Noshtopia

Future of Food: Blueberry Muffin Mix That Uses Plant-based Egg

For New Year's day, I made these blueberry muffins with big juicy organic blueberries I found at Costco using Cherryvale Farms Blueberry muffin mix in a box. I'm no baker so boxed stuff is fine with me as long as it meets my food requirements and Cherryvale really makes awesome mixes. They are Non-GMO Project verified and 100% #plantbased mixes.

What's unique about this Blueberry muffin mix is that it uses Beyond Eggs a plant-based egg. This is new and exciting. Beyond Eggs hasn't been released for consumer sales but looks like it's being made available to commercial sellers.

 

The main reason for using chicken eggs in baking is for binding. It's incredible to see startups who are working to figure out a way to make a plant-based egg do the same job as well as an animal-based egg than kudos for creating another opportunity for removing an animal from the process.

I used Earth Balance​ soy-free buttery spread in my muffins and they were GOOD! I love using big blueberries because they kinda explode in baking and make the muffin even moister.

My meat-loving parents enjoyed the muffins so much that there were only 2 left by the end of the day. They had no idea these muffins were vegan.

It's just GOOD muffins. :-)

Food Trends 2017: Purple Food Is In

You all know how much I LOVE purple foods, so I was excited to see that in Whole Foods Market trends forecast for 2017 they named "Purple Power" as a trend to look out for. 

Besides being a gorgeous color, purple foods are packed with antioxidants to help you stay healthy and youthful.

These are my FAVORITE purple veggies:

Carrots

Asparagus

And Cauliflower

What is your favorite purple food?

Loving This BAT Sandwich: Black Forest Bacon, Arugula, Avocado and Heirloom Tomato

When I made this sandwich, I honestly had to stand back and just stare at it for a few minutes because it just looks so pretty.

Normally, bacon is the star in a BLT, but in this creation the heirloom tomatoes steal the spotlight. I used yellow and dark red heirloom tomatoes and cut them thick to show off more of their vibrant colors. You could easily make a vegan version of this sandwich using tempeh bacon. And instead of L, I went A for arugula because I love the flavor of arugula and it is packed with more nutrients than lettuce.

Bay Area Eating: One of THE Best Sandwiches I've Ever Eaten - Ike's Vegan Pilgrim

One of the hot local sandwich chains in the Bay Area is Ike's Place. I heard about Ike's from some friends and their Facebook page is pretty bustling with photos and love from their customers.

When I first saw the menu, I noticed that the prices of their sandwiches range from $8.98-$11.11 and that is without any extras. That's pretty pricey for a sandwich. I can get a cheaper sandwich at the Whole Foods deli and that's saying something. But now, I can personally say, the Ike's sandwich is worth it!  And so do other people because the place had a non-stop line the hour I was there and it was off peak lunch hours at 2pm.

 

I ordered a vegan version of their Pilgrim sandwich and added avocado and red onions. The sandwich has vegan turkey and soy cheese with cranberry sauce and sriracha sauce which sounds like it would be a gross combo but holey moley, my first bite into this sandwich was palate bliss! The Pilgrim also comes with the vegan version of “Ike’s Dirty Secret Sauce” which is amazing and of course a secret.

Vegetable Protein Packed: Black Bean Edamame Fried Brown Rice Medley

For Meatless Monday, here is a favorite dish of mine that is simple and is a healthy veggie twist on traditional fried rice. Instead of using pork or chicken, this fried rice dish is packed with plant-based protein from organic black beans and edamame. I always stick with organic edamame because I know it's also GMO-free.

As well, at Costco, I found an organic SunWest Foods Harvest Rice Medley consisting of CalMati brown rice (like Basmati), wild sweet brown rice, wild rice and heirloom red rice that has 10g of protein per 1/2 cup.

Farmers Market Gawking: Fresh Figs

I LOVE Figs! In fact, on my PB & J sandwiches, I use fig jam instead of jelly. Last weekend, at the SF Ferry Building farmers market, there was a farmer who was selling the most fascinating figs I'd ever seen. Please forgive me. I forgot to get their name. Comment below if you know who they are.

In the following two photos are "Mystery Figs." I asked why they were called Mystery Figs and the gentleman at the stand told me it was because they were a hybrid of several figs they grow. It's their version of Ancient Chinese Secret.

 

Healthy Post Workout Snack: Jicama Fries With Sriracha Garlic Hummus and a Natural Sports Drink

I love this snack because zero cooking is involved. Plus, it's low-fat, low-sugar, low sodium, vegan, and practically free of almost every allergen you can think of. And jicama is MUCH better than eating celery sticks. Dear goodness, put away the those "diet food" celery sticks.

Admittedly, French fries are a weakness for me, but eating them after doing a 10-mile run when you are training for a half marathon is not one of the best things to do to your body.

Instead, one of my favorite ways to get a fries-like experience in a much healthier way is making Jicama fries simply by cutting jicama into fries-like shapes like shown in my beautiful bowl up above.

 

Over at Whole Foods in Oakland, in the produce section, I found boxes of pre-cut jicama sticks which makes life so much easier because I do not have any kitchen devices that make fries. I simply took these pre-cut jicama sticks and cut them down to a smaller size. I sprinkled on some garlic salt and a little paprika. I added fresh parsley for garnish.

This is my kind of cooking - cut and assembly.

In the pre-packaged hummus section, Whole Foods house brand has a garlic hummus flavor. To add some fun heat to the hummus, I added in 1/2 tablespoon of Sriracha sauce to the tub and swirled some around the top to give my hummus a more colorful look. You know how I always have to accessorize my foods somehow.

A natural sports drink

 

I avoid most commercial sports drinks because they are loaded with high fructose corn syrup or artificial sweeteners and are colors that are not found in nature like fluorescent purple. In a sports drink, what you really need is the electrolytes.

One of the best sources of natural electrolytes is coconut water.

To make a natural sports drink, I add one part fresh veggie juice to three parts coconut water. Straight coconut water is fine but I like to add a little juice for some fun flavor. You can buy bottled stuff or juice your own. I typically use organic carrot juice because I love how it makes me feel. You can also use green juice or beet juice. I stick with the veggie juices because you also get the nutrients from these veggies.

So, these are a couple examples of the healthy plant-based things I eat and drink after a long run workout. What kind of snacks do you eat?

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Whole Foods Market Northern California as part of my sponsorship running the Nike Women's Half Marathon 2013.

Training Eats This Week: Gourmet Buffalo Hot Dog, Vegan Chicken Wrap, Cherry Vanilla Pie Protein-Packed Smoothie Plus Other Fun Foods

We're getting closer to the Nike Women's marathon on Oct. 20. I am so excited to run my first official half! In the meantime, here are a few things I ate this past week. Tried some new foods and got creative with other food.

First up, I tried a hot dog made with buffalo meat. I love buffalo meat because it's healthier compared to beef with lower saturated fat and lower calories. Buffalo is also high in iron and B12 with good protein. I've eyed these hot dogs in the meat counter at Whole Foods for awhile now and decided to finally get one and try it out. There is nothing artificial in the WF buffalo hot dog so to me it's more like a fancy sausage.

 

Of course, I could not eat my buffalo hot dog the normal way with a bun. I got all Top Chef and deconstructed my hot dog experience. I boiled the hot dog for 10 minutes and then sliced it in smaller pieces and mixed it with Sonoma Brinery Traditional Raw Sauerkraut, chopped onions, and mustard with a sprinkle of red chili peppers on a bed of mustard greens I got at a local farmers market for a mustard bump.

Semi-homemade: Vegan Chicken, Sausage, and Cannellini Bean Jambalaya With Italian Twist

I LOVE Jambalaya! I figured out a fun way to make a vegan version with an Italian twist that includes chicken and sausage. Oh yes!

Training For The Nike Women's Half Marathon as a Flexitarian Runner With Whole Foods

Everybody knows that two of my greatest passions are running and Whole Foods Market. You can find me often at Whole Foods in Potrero Hill or at Whole Foods in Oakland.

Today, I am very excited to share that I am getting to combine the two and I am officially registered to run the 2013 Nike Women's Marathon in October, my first half marathon. AND, I am being sponsored by Whole Foods Market.

I am the Flexitarian Runner!