I am so happy it’s Wednesday! I have tomorrow off which is badly needed. Sleep has eluded me the last couple of nights and I’ve been on bar at work non-stop for the last 3 days (meaning I’m the one making all the drinks). It may not sound like a lot but it’s really tiring work running back and forth between the espresso machines and blenders all day, especially when it gets busy! I am really looking forward to a day of rest. The food I ate yesterday wasn’t super creative for the most part but it was pretty tasty nonetheless! I made some recipes from my new cookbook, Practically Raw which I have been LOVING. I also came up with a delicious chocolate raspberry dessert that I’ll share the recipe for. It’s very rich tasting and protein and antioxidant packed! Not bad for a dessert :)

Pre-breakfast (5:20 am)

Started with the usual lemon water (actually had a full glass) and some Vanilla Chai Vega Whole Food Optimizer mixed in water. I’ve been doing this a lot lately so I would have energy to do a workout in the morning without having to eat a full breakfast that would weight me down. It’s definitely working! After this I did a really awesome yoga sequence that helped wake up my core and relieve some sore muscles. My new Jillian Michaels DVD is literally kicking my butt.

Breakfast (6:20 am)

Breakfast was a green smoothie in a bowl. This one was a really simple one- banana, almond milk, almond butter, chia seeds and spinach. It’s really one of my favourite combinations as you can really taste the banana and almond. In other smoothies these flavours can get lost so sometimes it’s nice to get back to basics. I topped it with some berries, millet-rice cereal and this toasted coconut mixture- I had a bit of a failure with raw cookies but ended up with a delicious coconut topping that I’ve been putting on everything from smoothies to fruit, to oats and dessert! Kitchen failures can be repurposed!

Snack (9 am)

Some veggies with salsa and hummus for dipping. I didn’t quite finish all the carrots. The hummus is the basic Zucchini Hummus recipe from Practically Raw. This is a seriously good hummus! The base is made from zucchini and there are no beans in it which I really appreciated. Too many beans upset my delicate digestive system (although seriously sometimes I think everything does) so when I saw the recipe I knew I had to try it. And it really tastes like hummus! I will be making this again. Here’s a nicer pic of the dip after I made it:

Lunch (11 am)

What was left of lunch when I finally remembered to take a pic- I had a simple green salad with mixed greens, cherry tomatoes and a balsamic dressing and some pasta with the raw marinara sauce from Practically Raw. It’s really delicious, I think I’ll make this tomato sauce from now on! I have been enjoying it a lot this week, mostly on zucchini noodles (or zoodles as I now like to call them) but we were out of zucchini so I opted for some cooked pasta!

Snack (4 pm)

Some mango with more of that coconut topping and a coconut lemon coconut hemp seed bite (recipe to some soon!)

Update: click here for the lemon coconut hemp seed bites recipe!

Dinner (6:30 pm)

Was feeling a little uninspired at dinner but managed to rustle up something really tasty! A baked sweet potato that I cut in half- topped 1 side with almond butter and cinnamon and the other with hummus an salsa. With a very simple spinach salad. This was really filling and it surprised me with how much I enjoyed it!

Dessert (7:30)

I had a tiny portion of this chocolate raspberry pudding for dessert. I was so full but just wanted a little somethin’.

This pudding was the result of me wanting to use up some silken tofu that was sitting in fridge. I don’t use it very often- I tend to prefer to use nuts to create creamy bases and more whole forms of soy like tempeh- but when I do, it tends to be a small amount and then the rest languishes in the fridge and needs to be thrown out. I was determined not to let that happen this time!

The silken tofu worked flawlessly here. It provides the perfect base and lets the cacao and the raspberry flavours shine. The result is a deep chocolately flavour with undertones of raspberry so it’s not too sweet.  The cacao is loaded with antioxidants and micronutrients and the silken tofu provides a ton of protein making this recipe really filling- a small portion really goes a long way.

Chocolate Raspberry Pudding/Mousse (Vegan, Gluten-Free, Refined Sugar-Free)

• 3/4 cup frozen raspberries, thawed
• 10 oz. silken tofu (this is what I had left, you could probably use a whole 12 oz. package without problem)
• 1/4 cup cacao
• 1 tbsp almond milk (or more if it’s not blending easy)
• 10 drops stevia
• 1.5 tbsp agave
• pinch salt (this really made the dessert. It didn’t taste right until I had an “aha!” moment and added it. Really pulled it all together)

First, put the raspberries in a blender and puree. Then press the puree through a fine meshed strainer to remove the seeds and collect in a bowl underneath. This is so you don’t get seedy chunks in the final product. Make sure you scrape the strainer with a spatula to get all that raspberry goodness.

Combine the strained raspberry puree and the rest of ingredients in a blender and bend until smooth!

look how thick it is…mmmm :)

And that concludes another What I Ate Wednesday! Enjoy the day everyone!