Happy Polenta Day!

Blogger of the Day: Vanessa at Essential Vegan
Pubs: Essential Vegan Cookbook...sales help support Animal Equality  :)

Oh, to be in England...then I could indulge in one of Vanessa's stunning vegan cakes. I'm not even a coconut nut but a sliver of that Prestigio Bounty Cake would spin me into instant bliss!

Brazilian-born Vanessa puts her gorgeously yumful touch on everything she creates including her polenta cake. Polenta is one of those oldtime comfort foods like oatmeal or mashed potatoes that fill you up in a warm lasting satisfying way...it's even better when you grill it, fry it or bake it up but Vanessa's version is just exquisitely delicious! In fact I think her blog should be named Exquisitely Essential Vegan because her dishes mesmerize you and tantalize you and crush your hungercravings into dust!  :)

Apple and Polenta Cake

Banana Caramel

Mushroom and Olives Tart

“Ricotta” and Spinach Cannelloni

“Cheesy” Quiche

Shimeji Gyoza

Tomato and “Cheese” Open Croissant

Brazilian Feijoada

Brazilian Coconut Sweet Bread

Walnut and Pecan Cake

Have you ever had polenta baked into a dessert? How do like to eat polenta? What comfort food are you craving now?  ;)

Check out the rest of our 2014 Daily Food Holiday and Featured Blogger Series!

Happy National Strawberry Day and International Polar Bear Day!

Blogger of the Day: Marie at CitronLimette

The granddaughter of a professional baker, Marie spent years as a raw restaurant chef and now works independently as a personal chef creating terrifically tasty raw and cooked dishes for her clients. My nephew loves her Strawberry Crumble Bars! Since it's National Strawberry Day and International Polar Bear Day let's celebrate with a frozen strawberry treat!  :)

Decadent Vegan Strawberry Ice Cream

Banana Strawberry Smoothie With Chia Seeds

Blueberry Mousse

Crunchy Brussels Sprouts Salad

Zucchini Lasagna with Pistachio Pesto

Slow Cooker Chickpea Chili

Lentil Burger with Mango Salsa

Black Bean Cakes

Cajun Roasted Potatoes

Raw Blueberry and Cream Tart

Strawberry Crumble Bars

How are you celebrating National Strawberry Day? How about International Polar Bear Day? What are you doing to help polar bears?  :)

Enjoy more strawberry cheerfulness from the Peace Patch past!

Celebrate some more with our 2014 Daily Food Holiday and Featured Blogger Series!

Happy Healthy Hemp Day!

Bloggers of the Day: Sarojini and Nandasuta at The Yogi Vegans and Vegan on a Budget

Note...Sarojini and Nandasuta officially changed their blog's name from "The Yogi Vegetarian" to "The Yogi Vegans" in August 2014, and are veganizing and updating many of their popular vegetarian recipes...yippee!  :)

I've only recently discovered the wonders of hemp...it's a marvelous source of protein for vegans, especially vegan athletes, and its tangynutty flavor vividly enriches recipes for cookies, cakes and all sorts of bakes! Hemp milk can be used in place of any vegan milk in cooking or just drink it straight up. Hemp seeds, treats and supplements are easy to find and will quickly boost the nutrients in your diet! So far I use hemp protein powder sprinkled onto fruit and added into smoothies and salads. I love to learn how other people use hemp, including The Yogis' yumful creations!  :)

Sarojini and her husband Nandasuta must have a heavenly veggie-loving kitchen! Their recipes always sound so delicious and they delight in trying new ingredients, techniques and combinations. Their plant-based diet is integral to their spirituality so they truly put their heart and soul into their cooking. I wish I could hop the ocean to have a seat at their table because it always looks so squealingly good!  :)

Hemp Seed Soda Bread Rolls

Chocolate Hemp Chikki

Chocolate Flapjacks

Spiced Parkin Flapjacks

Apricot-Cocoa Hemp Bars

All-in-one Blender Carrot Cake

Parsnip Seed Cake

Brown Sultana Scones

Blueberry, Banana and Cinnamon Breakfast Muffins

Buckwheat, Hemp and Bean Bake

How to Make Seed and Nut Butters: 
Crunchy Peanut and Hempseed Butter

I learn so much from reading The Yogis' blog! For instance, Sarojini and Nandasuta use some unusual ingredients which you will likely find in your local specialty/spice/imported food shop...if not, you can buy them online or try a substitution:
• black treacle...or use organic fair trade molasses
• jaggery/gur/gour...or use organic fair trade palm sugar

UK/US Food Terms:
• flapjacks = bar cookies or granola bars made with oats
• porridge = oatmeal
• scallops = hashed potato cakes or potato pancakes
• soya = soy
• sultanas = golden raisins

UK/US Amount & Temperature Measurements:
Basic Cooking Conversions Calculator

Have you tried hemp seeds or hemp powder? What's your favorite way to use them? What else brings you hemp happiness?  :)

Find more feasts in our 2014 Daily Food Holiday and Featured Blogger Series!

Happy Cannellini Bean Day!

Blogger of the Day: Kip at The Messy Vegetarian Cook

The Year of Vegan Food Holidays definitely has to include a beanloving day each month so kick it up for cannellini beans in February! Beans are naturally superhealthy for you but cannellinis (aka white kidney beans) may also help improve memory, ADHD and even might help fight cancer...plus a hot pot of them tastes so good on a cold wintry night!  :)

Kip's cannellini dish is a welcome sight for frozen eyeballs and cold empty tums! Kip has a spot-on instinct for flavor combinations that soak your soul in deliciousness! She's a sweet-hearted vegetarian-turned-vegan, totally devoted to living a cruelty-free compassionate life and helping you do it too through her recipes, reviews, traveling tales, exciting events and pleasantly passionate attitude. Her blog is filled from day one with yumfully comforting foods that are creatively painted with global influences. Beans, miso and a little white wine tonight...I thinksoYes!  :)

Miso Rosy Cannellini Beans

Winter Warmer Beans ‘n Pasta

Black Bean Soup with Masa Dumplings

Sauerkraut Gochujang Mash

Beer and Marmite Boulangère Potatoes

Spinach Börek

Sticky Black and White Rice with Brandy Coconut

Boozy Strawberry Apple Sauce Parfaits

Easy Toasted Coconut Biccies

Note if you are using raw kidney beans...raw kidney beans in any color contain lectin which you must fully cook off. The FDA recommendations for cooking raw kidney beans:
• Soak in water for at least 5 hours.
• Pour away the water. Do not reuse it.
• Boil briskly in fresh water, with occasional stirring, for at least 10 minutes.
You don't need to do this for canned beans.

BTW, if you are one of the lucky ones attending the London Vegan Beer Fest in July, you can thank Kip in part for it. She and Sean of Fat Gay Vegan created it for your imbibing pleasure!  ;)

Have you tried cannellini beans? What's your favorite way to eat them? Are you a beans on toast lover? Share recipe links if you like!  ;)

Check out the rest of our 2014 Daily Food Holiday and Featured Blogger Series!

Happy National Tortilla Chip Day!

Bloggers of the Day: Krista and Jess at krista and jess

Vegheads Krista and Jess are known for their yumfully lovely takeanywhere jar lunches...the art of jamming all your favorite lunch ingredients into a jar instead of a bento box, lunch box or brown bag. Jar it and jet! But currently I'm diggin' their easy smoky tortilla chips...

Baked Tortilla Chips

Broiled Banana Peanut Butter Toast

Chipotle Corn Chowder

Indian Tofu Royale in Tomato Cashew Gravy

Sesame Noodle Salad with Ginger Tofu Cubes

Thai Peanut Tofu Spread

Deconstructed Sushi in a Jar

Peanut Butter & Jelly Yogurt Parfait

...so freakin'amazing with vegan Greek yogurt!  :)

Their recipes are vegetarian with a few already veganized but most, like their totally devourable Chipotle Mashed Cauliflower, are quite easily done with vegan butter, cheese and milk.  :)

I think those chips need some yumful dipping things!

Celebrate some more with our 2014 Daily Food Holiday and Featured Blogger Series!