I featured this recipe before in my batch cooking blog post and decided I wanted to give this soup it's own spotlight because it's so yummy. You can cook this in a crockpot or also right on the stovetop. It's pretty quick and easy to prepare also!

What You Will Need

4 - 15 oz. of  black beans rinsed and drained

1 Yellow onion, diced

5 Cloves of garlic minced

3 Carrots, diced

1 Stalk of celery diced

1 Jalapeno, sliced

1 tbsp. Chili powder

1 tbsp. Cumin

1/8 tsp. Paprika, smoked if you have it.

2 – 15oz. Can of diced tomatoes

1 ½ Cups of frozen corn

1 1/2-2 Cups of veggie broth (Or to your desired thickness)

What You Need To Do

Add all ingredients, except corn, to the crockpot and cook on low for 6 hrs. after 4 hrs take 2 cups of mixture and put in a blender and puree, add back to soup.

You could also use an immersion blender if you have one. Add corn and let cook for the remaining time. Enjoy!

For leftovers, let cool and freeze...

These are becoming my go-to snack in the house. It's great for after a workout or a run. Also, when I start to feel those afternoon lulls and need a pick me up. Or just a yummy snack, these balls of energy are full of protein, taste delicious, and are quick and easy to make! My kids love them too....and my dogs!

WHAT YOU WILL NEED

1 3/4 cup almond butter

2 cups gluten-free oats

1/3 cup finely shredded coconut

2 tbsp chia seeds

2 tbsp ground flax seed

¼ cup maple syrup

3 tsp vanilla

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

Combine all ingredients and blend. I suggest using a mixer. The mixture will look crumbly but you should be able to squeeze it together in your hand to form a ball. Bite-size is recommended. If needed add more almond butter. Take some extra coconut flakes to roll the bites in. Place in a sealed container in the fridge. This will keep them firm. That's it, super easy and very quick!

To sign up for the blog and get weekly plant-based recipes, click Here

I hope you enjoy!...

This is a recipe from my Thursday Random Refrigerator Meals. I go live every Thursday from my Facebook business page, Tina Stinson - Healthy Balanced Living at 4 pm ET. This was last weeks meal and it was so delicious and easy to make I decided to put it on the blog.

You don't need too many ingredients to make this one which makes it easy and pretty inexpensive. This was enough for two people with some leftovers so if you have a family your cooking for maybe double it if you want leftovers. 

I hope you enjoy!

What You Will Need

2 Bell peppers any color, sliced.

1 Large or 2 small onions, red or yellow, sliced.

4 Garlic cloves minced.

2 Large portobello mushrooms, sliced.

1 Jalapeno, sliced. Optional if you want to add heat.

2 Tbsp Olive oil

2-3 Tbsp Chili Powder

1 Tsp. Cumin

Salt to taste. I didn't need to add any.

4-6 Small Tortillas. I used whole wheat.

1 Avocado as a topping. Optional.

Plant-based yogurt. To use in place of sour cream as a topping. Optional

What...

I had a completely different recipe planned this week but I decided with all the freezing weather going on I would do something to warm you up!

To sign up to get delicious plant-based/vegan recipes sent to your inbox each week CLICK HERE

Minestrone is basically a vegetable soup so don't be afraid to do freestyle!

What You Will Need

2 15.5 oz cans of beans rinsed. I use cannellini or garbanzo.

1 28 oz can of diced tomatoes

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 yellow onion, diced

2 carrots, sliced

2 celery stalks, sliced

1 cup of shredded cabbage

4-5 cloves of garlic, diced

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried basil

1 tsp dried parsley

1 bay leaf

½ tsp red pepper flakes, optional

4-5 cups of veggie stock(might need more if you're adding pasta or rice)

Salt and pepper to taste

Things you can add:

2 small potatoes, diced.

1 small zucchini, diced

4 cups of chopped spinach

½ cup pasta

½ cup brown rice

What you need to do

In a Medium to large stock pot heat olive oil on...

When I first decided to try a plant-based/vegan diet I did lose weight, about 8 lbs. I wasn't trying to lose weight but when you start eating plant-based whole foods you end up adding in tons of healthy foods which end up crowding out the bad stuff!  Here are a few of the reasons you might lose weight.

1. If you decided to try a Plant-Based diet for health reasons then you will be eating a lot of whole foods which include low-calorie fruits, veggies. Whole foods have lots of fiber and are nutrient-dense. This will keep you full longer.

2. You're not eating a lot of animal-based foods like meat, cheese, and dairy. Most of them have high calories saturated fats and are not usually full of all the great nutrients that fruits, veggies, and whole foods have.

Also, when your eating plant-based whole food you automatically cut out processed foods loaded with sugar, heavy amounts of salt, and unhealthy fats, all of which add to weight gain.

3. When your body is getting an abundance...

Try This Stress-Relief Method for Quick Results

Whenever I come across a stressful situation I use this method for instant relief. It's called the 478 Method by Dr. Andrew Weil.

It's very easy. You just take a deep breath in expanding your chest as much as you can in 4 seconds, hold for 7 seconds, and then exhale for 8 seconds. Do this a few times and you will feel calmer.

Just like any exercise, this will take some practice to master it but this will be a valuable tool for you to calm that stress quickly. And an added bonus, you can do this anywhere!

Learn more about Dr. Weil's Method and why it works HERE.

To get more tips like these along with weekly plant-based recipes sign up for my newsletter HERE.

Want to hang out with a bunch of like-minded people and learn more about plant-based cooking, self-care, and stress relief? Come join the free group on Facebook, Healthy Balanced Plant-Based Living HERE.

Ready to go all in?...

Crunchy Chewy Vegan Granola

I absolutely love making my own granola. You save a ton of money, you can customize it to fit what you like, and it tastes so much better.

When I say customize what I mean is you can pick what kind of nuts you mix in there and decide if you want raisins or dried cranberries or other dried fruit. You can also pick the spices you add like cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice is yummy too. You can even get creative with adding different extracts instead of vanilla like almond or coconut.

I made this recipe vegan by swapping honey for maple syrup which changes the flavor a little, for the better as far as I'm concerned.

Once you make your own granola you won't go back, it tastes so much better, it's so fresh, and it's personalized!

Use this recipe as a base and customize it to make it yours!

Preheat oven to 350°

What You Will Need

4 Cups of old fashioned rolled oats.

1 Cup of pecans, chopped. Or nuts of your choice.

½ Cup...

I know I'm a little late to the game this New Year. I was set back by a bad cold but now I'm back and ready!

This is my New Year Meal to bring health and prosperity to you!

Last year I made a soup and just wanted to do something different. I was in the mood for chili, so chili it was.

I'm very happy the way this came out and there was enough to freeze and share. As a matter of fact, I'm having this for lunch today.

So let me get to it!

What Do I Need?

2 tbsp Olive Oil

1 large or 2 small Onions, diced

2 Peppers, diced. Whatever color your heart desires

5 Cloves of garlic, minced.

2 Carrots shredded.

2 15.5 oz of black eye peas, drained.

4 Cups of veggie broth.

28oz of Diced Tomatoes with liquid.

½ to ¾ Cup of uncooked, rinsed quinoa. Depends on how thick you would like it.

1 tsp Garlic powder.

1 tsp Onion powder.

2 tsp Cumin.

2 tsp Paprika.

3 tbsp Chili powder.

1/2 tsp Liquid smoke.

1 Small bag of fresh spinach, chopped.

1 Avocado for garnish,...

This has always been one of my favorites. I got this recipe from Pinterest a while ago. I'm not quite sure who posted it. I tried to look it up but there are actually a lot of similar recipes on there.  The whole family likes this one! Sometimes I serve it with some tortilla chips and avocado, yum!!

WHAT YOU WILL NEED :

1 1/2-2 cups of cooked quinoa

2 Cups of water

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

3 cloves of garlic minced

1 jalapeño, seeds, and ribs removed diced

1 red pepper seeds removed, diced

1 orange pepper seeds removed, diced

1 cup of frozen corn

Juice of one small lime

1 Tsp of ground cumin

1 1/2  Tbsp of chili powder

1/3 cup of chopped cilantro

Salt and pepper to taste

1 15.5 oz cans of black beans drained and rinsed

2 cups of red enchilada sauce

2 1/2 cups of Daiya shredded pepper jack cheese

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Grease 9x13 baking dish.

In a large skillet heat olive oil, medium heat. Add onion garlic and jalapeño. Sauté...

I wanted to share the recipe I found for the gingerbread cookies I made and posted everywhere. It was not my recipe. I found it online at "I love vegan"

I usually use the same recipe I've been using forever and just veganize it. I just moved and couldn't find it. I'll keep looking but in the meantime, I found this recipe.

They came out great. The cookies I rolled thicker were a little chewy which I like but I also rolled some thinner so I could have some crispy ones too!

Visit I Love Vegan to get the recipe here!:

https://www.ilovevegan.com/perfect-vegan-gingerbread-cookies/

I hope you like them and enjoy!

Xo,

Tina