What I eat as a plant based Mama

 Howdy Y'all, 

Welcome back to my overdue confession, blog post. My hiatus has been somewhat deliberate, as I wanted to amass enough meal photos to be able to give breadth to what we actually eat as a plant based family of four. So slight caveat - I've been on an immunity boosting health kick to get my family's strength back after a myriad of illnesses, so our meals and snacks have been healthified and wholesome. It's an honest reflection of where we're at but obviously life is more nuanced than that so let me gently remind you that ciphered in between these healthy meals are moments of indulgence which I have no guilt over whatsoever (they're just not worth photographing)! 

Also. 

Food photographers you have my respect. As you'll see from my attempts making delicious food look more appealing visually and not just mush on a plate is really hard! I'll let you decide if I've succeeded or failed in this department! 

Let's kick things off with breakfast.

I'm definitely a stodge kind of girl, I like large bowls of carbohydrates (porridge to be exact) to kick off my day as I need the fuel, I'll never be a 'I'll just have a plum and filtered water' kind of person. As baby Marina has hit the 7 month mark she's been dabbling in solids and has been loving my staple grated apple and cinnamon porridge. I serve with chopped bananas, chia seeds, flaxseeds, dates and a blob of yogurt, jam or maple syrup if I have it. On this particular day we diversified and had stewed apples and pears, topped with soya yogurt, seeds and chopped banana. A lot lighter than our usual brekkies but went down a storm! 

On the weekends I love making pancakes, I think pre children I listened one too many times to Jack Johnson's 'Banana pancakes' song and had the romance of making pancakes for my family lodged in my head. Huddling together around the dining table or on the sofa watching cartoons with the kids is my little slice of heaven on a Sunday morning. These vegan pancakes are sweetened with maple syrup and dark chocolate chips and made using ground oats and flaxseed. So whilst they taste indulgent they're pretty wholesome! 

As a mama to two kids under three, my days revolve around snack times. When my eldest was having a an epic meltdown in our local Lidl I had a hero of a mom run over and hand me a packet of crisps which instantly calmed the situation. To that mom, thank you, you goddam saint! Obviously I don't want to bribe my kid with crisps every time the grizzles start, so I've swapped them for homemade healthy treats. Don't let me sound like a 'crunchy granola' mom, as my friend calls it, it's not all hemp seeds and wheatgrass here. I make these homemade snacks because they're delicious and quick. 

 

These muffins are literally, oat flour, maple syrup, grated courgette, flaxseed and pretty much whatever else you want to chuck in there! You bake them for 15 minutes and voila! 

There's two things I want to say about this smoothie, the first is that I've been having more smoothies to jam pack nutrients into my day. After the trauma of my toddler going to hospital I never quite got over the fever and cough I had at the time (I think because I was just so mentally and physically exhausted). After a visit to the Dr I was prescribed antibiotics and rest which I've been trying to prioritise. The second thing I want to say about this smoothie is that this is the first time me and my girls had ventured outside after being ill. Whilst we sat on the river bank drinking our green smoothies, Ozzie dog swam in the water and we watched the world go by. It was honestly the most blissed out I've been in a while, being mindful with my babies. This smoothie is spring greens, avocado, mango, water, bananas and chia seeds. Yum yum! 

I invested in some maple syrup as a sugar replacement and cacao powder and honestly I've been getting my moneys worth ever since! These healthy cookies are literally maple syrup, flour, oats, dark chocolate chips a pinch of salt and that's it. Me and the girls are absolutely LOVING them. 

These were a particularly good batch as I got the ratio of crunchy to gooey perfect! 

Me and the girls had a play date on Saturday so I thought rather than go empty handed I'd make a vegan cake for our lovely vegan host. This was definitely less healthy as I made a butter icing topping but the actual sponge was pretty much the cookie recipe but this time with banana added and plain flour so it was a cakey texture rather than biscuit! I topped with walnuts and based on the feedback I got, it was a hit. Thanks to the banana it had a fudgy brownie texture which I was pleased with. 

So onto the main event...

First up is African peanut butter stew with veggie sausages, rice and a Greek salad. The stew is soooo easy to make and as I add butter beans and broccoli is protein packed. This is a firm favourite with hubby and girls alike. 

I'm not entirely sure what to call our next meal, it looks like a salad but it isn't, it's more like a layered dip. At the bottom is blended black beans and kidney beans, which I make with onions, garlic, salt pepper and spices (such as paprika, cumin - think Mexican style seasoning), the next layer is a cheesy cashew layer (soaked cashews blended with mustard, garlic powder, nutritional yeast and salt), then topped with a crunchy salad dressed with olives and tomatoes. I serve with tortilla chips. It's a light meal that feels like cheating but still keeps it's healthy credentials thanks to a few clever swaps. 

 

Friday's meal was so good I forgot and took a bite before I photographed it! Being totally honest with you, I was not in the mood to cook Friday evening and was contemplating a takeout when I realised it would be daft to spend twenty quid on reheated rubbish when I could literally make my own healthy takeaway at home. This is homemade pizza (I made the base using just flour, yeast and salt) topped with my own tomato sauce, vegan cheese and olives. I had a few Quorn nuggets floating in the back of the freezer and some sweetcorn so we made it a slightly more takeaway like meal, by adding something a bit more junk food like. You see, this isn't a shrine to perfect, raw wholefood eating, occasionally we treat ourselves with frozen food! 

As the temperature has dropped in the UK I've continued with the theme of making healthified food cravings, I really fancied a veggie burger so made these lentil, buckwheat and carrot burgers. Simply cook red lentils and buckwheat together (follow instructions on the packet, but usually it's just a boil it until tender circumstance), mix with grated carrot, chopped onion, garlic and spices (cumin, paprika, salt) then form into patties and bake for 20 minutes. I served mine with a slathering of tahini on burger buns, rocket, avocado, red onion and voila delicious healthy burgers! 

 

Last but not least is this unidentifiable curry! I've totally forgotten what the main dish was, but I thought I'd add it anyway as I wanted to show off my homemade hummus. I make hummus at least twice a week, my secret is add a dash of lemon, only two segments of garlic and blend with an ice cube for the creamiest, loveliest hummus! I use hummus as a spread in wraps, as a dip or as a condiment for main meals. I've also made plant based lasagne, spaghetti and lentil dahl this week but have completely forgotten to photograph them! 

Fashion wise I've been a little defunct largely because I've had to stay indoors so much, nursing either the girls or myself back to full health. When I feel like crap I basically rotate different kinds of pyjamas with the occasional fleece stolen from my husband! Now I'm feeling much better my inner 70's hippie chick is back and taking no prisoners. I've been loving the book come TV show, Daisy Jones and the Six on Prime which has massively rejuvenated my love affair with early 70's fashion. Both these photos were taken before the going to the church baby group I attend with Marina. There feels something really rebellious about wearing a belly exposing crop top and a long vintage 70's dress to baby group. I've made a lovely bunch of mom friends there who steal away with me to the pub afterwards. We don't do it all the time but when we do it once a month it feels especially naughty! 

This 1970's 'Devonshire Lady' dress was an eBay find years ago, still one of my all time favourites that just makes me feel like I'm off on a overland adventure to Morocco or may sell you incense sticks!

As I've been feeling so crappy my book choices have leaned more towards light hearted which is what my brain has needed. I could not put down Cecelia Ahern's 'How to Fall in the Love' which to quote one of the write ups, 'wisecracks its way from dark to light.' It actually deals with suicide (of all topics) but does so in such a gentle, sensitive and thought provoking way that makes this book, somehow, a romantic comedy. As a trained suicide first aider I was impressed by the language used and how it deals with the subject matter. The protagonist Christine Rose, finds Adam Basil in the process of taking his own life and manages to convince him to give her two weeks to help him fall in love with his life again. I LOVED this book so, so much and thoroughly recommend if you need a pick me up.    

The second book is another offering from Jenny Colgan whose romantic writing is becoming a firm favourite of mine. They story centres around Lissa a nurse who witnesses a gang related trauma in London and ends up having a secondment in a tiny Scottish town to recuperate. The Highlands typography provides escapism in the best way possible and the evolving love story between Lissa and the paramedic she's swapped places with unfurls in a gentle and endearing way. It's not my absolute favourite Jenny Colgan book but her standard of writing is always so good you become invested regardless. 

Both of these stories have made me want to simultaneously persevere with my own writing (I dream of being a published author) and give up because with so many amazing stories already in the world, how can I ever measure up! Obviously I'm not going to allow a defeatist attitude to be at the helm so instead I'm writing like it's going out of fashion! 

Until next time love bugs, hope you have a lovely rest of your week 

Sophia x