If you are vegetarian or vegan and coming to Thailand don’t be tricked by slick promotional advertising leaving you with the impression of any specific restaurant or Culinary Arts Cooking School in Thailand is owned and operated and staffed by vegetarians or vegans as that’s just plain near impossible to do as there are virtually no Thai nationals that are vegetarian or vegan. This means when restaurant staff eat their meals there will be meat in the kitchen and on cutting…

Photo credit: Laura Iu

In general, many pastries, muffins and baked goods contain eggs or dairy products. So when people hear the word “vegan,” often they’re not sure what to expect. When it comes to baking, the appropriate type of ingredients and proportions are key to creating a delicious baked good. This recipe uses applesauce to substitute for eggs, and vegan butter was used instead of regular butter. By cutting the amount of butter and…

I love apple pie but either I can't find a crust that is dairy-free or call me lazy I really don't feel like making pie crust.  I've done it in the past and probably will again in the future but I just can't get excited about making pie crust.  So I guess you can say that I found a way to cheat but I prefer to call it portion control.

I was extremely happy to find out that Pepperidge Farms Puff Pastry is vegan so that means dairy-free!!!  I was trying to come up with a good…

Three days... that's it. 

If you’ve got to make the Guacamole Dip for the big game, and you plan on making fresh Guac, you need to buy those avocadoes TODAY so they’ll be ripe and ready on Sunday.

This is Mama’s basic recipe for Guacamole Dip. From here, you can add whatever you like to make it…

So… still looking for another side dish to serve at your Thanksgiving dinner?

Here you go: Roasted Butternut Squash with Cranberries that cooks in less than 20 minutes. This dish is a delightful balance of sweet and tart... a nice alternative to some of the heavier items on the table.

You can buy the whole butternut squash (and cut it up yourself)… or purchase…

I've been attempting plenty of vegan recipes over the last few months, after a good year on being obsessed with macrobiotic diet. Even after moving onto greener pastures, I luckily kept up with serving brown rice- a macro staple- even concocting my own mix like this one to keep the rest of my family happy.

I chose to try more vegan recipes because of some sinus/throat/unexplainable…

Any parent knows how crazy the bath time/ bed time routine can be and if you have more than one you are looking at huge redundancy in tasks like teeth brushing, shampooing, flossing, etc.. With homemade lotion bars you can cross one of those tasks off your list. Each child gets their own bar and while I wrap up Babe in a towel and give him a…

Eating pizza is always a challenge since out 2 year old son is allergic to milk. Now we know Uncle Maddio's offers goat cheese as a topping along with other vegetarian, gluten-free and non-dairy menu options.

Check out the review of our dining experience:…

Halloween is around the corner, all the stores are full of pumpkins, skeletons, witches, and bats which is what gave me the inspiration to make these chocolate bats. My daughter's birthday was last week and she wanted something with a Halloween theme for her birthday dinner.  These simple peanut butter filled chocolate bats fit the request…

Last week I told you how my father in law came home with 50 pounds of peaches for a one year old to eat. I turned them into canned peaches. In order to make them I…

That's right, I said it. Tofu tacos.

That title turns off the boys in my family a bit, but since we're in a meal planning phase currently- it's hard to miss a Mexican themed food night, and still keep some nights vegan.  My husband Jay is Hispanic, therefore my kids are, too.  But he's not Mexican, and doesn't care for Tex-Mex food either.  So this was an experiment all around.  Also, I've never crumbled or cooked tofu like this before-…

Every household has their quick fix meals and we are no exception. When it comes to lunch I am particularly lazy. We always have left overs or hummus and veggies. Luckily these two choices please everyone. If fact, my daughters and I practically live off hummus. My youngest girl will dip pretty much anything in hummus and she is actually pleased with the out come.…

Pesto is one of those delicious sauces I love to put on everything. Pairing it with freshly cut, lightly sauteed veggies or hot bread sticks it is always a crowd pleaser. The kids and men love to put it on pasta. It is good on pretty much anything in my opinion. I have come up with a few ways to make a vegan and gluten free pesto recipe over the…

We eat a lot of vegetables in our house. Obviously each person has their favorites and least favorites. Almost everyone likes broccoli except my father in law. He is not a huge fan of the stuff. So I am always trying to find new ways to sneak it in. I was feeling lazy the other day and did not want to do a lot of prep work when I thought of…

My mother is a phenomenal baker. She makes her own bread, pasta, muffins, and everything else. I had always wanted to fill my home with baked goods and frankly, until we found out about our allergies, I did. Now, years later I still do bake for my family but not nearly as much as my mother did for me. Even…

Fall is drawing close and I  am very excited to not be having inappropriate thoughts like, "maybe I can take my shirt off and walk around..." anymore. Do not worry, I did not start walking around topless . . . in public. Now it is cool enough to put on pants! Hallelujah I love fall, the beautiful colors the cool breeze the smell of the fresh cool air there really is nothing better.

It is also a time for hot soup. This has been one…

Here's an amazing healthy recipe for a unique smoothie featuring watermelon and vanilla.…

Have you ever been shopping and seen something you just had to have?

Some people are like that with when they go shoe shopping. Mama’s like that at the farmer’s market. Weird, I know.…