Diet, Dessert and Dogs

This weekend marks Canadian Thanksgiving (October 10), and, therefore, a very special Wellness Weekend!  I’m looking forward to all your submissions, of course, but am really curious to see what my fellow Canadians are cooking up for the holiday (and if you need some suggestions, see today’s earlier post). 

As usual, last week brought a huge array of fabulous recipes and my “to-try” list is near bursting!  Some of the highlights from last week’s event were: 

• Raw Lavender Blueberry Bars from Hunter’s Lyonesse. I may not be a lavender fan, but these bars looked stupendous–and they’re raw, a bonus!
• Rich Chocolate (or Carob) Chia Pudding from Whole New Mom.  C’mon, it’s chocolate!  And pudding! Love.
• Herby Balsamic Tofu with Cherry Tomatoes and Shallots from Farmers Market Vegan.  I know not everyone loves tofu, but seriously, how delicous does that sound?  (And I’m sure you could sub tempeh).
• Garam Soup from Healthy Kitschy Vegan.  A great lead-in to fall: spicy cauliflower soup with lentils.

And the Reader’s Choice post this past week goes to:

• Raw Vegan Carob Brownies to Make You Swoon by Wayfaring Chocolate! Once again, Hannah led the way with a decadent dessert!  I adore carob so can’t wait to try these. 

AND. . .Since the top two were so close this week, I decided to mention the runner up as well:

• Carrot Cake Pancakes from The Healing Kitchen!  Pancakes with cream cheese frosting/topping?  My kinda breakfast!

Thank you to every one of you who played along by submitting your recipes! I love seeing what you all make each week.

Please join us this weekend! There are so many options for healthy foods. . . whether or not you’re vegan, remember that many salads, veggie side dishes, pasta dishes, desserts, smoothies, and more are naturally vegan and can all be included!

Here’s How to Participate (PLEASE READ THESE GUIDELINES CAREFULLY BEFORE LINKING UP!):

1. The event occurs once a week, starting Thursdays at 8:00 PM my time and running until Monday at midnight.
2. Simply link up a recipe you made (and posted about) within the past week that contains health-supporting ingredients (see list below). Use the Linky Tool at the bottom of the page. Please do not link more than once to the same web page!
3. Please link the post with your recipe, NOT your blog’s home page.
4. You may submit more than one recipe, but please follow the guidelines for each one individually.
5. Please be sure to mention this event and include a link back to this post so that others can find all the recipes posted!
6. Feel free to use the blog badge, above (or see the left sidebar of this page–if you need the html code, let me know and I’ll send it to you). Many thanks to Adrienne of Whole New Mom for setting up the badge code for me!
7. As always, I hate to remove links, but will do so if they don’t comply with the guidelines.

What your recipe CAN contain:

• Any good-for-you, whole foods, especially those with antioxidant properties or “functional foods” (ie, offering naturally medicinal or health-promoting qualities–such as garlic, coconut oil, all vegetables, fruits, herbs, etc.)–but any fresh, real food is welcome!
• Natural sweeteners (coconut sugar, agave, brown rice syrup, maple syrup, stevia, Sucanat, rapadura, coconut nectar, yacon syrup, etc.)
• Vegan ingredients (even if you’re not vegan, OF COURSE you can still play along! You’ll be surprised at how many foods are naturally vegan; and if not, there are many subs you can use for eggs, milk or butter–include vegan options and we’re good to go!).
• Note that this is NOT AN ACD-ONLY EVENT. Any real food ingredients that are sugar-free and vegan are more than welcome–so use that maple syrup, those mushrooms, that nutritional yeast, miso, etc! I’m just looking for healthy, whole foods recipes.

What your recipe cannot contain:

• White flour, white sugar, or any highly refined, highly processed ingredients
• Anything almost entirely artificial (ie, most boxed mixes, fast food, faux “cheese,” faux “meat,” or margarine, unnaturally colored cereals or other foods, etc.)
• Animal products (meat, chicken, fish or seafood, or their by-products, gelatin, eggs, dairy, butter or honey)

“Hey! Why was my entry removed?”

• The most common reason entries are removed is because they don’t adhere to the guidelines: either they contain ingredients that aren’t listed here, they are a re-post of a blog entry that is more than one week old, or they contain neither a recipe nor anything directly related to food preparation. If you render a recipe vegan-friendly by adding a vegan option to your ingredients, your post will be good to go! For older posts, you’re welcome to re-post them during the week of the event, or choose a newer recipe.
• Another reason posts are removed is because the link leads to an advertisement or a business blog. Please do NOT link up posts that are merely referrals to a different post or the home page for another blog event.
• I hate to have to remove links! PLEASE read the guidelines before posting!

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