight from there. They will stay fresh for a week (or even longer) when kept stored in a covered container, though let’s face it, they will never last that long!

Recipe: Macadamia-Coconut Bars

Ingredients:

• 2 cups shredded coconut (unsweetened)
• ½ cup raw macadamia nuts
• ½ cup raw cashews
• ⅓ cup coconut cream
• Optional: 4 tbsp coconut oil
• Optional: date, agave or maple syrup (to taste)

Procedure:

1. Blend all ingredients in a food processor.
2. Line 8×4 pan with parchment paper & press down coconut mix.
3. Place in the fridge for approximately 20 minutes and let set.
4. Remove from fridge & cut into bars.

Did you make this recipe? I would love to know how it turned out for you! Tag me in your Instagram creations for a chance to be featured in my insta stories! Use @veggiejeva and the hashtag #veggiejevaskitchen.

When you leave feedback it helps me improve and grow, leave me a comment below.

The post Macadamia-Coconut Bars appeared first on VeggieJeva.

Going Vegan is a whole lot more than learning to make bolognese without meat & dairy-free ice cream. Most people eat and wear animal products and rely on a multitude of products that are tested on animals. I have to admit to being guilty of this. Living in Island has a lot of cons, one of them being having limited access to other vegan products that are not food; like beauty, skincare, and clothes. Even when I want to buy some of those products online, I can’t, all because “We currently don’t ship to Puerto Rico”, it gets tiresome and frustrating. But hey, I’ve always said “There’s no such thing as a perfect vegan!”, even though I strive to be.

So what other ways can we support veganism when we don’t have complete access? Education. Comparing to other social movements, we’re pretty limited and truly in uncharted territory. But we can educate ourselves as much as we can.

I’ve put up a list of my favorite resources for vegan education:

Books

• The Mindful Vegan by Lani Muelrath
• How Not to Die: Discover the Foods Scientifically Proven to Prevent and Reverse Disease by Michael Greger
• Millennial Vegan: Tips for Navigating Relationships, Wellness, and Everyday Life as a Young Animal Advocate by Casey Taft

Magazines

• Chickpea
• Vegan Food & Living
• VegNews: Vegan. Think. Eat Thrive. 

Documentaries/ Movies

• What the Health 
• Okja 
• Food, Inc.
• Forks Over Knives

Blogs

• Hot for Food
• Cocinina
• Cashew Kitchen
• Bianca Zapatka

Youtube Channels

• Avant-Garde Vegan
• Tess Begg
• Liv B
• Supreme Banana
• The Happy Pear

Some of the blogs and youtube channels that I mention here, I’ve been following for years and have served as learning outlets. Take some time to check these out; learning new things every day sometimes turns out to be life-changing.

Did you make this recipe? I would love to know how it turned out for you! Tag me in your Instagram creations for a chance to be featured in my insta stories! Use @veggiejeva and the hashtag #veggiejevaskitchen.

When you leave feedback it helps me improve and grow, leave me a comment below.

The post My Favorite Vegan Resources for Education appeared first on VeggieJeva.

An amazing, relaxing and morning time tonic made with turmeric, black pepper, ginger & cinnamon.

Have you heard about “golden milk”? A couple of weeks ago I posted on instagram a photo of my turmeric latte, it received such a great feedback and a lot of my followers asked for the recipe. This latte is super versatile and you can definitely add or leave ingredients out, as you wish. For me, Golden Milk Latte is perfect for weekend mornings as it offers a nice base for the digestive system, but it can be used nighttime relaxation, especially for stressful weeknights.

What is Golden Milk anyways?

Golden milk is a creamy, warm and nourishing beverage made with turmeric, as the main ingredient, known for its healing and nurturing properties. It has been proven to have many beneficial health properties, from acting as a systemic anti-inflammatory, to being beneficial to the digestive system, and to be a healer to the immune system. Whether it’s from physical or mental stress, inflammation can manifest itself in various forms; we often don’t realize it until it’s too late!

Turmeric also has powerful antiseptic properties, which means that it helps stop or slow down the growth of harmful disease, like the influenza that’s going around. I’m always looking to add these types of ingredients to my lifestyle because you never know what kind of inflammation or disease is going to have a party in your system.

Why add turmeric to your meals?

Adding something like turmeric to your daily regimen might help with:

• relaxation & stress relief
• soothes digestive system
• immune boosting properties (may help keep away infection or diseases)
• boosts liver function by helping our body process toxic environmental chemicals

What’s the point of all of these ingredients?

• Turmeric: This spice offers healthy anti-inflammatory and immune support.
• Coconut Oil: There are many benefits of coconut oil, and I’m sure you know most. It’s high in natural saturated fats that increase the healthy cholesterol in your body, and help convert the “bad” cholesterol into healthy cholesterols.
• Black Pepper: THIS IS THE KEY! There’s a chemical in black pepper called piperline, that can enhance the bioavailability of turmeric. Think of it as the activator.
• Ginger: Also anti-inflammatory and digestive soothing properties.
• Cinnamon: This spice has a way of balancing your blood sugar and helps regulate hormones.

Recipe: GOLDEN MILK LATTE

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Yield: one serving

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of milk of choice (I use coconut milk)
• 1 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• pinch of grated ginger
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• pinch of black pepper
• pinch of black pepper
• agave nectar or maple syrup
• optional: pinch of salt (I use himalayan pink salt)

Procedure:

1. Warm coconut milk in a boiling pot, to low-heat.
2. Once the milk is warm, add ground turmeric, cinnamon, black pepper, ginger and vanilla extract, then stir or whisk for about 1 minute.
3. After everything is evenly combined, add the coconut oil, agave nectar or maple syrup, and the pinch of salt. Mix until everything is emulsified.
4. Enjoy relaxation and a happy immune system!

Ps. 

• Wash out the cooking utensils you used immediately after making the golden milk, otherwise the turmeric will stain everything.

Did you make this recipe? I would love to know how it turned out for you! Tag me in your instagram creations for a chance to be featured in my insta stories! Use @veggiejeva and the hashtag #veggiejevaskitchen.

When you leave feedback it helps me improve and grow, leave me a comment below. 

The post Golden Milk Latte appeared first on VeggieJeva.