Birthday celebration at Kindfood and Kelly’s Bake Shoppe

Posted on May 19, 2013 by Sarina @ Earthgiven Kitchen

It’s been a busy May so far and a most delicious one too! My birthday, the anniversary of my blog, the Virtual Vegan Potluck and Mother’s Day all fell in the same week! All great excuses to indulge in some treats.My birthday wish was to have a meal at my all-time favourite restaurant, Kindfood. You might recall the review from my last visit here.

I’ll cut to the chase: Kindfood gets everything right. The nicest staff and owners. The greatest location, right by the lake so you can eat out on the patio overlooking the water, or take a short walk to the lakefront after your meal. (Too bad it’s an hour drive for us, but it’s worth it!) Kindfood has the best food. The food is everything you’d want: healthy ingredients that taste AMAZING and allergy-friendly to boot: gluten-free, peanut-free, refined sugar-free and vegan. What else could you ask for in a restaurant?

One minor drawback we’ve encountered with Kindfood in the past is that their café is so small that seating was quite cramped. They fixed that a few months ago when they renovated to make the dining area larger and we enjoyed this improvement. Kindfood has amassed quite a loyal following in the few years they’ve been open and the place is always packed whenever we’ve gone; the roomier redesign helps the place more comfortable. They also opened a sister café, Kelly’s Bake Shoppe so those who just want their famous cupcakes and other treats can head over there.

The entire time we ate there, there was a line of customers from the register to the front door, but don’t be discouraged if you see this when you go; the line moves fast and food comes quickly. (Don’t you hate visiting restaurants with so few staff on that service takes way too long?) Our food was served less than ten minutes after ordering which we found impressive. (When you eat out with kids, this is SO appreciated).

We ordered a mix of our favourites and some dishes we hadn’t ordered before. We can’t go without getting their Caesar salad, mac and cheese and Reuben (below), which we all loved this time, everything was top notch. The food is very kid-friendly too; both our children tried and loved everything we ordered.

We picked two new items to try: the BLAT (vegan bacon, lettuce, avocado and tomato) sandwich (above). It was very good, we liked the carrot shreds, and the vegan bacon bits were nice.

Hubby ordered the California burger (above) and was I ever glad I talked him into sharing half with me! I can’t recall a tastier sandwich, ever. Truly outstanding. Our very favourite item now and we can’t wait to go back and eat it again! The only drawbacks to the sandwiches are that they are small, due to the size of the bread, but I just don’t think you can find gluten-free bread that has the same rise and texture of wheat bread (correct me if I’m wrong). Kindfood uses Organic Works Quinoa Maple Bread. They used to use Quinoa Honey Bread but it wasn’t true to Kinfood’s vegan values, so Organic Works actually created their Quinoa Maple Bread at Kindfood’s request. I met Organic Works’ owner and creator Peter Cuddy a couple of months ago and he let me sample all his breads. The Quinoa Maple is the most delicious, and he confirmed the bread’s story of its creation. Now anyone can buy delicious vegan gluten-free bread.

After our lunch, we took the one minute stroll around the corner to their sister cafe, Kelly’s Bake Shoppe. The place is gorgeous: hard wood floors, crystal chandeliers, stone counters, crown molding; even the powder room was a thing of beauty.
Like Kindfood, Kelly’s Bake Shoppe goodies are free of dairy, eggs, gluten, refined sugar, peanuts and artificial colours.

The amazing flavours of cupcakes included: Vanilla Bean, Red Velvet, Chocolate Mint, Chocolate Raspberry Truffle, Black Magic, Dulce De Leche (Hubby’s favourite), Cookies’n Cream.

HOLY DELICIOUSNESS BATMAN, HOW DO YOU CHOOSE?!!!!

I chose the coffee flavoured cupcake which was topped with a miniature DONUT, how cute is that?! It was awesome.

We also bought chocolate covered donuts and cake balls. The cake balls were an afterthought, we didn’t think they would be as special as the cupcakes, but we were wrong, they were insanely delicious! Imagine a dense chocolate cupcake with chunks of coconut, encased in chocolate. Then take that deliciousness and times it by a hundred and that’s how good it was. So good we had to go back to the store for more!

Hubby also enjoyed a coconut milk latte. I’m not a coffee fan but I had a taste it was really good!

Since Kelly’s and Kindfood are just a hop, skip and a jump from Lake Ontario, we took the kids to the playground on the lakefront and had a great afternoon.
A big thank you to Kelly, Erinn, Mike and the Kindfood team for another wonderful meal. If you are anywhere near Burlington, Ontario, I highly recommend paying a visit to these fabulous restaurants!

Kindfood is located at 399 John Street, Burlington, ON.

Kelly’s Bake Shoppe is located around the corner at 401 Brant Street, Burlington, ON.

Vegan Easter

Posted on April 3, 2013 by Sarina @ Earthgiven Kitchen

I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful Easter weekend, filled with peace, friends and family. This Easter we enjoyed all the fun and deliciousness of Easter family traditions I’ve enjoyed yearly since I was a child: an egg hunt, a savoury roast for dinner, and lots of chocolate, and it wasn’t too difficult to make it all vegan!

Here’s a rundown of the great food and fun our family enjoyed this weekend:

Brunch: Buckwheat Belgian waffles with Cinnamon Maple Cream Cheese Spread. The recipe for the delicious topping is from Keepin’ it Kind and found here.

Lunch: I recently discovered Magnolia Café in downtown Guelph, which is all-vegetarian and mostly vegan and gluten-free. From their website: “At Magnolia, our love for food and passion for community means that we are committed to mindful and sustainable food practices and specialize in sourcing local, seasonal, fresh and organic produce in all our delicious and healthy offerings.”

One of the many things I enjoyed about Magnolia is that the kitchen is open concept (in fact, you have to walk right through it if you visit the rest rooms), so you can watch your food being prepared and see the high quality ingredients being used. Here’s what we ordered:

Green Goddess Rice Bowl
From their menu: “Brown rice bowl topped with broccoli, kale, snap peas, bok choy, marinated tofu and garnished with shredded carrots, mung bean sprouts and sunflower seeds. Choice of homemade lemon tahini or Thai peanut sauce.”

Magnolia Red Dragon Rice Bowl
From their menu: “Brown rice bowl topped with roasted red peppers, beets, carrots red onions, marinated tofu and garnished with fresh tomatoes, mung bean sprouts and sunflower seeds. Choice of homemade lemon tahini or Thai peanut sauce.”

South Indian Coconut, Vegetables and Chickpea Curry Bowl
From their menu: “Curried Vegetables and Chickpeas with Coconut Milk served on brown rice garnished with toasted coconut, mung bean sprouts and fresh cilantro.”

For dessert, we couldn’t resist these adorable chocolate lavender Easter ducky cupcakes!

We also tried their chocolate raspberry banana muffins and their raw “sun balls” (sunflower seeds, peanut butter, coconut, maple syrup and currants). Out of their desserts, I like the sun balls best.

The food was all quite tasty and very healthy tasting (not loaded with oil and salt like many restaurants), with all of us agreeing that the Red Dragon Rice Bowl and the sun balls were the most delicious items we tried.

Magnolia café is located at 88 Yarmouth Street, Guelph, Ontario.

Saturday’s family dinner: We tried the Gardein holiday roast for the first time, wanting to change it up from the usual Tofurky roasts we usually make for holidays. The consensus was….. Gardein was good but not nearly as delicious as Tofurky brand. For taste and texture, Tofurky wins hands down!
Sunday’s family dinner: We had one of the most delicious meals ever for Easter dinner thanks to my mother’s Somi — a Middle Eastern dish — which are Swiss chard rolls filled with rice, chickpeas, tomatoes, herbs and spices and cooked until it has a buttery texture. It’s quite time-consuming to make so it’s reserved for special occasions. I have never seen Somi in a cookbook or on a restaurant menu, I’ve never even tried to make it myself, I’ve only ever enjoyed them when homemade by my mother or grandmother; consequently, Somi feels like our very own family secret. It might look like a humble dish, but I have no words for how delicious it is. We paired it with a kale and almond salad with lemon and oil dressing. Spectacular!

Dessert: We kept it simple and enjoyed fresh berries and mango.

Then…….the egg hunt! There are many reasons to avoid buying the traditional chocolate bunnies and eggs. Not only have cows suffered for the milk, but most chocolate is produced by child slavery.
If you’re going to go with chocolate, pretty pretty please make it vegan and fair trade! A bonus if you find them organic too! Which brands can you trust? Not the big guys like Nestle and Cadbury, sadly. See the list of fair trade chocolate makers here on Food is Power and check which brands do dairy-free. Some good ones are Chocosol, Camino, Edensoy, Nature’s Path, and Sweet & Sara.

When our oldest was a preschooler, we bought plastic eggs that can be filled with whatever treats you like, and we’ve used these every year since. After the fun of the egg hunt is the thrill of opening them to see what goodies are inside, and every egg can be a little bit different. You can fill them with fun treats like stickers, Panda licorice, teeny toys, costume jewellery, raisins, nuts, coins and chocolate chips (we like Camino vegan chips which are also fair trade certified).
It was such a delicious weekend, I am submitting this post to What I Ate Wednesdays, with thanks to Peas and Crayons for hosting!

Spinach Black Bean Brownies with Vanilla Cream Frosting and a giveaway!

Posted on March 19, 2013 by Sarina @ Earthgiven Kitchen

I was delighted when I was contacted by Carrie of Carrie on Vegan blog and offered a free download of her vegan recipe app Vegan Delish. I had the app downloaded for less than five minutes before I was in the kitchen whipping up Carrie’s brownies. It seems recipes for black bean brownies are ubiquitous these days though I hadn’t tried making any yet, and I was most intrigued by Carrie’s spinach black bean brownies that were completely whole foods based: no sugar, salt or oil.

The result: the brownies were super easy to make and they have the perfect fudgy texture. On their own the brownies aren’t very sweet (if you’re used to typical brownies), but the vanilla cream frosting is a perfect sweet topping without sugar. When the kids asked for seconds, I didn’t hesitate to give in! I even had one for breakfast the next day! I’ll certainly be making them again.

Carrie has kindly given me permission to publish her recipes for Spinach Black Bean Brownies and Vanilla Cream Frosting here. Photos are courtesy of Vegan Delish.

Spinach Black Bean Brownies

Ingredients

2 cups medjool dates, pitted
2 cups baby spinach
1/3 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk (if needed to blend)
1/3 cup rolled oats
nonstick cooking spray
1 tablespoon chia seeds
3 cups black beans
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup carob powder
1/2 cup unsalted almond butter

Instructions

1. Bring dates to room temperature.
2. Preheat oven to 300° F or 150° C.
3. Lightly spray a large baking dish with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
4. Combine beans, dates, almond butter, oats, vanilla extract, chia seeds, spinach and carob powder in a high-speed blender and process until as smooth as possible, using the tamper to push the ingredients into the blade. Add unsweetened soy milk if necessary to blend.
5. Pour batter into baking dish and bake for one hour. Drop the temperature to 250° F or 120° C and bake for another hour or until the top of the brownies have started to brown slightly.
6. Alternatively, you can bake the brownies at 375° F or 190° C for 45 minutes. If the top of the brownies begins to burn during the last 10-15 minutes of baking, drop the temperature to 350° F or 180° C.
7. Let brownies chill completely before serving, preferably overnight in the refrigerator. Serve with Vanilla Cream Frosting, if desired.

Vanilla Cream Frosting

Ingredients

1 cup medjool dates, pitted
1/2 cup unsalted cashews
2/3 cup unsweetened soy milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Combine cashews, soy milk, dates and vanilla in a high-speed blender and process until smooth.

Enjoy!

Other recipes in the app that look great that I’ll try soon are Chocolate Buckwheat Brittle, Sweet Potato Cookies and The Ultimate Tofu Burger (that comes with a great tip for freezing and defrosting tofu to get the perfect burger texture). I appreciate the organization of the app: you can search by category like Breakfast or Gluten-Free, keep track of your favourites, write recipe reviews and export an ingredient shopping list. All recipes have colour photos (I’m really not a fan of cookbooks without photos, I need the photos!). You can get the Vegan Delish app for your iPhone or iPad for the introductory price of $1.99; not bad for 75 recipes! Find out more at Vegan Delish.com.

Carrie has kindy donated one free download of the Vegan Delish app to a lucky Earthgiven Kitchen reader. To enter, leave a comment on this post by Thursday, March 21st — tell me what you’re most looking forward to this spring! On March 22nd I’ll randomly select one winner from everyone who comments. You’ll have to act fast if you’re the winner as the code must be downloaded by March 26th. Good luck!

March 22nd Update: And the winner is….. April! Congratulations! I will send your email to Carrie who will email you your download code. Thanks for playing!

My favourite chocolate chip cookie with a surprising healthy ingredient

Posted on February 8, 2013 by Sarina @ Earthgiven Kitchen

These are one of my most favourite recipes, and certainly my favourite cookie. Better than a basic chocolate chip cookie, these have the lovely texture of flaked coconut and something that tastes almost like a soft macadamia nut. It’s not a nut at all, it’s super-healthy chickpeas, low if fat and packed with protein, fiber, zinc and folate. Baked into a chocolate chip cookie, the chickpea flavour is undetectable. I love that I can put these into my kid’s school lunch as a nut-free treat.

I can’t take credit for the idea of adding chickpeas to cookies, that came from the Deceptively Delicious cookbook by Jessica Seinfeld (Jerry Seinfeld’s wife). Her book isn’t vegetarian but it does have some great idea for hiding healthy ingredients into treat foods. Beyond veganizing Mrs. Seinfeld’s recipe, I’ve decreased the sugar and added whole grain flours, flax, molasses, cinnamon and coconut. You can’t get healthier cookies that taste this decadent!

Coconut & Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookies

3/4 cup sugar (I use turbinado)
3/4 cup Earth Balance Organic Coconut Flavoured Spread or other vegan margarine
2 tbsp molasses
1 tbsp flax in 3 tbsp water, mixed and set aside
2 tsp alcohol-free vanilla extract
2 cup flour (I used half whole wheat or whole spelt and half all-purpose flour)
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
3/4 cup cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 cup mini vegan chocolate chips (I use Camino Semi-Sweet chips which are also organic and fair trade)

Start by pinching the skins off the chickpeas. It doesn’t take that long (I enlist my oldest child for this task) and you’ll get a much nicer texture if you remove and discard the skins. Cream the sugar and margarine, then add the molasses, flax mixture and vanilla. In a bowl, combine the flours, oats, coconut, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Add to the wet mixture and combine. Add in the chickpeas and chocolate chips and stir gently.

Form into cookies about 2 tbsp each (I use a 2″ spring-loaded ice cream scoop) and drop onto cookie sheet topped with parchment paper. Bake at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes. Yield = about 18 cookies. I am submitting this recipe to Healthy Vegan Fridays.

5 recipes I’m loving lately

Posted on January 27, 2013 by Sarina @ Earthgiven Kitchen

Hi friends,

As much as I love developing recipes, I’ve been short on time these days, and haven’t been branching out beyond my repertoire of tried, tested and true recipes. In addition to full-time work, I started grad school this month! I am equally excited and freaking out. A master’s degree has been on my to-do list for a while, and this year felt like the right time to dive in. The extra activity on my plate is why you haven’t heard much from me these past few weeks, and while I may be posting less often than previously. (Though, I can be a terrible procrastinator when I’m under deadline, so perhaps when the school work gets intense, I’ll be blogging plentifully. During my last round of school I took up hand-stitching baby quilts and my house was always very clean).

I can’t take credit for any of the following wonderful recipes, but I’ve linked to the original blog post or book’s website. Here’s what I’ve been whipping up lately…..

Apple Pie Oatmeal from Oh She Glows. Recipe here. When I give my kids this oatmeal for breakfast, they think they are getting a treat. It tastes like the sweet cinnamon filling of apple pie, but with plenty of protein thanks to the oats and nuts. Filling and delicious! If you want to change it up, Angela has plenty more oatmeal recipes to choose from on her blog, like the Sweet Potato Oatmeal Breakfast Casserole.

Pasta with Easy Breezy Cheesy Sauce from Appetite for Reduction by Isa Chandra Moskowitz, and posted here on her blog The Post Punk Kitchen. I reduce the amount of water to make it thicker and creamier. For the fastest mac ‘n cheese ever, I keep a container of the dry mix in the pantry, then mix with hot water and a smidge of mustard, blend, and add to cooked pasta and veggies. To keep it really simple, I reserve the pasta cooking water for the sauce. Use it any place you’d use a creamy cheese sauce: over steamed broccoli, poured on baked potatoes or nachos (thanks, Mary, for that idea!). In the photo above I’ve used the cheesy sauce over perogies with fresh herbs and coconut bacon.
Cinnamon Bun Granola from Tiny Treats by Lisa Pitman and Nicole Axworthy. This granola is so good we have it for breakfast, for snacks and as an ice cream topping for dessert! I never would have thought to add buckwheat to my granola, but what a great texture it adds! You can buy the e-cookbook through the authors’ blogs A Dash of Compassion or Vegan Culinary Crusade. A lovely bonus is a third of the proceeds are donated to the Elephant Nature Park, a sanctuary in Northern Thailand, if you need one more reason to support this awesome project!

Jambalaya from Peas and Thank You by Sarah Matheny. A hearty and filling meal that’s fast and easy, if rice is already cooked. In the photo above, I’ve used a mix of brown rice and millet instead of just rice, to change it up. I use Field Roast Apple Sage sausages which add just a bit of sweetness to the Jambalaya. If you can handle spicy foods, try the Field Roast Mexican Chipotle sausages — they would compliment the jambalaya perfectly but are too spicy for me!

Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Almond Cookies, another winner from Nicole of A Dash of Compassion. Recipe here. Just eight ingredients mean you can whip these babies up in five minutes. These not-so-sweet cookies are flour-less, high in protein, and their texture is like a melt-in-your-mouth shortbread! Try adding the ingredients into the pot of melted coconut oil and the heat will melt the chips into a chocolate swirl.
………………………………………..
In other news, I’ve organized a vegan potluck in Waterloo next Saturday, February 2nd at noon. I love potlucks and hope it will be a nice opportunity for vegans and vegan-friendly people in the Waterloo area to connect. All are welcome: vegans, non-vegans, adults, kids. If you’re able to join us, please see the event page on facebook here. Join us if you can!
………………………………………..

Nice Krispie Squares

Posted on October 19, 2012 by Sarina @ Earthgiven Kitchen

I finally got my hands on Dreena Burton’s Eat, Drink and Be Vegan and while most of the recipes are pretty healthy, the first one I tried was the “nice krispie squares”. The rest of the recipes look amazing, I look forward to trying more soon!

Dreena actually shares two recipes for rice krispie squares: a traditional version with vegan margarine and marshmallows, and a “nicer” version with macadamia nut butter. That recipe is found on her website here. I’m sure I’ll try the latter eventually, but in the meantime, I made Dreena’s nice krispie squares using Becel vegan margarine, Nature’s Path rice cereal and Dandies vegan marshmallows.

Making rice krispie squares are always a fun activity with the kids. Mine particularly enjoyed stirring the melting marshmallows on the stove, because if you’re a child, there is just about nothing as fun as turning something into goo.

The result? A very authentic tasting rice krispie treat. Sweet and gooey (with pretty much no redeeming nutritional value), they are just like the treats I grew up with and were a fun indulgence. The kids gave them too sticky thumbs up!

Pumpkin Spice Scones and Vegan Clotted Cream

Posted on October 18, 2012 by Sarina @ Earthgiven Kitchen

I recently hosted a tea party to celebrate the birthday of a dear friend. We both love tea and sweets and opportunities to speak in fake British accents so we had a jolly good time!

On the menu:

Pumpkin spice scones

Crumpets

Clotted cream and strawberry jam

Cucumber sandwiches

Gingersnaps

Fresh strawberries

Assorted teas

The gingersnaps, crumpets and jam were store-bought to save on time. The gingersnaps are Nyakers brand and they were thin and crispy, just right for dunking in tea. They were also perfect as the base for pumpkin pie crust instead of graham crackers that I made the next day. I can’t recall the brand of the vegan crumpets but found them at FreshCo.

The sandwiches were filled with Tofutti Garlic and Herb Better Than Cream Cheese, baby spinach and cucumbers. The scones were an adaptation of the sweet potato biscuits that I’ve been making for years (see below). Being October, I thought pumpkin would be a nice variation.

So, what is the difference between a scone and a biscuit anyway? It seems there is a fine line between the terms but biscuits are more of a savoury dinner food (often accompanied by gravy) and scones are a bit sweeter and more of an accompaniment for tea or breakfast. In the UK, biscuits are more what we think of as cookies in North America, and as we were having as proper an Enligh tea party as we could, scones they were. I used 2 tbsp of sugar for a not-too-sweet scone since I knew I’d be slathering them in jam, but you may want to increase to 3 tbsp to have them taste more like dessert.

Pumpkin Spice Scones

1/3 cup soy milk
1 tsp lemon juice or vinegar
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2-3 tbsp dry sweetener
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
6 tbsp chilled vegan margarine
3/4 cup pumpkin puree

Pour the lemon juice or vinegar into the soy milk and let sit for a few minutes to make a buttermilk. Meanwhile, add all dry ingredients in a food processor and mix well. Add the chilled margarine until it resembles coarse meal. Add the pumpkin purée to the buttermilk and mix well. Stir the wet mixture into the flour mixture, careful not to over-mix. Drop large spoonfuls onto a baking sheet and bake at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Makes 6-8 scones.

Variation: Sweet Potato Dinner Biscuits: Substitute sweet potato purée for the pumpkin purée (you can use a small jar of baby food to save time) and use 2 tbsp of dry sweetener and omit the cinnamon and nutmeg.

I was enchanted with the idea of making my own vegan clotted cream. The inspiration came from Steph’s Cup of Tea blog though I’ve changed the measurements to be have more a cream cheese taste.

Clotted Cream
6 tbsp Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese
4 tbsp vegan margarine
2 tsp agave or maple syrup

Blend in a food processor, taste and add more sweetener if desired. Use as a spread on scones or muffins.

Happy birthday, Melanie!

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!

Posted on October 8, 2012 by Sarina @ Earthgiven Kitchen

Whether you’re Canadian or not, I hope you all had a wonderful weekend full of family, friends, good food, and more blessings than you can count! I am grateful that I did!
I had grand plans to make a seitan roast from scratch for Thanksgiving Sunday dinner, but in the end, convenience won, and I bought a Tofurky roast. For those who are unfamiliar with them, Tofurky roasts are a blend of tofu, wheat and spices complete with a centre of wild rice and breadcrumb stuffing. Completely vegan and absolutely delicious! I especially appreciate that the company Turtle Foods uses soy that is organic and non-GMO, and all their products are vegan and free of preservatives and artificial ingredients. In addition to their roasts, I love Tofurky’s deli slices, frozne pizza (with Daiya), Smoky Maple Bacon Marinated Tempeh and Kielbasa Sausages. Yum yum yum!

I surrounded the roast with parsnips and potatoes then drizzled all with a marinade of equal parts olive oil and soy sauce mixed with poultry seasoning, then sprinkled with sea salt, black pepper and fresh sprigs of rosemary and cooked it at 350 degrees for 90 minutes.
Rounding out Thanksgiving dinner: carrots, beans and quinoa tabouleh. For dessert, I made my stuffed dates, one of the tastiest desserts you can put together in five minutes. This weekend’s medjool dates were stuffed with hazelnut butter and chocolate chips.

Stuffed Dates

medjool dates
your favourite nut butter
chocolate chips, nuts or dried fruit

Slice each date lengthwise, just far enough to remove the pit. Fill with the nut butter and top with chocolate. For a completely raw option, use raw nut butters, raw nuts and dehydrator-dried fruit. Chill until you’re ready to serve.

What served as your main dish for Thanksgiving? I’m looking forward to perusing all the Vegan MoFo thanksgiving posts!

Ginger Molasses Cookies

Posted on October 2, 2012 by Sarina @ Earthgiven Kitchen

Soft and chewy and topped with cinnamon and sugar, they are a favourite in our house when we’re in a mood for break from our “healthy” desserts and just want to indulge. I created these cookies to copy the ones my children love at Starbucks, just smaller versions. Enjoy them with a big glass of almond milk or cup or tea.
Ginger Molasses Cookies
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 1/2 tsp powdered egg replacer (like Ener-G brand)
1/4 cup molasses
3/4 cups canola oil
topping: 1/4 cup sugar + 1 tsp cinnamon

Combine the egg replacer with 2 tbsp water, mix and set aside for a few minutes. Meanwhile, combine the dry ingredients in a bowl and mix well. In a food processor, add the oil and molasses to the egg replacer and water and mix well. Gradually add the dry mixture to the wet mixture in the food processor and combine. If the dough is dry, add a small amount of water (a few teaspoons at a time) while the food processor is running, until the dough forms a ball.

Mix the sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Roll the dough into balls then dip one side into the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Place cinnamon-sugar side up on grease cookie sheets, spacing them a few inches apart.

Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Allow to cool 5 minutes before removing from pans.

I am submitting this recipe to Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays blog hop.

Fuel your body and mind at Thrive Juice Bar

Posted on September 17, 2012 by Sarina @ Earthgiven Kitchen

I am often asked for recommendations for places to eat near my work in Waterloo, and I don’t have to think long before giving my answer: Thrive Juice Bar. The place used to be quiet, the best kept secret in town. A place to sip your Coconut Cashew Medjool Date smoothie in peace. But now the word is out and the place is almost always packed, a line occasionally snaking out the door. Beyond having the most delicious food in town, the staff are friendly and the decor is modern and gorgeous — overall a very enjoyable place to eat.
Thrive started as a vegetarian gourmet health food restaurant with vegan options with the motto “fuel your body, fuel your mind”; last year they announced they would be exclusively vegan, though their menu options so accessible and delicious (no “weird hippie food” or fake meat here) our omnivore friends are just as addicted as my husband and I. You’ll hardly believe that food this tasty is good for you. They say they are the “freshest, cleanest and greenest establishment in town” and I would have to agree!

Here are some of the food we’ve enjoyed there lately:
Black Bean Chipotle and Avocado burger. Thrive’s veggie burger has been evolving since they opened in 2010 and they have all been delicious. It’s latest incarnation is a bit spicy, so if you like your burgers with a bit of a kick, you’re in luck. Also, if you like your burgers so generously humongous they can hardly fit in your mouth, you are also in luck. Tip: you can ask for your burger on bread instead of the big buns. It’s served with chips, salsa and hot peppers on the side.
The Big Green Sandwich. Avocado, sprouts, cucumbers and more with a delicious garlic aioli sauce. My husband’s favourite item on the menu.
The Thai Wrap. Sesame tempeh, sprouts, greens and a sweet chili sauce that goes perfectly. I’ve ordered this one at least ten times, it’s one of my favourites.

Falafel Wrap. This item is newer so I’ve only had it once but it was hearty and tasty. The sauce is an edamame hummus with tahini garlic dressing that’s very nice.
The Little Big Kids Meal. A grilled cheese made with Daiya and served with tortilla chips, sprouts, pickles and a green juice. My kids love it all, including the green juice.
Chocolate cupcakes. These were absolutely wonderful. Sweet but not too sugary. We got this one for my hubby’s birthday. The dessert options change regularly, so you’ll have to go in and see what the chef has prepared fresh that day.
Juices and Smoothies! These smoothies will ruin you for all other smoothie bars. I’ve tried so many smoothies from fancy juice bars and none are as good as Thrive’s. The Coconut Medjool Date smoothie is absolutely addictive and tastes like dessert. If you only try one item on the menu, this should be it. Others we love are the Kale Mojito, Chocolate Avocado Ganache and the Big Red Smoothie and the Big Purple smoothie. Thrive are affiliated with Brendan Brazier (the vegan endurance athlete who wrote the Thrive book series) and the VEGA products so in addition to being able to enhance your drinks with assorted supplements, you can buy VEGA products there too. Assorted hot beverages are also served.

Other items on the menu we recommend: the pad thai noodle salad, the Mediterranean rice bowl, the caesar sprout salad and the A.L.T. (avocado, lettuce and tempeh).
A couple of notes if you are planning a visit: their menu online is not up to date, you’ll have to pop in to see the current offerings which change seasonally (so don’t get your hopes up for pizza). While there is an item for kids on the menu, we don’t find it the best place to bring young children as there are no highchairs and the chairs are high and tippy; I find it best to leave the kids at home and enjoy a nice lunch out with grownups or get a takeout meal. There are gluten-free and raw options. The soup of the day is always excellent. Check their hours before you go, they are not open for a late dinner. The prices may be higher than you’d expect for lunch but portions are generous and ingredients are often organic and locally-sourced, well worth it for a high quality meal.

Thanks to Thrive and especially passionate owner Jonnie Karan, for showing Waterloo that vegan can easily be the healthiest and the most delicious food you can find!

Thrive Juice Bar is located in the Bauer Lofts at 191 King Street, Waterloo, Ontario.

Earthgiven Kitchen

Adventures in vegan city homesteading

Category Archives: Dessert

Birthday celebration at Kindfood and Kelly’s Bake Shoppe

Vegan Easter

Spinach Black Bean Brownies with Vanilla Cream Frosting and a giveaway!

Spinach Black Bean Brownies

Ingredients

Instructions

Vanilla Cream Frosting

Ingredients

Instructions

Nice Krispie Squares

Pumpkin Spice Scones and Vegan Clotted Cream

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!

Fuel your body and mind at Thrive Juice Bar

Follow “Earthgiven Kitchen”

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Spinach Black Bean Brownies

Ingredients

Instructions

Vanilla Cream Frosting

Ingredients

Instructions

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Follow “Earthgiven Kitchen”