vegan

Bone Health and Calcium for Vegans

There was a time when we didn’t expect to get our calcium from cows. Bone health and calcium for vegans is a topic that we should all be aware of as there are plenty of non-dairy calcium-rich foods out there, and you may be consuming more of them then you think. I’ve compiled a list of some of the top non-dairy calcium-rich foods to include in your diet and tips on how to maximize absorption for bone health.

What foods are high in calcium? Contrary to popular belief, calcium doesn’t only come from cows! Crazy huh? A lot of marketing money stemming from the Dairy Industry has led us to believe that dairy is the one and only superstar in the battle against osteoporosis. Whether you are a vegan, environmentalist, lactose intolerant or just love your green leafy vegetables, there are other dietary options for healthy bones. Here are my top tips for bone health and calcium for vegans.
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So Simple Pumpkin Spiced Latte Recipe

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This simple pumpkin spiced latte recipe will get you excited to get out of bed in the morning, and it is a great low-sugar alternative to what’s available in coffee shops. It is dairy-free, gluten-free, and packed full of nutrition. Make your own creamy cashew milk by blending cashews in a blender, no straining required!

It’s hard to not get caught up in all the pumpkin spiced hype. Coffee shops have been on the band-wagon even before the leaves started to turn. I used to love enjoying a Pumpkin Spiced Latte at a coffee shop, but I now know that they are so loaded with sugar and so not worth the post-latte crash. This healthier alternative to the sugar-loaded versions will have you surprisingly pleased, and all from the comfort of your cozy couch. I’m sure that this Simple Pumpkin Spiced Latte Recipe will turn out to be a regular in your autumn morning routine, just like it has in mine.
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Vegan Ranch Dressing with Hemp Hearts

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This simple and delicious Vegan Ranch Dressing with Hemp is packed full of nutrition and taste. With only five ingredients it is an easy way to dress up a salad, and also tastes great on Buddha bowls or as a healthy dip for vegetables.

Hemp hearts are currently a hot topic and for good reason. They are an easy protein source, packed full of essential fatty acids, locally grown, and super versatile. I love hemp so much I’ve shared my favourite milk alternative Hemp Milk, and this yummy nutrient-dense snack Hemp and Sunflower Seed Pâté in the past. This Vegan Ranch Dressing Recipe with Hemp is my new favourite way to incorporate hemp into my day. The creaminess of the hemp lends itself to this dressing, and I love it with shredded kale, beets, and carrots on top of fluffy quinoa. Yum!
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The ULTIMATE Guide On How To Make Salad Dressing

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Use this guide to make your own salad dressing at home. Homemade dressings can be just as delicious as they are simple. See below on tips on how to maximize nutrition and taste in your homemade dressing recipe!

Why I Make My Own Salad Dressings

Making your own salad dressings is one of the easiest ways to boost the nutrient content of a meal. Dressing should be more than just a side thought, they can be a great vessel to add nutritious ingredients that would otherwise be more difficult to get.

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Vitamin D Foods For Vegetarians

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Northern winters means a lack of vitamin D exposure.

By now, most of us have heard of the importance of Vitamin D. Vitamin D plays an important role in the absorption of calcium (see post Getting Enough Calcium On A Dairy-Free Diet), and has the ability to decrease inflammation in the body (1). Vitamin D comes primarily from the sun, but in northern latitudes (37 degrees north) during the winter months, we just can’t get enough (2). While there are some food sources of vitamin D, we actually can’t get enough vitamin D from food alone. The best food source of Vitamin D is oily fish, and while vitamin D foods for vegetarians can be limited there are some steps we can take to ensure we are getting enough.
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Hemp and Sunflower Seed Vegan Pâté

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This easy, healthy and delicious Hemp and Sunflower Seed Vegan Pâté is naturally gluten-free, free of processed ingredients, and contains 13 grams of protein per serving!

Hemp hearts are a food that comes up daily in my practice. I recommend it to many of my clients as a great plant-based complete protein that offers a wide nutrient profile including omega-3 fatty acids, healthy omega-6 fatty acids, magnesium and zinc. Generally, my focus is on breakfast as hemp is an easy way to bump up the protein at these carb-heavy meals. I am sharing this Hemp and Sunflower Seed Vegan Pâté so hemp doesn’t get confined to only breakfast. Serve it with some seed crackers or cut up cucumber for a tasty afternoon treat or as a light lunch.
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Two Ingredient Raw Chocolate Recipe [Vegan]

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Making 100% raw chocolate at home has never been easier, no added oils or fussing required. This Two Ingredient Raw Chocolate Recipe is as authentic as it gets and packed full of flavanols for an antioxidant punch!

The use of chocolate medicinally dates back at least 3,000 years. The health benefits have been linked to epicatechin, a flavanol found in the cacao bean (1), and current day research supports its use for various health conditions. If you’re a chocolate lover like me you likely appreciate the full complexity of flavour that real good quality chocolate provides. In my experience, making chocolate from 100% raw cacao beans is the only way to replicate this flavour intensity at home. This is my Two Ingredient Raw Chocolate Recipe, packed full of antioxidants AND the bonus is, it is SO easy to make!
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Three Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies | Vegan

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These three ingredient peanut butter cookies are super easy to make! They are also free of refined-sugar, grain-free, vegan, low-carb and paleo friendly. They tick all the boxes, and best of all – only one bowl required!

Nothing better than a freshly baked cookie straight out of the oven. Have you ever gotten that urge to bake something at 10 pm but you don’t want to deal with multiple ingredients and dirty dishes? Introducing these Three Ingredient Peanut Butter cookies – only three ingredients (I promise) and only one bowl required. They are soft and gooey, and naturally gluten-free, vegan and high protein making them a great choice when catering to multiple dietary requirements.
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Healthy Soft Pumpkin Cookies | Vegan GF Paleo

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This recipe for these healthy soft pumpkin cookies is sponsored by iHerb, an online natural products store. Delicious and moist, these soft pumpkin cookies are low carb, gluten-free, paleo-friendly, diabetic friendly and vegan! And best of all, these are so easy to make! Try adding chocolate chunks for a festive chocolate chip pumpkin cookie recipe.

Working in a busy Diabetes Education Centre, I am always looking for new and exciting ways to get people excited about ‘healthy desserts’. We talk about the effects of carbohydrates on our blood sugar levels, better sources of carbohydrates (low glycemic index), how protein, healthy fats and fibre can help balance blood sugar levels, and how to incorporate all of this into healthy meals and snacks. That’s why I’ve created these totally delicious low-carb healthy soft pumpkin cookies, and they are also vegan, paleo and gluten-free!

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Easy Curry Lentil Soup with Kale

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A simple mid-week meal that can be easily adapted for the seasons, or for whatever produce is lurking in your fridge crisper. Lentils offer the balance of low glycemic index carbohydrate with a good amount of protein to help sustain you.

These smokey August days have got me thinking about the end of summer, and nothing symbolises the end of summer more than a steaming bowl of hearty soup. Lentil soup, for me, is the silver lining to the end of the long days and warm weather and as the days get shorter the compromise of warming lentil soup makes the transition into autumn that much easier. This easy curry lentil soup is my go-to soup, and really can be adapted for any season. For a summer soup, use up your zucchini, kale and carrots and come winter think about substituting the zucchini for butternut squash, yam or sweet potato.

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High Protein Peanut Butter Energy Balls [Refined Sugar-Free | GF | Vegan]

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When I am not creating recipes to share online, I work in a Diabetes Education Center and counsel clients on diabetes during various stages including pre-diabetes, newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes, advanced diabetes, as well as type 1 diabetes. Nutritionally, one message always stays the same – for a more stable blood sugar level, combine your carbohydrates, or sugar, with a protein source. Sometimes it is difficult to come up with ways to incorporate protein into snacks, so I’ve created these High Protein Peanut Butter Energy Balls that are Refined Sugar-Free, Gluten-Free, and Vegan for just that reason. And they are simple to make with only five ingredients! With 6 grams of protein per energy ball, they are a great addition to any snack or just on their own.
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Easy Almond Tempeh Vegan Meatballs Recipe [GF]

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Not even a week has passed since my return from Indonesia and I can confidently tell you that the thing I miss most is not the warmth nor the beaches, it’s the food. The flavours and the variety place this cuisine at the top of my list. If you haven’t tried tempeh yet and you are a lover of healthy and tasty food, boy have I got a treat for you. Indonesians enjoy it fried and spicy, and often will add it to dishes such as Gado Gado (see my simplified recipe for Gado Gado Peanut Satay Sauce Recipe) or have it cooked in a spicy sambal served with rice. It is as versatile as tofu, but many prefer the firmer texture of tempeh over its soybean cousin. Here is my play on tempeh, and a good one to get you started on your tempeh journey – Easy Almond Tempeh Vegan Meatballs.
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vegan

Why I Make My Own Salad Dressings

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