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Drop Dead Recipes- Caramel Apples – No Corn Syrup!!
It’s October! I bet you all are well into Fall in the Northern Hemisphere- pumpkin spice, leaves on the ground, Halloween not too far away and of course, Canadian Thanksgiving. Well I’m in the midst of a month-long road trip to the South Island of New Zealand! Rhys and I will be doing a 4-day hike, and taking part in all the adventure that Queenstown has to offer. We will be visiting Christchurch, doing some whale watching and so much more! It happens that we will be travelling in the van on October 31st…so I think for the first year ever, I won’t be dressing up. I LOVE dressing…
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Breakfast Parfait with Coconut Yogurt and Berry Chia Jam
I have to admit…breakfast is NOT my favourite meal of the day! I know so many people love breakfast, and love going out for breakfast on weekends, but that is soo not me! It is always too rushed during the week, and I’m the kind of person who eats sooo slow! And when it comes to going out for breakfast, the options are always slim for vegetarians/vegans. What I really look forward to is a beautiful homemade breakfast on a lazy weekend day. I always enjoy my buckwheat pancakes, but I think this breakfast parfait with coconut yogurt and berry chia jam might be my new, ultimate breakfast. I used Coyo…
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Drop Dead Recipes- Mango Mint Summer Rolls
I’m sure some of you are scrambling to take advantage of the last few weeks of Summer. I’m still over here in New Zealand, and though it’s barely felt like Winter, I’m more than ready for Summer. Eating these as I created the recipe was like a burst of Summer….these mango mint summer rolls are so fresh, and light. I have always love rice paper wraps, and their ability to be able to be filled with just about anything. I think this mango and mint combination lends itself perfectly to the cooling cucumber and rich peanut sauce. I’ve made this sauce before using almond butter and it works just as…
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Carrot Cake Oatmeal with Ginger Spiced Cashew Cream
I hope you all had a great weekend! I did 🙂 I went out for a delicious Thai dinner to celebrate a friend’s birthday, and went straight from there to a fun housewarming party. I also went to “The Food Show” in Auckland. I love going to these types of events, and it reminded me of EAT! Vancouver. It’s always fun to check out the stalls and samples at food shows. It’s a great way to learn about new companies, and smaller, local companies that you might not have heard of. There were tons of vendors at The Food Show, selling everything from cheese to bread, granola bars to dumplings,…
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Drop Dead Recipes- Mango Berry Crumble…In A Jar!
This month I bring you another little dessert recipe and it’s perfect for Summer. These mango berry crumbles are served in a jar so they are portable and great for taking to BBQ’s at your friends or to the beach. You can bake them in the jar itself, and just put the lid on and they are ready to travel. You can really use any combination of fresh, Summer fruit here- but I chose a combination of blueberries, strawberries, and mango. I used buckwheat flour in the crumble topping so it’s entirely gluten-free and I used coconut sugar and maple syrup as sweeteners to keep things refined-sugar free! Head over…
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Fermentation
Are you familiar with fermented foods? Your great grandmothers would know all about them. Fermenting foods seems to be almost a lost art, which is so sad! I’m excited to say though that there has been a huge resurgence lately in these old school cooking, and preserving methods. Several weeks ago I made sauerkraut at home and I was shocked at how easy it was. I had been debating buying a bottle of probiotic pills, but fermented foods have the exact same effect for a much smaller price tag. Eating just a tablespoon of fermented foods a day gives you the equivalent ‘good bacteria’ for you guts, as an entire…
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Raw Peppermint Chocolate Squares
Sooo…if you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you will know the recent tragedy and devastation that I endured, as I realized I had lost the recipe for these raw blackcurrant and lemon squares. Yes, it is a very serious matter-haha. I promise I will remake them or find the recipe some how. I decided I needed to drown my sorrows in some more raw goodness. So I made these Raw Peppermint Chocolate Squares. They did a mighty fine job of making me forget all about those blackcurrant and lemon squares….for now. These have a really nice, subtle peppermint flavour because most of the mint flavour comes from real mint,…
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Rawsome Vegan Baking Review, Recipe & GIVEAWAY!
I’m pretty stoked to be able to share a review, recipe and a giveaway for you today brought to you by Emily Von Euw (a fellow Vancouverite!!) of This Rawsome Vegan Life. I was very excited to receive a copy of Emily’s new book, all the way to New Zealand. My first cookbook here! I just love flipping through cookbooks even when I’m not looking for something to cook…is that weird? My favourite kind of cookbook is one with lots of pictures and Emily definitely meets my requirements for that. Of course, you probably already knew that since her blog, This Rawsome Vegan Life is just smothered with drool-worthy pictures…
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Ginger Energy Bites
These little bites are just what you need after doing a four-minute plank. Yes, I did FitFluential’s #FFAprilAbs challenge, which means doing a plank per day in April. If you follow me on Twitter (@kokobrill), you saw my progress. On April 1st, I started off with a 2-minute plank, and now I have worked my way up to 4 minutes and 5 seconds which is ridiculously hard. Anyone who tells you otherwise is a liar!! I once read that Ryan Gosling was so busy that to stay in shape for a movie he was in he only had time to do an 8-minute plank per day. That is insane. Anyway, my…
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Drop Dead Recipes- Veggie & Black Bean Chili
I know most places are creeping into Spring right now, but there are always those cold, wet, rainy April days and who couldn’t use a warming bowl of chili on those days. I am heading into the New Zealand winter and kind of unsure what to expect. I know it will probably be a lot less dreary than endless Vancouver rain, though! I kind of look forward to those gloomy winter days when you can cozy up with a nice warm bowl of soup or chili. This veggie & black bean chili is bursting with flavour from aromatic cumin, coriander, and chili powder. It’s packed with yummy extras like portobello…
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Thrive Energy Cookbook- Review, Recipe, and GIVEAWAY!
Ohhhh you guys sure are lucky…I’ve got an absolutely divine cookbook to talk about with you today. I’m even going to share a recipe, and give three lucky readers the opportunity to win a copy! I’m talking about Thrive Energy Cookbook by Brendan Brazier. If you recognize that name (as you should!), it’s because Brendan Brazier is the renowned Ironman triathlete, Ultra-marathon champion, and creator of Vega plant-based nutritional products. This guy has some serious street cred. Brendan has more than enough personal experience and knowledge in plant-based athletics and this book is here to teach us how to achieve his level of health and optimum energy. All 150 recipes…
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Tropical Coconut & Passionfruit Chia Pudding
One of my favourite things about eating raw foods is that often dessert and breakfast can be the same meal! Who doesn’t want a chocolatey raw cacao and banana smoothie, or banana soft serve with fruit and coconut cream for breakfast. In this instance, I made a sweet and fruity tropical coconut & passionfruit chia pudding for breakfast; but I could easily enjoy it as a healthy, sweet dessert, too. I love all of the amazing fruit they have here in New Zealand. I rarely get to work with things like passionfruit, or guava. We stopped at “Fruit World” the other day, and picked up quite the haul of…
