The holidays used to be a time of year when I'd stress out, get super overwhelmed and eat everything in sight. I'd spend way too much time eating fried finger foods (oh Trader Joe's--- how I loved your mini pastry puffs filled with bree and raspberry jam)! I'd taste every.single.dessert. that I was offered. I'd eat to the point of feeling sick and then eat a little bit (or a lot) more. I used to gain weight + lose my sanity. There were tears, it was ugly. Something profound happened this Thanksgiving. We had our first completely vegan Thanksgiving meal as a family! Kayla and I have been eating plant strong for years and to have the family fully embrace and join in on a completely vegan holiday... well it makes me feel so grateful! Feels pretty huge actually!
The cool thing was that it was the holidays as usual... We were all in the kitchen together. We had the oven going, we tripped over each other getting from the fridge to the stove. We laughed a LOT, we drank and we enjoyed each other. We sat and ate together sharing what we were thankful for and after the meal not a single person had a stomach ache or needed a nap! There was no struggle about leftovers. We didn't graze all day long over the cookie table. There was no cookie table!
It honestly felt like every other day but in the best possible way! There was no dread or worry about what I would be able to eat that would feel good in my body. There was no regret or self-loathing after the meal. Our vegan feast had fried rice with ginger sauce. A huge salad with ginger dressing. Veggie loaded spring rolls with noodles + peanut sauce. And for dessert we had the MOST UNBELIEVABLE vegan chocolate cake with dark chocolate ganache (will happily share that recipe with you soon)! We created a meal together, we shared a meal together! There wasn't a casserole to be found and it was still Thanksgiving.
I've put together a free downloadable PDF of my 12 favorite tips to help you Thrive Through the Holidays. Little reminders to keep you moving towards health + happiness this holiday season! From this girl who's been there and lived to tell about it!
It's practical. It's loving. It's completely supportive. You can get yours right here.
I am so excited to share this new smoothie recipe with you! In all honesty it was born out of hanging on the fridge door trying to decide what to make for breakfast. We were out of greens but had plenty of carrots so...
Carrot Cake Smoothie
*Gluten-free *Dairy-free *Vegan
serves 2
Ingredients 10oz almond milk (Homemade How-to video here.) 1 1/2 bananas (frozen makes the smoothie creamy and frothy) 4 small carrots 3 dates (pitted and soaked) 1/4 cup rolled oats 1 tsp vanilla extract* 1 slice ginger 1/2 tsp cinnamon pinch of nutmeg
*If you're in the Sweet Surrender Sugar Detox make sure there's not sugar in your extract!
Directions
Blend everything except the banana til smooth. Then add banana to make it nice and frothy! Pour in two glasses, sprinkle with a few extra oats + cinnamon and serve.
Hope you love this one! It's really yummy and will keep you full till lunch!
xo, Lacy
